conversely rather groups to have related

Guard Drake

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

that can follow simple commands. Tiamat’s cult practices the ritual to create guard drakes, as do other groups that are skilled in arcana and associated with Dragons. The ritual requires a

chromatic dragon’s scales creates a guard drake that resembles a wingless, stunted version of that type of dragon, with unique abilities related to that type. Each has the special features described

Winter Eladrin

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

cold. Eladrin Eladrin dwell in the verdant splendor of the Feywild. They are related to the elves found on the Material Plane. But while other elves can temper their wild impulses, eladrin are

, provided they aren’t incapacitated. When the eladrin makes this change, they use the stat block of the new season rather than their old stat block. Any damage the eladrin sustained in their

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

Spring Eladrin

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Eladrin Eladrin dwell in the verdant splendor of the Feywild. They are related to the elves found on the Material Plane. But while other elves can temper their wild impulses, eladrin are ruled by

they aren’t incapacitated. When the eladrin makes this change, they use the stat block of the new season rather than their old stat block. Any damage the eladrin sustained in their previous form

Summer Eladrin

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

astonishing quickness and strike with terrible force. Eladrin Eladrin dwell in the verdant splendor of the Feywild. They are related to the elves found on the Material Plane. But while other elves

associate themself with a different season, provided they aren’t incapacitated. When the eladrin makes this change, they use the stat block of the new season rather than their old stat block. Any

Autumn Eladrin

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

splendor of the Feywild. They are related to the elves found on the Material Plane. But while other elves can temper their wild impulses, eladrin are ruled by emotion—and due to their magical nature

eladrin makes this change, they use the stat block of the new season rather than their old stat block. Any damage the eladrin sustained in their previous form applies to the new form, as do any conditions

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

Mighty Servant of Leuk-o

Magic Items Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

conjecture than fact, often referring to otherworldly beings, the mysterious Barrier Peaks in Oerth, and the supposedly related device known as the Machine of Lum the Mad. The best details on the device

instantly and leave behind no remains. This does not destroy the servant permanently. Rather, 2d6 days later, its parts—left arm, left leg, right arm, right leg, lower torso, and upper torso&mdash

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

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.

Soldier - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

Fist or the Watch. If you do, you have responsibilities related to your post. For as long as you perform these responsibilities, you gain benefits. If you stop performing your responsibilities, though

keep that mistake secret. 4 My hatred of my 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

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

more like closely related families than true subraces. Choose one of these subraces or one from another source.

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

; animosity, gnomes tend to avoid or abandon settlements that have a severe infestation of kobolds, and conversely kobolds are usually driven out of communities that have a large gnome population

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

Paladin Legacy

Classes Basic Rules (2014)

their oaths lead them into the service of the crown as leaders of elite groups of knights, but even then their loyalty is first to the cause of righteousness, not to crown and country. Adventuring

. Although the class features related to your oath don’t appear until you reach 3rd level, plan ahead for that choice by reading the oath descriptions at the end of the class. Are you a devoted

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.

Writing Riddles

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

Writing Riddles Writing new riddles for your group can be fun and satisfying—as long as the players don’t guess the right answer in seconds or, conversely, rip their hair out in frustration. Here are

some tips: Reinforce a Theme. A good riddle is related to something the characters are currently dealing with. A tricky beholder, for example, might pose riddles whose answers all have something to

Customizing the Puzzle

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

teeth on each key must match the number of letters in your substitutions, and those substitutions should be things the characters can identify. Raising the Difficulty Rather than associating each lock

with a particular image of a creature, consider presenting a riddle alongside each lock. The answer to each riddle should be the related creature’s name, allowing characters to match the riddles’ answers to the proper keys.

Names and Surnames

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

Names and Surnames The naming conventions among the people of Khorvaire tend to follow language, rather than being linked to race. A Brelish dwarf who doesn’t speak Dwarvish might also carry a name

with a human origin rather than a traditional Dwarvish name. Most citizens of Khorvaire have a given name followed by a surname. A surname associated with the Common language is usually either a family

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

The Golden Goose

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm King's Thunder

about it. A legend lore spell provides no clues as to its origin, since the coin isn’t legendary. Any character who has a background, a bond, or a flaw related to gambling or festhalls knows that the

of Ruathym or Tuern, where it’s unlikely that the characters will find anyone who is familiar with the festhalls and gambling havens of Yartar. Conversely, the Harpers, the Lords’ Alliance, and the

Arcane Magic Users

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

arcane magic rather than divine is Kurtulmak’s imprisonment, which makes it difficult for him to grant spells to mortals and for those mortals to receive his favor. Furthermore, kobolds are so frail that

a single hit from a human’s weapon can kill one of them, so a tribe has little use for healing magic, and a sorcerer can meet most of the tribe’s other magic-related needs. Kobold shamans are very

Adjusting for Party Level

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

. Conversely, increase the challenge for groups with more than four characters, with characters higher than 8th level, or that revisit the keep over multiple sessions. Decreasing the Challenge If

Creature Type

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

categorization and have no rules of their own, but certain game effects might refer to them. Lists of monster groups related by descriptive tags appear in appendix B.

Able Scavengers

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

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 where the townsfolk would try to

infestation of kobolds, and conversely kobolds are usually driven out of communities that have a large gnome population. Second, kobolds are always on the lookout for magic that might help them free their

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

Meeting the Queen

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

knows about the outside world but feigns ignorance in an attempt to catch the characters in a lie. She respects those who show her respect and treat her people as their equals, rather than as primitive

unnecessarily. If hatchlings are among the characters’ victims, the queen is close to outrage and makes no secret of it. Conversely, if the characters arrive with hatchlings in tow, her estimation of them

Droaam

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

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

continent’s cities. Gargoyle couriers are in high demand. Though monstrous workers of these sorts are still rare in many nations, their numbers are growing. Conversely, a visit to Droaam gives adventurers a

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.

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

D&D Beyond

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