build before driven concept reason

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

Fog Giant

Monsters Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

cloud giants in the ordning—the set of values and expectations that determines their rank in giant society—is driven by wealth. Those cloud giants foolish or unlucky enough to have their

killed or driven away. Calculating Masters. When a fog giant accumulates followers, it sets them to the task of rebuilding the giant’s collection of wondrous, expensive treasures. Its favored

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

the responsibility to earn a place in the tribe or die trying. Driven Competitors Every day brings a new challenge to a goliath. Food, water, and shelter are rare in the uppermost mountain reaches. A

skills. This dedication to competition has a dark side. Goliaths are ferocious competitors, but above all else they are driven to outdo their past efforts. If a goliath slays a dragon, he or she might

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

Firbolg Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

Reason for Adventuring 1 Outcast for murder 2 Outcast for severely damaging home territory 3 Clan slain by invading humanoids 4 Clan slain by a dragon or demon 5

adopt elven names when they must deal with outsiders, although the concept of names strikes them as strange. They know the animals and plants of the forest without formal names, and instead identify the

Hobgoblin

Species Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Hobgoblins trace their origins to the ancient courts of the Feywild, where they first appeared with their goblin and bugbear kin. Many of them were driven from the Feywild by the conquering god

;Quick Build” section for your character’s class offers suggestions on which scores to increase. You can follow those suggestions or ignore them, but you can’t raise any of your scores

Warforged Legacy

Species Eberron: Rising from the Last War

and crystal eyes embedded beneath a reinforced brow ridge. Beyond these common elements of warforged design, the precise materials and build of a warforged vary based on the purpose for which it was

deeper meaning. The typical warforged has a sexless body shape. Some warforged ignore the concept of gender entirely, while others adopt a gender identity. The more a warforged develops its

Monk Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

seriously, approaching their adventures as personal tests of their physical and spiritual growth. As a rule, monks care little for material wealth and are driven by a desire to accomplish a greater

lawful in alignment. QUICK BUILD You can make a monk quickly by following these suggestions. First, make Dexterity your highest ability score, followed by Wisdom. Second, choose the hermit background

Uthgardt Tribe Member

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

and ruin. But for the last few generations, some bands among the tribes were tempted to settle, make peace, trade, and even to build towns. Perhaps this is why Uthgar chose to raise up the totems

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

Paladin Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

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

angel of death by the gods or driven by your need for revenge? The Gods of the Multiverse section lists many deities worshiped by paladins throughout the multiverse, such as Torm, Tyr, Heironeous

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

quirk for a lizardfolk character or to inspire a unique mannerism. Lizardfolk Quirks d8 Quirk 1 You hate waste and see no reason not to scavenge fallen enemies. Fingers are tasty and

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

prefer simple, non-gender-specific names that are usually no more than two syllables. If a tortle doesn’t like its name for whatever reason, it can change it. A tortle might change its name a dozen

Evil Inchoate

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

absolute evil, demons have no concept of empathy. Each demon believes that only its needs and desires matter. This self-centeredness applies even with regard to other demons. These fiends have no

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

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

different in personality. With any shifter, identifying the beast within is a crucial part of understanding the character. Similar and Diverse Shifters are similar to humans in height and build but are

Creating a Monster

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

new monsters and customizing existing ones, if for no other reason than to surprise and delight your players with something they’ve never faced before. The first step in the process is coming up with

the concept for your monster. What makes it unique? Where does it live? What role do you want it to serve in your adventure, your campaign, or your world? What does it look like? Does it have any

Warlock Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

are comfortable in light armor and know how to use simple weapons. Delvers into Secrets Warlocks are driven by an insatiable need for knowledge and power, which compels them into their pacts and

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

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

few more pieces of gold out of Khorvaire, spies who will do anything to protect their nations, and petty criminals trying to build empires. Eberron holds a place for selfless heroes and truly vile villains, as well as everyone in between.

Dark Sun

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

planes — and they lost. The gods were slain or driven into exile, leaving Athas under the dominion of elemental beings who took little interest in the affairs of mortals. In the grim age that

only the strongest survive. One of the hallmarks of the Dark Sun setting is that the heroes don’t need to seek out forgotten dungeons to find adventure — mere survival is adventure enough. But there is no reason you can’t successfully adapt Princes of the Apocalypse to your Dark Sun campaign.

Origin of the Ordning

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

the ordning in some mythic future. Giants on some worlds (including Eberron) have no concept of the ordning at all. Such giants might think of themselves as a single species, with the differences

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.

Inside the Cult

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica

Quarter in Precinct Six of the Tenth District. Goals of the Rakdos The Cult of Rakdos is centered on a demon lord who exemplifies the concepts of chaos and evil. At its worst, the cult is driven by a lust

self-centered philosophy. The cult’s chaotic nature fuels its passion, impulsiveness, and obsession with freedom. A guild of unbridled hedonism, it does what it wants, driven by base desires and a strong

Beliard

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

horses or oxen can be driven through the water to bathe them, drive off flies, and let them drink. It’s also home to a tanner, a smith, some horse dealers and trainers who keep extensive stables, and an

aside from a sack of gold coins found walled away behind stones in a chimney, nothing has yet been found — nothing that has become public knowledge, at least. Reason to Visit. Beliard was the last place anyone saw the missing delegation from Mirabar (described in chapter 3).

Wearing and Wielding Items

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

magic item that's meant to be worn can fit a creature regardless of size or build. Many magic garments are made to be easily adjustable, or they magically adjust themselves to the wearer. Rare

exceptions exist. If the story suggests a good reason for an item to fit only creatures of a certain size or shape, you can rule that it doesn't adjust. For example, drow-made armor might fit elves only

Temple of Black Earth

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

stopped in their tracks by the daunting defenses of the gate quarter. More than one reckless attack by orcs, trolls, or giants was driven back from the gate. In time, those savage foes found other ways

Urnrayle, the Prophet of Earth, chose the long-wrecked fortifications of Tyar-Besil as the headquarters of his cult for this very reason.

It's Your World

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

, but they’re not the only set of assumptions that can do so. You can build an interesting campaign concept by altering one or more of those core assumptions, just as well-established D&D worlds have done

Karametra's Champions

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

Karametra’s Champions Karametra’s champions build community, advance civilization, and bestow bounty wherever they go in the name of their god. Karametra seeks to provide for all, end famine and

leaving their peaceful lives behind and looking for others to bring into the fold. And her pride in them is all the greater when they manage to build chosen families who journey with them to pursue

The Returned

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

. There’s no rhyme or reason to what the Gray Merchants seek, and the merchants themselves never speak. They conduct business through gestures, making their unusual trades and plodding off into the shadows

, pseudammas turn tragedy into horror by snatching mortal children and attempting to raise them. However, the Returned have forgotten the needs of the living and they have no concept of how to care for a child.

Campaign Events

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

Campaign Events If you don’t want to build a world that focuses on the presence or absence of giants, you can instead build a campaign around world-shaking events that are instigated by giants. Storm

. Similar events might mark the start, middle, or end of a campaign as the actions of giants shake the world. The World-Shaking Events table offers inspiration for giant-driven events that can set or alter

Orog

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

terrifying presence on the battlefield. They form no attachments, even to their parents and siblings, and have no concept of love or dedication. They worship the orc pantheon of gods — Gruumsh and Luthic

foremost — because they believe that the gods have strength beyond reason, and physical might is all they respect. Servants of Darkness. Mistrusted by orcs, some orogs form independent mercenary war

The Darklake

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

The Darklake To move their expeditionary force across the Darklake, the characters must build rafts or coracles from Underdark materials, or seek out duergar or kuo-toa ferries for hire. Each ferry

chapter 1) was not killed in a previous chapter of the adventure, the characters find him among Sloobludop’s survivors. He is the sole point of calm and reason in the ruined settlement, and the various

The Dark Powers

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

villains to add to their terrifying menagerie. To what end, no one knows. The Dark Powers don’t move in the shadows of Ravenloft; they are the shadows. They’re the Mists and the darkness. They’re the reason

. These diminished vestiges manipulate their realm to create negative forces that sustain their essence and build toward renewed apotheosis. Rudolph, I write you in the throes of a most perplexing

Index of Stat Blocks — Monsters and NPCs

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Guildmasters' Guide to Ravnica

, and other peoples, as some of them rise to greet the morning and others retire after a hard night of work or play. They are the reason she is here: sworn to protect them, she leads a flight of roc

Dungeons & Dragons campaign to explore. A vast, sprawling city that covers the whole of the known world, Ravnica teems with intrigue and adventure, driven by the conflicts among the ten powerful guilds that

Band

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

Bands table offers hooks you can use to build an adventure around a band of giants. Bands d6 Adventure Hook 1 A band of giants is spotted near a town, and the adventurers are asked to

corruption spreading through the local flora and turning animals into Aberrations. 5 A band of hunting giants has driven its prey—enormous beasts—into pastureland. The local farmers seek help. 6

Personal Characteristics

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

against your best interests. More significant than negative personality traits, a flaw might answer any of these questions: What enrages you? What’s the one person, concept, or event that you are terrified

very personal reason to hate them with a fiery passion. Her bond might be phrased as “I will do whatever it takes to punish the dragonarmies for the destruction of the Inn of the Last Home.” Artemis

The Mourning

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

The Mourning No one knows the reason for what happened on 20 Olarune 994 YK. Though it had been battered, Cyre stood defiant; Cyran soldiers had recently driven deep into Karrnathi territory and were

Wearing and Wielding Items

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

cases, a magic item that’s meant to be worn can fit a creature regardless of size or build. Many magic garments are made to be easily adjustable, or they magically adjust themselves to the wearer. Rare

exceptions exist. If the story suggests a good reason for an item to fit only creatures of a certain size or shape, you can rule that it doesn’t adjust. For example, armor made by the drow might fit

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