before broad driving concept rather

Water Weird Legacy

Monsters Monster Manual (2014)

those its summoner declares as off limits. When slain, a water weird becomes an inanimate pool of water. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil

interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might turn against its summoner. A water weird loses its evil alignment if its waters are cleansed

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

Cradle of the Cloud Scion

Monsters Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

feet tall and wields a morningstar made from magically dense clouds. It tends to regard other creatures as toys rather than serious threats, and it uses its illusion magic to manipulate creatures into

this case, each scion is enclosed in stasis inside a powerful Elemental called a cradle. The cradle protects the slumbering scion and follows its subconscious wishes, including driving off intruders

Vedalken

Species Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

external ears, their noses are broad and flat, and they are partially amphibious. Cool Rationality Despite being talkative, vedalken keep their personal lives private, and they tend to engage more

with ideas than with people. They form close friendships based on mutual interests or compelling disagreements, and their interactions dwell on their thoughts about those issues rather than their

Scion of Memnor

Monsters Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

made from magically dense clouds. It tends to regard other creatures as toys rather than serious threats, and it uses its illusion magic to manipulate creatures into fighting each other. If seriously

stasis inside a powerful Elemental called a cradle. The cradle protects the slumbering scion and follows its subconscious wishes, including driving off intruders. But if the cradle dies, the scion

Tiefling Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

three broad categories. Tieflings born into another culture typically have names reflective of that culture. Some have names derived from the Infernal language, passed down through generations, that

reflect their fiendish heritage. And some younger tieflings, striving to find a place in the world, adopt a name that signifies a virtue or other concept and then try to embody that concept. For some

Halfling Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

treasures locked in a cellar rather than on display for all to see. They have a knack for finding the most straightforward solution to a problem, and have little patience for dithering. Kind and

communities travel as a way of life, driving wagons or guiding boats from place to place and maintaining no permanent home. AFFABLE AND POSITIVE Halflings try to get along with everyone else and are

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

empires on the foundation of conquest and trade. Whatever drives them, humans are the innovators, the achievers, and the pioneers of the worlds. A Broad Spectrum With their penchant for migration

, humans champion causes rather than territories or groups. Human Names and Ethnicities Having so much more variety than other cultures, humans as a whole have no typical names. Some human parents

Rogue Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

variety of skills as they do to perfecting their combat abilities, giving them a broad expertise that few other characters can match. Many rogues focus on stealth and deception, while others refine the

would rather make one precise strike, placing it exactly where the attack will hurt the target most, than wear an opponent down with a barrage of attacks. Rogues have an almost supernatural knack for

Feral Tiefling

Species Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

three broad categories. Tieflings born into another culture typically have names reflective of that culture. Some have names derived from the Infernal language, passed down through generations, that

reflect their fiendish heritage. And some younger tieflings, striving to find a place in the world, adopt a name that signifies a virtue or other concept and then try to embody that concept. For some

Tiefling Names

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

Tiefling Names Tiefling names fall into three broad categories. Tieflings born into another culture typically have names reflective of that culture. Some have names derived from the Infernal language

, passed down through generations, that reflect their fiendish heritage. And some younger tieflings, striving to find a place in the world, adopt a name that signifies a virtue or other concept and

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to pull his or her weight in the tribe. Typically, such a goliath dies attempting to keep up, or the goliath slips

away in the night to seek the cold will of fate. In some ways, the goliath drive to outdo themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in

Tiefling Names

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

Tiefling Names Tiefling names fall into three broad categories. Tieflings born into another culture typically have names reflective of that culture. Some have names derived from the Infernal

concept and then try to embody that concept. For some, the chosen name is a noble quest. For others, it’s a grim destiny. Male Infernal Names: Akmenos, Amnon, Barakas, Damakos, Ekemon, Iados, Kairon

Crime Syndicate

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

magic, physical might, and a broad selection of skills to your work, making you well suited to missions like grand heists, high-profile assassinations, and epic cons. Crime syndicates thrived during

the Last War. The war left many people desperate, driving them into lives of crime. The war also demanded huge numbers of able-bodied soldiers, which reduced the ranks of law enforcement across

Using This Book

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

2 and 3. If you come across a game concept in part 1 that you don’t understand, consult the book’s index. Part 2 (chapters 7–9) details the rules of how to play the game, beyond the basics described

in this introduction. That part covers the kinds of die rolls you make to determine success or failure at the tasks your character attempts, and describes the three broad categories of activity in the

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

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

Appendix E: Concept Gallery Just as most adventurers don’t walk into a dragon’s lair without a plan, neither were D&D’s iconic monsters developed without considerable forethought. This gallery

. The images herein show just a few avenues explored in updating these foes to the most current edition of the game, along with notes taken from internal concept and story documents. Some present

Character Names

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

names, that’s fine. If the group would rather take the characters and their names a little more seriously, urge Bob’s player to come up with a more appropriate name. Player character names should match

each other in flavor or concept, and they should also match the flavor of your campaign world — so should the nonplayer characters’ names and place names you create. Travok and Kairon don’t want to undertake a quest for Lord Cupcake, visit Gumdrop Island, or take down a crazy wizard named Ray.

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

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

Appendix E: Concept Gallery Just as most adventurers don’t walk into a dragon’s lair without a plan, neither were D&D’s iconic monsters developed without considerable forethought. This gallery

. The images herein show just a few avenues explored in updating these foes to the most current edition of the game, along with notes taken from internal concept and story documents. Some present

Appendix E: Concept Gallery

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

Appendix E: Concept Gallery Just as most adventurers don’t walk into a dragon’s lair without a plan, neither were D&D’s iconic monsters developed without considerable forethought. This gallery

. The images herein show just a few avenues explored in updating these foes to the most current edition of the game, along with notes taken from internal concept and story documents. Some present

Skill and Precision

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

Skill and Precision Rogues devote as much effort to mastering the use of a variety of skills as they do to perfecting their combat abilities, giving them a broad expertise that few other characters

comes to combat, rogues prioritize cunning over brute strength. A rogue would rather make one precise strike, placing it exactly where the attack will hurt the target most, than wear an opponent down

Skill and Precision

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

Skill and Precision Rogues devote as much effort to mastering the use of a variety of skills as they do to perfecting their combat abilities, giving them a broad expertise that few other characters

comes to combat, rogues prioritize cunning over brute strength. A rogue would rather make one precise strike, placing it exactly where the attack will hurt the target most, than wear an opponent down

Player's Handbook plus One

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

the characters in the campaign work. Since a DM in a shared campaign must deal with a broad range of characters, rather than the same characters each week, it can be difficult to track all the

Survival of the Fittest

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

pity for adults who can’t take care of themselves, though a sick or injured individual is treated, as a result of the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to

themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in battle, at the peak of strength and skill, than endure the slow decay of old age. Few folk

Aasimar

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

Aasimar In Eberron, aasimar aren’t a race as such. Rather, each aasimar is a unique individual touched by a celestial power. An aasimar bound to the Silver Flame has a couatl as an angelic guide

, driving it to protect the innocent from supernatural evil. An archon from Shavarath could exhort its aasimar to fight tyranny and injustice in the name of Dol Arrah, while an angel from Syrania might

Origin of the Ordning

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

the ordning in some mythic future. Giants on some worlds (including Eberron) have no concept of the ordning at all. Such giants might think of themselves as a single species, with the differences

among giant kinds reflecting a cultural or geographical distinction rather than an inherent one. They might live in bands composed of multiple giant kinds or family groups of a single kind. Or giants of

The Balance

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

concept they espouse as the Balance, and they seek to maintain equilibrium across the cosmos above all. Mordenkainen and his compatriots are among its most notable devotees. Since a true appreciation of

follower might aid in consigning one city to domination by a devil cult while driving demonic cultists from another. For the sake of the Balance, the cosmos must remain in a static state where neither

Province Scale

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

chapter) or any location where you expect to track the adventurers’ movement in hours rather than days. The ground cover of an area this size will include broad stretches of one predominant terrain type

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

forest an unappealing place to explore by temporarily diverting springs, driving away game, stealing critical tools, and altering trails to leave hunting or lumber parties hopelessly lost. The

Character Advancement

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

taking part in a play session. A character reaches 1 checkpoint for each hour an adventure is designed to last. Note that the award is based on the adventure’s projected playing time, rather than the

designed to take 2 hours, the character reaches 3 checkpoints. Playing time might seem like an odd way to measure experience awards, but the concept is in keeping with how a shared campaign is meant to

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

Talenta Halflings

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

of information and revenge. Perhaps you’re guided by the spirits, who send you whispers and visions driving you on your adventures. You could be an official envoy of your tribe seeking allies in the

. 6 You don’t understand the concept of “truth.” To you, everything is a story and it’s all about how you tell it. 7 You are annoyed by buildings and tools designed without consideration for

Secret

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

holy symbol that represents that divinity. Some clerics, especially in a world like Eberron, serve a whole pantheon, rather than a single deity. In certain campaigns, a cleric might instead serve a

cosmic force, such as life or death, or a philosophy or concept, such as love, peace, or one of the nine alignments. Chapter 1 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide explores options like these, in the section

The God-Brain's Powers and Dominion

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

knows anything that they know. The God-Brain delegates broad goals to its most effective servants, encouraging them to indulge all manner of radical experiments. Mist Vibrations. Through the awesome

is wracked by extreme electrical storms, and alien vapors rise at the domain’s distant edges and within its hidden tunnels. Rather than barring creatures’ escape, these Mists repress memories. Any non

Darklords

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

adventures rather than saving them for distant climactic plots. Darklords Don’t Realize They’re Darklords. With a few exceptions, Darklords don’t realize they occupy a special place in the world. Their

concept of how long they’ve lived, how many times they’ve died, or why they returned to life. Should a Darklord fall, the temporary defeat lasts until they’re restored by the Dark Powers. In their

Water Weird

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

. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil. However, a water weird bound to a sacred or befouled source of water begins to take on the nature of that site

, becoming neutral good or neutral evil. A neutral good water weird tries to frighten away interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might

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