compare rather groups to her received

Mercion

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

natural leader and a protective caregiver. She has a direct manner that reassures and inspires those around her. Mercion does not worship a deity, but rather an ideal: that truth gives life to artistry

administers healing. She uses Radiant Fire against groups of foes when there’s no chance of harming allies or innocent lives, otherwise resorting to hold person spells and Divine Radiance attacks

Baba Lysaga

Monsters Curse of Strahd

received several disturbing reports, Queen Ravenovia was forced to banish the midwife from the kingdom. Lysaga never saw Strahd again, but she has succeeded in staying alive to witness the triumphs of

that Strahd would never accept her as his true mother, nor could she bear his rejection. As a result, she has never confronted him. She would rather exist in perpetual denial, whiling away the days

Faction Agent

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

, and their members operate anywhere the organization deems necessary. These groups employ listeners, rumormongers, smugglers, sellswords, cache-holders (people who guard caches of wealth or magic for

knowledge, rather than brute force. Harper agents are often proficient in Investigation, enabling them to be adept at snooping and spying. They often seek aid from other Harpers, sympathetic bards and

Lady Illmarrow

Monsters Eberron: Rising from the Last War

Emerald Claw, but her motives for founding the order are buried in her past. Lady Illmarrow has no interest in ruling the living. Rather, she seeks to become Queen of the Dead. The Mark of Death

received a vision affirming that the bloodline of Vol was no more. To the world, the last survivor of that bloodline is known as Lady Illmarrow. But in truth, she is Erandis Vol, heir to the Mark of

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

Inheritor

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

your adventuring career, you can decide whether to tell your companions about your inheritance right away. Rather than attracting attention to yourself, you might want to keep your inheritance a secret

inheritor. Your bond might be directly related to your inheritance, or to the person from whom you received it. Your ideal might be influenced by what you know about your inheritance, or by what you

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

same laboratory ran off to join the Selesnya, and we get into a big argument every time we run into each other. 10 I compare notes and techniques with a Simic scientist over lunch sometimes.

Mercenary Veteran

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

few organizations operating in the North are described below. The Chill. The cold and mysterious Lurkwood serves as the home of numerous groups of goblinoids that have banded together into one tribe

enemies is blind and unreasoning. 5 I obey the law, even if the law causes misery. 6 I’d rather eat my armor than admit when I’m wrong.

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

, humans champion causes rather than territories or groups. Human Names and Ethnicities Having so much more variety than other cultures, humans as a whole have no typical names. Some human parents

. In the Forgotten Realms, nine human ethnic groups are widely recognized, though over a dozen others are found in more localized areas of Faerûn. These groups, and the typical names of their

Bugbear Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

rather than perform the work or confront the foe. Even when subsumed into a goblinoid host and drawn into war, bugbears must often be roused from naps and bribed to get them to do their duties. This

. Gang Mentality Since bugbears aren’t a particularly fecund race, their overall population is small and spread over a wide area. Bugbears live in family groups that operate much like gangs. The

Bard Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

, ensuring that her companions’ words will be well received. Whether scholar, skald, or scoundrel, a bard weaves magic through words and music to inspire allies, demoralize foes, manipulate minds

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

Earthquake!

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

Earthquake! Rather than halt or slow Stonky’s progress, the theft of Kandlekeep Dekonstruktion has inspired the gnome to accelerate his plan to launch the Barn Door into space. Soon after the book

witnesses and compare their own recollections of the quake can try to ascertain its nature. With a successful DC 14 Intelligence (Arcana or Nature) check, a character is confident that the earthquake wasn’t magically created. As such, it must have been caused by a natural phenomenon.

Kenku Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

groups called flocks. A flock is led by the oldest and most experienced kenku with the widest store of knowledge to draw on, often called Master. Although kenku can’t create new things, they have

kenku, constant attempts to mimic noises can come across as confusing or irritating rather than entertaining. You can just as easily describe the sounds your character makes and what they mean. Be clear

Loyalty

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

can track the loyalty scores of groups of NPCs, such as those belonging to each faction, rather than having to track NPCs individually. The characters must balance the goals and bonds of their followers in order to maintain and improve their loyalty.

Recent Events

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

clandestine deals. The pirates grumbled about the poor treatment they received, but they issued no ultimatums to alter the arrangements. Although the two groups had their differences, the clerics never

Shared World

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

Shared World Some groups take a large, established campaign setting and divide it up geographically so different DMs can run separate campaigns in the same setting. In theory, characters can travel

from one DM’s region of the world to another’s, creating continuity in the campaign even as characters might be involved in several plotlines. Rather than dividing a campaign geographically, you and

Mentor

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

training at a young age, and the mentor has a vital role in shaping a student’s attitudes and beliefs. If your character received training from someone else, who or what was that individual, and what

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

Tragic Flaws

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

exploit or punish, with hubris being the classic example. The gods of Theros aren’t so concerned about “ordinary” flaws like addiction or laziness. Rather, consider a tragic flaw involving something you

. “I remember every insult I’ve received and nurse a silent resentment toward anyone who’s ever wronged me” could cause significant problems when the character nurses a grudge against a god. A tragic

Flight to Steel Springs

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

Flight to Steel Springs Assuming the characters head to Steel Springs, they arrive as Kalaman’s forces engage the Dragon Army. However, Kalaman received faulty intelligence, and its troops are badly

outnumbered. Rather than joining the Kalaman forces in their advance, the characters find themselves defending a retreat. The adventure unfolds in one of two ways: With Mass Combat. If you’re using

4. Elf Quarters

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

time if they are loyal. It takes convincing roleplaying and a DC 17 Charisma (Persuasion) check to convince the elves to flee rather than wait around for the dragon to eventually tire of and eat them

. If the characters received the garlands from the druid and place them on the elves, this automatically convinces them to safely flee. Forgotten Shrine An ancient shrine stands in the southwest corner

Exemplars of Ambition

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

, wealth, and fame. More than other people, humans champion causes rather than territories or groups. EVERYONE’S SECOND-BEST FRIENDS Just as readily as they mix with each other, humans mingle with members

Exemplars of Ambition

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

, wealth, and fame. More than other people, humans champion causes rather than territories or groups. EVERYONE'S SECOND-BEST FRIENDS Just as readily as they mix with each other, humans mingle with members

4. Elf Quarters

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

in time if they are loyal. It takes convincing roleplaying and a DC 17 Charisma (Persuasion) check to convince the elves to flee rather than wait around for the dragon to eventually tire of and eat

them. If the characters received the garlands from the druid and place them on the elves, this automatically convinces them to safely flee. Forgotten Shrine An ancient shrine stands in the southwest

Inhabitants

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Sigil and the Outlands

City of Doors. Some sages track the existence and spread of humans back to Sigil itself, rather than to a deity or its creations. Various factions handle the day-to-day governance of Sigil, enforcement

of laws, and maintenance of civic infrastructure. These groups each follow a philosophy inspired by a cosmic aspect of the multiverse, and they actively recruit visitors and citizens into their ranks

Appendix B: Character Names

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

character race in the Player’s Handbook or a real-world ethnic or language group, with a focus on groups from antiquity and the Middle Ages. You can select from the possibilities here, or use dice to

have a dwarven name. Or, as DM, you might decide that dragonborn in your campaign have a culture reminiscent of ancient Rome and therefore use Roman names, rather than the dragonborn names suggested here.

Espionage Agency Contacts

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

Espionage Agency Contacts Your assignments come from a superior in the agency who typically works at a desk rather than in the field—compiling intelligence into reports for their superiors and

coordinating the activities of multiple groups. Use the Agency Contacts table to determine the character of your superior, which can shape the kinds of missions you undertake and the degree of support you

Travel in Anauroch

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

roads and paths that crisscross Anauroch. Some of these paths are invisible on the ground, and the Bedine navigate by using the stars at night. Groups of Bedine might be traders carrying goods

, scouts looking for food, or bandits hoping to raid merchant caravans that try to shortcut their way across the desert rather than circumnavigate it. The Bedine nomads can act as guides for lost characters, offer clues for stuck players, and provide food and water for adventurers in desperate need.

Right and Wrong

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Acquisitions Incorporated

to do, do poorly, or do wrongly can be just as important as what they accomplish. Don’t let failure and setbacks derail an adventure or a campaign. Rather, look for ways that failure or partial

larger or smaller groups, you can adjust the encounters using the guidelines given in chapter 3, “Creating Adventures,” in the Dungeon Master’s Guide. Or maybe you’ll adjust them anyway to keep things

Life in the Tayyib Empire

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

Life in the Tayyib Empire The Tayyib Empire is a cosmopolitan mix of the native peoples of Suristhanam, immigrants, and various invading groups. Nearly half the population are brown-skinned humans

worshiping the source of divinity rather than its fallible manifestations. Its adherents are called Muwahhid. Some erudite worshipers join the Imperial Ulema, an order of Muwahhid scholars sponsored by

Reaching the Bottom

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

your clothes. But none among us can compare To one wily, swift, and stand-up hare— Scarf that’s glorious, thief notorious, His deeds are truly meritorious! With a wink and a grin, he’ll show

. She demands that each character surrender the feeling of delight they remember from when they were given the best gift they ever received. Jebbek produces a stoppered gourd that can hold these

The Sally Port

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

immediate threat from raiders loose in the keep, since it’s more a probe that got out of hand rather than a full-scale assault. Escobert is most concerned about resealing the sally port, and he seeks out

the characters for that job. To secure the sally port, characters must battle through two groups of foes. The first fight occurs against three acolytes, three kobolds, and one ambush drake (see

Blood Will Tell

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

come off as coarse, blunt, or rude in dealings with other people. With the directness of an orc, they speak their minds with no apparent concern for how their opinions are received. No matter where

they live, half-orcs usually find themselves defined by others in terms of their usefulness as heavy laborers and soldiers. It is the rare and fortunate few who are judged by their character and their deeds rather than their ancestry.

The Sally Port

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

immediate threat from raiders loose in the keep, since it’s more a probe that got out of hand rather than a full-scale assault. Escobert is most concerned about resealing the sally port, and he seeks out

the characters for that job. To secure the sally port, characters must battle through two groups of foes. The first fight occurs against three acolytes, three kobolds, and one ambush drake (see

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

Preparing to Use the Deck

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->The Book of Many Things

perish. While some groups embrace such surprising twists, others prefer to avoid major campaign upsets. This book provides tools to help you use the deck on your own terms. The following sections

your group. Meanwhile, “The Deck as Narrative” discusses having cards foreshadow future events, rather than triggering instantaneous effects, so you can incorporate the effects into your campaign when

D&D Beyond

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