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Adult Deep Dragon

Monsters Forgotten Realms: Adventures in Faerûn

ferocious might, cunning ambushes, or fungal poisons. Some adult deep dragons plunder the surface for treasures and lore. Deep Dragons Deep dragons slither through the wet and lightless places of the

;s lair is changed by its presence, creating the following effects: Preservation of Knowledge. Books and other written forms of communication with 1 mile of the lair become magically protected and can

Anhkolox

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

target.Anhkoloxes are vicious undead creatures created from the bones of bears and other beasts. Their barbed bones grind and crack, often moving in seemingly impossible ways. Anhkoloxes are driven by

territorial instinct and a predatory urge to hunt and devour living prey. They run on all fours and rear up onto their hind legs when they corner their quarry. When they strike, they wallop foes about

Master Thief

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

;retire” from hands-on work to run a thieves’ guild, spearhead some covert enterprise, or enjoy a quiet life of luxury. When a master thief completes a challenging heist, they often leave

each other, resembling a tent 9 Worthless coin with a bite mark in it 10 Chalk or charcoal sketch of a domino mask Cunning Action. The thief takes the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action.

Urchin Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

recuperate. You’ve survived despite all odds, and did so through cunning, strength, speed, or some combination of each. You begin your adventuring career with enough money to live modestly but

shaped by lives of desperate poverty, for good and for ill. They tend to be driven either by a commitment to the people with whom they shared life on the street or by a burning desire to find a better

Bavlorna Blightstraw

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

within 10 feet of Bavlorna uses at least 10 feet of movement to run in place counterclockwise, Bavlorna is overcome by a fit of sneezing and can’t cast spells until the end of her next turn. In

moment, is all that matters.” Bond. “I’m safe in my cottage. Why should I leave it when I can make others come to me?" Flaw. “Watching someone run widdershins makes me sneeze

Charlatan Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

them like they were children’s books. It’s a useful talent, and one that you’re perfectly willing to use for your advantage. You know what people want and you deliver, or rather

weakness and secure their fortunes. 4 I put on new identities like clothes. 5 I run sleight-of-hand cons on street corners. 6 I convince people that worthless junk is worth their hard

Shifter Legacy

Species Eberron: Rising from the Last War

personality: a feline shifter may be cool and distant, driven by predatory instincts, while a shifter with a lupine spirit might be drawn to find and protect a pack. When a shifter fully embraces this beast

bear or boar: stoic, stubborn, and thick-skinned. Longtooth shifters typically have lupine traits and prefer to run with a pack. Swiftstride are often predatory and feline, but a swiftstride could

Fog Giant

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

cloud giants in the ordning—the set of values and expectations that determines their rank in giant society—is driven by wealth. Those cloud giants foolish or unlucky enough to have their

reward once they return to their proper station, a fog giant lures desperate criminals, cunning bandits, and other raiders into their service in the dismal wilds they inhabit. These giants prefer to

Urchin - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

elements, and endured sickness without the advantage of medicine or a place to recuperate. You’ve survived despite all odds, and did so through cunning, strength, speed, or some combination of each

of desperate poverty, for good and for ill. They tend to be driven either by a commitment to the people with whom they shared life on the street or by a burning desire to find a better life &mdash

Prisoner 13

Monsters Keys from the Golden Vault

steal away most of the clan’s gold, leaving only a pittance. Prisoner 13 is a cunning schemer, ruthless and patient. She listens and watches, absorbing every detail she can, and shares as

. Black and gray smoke and shadows coil down her left arm, ending in runes on the fingers of her left hand. Knotwork. Purple and blue knotwork and runes run down her right arm, across the back of her right

Rogue Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

skills that help them in a dungeon environment, such as climbing, finding and disarming traps, and opening locks. When it comes to combat, rogues prioritize cunning over brute strength. A rogue

treasure. Creating a Rogue As you create your rogue character, consider the character’s relationship to the law. Do you have a criminal past—or present? Are you on the run from the law or from

Crab Folk

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

, their lack of cunning foiled her plans. Many tumbled into the sea and drowned, too simpleminded and impatient to learn how to swim. Others smashed caravans and crushed their defenders most effectively

bad luck a gull might happen to land near a crab folk lair and utter the right combination of cries to summon up this ancient compulsion. Driven to action, the crab folk rampage along the coast

Forlarren

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

demands of the Nine Hells and the impulsive hedonism of the Feywild. Driven by dramatic and unpredictable emotions, these feral creatures wreak havoc wherever they go. Corrupted Essence. The devils

, chaotic, and temperamental nature they all share. When its diabolical aspect shines through, a forlarren is a cunning, calculating, and brutal enemy. It might use its natural charm to worm its way

Malaxxix

Monsters The Book of Many Things

’ll be found by mortals who are desperate for power and ripe for corruption. Malaxxix seeks the Books of Keeping: ancient tomes that contain the true names of all yugoloths. To this end, it

Planes as a tyrannical marauder. Roleplaying Malaxxix Malaxxix is a being of great cunning, terrible rage, and insatiable bloodlust who regards any opportunity to inflict misery on others as

Charlatan - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

can tease out their hearts’ desires after a few minutes of conversation, and with a few leading questions you can read them like they were children’s books. It’s a useful talent, and

. 5 I run sleight-of-hand cons on street corners. 6 I convince people that worthless junk is worth their hard-earned money. FEATURE: FALSE IDENTITY You have created a second

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

. Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into his heart while he is incapacitated in his coffin, he is paralyzed until the stake is removed. Sunlight Hypersensitivity. While

Criminal - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

Guild took over your family business, ran it into the ground, and burned the building for insurance money. You were driven into crime yourself, but you’ll never work for the Guild. You take

; but what you learn you pass on to the Guild. 4 The inequality of Baldur’s Gate has driven you to take matters into your own hands. You steal from patriars and rich Lower City residents

Anthropologist

Backgrounds Tomb of Annihilation

books and scrolls, but also through first-hand observation—by visiting far-flung settlements and exploring local histories and customs. Skill Proficiencies: Insight, ReligionLanguages

survive—or why they did not. Some anthropologists are driven by intellectual curiosity, while others want the fame and recognition that comes with being the first to discover a new people, a

Urban Bounty Hunter

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

areas to help you succeed. You might be a cunning thief-catcher, prowling the rooftops to catch one of the myriad burglars of the city. Perhaps you are someone who has your ear to the street, aware of

If there’s a plan, I’ll forget it. If I don’t forget it, I’ll ignore it. 4 I have a “tell” that reveals when I’m lying. 5 I turn tail and run when

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

; animosity, gnomes tend to avoid or abandon settlements that have a severe infestation of kobolds, and conversely kobolds are usually driven out of communities that have a large gnome population

The Beast Within

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

takes shape. The beast within is a pool of powerful instincts, and its influence is revealed by a shifter’s personality: a feline shifter may be cool and distant, driven by predatory instincts, while

shifter’s subrace. Four subraces are especially common: Beasthide often signifies the bear or boar: stoic, stubborn and thick-skinned. Longtooth shifters typically have lupine traits and prefer to run

The Beast Within

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

traits and prefer to run with a pack. Swiftstride are often predatory and feline, but a swiftstride could also be a cunning rat who darts through the shadows. Wildhunt shifters are born from any creature

personality takes shape. The beast within is a pool of powerful instincts, and its influence is revealed by a shifter’s personality: a feline shifter may be cool and distant, driven by predatory instincts

Introduction

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Flee, Mortals! Rule Primer

Introduction Good news! If you’ve run fifth edition, then you already understand how to use most of the creatures within these books. You may see a few unfamiliar details, but fear not: this

Hermit

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

—something so big that it’s driven you from your beloved books and into a life of adventure. Is it a fragment of the Draconic Prophecy? A complex puzzle leading to an ancient treasure?

workings of the universe? 4 You’re a librarian. You’ve spent your entire life in the labyrinth of books below Morgrave University. A few weeks ago you stumbled on a secret buried in the vaults

Standalone Adventures

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos

Standalone Adventures Rather than playing the four adventures as a campaign, you can run them as standalone adventures. A section near the start of each adventure tells you how to use the adventure

in this way. If you run any of these adventures separately, you should ask the players to create characters of the appropriate starting level for the adventure, as shown in the Adventure Levels table

Running the Adventure

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

Running the Adventure To run this adventure, you need the D&D fifth edition core rulebooks — the Player’s Handbook, the Dungeon Master’s Guide, and the Monster Manual. Most of the monsters that

appear in the adventure are from the Monster Manual, along with a number of creatures from other books (including Volo’s Guide to Monsters and Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes) plus a number of new creatures

18. Library

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

18. Library The githyanki keep a modest library of books and maps on shelves carved into the asteroid’s rock walls. These shelves run from the floor to the 15-foot-high ceiling of each chamber. Most

columns that support the roof are lined with books. All the volumes here are in Gith and concern the githyanki’s history battling illithids and githzerai (see the “Gith” entry in the Monster Manual). 18b

Preparation

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Borderlands Quest: Goblin Trouble

(see the list below). Step 3. Reference the monsters (open monster entries or bookmark physical books). They all appear in the 2024 Monster Manual or D&D Beyond Basic Rules (available for free on D&D

Beyond). Here’s a list of the stat blocks needed to run the adventure: Bandit Giant Centipede Goblin Warrior Here are the premade characters you may want to use for the adventure: Shiela, Human Rogue

Preparation

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fated Flight of the Recluse

the monsters (open monster entries on D&D Beyond, or bookmark physical books). They all appear in the Monster Manual or Eberron: Forge of the Artificer. Here’s a list of the stat blocks needed to run

Player Assistance

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragon Delves

characters and monsters. Monster Wranglers. Whenever the characters enter combat with Hostile monsters, one or two players run these monsters using the stat blocks in the Monster Manual. (Two players can

share this role.) Rules Consultant. One player references rules in the Player’s Handbook or other books as needed.

Womford Rats

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Princes of the Apocalypse

mill sits on the riverbank, with several big granaries nearby and a handful of small, run-down cottages. Most of the townsfolk are intimidated by the thugs who run their criminal trade from their

keelboats. Questions about, “Is anybody selling books around here?” or “Where do we find the river boats?” quickly lead the party to the docks. Two of the three keelboats are crewed by commoners (ordinary

The Ghaal'dar

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

Lhesh Haruuc remains as the ruler of Darguun, and many fear that his death could throw the region into chaos. As a Ghaal’dar goblinoid, you hold your place through cunning and strength. You may have

been a former mercenary now seeking adventure. You could be working as an emissary for one of the Ghaal’dar tribes or even Lhesh Haruuc himself. Or you could have been driven from your tribe by the actions of a rival; perhaps you’re seeking allies to reclaim your birthright.

Cosmic Horror

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

driven by motivations humans can’t understand. Cults, forbidden books, and strange symbols form the cornerstones of cosmic horror. The genre has a history of framing marginalized demographics as monstrous and stigmatizing mental illness. Be aware and avoid those tropes.

Running the Adventure

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Laboratory of Kwalish

Running the Adventure To run this adventure, you need the D&D fifth edition core rulebooks (Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, and Monster Manual). Text that appears in a box like this is

from the Monster Manual, Volo’s Guide to Monsters, and Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes can be found in those books. Spells and equipment mentioned in the adventure are described in the Player’s Handbook

Goblin Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

appreciation for the finer things! — Volo Goblins occupy an uneasy place in a dangerous world, and they react by lashing out at any creatures they believe they can bully. Cunning in battle and

traps, snares, and nets to catch the unwary, and when their hunting patrols encounter other beings, they always look for ways to capture their foes instead of killing them. Goblins that run up against

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