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Returning 35 results for 'before brings deciding clever rules'.
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Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
characters, and use the Dragon Turtle Spellcasting table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for
making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"}
Trait
Orc
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Volo's Guide to Monsters
everywhere in the world around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should
swallow a stone.
A tribute of elf ears brings favor from Gruumsh.
If you bury five stones at dawn before a long journey, you will always find your way back to the war hearth.
Stomping your foot three
Goliath
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Elemental Evil Player's Companion
the responsibility to earn a place in the tribe or die trying.
Driven Competitors
Every day brings a new challenge to a goliath. Food, water, and shelter are rare in the uppermost mountain reaches. A
mock folk who rely on society’s structures or rules to maintain power.
Survival of the Fittest
Among goliaths, any adult who can’t contribute to the tribe is expelled. A lone goliath has
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
The Middle Path Many DMs find that using a combination of the two approaches works best. By balancing the use of dice against deciding on success, you can encourage your players to strike a balance
between relying on their bonuses and abilities and paying attention to the game and immersing themselves in its world. Remember that dice don’t run your game — you do. Dice are like rules. They’re
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
session and for creating situations that facilitate fun. Improviser. A big part of being the DM is deciding how to apply the rules as you go and imagining the consequences of the characters’ actions in a
way that will make the game fun for everyone. Referee. When it’s not clear what ought to happen next, the DM decides how to apply the rules. Storyteller. The DM crafts adventures, setting situations in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
session and for creating situations that facilitate fun. Improviser. A big part of being the DM is deciding how to apply the rules as you go and imagining the consequences of the characters’ actions in a
way that will make the game fun for everyone. Referee. When it’s not clear what ought to happen next, the DM decides how to apply the rules. Storyteller. The DM crafts adventures, setting situations in
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
everything. When you encounter something that the rules don’t cover or if you’re unsure how to interpret a rule, the DM decides how to proceed, aiming for a course that brings the most enjoyment to your whole
Ten Rules to Remember 1. The DM Adjudicates the Rules The rules of D&D cover many of the twists and turns that come up in play, but the possibilities are so vast that the rules can’t cover
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
world of the game. After you read this chapter, use the rules in “Creating a Character” to create your character. Team Up. Your character joins the other players’ characters to form an adventuring
party. These adventurers are allies who face challenges and fantastical situations together. Each character brings distinctive capabilities, which ideally complement those of the other characters
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player’s Handbook
world of the game. After you read this chapter, use the rules in chapter 2 to create your character. Team Up. Your character joins the other players’ characters to form an adventuring party. These
adventurers are allies who face challenges and fantastical situations together. Each character brings distinctive capabilities, which ideally complement those of the other characters. Venture Forth
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
creature’s efforts. In a contest, the ability checks are compared to each other, rather than to a target number. When you call for a contest, you pick the ability that each side must use, deciding
crowd, lie to someone convincingly INTELLIGENCE CHECK VS. WISDOM CHECK
If you have trouble deciding whether to call for an Intelligence or a Wisdom check to determine whether a character notices
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
some free time to exercise your creativity as you invent compelling plots, create new NPCs, craft encounters, and think of clever ways to foreshadow story events yet to come. Part 2 of these rules is
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
experience before deciding to become an adventurer? What were the circumstances of your birth? How large is your family, and what sorts of relationships do you have with your relatives? Which people
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Mine of Phandelver
“Cover” in the Basic Rules). DISGUISED CHARACTERS
Rather than storm Cragmaw Castle with weapons in hand, clever characters might try to talk their way inside. For example, they might don the scarlet
cloaks of the Redbrands and claim to be emissaries sent by Iarno “Glasstaff” Albrek, the Redbrand leader, to meet with King Grol. A good DM rewards this kind of clever thinking by giving the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dragon Heist
. We’ve visited Waterdeep before, but not like this. Clever heroes will respect the city’s rules. Those who get on the city’s bad side are in for a rough time, as the City of Splendors is home to some of
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Princes of the Apocalypse
prosperous and increasingly crowded, so buildings have been torn down and taller ones built — four stories high in some instances. A Waterbaron who rules for life leads Yartar. The current Waterbaron is
). Reason to Visit. The “Dark Dealings in Yartar” side trek (chapter 6) brings the characters here. More broadly, characters affiliated with the Lords’ Alliance can readily receive support in Yartar, and Harpers and Zhentarim can get aid, too, if they’re discreet and know how to contact an agent in town.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
adventurer to complete a task. In those cases, the DM might ask the player to roll a die to help determine what happens. Describing the results often leads to another decision point, which brings the
certain situations—particularly combat—the action is more structured, and everyone takes turns. Exceptions Supersede General Rules
General rules govern each part of the game. For example, the combat
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Monster Manual (2014)
How to Use These Rules The best thing about being a DM is that you get to invent your own fantasy world and bring it to life, and nothing brings a D&D world to life more than the creatures that
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player’s Handbook
adventurer to complete a task. In those cases, the DM might ask the player to roll a die to help determine what happens. Describing the results often leads to another decision point, which brings the
certain situations—particularly combat—the action is more structured, and everyone takes turns. Exceptions Supersede General Rules
General rules govern each part of the game. For example, the combat
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
other orcs and its intelligence to surprise enemies on the battlefield. Many an overconfident elf, human, or dwarf commander has watched a “simple” orc warlord execute a clever maneuver to outflank and
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes
Avernus 12 the Voluminous 3 the Insightful 13 the Stoic 4 Collector of Debts 14 the Shatterer 5 the Summoner 15 the Keeper 6 Speaker of Profit 16 the Faithful 7 Chainer of Demons 17 the Clever
resistance. 6 Every problem can be solved with the use of force. Devil Ideals d6 Ideal 1 Loyalty. I keep my vows to my superior and respect those who do the same. 2 Law. I might not like the rules
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide
envision him. Tempus’s favor might be randomly distributed, but over the centuries his priests have made an effort to spread and enforce a common code of warfare — to make war a thing of rules, respect for
reputations, and professional behavior. This code, called Tempus’s Honor, has the purpose of making conflicts brief, decisive, and as safe as possible for those not directly involved. The rules in the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
it has several different abilities, but simply deciding that an item is always active or can be used a fixed number of times per day is easier to manage. Power Level If you make an item that lets a
column suggests an appropriate bonus based on the item’s rarity. Attunement Decide whether the item requires a character to be attuned to it to use its properties. Use these rules of thumb to help you
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Volo's Guide to Monsters
around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should react to them. As a race, orcs
stones, mushrooms, or any other kind of circle. Seeing a shooting star before a battle is bad luck. To ward it off, you must swallow a stone. A tribute of elf ears brings favor from Gruumsh. If you bury
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mythic Odysseys of Theros
be at least partially blinded by dark emotions, a state that might make them easy to manipulate by the followers of clever deities. The servants of the god of slaughter aren’t all mindless brutes
. Mogis’s Villains d8 Villain
1 A petty tyrant (gladiator) rules his populace through threats and intimidation. His favorite pastime is forcing unwilling subjects to fight in gladiatorial blood
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
, and discuss house rules, with the goal of ensuring the game is a fun experience for everyone involved. The “Ensuring Fun for All” section in chapter 1 covers some of the most important groundwork you
players are experienced, start the campaign at level 3 instead. (See the Player’s Handbook for rules on starting at higher levels.) Bringing the Party Together During session zero, help the players come
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder
attack her castle without provocation or are caught trying to sneak into her home, Sansuri brings her castle’s defenses to bear and tries to crush them, capturing those who surrender. If the characters
update her maps of the lands below. If the characters ask about the dragon, Sansuri replies coldly, “It’s not your concern.” Clever characters might claim to possess knowledge useful to Sansuri, such as
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden
for the curses it brings. According to Elva, trickster spirits have been opening her windows, sending horrible chills through her home, and knocking over her cups and plates. Some of her cutlery has
feel threatened by the humanoids in their presence. Clever players might devise creative ways to lure the chwingas out of hiding, perhaps by doing something odd to gain their attention (such as engaging in a snowball fight or dancing in the snow). As the DM, you determine the success of such efforts.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated
, the characters discover the members of the “C” Team fallen in combat and must fight the horrid Far Realm creature that slew them. Doing so brings those NPC heroes back to life. Once the Keymaster has
members. Oh, and there’s a thing where the ritual keeps resurrecting Splugoth every time the characters kill him. In the end, clever thinking and a measure of luck might allow the heroes to keep
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
-to-the-death situation, the standard combat rules apply to that sort of activity. Resources. Engaging in this activity requires one workweek of effort from a character. Resolution. The character must
’ promoters. Every workweek spent pit fighting brings a 10 percent chance of a complication, examples of which are on the Pit Fighting Complications table. Pit Fighting Complications d6 Complication 1
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Turn of Fortune’s Wheel
Angels in the Outlands CoupleOfKooks “If you think you’re prepared for the ultimate struggle between good and evil, the deciding contest between all that is righteous and all that is foul, then to
is called Spireball. The modron happily explains the game’s rules, its stakes, and the two teams, all of which are detailed below. Good versus Evil Two teams—the Noxious Stampede and the Righteous
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mythic Odysseys of Theros
rules from chapter 6 of the Player’s Handbook, your Dungeon Master might allow you to take a feat as a variant supernatural gift. You gain one feat of your choice. This list suggests twelve feats from
through the woods and play with a giant lynx—which, I learned later, was an emissary of Nylea. (Mobile)
The sun’s light brings what is hidden to clear view in my eyes. (Observant)
I ate a magical
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes
all. Rules for Everything Devils are evil schemers by nature, but they must operate within the bounds of the Nine Hells’ intricate legal code. A devil’s attitude toward the law is in part driven by its
and specific circumstances. A clever upstart that wants to annihilate its superior could manipulate events to bring about one such circumstance, then look on as the commander succumbs while it cites the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
Narration in Combat Although it’s important that the players understand what’s going on in terms of the rules, the game can get dull if everyone uses only “gamespeak”: “That’s an 18 to hit,” “You hit
; now roll damage,” “11 points,” and “OK, now we’re to Initiative count 13.” Instead, use the rules and your knowledge of the scene to help your narration. If 18 is barely a hit, but the 11 points of
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide
involved.” Sometimes the rules allow for any one of two or more proficiencies to apply to a check. When deciding what check a character should make, be generous in determining if the character’s
each ability is used for. (Constitution checks are rare, as tests of a character’s endurance are usually passive or reactive, making a saving throw more appropriate.) Proficiency When the rules or a
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons
posts alongside the monk Leosin. Characters have one night to escape this fate. They might wriggle out of their bonds, bribe or charm a cultist to set them free, or come up with a clever use for a
as if they’d been recognized. If characters lie to Mondath—claiming they are new recruits and this is all a mistake, for example, or that they are studying the cult before deciding whether to join