better before driven closed resolve

Anhkolox

Monsters Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen

target.Anhkoloxes are vicious undead creatures created from the bones of bears and other beasts. Their barbed bones grind and crack, often moving in seemingly impossible ways. Anhkoloxes are driven by

with their claws—they delight in knocking foes into pits full of jagged bones—and their barbed rib cage cracks open like a hunting trap to snap closed around a victim.Poison

Quandrix Professor of Theory

Monsters Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos

probability to impede attacks and strike at the minds of their foes with lancing equations that disrupt the opponent’s resolve. Professors of theory hold that altering the way a person

interacts with the world can change the world. They impress upon their students to use magic as a tool to shape the overall experience of reality, and in turn make the world a better place. Quandrix

Oshundo the Alhoon

Monsters Phandelver and Below: The Shattered Obelisk

mind flayer empire many centuries ago, but Oshundo was driven out for practicing arcane magic. It’s obvious that this rejection still stings Oshundo, who refers to Illithinoch’s longdead

leaders as “ignorant fools” who are “closed to the flexibility and power of arcane magic.”PoisonCold, Lightning, Necrotic

Ruined

Backgrounds The Book of Many Things

successful life even more glorious—only to draw a destructive card that changed your destiny forever. Your desperation has driven you to the career of adventurer. You don’t seek out dark dungeons

and their monstrous inhabitants for excitement and glory; you do it because every other path is closed to you. But you have risen high on fortune’s wheel once before, and with luck and fortitude

Peace Domain

Classes Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

The balm of peace thrives at the heart of healthy communities, between friendly nations, and in the souls of the kindhearted. The gods of peace inspire people of all sorts to resolve conflict and to

’ magic aids those who are driven to fight for the way of peace. Peace Deities Example Deity Pantheon Angharradh Elven Berronar Truesilver Dwarven Boldrei Eberron

Peace Domain (TCoE)

Classes Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

The balm of peace thrives at the heart of healthy communities, between friendly nations, and in the souls of the kindhearted. The gods of peace inspire people of all sorts to resolve conflict and to

’ magic aids those who are driven to fight for the way of peace. Peace Deities Example Deity Pantheon Angharradh Elven Berronar Truesilver Dwarven Boldrei Eberron

Skabatha Nightshade

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

Hourglass Coven. Better known as Granny Nightshade, she offers her assistance to those who are haunted by regret. Her deals often result in cruel twists; for example, a petitioner who asks to be reunited

. Personality Trait. “When dealing with outsiders, I present myself as a kindly old grandmother.” Ideal. “Children are better off working for me than picking up lots of bad habits

Symbol Legacy

Spells Basic Rules (2014)

When you cast this spell, you inscribe a harmful glyph either on a surface (such as a section of floor, a wall, or a table) or within an object that can be closed to conceal the glyph (such as a book

Intelligence saving throw. On a failed save, the target is driven insane for 1 minute. An insane creature can't take actions, can't understand what other creatures say, can't read, and speaks only in

Bavlorna Blightstraw

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

these visitors enter into an agreement with Bavlorna, she’ll use her powers to resolve their pressing problem in exchange for something of use to her. Alignment. Neutral evil. Personality

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

Hellfire Engine

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

these magical-mechanical hybrids gets loose, driven berserk by its need to destroy. Hellfire engines take many forms, but all of them have one purpose: to mow down foes in waves. They are incapable of

intervene on their behalf. The archdukes of the Nine Hells would like nothing better than to modify this magic so it works against demons, too, but that discovery has eluded them so far.Fire, PoisonCold, Psychic; Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing from Nonmagical Attacks that aren't Silvered

Urchin Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

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

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

Half-Elf Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

Flint squinted into the setting sun. He thought he saw the figure of a man striding up the path. Standing, Flint drew back into the shadow of a tall pine to see better. The man’s walk was

, wandering the wilds as trappers, foresters, hunters, or adventurers and visiting civilization only rarely. Like elves, they are driven by the wanderlust that comes of their longevity. Others, in

Urchin - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

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

circumstances and embark on a better life? Skill Proficiencies: Sleight of Hand, StealthTool Proficiencies: Disguise kit, thieves’ toolsEquipment: A small knife, a map of the city you grew up

Morkoth

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

;s petrified flesh came back to life as morkoths: tentacled monstrosities brimming with malice and greed. Morkoths are driven by greed and selfishness mixed with a yearning for conflict. They hoard

fragments that make up the island’s core are also located. Sections of the lair and its center might be kept dry to better protect and preserve collected objects and creatures, but most of the lair

Keresta Delvingstone

Monsters Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage

. Harmed by Running Water. Keresta takes 20 acid damage if she ends her turn in running water. Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into Keresta's heart while Keresta is

stranger to hardship. Hoping to make a better life for herself, she became an adventurer and sought fame and fortune in Undermountain. Keresta met her end in the lair of a vampire and became a vampire spawn

Paladin Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

shines from her hands, the man’s wounds knit closed, and his eyes open wide with amazement. A dwarf crouches behind an outcrop, his black cloak making him nearly invisible in the night, and watches

paladins take their work seriously. A delve into an ancient ruin or dusty crypt can be a quest driven by a higher purpose than the acquisition of treasure. Evil lurks in dungeons and primeval forests

Falthrax's Resolve

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Candlekeep Mysteries

focusing on the positive aspects of his life and his service to knowledge. Though his struggles aren’t over, a new inner resolve promises to leave him in a better position to face those struggles.

Falthrax’s Resolve With the curse lifted, Falthrax Loderr is ready to return to Candlekeep. The experience of having sought and then rejected a magical return to youth has taught him much about

Yuan-ti Pureblood Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

odds aren’t in their favor. A short retreat might be just the thing to reach a better tactical position, find allies, or to allow the yuan-ti the opportunity to study their opponents and

implement better tactics. Any enemy who chases a group of fleeing yuan-ti might be on the victorious side of a rout or could be heading into a trap; if the enemy has been encountered before, it is likely

Strahd von Zarovich

Monsters Curse of Strahd

. Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into his heart while he is incapacitated in his coffin, he is paralyzed until the stake is removed. Sunlight Hypersensitivity. While

close as he wishes. Closed doors can be magically locked (needing a successful DC 20 Strength check to force open) until Strahd chooses to end the effect, or until Strahd uses this lair action again

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

learned to laugh. You use this talent in response to all emotional situations, to better fit in with your comrades. 6 You still don’t understand how metaphors work. That doesn’t stop

House Tarkanan Villains

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

victims to smoldering piles of ash. 2 Driven mad by his aberrant dragonmark, a dwarf becomes obsessed with destroying Sharn in the same manner that Halas Tarkanan collapsed Old Sharn. 3 A House Tarkanan

half-elf kidnaps children with aberrant marks, believing the organization is better suited to bring up the children than their parents. 4 A House Tarkanan mage starts drinking the blood of dragonmarked nobles, believing it will increase the strength of his aberrant mark.

Personal Motives

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

Personal Motives Not every conflict involves a fight between light and darkness. The vast majority of people are driven by simple motives: greed, fear, pride, or ambition. One person just wants to

better off under their rule. Primordial forces strive to change or destroy Eberron. But more often, characters encounter misguided patriots, religious extremists, dragonmarked houses looking to wring a

Neo-Noir Intrigue

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

. There are ways to resolve these problems, but the answers aren’t always simple or obvious. There can certainly be times when decisions are straightforward. If the Emerald Claw is about to detonate a

Motives. Not every conflict is a fight between light and darkness. In Eberron, the vast majority of people are driven by simple motives: Greed. Fear. Pride. Ambition. One person just wants to get some

Tiers of Play

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

hopes of striking a useful alliance. The tiers of play represent the ideal milestones for introducing new world-shaking events to the campaign. As the characters resolve one event, a new danger arises

about the details of the next tier as the characters approach it. Even better, as the campaign takes unexpected turns in response to the players’ choices, you don’t have to worry about redoing much work.

Frequency of Bastion Turns

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

in your Bastions. Go ahead and resolve six Bastion turns.” The characters return to their Bastions in the midst of an adventure. You might say, “You have just enough time to take a Bastion turn

take one now.” You can slow the frequency of Bastion turns to better serve the needs of your players and your campaign. For example, if the characters have months between adventures, you can call for

Developments

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

Developments If the characters defeat Arauthator, the reactions of Oyaviggaton’s other inhabitants are dependent on whether the dragon is killed or driven off. If Arauthator is killed, the ice toads

fish. The villagers then begin packing their few belongings into their hide boats and prepare to leave immediately. If Arauthator is wounded and driven off, Maccath or Marfulb know enough of the dragon

Developments

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

Developments If the characters defeat Arauthator, the reactions of Oyaviggaton’s other inhabitants are dependent on whether the dragon is killed or driven off. If Arauthator is killed, the ice toads

fish. The villagers then begin packing their few belongings into their hide boats and prepare to leave immediately. If Arauthator is wounded and driven off, Maccath or Marfulb know enough of the dragon

3H, I, J. Spiders' Lair

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

their recesses. A trapdoor is closed across the steps from area 2K and jammed shut with two iron spikes driven between the door and the frame. See the description of area 2K for notes about opening the

Moral Quandaries

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

Moral Quandaries If you want to give the characters a crisis that no amount of spellcasting or swordplay can resolve, add a moral quandary to the adventure. A moral quandary is a problem of

Respect quandary Ally Quandary. The adventurers have a better chance of achieving their goal with the help of two individuals whose expertise is all but essential. However, these two NPCs hate each

3H, I, J. Spiders' Lair

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

their recesses. A trapdoor is closed across the steps from area 2K and jammed shut with two iron spikes driven between the door and the frame. See the description of area 2K for notes about opening the

2. Unhappy Cultists

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath

Stormlord to be forced into playing the part of glorified longshoremen. The cultists here (spies) number two per character, including sidekicks. A Better Offer? The party could avoid a fight here

if they understand the frustration of the cultists and go in immediately with a better offer. To get the dialogue started on a good note, one of the characters must approach the group and talk to them

Getting the Gold

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

) at a time. Getting the gold from the Vault of Dragons to Cassalanter Villa takes ten round trips (five per carriage) and the better part of a day. Three invisible imps accompany each carriage, which

is driven by a bearded devil wearing a hat and a high-collared cape to conceal its true nature. Upon arrival at Cassalanter Villa, each carriage is met by a dozen guards in House Cassalanter livery, who unload the sacks of gold and place them in area C29.

Bytopia

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

Bytopia The surfaces of Bytopia’s two layers face each other like the covers of a closed book. Looking up from Dothion, the “top” layer of the plane, a traveler can see Shurrock, its other layer

. While Dothion rewards those who seek a quiet life, Shurrock is the paradise of those who continually challenge and better themselves. The two layers of Bytopia are often referred to as the “Twin Paradises

Exploring Etizalan

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

Exploring Etizalan The town of Etizalan has seen better days. Although its colorfully painted stone homes and shady, tree-lined streets are welcoming, an air of urgency lingers over the community

. Many of the stalls in the town’s paved central market are closed as locals shore up buildings damaged by the recent earthquake or reinforce the town walls. Enough local shops are still open that the

The Horror of Defeat

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

. The Red Wizards who freed her are devoured or driven away, hunted by the forces of Szass Tam. The cultists who orchestrated Tiamat’s return fare little better, with the Dragon Queen not caring which

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