could reveal groups to have rather

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

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

well-muscled, raven-haired, human man in his thirties, though he is far older. His fangs reveal his vampiric nature. Personality Kas is cruel, spiteful, and unrelenting in his pursuit of vengeance

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

Young Moonstone Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

to temper the dragon’s mischievous spirit. 2 A young moonstone dragon fell victim to a fomorian;fomorian's curse and has elected to stay with the Giant rather than reveal this magical

… oh my goodness, is that circlet made of silver? 7 I find the waking world tedious and mundane and would much rather spend my time asleep, in the realm of dreams. 8 I find the

Dimir Operative

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

d6 Flaw 1 I like secrets so much that I’m reluctant to share details of a plan even with those who need to know. 2 I would let my friends die rather than reveal my true

reveal them. (Any) 4 Knowledge. I want to know as much as I can about this city and how it works. (Any) 5 Independence. I value the freedom to pursue my own goals without interference

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.

Charlatan - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

one that you’re perfectly willing to use for your advantage. You know what people want and you deliver, or rather, you promise to deliver. Common sense should steer people away from things that

. You might be able to bluff others through with you, or even convince members of the Watch that you’re a patriar. However, any true test of your authenticity is likely to reveal your deception

Izzet Engineer

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

solutions. (Chaotic) 3 Discovery. Every experiment has the potential to reveal more secrets of the multiverse. (Any) 4 Science. A rigorous application of logical principles and

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

Simic Scientist

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

offer bribes, favors, or other incentives to induce people to reveal their secrets. Your DM might rule that the knowledge you seek is secreted away in an inaccessible place, or that it simply can

Everything I do is an attempt to impress someone I love. Flaws d6 Flaw 1 I have a rather embarrassing mutation that I do everything I can to keep hidden. 2 I’m more

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

The Hauntings of Halvhrest House

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

The Hauntings of Halvhrest House The House of Lament is a catastrophically haunted structure. It doesn’t rush to reveal its terrors, though. Rather, its history, threats, and phantasmal inhabitants

reveal themselves gradually and in a variety of ways. Before leading your adventurers into the house, familiarize yourself with the varied ways the house’s hauntings manifest.

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

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

success might lead to new ways to reach a campaign goal. You might be absolutely confident that the characters will save those townsfolk and earn their trust, letting you use the townsfolk to reveal an

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.

Customizing the Puzzle

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

expertise, consider adding art to the room’s walls or on decorative book covers that reveal connections between the listed spells and components. These images might give away a few connections

between the lists or lower the DCs of the puzzle’s hint checks. Raising the Difficulty Rather than using common spells the characters might be familiar with, a more challenging version of this puzzle might

Keeper Societies

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

don’t reveal themselves to those not of their kind. Rather, they infiltrate Keeper societies as reclusive members, traveling experts, or foreign scholars. Some Keepers also tell of sightings or

organization, incorporating members who operate alone or in small groups, as well as elite social clubs or secretive societies. In all cases, Keepers identify each other by the Mark of the Raven, a sunburst

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

Divine Knowledge

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

term (hence their ability to answer spells such as Augury and Divination). And some gods might be unwilling to reveal their ignorance, choosing to give an unclear answer rather than admit that they don’t know the truth.

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

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

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

G6. Barrel Crabs

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dragon of Icespire Peak

pincer claws. A hatch on the top of each barrel opens to reveal an interior compartment equipped with a small, leather-padded seat surrounded by levers, pedals, and gears. The barrels are not

airtight. The gnomes built these crablike contraptions to grip and move other objects, rather like crude forklifts. However, the contraptions are so clumsy that they are useless for delicate work. They are

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

rare; priests of Kurtulmak, when they reveal themselves, are easily recognized by orange garb (usually just a roughly torn sash or cloak) decorated with an image of a gnome’s skull. Kobolds are a lot less cute when they learn how to cast fireballs. — Volo

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.

Lethal Leverage

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

adventurers. Once they have such leverage, the noble contact is no longer a friend, but rather the characters’ debt holder or blackmailer. Most such treacherous individuals try to ensure that threats or

someone close to the characters. 5 The contact holds a powerful magic item for the characters “so it doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.” 6 The contact has the characters act against a mutual friend “for their own good.” The contact then threatens to reveal this act to the friend.

True Motives

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

True Motives Be sure not to prematurely reveal to the characters that the lizardfolk do not constitute a real threat to Saltmarsh or its inhabitants, or that the newly purchased weaponry is not for

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

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

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

Describing Horror

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

Describing Horror The horrors populating your adventures can take endless forms, whether they be foes, impending events, or magical forces. Rather than just naming what the terrible thing is, inspire

? When it becomes desperate, how does it react? Let Players Fill Gaps Invite players to turn their imaginations against themselves. Leave details intentionally blank, describing just enough to reveal

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

D&D Beyond

Search Results