defeat instead are bad

Aerisi Kalinoth

Monsters Princes of the Apocalypse

Fey Ancestry. Aerisi has advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put her to sleep. Howling Defeat. When Aerisi drops to 0 hit points, her body disappears in a howling

whirlwind that disperses quickly and harmlessly. Anything she is wearing or carrying is left behind. Legendary Resistance (2/Day). If Aerisi fails a saving throw, she can choose to succeed instead

Returned Kakomantis

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

until the start of the Returned’s next turn. If the target is missing any of its hit points, it instead takes 17 (2d12 + 2);{"diceNotation":"2d12+2","rollType":"damage","rollAction":"Underworld

’t build meaningful relationships or establish new lives. Instead, most experience fleeting emotions and follow hollow routines, their existences reduced to shadow plays without weight or substance

Catoblepas

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

", "rollAction":"Death Ray", "rollDamageType":"necrotic"} necrotic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. If the saving throw fails by 5 or more, the target instead takes 64

the creature has such a feared reputation that stories about it are ingrained in the popular culture. Any rumor of a catoblepas taking up residence nearby is taken to be a bad omen, even if the rumor is

Zargash

Monsters The Wild Beyond the Witchlight

Cling to Life (Recharges after a Long Rest). The first time Zargash would drop to 0 hit points as a result of taking damage, he instead drops to 1 hit point. Special Equipment. Zargash wears a bat

defeat seems inevitable, he casts gaseous form on himself and flees, leaving his allies to fend for themselves. League of Malevolence The League of Malevolence is an odious assemblage of villains

Marlos Urnrayle

Monsters Princes of the Apocalypse

Earthen Defeat. When Marlos drops to 0 hit points, his body transforms into mud and collapses into a pool. Anything he is wearing or carrying is left behind. Earth Passage. Marlos can move in

shunted into the nearest space he last occupied. Legendary Resistance (2/Day). If Marlos fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead. Petrifying Gaze. When a creature that can see Marlos&rsquo

Returned Drifter

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

long-term memories, they generally can’t build meaningful relationships or establish new lives. Instead, most experience fleeting emotions and follow hollow routines, their existences reduced to

shadow plays without weight or substance. Returned Masks. Adventurers who defeat Returned foes might marvel at their fortune in claiming such rich spoils after a battle. The mask of a Returned is worth

Returned Sentry

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

’t build meaningful relationships or establish new lives. Instead, most experience fleeting emotions and follow hollow routines, their existences reduced to shadow plays without weight or substance

. Returned Masks. Adventurers who defeat Returned foes might marvel at their fortune in claiming such rich spoils after a battle. The mask of a Returned is worth approximately 100 gp, based on its

Returned Palamnite

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

relationships or establish new lives. Instead, most experience fleeting emotions and follow hollow routines, their existences reduced to shadow plays without weight or substance. Returned Masks. Adventurers

who defeat Returned foes might marvel at their fortune in claiming such rich spoils after a battle. The mask of a Returned is worth approximately 100 gp, based on its composition and craftsmanship

Pidlwick II

Monsters Curse of Strahd

, instead assuming that the guests had died in their sleep. But Strahd was not fooled. He came to realize fairly quickly that the clockwork effigy had begun to display a murderous nature. Rather than have

Ideal. “I wish I could make people happy.” Bond. “I would like to find someone—anyone—who isn't afraid of me and who enjoys my company.” Flaw. “When I'm upset, I do bad things.”Poison

Polukranos

Monsters Mythic Odysseys of Theros

","rollDamageType":"acid"} acid damage. Hold Breath. Polukranos can hold its breath for 1 hour. Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Polukranos fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead. Multiple

the minds and lore of a people that, even after a hydra’s defeat, the beast might reappear as a Nyxborn being and begin its legend anew.Acid

Zikzokrishka

Monsters Candlekeep Mysteries

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Zikzokrishka fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead. Magic Resistance. Zikzokrishka has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical

Zikzokrishka hid her phylactery deep within the Scimitar Spires, a mountain range to the east of the necropolis of Azumar. If the characters defeat her, Zikzokrishka uses her phylactery to rematerialize

Olhydra

Monsters Princes of the Apocalypse

instead. Magic Resistance. Olhydra has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects. Water Form. Olhydra can enter a hostile creature’s space and stop there. She can move

— bad weather, strong tides, and increasing aggression from dangerous sea life. Violent downpours become frequent within 10 miles of the lair. A downpour occurs once every 2d12;{"diceNotation

Ki-rin

Monsters Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse

Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If the ki-rin fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead. Magic Resistance. The ki-rin has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical

working behind the scenes, or they might be champions of their master’s cause, out to defeat villainy wherever it is found. When viewed from the outside, a ki-rin’s lair is indistinguishable

Sailor Legacy

Backgrounds Player’s Handbook (2014)

more than one deserving soul to a briny grave. Fear and bloodshed are no strangers to you, and you’ve garnered a somewhat unsavory reputation in many a port town. Variant Feature: Bad

Reputation If your character has a sailor background, you may select this background feature instead of Ship’s Passage. No matter where you go, people are afraid of you due to your reputation. When

City Watch / Investigator

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

You have served the community where you grew up, standing as its first line of defense against crime. You aren’t a soldier, directing your gaze outward at possible enemies. Instead, your

defeat my company suffered or the enemies who dealt it. 5 Those who fight beside me are those worth dying for. 6 I fight for those who cannot fight for themselves. d6 Flaw

Lizardfolk Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

; Instead, aggressive, stronger creatures register to the lizardfolk as fearsome beings to be avoided if possible. If such creatures attack, lizardfolk flee, fighting only if cornered. Lizardfolk aren

’t scared of a troll; instead, they understand that a troll is a fearsome, dangerous creature and react accordingly. Lizardfolk never become angry in the way others do, but they act with

Sailor - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

. Fear and bloodshed are no strangers to you, and you’ve garnered a somewhat unsavory reputation in many a port town. Variant Feature: Bad Reputation If your character has a sailor

background, you may select this background feature instead of Ship’s Passage. No matter where you go, people are afraid of you due to your reputation. When you are in a settlement, you can get away with

Deck of Many Things Legacy

Magic Items Basic Rules (2014)

-handedly defeat the next hostile monster or group of monsters you encounter, you gain experience points enough to gain one level. Otherwise, this card has no effect. Donjon. You disappear and become

, discard this card, and draw from the deck again, counting both draws as one of your declared draws. If losing that much XP would cause you to lose a level, you instead lose an amount that leaves you

Aarakocra Legacy

Species Elemental Evil Player's Companion

changes in the prevailing winds that they regarded as a bad omen. Unlike the aarakocra of other worlds on the Material Plane, the aarakocra of the Realms rarely travel to the Elemental Plane of Air

the Wind Dukes long ago to defeat the Queen of Chaos’s monstrous champion, Miska the Wolf-Spider. When plunged into Miska’s body, the chaos in his blood sundered the rod and scattered its

Orc Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

, injury, or age) often join these cults instead of facing daily humiliation, exile, or death. Serving as the bridge between the two parts of the tribe are the priestesses of Luthic, the orc goddess who

everywhere in the world around them, and the priests of a tribe are entrusted with the responsibility of identifying these signs and omens — both good and bad — and deciding how the tribe should

Vladeska's Powers and Dominion

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

, though, they’re fighting a losing battle against foes whose numbers only grow. And every time a Talon falls, Lekar’s final defeat grows closer. Talon soldiers use the guard stat block, while commanders

executions serve the greater good and impose necessary order, but make it clear that zombies aren’t the realm’s only monsters. Only Bad Decisions. There is one simple truth in Falkovnia: the dead are

Concluding the Campaign

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

of Red Larch point out that “normal weather means bad weather around here, and unpredictable besides.” Some tavern talk can be overheard about occupying the Haunted Keeps to scare away unwanted

disperse within a tenday of the cults’ defeat. Bereft of leadership and reeling from the events, the cultists decide the Dessarin Valley isn’t the place for them. Some go to nearby cities, especially

Challenge

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

Challenge An appropriately equipped and well-rested party of four adventurers should be able to defeat a creature that has a challenge rating equal to their level without suffering any casualties

challenge rating. Typically, XP is awarded for defeating the creature, and characters gain levels as they accumulate XP. In Dragon of Icespire Peak, you don’t need to track experience points, as characters advance in level by completing quests instead of accumulating XP.

Why Use Riddles?

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

an opportunity for the characters to engage with a creature that’s too strong to defeat in combat Reward clever characters who overcome a challenge with brains instead of brawn Make a villain, an

Alien Minds

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

their actions. In contrast, lizardfolk see emotions as traits assigned to other creatures, objects, and situations. A lizardfolk doesn’t think, “I’m scared.” Instead, aggressive, stronger creatures

register to the lizardfolk as fearsome beings to be avoided if possible. If such creatures attack, lizardfolk flee, fighting only if cornered. Lizardfolk aren’t scared of a troll; instead, they

The Grand Master

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Lost Laboratory of Kwalish

deal an extra 6d8 slashing damage instead. You might also have the shards be from a polymorph blade, a blade of the medusa, or some other type of weapon. Another option is to allow decapitated

bad for it in combat, it might choose to do so in order to escape (if you wish to preserve the Grand Master as a future villain), or to summon an ally (if the fight against it proves too easy).

Goblin Legacy

Species Volo's Guide to Monsters

cruel in victory, goblins are fawning and servile in defeat, just as in their own society lower castes must scrape before those of greater status and as goblin tribes bow before other goblinoids

traps, snares, and nets to catch the unwary, and when their hunting patrols encounter other beings, they always look for ways to capture their foes instead of killing them. Goblins that run up against

Otaaryliakkarnos

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Rise of Tiamat

Otaaryliakkarnos Female Silver Dragon The representative of the silver dragons believes that among the lesser races, neither good nor bad is ever absolute. The humanoids are in need of protection and

instead unfriendly. Desire. Otaaryliakkarnos would like the metallic dragons to strike now as Protanther suggests, but she does not know if they can succeed alone. An alliance would reduce casualties for

Otaaryliakkarnos

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Tyranny of Dragons

Otaaryliakkarnos Female Silver Dragon The representative of the silver dragons believes that among the lesser races, neither good nor bad is ever absolute. The humanoids are in need of protection and

in a Dragonmoot, and with the long ancestral memory of the metallic dragons, she holds all dwarves responsible. Attitude. Neutral. If the party includes one or more dwarves, Otaaryliakkarnos is instead

The Wizards Three

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

lack sabotages the Wish spell exactly as the warlord hoped, allowing him to suggest an alternate course of action: reassemble the artifact called the Rod of Seven Parts and use it to defeat Vecna instead

facing the might of one of the multiverse’s most powerful good-aligned spellcasters, so the warlord devised a plot to trick Alustriel into helping him defeat Vecna. With the help of spies, Kas learned

Simple Traps

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

sown with too many traps, and if the characters are victimized over and over again as a result, they are likely to take steps to prevent further bad things from happening. Because of their recent

for you to describe what happens next, the players should be specific about how they want to defeat the trap. Simply stating the desire to make a check isn’t helpful for you. Ask the players where their characters are positioned and what they intend to do to defeat the trap.

The Stone Bridge

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

wizard. “Finally caught up with us, eh? Your adventure ends here, I’m afraid.” Drannin left these forces here knowing that they were unlikely to defeat the characters, but he wanted to play up the

. “Not a bad place to die,” the mage says with mild amusement. The doppelganger posing as Gargosh doesn’t take part in the fight, remaining on the fringes of the battle and rooting for the characters to

Omu

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

the item for their lives. If Fenthaza lives, Ras Nsi makes the mistake of putting her in charge of the team sent to kill the characters, and she offers the party a deal instead. If the characters

agree to kill Ras Nsi, they can go free and keep whatever treasure they take from the fane except for the Black Opal Crown, which Fenthaza insists be given to her at once. If the characters defeat Ras

Dealing with Gallio Elibro

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Storm Lord’s Wrath

Dealing with Gallio Elibro Gallio Elibro is a short-tempered male Rashemi mage (with the legend lore spell prepared instead of cone of cold). His relentless studies have pushed him to the brink of

tower, and scribbles in Thalivar’s old journal (area H9). If confronted, he uses Horrifying Visage to scare away his enemies or tries to defeat them in combat (see “Confronting Thalivar’s Ghost” for

Chapter 1: Fool

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

to your campaign, shaping it to fit your needs and the tastes of your players. You can stack the deck with low-level effects that prompt roleplaying instead of mechanical changes or create a deck that

has only good cards (or bad ones!) in it. You can do all this without losing the wonder of the deck: its unique nature as a physical object that players—not just their characters—can hold in their

D&D Beyond

Search Results