creating release groups to have revealing

Demonomicon of Iggwilv

Magic Items Dungeon Master’s Guide

general chapters remain, ever revealing demonic secrets. Caged behind lines of script roils a secret piece of the Abyss itself, which keeps the book up-to-date, no matter how many pages are removed, and

save, you are possessed by the creature, which controls you like a puppet. As a Magic action, the possessing creature can release you and appear in the closest unoccupied space to you. On a

Circle of Stars Legacy

Classes Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

revealing and understanding these secrets, the Circle of the Stars seeks to harness the powers of the cosmos. Many druids of this circle keep records of the constellations and the stars’ effects on the

world. Some groups document these observations at megalithic sites, which serve as enigmatic libraries of lore. These repositories might take the form of stone circles, pyramids, petroglyphs, and

Razorvine Blight

Monsters Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse

by the seemingly inanimate plant, the blight strikes, revealing its twisted, humanlike form and lashing out with razor-sharp vines to feed its bloodlust. While razorvine blights are usually

dangerous, in Sigil they sometimes mimic the behaviors of the city’s other inhabitants—for better or worse. At least one blight, known as Patch, spreads copies of itself across the city, creating a spy network of copies with mysterious goals.

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

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

innkeepers, rangers, and the clergy of gods that are aligned with the Harpers’ ideals. The Order of the Gauntlet: One of the newest power groups in Faerûn, the Order of the Gauntlet has an

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

Demonomicon of Iggwilv Legacy

Magic Items Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything

chapters remain, ever revealing demonic secrets. And the book holds more than blasphemies. Caged behind lines of script roils a secret piece of the Abyss itself, which keeps the book up-to-date, no matter

possessing creature can release you as an action, appearing in the closest unoccupied space. On a successful save, the fiend can’t try to possess you again for 7 days. When the tome is discovered

Find Steed Legacy

Spells Basic Rules (2014)

You summon a spirit that assumes the form of an unusually intelligent, strong, and loyal steed, creating a long-lasting bond with it. Appearing in an unoccupied space within range, the steed takes on

of you, you can communicate with each other telepathically. You can't have more than one steed bonded by this spell at a time. As an action, you can release the steed from its bond at any time, causing it to disappear.

Human Legacy

Species Basic Rules (2014)

dash of nonhuman blood, revealing hints of elf, orc, or other lineages. Humans reach adulthood in their late teens and rarely live even a single century. Variety in All Things Humans are the most

, 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

Customizing the Puzzle

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

Customizing the Puzzle This puzzle explores how to use groups of objects to disguise a message. So long as your groups can be arranged in a logical order (like the gems being arranged alphabetically

in this puzzle), all you must do is adjust the number of items to correspond to a particular letter of the alphabet. Alternatively, perhaps another organizing principle orders your groups. For example

Rules of the Trial

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

courtesy, and then sets out the rules of her test: Contenders may divide into small groups or choose to participate alone. Once groups are established at the trial’s start, alliances between contenders

whim. For example, if she catches a competitor too soon, she might offer to release them if they sacrifice an arm to feed her beasts.

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.

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

Myconids

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

passage through their colonies. Circles and Melds. The largest myconid in a colony is its sovereign, which presides over one or more social groups called circles. A circle consists of twenty or more

Reproduction. Like other fungi, myconids reproduce by mundane sporing. They carefully control their spores’ release to avoid overpopulation.

Ghost Stories

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

Ghost Stories Ghost stories number among the more psychologically elaborate genres of horror. Only through revealing tales of tragedy and past wrongs can heroes truly bring peace to forces that share

closure, lingering in a place until they bring about the completion of the work they hoped to accomplish in life. In addition, consider the following genre tropes when creating your haunted domain: All

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

Volcanic Threats

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

lightly obscures the characters’ surroundings for the next hour. 3 The ground suddenly collapses, creating a 30-foot-deep fissure that’s 120 feet long and 20 feet wide. The gap severs the road ahead

of the characters. 4 The earth cracks, revealing magma flowing below. A fire snake rises from the crack and attacks the first creature it sees before retreating after 1 round.

36. Looted Vaults

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

10-foot-high walls are lined with stone bricks veined with gold. A few of the bricks have come loose, revealing thin sheets of lead behind them. These lead sheets are designed to prevent magical

senses from piercing the vault. 36c. Obsidian Vault The lead door that once secured this room is bent inward at the bottom, creating a 3-foot-high triangular hole through which Medium and smaller creatures

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.

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

Star Forge Adventures

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

Star Forge, and the fallen star at the forge’s heart is regaining its former magnitude. As the star’s power grows, frequent earthquakes release creatures from the Elemental Earth Encounters and

Star Forge. The voice offers instructions for creating a fantastic magic item, but creatures from the Giant Necropolis Encounters table (see chapter 3) desperately oppose the work. Magnum Opus A fire

Moghadam

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Infernal Machine Rebuild

. If questioned about his motivations, he claims that Acererak took his family hostage, and will not release them until Moghadam completes his work. The truth is that the artificer has no family. He

delights in creating despair, and works on the tomb in the hope that his name will go down alongside Acererak’s in legend. Moghadam competes with a rival artificer named Thessalar, who operates out of a

Gothic Horror

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

tropes when creating your gothic horror domain: Gothic stories include intense, even exaggerated, emotions. Romances, rivalries, and life-changing events are common in these adventures. Atmosphere and a

before revealing them fully. Sacrifices feature prominently in gothic stories. Give characters heart-wrenching choices to make.

Staff

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

up as part of the characters’ adventures time and time again, revealing aspects of their past and creating story continuity. JOB TITLE AND BENEFITS What the Player’s Handbook calls untrained

creating nonplayer characters in chapter 4 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide to detail the majordomo, giving this individual a vibrant personality and backstory. The majordomo’s goals should be aligned

Featured Domains

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

. Darklord. A description of the domain’s Darklord appears here, along with details revealing the roots of their evil. Adventures. This section describes the kinds of adventures that naturally fit within

the domain. Domain Focus. For most domains, this final section highlights specific story elements and provides domain-specific tools to aid you in creating adventures around the domain’s Darklord and the horror of their realm.

A Multiversal Glitch

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Turn of Fortune’s Wheel

themselves, their true memories return, and their place in the multiverse solidifies, unlocking lost abilities and revealing the characters’ actual nature. The “Glitch Characters” section provides details on creating and running characters affected by this multiversal glitch.

Where Next?

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Baldur's Gate: Descent into Avernus

negotiate for his release if the characters capture him. He suggests that it would be most unwise to oppose a duke of Baldur’s Gate without leverage. If the characters decide to attack Vanthampur Villa

D) usually operate as mixed groups of Banites, Bhaalites, and Myrkulites. Here are a few appropriate encounters for a party of four or five characters of 3rd to 5th level: Abduction Squad (for 3rd

Orcs and Half-Orcs

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

Gatekeepers put the dragon’s teaching to the test, creating magical seals that bound the daelkyr in the depths of Khyber and protected Eberron against further incursion from the plane of madness

. Three prominent groups of orcs have survived into the present age: The Ghaash’kala are servants of the Silver Flame (which they call Kalok Shash, the “binding flame”), who devote their lives to battling

Chamber Contents

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

controls an area. Pets and allied creatures are subservient to the dominant inhabitant. “Random creatures” are scavengers or nuisances, usually lone monsters or small groups passing through the area. They

include such creatures as carrion crawlers, dire rats, gelatinous cubes, and rust monsters. See chapter 3, "Creating Adventures" for more information on random encounters. Dungeon Chamber Contents

Artus and the Ring of Winter

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tomb of Annihilation

for the Ring of Winter. If the characters make their way back to civilization with Artus in tow, they should encounter one or more of these groups along the way. Valindra Shadowmantle and the Red

chooses the latter. Alternatively, a portal to Mezro’s demiplane might be hidden somewhere in Chult, creating the seeds of a wonderful new adventure.

Character Incarnations

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse->Turn of Fortune’s Wheel

. If you want to create characters only once, have players create their first character and two variations before the adventure begins. When creating different character incarnations, players should

signature tokens. Nexus features help others recognize a character no matter which incarnation is being played. Have players determine a nexus feature by creating their own or rolling on the Nexus

Small Groups

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

Small Groups Most of the time, each player runs one character. The game plays best that way, without overwhelming anyone. But if your group is small, players can control more than one character. Or

you can fill out the group with NPC followers, using the guidelines in chapter 4, "Creating Nonplayer Characters." You can also make the characters more resilient by using the healing surge option in

Beholder

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

they act on agendas beyond human reasoning. While some keep to themselves, others force weaker creatures into their service. Still others cultivate grand ambitions, creating networks of minions to

manipulate groups, settlements, and whole nations in the Underdark and sometimes the surface world. Few creatures loathe beholders more than other beholders. Every beholder views itself as the physical

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