before branches diffusing cunning reason

Zhentarim Mercenary

backgrounds Forgotten Realms: Heroes of Faerûn

you’re just good at getting the job done by any means necessary. Whatever your reason, you enlisted with the Zhentarim, the most notorious mercenary guild in the Realms. Though the Zhentarim&rsquo

;s leaders insist the organization is more like a family than a shadowy syndicate, few families exhibit as much dishonesty, nepotism, and corruption as this one. You’ve honed your cunning, reflexes, and blade to climb the guild’s ranks.

Far Traveler

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

provided. The following section, discussing possible homelands, includes some suggested reasons that are appropriate for each location. d6 Reason d6 Reason 1 Emissary 4 Pilgrim

hundreds of miles of the Great Glacier and the Great Ice Sea. No one from your nation makes the effort to cross such colossal barriers without a convincing reason. You must fear something truly

Monastery

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

and others who have reason to leave. For those individuals, a monastery might serve as a refuge between excursions to the world or as a source of support in times of need. What sort of place was your

it looms over a treacherous pass. 2 Your monastery is high in the branches of an immense tree in the Feywild. 3 Your monastery was founded long ago by a cloud giant and is inside a cloud castle that

The Oases

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

. Har’Akir’s people say this oasis’s waters are poison, as the oasis was given by the gods to the beasts of the land. Prides of cunning lions hunt nearby, frequently washing their kills here. Sek’s Tears

to die soon, for one reason or another, and seek to cleanse themselves with the White Oasis’s waters before meeting their end.

Helmed Horror

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

Helmed Horror This construct possesses intelligence, the ability to reason and adjust its tactics, and an unswerving devotion to its maker that persists even after its maker’s demise. Resembling an

understand the difference between an order’s intent and its exact wording. Unlike many constructs, it seeks to fulfill the former rather than slavishly follow the latter. Tactical Cunning. A helmed horror

Orog

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

of food often brings them to the surface to hunt. Orcs respect an orog’s strength and cunning, and a lone orog might command an orc war band. Stronger and Smarter. An orog uses its strength to bully

foremost — because they believe that the gods have strength beyond reason, and physical might is all they respect. Servants of Darkness. Mistrusted by orcs, some orogs form independent mercenary war

Horrors

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica

horrors — a variety of things that lurk in the dark and embody the deepest fears of Ravnica’s people. All are evil creatures with dim reason and preternatural cunning. At least three guilds have been

Religious Institutions

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

priesthood depends on the tenets of that god: the cunning rogues who venerate Mask have little in common with the upright law-keepers of Tyr, and the delightful revelers who revere Lliira are different from

marriages and funerals. Temples are places where worshipers go either to spend personal or family time in a space consecrated to a deity or to seek the aid of the priests for some reason. Small

Assassin

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Monster Manual

assassins kill for a reason, perhaps hiring themselves out to wealthy patrons or slaying for an unscrupulous cause. They use poisons and other deadly tools, and they might carry equipment to help them

) Piercing damage plus 21 (6d6) Poison damage. Bonus Actions Cunning Action. The assassin takes the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action. Awakened Plants Vegetation Given Magical Life Habitat: Forest

Forest Gnomes

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

tree branches, which carry smoke from their small fires high into the treetops, reducing it to little more than a haze before it disperses. Animal Helpers Forest gnomes can communicate with many of

community — designing longer-lasting or larger-scale illusions that help the community stay hidden from the world. Gnomes use illusions for practically any reason — as a game, for defense, or for

Gnomes of Zilargo

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

goals — of which there are many — often still prefers to use trickery and cunning rather than the unreliable tools of honesty or brute force. Most Zil gnomes belong to the forest gnome subrace. Their

Zilargo: why you have left, and what ties do you still have to it? Your scheme could provide a good reason for you to leave. Or you could be a sage gathering information for the Library of Korranberg or an

G. Tser Pool Encampment

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Curse of Strahd

of mist and branches suddenly gives way to black clouds boiling far above. There is a clearing here, next to a river that widens to form a small lake several hundred feet across. Five colorful round

, cunning and sharp of mind. She has met a good many adventurers in her time and knows they can’t be fully trusted. She wants to free the land of Barovia from its curse, and her fate is interwoven with

Faerie Dragon Lairs

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

a manor or convincing pixies to construct them a silken bower. The most elaborate faerie dragon lairs are modeled off those of larger dragons, featuring multiple chambers and cunning traps. Faerie

½ feet per square, the hollow spaces tucked inside a massive tree trunk, and the passages running inside major branches rather than underground. A typical lair has the following features: Trapped Entrance

High Moor

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

attention or ire. Travelers who leave the inhabitants of the Misty Forest alone, and who build their campfires small and solely of fallen branches, are usually permitted to pass, so long as the folk of the

forest aren’t in a foul mood or stirred up against outsiders for some other reason. Secomber Just off the High Moor, on the north bank of the Delimbiyr near the Unicorn Run, is the small town of

The Three Packs

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Turn of Fortune’s Wheel

cunning, but he is nursing his wounded pride after a clash with Ophelia. He seeks to create a Faunel where the residents embrace their skills, becoming proud and powerful. Ebonclaw is suspicious of

: Straight, high-branched trees create a lofty canopy. Broad nests and tree houses hide among the branches. Below, small forest creatures scamper across shadowed trails. Any of the sapient birds who make

Meazel

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

do so, they become cringing, fawning things, eager to please and thereby escape the cold gaze of the being who brought them so low. All of the original thirteen remain alive, thanks to their cunning

power, barring them from any source except for the ruins left behind from fallen civilizations and great calamities. For this reason, nagpas turn their efforts to bringing about such ends, so they

Demon Lords

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

demon lords rule through cunning or brute force, hoping to one day claim the prize of absolute control over all the Abyss. Reward for Outsiders. Although most demon lords rise up from the vast and

matriarch when she manifests to her followers in the mortal realm, which she does with unusual frequency. When battle breaks out — or if she has a reason to remind her followers to fear her — Lolth’s lower

People of Meletis

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

live as the gods demand. Rich fields and the bounty of the sea support most people throughout Meletis. The people have reputations for being accomplished weavers, skilled sailors, and cunning

. Nyklean philosophers teach that reason or destiny underlies all of reality, so that everything that takes place must unfold just as it does. These philosophers train themselves to accept and endure

Decisionist

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

. You might primarily attempt to convince others through charismatic arguments, or through force of will or intellectual cunning. You might lead by example, or by extolling the examples of other people

Decisionist? d8 Reason 1 It’s always you who picks where everyone has lunch. 2 Roughly half your choices are the right ones. You might as well just toss a coin for it. 3 You have

Fellow Prisoners

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

others await death at the hands of the drow or their pets. Regardless of what they might think of the adventurers — and each other — outside the slave pens, all the NPCs have good reason to cooperate in

order to escape and survive. Prisoners of the Drow Buppido Talkative and cunning derro Prince Derendil Quaggoth who claims to be a cursed elf prince Eldeth Feldrun Shield dwarf scout from Gauntlgrym

Najara

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

Serpent Hills, where we were taken prisoner by yuan-ti patrolling the borders of their domain. The half-elf was hauled away in slaver’s chains, but for some reason I was taken to the court of Jarant

escape, and I know he has done likewise for others in the past. I owe him a debt I intend to repay one day. Another figure of note in the court is the cunning green dragon Emikaiwufeg, often called the

Gods of the Orcs

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

is Gruumsh One-Eye, who created the orcs and continues to direct their destiny. He is aided and abetted by the other warrior deities, Bahgtru and Ilneval, who bring strength and cunning to the

their emotions and instincts rather than out of reason and logic. Only certain charismatic orcs, those who have been directly touched by the will and might of Gruumsh, have the capacity to control the

Orcs

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

their tongues to emulate their deity, for a reason similar to why an eye of Gruumsh puts out one of its eyes. Orc Hand of Yurtrus Medium humanoid (orc), chaotic evil Armor Class 12 (hide armor) Hit

Challenge 3 (700 XP) Cunning Action. On each of its turns, the orc can use a bonus action to take the Dash, Disengage, or Hide action. Hand of Shargaas. The orc deals an 2 extra dice of damage when it

Adventure Models

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

and a dragon are oblivious to the destruction they’re causing Delve into the Past The best reason for delving into the past is to discover a path to a better future. —Diancastra In the world of

the Magic: The Gathering setting of Kaldheim, all moving among the branches of a vast World Tree. Wintry Surtland is a realm of constant turmoil. Volcanoes burst through snow and ice to form new

Brimstone Hold Locations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Keys from the Golden Vault

emblazoned with Vrakir’s symbol—a crown encircling the branches of a tree wreathed in flame—as well his motto, atka ignari (Ignan for “all shall burn”). Two erinyes are stationed on the rooftops of the

towers closest to the bridge. If the characters approach the gatehouse and give a sound reason for being here, the erinyes open the way (see “Doors” and “Portcullises” below), escort the characters to

Demon Types

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

controlled by a demon lord, goristros make formidable living siege engines and prized pets. Goristros possess preternatural cunning when navigating labyrinthine passages and shifting corridors

cunning. Nalfeshnees are devastating in combat, using their wings to soar above the front ranks and reach vulnerable adversaries that can be dispatched with little effort. From the thick of battle, they

The Dark Seldarine

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

cunning — a trait that drow attach more importance to than they do to sanity. Give no quarter to drow, for none shall be given to you. Capture by drow means certain death, either as a sacrifice or after

surface on raids to retreat if they can see the moon — practical advice, it would seem. But an equally important reason is that Eilistraee is known to work her wiles under the light of the moon, so that

Encounters in the Villa

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

nimblewright from opening the gates. G2. Yard The estate is well tended. In spring and summer, large trees provide shade. The trees begin shedding leaves in the fall. By winter, their branches are stripped bare

(Intimidation) check, but the check is made with disadvantage if Lord Gralhund has reason to believe his wife can see or overhear the conversation: “The Stone of Golorr is some kind of ancient creature

Mr. Dory's Warehouse

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh

, died, or for some other reason never reclaimed their belongings. The loft is also the lair of the three manticores and the red slaad that guard the warehouse at night. The manticores have no love for the

cunning and clever. If combat breaks out here, he remains hidden in the water while the skum do the fighting. He makes a Dexterity (Stealth) check in an attempt to hide. As long as he remains unnoticed

Masters' Domain

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tales from the Yawning Portal->a5

joined their ranks. He worries that some of his peers who are loyal to Szass Tam might suspect him. Aware of Szass Tam’s cunning, Lahnis first assumes the characters are testing his allegiance. Around the

Barracks The light in this room can be seen from area 34. Unless the creatures here have a reason to be quiet, they are talking loudly. Three bonfires light this vast chamber, their smoke rising to

Maelstrom Level 2

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder

(Perception) check, see the decanter anchored behind coral branches, which must be smashed to free it. The sculpture stands 20 feet tall and has AC 11, 50 hit points, and immunity to psychic and poison damage

with them so that they can return to Maelstrom safely. If the characters no longer have their conch for some reason, Serissa furnishes them with another one (taken from one of her guests). If the

Locations on the Second Level

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tales from the Yawning Portal->a6

green coloration is particularly nauseating in this setting. Flanking the braziers, in the form of triangles pointing downward, are two sets of candelabra, each candelabrum having three branches. These

any reason—in fact, they will gladly take up arms to fight intruders if given the chance. 17. Thrall Pen Ten unarmed gnolls dwell here. They will behave in all respects like their kin in area 16.

Roleplaying a Giant

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

arrival of Thrym’s blue-skinned, icy children. Ordning of Might Position within the frost giant ordning is determined by sheer, brute strength. Frost giants know that those that use cunning, agility, and

more by Surtur’s well-crafted gifts than by the trophy heads Thrym laid at his feet. For this reason, frost giants bear more ill will toward Annam than most other giants do. Unlike his brothers

Locations R - U

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder

Long Road. They are so named because the area has been the target of several meteor showers over the millennia. The hills are haunted by various tribes of Uthgardt, giving few others reason to visit

these hill giants by surprise. An inn and saloon called the Black Bull’s Tail stands at the intersection where the road branches. Two more hill giants have ripped through the inn’s facade and destroyed

Locations E - H

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder

), commander of Everlund’s army and a windbag High Sorcerer Vaeril Rhuidhen (NG male sun elf archmage), a quiet voice of moderation and reason who keeps the peace between the council’s more fractious

Well” section). Coldwood Branches of the Icespear River emerge from the heart of the Coldwood, trickling south toward the Silver Marches. The Glimmerwood is so frigid that the ground is covered with

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