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Returning 35 results for 'bad before deciding clever relatively'.
Species
Mythic Odysseys of Theros
adversaries—incredibly clever and well-prepared to play a long game but ultimately doomed to lose their games.
4
I’m certain every bad thing that happens can ultimately be blamed on the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
The Middle Path Many DMs find that using a combination of the two approaches works best. By balancing the use of dice against deciding on success, you can encourage your players to strike a balance
bad die roll foiling the character’s plans. By the same token, a bad plan or unfortunate circumstances can transform the easiest task into an impossibility, or at least impose disadvantage.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons
knowledge, but the dragon is cagey on that point. Seeing good and bad in equal measure among the lesser races, Ileuthra recognizes that helping the humanoids is less a case of deciding whether they are worthy
of aid, and more about deciding whether these adventurer ambassadors can be trusted to properly lead the factions. Desire. Ileuthra has no preconceived sense of what might be the best course, and he
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Rise of Tiamat
knowledge, but the dragon is cagey on that point. Seeing good and bad in equal measure among the lesser races, Ileuthra recognizes that helping the humanoids is less a case of deciding whether they are worthy
of aid, and more about deciding whether these adventurer ambassadors can be trusted to properly lead the factions. Desire. Ileuthra has no preconceived sense of what might be the best course, and he
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
creature’s efforts. In a contest, the ability checks are compared to each other, rather than to a target number. When you call for a contest, you pick the ability that each side must use, deciding
crowd, lie to someone convincingly INTELLIGENCE CHECK VS. WISDOM CHECK
If you have trouble deciding whether to call for an Intelligence or a Wisdom check to determine whether a character notices
Orc
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
everywhere in the world around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should
ward off diseases if they are worn.
Don’t stand inside a ring of stones, mushrooms, or any other kind of circle.
Seeing a shooting star before a battle is bad luck. To ward it off, you must
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
and evil are blurred. Choices involve deciding which outcome is least bad. Corruption and suspicion flourish among organizations and individuals. Magic and magic items might be rarer or require a
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
, the Talons are terrifying. Their numbers are relatively few, but they’re organized enough to oppress Lekar’s ragged survivors and enforce Drakov’s totalitarian laws. In the face of zombie hordes
executions serve the greater good and impose necessary order, but make it clear that zombies aren’t the realm’s only monsters. Only Bad Decisions. There is one simple truth in Falkovnia: the dead are
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist
. We’ve visited Waterdeep before, but not like this. Clever heroes will respect the city’s rules. Those who get on the city’s bad side are in for a rough time, as the City of Splendors is home to some of
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should react to them. As a race, orcs
stones, mushrooms, or any other kind of circle. Seeing a shooting star before a battle is bad luck. To ward it off, you must swallow a stone. A tribute of elf ears brings favor from Gruumsh. If you bury
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus
determine the outcome. A Charisma check can’t deceive or persuade most devils into a bad deal because the fiends are too clever and experienced in deal-making to be fooled. If devils do get involved in a
Kobold
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
strong social structure that stresses devotion to the tribe, are clever with their hands, and viciously work together in order to overcome their physical limitations.
In the kobolds’ version of
roles that protect and sustain the tribe. The strongest kobolds are trained to be hunters and warriors, the most clever are crafters and strategists, the toughest are miners and beast-wranglers, and so
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
. What better way to think of the big bad monster at the center of a web of even bigger and badder plans than as the CEO of a megacorporation, using every resource to dominate the market? What is an
these hired helpers to prominence for their importance to the campaign story. And, of course, for comic effect. When the characters are relatively low level, an Acquisitions Incorporated style of play can
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Vecna: Eve of Ruin
paraphrase the following: “Not bad. You are clever—I acknowledge that much. But I wonder how you would fare against the master of this chamber. I hereby challenge you to a dragonchess match: winner takes
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh
realize what the party is up to, they immediately suspect the characters are out to make them look bad. In that case, they become surly and tight-lipped. All the militia guards have been assured by
superiors and fellow guards, and she doesn’t need any more trouble in that area. If she’s reassured that the characters aren’t trying to make the militia look bad, Jute gives a frank account of her
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants
resemble relatively small frost or stone giants. They use armor and weapons similar to what other combatants on Ysgard use in the eternal battle. The transformation that created fensirs left them with an
seems like a transparently bad idea. What were those giants thinking?
—Bigby
And yet, can we fairly say that the existence of fensirs is “transparently bad”? Some might argue they are a
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Hoard of the Dragon Queen
night tied to posts alongside the monk Leosin. Characters have one night to escape this fate. They might wriggle out of their bonds, bribe or charm a cultist to set them free, or come up with a clever
effect is the same as if they’d been recognized. If characters lie to Mondath — claiming they are new recruits and this is all a mistake, for example, or that they are studying the cult before deciding
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons
posts alongside the monk Leosin. Characters have one night to escape this fate. They might wriggle out of their bonds, bribe or charm a cultist to set them free, or come up with a clever use for a
as if they’d been recognized. If characters lie to Mondath—claiming they are new recruits and this is all a mistake, for example, or that they are studying the cult before deciding whether to join
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
Clever Beast When a roll on the Lake Events table indicates that the lake monster takes an interest in the characters, read: Ripples disrupt the surface of the lake, causing your boat to bob from
boats from Bremen but does not attack indiscriminately, trying to gauge the strength and determination of the crew before deciding what to do. Roll on the Plesiosaurus Behavior table to determine how
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mythic Odysseys of Theros
The meddling of the gods in mortal affairs makes me angry and bitter. I wish they would just leave us all alone!
3 I view the gods as worthy adversaries—incredibly clever and well-prepared to
play a long game but ultimately doomed to lose their games.
4 I’m certain every bad thing that happens can ultimately be blamed on the gods, but I roll my eyes at each new twist of fate and try to
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
, skimming from the coffers of either temple, running illegal gambling at the Sleeping Giant — any of these activities could net a nice profit with relatively limited risk. Staying on the Good Side If
-work miners. Doing so makes acquiring ongoing concessions or information from townsfolk much easier, but puts the characters in the bad graces of Sharna Quirstiron at the Miner’s Exchange. Leads to the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
with Clever Twists It might seem stereotypical to build an adventure around dragons, orcs, and wizards in towers, but these are staples of fantasy storytelling. It might also seem trite to begin an
describing the present situation, what the bad guys are up to, and how the adventurers become involved in the story. Heroes Who Matter An adventure should allow the adventurers’ actions and decisions to
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
, since no one in Mirabar wishes to see the surface city wiped out. It would simply be bad for business. Mirabar spares no expense in defending its wealth, and hires as many mages and adventurers as
dust. Still, despite the city’s overall wealth, there are rich and (relatively) poor Mirabarrans. Not everyone shares in the coin the city’s sales bring in, and wage workers whose income is
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
receive relatively cordial treatment from those other hags instead. Every hag has a particular status relative to others of her kind and to hags of all sorts, based on age, abilities, influence
on rare magic to the hag’s daughter. THE RULE OF THREE
They say that things come in threes. Good things. Bad things. Strange things. Hags and purveyors of witchcraft embrace the Rule of Three, as it
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
Battle Balloon Through the winter clouds that surround the castle on this desolate hill, you see a shape emerge. Something so gigantic, you can’t believe it can actually fly. Airships are relatively
franchises. The versatility of an airship allows for the rapid shipping of goods, mercenaries, and loot. Such a vessel also allows a quick escape from sticky developments and deals gone bad. Battle
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
and easily controlled. The clever duergar threw off the long-ago attempt by the mind flayers to rule them and have been enemies of the illithids ever since. Grimlocks The first grimlocks were descended
groups, and their fear and despair in the face of a mind flayer incursion make their brains tasty to the illithid palate. They are also relatively easy for larger, stronger humanoid thralls to control
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
filled with humanoid dating advice. At any point at which the characters offer to cease hostilities, or if they are clever enough to negotiate with Raah from the outset, proceed as follows. Dating Advice
Intelligence (Investigation) or Wisdom (Perception) check to quickly assess Raah’s reading material determines that the ancient deep crow is highlighting everything, no matter how good or bad the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
until after it rolls the d20 before deciding to use the runestone die, but must decide before the DM says whether the roll succeeds or fails. Once the runestone die is rolled, it is lost, and the
deciding to use the runestone die, but must decide before the DM says whether the roll succeeds or fails. Once the runestone die is rolled, it is lost, and the humanoid can’t gain another from this
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands
animosity. They have bad blood with the Harmonium, who view the Fated as wrongheaded and dangerous, and Factol Darkwood and Factol Montgomery of the Society of Sensation are bitter rivals. Fraternity of
state of superior being. Factol Saladryn (neutral, elf archmage) guides the relatively young faction. She rarely sojourns beyond Sigil anymore, sacrificing her own journey of personal discovery to lead
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes
on a nugget of gold, that’s Yondalla turning bad luck into good. Arvoreen From time to time, halflings must fight to defend their friends or their village. In those moments, the tales of Arvoreen come
to the fore in every halfling’s memory. Every youth hears over and over again the stories of the hero’s bravery and cunning, his clever tactics in battle, and his ability to use speed and smallness
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
worth by its size. The small folk are beneath my concern. 7 The small folk are vermin. I enjoy torturing and killing them. 8 Good or bad, Annam’s sons represent the ideals that we, as giants, must
, the cleverest of Annam’s offspring. But Memnor isn’t only clever, he’s sly and deceitful. Tales of his exploits emphasize his charisma, his smooth manner, and his ability to manipulate and mislead
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
Pirates versus zombies
6 River barge crossing
7–8 The Maverick
Just Cut to the End If the players are particularly clever, they might come up with novel ways to shortcut the search for
efforts to undercut Acquisitions Incorporated’s reputation and success. Dagdra has made a lot of bad choices in her life, from leaving her church to joining Dran Enterprises and getting stuck with
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Curse of Strahd
mention that his cantankerous father, Davian Martikov, owns the local winery and vineyard, the Wizard of Wines (chapter 12). There’s bad blood between Urwin and his father (whom Urwin and Danika refer
in the taproom (area N2c). At dusk, he leaves the inn to tend to his horse and his wagon again, then returns to his room to retire for the night. Rictavio is too clever to leave anything valuable or
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
. Despite how strong the doors and magic of the vaults are, the walls between adjacent vaults are relatively thin. Dealing 40 bludgeoning or force damage to an inner wall creates a hole wide enough for a
Zardak appears to notice something odd about one of the characters or the body they inhabit, but this ends up just being his bad eyesight. Fifteen minutes after they arrive, the two take their leave
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Princes of the Apocalypse
twenty workers, and he insists on keeping careful records. Key NPC. The Believers have no formal leader, but if they did, Dornen would be it. He is a longstanding member who serves as the deciding
resale. His true talent is a keen eye for ordinary weapons and armor that can stand up to hard use and bad weather. Ask him which of his battleaxes is best, and Ironhead offers an honest (and accurate