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Returning 35 results for 'senses of rules design variant'.
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Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Variant Rules A shared campaign might use some variant rules to handle certain aspects of the game. The Adventurers League, for instance, has variant systems for gaining levels and acquiring treasure
. These “house rules,” presented below, serve as a sort of common language, ensuring that the rewards all characters receive are equivalent no matter what kind of adventure a character experienced.
Spells
Player’s Handbook
Initiative count, and it functions as a controlled mount while you ride it (as defined in the rules on mounted combat). If you have the Incapacitated condition, the steed takes its turn immediately
14
+2
+2
Mod
Save
INT
6
−2
−2
WIS
12
+1
+1
CHA
8
−1
−1
Senses Passive Perception 11
Languages Telepathy
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
have no personalities or memories; they’re driven only by the desire to commit evil. The amnizus that patrol here drill the rules of the Nine Hells into the new arrivals’ minds and marshal
them into legions.
Amnizu (Summoner Variant);Variant: Devil Summoning
Some amnizus have an action that allows them to summon other devils:
Summon Devil (1/Day). The amnizu summons 2d4
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
kill.
Gazer (Familiar Variant);Variant: Gazer Familiar
Spellcasters who are interested in unusual familiars find that gazers are eager to serve someone who has magical power. Unless its master is
familiar, forming a telepathic bond with its willing master, provided that the master is at least a 3rd-level spellcaster. While the two are bonded, the master can sense what the gazer senses as long as
classes
Food: it fuels thought, builds bones, and delights the senses. But more than that, breaking bread with a foe can be the beginning of a lasting peace, sculptures of sugar glass can inspire architects
to design soaring cities, and the fusion of disparate culinary traditions can tie cultures together. Though we see food every day, it is truly the epitome of inspiration.
Bards from the College of
Monsters
Mythic Odysseys of Theros
sands of time or are guarded by ancient monsters.
Constructed Nature. An anvilwrought doesn't require air, food, drink, or sleep.
VARIANT: ANVILWROUGHT RAPTOR FAMILIAR
Some anvilwrought raptors are
. While the two are bonded, the master can sense what the anvilwrought senses, as long as they are within 1 mile of each other.
Fire, Poison
classes
Food: it fuels thought, builds bones, and delights the senses. But more than that, breaking bread with a foe can be the beginning of a lasting peace, sculptures of sugar glass can inspire architects
to design soaring cities, and the fusion of disparate culinary traditions can tie cultures together. Though we see food every day, it is truly the epitome of inspiration.
Bards from the College of
Variant Human
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Basic Rules (2014)
If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from the Player’s Handbook, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait.
Monsters
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
, the master can sense what the gazer senses as long as they are within 1 mile of each other. If its master causes it physical harm, the gazer will end its service as a familiar, breaking the
’t kill.
Variant: Gazer Familiar
Spellcasters who are interested in unusual familiars find that gazers are eager to serve someone who has magical power. Unless its master is strict, a gazer
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
characters, and use the Dragon Turtle Spellcasting table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for
making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"}
Trait
Spells
Lost Laboratory of Kwalish
You temporarily summon three familiars — spirits that take animal forms of your choice. Each familiar uses the same rules and options for a familiar conjured by the find familiar spell
means, then one fewer familiars are conjured by this spell.
Familiars summoned by this spell can telepathically communicate with you and share their visual or auditory senses while they are within 1
Monsters
Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
table to help select spells for a spellcasting dragon. (Though the Monster Manual doesn’t explicitly include dragon turtles in the variant rules for making a dragon a spellcaster, you can apply
those rules to these aquatic dragons.)
Dragon Turtle Personality Traits
d8;{"diceNotation":"1d8","rollType":"roll","rollAction":"Trait"}
Trait
1
I speak slowly and deliberately
Species
Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse
exuberance with them and learning new languages as they went.
Harengons are bipedal, with the characteristic long feet of the rabbits they resemble and fur in a variety of colors. They share the keen senses
fairy or the harengon in this section, follow these additional rules during character creation.
Ability Score Increases
When determining your character’s ability scores, increase one score by 2
Hexblood
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Species
Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft
shades, long hair that regrows if cut, and an irremovable living crown. Along with these marks, hexbloods manifest hag-like traits, such as darkvision and a variety of magical methods to beguile the senses
player, unless the DM rules otherwise.
Creating Your Character
At 1st level, you choose whether your character is a member of the human race or of one of the game’s fantastical races
Criminal / Spy
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
Learn More
Backgrounds
Basic Rules (2014)
than most people to the world of murder, theft, and violence that pervades the underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society
; specifically, you know the local messengers, corrupt caravan masters, and seedy sailors who can deliver messages for you.
Variant Criminal: Spy
Although your capabilities are not much different
Shapechange
Legacy
This doesn't reflect the latest rules and lore.
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Spells
Basic Rules (2014)
so. You can't use any special senses you have (for example, darkvision) unless your new form also has that sense. You can only speak if the creature can normally speak.
When you transform, you
rules for the original form, with one exception: if your new form has more hit points than your current one, your hit points remain at their current value.
Backgrounds
Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus
underbelly of civilization, and you have survived up to this point by flouting the rules and regulations of society.
Skill Proficiencies: Deception, Stealth
Tool Proficiencies: One
always occur in shady venues.
Variant Criminal: Spy
Although your capabilities are not much different from those of a burglar or smuggler, you learned and practiced them in a very
classes
Player’s Handbook
.
Gain the Ranger’s level 1 features, which are listed in the Ranger Features table. See the multiclassing rules to determine your available spell slots.
Ranger Features
Improvement
5
12
4
3
3
2
—
17
+6
Precise Hunter
6
14
4
3
3
3
1
18
+6
Feral Senses
6
14
4
3
3
3
1
19
+6
Epic Boon
6
15
4
3
3
3
2
20
+6
Foe
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Rewards Adventures in a shared campaign that uses variant rules for gaining levels and acquiring treasure (such as those described below) don’t include experience point awards or specific amounts and kinds of treasure.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Rising from the Last War
Creating a Dragonmarked Character Dragonmarks manifest on certain members of a few species, represented in the rules by variant race options: For humans and half-orcs, a dragonmark is a variant race
that replaces traits associated with those races. For half-elves, a dragonmark is a variant race that lets you keep some half-elf traits and replace others with the traits associated with your mark
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
properties. The command word to activate a ring might be etched in tiny letters inside it, or a feathered design might suggest that it’s a ring of feather falling. Wearing or experimenting with an item can
what happens. You then say the character jumps unexpectedly high. Variant: More Difficult Identification If you prefer magic items to have a greater mystique, consider removing the ability to identify
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)
HUMAN TRAITS
If your campaign uses the optional feat rules from chapter 6, your Dungeon Master might allow these variant traits, all of which replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait
with, including obscure dialects. They are fond of sprinkling their speech with words borrowed from other tongues: Orc curses, Elvish musical expressions, Dwarvish military phrases, and so on. VARIANT
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Unearthed Arcana
Apocalyptic Subclasses August 21, 2025
Get ready for the end of a world with the latest innovations from the D&D Game Design Team! This document presents four new subclasses for the Druid (Circle
of Preservation), Fighter (Gladiator), Sorcerer (Defiled Sorcery), and Warlock (Sorcerer-King Patron). The material uses the rules in the Player's Handbook. Learn more about this playtest directly from the designers in this article!
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Descent into the Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth
Credits Lead Designer: Justice Ramin Arman
Designer: Dan Dillon
Rules Developer: Ron Lundeen
Art Director: Fury Galluzzi
Lead Editor: Judy Bauer
Editor: Hannah Rose
Graphic Designer
: Bill Benham, Siera Bruggeman, Robert Hawkey
Product Manager: Natalie Egan
D&D Beyond Product Manager: Jeff Turriff
Digital Design Team: Jay Jani, Sean Stoves, Adam Walton
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Ravenloft: The Horrors Within
Domain Features Hazlan is known for the following features: Eye of Hazlik. Inhabitants claim the eyelike design called the Eye of Hazlik bears Hazlik’s blessing and wards off dangerous magic. In
truth, the symbol is a sensor for Hazlik’s magical surveillance. Magocracy. The wizard Hazlik rules Hazlan. His apprentices have free rein to exploit the land and its people to further their magical
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Tying Knots The rules are purposely open-ended concerning mundane tasks like tying knots, but sometimes knowing how well a knot was fashioned is important in a dramatic scene when someone is trying
Sleight of Hand with Intelligence, rather than Dexterity. This is an example of how to apply the rule in the “Variant: Skills with Different Abilities” section in chapter 7 of the Player’s Handbook.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Fizban's Treasury of Dragons
section offers three variant dragonborn race options that can be used to create a character with clear connections to a specific draconic ancestry. When you’re making a new character using one of these races, use the rules under “Creating Your Character” to fill out the details.
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
Rest Variants The rules for short and long rests presented in chapter 8 of the Player’s Handbook work well for a heroic-style campaign. Characters can go toe-to-toe with deadly foes, take damage to
within an inch of their lives, yet still be ready to fight again the next day. If this approach doesn’t fit your campaign, consider the following variants. Epic Heroism This variant uses a short rest
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Dungeon Master’s Guide (2014)
tell you how to design new class features. The best place to start is by looking at other class features, or at spells, feats, or any other rules for inspiration. You’re almost certainly going to have
some missteps, as features that seem good on the surface fall apart in play. That’s all right. Everything you design will need to be playtested. When introducing new class features, be sure the
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)
lift. For a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for
determining how a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score, you
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player’s Handbook
if it’s wielded in a way contrary to its design; if you use a Ranged weapon to make a melee attack or throw a Melee weapon that lacks the Thrown property, the weapon counts as an improvised weapon. An
improvised weapon follows the rules below. Proficiency. Don’t add your Proficiency Bonus to attack rolls with an improvised weapon. Damage. On a hit, the weapon deals 1d4 damage of a type the DM
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
if it’s wielded in a way contrary to its design; if you use a Ranged weapon to make a melee attack or throw a Melee weapon that lacks the Thrown property, the weapon counts as an improvised weapon. An
improvised weapon follows the rules below. Proficiency. Don’t add your Proficiency Bonus to attack rolls with an improvised weapon. Damage. On a hit, the weapon deals 1d4 damage of a type the DM
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)
a Tiny creature, halve these weights. Variant: Encumbrance The rules for lifting and carrying are intentionally simple. Here is a variant if you are looking for more detailed rules for determining how
a character is hindered by the weight of equipment. When you use this variant, ignore the Strength column of the Armor table in chapter 5. If you carry weight in excess of 5 times your Strength score
Compendium
- Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules
Senses The Senses entry specifies a monster’s Passive Perception score, as well as any special senses the monster possesses. Passive Perception and special senses are described in the “Rules Glossary”.