been barren diffusing combatants run

Strahd von Zarovich

Monsters Curse of Strahd

intelligently and do everything you can to make him a terrifying and cunning adversary for the player characters. When you run an encounter with Strahd, keep the following facts in mind: Strahd

the reach of melee combatants and spellcasters, or he flies away (using summoned wolf;wolves or swarm of bats;swarms of bats or swarm of rats;rats to guard his retreat). Strahd observes the characters

Morale

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)

Morale Some combatants might run away when a fight turns against them. You can use this optional rule to help determine when monsters and NPCs flee. A creature might flee under any of the following

further attempts to flee or surrender will be made. A failed saving throw isn’t always to the adventurers’ benefit. For example, an ogre that flees from combat might put the rest of the dungeon on alert or run off with treasure that the characters had hoped to plunder.

Keeping Combat Moving

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide

characters negotiate an end to their hostilities. A nonsapient monster might play dead to try to get the characters to stop attacking it, only to get up and run away as soon as it has the opportunity

their foes, or it might join one side or the other. Each time one or more new combatants join the encounter, roll Initiative for them and weave them into the Initiative order. Change the Terrain Consider

Rockblight

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Out of the Abyss

settlement and giving it the name “Rockblight.” ROCKBLIGHT: GENERAL FEATURES Unlike the reclaimed parts of Blingdenstone, Rockblight is barren, cold, and hostile. Light. All parts of Rockblight

Inner Blingdenstone, but are empty and strewn with rubble. Humidity. A few shallow pools and streams run through the area, making the air damp and chill. Pools are difficult terrain.

7. Conservatory

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

7. Conservatory Desiccated vines sprawl across the tables and foggy glass walls of this conservatory. Rusted gardening tools and pots of barren soil lie scattered across sturdy wooden tables. This

tighten around their bodies. Any creature adjacent to an affected creature can remove the vines by spending an action and succeeding on a DC 14 Strength check. After the trap activates, cracks run

Fields of the Dead

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide

wind almost always blows here, and it isn’t uncommon to smell salt in the air even dozens of leagues inland. Though this land is uncivilized, it isn’t barren. Even if many monsters hide in the tall

few walled enclosures that contain several such dwellings can occasionally be found a short distance away from the roads and rivers that run through or near the Fields. The folk of this land are kind

Locations in Realmspace

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Spelljammer Academy

the land flattens out into gently rolling, fertile hills dotted with forests and patches of grassland. Communities of halflings occupy the polar areas, while the barren wastes are populated by

. Garden is a refuge for spacefaring pirates, who hide their spelljamming ships in the maze of passageways that run between Yggdrasil’s Child and the planetoids, and might do the same in the craters and

Canyon Shrine

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mythic Odysseys of Theros

Canyon Shrine Aside from the other dangers of the twisting canyons of Phoberos, followers of Mogis openly worship and offer sacrifices to their dark god in these places. Twisting cave systems run

cling to the canyon’s sides. Reaching some of these natural platforms requires a dangerous climb over jagged rocks. The top of the canyon has a few scrubby plants, but is otherwise barren. Flying monsters

The Attack

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath

run this encounter. As the characters load the wagons, storm clouds descend and block the sun. Argus Skeel (male vampire spawn) and two ghouls, plus one ghoul per character, including sidekicks

. Three-sided battles can sometimes take longer because of the number of combatants participating. Use your discretion as the DM to have the excitement of the battle build up rather than fizzle out

Darklake Terrain Encounters

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Out of the Abyss

Darklake Terrain Encounters Special terrain rules are explained after the table. d10 Terrain 1 Collision 2 Falls or locks 3 Island 4 Low ceiling 5 Rockfall 6 Rough current 7 Run aground 8 Stone

chance that the island has one or more types of fungi growing atop it (see “Fungi of the Underdark” in chapter 2). Otherwise, the island is barren rock. Low Ceiling The clearance of the cave or

Death House Hauntings

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Vecna: Eve of Ruin

completely obscure the characters’ vision, and the characters exit the haunted zone. Endless Graveyard Countless headstones dot this barren landscape as far as you can see. A pale full moon looms over the

in the middle of the doorless, windowless room, weeping uncontrollably. Large tears run down their faces, pooling in impossible quantities on the floorboards. The children are illusions of Rose and

Smuggler

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh

cart filled with stolen art through the middle of a battlefield while singing sea shanties to confuse the combatants. 3 The Recruit. You enlisted in another nation’s navy for the purpose of smuggling

. Suggested Characteristics In general, smugglers value survival, and then profit, above other things. One could be a part of a larger organization, or might run a small smuggling vessel of their own

Military Force

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

both power and subtlety. Your missions could run the risk of shattering a fragile peace recently established with a rival nation and plunging multiple nations back into war. Or perhaps your group’s

missions pit you against rival combatants during an active engagement, as you influence the war effort. Rival mercenary companies, armed resistance fighters, and monsters drawn to the presence of

Using Miniatures

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)

easier to run with visual aids, the most common of which are miniatures and a grid. If you like to construct model terrain, build three-dimensional dungeons, or draw maps on large vinyl mats, you

you regularly use miniatures, flanking gives combatants a simple way to gain advantage on attack rolls against a common enemy. A creature can’t flank an enemy that it can’t see. A creature also can’t

Ooze Grottos

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tales from the Yawning Portal->a5

longer immune to being charmed. Augmentation Chambers The magic of these chambers allows Thayans to bestow glimmers of intelligence into living oozes, making them obedient and more capable combatants

gray stone is filled with square vats made of the same material. At the center of the chamber, a great fountain spews black liquid that lands in a wide stone pool. Trenches cut into the floor run from

Strahd von Zarovich

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Curse of Strahd

make him a terrifying and cunning adversary for the player characters. When you run an encounter with Strahd, keep the following facts in mind: Strahd attacks at the most advantageous moment and from

the most advantageous position. Strahd knows when he’s in over his head. If he begins taking more damage than he can regenerate, he moves beyond the reach of melee combatants and spellcasters, or he

Locations E - H

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder

information on this location. Fallen Lands Countless ruins dot this rugged, barren land, where ancient cities once stood and great battles once raged. Strange witchlights float around the ruins at night

perpetually shrouded in fog. Its rings, cairns, and altar mound are created from piles of heaped rock, barren of plant growth. The altar is a rectangular slab of stone 10 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 3

Hive Ward

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands

bloodstained amphitheater where spectators place bets and combatants test their mettle. The current heavyweight champion is a bloodthirsty cyclops named Akra. In addition to the typical variety of cheap

fortress of rehabilitation and renewal. The tiered, ivory sanctuary rests on a hill at the end of Bedlam Run, a curved road that rises to meet the headquarters above the Hive. Calming fountains cascade

Fortress Level 3

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh

buckles (1 gp each), and an anemone stuck in a glass bottle. 49. Champions’ Armory Two stone racks run the length of this room, forming aisles. The racks hold spears, tridents, and warhammers. This

urging the combatants as they fight. From the north they hear an occasional scream from the locathah undergoing torture and the raucous noise of the torturers enjoying their pastime. This long room has

Landro Locations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Vecna: Eve of Ruin

already in a fight with Glaive’s squad. The soldiers know nothing of Landro other than to avoid drinking the graymatter fluid. L4: Bottleneck If the characters haven’t run into significant challenges

yet, Glaive and one of her blade scout companions attack the characters from both ends of this narrow tunnel. After all combatants have taken a turn, the attackers flee into Landro and hide for another

Chromatic Dragons

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Monster Manual (2014)

over hidden sinkholes to punish and eliminate would-be thieves. A Blue Dragon’s Lair Blue dragons make their lairs in barren places, using their lightning breath and their burrowing ability to carve out

spine, reaching full height just behind the skull. A green dragon has no external ears, but bears leathery spiked plates that run down the sides of its neck. A wyrmling green dragon’s thin scales are a

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