building before death contain rules

Iron Flask

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide

commands even if it doesn’t know the language in which the commands are given. If you issue no commands or give the creature a command that is likely to result in its death or imprisonment, it

creature, but the only way to determine the type of creature is to open the flask. A newly discovered Iron Flask might already contain a creature chosen by the DM or determined randomly by rolling on

Cultist (Knights of the Black Sword)

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

Levistus, the archdevil who rules Stygia, the sixth layer of the Nine Hells, from the confines of an ice prison from which he cannot escape. Most of the cultists are Icewind Dale natives who would

have perished in the wilderness had Levistus not intervened on their behalf. The cultists’ stories are all the same: the archdevil reached out to them in their minds as they were freezing to death

Tortle Legacy

Species The Tortle Package

put to use when building forts to contain their offspring. Although they spend a considerable portion of their lives in isolation, tortles are social creatures that like to form meaningful

test, and make new acquaintances. Life of a Tortle A tortle hatches from a thick-shelled egg and spends the first few weeks of its life crawling on all fours. Its parents, old and near death, spend

Cult Fanatic (Knights of the Black Sword)

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

","rollDamageType":"piercing"} piercing damage.The Knights of the Black Sword are a secret society of cultists devoted to Levistus, the archdevil who rules Stygia, the sixth layer of the Nine Hells, from the

’ stories are all the same: the archdevil reached out to them in their minds as they were freezing to death, offering a second chance at life in exchange for their absolute devotion. After they

Devastation Orb

Magic Items Princes of the Apocalypse

. Reducing it to 0 hit points causes it to explode instantly. A special container can be crafted to contain a devastation orb and prevent it from detonating. The container must be inscribed with symbols

of the orb’s opposing element. For example, a case inscribed with earth symbols can be used to contain a devastation orb of air and keep it from detonating. While in the container, the orb thrums

Orcus

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

will: animate dead (as an action), blight, speak with dead 1 charge each: circle of death, finger of death 2 charges: power word killOrcus can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options

Tail or Necrotic Bolt attack. Creeping Death (Costs 2 Actions). Orcus chooses a point on the ground that he can see within 100 feet of him. A cylinder of swirling necrotic energy 60 feet tall and

Golgari Agent

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

You are a member of a teeming horde — one small part of a sprawling organism. Just as you are part of the swarm, the swarm is part of a larger ecosystem, a never-ending cycle of life, death

Golgari, no fear of death or taboo about the dead, just a fierce affirmation of the cycle. Skill Proficiencies: Nature, Survival Tool Proficiencies: Poisoner’s kit Languages

Rahadin

Monsters Curse of Strahd

his attention to building Castle Ravenloft, Rahadin saw to it that wizards and artisans were brought to Barovia. Years later, Strahd appointed Rahadin his castle chamberlain. Rahadin was pleased to do

Tatyana's death and Strahd's curse. The ageless Patrina returned to Ravenloft in the hope of winning Strahd's love. This time, it was clear that Patrina craved Strahd's power and that Strahd would

Iron Flask Legacy

Magic Items Basic Rules (2014)

duration. If you give no commands or give it a command that is likely to result in its death, it defends itself but otherwise takes no actions. At the end of the duration, the creature acts in

discovered bottle might already contain a creature chosen by the GM or determined randomly. d100 Contents d100 Contents 1-50 Empty 77-78 Elemental (any) 51 Arcanaloth 79

Orcus Legacy

Monsters Out of the Abyss

with dead. Alternatively, he can expend 1 or more of the wand’s charges to cast one of the following spells from it: circle of death (1 charge), finger of death (1 charge), or power word kill (2

. A Taste of Undeath. Orcus casts chill touch (17th level). Creeping Death (Costs 2 Actions). Orcus chooses a point on the ground that he can see within 100 feet of him. A cylinder of swirling

Priest of Osybus (Deathly)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

priest’s next turn. Circle of Death (Spell; Recharge 5–6;{"diceNotation":"1d6","rollType":"recharge","rollAction":"Circle of Death"}). Each creature in a 60-foot-radius sphere centered on a point

the priest can see within 150 feet of it must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw, taking 28 (8d6);{"diceNotation":"8d6","rollType":"damage","rollAction":"Circle of Death","rollDamageType":"necrotic

Priest of Osybus (Dread)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

priests of Osybus steal the souls of others to fuel the priests’ malevolent magic. Using this soul power, each priest can defy death and become an undead creature, potentially cheating the grave over

their immortal malice to fuel his apotheosis. As his power grew, he attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He shared his dread secrets with them and demanded their worship. In time

Priest of Osybus

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

; malevolent magic. Using this soul power, each priest can defy death and become an undead creature, potentially cheating the grave over and over. This unholy order of priests was founded centuries ago

attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He shared his dread secrets with them and demanded their worship. In time, his goal was achieved: he became a lich of almost godly power

Priest of Osybus (Ectoplasmic)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

points.Necromancers of deep evil, the priests of Osybus steal the souls of others to fuel the priests’ malevolent magic. Using this soul power, each priest can defy death and become an undead creature

Dark Powers and tapped into their immortal malice to fuel his apotheosis. As his power grew, he attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He shared his dread secrets with them and

Priest of Osybus (Spectral)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

, the priests of Osybus steal the souls of others to fuel the priests’ malevolent magic. Using this soul power, each priest can defy death and become an undead creature, potentially cheating the

into their immortal malice to fuel his apotheosis. As his power grew, he attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He shared his dread secrets with them and demanded their worship

Priest of Osybus (Vampiric)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

’ malevolent magic. Using this soul power, each priest can defy death and become an undead creature, potentially cheating the grave over and over. This unholy order of priests was founded

grew, he attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He shared his dread secrets with them and demanded their worship. In time, his goal was achieved: he became a lich of almost godly

Eldritch Lich

Monsters Monstrous Compendium Vol. 1: Spelljammer Creatures

","rollAction":"Far Realm Parasite (Miles)"} miles of where it died. If the lich died inside a magic circle cast to contain Undead, the lich instead reappears as an otyugh with all the lich’s memories

becoming an eldritch lich. Like other liches, eldritch liches are spellcasters who have cheated death, but an eldritch lich does so by allowing a Great Old One to implant a Far Realm parasite in the lich

Shadar-kai

Species Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Material Plane to forge their own destinies. Once shadar-kai were Fey like the rest of their elven kin; now they exist in a state between life and death, thanks to being transformed by the Shadowfell

race, follow these additional rules during character creation. Ability Score Increases When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2 and increase a different score

Priest of Osybus (Blazing)

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

death and become an undead creature, potentially cheating the grave over and over. This unholy order of priests was founded centuries ago by Osybus, a mysterious figure of unfathomable ambition and evil

his life. He became a devotee of the Dark Powers and tapped into their immortal malice to fuel his apotheosis. As his power grew, he attracted disciples who also wished to defy life and death. He

Criminal - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society. Skill Proficiencies: Deception, Stealth Tool Proficiencies: One

realizing the connection. You got the Guild to back off demands for your death by offering to make amends by working for the criminals, but even so the kingpin still plots a personal revenge. 2 The

Giff Legacy

Monsters Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes

of giff society is organized along military lines. From birth until death, every giff has a military rank. It must follow orders from those of superior rank, and it can give orders to those of lower

building a bomb big enough to level a fortification. They gladly accept payment in kegs of gunpowder in preference to gold, gems, or other currency. No Honor in Magic. Some giff become wizards

Archaeologist

Backgrounds Tomb of Annihilation

century old. Suggested Characteristics Few archaeologists can resist the lure of an unexplored ruin or dungeon, particularly if such a site is the source of legends or is rumored to contain

Preservation. That artifact belongs in a museum. (Good) 2 Greed. I won’t risk my life for nothing. I expect some kind of payment. (Any) 3 Death Wish. Nothing is more

Topaz Dragon Wyrmling

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

creations are ultimately doomed to death and decomposition, and the dragons’ demeanor is typically morbid and curmudgeonly as a result. Gleaming Gold Upon hatching, topaz dragon wyrmlings&rsquo

, but the dragon is too proud to ask for help getting home. 6 A topaz dragon is building a tableau of desiccated creatures and has grown obsessed with catching one treasure hunter who escaped the

Young Topaz Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

the necrotic energy of the Negative Plane that suffuses them. Their psionic power manifests the fundamental entropic principle that mortal beings and their creations are ultimately doomed to death and

to ask for help getting home. 6 A topaz dragon is building a tableau of desiccated creatures and has grown obsessed with catching one treasure hunter who escaped the dragon’s clutches

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

the area patrolled by the guard did she explain that the noises indicated that the wingless folk had claimed that area, and that to trespass would be to court death. — Gimble, Notes from a

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

mock folk who rely on society’s structures or rules to maintain power. Survival of the Fittest Among goliaths, any adult who can’t contribute to the tribe is expelled. A lone goliath has

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

Ancient Deep Dragon Legacy

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

, they use local settlements—and any competent visitors—as pawns in their struggle. 4 An ancient deep dragon has put the folk of a city to work building the dragon a metropolis to rule

financial or sentimental value to the host dragon are stored away in the protected hoard, these tastefully appointed visitors’ chambers contain lesser treasures from inaccessible or storied locales

Encounter Building

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

Encounter Building This section introduces new guidelines on building combat encounters for an adventure. They are an alternative to the rules in “Creating Encounters” in chapter 3 of the Dungeon

Master’s Guide. This approach uses the same math that underlies the rules presented in that book, but it makes a few adjustments to the way that math is presented to produce a more flexible system. This

Beginning the Adventure

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

. Sizzling streams of acid flow down the streets. Villagers rush about, shouting for loved ones and struggling to contain the damage. Near the shore, flames leap from the windows of a low-roofed building

aloud: Mayhem rules in the seaside village of Respite. The Cobblehook Corsairs, a crew of troublemakers who aren’t normally violent, have raided the village. Black smoke billows from buildings

Scaling Lethality

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

your players agree to avoid character death in your game, you might consider an alternative: a character who would otherwise die is instead “defeated.” The following rules apply to a defeated character

Scaling Lethality You can adjust the lethality of your campaign using the encounter-building guidelines in chapter 4. If your players enjoy games that test their characters to the utmost and are

Introduction

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Mine of Phandelver

adventure. It also introduces the world of the Forgotten Realms, one of the game’s most enduring settings, and it teaches you how to run a D&D game. The Basic Rules contain the rules you need to adjudicate situations that arise during the adventure.

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

gather and celebrate, dwell the followers of Yurtrus, the god of disease and death, and Shargaas, the god of darkness and the unknown. Orcs too weak for battle (because of bodily weakness, malformation

, injury, or age) often join these cults instead of facing daily humiliation, exile, or death. Serving as the bridge between the two parts of the tribe are the priestesses of Luthic, the orc goddess who

Death House Features

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Vecna: Eve of Ruin

the characters arrive. The cultists take oil lamps into the ritual chamber (area D38) when they gather there. The Mists When the characters enter Death House, the Mists surround the building and prevent

Death House Features The locations in Death House have the following features. Ceilings Ceilings vary in height by floor. The first floor has 10-foot-high ceilings, the second floor has 12-foot-high

Session Zero

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

run a special session—colloquially called session zero—to establish expectations, outline the terms of a social contract, and share house rules. Making and sticking to these rules can help ensure

that the game is a fun experience for everyone involved. Often a session zero includes building characters together. As the DM, you can help players during the character creation process by advising them to select options that will serve the adventure or campaign that awaits.

General Features

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Mine of Phandelver

General Features Many of Thundertree’s buildings have crumbled in the years since the town was abandoned, even as nature threatens to swallow what remains. Buildings. A building in Thundertree is

terrain (see “Difficult Terrain” in the Basic Rules). Intact buildings are rundown, ramshackle stone cottages that are otherwise still standing. Their wooden doors are swollen and require a successful

D&D Beyond

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