before bonding dealing concern rather - Search

Alter Self

Spells Player’s Handbook

), horns (Piercing), or hooves (Bludgeoning). When you use your Unarmed Strike to deal damage with that new growth, it deals 1d6 damage of the type in parentheses instead of dealing the normal damage for

your Unarmed Strike, and you use your spellcasting ability modifier for the attack and damage rolls rather than using Strength.

Swarmkeeper

Classes Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

force in battle, as well as helpful company for the ranger. Some Swarmkeepers are outcasts or hermits, keeping to themselves and their attendant swarms rather than dealing with the discomfort of others

Grippli Warrior

Monsters Candlekeep Mysteries

are raised by the community rather than by a single set of parents, and all of a community’s eggs are kept in freshwater pools until they mature. Protecting their eggs is a major concern for

Vladimir Horngaard

Monsters Curse of Strahd

","rollDamageType":"bludgeoning"} bludgeoning damage. Instead of dealing damage, Vladimir can grapple the target (escape DC 14) provided the target is Large or smaller. +2 Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack

witnessing Strahd himself slay Vladimir's beloved, his fellow knight Sir Godfrey Gwilym. With the battle won, Strahd surrounded Argynvostholt. Rather than cower in his lair, Argynvost emerged and

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

Jammer Leech

Monsters Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

defensive measure. If the crew of a ship becomes aware of leeches that have become attached, it’s customary for them to try to scrape the leeches off the hull rather than attack them with weapons

. The leech attaches itself to a ship’s hull in its space, dealing 2 (1d4);{"diceNotation":"1d4","rollType":"damage","rollAction":"Attach to Hull","rollDamageType":"piercing"} piercing damage to

Swarmkeeper (TCoE)

Classes Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

force in battle, as well as helpful company for the ranger. Some Swarmkeepers are outcasts or hermits, keeping to themselves and their attendant swarms rather than dealing with the discomfort of others

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

peppered with a parental attitude toward strangers. Another is a mirthful sybarite with an unfettered love of food, drink, and romance. When dealing with the forlarren, the only constant is the malleable

City Watch / Investigator

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

experience in enforcing the law, and dealing with lawbreakers, gives you a feel for local laws and criminals. You can easily find the local outpost of the watch or a similar organization, and just as

easily pick out the dens of criminal activity in a community, although you’re more likely to be welcome in the former locations rather than the latter. Variant: Investigator Rarer

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

relieved of their other roles and taken to the lair’s whelping pens, where they are tended to by Luthic’s followers. Orcs don’t take mates, and no pair-bonding occurs in a tribe

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

Mogis

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

against. Tread carefully when using him as a patron, as his area of concern trends toward villainy rather than heroics.

Yuan-ti Pureblood Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

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

get into places their normal forms couldn’t enter. Their immunity to poison gives all yuan-ti a tactical advantage in dealing with other creatures. A pureblood serving as a food taster for a

Faction Agent

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

knowledge, rather than brute force. Harper agents are often proficient in Investigation, enabling them to be adept at snooping and spying. They often seek aid from other Harpers, sympathetic bards and

dealing with people in the outside world. d6 Ideal 1 Tradition. The ancient traditions of worship and sacrifice must be preserved and upheld. (Lawful) 2 Charity. I always

Feature: Watcher's Eye

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

Feature: Watcher’s Eye Your experience in enforcing the law, and dealing with lawbreakers, gives you a feel for local laws and criminals. You can easily find the local outpost of the watch or a

similar organization, and just as easily pick out the dens of criminal activity in a community, although you’re more likely to be welcome in the former locations rather than the latter.

Dealing with the Soldiers

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

Dealing with the Soldiers If the characters confront the Dragon Army soldiers on the cliffs, the messenger attempts to retreat to the Dragon Army camp on her warhorse rather than aiding her allies

Who Dwells Here?

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Infernal Machine Rebuild

such figures have been included as NPCs, but you should not treat this adventure’s approach to those characters as canon. Rather, use them to flesh out this particular adventure in “what-if” fashion

their characters should treat with such legendary figures carefully — a warning that is repeated by whichever agent the characters are dealing with.

Hidden Shepherds

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

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 own laws. Firbolgs use their magic to keep their presence in a forest secret. This approach allows them to avoid the politics and struggles of elves, humans, and orcs. Such events concern the

Alter Self

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player’s Handbook

to deal damage with that new growth, it deals 1d6 damage of the type in parentheses instead of dealing the normal damage for your Unarmed Strike, and you use your spellcasting ability modifier for the attack and damage rolls rather than using Strength.

Deep Gnomes

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

is marked by smooth, curving shapes rather than straight lines and hard edges. Svirfneblin are intensely community-minded and have little concern about privacy among themselves. Thus, they don’t

Alter Self

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules

to deal damage with that new growth, it deals 1d6 damage of the type in parentheses instead of dealing the normal damage for your Unarmed Strike, and you use your spellcasting ability modifier for the attack and damage rolls rather than using Strength.

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

Blood Will Tell

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

come off as coarse, blunt, or rude in dealings with other people. With the directness of an orc, they speak their minds with no apparent concern for how their opinions are received. No matter where

they live, half-orcs usually find themselves defined by others in terms of their usefulness as heavy laborers and soldiers. It is the rare and fortunate few who are judged by their character and their deeds rather than their ancestry.

Council of Four

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus

goes out of his way to avoid stress. He shows well in social situations, but is easily manipulated in the political arena. He is known for listening with concern, showing an earnest desire to help

, making promises to look into things, and then doing nothing. As a result, a great deal of the citizenry’s scorn lies heaped upon Duke Portyr’s shoulders. Duke Portyr expressed concern about Ravengard’s

The Lords of Dust

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

operate as an alliance of like-minded cabals rather than a single monolithic organization. Each cabal serves its particular overlord above all others, and the conditions that release one overlord could

races is in directing them and their affairs down the paths necessary to release their overlords; aside from that, dealing with mortals is a tedious chore.

Roleplaying Devils

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus

Roleplaying Devils As the DM, you can play devils as humorous, aloof, bombastic, conniving, or scatterbrained, but a general rule to follow is this: devils have no desire to do good. When dealing

with mortals, devils are constantly figuring out how to exploit and corrupt them, often behind thin smiles of feigned concern and false charm. A devil that successfully corrupts a mortal gets the

Confronting the Demon Lords

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

fight alongside them in this last battle. Most of the heroes’ allies are of limited use against the demon lords — creatures immune to many forms of attack, including nonmagical weapons. Rather than

dealing with the ineffectual attacks of allies or a dozen or more additional actions each round, give characters backed up by a group of allies the following benefits. Healing Support. A character regains

Council of Four

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur’s Gate Gazetteer

goes out of his way to avoid stress. He shows well in social situations, but is easily manipulated in the political arena. He is known for listening with concern, showing an earnest desire to help

, making promises to look into things, and then doing nothing. As a result, a great deal of the citizenry’s scorn lies heaped upon Duke Portyr’s shoulders. Duke Portyr expressed concern about Ravengard’s

Demon Showdown

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

break cover to aid their allies against the demons. If they do, another demon sortie attacks them 1d4 rounds later. OPTION: PLAYING OUT THE BATTLE OPTION Rather than focusing on the adventurers

biding their time and dealing with the fallout of the titanic battle between the demon lords, you can shift focus for this part of the adventure. Consider having the players take control of the various

Settlers, Squatters, and Invaders

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

and commanding the new settlement’s defenses. Like most svirfneblin, Dorbo is serious and aggressive when dealing with outsiders; for all of that, however, he is also a loving and caring husband and a

. In the last year, a handful of svirfneblin youths have been training in secret under the rather terrifying care of the veteran Burrow Warden Jadger, who lingers on as a ghost. In life, Jadger was an

Magewrights

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Wayfinder's Guide to Eberron

make a business out of predicting events that occur in the next 30 minutes. In dealing with a magewright, think about the form their magic takes. A locksmith can perform knock as a ritual. But they

don’t just snap their fingers. They may use lengths of wire or iron rods, tracing patterns around the lock they’re dealing with while murmuring incantations. An oracle might work with cards or dice, or

Life in the Tribe

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

pair-bonding occurs in a tribe other than at the moment when coupling takes place. At other times, males and females are more or less indifferent toward one another. All orcs consider mating to be a

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 or less intact, the orcs leave

Wood Elves: The Tairnadal

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

Tairnadal most often encountered in Khorvaire. Despite sharing a homeland with the Aereni, the Tairnadal have distinct religious traditions, revering their patron ancestors rather than the Undying Court. In

scimitar is a martial weapon, weighing 6 pounds and dealing 2d4 slashing damage on a hit. It has the two-handed property and the following special property: If you attack with a double-bladed

Jammer Leech

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Spelljammer: Adventures in Space->Boo’s Astral Menagerie

the leeches off the hull rather than attack them with weapons. Killing a leech while it is attached to the ship is dangerous, because the trauma of its death can be felt by the ship’s spelljammer

(1d4) piercing damage. Bonus Actions Attach to Hull. The leech attaches itself to a ship’s hull in its space, dealing 2 (1d4) piercing damage to the ship (ignoring the ship’s damage threshold). This

The Role of Rules

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

running. There are times, though, when the design intent of a rule isn’t clear or when one rule seems to contradict another. Dealing with those situations is where Sage Advice comes in. This column

Unwelcome Party

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus

family or attracting other fiends, but does so as a last resort. Members of the Hunt family reduced to 0 hit points by the devils are knocked unconscious rather than killed, as the devils are hoping to

forget about those NPCs, assuming that the most capable among them are dealing with minor threats in the background while the adventurers handle the potent foes. You can also have combat-worthy NPCs

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