before building driven come reason

Sage Arol's Beetle

Equipment

use the beetles for potion crafting when a witch from the Fish Head Coven began to see the rare bug in her dreams. Sage Arol’s Beetles live deep underground, fleeing even the dimmest light. On rare occasions, they come to the surface, though the reason remains a mystery.

Khargra

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

metal with ease, organic matter and gems are repugnant to them. If a khargra eats such morsels for whatever reason, they remain lodged in its gullet for a few days of indigestion before the offending

material is coughed up. Reluctant Predators. Khargras find living flesh disgusting, and they attack creatures only when driven by hunger and a lack of safer options. After securing a meal of whatever

Jermlaine

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

can come in tiny packages. Their tiny, foot-tall forms can barely contain the cruelty and malevolence that courses through them. Deep in the Underdark, the jermlaine lurk among the tunnels, dungeons

attempts to hunt them down and fashion cloaks and other material from their skin. Such experiments have yet to yield a functional magic item, and the jermlaine's hatred of outsiders is driven in part by

Tortle Legacy

Species The Tortle Package

watch a frog croaking on a lily pad, or to stand in a crowded human marketplace. Tortles like to learn new skills. They craft their own tools and weapons, and they are good at building structures and

put to use when building forts to contain their offspring. Although they spend a considerable portion of their lives in isolation, tortles are social creatures that like to form meaningful

Giff Legacy

Monsters Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

brighter the flash, and the thicker the smoke it produces, the more giff love a weapon. Their skill with gunpowder is another reason for their popularity as mercenaries. Giff revel in the challenge of

building a bomb big enough to level a fortification. They gladly accept payment in kegs of gunpowder in preference to gold, gems, or other currency. No Honor in Magic. Some giff become wizards

Rahadin

Monsters Curse of Strahd

his attention to building Castle Ravenloft, Rahadin saw to it that wizards and artisans were brought to Barovia. Years later, Strahd appointed Rahadin his castle chamberlain. Rahadin was pleased to do

never love her. Rahadin assumed that Patrina would suffer the same fate as those women who had come before her. He was proven wrong when Patrina's own people stoned her to death to keep Strahd from

Charlatan Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

a born gambler who can’t resist taking a risk for a potential payoff. 5 I lie about almost everything, even when there’s no good reason to. 6 Sarcasm and insults are my

weapons of choice. 7 I keep multiple holy symbols on me and invoke whatever deity might come in useful at any given moment. 8 I pocket anything I see that might have some value. d6

Endelyn Moongrave

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

Coven. People come to her to learn about their futures, which she spells out through grotesque theatrical pageants. As payment, she snatches away a portion of each client’s free will, preventing

reflects the present, and the third reflects the future. These hags are utter wickedness distilled into corporeal forms, driven by a lust for secrets that can be used to manipulate their prey. Skabatha

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

. The Journey Yet to Come Shifters have a strong presence in the Eldeen Reaches but can be found in rural areas across Khorvaire, where they often live among humans. While they form powerful bonds

Far Traveler

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

good that even if some people you meet have heard of your homeland, they know merely the name and perhaps a few outrageous stories. You have come to this part of Faerûn for your own reasons, which

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

Urchin Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

securely for at least ten days. How did you come by that money? What allowed you to break free of your desperate circumstances and embark on a better life? Skill Proficiencies: Sleight of

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

Lizardfolk Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

have more in common with iguanas or dragons than they do with humans, dwarves, or elves. Lizardfolk possess an alien and inscrutable mindset, their desires and thoughts driven by a different set of

utility and importance. Nowhere does this come through as strongly as when lizardfolk deal with the dead. To a lizardfolk, a comrade who dies becomes a potential source of food. That companion might have

Triton Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

and worse, so you know you can count on them in a fight. — Brego Stoneheart, sea captain Tritons guard the ocean depths, building small settlements beside deep trenches, portals to the

the depths revealed that krakens, sahuagin, and far worse foes had fled the Plane of Water for the Material Plane. The tritons, driven by a sense of duty and responsibility, would not allow their foes

Eladrin Legacy

Species Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

Everything dies eventually. Why bother building anything that is supposedly meant to last? 2 Nothing matters to you, and you allow others to guide your actions. 3 Your needs come first. In

Kobold Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

undetected and don’t give their targets reason to harm them. For example, a group of city kobolds might sneak into a cobbler’s house at night to loot it of knives, leather bits, nails, and

; 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

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

Bavlorna Blightstraw

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

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

time: one reflects the past, another reflects the present, and the third reflects the future. These hags are utter wickedness distilled into corporeal forms, driven by a lust for secrets that can be

Dimir Operative

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

. You can choose your secondary guild or roll to determine it randomly. This secondary guild membership determines a portion of your starting equipment and is also where most of your contacts come from

guildless masses of the city. Consider why you’re embedded in the secondary guild. Create a story with your DM, inspired by rolling on the following table or choosing a reason that suits you

Gnoll Vampire

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

Celestial. If it hears words of Celestial spoken, the vampire must try to attack the source of those spoken words on its next turn. If these words come from multiple sources and from opposite directions, the

wearing perfume or carrying an open container of it. Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into the vampire's heart while the vampire is incapacitated in its resting place, the

Kenku Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

at the burned-out building, a sudden cacophony erupted around us. Birds squawked, cats hissed, and dogs growled. Lidda hustled us back to the city’s safer avenues. Only when we were back within

. The kenku lack the talent to improvise or alter a plan, but a wise Master sets multiple plans in motion at once, confident that underlings can follow orders to the letter. For this reason, many

Young Topaz Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

squid, so these dragons have ample opportunity to complain bitterly about being wet after diving deep into the ocean in search of prey. Topaz dragons often come into conflict with bronze dragons when

to ask for help getting home. 6 A topaz dragon is building a tableau of desiccated creatures and has grown obsessed with catching one treasure hunter who escaped the dragon’s clutches

Topaz Dragon Wyrmling

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

, their favorite food is giant squid, so these dragons have ample opportunity to complain bitterly about being wet after diving deep into the ocean in search of prey. Topaz dragons often come into

, but the dragon is too proud to ask for help getting home. 6 A topaz dragon is building a tableau of desiccated creatures and has grown obsessed with catching one treasure hunter who escaped the

Tabaxi Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

We had a tabaxi come through once, a few winters back. She kept the taproom packed each night with her stories and spent most days napping in a chair in front of the fireplace. We thought she was

, wandering tabaxi are catlike humanoids driven by curiosity to collect interesting artifacts, gather tales and stories, and lay eyes on all the world’s wonders. Ultimate travelers, the inquisitive

Kalashtar Legacy

Species Eberron: Rising from the Last War

I am kalashtar, born of two worlds. Over a thousand years ago, my ancestor bound her bloodline to the spirit Kashtai, and I am a child of that union. Kashtai moves within me. Her memories come to

are strongly influenced by the emotions of those around you. 8 You prefer to find nonviolent solutions to problems whenever possible. 9 You are driven by a warrior spirit and will fight

Waterdhavian Noble

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

Faerûn for being eccentric, spoiled, venal, and, above all else, rich. Whether you are a shining example of the reason for this reputation or one who proves the rule by being an exception, people

filthy dungeons to sipping zzar at a ball? Or have you taken up sword or spell on your family’s behalf, ensuring that they have someone of renown to see to their legacy? Work with your DM to come

Charlatan - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

want. 4 I’m a born gambler who can’t resist taking a risk for a potential payoff. 5 I lie about almost everything, even when there’s no good reason to. 6 Sarcasm and

insults are my weapons of choice. 7 I keep multiple holy symbols on me and invoke whatever deity might come in useful at any given moment. 8 I pocket anything I see that might have some

Dwarf Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

up the adventuring life might be motivated by a desire for treasure—for its own sake, for a specific purpose, or even out of an altruistic desire to help others. Other dwarves are driven by the

frivolous. Two things to be said for them, though: They don’t have many smiths, but the ones they have do very fine work. And when orcs or goblins come streaming down out of the mountains, an elf

Uthgardt Tribe Member

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

abandoned that path, you find yourself adrift. Or you might come from a segment of the Uthgardt that adheres to tradition, but you seek to bring glory to your tribe by achieving great things as a

Uthgardt stands for. Outlander d8 Personality Trait 1 I’m driven by a wanderlust that led me away from home. 2 I watch over my friends as if they were a litter of

Golgari Agent

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

the moss-covered building where I took part in my first reclamation mission. 5 I found something in the sewer that must never come to light. 6 I am forever grateful to the reclaimer who

bother to couch my opinions in flattering words. 5 I can’t help but pocket any trinket or coin I come across, no matter how worthless. 6 I’m convinced that I’m better and

Urchin - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

. You begin your adventuring career with enough money to live modestly but securely for at least ten days. How did you come by that money? What allowed you to break free of your desperate

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

Personality

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Vecna: Eve of Ruin

. He is lonely and dreams of building a community of spellcasters who support each other. Unfortunately, his ego makes that dream all but impossible. Although Mordenkainen can be brash and off-putting

, he eschews cruelty and sees no reason to cause pointless suffering. The wizard doesn’t like to admit it, but he would put his own safety at risk to quell the pain of innocents.

Noble - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

landowner who cares deeply about the people who live and work on your land, keenly aware of your responsibility to them. Work with your DM to come up with an appropriate title and determine how much

visit prosperous Bloomridge to try a fashionable restaurant or boutique, or watch a spectacle at the Oasis Theater, the patriars have little reason to venture into the dirtier, more dangerous parts of the

Evil Inchoate

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

particular affinity for their own kind, which is the biggest reason why they seldom cooperate with one another unless they are forced to submit to a demon lord or other leader. Going even farther, every

demon sees itself as the rightful inheritor of the cosmos. It is driven to destroy all other living creatures, or at least command their absolute loyalty. In due time, the laws of the universe will

Charlatan

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

an upper ward noble. 2 You’ve crafted the identity of a prophet driven by holy visions. If you are a divine spellcaster, your actual faith may be entirely different from the one you profess

You’re a covert operative working for another nation, or for a powerful agency (a dragonmarked house, the City Watch, a criminal organization). Are you carrying out missions, or are you a sleeper agent building a deep cover?

2. Northern Terraces

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

builders’ circle leader is a pioneering would-be architect and a supporter of Sovereign Phylo. Already driven mad by Zuggtmoy’s spores, Gasbide dreams of bizarre, elaborate structures no myconids

seldom seen in myconids. It asks for exasperatingly minor details such as the precise dimensions of bricks or the density of lumber. Gasbide reveals through the rapport that it dreams of building a

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