both birth down cities rites

Genasi Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

Those who think of other planes at all consider them remote, distant realms, but planar influence can be felt throughout the world. It sometimes manifests in beings who, through an accident of birth

entire lives without encountering another one of their kind. There are no great genasi cities or empires. Genasi seldom have communities of their own and typically adopt the cultures and societies into

Yuan-ti Pureblood Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

advisor in human society. The very rare offspring of such a union are always purebloods, although they may appear fully human at birth and for several years afterward. The yuan-ti know rituals that

’ serpent gods into their religions. These victories sent a constant influx of food, ore, and slaves back to the home cities. The wealth of the empire allowed the ruling elite plenty of time to

Cleric Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

to those chosen to fulfill a high calling. Harnessing divine magic doesn’t rely on study or training. A cleric might learn formulaic prayers and ancient rites, but the ability to cast cleric

a simple life of temple service, carrying out their gods’ will through prayer and sacrifice, not by magic and strength of arms. In some cities, priesthood amounts to a political office, viewed

Ephara's Influence

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

bear Ephara’s face, fashioned thus in the belief that each of her images watches over the part of the city it looks upon. Ephara is strongly affiliated with the daytime, when cities are awake, alive

, and at work. Her followers generally pray at midday, with the sounds of the city forming an appropriate backdrop to their rites, as industry itself is sacred to Ephara. Many aspects of city life and

Far Traveler

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

course, you followed an equally long route when you came north from your place of birth. Though it isn’t unusual for Zakharans to visit the southern extremes of Faerûn for trading purposes, few

subterranean cities or settlements, you are probably a member of the race that occupies the place—but you might also have grown up there after being captured and brought below when you were a child

Dwarves of the Five Nations

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

greatest cities of Galifar. While many of the dwarves of the Five Nations still speak the language of their ancestors, they feel a bond to the lands of their birth. A Brelish dwarf feels a deep, personal

Aftermath of the Last War

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

Aftermath of the Last War Darguun was born in the Last War, and the scars of its birth are still raw. Most of the Cyran population fled the goblin uprising, and those who remained were killed or

enslaved. As a result, many burnt-out farms and abandoned villages have stood empty for decades. The broken paths of the lightning rail make travel into the interior difficult, and only the largest cities

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

diplomacy. They care only for satisfying their insatiable desire for battle, to smash their foes and appease their gods. Booming Birth Rate In order to replenish the casualties of their endless warring

, orcs breed prodigiously (and they aren’t choosy about what they breed with, which is why such creatures as half-orcs and ogrillons are found in the world). Females that are about to give birth are

Karrnathi Undead Soldier

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

Emerald Claw. The Odakyr Rites. The nation of Karrnath has a proud martial heritage, and its soldiers are unmatched in discipline. But in the early years of the Last War, Karrnath was crippled by famine and

as cannon fodder. Over decades, a high priest named Malevanor worked with the necromancers of the Blood of Vol to develop the Odakyr Rites, which grant Karrnathi undead the ability to make tactical

Sorcerers

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

or birth. Due to their varied origins and delayed manifestation of powers, sorcerers can be found almost anywhere and among almost any people. Larger cities on the Sword Coast — including Baldur’s

Annam and the Ordning

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

and Rites. Thanks to his prolonged absence from mortal giants’ affairs, Annam has few priests. On some worlds, he has no priests and his name is all but forgotten. On other worlds, a priest of Annam

they recognize is “might makes right.” Priests and Rites. Grolantor’s priests often boast of having experienced a personal interaction with their god—a dream, waking vision, or even an encounter with

Worshiping Mogis

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

Mogis and regularly hold bloody rites in his honor. Warchanters, the minotaur clergy of Mogis, whip their marauders into a near-mindless frenzy before battle; the ensuing slaughter gives glory to

their creator and they were made in his image. Revel in Ruin. The summer festival of the Megasphagion is a domesticated version of Mogis’s typical rites. It involves the sacrifice of many cattle to

Life in Shankhabhumi

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

swamps. Citizens who were away from home were left stranded. Those survivors and their descendants assimilated into the other cities, bringing Manivarsha’s traditions of gem-cutting and jewel-setting

cities as a reminder that life in Shankhabhumi can easily be swept away. Power in each city is shared between three factions—fifteen senators who officially govern the affairs of the city-state; a

Exile

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

bustling cities full of Humanoid peoples where they might attract attention but not necessarily open hostility. Giants who live among smaller folk tend to gravitate to positions of importance. They

secret cult conducting sinister rites in a vast mansion where a giant lives in luxury. 3 A giant takes up residence in a city and demands a huge share of tax revenue in exchange for protecting the city

Heliod as Campaign Villain

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

kingship over everything: Nyx, the mortal world, and the Underworld. He might begin, through his agents, by enacting laws that make participation in Heliod’s rites mandatory for the citizens of a polis

. From there, it’s a small step to suppressing the open worship of other gods, then trying to spread both policies to other cities. If the characters are champions of other gods, they might find

Drow

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

parties to the surface to capture humanoids under cover of darkness, bringing them back to their cities to be tortured into submission. Beyond those occasional excursions, the drow are content to remain

in their subterranean realm, where they feel secure and in control. Underdark Cities. The drow build fantastic cities in enormous caverns where food and water are abundant. Their ability to sculpt

Government

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

Government In the feudal society common in most D&D worlds, power and authority are concentrated in towns and cities. Nobles hold authority over the settlements where they live and the surrounding

their positions because they already hold the respect of their fellow citizens. Within towns and cities, lords share authority and administrative responsibility with lesser nobles (usually their own

Loose Pantheons

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

religious rites and festivals. Priests at such sites relate stories of the gods, teach the ethics of their patron deities, offer advice and blessings, perform religious rites, and provide training in

activities their deities favor. Cities and large towns can host several temples dedicated to individual gods important to the community, while smaller settlements might have a single shrine devoted to any

The Ruin of Bakar

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Quests from the Infinite Staircase

if their bodies were prepared with specific funerary rites and then entombed with their wealth, they could ascend to their chosen afterlife. Amun Sa, the last pharaoh of Bakar, took this tradition

. The riverbed dried up within days, and without its waters, Bakar quickly collapsed. Over the years that followed, Bakar’s cities were overtaken by the dunes, and its people fled to neighboring lands. A

Nylea's Influence

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

solitude and serenity of the forest. Birth falls under Nylea’s influence as well, and her priests often double as midwives in their communities, blessing babies as they come into the world. Nylea’s Goals

ambition to mortals, persuading them to congregate in stone-walled cities and consider themselves separate from her realm. Purphoros oversees some of the natural processes of earth and fire that help

The Fall of Ythryn

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

birth at −3859 DR. The Netherese legacy began with the discovery of the Nether Scrolls. These long, golden scrolls taught Netherese arcanists how to wield magic beyond their wildest fantasies. It took

centuries, but the Netherese who mastered the power of the Nether Scrolls became a ruling class, living on great flying cities or taking refuge in remote, subterranean lairs. Despite their great

Tracking Time

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

god of agriculture is honored in the harvest season) or significant events in the history of the deity’s worship, such as the birth or death of a holy person, the date of a god’s manifestation, the

grand scale. Other holy days are important only to people particularly devoted to a single deity. Still others are observed by priests, who perform private rites and sacrifices inside their temples on

Where Are You From?

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

south some more.” Of course, you followed an equally long route when you came north from your place of birth. Though it isn’t unusual for Zakharans to visit the southern extremes of Faerûn for trading

great subterranean cities or settlements, you are probably a member of the race that occupies the place—but you might also have grown up there after being captured and brought below when you were a child

Life in Yongjing

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

the rats and diseases that are so common in other, lesser cities. Chasing Longevity The importance of a long life is drilled into children from an early age. The folk of the empire and Yongjing proudly

before their personal name. Personal names are formed of two words; the first is usually determined by birth order, social status, or rank, and the second is an aspirational or lucky name

Gods of the Orcs

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

with distaste and unease. They interact with the tribe mostly on occasions of death, claiming the bones of fallen warriors to add to the ossuary shrines of Yurtrus, and sometimes during shamanic rites

commodity that the cult prizes. Not all orc weaklings are taken by those who serve Yurtrus and Shargaas. Some are sent forth into the cities dominated by humans, on dark missions. Beware them. — Elminster

Howling Hatred Cultists

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

their worldly goods to the cult’s coffers and the hardiness of their bodies to the cult’s emaciating rites. Cultists that survive their initiation usually gain all the things the cult promised — at the

Cult of the Black Earth, viewing its members as stubborn, unenlightened drones without vision or imagination. Feathergale Knight The Feathergale Knights are ambitious, wealthy folk from cities such

Metallic Dragons

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

a pensive look. At birth, a copper dragon’s scales are a ruddy brown with a metallic tint. As the dragon ages, its scales become more coppery in color, later taking on a green tint as it ages. A

their hoards can include intact ships, the remains of kings and queens, thrones, the crown jewels of ancient empires, inventions and contraptions, and monoliths carried from the ruins of fallen cities. A

D&D Beyond

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