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Returning 35 results for 'been before decisions call rather'.
Monsters
The Wild Beyond the Witchlight
natural leader and a protective caregiver. She has a direct manner that reassures and inspires those around her.
Mercion does not worship a deity, but rather an ideal: that truth gives life to artistry
against what I hold dear.”
Ideal. “Truth begets art and beauty, while deceit does nothing but tear the fabric of our souls.”
Bond. “Evildoers beware! Valor’s Call is
Monsters
The Wild Beyond the Witchlight
destruction of evil in all its forms. He’s not especially bright, so he fights with his heart rather than his wits.
Age has drained much of the strength from Elkhorn’s body. Strongheart
dead.”
Combat Notes
Elkhorn’s challenge rating is based on him using Feint to improve his rather weak sword attack. Having been trained in his youth to fight ogres and trolls, he&rsquo
Monsters
The Wild Beyond the Witchlight
made him the envy of many rival spellcasters.
Ringlerun has a good heart, but he’s easily distracted by intellectual pursuits. He would rather spend time in quiet contemplation or reading than in
attack at range using his staff’s formidable spells (cone of cold being his favorite).
Valor's Call
The noble adventuring party known as Valor’s Call was founded by Strongheart, a
Firbolg
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
the group’s needs, but the effect each action will have on the forest and the rest of the natural world. Firbolg tribes would rather go hungry than strain the land during a famine.
Hidden
Shepherds
As caretakers of the land, firbolgs prefer to remain out of sight and out of mind. They don’t try to dominate nature, but rather seek to ensure that it prospers and survives according to its
Rogue
Legacy
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Classes
Basic Rules (2014)
would rather make one precise strike, placing it exactly where the attack will hurt the target most, than wear an opponent down with a barrage of attacks. Rogues have an almost supernatural knack for
coin you needed to escape the squalor of your life. Did wanderlust finally call you away from your home? Perhaps you suddenly found yourself cut off from your family or your mentor, and you had to find
Bugbear
Legacy
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
rather than perform the work or confront the foe. Even when subsumed into a goblinoid host and drawn into war, bugbears must often be roused from naps and bribed to get them to do their duties.
This
natural state. Thanks to Grankhul, they can use their size and strength to work as stealthy assassins rather than blundering around like ogres.
Bullying, murder, and engaging in battle are all holy
Species
Acquisitions Incorporated
then passing through the shadow of That-Which-Endures changed them forever. Now the newest race to call Faerûn home, the verdan do their best to find their way in an unfamiliar world
.
Reality is a descent into chaos punctuated by brief flashes of order, whence we arose and so imagine it to be the norm rather than a distant outlier. That-Which-Endures held entropy back for a mere instant
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
their characters’ actions steer future events. Giving NPCs characteristics and connections that the adventurers can explore to uncover new adventure opportunities. Including plot elements that call
back to decisions the adventurers made earlier. Katerina Ladon Different players enjoy different aspects of playing D&D
Kenku
Legacy
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
kenku make an easy living serving as messengers, spies, and lookouts for thieves’ guilds, bandits, and other criminal cartels. A network of kenku can relay a bird call or similar noise across the
kenku, constant attempts to mimic noises can come across as confusing or irritating rather than entertaining. You can just as easily describe the sounds your character makes and what they mean. Be clear
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
grow organically, rather than having all their elements set in stone from the get-go. From time to time, the characters’ decisions will require you to improvise and create new campaign elements on the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath
work. Behind her back, the townsfolk call her “The Growler.” Sergeant Hazz Yorrum This slovenly male Damaran oversees Neverwinter’s soldiers but defers to the town wizard Gallio Elibro for most decisions
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
might work. A drawback of this approach is that roleplaying can diminish if players feel that their die rolls, rather than their decisions and characterizations, always determine success.
Yuan-ti Pureblood
Legacy
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
one city-state were killed and eaten to create the first yuan-ti, and once the news of how to perform these rituals spread to other leaders, the call for slaves to fuel the process increased. As the
of evil that calls for them to butcher or eradicate all who oppose them. In keeping with their goal of domination, the yuan-ti would rather capture potentially useful opponents than kill them. They use
Backgrounds
Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica
Spells
Cantrip
produce flame, shocking grasp
1st
chaos bolt, create or destroy water, unseen servant
2nd
heat metal, rope trick
3rd
call lightning,
protocols will lead us toward progress more surely than any belief system. (Lawful)
5
Fun. I love my job! Despite the dangerous working conditions, there’s nothing I’d rather do
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Monster Manual
Modron Pentadrone Pentadrones oversee and protect contingents of lesser modrons. They’re quick to call lengthy meetings with other modrons when making decisions. Modron Pentadrone Large Construct
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh
alarmed the Saltmarsh Town Council. Greatly troubled and filled with apprehension, the councillors call an emergency meeting. This adventure is designed for a group of four to six 3rd-level characters
challenges the characters to act as ambassadors to a colony of lizardfolk.
While such roleplay-focused adventures are the norm today, at the time of its publication (in 1982) this adventure was the first to make interaction an absolute requirement for success, rather than one option among many.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
goblinoid things. But then passing through the shadow of That-Which-Endures changed them forever. Now the newest race to call Faerûn home, the verdan do their best to find their way in an unfamiliar world
. Reality is a descent into chaos punctuated by brief flashes of order, whence we arose and so imagine it to be the norm rather than a distant outlier. That-Which-Endures held entropy back for a mere instant, and the Verdan emerged. I’m sorry, was that the question?
— K’thriss Drow’b
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
to Dr. Mordenheim’s plots. Before running an adventure where players lose control of their characters or decisions about those characters are made for them, ask the players if they’re comfortable with
. Worse Than Death? The characters are legitimately defeated during another adventure. Rather than the campaign ending, they awake in Dr. Mordenheim’s clutches, delivered there by the Mists.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Journeys through the Radiant Citadel
gender. Titles such as “daimyo” are gender-neutral, as are most names. Clothing varies by class status rather than gender—instead, people express their gender through perfumes. Bright citrus scents
consult ancestral spirits before making life-changing decisions, but the perspectives of the dead can be just as flawed as those of the living. Disagreements in large family clans sometimes result in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Out of the Abyss
Chapter 10: Descent into the Depths Having survived Mantol-Derith and obtained Ghazrim DuLoc’s ring, the adventurers and their allies continue on into the Underdark. This time, rather than escaped
, dictated largely by the characters’ decisions and tactics. The adventurers’ immediate destination is the legendary library of Gravenhollow (see chapter 11), where they gain information that likely takes them
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
Acquisitions Incorporated franchise is a group effort. Many decisions must be made in the course of running a franchise and playing in an Acq Inc campaign, and it is assumed that all players will be
involved in making those decisions. Whenever this book talks about a franchise collectively — and in particular, when it talks about decisions being made by a franchise — the understanding is that all
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)
ability represents is largely passive rather than involving a specific effort on the part of a character or monster. A Constitution check can model your attempt to push beyond normal limits, however. The
DM might call for a Constitution check when you try to accomplish tasks like the following: Hold your breath March or labor for hours without rest Go without sleep Survive without food or water Quaff
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
Boromar Villains With few exceptions, Boromar villains shun violence and would prefer to bribe, deceive, or manipulate the characters rather than send a squad of goons to attack them. That said, any
1 A halfling dreamlily dealer (an excoriate of House Ghallanda) smooth-talks new customers into sampling her wares. If pressed, she can call in favors from a number of dangerous clients. 2 A judge
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
, as shown in the Secret Doors table. You can instead call for an Intelligence (Investigation) check if the challenge involves deducing that a door is present from noticeable clues, rather than
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)
ability represents is largely passive rather than involving a specific effort on the part of a character or monster. A Constitution check can model your attempt to push beyond normal limits, however. The
DM might call for a Constitution check when you try to accomplish tasks like the following: Hold your breath March or labor for hours without rest Go without sleep Survive without food or water Quaff
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen
“Bastion of Takhisis” section. Shortly afterward, if the characters have a fargab (see appendix A) with them, they get a call from Tatina Rookledust. “Are you okay?!” Rookledust asks, then she rapidly
get at whoever’s in charge in there!”
Rookledust encourages the characters to find the Dragon Army’s leaders within the city rather than pursing Soth. The gnome is confident that Kalaman’s forces
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh
refusal to do so automatically prompts an attack. In such an attack, the lizardfolk’s first priority is the expulsion, rather than the death, of the intruders, but they fight to the death if provoked. Once
the characters are identified as a threat, the only way to calm the lizardfolk’s aggression is to call for a truce and parley with the queen. See “Parley and Surrender” below. If the entire lair were
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
agents of the King’s Citadel serve crown and country as the ultimate agency for dispensing the king’s justice in Breland. Local watches and constabularies can call on its agents when a crime or situation
inquisitives are often called upon to solve mysteries that baffle local law enforcement. Running Your Own. Rather than join an existing inquisitive agency, you can start your own. You need to establish
Orc
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
hatred of the civilized races of the world and their need to satisfy the demands of their deities, the orcs know that if they fight well and bring glory to their tribe, Gruumsh will call them home to
they are more interested in grabbing plunder and food rather than in wanton slaughter. The elderly, children, and any who seem weak or meek enough might escape death. If they leave the population more
Kobold
Legacy
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
other useful items, but if they are at risk of discovery, they run away rather than attack anyone in the house. By fleeing before they can be seen or identified, they avoid getting into a situation
divination (to find raw materials and foresee threats to the tribe).
The main reason why kobolds depend on arcane magic rather than divine is Kurtulmak’s imprisonment, which makes it difficult for
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage
family members living abroad and brought them to live with him in a twisted, underground version of Shadowdusk Hold. Among those who answered the call was Margaraste Shadowdusk, a distant cousin whom
and their plots, even as he allows the family free rein in their corner of his domain. The Mad Mage has decided that these are the kinds of nobles that need to be making decisions and wielding power in
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
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sage Advice Compendium
The Role of Rules Why even have a column like Sage Advice when a DM can just make a ruling? Rules are a big part of what makes D&D a game, rather than simply improvised storytelling. The game’s rules
things they don’t. In a typical D&D session, a DM makes numerous rules decisions—some barely noticeable and others quite obvious. Players also interpret the rules, and the whole group keeps the game
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tales from the Yawning Portal->a6
even for characters of the recommended level. Further, adventurers who call too much attention to themselves are likely to be doomed. It takes only one or two extra giants in an encounter to turn a
manageable situation into a very deadly one. Therefore, be free with information the players need to make informed decisions. For example, any seasoned adventurer can see that the giants in the great
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
character might try to bribe enemies rather than fight them, or chase after a fleeing enemy to see where it goes. Players who ignore objectives will have to deal with the consequences, which is another
protection might be cursed, diseased, prone to panic attacks, too young or too old to fight, or apt to risk the lives of the adventurers through dubious decisions. The object the adventurers have