before both define creating relatively

Ancient Red Dragon Legacy

Monsters Basic Rules (2014)

horns and spinal frill define its silhouette. Its beaked snout vents smoke at all times, and its eyes dance with flame when it is angry.A Red Dragon’s Lair Red dragons lair in high mountains or

lairs, creating hazards that hinder intruders and letting searing heat and volcanic gases wash over a dragon as it sleeps. With its hoard well protected deep within the lair, a red dragon spends as

Adult Red Dragon Legacy

Monsters Basic Rules (2014)

spinal frill define its silhouette. Its beaked snout vents smoke at all times, and its eyes dance with flame when it is angry.A Red Dragon’s Lair Red dragons lair in high mountains or hills

, creating hazards that hinder intruders and letting searing heat and volcanic gases wash over a dragon as it sleeps. With its hoard well protected deep within the lair, a red dragon spends as much of its

Young Deep Dragon Legacy

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

skin, especially around the head and neck. Their wings are attached to their front legs and can fold in close to the body, allowing deep dragons to easily maneuver through relatively narrow tunnels

. Creating a Deep Dragon Use the Deep Dragon Personality Traits and Deep Dragon Ideals tables to inspire your portrayal of distinctive deep dragon characters, and use the Deep Dragon Spellcasting table to

Klauth

Monsters Storm King's Thunder

damage and be knocked prone. Klauth can then fly up to half his flying speed.The odor of sulfur and pumice surrounds a red dragon, whose swept-back horns and spinal frill define its silhouette. Its

of abandoned mines and dwarven strongholds. Caves with volcanic or geothermal activity are the most highly prized red dragon lairs, creating hazards that hinder intruders and letting searing heat and

Deep Dragon Wyrmling Legacy

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

wings are attached to their front legs and can fold in close to the body, allowing deep dragons to easily maneuver through relatively narrow tunnels. Deep dragons often hoard secrets, delighting in

combat. Deep dragons look down on any creature that isn’t useful to them, though they are willing to bargain for knowledge they lack. Creating a Deep Dragon Use the Deep Dragon Personality

Fighter Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

combatants on battlefields and in dungeons alike. Trained for Danger Not every member of the city watch, the village militia, or the queen’s army is a fighter. Most of these troops are relatively

left behind. There are greater risks, perhaps, but also much greater rewards—few fighters in the city watch have the opportunity to discover a magic flame tongue sword, for example. Creating a

Ancient Deep Dragon Legacy

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

attached to their front legs and can fold in close to the body, allowing deep dragons to easily maneuver through relatively narrow tunnels. Deep dragons often hoard secrets, delighting in knowledge of

. Deep dragons look down on any creature that isn’t useful to them, though they are willing to bargain for knowledge they lack. Creating a Deep Dragon Use the Deep Dragon Personality Traits and

Adult Deep Dragon Legacy

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

attached to their front legs and can fold in close to the body, allowing deep dragons to easily maneuver through relatively narrow tunnels. Deep dragons often hoard secrets, delighting in knowledge

. Deep dragons look down on any creature that isn’t useful to them, though they are willing to bargain for knowledge they lack. Creating a Deep Dragon Use the Deep Dragon Personality Traits and

Ancient Sapphire Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

immense power. Creating a Sapphire Dragon Use the Sapphire Dragon Personality Traits and Sapphire Dragon Ideals tables to inspire your portrayal of distinctive sapphire dragon characters. Sapphire

top of the map) provides the main access to the lair by way of two sections of relatively thin crystal walls. The dragon can use a lair action to open or close passages through these walls throughout

Chapter 2: Creating a Multiverse

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

Chapter 2: Creating a Multiverse When adventurers reach higher levels, their path extends to other dimensions of reality: the planes of existence that form the multiverse. The characters might be

Limbo to contact a wizened githzerai sage. Planes of existence define the extremes of strange and often dangerous environments. The most bizarre locations present settings undreamed of in the natural

Monsters and Motivations

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

Monsters and Motivations See chapter 3, “Creating Adventures” for guidance on creating encounters with monsters. To foster variety and suspense, be sure to include encounters of varying difficulty

adventurers. Characters might be able to appease a hungry beast by offering it food, and smarter creatures have complex motivations. The Monster Motivation table lets you use a monster’s goals to define its

First Adventure

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

. Many campaigns begin with a published adventure and then develop organically as the characters explore beyond the scope of the adventure. If you’re creating your own adventure for the start of your

campaign, refer to the advice in chapter 4. Keep the first adventure relatively short and simple, allowing plenty of time for the characters to get to know each other as the players roleplay. What’s

Chapter 1: This Is Your Life

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

Chapter 1: This Is Your Life The character creation rules in the Player’s Handbook provide all the information you need to define your character in preparation for a life of adventuring. What they

backstory for your character — an autobiography of sorts — that you can use to inform how you roleplay the character. Your DM can draw from this material as the campaign proceeds, creating situations and scenarios that build off your previous life experiences.

Sinister Reflections

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

Sinister Reflections A Darklord’s memories, desires, mistakes, and evil deeds shape the domain’s twisted lands, inhabitants, and features. You need not create these in a vacuum, though. When creating

your own Darklord, consider the relationship that will define their evil in your adventures: their conflict with your players’ characters. Just as a Darklord is the inspiration for a domain, players

Studies and Philosophy

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

or to define what could be? The perspective of substance emphasizes physical reality. In this view, math is embodied in the natural forces of the multiverse, waiting to be discovered by those with the

intellectual fortitude to delve into those secrets. Quandrix mages who embrace this view use magic to bring numerical concepts to life, creating or altering physical reality out of mathematical

Corrupt Beyond Redemption

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

nurture further transgression, but they don’t force individuals to undertake actions against their will. When an evildoer’s wickedness ripens, the Dark Powers engulf them forever. When creating your

other details. Those Harmed. The people the Darklord harmed need to feel real. Give them names. Imbue them with agency, and don’t define them as victims or props. The people who survived the Darklord’s

Humans

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

dominated Khorvaire for thousands of years. They founded the Five Nations and make up the majority of the population in these countries. Despite their relatively short lifespan—or perhaps because of it

rogue. When you’re creating a human character, consider where you’re from and how that’s reflected in your class and background. Chapter 2 presents an overview of the nations of Khorvaire and ideas

Adult Sapphire Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

intrusion. The centerpiece of a sapphire dragon’s hoard is usually a cataloged, orderly collection of war gear, which can contain ancient relics of immense power. Creating a Sapphire Dragon Use

by way of two sections of relatively thin crystal walls. The dragon can use a lair action to open or close passages through these walls throughout the lair. Cobweb-Choked Tunnels. Adventurers who

Environment

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

is relatively scarce in such areas. Partly out of fear and partly because their eyes are sensitive to sunlight, kobolds prefer the security of a cave to living in the open air, and can be found in

outcroppings, creating warrens above the water line. Kobolds reside most commonly in hilly or mountainous terrain. Such locations usually have natural caves suitable for living space, plenty of room to dig

Play Style

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

Play Style By building a new world (or adopting an existing one) and creating the key events that launch your campaign, you determined what your campaign is about. Next, you have to decide how you

kick in the dungeon door, fight the monsters, and grab the treasure. This style of play is straightforward, fun, exciting, and action-oriented. The players spend relatively little time developing

Druids of Khorvaire

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

help each understand the other. All druids look after the natural world, but they act in different ways. Five well-established paths define most of Khorvaire’s druids. In creating a druid character

Humans

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

Nations. Even today humans make up the majority of the population in these countries. Despite their relatively short lifespans — or perhaps because of them — humans are innovative, adaptable, and

aggressive, always pushing their limits and pursuing new ideas. Humans prove extremely diverse; a barbarian from the Demon Wastes has little in common with a Brelish rogue. When creating a human character

Whorlstone Tunnels

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

relatively regular dimensions. They are known for their unusual rock formations and abundant patches of fungi, and for being suffused with faerzress (see chapter 2). There are currently two factions

complex, creating spiral patterns on the walls and ceilings. These spirals are what give the complex its name. Because of these weird spiraling patterns, saving throws to resist faerzress-induced

Kobold Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

creatures wouldn’t feel safe. Kobolds take advantage of their size by creating small-diameter tunnels that they can easily pass through, but that require larger creatures to hunch over or even

, since food is relatively scarce in such areas. Partly out of fear and partly because their eyes are sensitive to sunlight, kobolds prefer the security of a cave to living in the open air, and can be

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Hoard of the Dragon Queen

explores some of the behind-the-scenes development that went into creating Tyranny of Dragons, as well as defining a spectrum of monsters, allies, and enemies that would feature in Dungeons & Dragons

offerings for years to come. On the following pages, you’ll find a number of images designed to serve as story beats in the larger Tyranny of Dragons campaign. These images were created to define impactful

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Rise of Tiamat

explores some of the behind-the-scenes development that went into creating Tyranny of Dragons, as well as defining a spectrum of monsters, allies, and enemies that would feature in Dungeons & Dragons

offerings for years to come. On the following pages, you’ll find a number of images designed to serve as story beats in the larger Tyranny of Dragons campaign. These images were created to define impactful

Why a Monstrous Character?

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

Why a Monstrous Character? Creating characters as creatures normally cast as villains offers up some interesting roleplaying possibilities. Whether played for comedy, as a tragic story of betrayal

architects of grand, heavily fortified edifices, which other folk dwell in for a price. The cultural notes in chapter 1 are the standard D&D depiction of these creatures, but by no means do they define them

Life in Godsbreath

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Journeys through the Radiant Citadel

’ example. The Covenant is a pantheon of deities with a particular interest in Godsbreath. They have varied alignments and interests. This local pantheon is for you to define and might include gods

might be memorialized on a grass-woven story basket from the Nightwater Isles or added to a Ribbon family’s fireside quilt, creating invaluable heirlooms protected at all costs. Truly extraordinary

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons

explores some of the behind-the-scenes development that went into creating Tyranny of Dragons, as well as defining a spectrum of monsters, allies, and enemies that would feature in Dungeons & Dragons

offerings for years to come. On the following pages, you’ll find a number of images designed to serve as story beats in the larger Tyranny of Dragons campaign. These images were created to define impactful

Life in the Domains of Dread

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

your adventures, you define what deities are worshiped in a domain and whether those deities are actual gods, manifestations of the Dark Powers, or one masquerading as the other. EZRA, GOD OF THE MISTS

players who want to create characters devoted to Ezra to define the god’s role in their domain of origin. Time and Dates The Domains of Dread don’t share a unified calendar. However, in most

Dispater

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

unearthed over his lifetime, the foundries of Dis produce deadly armaments that help to stem the abyssal tide. The fighting requires constant reinforcements, creating a voracious appetite for the

reality is a contest played out under secret rules. If he can discover the principles that define the true nature of the cosmos, he can learn how to ascend to the top of the Nine Hells’ hierarchy and

Entering Derro Territory

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

chance of another attack becomes 50 percent every half hour. Sneaking through the senseless arrangement of the burrows is relatively easy, as the derro are normally too preoccupied with their own mad

magical wards placed by derro savants to guard against duergar intrusion. When a ward activates in response to the presence of an invisible creature, nearby derro fly into a frenzy, creating a chaotic

Core Assumptions

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

practical to the esoteric, such as the accumulation of material wealth or the resurrection of a dead god. Whatever their goals, these factions inevitably collide, creating conflict that can steer the

world’s fate. The World Is Magical. Practitioners of magic are relatively few in number, but they leave evidence of their craft everywhere. The magic can be as innocuous and commonplace as a potion that

Cults of the Dragon Below

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

discovered a beating heart that filled an entire room, pumping blood through veins in the walls of the building. According to Allis, the staff claimed to be “creating the heart of Galifar,” apparently

. However, your character could be a member of a relatively benign cult. You might have been raised in a cult but broke free from its influence. If your character was or is part of a cult, work with your DM to develop the details of your sect.

Matriculating from the Schools of Magic

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

school can help define your role in the business, as well as your fellow franchise members’ expectations for you. Abjuration Protective magic is often underappreciated by the members of the lesser

business plan ever developed — and that plan has your name all over it. As a conjurer, your utility to your franchise knows no bounds, whether you’re creating the right tool for the job, summoning

D&D Beyond

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