been before deed concept rather

Water Weird Legacy

Monsters Monster Manual (2014)

those its summoner declares as off limits. When slain, a water weird becomes an inanimate pool of water. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil

interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might turn against its summoner. A water weird loses its evil alignment if its waters are cleansed

Forlarren

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

bound to their fey lord and unable to bargain away their souls. So rather than claim them, Fierna warped and twisted them before returning them to the Feywild, content that the corruption of the satyrs

hero achieves some great deed only to see their sinister, diabolical side surface. Deceiving their companions during their most daunting trials, the forlarren then betrays those companions at the worst moment possible.

Firbolg Legacy

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

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to pull his or her weight in the tribe. Typically, such a goliath dies attempting to keep up, or the goliath slips

away in the night to seek the cold will of fate. In some ways, the goliath drive to outdo themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in

Rewards

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist

Deed If the characters reunite Volo with Floon, Volo gives them a rather sheepish look as he explains their reward: “I confess that I have but few coins to spare. But never let it be said that Volo

reneges on a promise. Allow me to present something much more valuable.” He holds out a scroll tube. “The deed to a remarkable property here in Waterdeep! We’ll need a magistrate to witness the transfer of

Character Names

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

names, that’s fine. If the group would rather take the characters and their names a little more seriously, urge Bob’s player to come up with a more appropriate name. Player character names should match

each other in flavor or concept, and they should also match the flavor of your campaign world — so should the nonplayer characters’ names and place names you create. Travok and Kairon don’t want to undertake a quest for Lord Cupcake, visit Gumdrop Island, or take down a crazy wizard named Ray.

Survival of the Fittest

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters

pity for adults who can’t take care of themselves, though a sick or injured individual is treated, as a result of the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to

themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in battle, at the peak of strength and skill, than endure the slow decay of old age. Few folk

The Noble Knife

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

for the greater good. The organization doesn’t “take jobs” as such. Rather, its leadership assesses the moral and political landscape of the realm and selects targets thusly. The Noble Knife is named

for its members’ weapon of choice for their trademark deed. Similar to an arrow of slaying, a noble knife is a weapon whose magic is focused on killing a specific individual. The crafting of a noble

Origin of the Ordning

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

the ordning in some mythic future. Giants on some worlds (including Eberron) have no concept of the ordning at all. Such giants might think of themselves as a single species, with the differences

among giant kinds reflecting a cultural or geographical distinction rather than an inherent one. They might live in bands composed of multiple giant kinds or family groups of a single kind. Or giants of

Character Advancement

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

taking part in a play session. A character reaches 1 checkpoint for each hour an adventure is designed to last. Note that the award is based on the adventure’s projected playing time, rather than the

designed to take 2 hours, the character reaches 3 checkpoints. Playing time might seem like an odd way to measure experience awards, but the concept is in keeping with how a shared campaign is meant to

Kobold Legacy

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

Secret

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

holy symbol that represents that divinity. Some clerics, especially in a world like Eberron, serve a whole pantheon, rather than a single deity. In certain campaigns, a cleric might instead serve a

cosmic force, such as life or death, or a philosophy or concept, such as love, peace, or one of the nine alignments. Chapter 1 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide explores options like these, in the section

Zilargo

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War

gnome—as long as the charlatan accomplishes the deed through cunning, negotiation, or deception rather than violence or outright theft, and as long as the mine stays in Zil hands. The same applies to

Water Weird

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

. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil. However, a water weird bound to a sacred or befouled source of water begins to take on the nature of that site

, becoming neutral good or neutral evil. A neutral good water weird tries to frighten away interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might

Darklords

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

adventures rather than saving them for distant climactic plots. Darklords Don’t Realize They’re Darklords. With a few exceptions, Darklords don’t realize they occupy a special place in the world. Their

concept of how long they’ve lived, how many times they’ve died, or why they returned to life. Should a Darklord fall, the temporary defeat lasts until they’re restored by the Dark Powers. In their

Yuan-ti Cities

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters

yuan-ti content themselves with maintaining these ancient places rather than building new ones for their needs. Although these sites are hundreds or even thousands of years old, they don’t look or feel

reflects human ideas about art and beauty. Over time this perspective was skewed toward the concept that the snake is the perfect form, so serpents are a common theme in their aesthetic. The major

Introduction

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

you receive a cancer diagnosis or a similar health news, you probably appreciate that concept a little more than other people. Watching someone you love waste away is a terrible thing. You want a

magic button to bring things back to the way they should be, this person you love so much restored to who they really are rather than what cancer is grinding them down into. It’s easy to give in to

Appendix A: Shared Campaigns

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything

hard to keep a campaign going. Enter the concept of the shared campaign. In a shared campaign, more than one member of the group can take on the role of DM. A shared campaign is episodic rather than

Modifying a Class

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

, paladins might not swear their oaths to ideals, but instead swear fealty to powerful sorcerers. To capture this story concept, you could build a new paladin spell list with spells meant to protect

opportunity to develop the character’s story and that of your world, rather than shutting down possibilities. Substituting Class Features If one or more features of a given class don’t exactly fit the theme

Forlarren

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

rather than claim them, Fierna warped and twisted them before returning them to the Feywild, content that the corruption of the satyrs would be adequate compensation for her failure. Bifurcated Souls

fey aspect emerges once again. Several ballads of the Feywild recount the dramatic fall of valiant forlarren. In all these tales, the hero achieves some great deed only to see their sinister

Staff

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

concept behind the hirelings and selecting one proficiency for each. The DM can then customize the hirelings as desired, perhaps by adding additional proficiencies or adjusting their combat statistics

(sailors for a seagoing franchise, engineers for a giant hollow statue, and so on). Crew do not leave a franchise and cannot perform franchise tasks. They typically run rather than fight back when attacked

Rejecting the Ordning

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

one their kind traditionally values. These are often giants whose ranking within their kind is low. For example, a contemplative cloud giant might pursue knowledge rather than wealth, or a weak frost

otherwise enjoy in the ordning. When giants join the cults of demon lords, they reject the entire concept of the ordning—the idea that there is any kind of order to the multiverse at all, which is the

Mind Flayer Magic

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters

after death would its consciousness be cast into oblivion. Two divine entities have long been associated with mind flayers by the scholars of other races. These aren’t deities, but rather

attitude — actions that have often been misinterpreted by observers as worship. Maanzecorian. The entity/concept called Maanzecorian embodies a complete comprehension of knowledge. It is a state

Resolving Interactions

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

condescending noble might wish to see a group of upstart adventurers fail so as to keep them from becoming rivals for the king’s attention, thwarting them with slander and scheming rather than direct threats

temporarily indifferent, or make an indifferent creature temporarily friendly. Likewise, a gaffe, insult, or harmful deed might make a friendly creature temporarily indifferent or turn an indifferent creature

Future Quests

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage

, one of the Masked Lords of Waterdeep. Mirt himself delivers the luck blade once the Runestone fragment is in Laeral’s hands, but looks rather put out at the thought of parting with it. “Perhaps you

of the telepathic contact, learn its intentions, and put a quick and decisive end to it if those intentions are hostile. (The ulitharid awaits them on level 17.) If the party deals with the threat, Durnan promises to make sure the deed is never forgotten but offers no tangible reward.

Special Features

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

table entries make more sense for certain items than for others. Some magic items are made only by certain kinds of creatures, for instance; a cloak of elvenkind is made by elves, rather than dwarves. If

light in a 5-foot radius. Any metal in the item is silver or mithral, rather than iron or steel. 17 Fiend. The item is made of black iron or horn inscribed with runes, and any cloth or leather

Magic Item Special Features

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

exquisitely crafted from the finest materials and glows with a pale radiance in moonlight, shedding Dim Light in a 5-foot radius. Any metal in the item is silver or mithral rather than iron or steel

linked to a deed of great evil, such as a massacre or an assassination. It might have a name or be closely associated with a villain who used it. 8 Symbol of Power. This item was once used as part of

Kobold Lair Locations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Heroes of the Borderlands

toward intruders, but it’s also naive. Rather than alerting the other kobolds when it spots the characters, it marches toward them and asks what they want. Attitudes. Every creature has a starting

centipedes—a fact they report to any who mention the beasts. If the characters slay the centipedes and show proof to a kobold, this deed earns the kobold’s respect, improving its attitude toward them

Alignment

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

plane of lawful evil. A devil does not choose to be lawful evil or tend toward lawful evil, but rather it is lawful evil in its essence. If it somehow ceases to be lawful evil, it changes into something

one person, concept, or event that you are terrified of? What are your vices? TIKA AND ARTEMIS: PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS Tika and Artemis have distinct personality traits. Tika Waylan dislikes

Uthgardt Lands

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

call themselves “children of Uthgar.” Though the Uthgardt each belong to a given tribe, these are markers of identity, rather than coherent populations. In my experience, it is rare outside of

size that near the ancient ancestral mound of the Red Tiger tribe. The settlement was founded some time ago by members of the Black Lion tribe, who put down roots here rather than continuing to live

Maglubiyet's Will Be Done

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters

types of goblinoids coalesce into a host, this new societal and military arrangement fundamentally changes how virtually every individual behaves. Leaders in Word and Deed. Hobgoblins form the backbone of

brutal. — Volo Stealthy Shock Troops. Bugbears that are subsumed into a host function as a special cadre of spies, assassins, and bodyguards, answering to the senior leadership of the host rather

Random Encounters in Yon

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

the cyclops long enough for the party to escape. Alternatively, a character might use a speak with animals spell to find out what Pollenella wants. The bee would rather stay with Amidor than return to

in love. This statement causes the cyclops to blink in confusion and ask, “What is love?” If the concept is explained to him, Mudlump declares that he’d like to be in love, too, and gives the

Ascendant Factions

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

gather in the Shattered Temple, a place once dedicated to Aoskar, a now-dead god of portals. Rather than serve in Sigil’s government, the Athar’s self-appointed spy network closely surveils the city’s

steel, Sarin is a decisive factol who promotes honor, dignity, and peace in word and deed. Faction Attire. Most Hardheads wear the faction’s standard-issue armor, a distinctive suit of red plate with

Hive Ward

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

Bleak Cabal void soother (see Morte’s Planar Parade), offers to heal the characters, asking only that they pay the deed forward. 5 Two out-of-breath githzerai ratcatchers (guards) in pink skullcaps

and shakers of Sigil or burn away detritus within the ward—engulf the innocent. Rather than maintain a single base of operations, the Hands of Havoc operate out of warehouses strewn throughout the

Tour of the Planes

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War

draws merchants and travelers from across reality. Syrania is home to a host of angels that devote their immortal lives to serene contemplation. Each angel seeks to achieve mastery of one pure concept

— rather, it’s a domain frozen by its prince’s broken heart. If the prince’s story were changed, the realm would change with it. Time and space are both malleable in the Faerie Court, and a mortal who

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