build before decades counting rather

Manshoon

Monsters Forgotten Realms: Adventures in Faerûn

. That Manshoon is dead, and the current Manshoon is one of the original’s many clones. Being a magical copy rather than an original doesn’t make Manshoon any less of a threat, as he’s

formative influence. Manshoon made many enemies and sought to preserve his power by crafting several clones. A magical accident decades ago caused all his clones to activate at once and fight against

Pidlwick II

Monsters Curse of Strahd

return the courtesy, the duchess commissioned the legendary toymaker Fritz von Weerg to build a clockwork effigy of Pidlwick as a gift for Strahd's family. Although the duchess's heart was in the right

, instead assuming that the guests had died in their sleep. But Strahd was not fooled. He came to realize fairly quickly that the clockwork effigy had begun to display a murderous nature. Rather than have

Young Moonstone Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

… oh my goodness, is that circlet made of silver? 7 I find the waking world tedious and mundane and would much rather spend my time asleep, in the realm of dreams. 8 I find the

1 A young moonstone dragon on the cusp of adulthood refuses to settle down and build a lair. To protect the local populace from the dragon’s chaotic activities, a minor deity sends a deva

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

shorter lives that they strive to achieve as much as they can in the years they are given. Or maybe they feel they have something to prove to the elder races, and that’s why they build their mighty

build cities to last for the ages, and great kingdoms that can persist for long centuries. An individual human might have a relatively short life span, but a human nation or culture preserves

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

individual skill. They have a compulsion to keep score, counting their deeds and tallying their accomplishments to compare to others. Goliaths love to win, but they see defeat as a prod to improve their

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

Adult Crystal Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

has guarded a mountain pass for decades unexpectedly retires to the Elemental Plane of Air. Monstrous forces immediately move into the area—and might take control of the pass unless the dragon

grieving as the elf approaches the end of life. 4 A pair of adult crystal dragon;adult crystal dragons lairing on neighboring mountaintops have enjoyed a decades-long snowball war, but their

Tortle Legacy

Species The Tortle Package

dozen) in a fortified compound enclosed by stone walls that are easily defensible. If no such compound exists, they build one. The parents spend the remainder of their lives guarding the compound

discover new customs and new ways of doing things. The urge to procreate doesn’t kick in until the end of a tortle’s life, and a tortle can spend decades away from its native land without

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 are threatened. Pastoral Pleasantries Most halflings live in small, peaceful communities with large farms and well-kept groves. They rarely build kingdoms of their own or even hold much

Rogue Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

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

. QUICK BUILD You can make a rogue quickly by following these suggestions. First, Dexterity should be your highest ability score. Make Intelligence your next-highest if you want to excel at

Customizing the Puzzle

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

overcome their own assumptions. An easier version of this puzzle might involve counting the letters in any type of word the guard provides and responding with that number. Alternatively, the response

to the guard’s number might be any word with the same number of letters as that number—for example, “five” has four letters, making “duck” or “smog” suitable responses. The more your puzzle plays with numbers as words rather than digits, the more challenging it’s likely to be.

Bard Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

necessary, using their magic to bolster their swords and armor. Their spells lean toward charms and illusions rather than blatantly destructive spells. They have a wide-ranging knowledge of many

, making a bargain for a musical gift in addition to your life and freedom, but at what cost? QUICK BUILD You can make a bard quickly by following these suggestions. First, Charisma should be your

Warlock Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

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

their patrons in dreams or waking visions, or deal only with intermediaries. QUICK BUILD You can make a warlock quickly by following these suggestions. First, Charisma should be your highest ability

Tabaxi Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

of the world beyond their home. Barterers of Lore Tabaxi treasure knowledge rather than material things. A chest filled with gold coins might be useful to buy food or a coil of rope, but it’s

mull over the stories and rumors they collected like a miser counting coins. Although material wealth holds little attraction for the tabaxi, they have an insatiable desire to find and inspect ancient

Ancient Crystal Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

crystal dragon who has guarded a mountain pass for decades unexpectedly retires to the Elemental Plane of Air. Monstrous forces immediately move into the area—and might take control of the pass

seek out frigid, picturesque locations with clear views of the sky above to build their lairs. Then, like gem cutters seeking the perfect diamond, they spend much of their lives refining, polishing

Barterers of Lore

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

Barterers of Lore Tabaxi treasure knowledge rather than material things. A chest filled with gold coins might be useful to buy food or a coil of rope, but it’s not intrinsically interesting. In the

miser counting coins. Although material wealth holds little attraction for the tabaxi, they have an insatiable desire to find and inspect ancient relics, magical items, and other rare objects. Aside

Druid Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

of nature itself or from a nature deity. Many druids pursue a mystic spirituality of transcendent union with nature rather than devotion to a divine entity, while others serve gods of wild nature

? Perhaps your homeland was befouled by evil, and you took up an adventuring life in hopes of finding a new home or purpose. QUICK BUILD You can make a druid quickly by following these suggestions

Izzet Engineer

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

protocols will lead us toward progress more surely than any belief system. (Lawful) 5 Fun. I love my job! Despite the dangerous working conditions, there’s nothing I’d rather do

it was sabotage that destroyed my first laboratory and killed many of my friends, and I seek revenge against whoever did it. 4 I have the schematics for an invention that I hope to build one day

Quaggoths

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Monster Manual

—earns the enmity of that quaggoth’s band regardless of reason or fault. These grudges sometimes extend to whole communities rather than individuals. Generations of quaggoths might seek revenge against a

settlement’s inhabitants for decades-old slights. Only the leader of a quaggoth band can demand that a grudge ends. DAARKEN

Adventure Overview

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Strixhaven: A Curriculum of Chaos

Adventure Overview The strange happenings on campus in this adventure are caused by a corrupted substance known as eldritch balm. Used at Strixhaven for decades, eldritch balm is an alchemical salve

the resulting chaos would disrupt life at Strixhaven. A Standalone Adventure If you’re running this chapter’s adventure as a standalone, the corruption of Sedgemoor’s waters is not the result of a sinister plot. Rather, a surge of wild magic caused the corruption, but the outcome is the same.

Anvilwrought

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

Rest. When you take a long rest, you must spend at least six hours in an inactive, motionless state, rather than sleeping. In this state, you appear inert, but it doesn’t render you unconscious, and

serve him. 3 I was created decades ago and, fearing that I’m growing obsolete, recently fled Mount Velus. 4 Purphoros regrets my creation and wants to reforge me into something better

Mentor

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

mentor was a wise treant who taught you to think in terms of years and decades rather than days or months. 2 You were tutored by a dryad who watched over a slumbering portal to the Abyss. During your

Past and Present

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Spelljammer: Adventures in Space->Astral Adventurer’s Guide

burgeoning city became known as Bral, in his honor, and its location as the Rock of Bral. For the next several decades, various pirate captains held sway in the city, but none of them demonstrated an

, attracting profit-seekers, adventurers, and other more respectable types. Upon Cozar’s death, the rule of Bral passed to Frun, his son and heir. Frun was far from an able politician. Rather, he was a hedonist

Types of Hags

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

, and most are stout or have a medium build rather than being thin or emaciated. Night hags enjoy corrupting the dreams of good people, compromising the ideals of their victims to get them to

local hags. Grandmothers and aunties are more likely than other hags to take up permanent residence in unfriendly terrain, since their long-range plans sometimes require spending decades or years in

Creature Size

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

miniatures or other tokens, follow these rules. Squares. Each square on the grid represents 5 feet. Speed. Rather than moving foot by foot, move square by square on the grid. This means you use your speed

between two things—whether creatures or objects—start counting squares from a square adjacent to one of them and stop counting in the space of the other one. Count by the shortest route.

What If Everyone Dies?

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

—rather, it presents an opportunity to take the game in a new direction. Consider these possibilities. A Fresh Start Everyone makes new characters, and the campaign starts anew. This might be the most

and has them raised from the dead, putting the adventurers in the debt of their rescuer. What if the adventurers wake up decades after their death, returned to life by a Resurrection spell cast by

Birth of the Poleis

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

together, established its legal code, and defended it for decades. After the fall of Agnomakhos and the other archons of Trax, humans and minotaurs waged a bloody war in the highlands. The poleis of

Akros and Skophos were born from that bloodshed, inspired by the martial doctrines of Iroas and Mogis rather than the legal code of Ephara. Eventually the years of war settled into an uneasy peace with

Origin of the Ordning

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

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

different kinds might not recognize each other as kindred at all. All these giants build a range of social structures in the same manifold ways other peoples do, without regard to an overarching ordning.

Centaur

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

range across lands with mild to hot climates, where a centaur requires only light furs or oiled skins to deal with inclement weather. They are hunter-gatherers and rarely build shelters or even use

tents. Centaur migrations span continents and take decades to repeat, so that a centaur tribe might not retread the same path for generations. These long-ranging patterns can lead to conflict when

The True Threat

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ghosts of Saltmarsh

restored an old lizardfolk stronghold that had been abandoned for decades. Determined to recapture their home, the lizardfolk have been busily purchasing arms and negotiating an alliance with other nearby

them to participate rather than the elves. Members of these four races have come together, overlooking their previous rivalries and differences, to negotiate an agreement of cooperation. But even as

Moving Around Other Creatures

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

GRID If you play out a combat using a square grid and miniatures or other tokens, follow these rules. Squares. Each square on the grid represents 5 feet. Speed. Rather than moving foot by foot

that fills its space. Ranges. To determine the range on a grid between two things—whether creatures or objects—start counting squares from a square adjacent to one of them and stop counting in the space of the other one. Count by the shortest route.

Kobold Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

sewer tunnels, paying them with food and tools the kobolds wouldn’t have access to on their own. If they are treated well and left alone to do the job, the kobolds work industriously and build a

, they might build a warren and make a permanent home there, while continuing to expand the town’s sewers as the community grows. These so-called “city kobolds” live underground but

Droaam

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

Droaam are learning to work together and finding ways to use their supernatural gifts to help build and sustain society. A medusa might use its petrifying gaze to preserve the life of an injured ally

until medical attention can be obtained. Harpies in the taverns of Droaam use their hypnotic songs to entertain rather than to harm. When you bring creatures from Droaam into the campaign, consider how

Life in the Sensa Empire

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

and craftspeople to build social and professional connections, better their craft, and organize for improved labor conditions. Each city-state has its own chapter of the guild that pushes back when

. Historically, rather than a single imperial line controlling the throne, each empress or emperor selects an heir from among the eldest children of each city-state’s monarch. While no law prevents rulers

Meeting Rookledust

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

Rookledust (neutral good rock gnome) moved to Nightlund decades ago from the distant gnome homeland of Mount Nevermind. She uses the acolyte stat block, but the effects of her Spellcasting manifest from

dangerous, she doesn’t build them with violence in mind. She’s particularly interested in devices for long-distance communication and inventions that mechanize the work of farm animals. Personality Trait

NPC Stat Blocks

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

can build the NPC as you would a player character, as discussed in the Player’s Handbook. If you decide to build an NPC the same way you build a player character, you can skip choosing a background and

affect a monster’s challenge rating are listed in the Monster Features table. The NPC’s proficiency bonus is determined by its level, just like a character, rather than by its challenge rating. If the

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