creating readily groups to have reveal

Lesser Star Spawn Emissary

Monsters Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

and just as readily appear as people, animals, or other creatures—the more unassuming, the better. Should it reveal its true form, an emissary appears as a roughly bipedal mass of agitated organs

-shattering revelations and cascading apocalypses. Only when truly threatened, or when their foes have lost all hope, do emissaries reveal their actual, impossible forms. Forms of the Emissary Star spawn

Oread

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

volcanoes, where they caper among the forces of dissolution and rebirth. During avalanches and volcanic eruptions, groups of oreads might race ahead of the destruction, dancing, singing, and doing what

nymphs and convincing them to aid in creating phenomenal works. In some tales, a smith finds an oread and allows it to relish in the destruction of a novel or remarkable item. In recompense, the

Cradle of the Frost Scion

Monsters Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

frigid air to freeze foes in place. If the cradle is destroyed, its icy body shatters to reveal the awakened scion of Thrym inside it. Forming a double-bladed axe in its hand, the 70-foot-tall scion

rushes at any foe that dares to challenge it. Emulating sagas of Thrym, the scion can achieve a tremendous feat of strength: creating a glacier in the ground and hurling it skyward, along with any

Kas the Betrayer

Monsters Vecna: Eve of Ruin

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

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

Scion of Thrym

Monsters Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants

, its icy body shatters to reveal the awakened scion of Thrym inside it. Forming a double-bladed axe in its hand, the 70-foot-tall scion rushes at any foe that dares to challenge it. Emulating sagas of

Thrym, the scion can achieve a tremendous feat of strength: creating a glacier in the ground and hurling it skyward, along with any creatures standing on it. Regional Effects The region surrounding a

Endelyn Moongrave

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

” veil. The outermost layers of her dress open to reveal a marionette theatre, and she manipulates her puppets using an arrangement of artificial hands that nestles in the folds of fabric. She

visit another to plot against the third sister, creating a vicious circle in which Bavlorna and Endelyn plot against Skabatha, Endelyn and Skabatha conspire against Bavlorna, and Skabatha and Bavlorna

Hexblood

Species Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

and avoid the same. While many hexbloods gain their lineage after making a deal with a hag, others reveal their nature as they age—particularly if a hag influenced them early in life or even

creating a hexblood, consult with your DM to see if it’s appropriate to tie your origins to one of the following Domains of Dread (detailed in chapter 3): Hazlan. The bizarre magic of this crumbling

Fraz-Urb'luu

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

to greater and greater atrocities in the name of their cause, only to eventually reveal his true nature and claim their souls as his own.Fraz-Urb’luu’s Lair Fraz-Urb’luu’s

Effects The region containing Fraz-Urb’luu’s lair is warped by his magic, creating one or more of the following effects: Beguiling Realm. Within 6 miles of the lair, all Charisma (Persuasion

Astral Elf

Species Spelljammer: Adventures in Space

Long ago, groups of elves ventured from the Feywild to the Astral Plane to be closer to their gods. Life in the Silver Void has imbued their souls with a spark of divine light. That light manifests

Astral Plane can live to be more than 750 years old. Creating Your Character When you create your D&D character, you decide whether your character is a member of the human race or one of the game

Halaster Blackcloak

Monsters Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage

exceed those of most mortal wizards. His expertise with magic gates allows him to travel far and wide to engage in magical research. He spends much of his time creating gates, moving them around, and

groups of adventurers try to gain decisive control of just a small section of Undermountain’s halls, Halaster constantly alters the dungeon’s perils to thwart them. Halaster’s true

Fraz-Urb'luu Legacy

Monsters Out of the Abyss

of their holy cause, only to eventually reveal his true nature and claim their souls as his own.Fraz-Urb’luu’s Lair Fraz-Urb’luu’s lair lies within the Abyssal lair known as

take 33 (6d10) psychic damage. Regional Effects The region containing Fraz-Urb’luu’s lair is warped by his magic, creating one or more of the following effects: Intelligent

Emerald Dragon Wyrmling

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

dragons’ preference for volcanic lairs often puts them in conflict with fire giant;fire giants. Despite their reluctance to reveal themselves to strangers, emerald dragons might approach experienced

create illusions, allowing them to better conceal their treasures from prying eyes and divinations. Creating an Emerald Dragon Use the Emerald Dragon Personality Traits and Emerald Dragon Ideals

Aasimar Legacy

Species Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

celestial heritage. These often begin subtle and become more obvious when the aasimar gains the ability to reveal their full celestial nature. The Aasimar Celestial Features table has examples you can

dark eyes 3 Starkly colored hair 4 An unusual hue tinting your shadow 5 A ghostly halo crowning your head 6 Rainbows gleaming on your skin Creating Your Character At

Young Emerald Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

. Emerald dragons’ preference for volcanic lairs often puts them in conflict with fire giant;fire giants. Despite their reluctance to reveal themselves to strangers, emerald dragons might approach

spells that create illusions, allowing them to better conceal their treasures from prying eyes and divinations. Creating an Emerald Dragon Use the Emerald Dragon Personality Traits and Emerald Dragon

Simic Scientist

Backgrounds Guildmasters’ Guide to Ravnica

protection and durability 2 Fin Clade, focused on movement 3 Gyre Clade, focused on cyclical patterns and metamagic 4 Guardian Project, focused on creating guard monsters and super

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

Young Moonstone Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

painting of a favorite place. A story of happy times fondly remembered is more precious to a moonstone dragon than a sack of gold. Creating a Moonstone Dragon Use the Moonstone Dragon Personality Traits

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

Adult Emerald Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

; preference for volcanic lairs often puts them in conflict with fire giant;fire giants. Despite their reluctance to reveal themselves to strangers, emerald dragons might approach experienced

illusions, allowing them to better conceal their treasures from prying eyes and divinations. Creating an Emerald Dragon Use the Emerald Dragon Personality Traits and Emerald Dragon Ideals tables to

Ancient Emerald Dragon

Monsters Fizban's Treasury of Dragons

volcanic lairs often puts them in conflict with fire giant;fire giants. Despite their reluctance to reveal themselves to strangers, emerald dragons might approach experienced adventurers in the hopes

, allowing them to better conceal their treasures from prying eyes and divinations. Creating an Emerald Dragon Use the Emerald Dragon Personality Traits and Emerald Dragon Ideals tables to inspire your

Crimson Aspirant

backgrounds

Characters who value study and learning, as well as those with a capacity to heal the injuries and illnesses of others, readily become crimson aspirants. More physically inclined characters can be

Your studies reveal a spate of anemia cases, some ending in death, as the predations of blood-drinking monsters. 6 A loved one, such as a paramour or sibling, has died, and your studies hint at a

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

Changeling

races Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

other changelings, a new face may reveal an aspect of their soul. The first changelings in the multiverse appeared in the Feywild, and the wondrous, mutable essence of that plane lingers in

physician. Personas can even be passed down through a family, allowing a younger changeling to take advantage of contacts established by the persona’s previous users. Creating Your Character At 1st

37. Secret Room

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage

37. Secret Room This unlit chamber connects areas 30a and 38c by way of secret doors. The secret doors are readily identifiable and easily opened from inside the room. Xunderbrok If the word

is 4 feet tall and 2 feet wide at the base. Close examination reveals that the top of the cone unscrews to reveal a hollow compartment under the cap. Treasure. The cone’s compartment contains a potion of giant strength (cloud) in a stoppered, J-shaped crystal flask worth 25 gp.

Right and Wrong

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

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

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

Loyalty Having the adventurers leading an expanded party gives you the opportunity to use the optional loyalty rules in chapter 4, “Creating Nonplayer Characters,” of the Dungeon Master’s Guide. You

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.

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

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

, and even the smallest victory against it can tilt the cosmic balance away from oblivion. Creating a Paladin The most important aspect of a paladin character is the nature of his or her holy quest

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

Customizing the Puzzle

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

Customizing the Puzzle While spells and components make easy to associate lists, you might also consider creating your own version of this puzzle using paired sets of monsters and creature types

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

Benefits of Renown

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

. Other members of the group are Friendly toward the character by default and provide the character with lodging and food in dire circumstances. Rank Some groups have hierarchies that characters can ascend

as they improve their Renown Scores. Other groups have positions of honor that characters can apply for if their Renown Score is high enough. Characters can earn promotions as their Renown Scores

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

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.

Haunted Traps

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

. Such traps provide a way to theme the dangers and monsters of a haunted place to reveal a grim history or frightening tale. When creating haunted traps, consider what events brought them into being and how the trap’s effects suggest those origins.

Chamber Campaign Themes

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

anything shady or villainous, but maneuvering pieces into position so they can play their designated parts. As the campaign unfolds, the dragons of the Chamber might reveal that the adventurers have their

or cooperate with demons in order to escape the clutches of the dragons. Throughout the campaign, the goals of the Chamber might not be readily apparent. Locations such as the planar observatory

The Golden Vault

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Keys from the Golden Vault

operatives monitor adventuring groups from major cities on the Material Plane. An operative might be a priest, a scholar, a charity worker, a government liaison, a philanthropist, or any other

handler might be able to obtain it for them, provided the equipment is readily available and not too expensive. If you decide to use the Golden Vault as the characters’ patron organization, work with

Monsters and Motivations

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

Monsters and Motivations See chapter 3, “Creating Adventures” for guidance on creating encounters with monsters. To foster variety and suspense, be sure to include encounters of varying difficulty

presence in the dungeon. For large groups of monsters encountered across multiple chambers, motivation could apply to the entire group, or each subgroup could have conflicting goals. Monster Motivation

Incarnations of Tatyana

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

takes, Strahd unceasingly seeks her, determined to possess her and soothe his rejected ego. The following section explores creating stories with Tatyana’s latest incarnation at their center. This

incarnation allows you to give your own distinct spin to Ravenloft’s classic tale. Characters and groups marked with an asterisk on the following tables are further detailed in the “Travelers in the Mist” section at the end of in this chapter.

D&D Beyond

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