Search Results
All Results
Characters
Compendium
Spells
Items
Monsters
Vehicles
Forums
Returning 35 results for 'barriers before dying caution run'.
Other Suggestions:
berries before during carrion run
berries before doing carrion run
barriers before during cautious run
barriers before during carrion run
barriers before doing carrion run
Monsters
The Wild Beyond the Witchlight
, without informing the rest of his family, Urmius bought a run-down carnival and persuaded Naeryx to help him operate it. Naeryx and Urmius—now calling themselves Mister Witch and Mister Light
carries his magic pocket watch.
Alignment. Chaotic good.
Personality Trait. “I carefully consider my words before speaking them aloud.”
Ideal. “Caution. Thoughtless decisions lead
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons
Developments This battle will likely be a challenge to run. It is designed to create an emotional low spot in the adventure, during which overall defeat for the forces of good looks like a real
innocent townsfolk from being slaughtered and turn dragons away from fleeing crowds. The characters can clear burning buildings, use magic to douse flames or save the dying, and stand up for those who cannot defend themselves. Let their sacrifice during this fight mean something.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Rise of Tiamat
Developments This battle will likely be a challenge to run. It is designed to create an emotional low spot in the adventure, during which overall defeat for the forces of good looks like a real
innocent townsfolk from being slaughtered and turn dragons away from fleeing crowds. The characters can clear burning buildings, use magic to douse flames or save the dying, and stand up for those who cannot defend themselves. Let their sacrifice during this fight mean something.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
about a dungeon. Even the most wide-open terrain presents clear pathways. Roads seldom run straight because they follow the contours of the land, finding the most level or otherwise easiest routes across
uneven ground. Valleys and ridges channel travel in certain directions. Mountain ranges present forbidding barriers traversed only by remote passes. Even the most trackless desert reveals favored
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons
4. Naergoth Bladelord Naergoth Bladelord Before Severin assumed control over the Cult of the Dragon, the Well of Dragons was used to transform dying dragons into dracoliches. Naergoth Bladelord (see
, its contents now covered in dust and hung with cobwebs and pathos. Intruders skulking through the warrens can run into Naergoth anywhere. Use him as a roleplaying encounter or add him to a battle that is going well for the party at a time of your choosing.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Rise of Tiamat
4. Naergoth Bladelord
Naergoth Bladelord
Before Severin assumed control over the Cult of the Dragon, the Well of Dragons was used to transform dying dragons into dracoliches. Naergoth Bladelord
ago, its contents now covered in dust and hung with cobwebs and pathos. Intruders skulking through the warrens can run into Naergoth anywhere. Use him as a roleplaying encounter or add him to a battle that is going well for the party at a time of your choosing.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus
path. As the DM, you can decide where the characters encounter each of these groups. These encounters are meant to be run separately, although running two encounters back-to-back with no chance for the
move through the cathedral. The spined devil roars at them as it uses its telepathy to order them to focus. This lack of caution and discipline makes ambushing or sneaking up on the group easy
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath
4. The Dying Second While the incredibly devout Gadrille the Reef-Reaver leads the group of cultists at the caves, Fheralai Stormsworn assigned a second-in-command to assist her — with special
to Talos, asking for a boon in payment for her years of devotion: curse Sovendahl for his cowardly caution. And Talos answered. The Sick Room When the characters encounter Sovendahl, he is resting in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
failed check, you are bitten and take 1d4 piercing damage, and the dogs count as 5 feet of difficult terrain. 7 You run into a brawl in progress. Make a DC 15 Strength (Athletics), Dexterity
ground counts as 10 feet of difficult terrain. 3 You run through a swarm of insects (see the Monster Manual for game statistics, with the DM choosing whichever kind of insects makes the most sense). The
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Out of the Abyss
permission, they can avoid most trouble with the tower’s inhabitants. Otherwise, stealth and caution will be important. Have the characters make four DC 13 Dexterity (Stealth) group checks from the
(your choice of race) are on an errand for their drow mage master when they run into the party by accident. If the characters state that they have legitimate business in Sorcere, the slaves answer
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
, moderate, or hard?” If the only DCs you ever use are 10, 15, and 20, your game will run just fine. Keep in mind that a character with a 10 in the associated ability and no proficiency will succeed at an
hurt. If you find yourself thinking, “This task is especially hard,” you can use a higher DC, but do so with caution and consider the level of the characters. A DC 25 task is very hard for low-level
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tomb of Annihilation
possibly against the dangers they perceive from the city’s less-well-off districts, which all lie outside the main wall. The walls are impressive barriers of massive, fitted stone. Like other structures
interesting. That being said, if the players seem restless, use the random encounters in appendix B to spice things up a bit as they’re gathering supplies for their expedition. At any time, the party might run
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh
above the main entrance. Hopene’er is run by Emil Trantor, a prematurely old female human physician with a worried brow and ashen-gray skin. Trantor and her staff of four are hard-pressed to control
the more than four hundred residents and prisoners housed in the asylum. Consequently, the less troubled residents are called upon to help run the place. Everyone in the asylum, workers and residents
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands
archway of red stone carved in the shape of a howling face. Crimson streaks of chipping paint run from its wide, empty eyes like pained tears on either side of an elongated mouth. It’s the only pop of
Cardinal’s claim that she was once a mage of a dying world, while others spurn the notion that she’s mortal at all. Still, a glimmer of hope flickers among the townsfolk, who rebel against the high
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
suffering from broken bones, lacerations, and concussions, and half of them (rounded down) are at 0 hit points and dying; the rest have 1 hit point each. A character can rush to the building and use an
action to try to pull a Ten-Towner out of the wreckage, doing so with a successful DC 14 Strength (Athletics) check, whereupon the character can try to stabilize a dying commoner or use healing magic to
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mythic Odysseys of Theros
Backgrounds: Hermit, sage, sailor, urchin Most worshipers of Athreos believe death is a natural part of life, to be neither rushed toward nor run from. They seek to do their part in fulfilling the
inevitable. (Evil or neutral)
4 Apathy. Life is but a rehearsal for death, and it’s best not to grow too attached to it. (Neutral)
5 Succor. I offer balm to the dying—which, to varying
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
. Ultimately, don’t hesitate to employ the setting’s most infamous castle even if you don’t plan to run a lengthy siege. The adventure Curse of Strahd explores Barovia and Castle Ravenloft in detail
Ravenloft.
4 The Martikovs, owners of the Wizard of Wines winery, seek aid recovering a shipment of cursed wine that turns drinkers into vine blights.
5 A dying wereraven (see chapter 5) gives
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragons of Stormwreck Isle
continue up the path and leave the slow, shambling zombies behind. If the characters turn and fight, this is the first combat encounter in the adventure. Here are the steps you should follow to run it
fight until they’re all defeated. Tip: Undead Fortitude. The zombies’ Undead Fortitude trait reflects how hard it is to kill these walking corpses. When this trait prevents a zombie from dying, give the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Intro to Stormwreck Isle
continue up the path and leave the slow, shambling zombies behind. If the characters turn and fight, this is the first combat encounter in the adventure. Here are the steps you should follow to run it
hard it is to kill these walking corpses. When this trait prevents a zombie from dying, give the players a hint about what happened. You might say, “That should have finished the creature off, but it
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
Respect for the Players Your players need to know from the start that you’ll run a game that is fun, fair, and tailored for them; that you’ll allow each of them to contribute to the story; and that
the characters are racing toward a goal or destination. (Use this technique with caution, as time pressure can increase players’ anxiety.) Telegraph Encounters. Give players advance warning that an
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
Respect for the Players Your players need to know from the start that you’ll run a game that is fun, fair, and tailored for them; that you’ll allow each of them to contribute to the story; and that
the characters are racing toward a goal or destination. (Use this technique with caution, as time pressure can increase players’ anxiety.) Telegraph Encounters. Give players advance warning that an
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
) and the overlook (area O3) run down to release the ogre zombie from its cage and attack intruders who breach this hall. The zombie sides with the duergar in any fight. Duergar that fall below half
he moves the lever to trigger a trap. Trap. When the lever is pulled, iron spikes spring out from the floor and ceiling to form barriers across each doorway. A creature in either opening must succeed
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
barriers, which otherwise require siege engines to force open. Gate Guards. Characters who stand outside the main gate and announce their arrival can speak to the guards in the gatehouse. Unless Levistus
pumped to reheat the dying coals. A wooden staircase hugs the outer wall as it climbs to the second level, which is unfurnished. Gusts of wind enter through the arrow slits on this level. Northwest Tower
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Mine of Phandelver
from a defeated goblin or use a weapon loaned to him by a character. If Sildar joins the party, see the “NPC Party Members” sidebar for tips on how to run him. NPC Party Members
An NPC might join the
party, if only for a short time. Here are some tips to help you run an NPC party member:
Let the characters make the important decisions. They are the protagonists of the adventure. If the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
dying wish of a heroic warrior they both loved.
6 After a young gold dragon freed a djinni from servitude, the djinni installed a portal linking the dragon’s lair to the djinni’s citadel on the
Siren’s Lens.
6 An imprisoned mummy lord has convinced its adult gold dragon jailer that the mummy’s plans for domination will be for the best in the long run.
7 An adult gold dragon
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tomb of Annihilation
and criminal gangs. You were about to make a run for it when you heard a rumor that a merchant named Syndra Silvane is offering good pay for an assignment far from home. Cloistered Scholar Sword
Coast Adventurer’s Guide A terrible curse is sweeping across Faerûn, and a dying merchant is gathering adventurers for a bold mission to destroy the source of the curse, which lies deep in the jungles of
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
easier to run. In the safety of its lair, outside the view of any would-be enemies, a beholder can use any of its eye rays whenever it wants to. Many of them serve as tools. Antimagic Cone The magic
usable only by a death tyrant, negative energy prevents survivors of a battle from healing and animates any dead or dying creatures as zombies under the beholder’s control. Because there is no limit
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Flee, Mortals! Rule Primer
of their turn, if a companion has 10 ferocity or more and isn’t incapacitated, they run the risk of entering a rampage. The companion’s caregiver can make a Wisdom (Animal Handling) check (no action
rampage. End of Combat. When a combat encounter involving a companion ends and the companion isn’t dying, the companion regains hit points equal to their ferocity, and their ferocity drops to 0. The GM
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
for a stowaway, and thus a vargouille enters the world unbidden. Until ye’ve seen a king’s head tear off his shoulders and flap aloft amid fountaining blood, only to turn and lap his own dying gore as
kiss. The kiss of a vargouille infects a humanoid with a fiendish curse. If allowed to run its course, the curse brings about a gruesome transformation as an abyssal spirit invades the person’s body
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
the hobgoblins run it accordingly. A war camp might be a permanent settlement that a hobgoblin legion uses as a garrison. The accompanying map depicts one such place, and it can also be used to
. If an enemy force does approach, though, these barriers do a good job of delaying any incursion until the goblinoids can rally their defenses. Inside the surrounding bulwark, the goblinoids all have
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Forge of the Artificer
relics of the ancient giants weren’t meant for the eyes of prying adventurers. No one knows better than the scholars of Morgrave University how to circumvent those barriers and plunder the continent’s
environmental hazards that can extend the journey, perhaps even to the point where supplies begin to run low. The most common challenge in the second stage involves a confrontation with sahuagin that dwell in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
adventurers kill their nemesis, they might next encounter the villain raised from the dead or as an undead. It’s conceivable that dying could make a villain more powerful and more angry at the meddling
and evil. Even adventure villains are more often driven by human motives than by cosmic concepts of good and evil. People sometimes do evil things for good reasons. Exercise some caution when
compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)
Chapter 13: Building Combat Encounters
When creating a combat encounter, let your imagination run wild and build something your players will enjoy. Once you have the details figured out, use
).
Challenge Rating When putting together an encounter or adventure, especially at lower levels, exercise caution when using monsters whose challenge rating is higher than the party’s average level. Such a
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
Creating a Combat Encounter When creating a combat encounter, let your imagination run wild and build something your players will enjoy. Once you have the details figured out, use this section to
2,400 4,900 7,300 10,900 20th 2,800 5,700 8,500 12,700 CHALLENGE RATING
When putting together an encounter or adventure, especially at lower levels, exercise caution when using monsters whose
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh
, unknown destiny. It was content to let Sgothgah serve its needs as it grew, but it had already decided to kill the aboleth once Sgothgah’s usefulness had run its course. The kraken has no interest in
cooperating with anyone. Its only fear is dying before it becomes monarch of the sea, so if it is reduced to 40 hit points or fewer, it stops fighting and focuses on escape. Writhing Sigils. The glowing