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Variant Rules

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.

Amnizu

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

Kadroth

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

flame, thaumaturgy 1st level (4 slots): command, inflict wounds, shield of faith 2nd level (3 slots): hold person, spiritual weaponMultiattack. The fanatic makes two melee attacks. Dagger. Melee or

he's tight with Levistus. He rules the roost by sheer force of personality, though it chafes him that Hethyl Arkorran has more respect and influence within the cult. Kadroth doesn't involve Avarice

Young Dragon Turtle

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

dragon turtle’s defenses, magical storms manifest to shield the dragon turtle and strike at foes. Creating a Dragon Turtle Use the Dragon Turtle Personality Traits and Dragon Turtle Ideals tables

Variant Human Legacy

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.

Dragon Turtle Wyrmling

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

shield the dragon turtle and strike at foes. Creating a Dragon Turtle Use the Dragon Turtle Personality Traits and Dragon Turtle Ideals tables to inspire your portrayal of distinctive dragon turtle

Wereraven Legacy

monsters Curse of Strahd

, modestly give money to charity. They take steps to keep magic items out of evil hands by stashing them in secret hiding places. Characters as Wereravens. The Monster Manual has rules for characters

piercing damage (no ability modifier applies to this damage) and carries the curse of lycanthropy; see the “Player Characters as Lycanthropes” sidebar in the lycanthropes entry in the Monster Manual for details.

Cult Fanatic (Knights of the Black Sword)

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

flame, thaumaturgy 1st level (4 slots): command, inflict wounds, shield of faith 2nd level (3 slots): hold person, spiritual weapon Icy Doom. When the cultist dies, its corpse freezes for 9 days

","rollDamageType":"piercing"} piercing damage.The Knights of the Black Sword are a secret society of cultists devoted to Levistus, the archdevil who rules Stygia, the sixth layer of the Nine Hells, from the

Armor Class Legacy

Rules

Your Armor Class (AC) represents how well your character avoids being wounded in battle. Things that contribute to your AC include the armor you wear, the shield you carry, and your Dexterity

modifier. Not all characters wear armor or carry shields, however. Without armor or a shield, your character's AC equals 10 + his or her Dexterity modifier. If your character wears armor, carries a shield

Noble Legacy

Backgrounds Basic Rules (2014)

your line or even a spiritual member of the family? These details help establish your family and your title as features of the world of the campaign. Skill Proficiencies: History, Persuasion Tool

. Variant Noble: Knight A knighthood is among the lowest noble titles in most societies, but it can be a path to higher status. If you wish to be a knight, choose the Retainers feature (see the sidebar

Ancient Dragon Turtle

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

the surrounding water—and any creatures in it. And even if an enemy wears down the dragon turtle’s defenses, magical storms manifest to shield the dragon turtle and strike at foes

Criminal / Spy Legacy

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

Folk Hero Legacy

Backgrounds Basic Rules (2014)

, or recuperate among other commoners, unless you have shown yourself to be a danger to them. They will shield you from the law or anyone else searching for you, though they will not risk their lives for

. d6 Flaw 1 The tyrant who rules my land will stop at nothing to see me killed. 2 I’m convinced of the significance of my destiny, and blind to my shortcomings and the risk of

Noble - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

your line or even a spiritual member of the family? These details help establish your family and your title as features of the world of the campaign. The patriars of Baldur’s Gate live in the

; without question, and any corruption among guards or government officials tends to work in your favor, not against you—at least until you make some effort to expose it. Variant Noble: Knight A

Reborn Legacy

Species Van Richten’s Guide to Ravenloft

Memories table to inspire its details. Lost Memories d6 Memory 1 You recall a physically painful moment. What mark or scar on your body does it relate to? 2 A memory brings

, but you aren’t any longer. You now possess only your lineage’s racial traits. When you create a character using a lineage option, follow these additional rules during character creation

Avarice

Monsters Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

, fireball, fly 4th level (3 slots): banishment, fire shield 5th level (2 slots): Bigby's hand, Rary's telepathic bondFire Bolt (Cantrip). Ranged Spell Attack: +6;{"diceNotation":"1d20+6","rollType":"to

challenge, even when the odds are clearly stacked against her. Seeing other wizards as a threat, paranoia rules her life. Avarice has been a member of the Arcane Brotherhood for almost two years. She

Inheritor

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

determine your inheritance from among the possibilities in the table below. Work with your Dungeon Master to come up with details: Why is your inheritance so important, and what is its full story? You might

prefer for the DM to invent these details as part of the game, allowing you to learn more about your inheritance as your character does. The Dungeon Master is free to use your inheritance as a story

Draconic Races

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.

Knight of the Order

Backgrounds Sword Coast Adventurer's Guide

order’s cause. The “Knightly Orders of Faerûn” sidebar details several of the orders that are active at present and is designed to help inform your decision about which group

family, similar to an order of monks. Although there are organizations, such as the Knights of the Shield, that use the trappings of knighthood without necessarily being warriors, most folk of Faer

Criminal - Baldur's Gate

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

Folk Hero - Baldur's Gate

Backgrounds Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus

, unless you have shown yourself to be a danger to them. They will shield you from the law or anyone else searching for you, though they will not risk their lives for you. BALDUR’S GATE FEATURE

1 The tyrant who rules my land will stop at nothing to see me killed. 2 I’m convinced of the significance of my destiny, and blind to my shortcomings and the risk of failure. 3

Rewards

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.

Getting Into and Out of Armor

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Basic Rules (2014)

Armor 1 minute 1 minute Medium Armor 5 minutes 1 minute Heavy Armor 10 minutes 5 minutes Shield 1 action 1 action VARIANT: EQUIPMENT SIZES In most campaigns, you can use or wear any equipment that

Getting Into and Out of Armor The time it takes to don or doff a type of armor or a shield is shown in the Donning and Doffing Armor table. Don. This is the time it takes to put on the item. You

Creating a Dragonmarked Character

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

Paladin

classes Player’s Handbook

Equipment Choose A or B: (A) Chain Mail, Shield, Longsword, 6 Javelin;Javelins, Holy Symbol, Priest's Pack, and 9 GP; or (B) 150 GP Paladins are united by their oaths to stand against the

level 1 features, which are listed in the Paladin Features table. See the multiclassing rules to determine your available spell slots. Paladin Features —Spell Slots per

Variant Human: Mark of Sentinel

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

Variant Human: Mark of Sentinel If your human character has the Mark of Sentinel, the following traits replace the human’s Ability Score Increase trait in the Player’s Handbook. Ability Score

number rolled to the ability check. Guardian’s Shield. You can cast the shield spell once with this trait, and you regain the ability to cast it after you finish a long rest. Wisdom is your spellcasting

One at a Time

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->D&D Beyond Basic Rules

One at a Time A creature can wear only one suit of armor at a time and wield only one Shield at a time. Variant: Equipment Sizes In most campaigns, you can use or wear any equipment that you find

adventurer tries to wear it as a disguise. Using this variant, when adventurers find armor, clothing, and similar items that are made to be worn, they might need to visit a smith, a tailor, a leatherworker

Human Traits

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

One at a Time

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player’s Handbook

One at a Time A creature can wear only one suit of armor at a time and wield only one Shield at a time. Variant: Equipment Sizes In most campaigns, you can use or wear any equipment that you find

adventurer tries to wear it as a disguise. Using this variant, when adventurers find armor, clothing, and similar items that are made to be worn, they might need to visit a smith, a tailor, a leatherworker

Operating an Airship

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Eberron: Forge of the Artificer

Eberron. Supplementing the rules for vehicles in the Player’s Handbook, this section details rules for handling airships. The rules for specific ships appear later in this chapter.

Tying Knots

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.

Rest Variants

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

Shield Master

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Sage Advice Compendium

Shield Master The Shield Master feat lets you shove someone as a bonus action if you take the Attack action. Can you take that bonus action before the Attack action? No. The bonus action provided by

the Shield Master feat has a precondition: that you take the Attack action on your turn. Intending to take that action isn’t sufficient; you must actually take it before you can take the bonus action

Strength

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

Armor Class

Compendium - Sources->Dungeons & Dragons->Player's Handbook (2014)

a shield, or both, calculate your AC using the rules in chapter 5. Record your AC on your character sheet. Your character needs to be proficient with armor and shields to wear and use them

Armor Class Your Armor Class (AC) represents how well your character avoids being wounded in battle. Things that contribute to your AC include the armor you wear, the shield you carry, and your

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