concept rather glared to have readily

Kas the Betrayer

Monsters Vecna: Eve of Ruin

blood to sow terror rather than for sustenance. If destroyed, Kas revives in 1d100;{"diceNotation":"1d100", "rollType":"roll", "rollAction":"Strength of the Night"} nights in an unoccupied space in

against Vecna. He readily lies, breaks promises, betrays allies, and taunts those who fall for his ruses. Kas has little use for those who can’t validate his superiority or help advance his goals

Feral Tiefling

Species Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

haven’t heard that rubbish before?” “I know you have.” When she glared at him, he added, “It’s not as if I’m plumbing the depths of your mind, dear girl. That

reflect their fiendish heritage. And some younger tieflings, striving to find a place in the world, adopt a name that signifies a virtue or other concept and then try to embody that concept. For some

Goliath Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to pull his or her weight in the tribe. Typically, such a goliath dies attempting to keep up, or the goliath slips

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

Water Weird Legacy

Monsters Monster Manual (2014)

those its summoner declares as off limits. When slain, a water weird becomes an inanimate pool of water. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil

interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might turn against its summoner. A water weird loses its evil alignment if its waters are cleansed

Accursed

races

chosen with a specific character concept in mind. Accursed are so named not because their birth or creation was the result of magical malfeasance, a hag’s bargain, a corrupted scroll, or any

of the other typical senses of “curse” in the game. Rather, accursed reflects the grim sense of how most other folk in the campaign will view such a character, especially those who don

Tiefling Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

haven’t heard that rubbish before?” “I know you have.” When she glared at him, he added, “It’s not as if I’m plumbing the depths of your mind, dear girl. That

reflect their fiendish heritage. And some younger tieflings, striving to find a place in the world, adopt a name that signifies a virtue or other concept and then try to embody that concept. For some

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

avoid unwanted attention. Halflings work readily with others, and they are loyal to their friends, whether halfling or otherwise. They can display remarkable ferocity when their friends, families, or

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

Just as readily as they mix with each other, humans mingle with members of other races. They get along with almost everyone, though they might not be close to many. Humans serve as ambassadors, diplomats

, 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

Firbolg Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

the group’s needs, but the effect each action will have on the forest and the rest of the natural world. Firbolg tribes would rather go hungry than strain the land during a famine. Hidden

Shepherds As caretakers of the land, firbolgs prefer to remain out of sight and out of mind. They don’t try to dominate nature, but rather seek to ensure that it prospers and survives according to its

Character Names

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

names, that’s fine. If the group would rather take the characters and their names a little more seriously, urge Bob’s player to come up with a more appropriate name. Player character names should match

each other in flavor or concept, and they should also match the flavor of your campaign world — so should the nonplayer characters’ names and place names you create. Travok and Kairon don’t want to undertake a quest for Lord Cupcake, visit Gumdrop Island, or take down a crazy wizard named Ray.

Survival of the Fittest

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

pity for adults who can’t take care of themselves, though a sick or injured individual is treated, as a result of the goliath concept of fair play. A permanently injured goliath is still expected to

themselves feeds into the grim inevitability of their decline and death. A goliath would much rather die in battle, at the peak of strength and skill, than endure the slow decay of old age. Few folk

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

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

True Motives

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

encounter area, the characters must not be informed about the name or nature of the sahuagin. Rather, you should provide only a general physical description of these creatures when an encounter occurs. If

Oceanus is with the party, on the other hand, he recognizes any sahuagin on sight. He has general (biased) knowledge as to their nature, and he readily identifies such creatures to the characters.

Kobold Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

other useful items, but if they are at risk of discovery, they run away rather than attack anyone in the house. By fleeing before they can be seen or identified, they avoid getting into a situation

divination (to find raw materials and foresee threats to the tribe). The main reason why kobolds depend on arcane magic rather than divine is Kurtulmak’s imprisonment, which makes it difficult for

Character Advancement

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

taking part in a play session. A character reaches 1 checkpoint for each hour an adventure is designed to last. Note that the award is based on the adventure’s projected playing time, rather than the

designed to take 2 hours, the character reaches 3 checkpoints. Playing time might seem like an odd way to measure experience awards, but the concept is in keeping with how a shared campaign is meant to

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

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

Darklords

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

adventures rather than saving them for distant climactic plots. Darklords Don’t Realize They’re Darklords. With a few exceptions, Darklords don’t realize they occupy a special place in the world. Their

concept of how long they’ve lived, how many times they’ve died, or why they returned to life. Should a Darklord fall, the temporary defeat lasts until they’re restored by the Dark Powers. In their

Yuan-ti Cities

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

yuan-ti content themselves with maintaining these ancient places rather than building new ones for their needs. Although these sites are hundreds or even thousands of years old, they don’t look or feel

reflects human ideas about art and beauty. Over time this perspective was skewed toward the concept that the snake is the perfect form, so serpents are a common theme in their aesthetic. The major

Water Weird

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

. Good and Evil Weirds. Like most elementals, a water weird has no concept of good or evil. However, a water weird bound to a sacred or befouled source of water begins to take on the nature of that site

, becoming neutral good or neutral evil. A neutral good water weird tries to frighten away interlopers rather than kill them, while a neutral evil water weird kills its victims for pleasure and might

Secret

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

holy symbol that represents that divinity. Some clerics, especially in a world like Eberron, serve a whole pantheon, rather than a single deity. In certain campaigns, a cleric might instead serve a

cosmic force, such as life or death, or a philosophy or concept, such as love, peace, or one of the nine alignments. Chapter 1 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide explores options like these, in the section

Introduction

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Mordenkainen's Fiendish Folio Volume 1

you receive a cancer diagnosis or a similar health news, you probably appreciate that concept a little more than other people. Watching someone you love waste away is a terrible thing. You want a

magic button to bring things back to the way they should be, this person you love so much restored to who they really are rather than what cancer is grinding them down into. It’s easy to give in to

Appendix A: Shared Campaigns

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

hard to keep a campaign going. Enter the concept of the shared campaign. In a shared campaign, more than one member of the group can take on the role of DM. A shared campaign is episodic rather than

Roleplaying

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

that best describe the creature. Knowing the creature’s alignment can also help with your portrayal. The classic advice for writers holds true: show, don’t tell. For example, rather than describe an

readily get involved in social interactions, you can create situations tailored for their characters. Perhaps the NPC in question is a family member or a contact of a particular adventurer and

Gnome Adventurers

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

of them take readily to life in the outside world and don’t come back on schedule, returning to the burrow only after spending years or decades away as a member of an adventuring party. The Pull of

cautious, brings a sense of duty rather than a sense of humor to an adventuring group. With their grit and iron will, deep gnomes meet adversity with hammers, picks, and their dour, dry wit — or no wit at all — as their weapons of choice.

Small and Practical

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

concerned with basic needs and simple pleasures and have little use for ostentation. Even the wealthiest of halflings keep their treasures locked in a cellar rather than on display for all to see. They have

themselves valuable and welcome. The combination of their inherent stealth and their unassuming nature helps halflings to avoid unwanted attention. Halflings work readily with others, and they are loyal

Modifying a Class

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

, paladins might not swear their oaths to ideals, but instead swear fealty to powerful sorcerers. To capture this story concept, you could build a new paladin spell list with spells meant to protect

opportunity to develop the character’s story and that of your world, rather than shutting down possibilities. Substituting Class Features If one or more features of a given class don’t exactly fit the theme

Mind Flayer Magic

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

after death would its consciousness be cast into oblivion. Two divine entities have long been associated with mind flayers by the scholars of other races. These aren’t deities, but rather

attitude — actions that have often been misinterpreted by observers as worship. Maanzecorian. The entity/concept called Maanzecorian embodies a complete comprehension of knowledge. It is a state

Staff

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

concept behind the hirelings and selecting one proficiency for each. The DM can then customize the hirelings as desired, perhaps by adding additional proficiencies or adjusting their combat statistics

(sailors for a seagoing franchise, engineers for a giant hollow statue, and so on). Crew do not leave a franchise and cannot perform franchise tasks. They typically run rather than fight back when attacked

Rejecting the Ordning

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

one their kind traditionally values. These are often giants whose ranking within their kind is low. For example, a contemplative cloud giant might pursue knowledge rather than wealth, or a weak frost

otherwise enjoy in the ordning. When giants join the cults of demon lords, they reject the entire concept of the ordning—the idea that there is any kind of order to the multiverse at all, which is the

Build Your Group

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

Sir Baerdren would readily surrender his position, were it not for his distrust of his seneschal, Ofejjaia of Korth. Lady Ofejjaia, it seems, has other issues on her personal agenda besides

—though it can be, especially in the case of the Church of the Silver Flame—but rather the task of encouraging people to live according to the highest ideals of faith. Proficiency in skills such as

Nettlebee Ranch

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

take to the adventurers a little too readily for Jayne’s liking. Bertram’s and Jayne’s only daughter, Elisa (a commoner), is nineteen. She’s like her mother and very open about disliking her “old goat

characters talk to him, he rails on about how much this crisis is costing him. He pushes the characters to do something about it rather than bothering an old halfling. Bertram inspects his crops, staying out

Personality

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

Personality Kas is cruel, spiteful, and unrelenting in his pursuit of vengeance against Vecna. He readily lies, breaks promises, betrays allies, and taunts those who fall for his ruses. Kas has

, and he drinks blood to sow terror rather than for sustenance. If destroyed, Kas revives in 1d100 nights in an unoccupied space in Tovag, his Domain of Dread. He can be permanently destroyed only by

Landgrave's Folly

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

. The characters can’t proceed into the temple without some means of breathing underwater, such as caps of water breathing or the potions found in area T6. Potions of water breathing are also readily

have the opportunity to take control of such a weapon in their fight against the gods. The creature must be enslaved and forced to serve them. If the players would rather not roleplay a telepathic

Alignment

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

plane of lawful evil. A devil does not choose to be lawful evil or tend toward lawful evil, but rather it is lawful evil in its essence. If it somehow ceases to be lawful evil, it changes into something

one person, concept, or event that you are terrified of? What are your vices? TIKA AND ARTEMIS: PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS Tika and Artemis have distinct personality traits. Tika Waylan dislikes

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