before burned distant concern rather

Caradoc

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

Knight of Solamnia, Caradoc burned when Dargaard Keep was consumed in the fires of the Cataclysm. As with many of Soth’s retainers, Caradoc was cursed with undeath. Being duplicitous and cowardly

at his core, the seneschal didn’t return as a skeletal knight but rather as an intangible spirit. Caradoc’s Undead form suits him well, allowing him to possess the living and use unwilling

Grippli Warrior

Monsters Candlekeep Mysteries

are raised by the community rather than by a single set of parents, and all of a community’s eggs are kept in freshwater pools until they mature. Protecting their eggs is a major concern for

Vladimir Horngaard

Monsters Curse of Strahd

Order of the Silver Dragon at a young age and quickly earned the friendship of its founder, the silver dragon Argynvost. When he became a knight of the order, he traveled to distant lands to wage war

witnessing Strahd himself slay Vladimir's beloved, his fellow knight Sir Godfrey Gwilym. With the battle won, Strahd surrounded Argynvostholt. Rather than cower in his lair, Argynvost emerged and

Isolde

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

archfey named Zybilna, who had forged secret pacts with some of the fiends Isolde and her companions had slain. Rather than be angry at Isolde, Zybilna was impressed by her. She enlisted a powerful fiend

comfort to Isolde and quelled her thirst for vengeance. Zybilna and Isolde enjoyed a strong partnership for years, but as time wore on, they grew distant until their relationship finally soured

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

Far Traveler

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

few miles from where they were born. You aren’t one of those folk. You are from a distant place, one so remote that few of the common folk in the North realize that it exists, and chances are

discussed here are all sufficiently distant from the North and the Sword Coast to justify the use of this background. Evermeet. The fabled elven islands far to the west are home to elves who have never

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

pages were tales of bold heroes, strange and fierce animals, mighty primitive gods, and a magic that was part and fabric of that distant land. — Elaine Cunningham, Daughter of the Drow In the

, 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

Tabaxi Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

lazy, but when Linene came around looking for a missing broach, she was out the door before I could blink an eye. — Toblen Stonehill, innkeeper Hailing from a strange and distant land

tabaxi rarely stay in one place for long. Their innate nature pushes them to leave no secrets uncovered, no treasures or legends lost. Wandering Outcasts Most tabaxi remain in their distant

New Ilvin

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

New Ilvin Remarkably, when the town of Ilvin burned, no lives were lost. Rather than rebuilding, the seven hundred survivors moved their homes a few miles east and founded New Ilvin. This sleepy

community seems ordinary in every way, but residents avoid speaking of Old Ilvin and never return, going so far as to pave a new road to avoid the burned-out ruins.

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

could be hidden. 4 I would rather make a new friend than a new enemy. 5 I am incredibly slow to trust. Those who seem the fairest often have the most to hide. 6 I don’t pay

Mogis

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

against. Tread carefully when using him as a patron, as his area of concern trends toward villainy rather than heroics.

Warlock Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

stars overhead, a wild-eyed tiefling chants the mystic ritual that will open a doorway to a distant world. Warlocks are seekers of the knowledge that lies hidden in the fabric of the multiverse. Through

gained. Rather, the vast majority of warlocks spend their days in active pursuit of their goals, which typically means some kind of adventuring. Furthermore, the demands of their patrons drive

Lizardfolk Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

pleasurable creatures and things are ones that allow lizardfolk to assess more situations as benign rather than fearsome. Cold and Calculating Most humanoids describe cold-blooded people as lacking in

emotion and empathy. The same label serves as an apt depiction of lizardfolk. Lacking any internal emotional reactions, lizardfolk behave in a distant manner. They don’t mourn fallen comrades or

Verdan

Species Acquisitions Incorporated

. Reality is a descent into chaos punctuated by brief flashes of order, whence we arose and so imagine it to be the norm rather than a distant outlier. That-Which-Endures held entropy back for a mere instant

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

kenku, constant attempts to mimic noises can come across as confusing or irritating rather than entertaining. You can just as easily describe the sounds your character makes and what they mean. Be clear

Monks

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

earliest monastic orders in Faerûn arose in the southern lands of Amn and Calimshan, their practices migrating north and east at the same time similar practices filtered westward from distant Kara-Tur

wilderness. Some monastic communities have members numbering in the hundreds, with a presence closer to civilization, and often with correspondingly greater influence, for those orders concern

Journey down Esker Brook

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

1 Light rain falls for an hour, and distant lightning is visible over the Dargaard Mountains. 2 A band of 2d4 bandits heads northwest, paying the characters no mind. The bandits have no interest in

fighting; they’re following rumors of well-paying mercenary work. 3 The characters see a small, burned farmhouse. A character who investigates and succeeds on a DC 14 Wisdom (Survival) check finds no

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

they are more interested in grabbing plunder and food rather than in wanton slaughter. The elderly, children, and any who seem weak or meek enough might escape death. If they leave the population more

rival orcs first and foremost as competitors for food and victims. On some occasions, though, tribes that have a common concern band together. The result is an orc horde — a sea of slavering

New Race: Verdan

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

. Reality is a descent into chaos punctuated by brief flashes of order, whence we arose and so imagine it to be the norm rather than a distant outlier. That-Which-Endures held entropy back for a mere instant, and the Verdan emerged. I’m sorry, was that the question? — K’thriss Drow’b

Who Dwells Here?

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Infernal Machine Rebuild

Who Dwells Here? This version of the Tomb of Horrors takes place in the distant past, when various legendary figures of in-game history (Acererak included) still operate as mere mortals. Several of

such figures have been included as NPCs, but you should not treat this adventure’s approach to those characters as canon. Rather, use them to flesh out this particular adventure in “what-if” fashion

Chapter 2: The Dessarin Valley

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Princes of the Apocalypse

off from these parts. If the Dessarin Valley isn’t quite as wild and lawless as it once was, it’s still lightly settled territory that serves as a route to distant lands. Residents in places such as

, apples, and hops, then ship them downriver (or drive them down the Long Road) to the coast. Few people become rich from farming, but farmers in the region do well for themselves provided the weather cooperates. (That’s one reason why the unusual weather lately has been a concern.)

Fill Flourforge

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragon Delves

Fill Flourforge Fill Flourforge, a retired dwarf brigand, loves to bake. Fill’s criminal career came to a halt when a gold dragon burned the rest of his band of thieves to a crisp during their

: a gold dragon’s egg. Rather than continue his banditry, Fill used the spoils from this heist to establish a bakery. In time, the egg hatched near the warmth of his oven. Fill named the wyrmling that

Halflings of the Five Nations

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

influence can be felt across the nation and even in the distant city of Stormreach. If you decide to play a halfling rogue—or any character with a criminal or charlatan background—you should decide if you

, who occasionally pulls you into their problems. Or you could even be the reluctant heir of a powerful Boromar leader; you’ve gone on the run rather than taking your place in this criminal empire, but someday your past may catch up with you.

Right and Wrong

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

to do, do poorly, or do wrongly can be just as important as what they accomplish. Don’t let failure and setbacks derail an adventure or a campaign. Rather, look for ways that failure or partial

aftermath. Or let them be unexpectedly arrested after being mistaken for the evil forces that burned the town down, and given the dangerous quest out of animosity. Humor plays a big part in an

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

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

according to its own laws. Firbolgs use their magic to keep their presence in a forest secret. This approach allows them to avoid the politics and struggles of elves, humans, and orcs. Such events concern the

Halflings of the Five Nations

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

Boromars are based in Sharn, but their influence reaches across the nation and even to the distant city of Stormreach. If you decide to play a halfling rogue, or a character with a criminal or charlatan

the syndicate, who occasionally pulls you in to criminal affairs. Or you could even be the reluctant heir of a Boromar leader; perhaps you’ve gone on the run rather than take your appointed place in

Deep Gnomes

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

is marked by smooth, curving shapes rather than straight lines and hard edges. Svirfneblin are intensely community-minded and have little concern about privacy among themselves. Thus, they don’t

Travel-Montage Approach

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

. There, the rogue finds a small rock that looks like a grinning face, but otherwise you encounter nothing out of the ordinary.” The trick is to focus on a few details that reinforce the desired mood rather

trees, an area where the forest has burned or been cut down, and so on. Also describe notable smells and sounds, such as the roar of a faraway monster, the stench of burned wood, or the sweet aroma

Sorrow's Zenith

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

, the blister bursts with a chorus of distant sighs. A moment later, a spectral figure appears. Memory of Peace If the characters destroy the spirit blister, the spirit of a ninuno appears and thanks

that stood here, but when invaders burned the sacred tree Bathalang Puno and the surrounding city, the ninuno was overwhelmed by the pain of those who died. Angry spirits still haunt the island, their

Giantkind

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

them a distant and distorted connection to Annam. Oni are often said to be distantly related to ogres, but at this point they are more fiendish than Giant. Cyclopes. Contradictory legends explain the

and the resulting corruption of their physical forms. One myth suggests cyclopes are descendants of Karontor like the fomorians, but stemming from a line that began after Karontor’s banishment rather

Darklake District

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

here, as you spy drow, svirfneblin, derro, orcs, and other races in the crowds. The shouting of people blends with the sound of distant hammering to create a constant, distracting din. Behind the

restricted to the Darklake District, and the characters have better luck asking other outsiders for directions rather than trying to engage the duergar locals. They are directed to the Blade Bazaar if

The God-Brain's Powers and Dominion

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

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

Shadow of Soth

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

. Foreshadow that threat after characters decide where they’re headed by reading the following description: To the southwest, the crack of shearing stone sounds from a distant temple whose grounds teem with

get at whoever’s in charge in there!” Rookledust encourages the characters to find the Dragon Army’s leaders within the city rather than pursing Soth. The gnome is confident that Kalaman’s forces

Abandoned Camp

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

kobolds (those on level 1) have been burned, but the level 2 huts and both guard towers remain. Anyone can determine from tracks that the cultists trekked away in small groups in all directions. A

fresh meat, the trackers continue hunting for them. Whatever else the cave holds is none of their concern. A thorough search of the camp takes about ten man-hours. Allow characters to make a Wisdom

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