The following two adventure structures are on opposite ends of a spectrum. Which have you seen more often, and which do you personally prefer?

• Structure A: The party learns that treasure lies at the bottom of a ruin. They arrive at the entrance. Thanks to a mix of spells and the party rogue's stealth, the PCs roughly map out the ruin, and note each group of monsters in each major room. The party pools together its knowledge to recall as much as possible about each type of monster.

The PCs camp outside. The cleric (or druid, or both) and the wizard use their foreknowledge to prepare exactly the right spells. Perhaps they can simply sneak by some groups, or persuade certain monsters into alliances. There is also the matter of traps; the rogue may have been able to disarm some in advance, while others must be dealt with as a group...

• Structure B: The party is walking along a street one morning, when suddenly, demons pop up, attacking civilians. The PCs intervene (combat #1). Dark omens appear across the city and the sky. Thanks to knowledge rolls and some nudging, the party learns that, come midnight, a demon lord will manifest unless a dark ceremony is stopped. The PCs investigate further, but overzealous cultists strike (combat #2). Interrogating the fanatics, the party obtains the location of the ritual, but also learn that it cannot be stopped without sacrificing some sacred relic.

The PCs track down the relic to the hoard of a shapeshifting dragon. The dragon and their minions are preparing to leave, and refuse to hand over the relic. The party either negotiates a deal (social encounter), or fights (combat #3). Now armed with the relic, the PCs rally a small army (social encounter) and attack the ritual site (combat #4). During the battle, the cult's leaders tear open portals to let in lesser demons, but with skill and a little luck, a PC can wield the relic to immediately close these rifts.

Help me build Ammon Jerro using the 2024 Rules. Level cap of 12.

Lore: https://forgottenrealms.fandom.com/wiki/Ammon_Jerro

Inspirational video: https://youtu.be/itBczNhHM3Y?si=FI2RU1x-7i42S5Z-

Hi I'm new to dnd and was wondering if you had any groups that I can watch like legends of avantris but with more romance I don't care what platform it's on thank you for the help 💗

If I multi class from warlock into another caster class, are the spell slots and lists completely segregated? I want to dip warlock to get armor of agathys and cast it with max spell slots from cleric or druid. RAW, can I do this?

I see around the web some places saying a lvl 2 wiz can cast a lvl 2 spell but how? They don't get lvl 2 spell slot till lvl 3, yes?

Thanks!

(See this other post to read what the various Chakras are said to do in actual East Asian Mysticism)

Way of the Yogi*

Monks of the Way of the Yogi meditate on their chakras, points within the body that concentrate different types of psychic energy, and have learned to harness their powers. This affords them a versatile skillset, letting them meditate on different chakras to draw on different powers as the situation demands.

Chakras

When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you unlock access to your Chakras, points of concentrated Psychic energy within the bodies of every man, woman, and child. You may use a bonus action to switch from your current chakra to any other, but by default you are attuned to the green one.

The Green Chakra is located in the heart and bestows physical well-being. While attuned to it, you have advantage on saves VS disease, poison, and the poisoned condition, as well as bonus Hp equal to your wis mod times your current monk level. If shifting out of this chakra would leave you with 0hp, you have 1hp instead
The White Chakra is located at the top of the head and bestows heightened cognition and arcane prowess. When you reach 3rd level you gain one spell of your choice of up to 2nd level and can spend 1 ki point to cast it while attuned to this Chakra.
The Yellow Chakra is located in the stomach and bestows spiritual growth. While attuned to it you gain advantage on intelligence, wisdom, and charisma saving throws
The Indigo Chakra is located in the Pineal gland and bestows supernaturally enhanced sensory input. While attuned to it you gain darkvision and telepathy out to 120ft, as well as advantage on perception, investigation, and insight checks.

Expanded Awareness

Starting at 6th level:

While attuned to the Green Chakra, you also gain a +2 to AC.
You gain one spell of your choice of up to 3rd level, and while attuned to the White Chakra you can spend 2 ki points to cast it.
While Attuned to the Yellow Chakra, ???
While attuned to the Indigo Chakra, you can see invisible creatures out to 120ft

Meditative Mind

Starting at t 11th level,

While attuned to the Green Chakra, you gain a 1d4 bonus to all strength, dexterity, and constitution saving throws.
You gain one spell of your choice of up to 6th level, and while attuned to the White Chakra you can spend three ki points to cast it.
While Attuned to the Yellow Chakra, ???
While attuned to the Indigo Chakra, you have truesight out to 120ft.

Aligned Chakras

Starting at 17th level, you have managed to align your various chakras and now benefit from all their numerous effects at all times. You also gain one spell of your choice of up to 9th level and, once per long rest, can spend five ki points to cast it.

*Yes this is the actual term East Asian mystics go by; I have no idea how it connects to the cartoon bear if at all.

I know Out of the Abyss exists for example but it's also not quite what I'm looking for.

What I would like is an adventure or mega-dungeon scale location that has players starting down below and trying to work their way to the surface; Something like the book "City of Ember" comes to mind where there is a reason people have gone into the earth, but might have forgotten in the many years they've been down there.

Is there anything like that out there to give me something to build off of? I don't mind if its a different edition or a different game system altogether if it gives me a solid base to work with.

So I've decided in my homebrew campaign to experiment with some homebrew rules Here they are

1. (Using square grids) diagonals do not count towards opportunity attacks ( as in if you are in a diagonal space from a creature you wouldn't provoke opportunity)
2. Diagonals are technically 7 meters and therefore only weapons with at least 10 ft can mechanically hit diagonal

The same applies to all creatures 4. You can travel diagonals normally as if they were 5 foot squares for movement as per normal

I get they weren't mechanically very strong, and fairly niche, but IMO they were super flavourful features that contributed significantly to the identity of the class. I wish they could have improved those features and built the class around them instead of this weird hunters mark stuff.

I think, for my table, I might just do a homebrew hybrid of the 2014/2024 ranger if any of my players want to play ranger

Hey everyone,

As a long-time Dungeon Master and lover of all things tabletop RPG, I know how overwhelming it can be to prepare sessions, create worlds, and come up with encounters on the fly. I’ve spent countless hours flipping through rulebooks, scrambling for inspiration, and trying to make things fun for my players without burning myself out.

That’s why I decided to create some free tools and resources to help other DMs (and players!) spark their creativity and make preparation less stressful. My goal is to give back to the RPG community that’s given me so much.

Here’s what I’ve put together so far:

Random Encounter Generator: Need an encounter idea on the fly? Get one in seconds.

Villain Creator: Quickly generate a compelling Big Bad Evil Guy (or Gal) with motives, quirks, and weaknesses.

Name and Town Generators: For when your players take a left turn and you need a village on the spot.

Customizable Campaign Hooks: Designed to inspire unique adventures.

All the tools are online, easy to use, and completely free. I didn’t want paywalls or signups because, honestly, I just wanted to make life easier for other DMs and help spark creativity in the community.

I’d love for you to check them out and let me know what you think! If there’s a tool or feature you’ve always wanted as a DM or player, I’d love to hear your suggestions. I’m always looking for ways to improve and expand.

You can find everything here: DungeonApe.com

Thanks for taking the time to read this, and happy gaming! Let me know how your campaigns are going—I’m always down to hear cool stories from the table.

Do you know nerdy kids in the Montgomery County Maryland area that need something to do this summer?  Registration for my D&D camp opens today, Jan 22!  Beginner’s Camp teaches the game to new players- no experience necessary.  In Advanced Camp we make a PC and play through an adventure.  All supplies provided!  Please let me know if you have any questions.  

https://www.olgchs.org/camps/offerings/specialty/dungeons

Can be of any alignment depending on what exact god they worshipped, thus it could serve as either a boss battle or a morally permissible undead warlock patron.

I'm thinking it should have three possible spell lists, depending on the morality of their god. the different versions would also have one of three different immunities to radiant, force, or necrotic damage.

anyone have any ideas they'd like to add?

MARCO POLO'S LEGACY - is now available on Kickstarter!

You can find it here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/acherongames/marco-polos-legacy-5e-road-to-the-celestial-empire

I had the pleasure of being the Game Designer for this game, and in addition to 12 archetypes, a new species—the Star-Chosen, new backgrounds, more than 50 monsters, and many magical items, we worked on two major new mechanics:

• Ars Mercatoria, a social challenge mechanic that allows social conflicts to be resolved in a fun, quick, and engaging way
• The Caravan, which each group can customize, building it in different ways, with unique bonuses and mechanics

Basically the title.

If I cast Darkvision on a creature (be it in 2014 or 2024 version), does Dispel Magic simply remove it?

Or is there a differentiation between certain buff spells?

If Darkvision gets dispelled, I'll be a bit sad, not going to lie.

And I succeeded.

TL;DR I soloed an ancient white dragon in effectively one round.

About a year ago our DM asked us to put together level 12 characters for a mid/high level campaign which have since leveled to 16. My goal was to put together a ridiculous gish build whose primary purpose was to dump as many resources in a one-turn nova burst as possible i.e. a boss killer.

We went with standard array and had the option to pick one very rare and one rare magic item of our choice. I went with the Bloodshed Blade (stacks CON to weapon damage plus a once a day ability to burn as many unspent hit dice as you want for additional damage) and an Amulet of Health (for 19 CON).

I began with a half-elf paladin. Here was the stat breakdown from standard array + 2/1/1 racial bonus.

STR 14

DEX 13+1

CON 19 (with amulet of health)

WIS 12+1

INT 8

CHA 15+2

Progressing through the levels to 16, I forewent ASIs in lieu of feats.

Vengeance Paladin 4 (for smites and channel divinity bonus action giving advantage against one target for a minute, Great Weapon Master at 4)

Hexblade Warlock 5 (for CHA based attacks, path of the blade to allow magic weapon to become pact weapon, thirsting blade for two attacks, eldritch smite once per turn for smite stacking, eldritch mind for concentration CON save advantage, Elven Accuracy at 4 for “super advantage”)

Gloomstalker Ranger 4 (Extra attack with +1d8 damage and 10 ft of movement first round of combat, Tasha’s favored foe variant for 1d4 first hit per turn, Resilient CON at 4 for con proficiency)

Echo knight 3 (action surge and unleash incarnation for extra attacks, extra “reach” thanks to moving echo)

Elven accuracy raised CHA to 18. I had also taken Fly as a warlock spell to help ensure I could get close to my target and is why I took Eldritch Mind and Resilient CON and which I would cast shortly before combat if we could tell we were getting close to a boss.

Idea was to get myself and my echo close to the boss immediately. Bonus action channel divinity to grant advantage on all attacks and let Elven Accuracy proc consistently. My action would then let me have three attacks (thirsting blade and gloomstalker), plus a fourth attack with unleash incarnation. I could then action surge for three more attacks and could unleash incarnation again. Base attack damage with the bloodshed greatsword was 2d6+4(CHA)+4(CON). Great weapon fighting style upped average damage each hit slightly to 16.3, 26.3 if I chose to activate GWM. With 4 level 1 and 3 level 2 spell slots I could theoretically smite on all but one attack, if all hit.

With elven accuracy, an individual attacks odds of not critting is 0.95^3 or 0.86. However, with 8 attacks the odds that none of those attacks would crit is 0.86^8 or roughly only 30% I.e. a 70% chance of a crit.

Assuming only one of those attacks did crit I would stack eldritch smite, activate the bloodshed blade, and activate favored foe.

This meant with all 8 hitting and one crit I had approximate expected average damage the first turn of combat as

8x26.3 (base attacks) = 210.4

4x2d8 (level 1 divine smites) = 36

2x3d8 (level 2 non crit divine smites) = 27

1x6d8 (level 2 crit divine smite) = 27

1x8d8 (level 3 crit eldritch smite) = 36

2xd8 (both gloomstalker extra attacks) = 9

2d4 (favored foe crit) = 5

22d10+8d8 (bloodshed blade crit, takes one warlock hit die to activate rune spend all others) = 157

Total: 507.4 damage

Last night I finally got to try it out, though things didn’t go completely to plan. Our party went to fight an ancient white dragon in its lair. I cast fly as soon as we entered the boss arena as planned. However, the creature was hanging from the ceiling 55 feet above us and our DM ruled the party was “surprised”. Taking the first round to become unsurprised meant I lost my two gloomstalker attacks (one from action surge).

The dragon hit us with its cold breath and though I failed the save, was able to maintain concentration on Fly due to the CON advantage/proficiency combo thanks to Eldritch Mind and Resilient.

The second round I flew up to the dragon and used my channel divinity to get advantage. However, since that took my bonus action I couldn’t make a new echo, and my current echo only had 30 feet of movement meaning I would be without my unleash incarnation attacks. Regardless we pressed on.

I wussed out and forewent using GWM: some of the party was ground bound without high damage producing ranged weapons and with only four attacks (including action surge) available I wanted to make sure I hit as many times as I could.

Wonder of wonders, the first roll was a crit. I burned a level 3 warlock spell for eldritch smite and a level 2 for divine smite, activated the bloodshed blade and dumped all my hit dice, but didn’t use favored foe since it takes concentration and I didn’t want to fall. Second attack hit and I level 2 divine smote again, then action surged. Third attack hit but I stuck to a level 1 smite. Fourth attack critted again and my last level 2 smite was enough to kill the enemy. Total damage dealt: 356.

I’ve decided to retire the character as it did what it intended and I can’t really imagine a more fitting end than soloing an ancient dragon in (effectively) one round.

For those of you who stuck around this long, thanks for reading. I thought it was cool and wanted to share.

I run a game for a group of 10 year olds.

This year, the player playing the fighter decided his goal was to prove he was the best swordsman in the land, and he'd do that by participating in (and trying to win) every fencing tournament he could.

This is GREAT player driven story opportunity, so I'm accommodating him.

The wealthy family in the city they just arrived in is hosting the "Tournament of the Waning Sun" and is handing out some nice prizes. I decided the tournament also involves knife throwing and archery competitions in addition to fencing, to appeal to other non-casters in the party (the ranger and rogue). The players are now really excited and are signing up for multiple events.

I am personally not familiar with how any competitions like this are won/scored in real life. Do you have thoughts for how these three events could be narrated at the table? (I assume archery is about accurately hitting targets further and further away, like Robin Hood scenes; and I thought I'd look into darts as an analog for knife throwing?)

I'm also not sure how to "gamify" these competitions so they all feel a little different for the participating players, and also so they don't last too long at the game. (e.g. solving them all with a single skill check doesn't seem like fun.) Anyone have thoughts or experience worth sharing on that front?

Thanks,

Hey everyone, I made a game heavily inspired by D&D 3.5 - 5e (all of the classes, monsters, tropes), while being more based on narrative mechanics like Blades in the Dark, Dungeon World, and Fate. It's a bit crunchier than that and I honestly think most would find the classes very interesting, so please take a look!

Grimwild: Free Edition - The full game, with everything you need to play.
Grimwild: Paid - It has 1 extra chapter with a bit more content and the Artificer and Psion classes.

But more to the point, there's an entire chapter full of 100 monsters that expand on each of them with plot hooks and bits of fiction (like associated sights, smells, sounds), as well as 15 Story Kits, emergent gameplay scenarios and a way for building those that encourages light prep. Beyond that, there's an entire on-the-fly exploration system you can just bolt right on to whatever game you'd like.

Honestly, if you like the tropes of D&D, I think you'd at the very least enjoy reading through, checking out the classes, and the monsters. And maybe it can serve as a gateway into narrative gaming a bit for those that haven't explored that part of the hobby.

If you want a print version, you can sign up for the waiting list here! https://www.backerkit.com/call_to_action/4b944ec4-0d2c-4022-a73c-06922e70f12d/landing

Hi, I'm in the process of deciding whether to do Battlesmith 2024 vs OG Battlesmith. Campaign will probably go to lvl 12. I'm just gonna list the nerfs the BS has gotten, and a lot of them really hurt.

• Mending does not cure the steel defender anymore - kind of eliminates the possibility to use the SD as a tank.
• can't use infused weapons as a spell focus anymore. - no more sword and shield Battlesmith, no more two handed Battlesmith.
• thrown weapon Infusion pushed back to level 6

Do you guys think the buffs to the SD (bit more dmg, bit more health) abd the abiltity to craft weapons faster make up for these? I think the overall changes to the Artificer are good, but BS seems to have been kind of made less fun to play by the changes.

So I just got the 2024 rules 2 days ago and did some reading. In general I like the idea of light property, but it seems to allow a lot of combinations and interpretations that results in a lot of meta gaming talks.

For example, it seems that you can combine Dueling with Light property and Dual wielder:

1. Call an attack action with scimitar1 and shield
2. Do attack with scimitar using dueling fighting style
3. Drop the scimitar1 and draw a new one
4. Since you hold different weapon now, attack for the nick, yet use dueling again
5. Drop the scimitar2, draw a scimitar3 for Dual wielder
6. Attack for bonus action for Dual wielder, yet use dueling again
7. Do the rest of your attacks for Attack action

Another example with Versatile weapon, Dual wielder and Two weapon fighting

1. Call an attack action with longsword
2. Do attack with longsword for 1d10+stat
3. Draw scimitar1 and do second attack for attack action
4. Drop the scimitar1 and draw a new one for dual wielder
5. Do the nick attack with scimitar2
6. Drop the scimitar2
7. Do bonus attack for dual wielder with longsword for 1d10+stat

Why they didn't write just:

Light property - Once per turn when you attack with light weapon as part of your attack action, you can attack with different light weapon as a bonus action

Nick - once per turn, if you attack with nick weapon as a bonus action, it doesn't cost you that bonus action

Dual wielder - when you attack with weapon that is not two handed as part of your attack action, you can attack with different light weapon as a bonus action. You can't have shield when you use this feature.

As far as Dueling goes, IDK what is intended so I can't fix the wording if fixing is needed

This is something I put together in 5 minutes, but it seems much more clear to me with same impact and doesn't force you to drop weapons like an idiot and have meta rules discussions with your DM.

Was D&D 4th Edition ahead of its time or a misstep in gaming history? Dive into our latest article exploring the controversial rise, fall, and surprising resurgence of 4e. From the bold mechanics to the infamous Edition Wars, we’re unpacking it all. Whether you loved it, hated it, or never tried it, this edition left its mark on the RPG world forever. Discover its triumphs, flaws, and enduring legacy now on RPG Gazette

https://therpggazette.wordpress.com/2025/01/22/the-dd-4th-edition-rennaissaince-a-look-into-the-history-of-the-edition-its-flaws-and-its-merits/

When an NPC exists specifically just so they can guaranteed die.

This is different from more general NPC death, because those are chance-based, and could happen or not. These NPC's were made so they can be shown dying, usually to demo how scary or strong a bad guy is, or how bad a situation's got.

Worst case scenario, the party wastes resources on them to try to save them, when those resources spent don't even really matter. From what I've noticed it could even get pretty predictable with time, oh yeah, the DM that never has a DMPC suddenly has a seemingly combat-capable NPC journeying with us? Yeah that person's dead. Oh yeah they're sending a backup party of seemingly likable but un-leveled, un-classed, no statline NPCs? Yeah good luck lmao

I personally find it better if the NPC is just shown already dead, that saves time and makes sure the party doesn't waste resources trying to save them

For discussion though, what's your disliked or pet peeved campaign trope? Can also be general storytelling tropes, but there are some that are more used in dnd than non-TTRPG stories.

Due to recent events over on X/Twitter, the moderation team of r/dndnext and r/onednd has decided to ban links to that site. From now on, the Automoderator will remove such links.

However, since WoTC uses X/Twitter for official announcements, there's an exception to this new rule: You can still share screenshots of their tweets. Since our subreddits don't have image posts activated, please upload such screenshots to an image hosting site like imgur.com and link them in your post.
Alternatively, you can link to WOTC's official Bluesky.

So I'm in a game and one of the other PCs has +7 in 2 intelligence based skills at level 3. Their main stat is wisdom at +3, their intelligence is +2. They're proficient in those 2 skills, but as far as I can tell, do not have expertise.

Our sheets are on d&d beyond and we do all our rolling openly with a virtual roller, so I don't think there's any cheating, but I cannot for the life of me figure out how they got those modifiers. There are no items or feats that would seem to apply. The only thing I can think of is, the rest of the party's characters were made with 2014 rules and this character was created with 2024 rules, but I don't know enough about 2024 rules to be able to figure it out. So I'm hoping y'all can figure it out because it's bugging me (even though it probably shouldn't). If it comes to it, I will ask the player, but I'm hoping I can figure it out without having to do that so I don't come across as accusing them (even though I'm just genuinely puzzled and can't stand a mystery) or being overly focused on minutiae (even though I obviously am...)

Character is a level 3 circle of the shepherd druid. Skills in question are arcana and nature. Any insight is appreciated!

Kinda stuck on my second infusion for my battlesmith artificer at level 10. Winged boots is my first choice, but I am unsure about the second. For notes, my artificer is a ranged fighter (repeating shot heavy crossbow) and only has 19 AC, however, I also only have one attunement slot left. My party consists of a twilight cleric, a warlock, a druid (with impressive perception), a barbarian, and a ranger. I was looking at helmet of awareness or mind sharpener or eyes of the eagle. I kinda wanted something that would be helpful in situations where I wouldn't want or need my boots so I could switch out. But there are downsides to all of those. Any ideas or suggestions?

How do you all feel like the title says of spells/items that replicate class abilities? Several Spells do this anyways and many class abilities are directly simulating a spell, but what of the more esoteric powers. And I do realize there is also a lot of crossover with several feats that do the same. The best example I can think of right now in a game I am involved in is a character that has one of the temporary flight for one round then fall powers, and he was wondering if our artificer could create something cape-like that mimics the Hadozee or Simic Hybrid "Glide" ability to travel down from great heights and move forward on a 2 to 1 falling feet basis.

I myself am playing a artificier alchemist and I would really like to sample some of the alchemically Bloodhunter mutant formulas, even if i needed to use spell slots to do so. In a game where haste gives some fighter light powers and rage is a spell, but do you think that sneak attack is thematically linked to say the "hex" or "hunters mark".

Should barbarians try to ask for weapon that autohex's or a vest of false life for temp hp to stretch when raging. A cleric gaining a high level mantle that replicates the divine charges of other subclasses or paladin oaths? Just wanting to pick your hive mind and see if you had any personal examples pro/con.

I keep reading people state that the adventuring day and its role in resource attrition is absolutely critical to 5e. That this underpins the entire system.

However I went to the books and I have found precious little that they say on the subject.

Assuming typical adventuring conditions and average luck, most adventuring parties can handle about six to eight medium or hard encounters in a day. If the adventure has more easy encounters, the adventurers can get through more. If it has more deadly encounters, they can handle fewer.

In the same way you figure out the difficulty of an encounter, you can use the XP values of monsters and other opponents in an adventure as a guideline for how far the party is likely to progress.

For each character in the party, use the Adventuring Day XP table to estimate how much XP that character is expected to earn in a day. Add together the values of all party members to get a total for the party’s adventuring day. This provides a rough estimate of the adjusted XP value for encounters the party can handle before the characters will need to take a long rest.

There is a chart here, before the last paragraph.

Short Rests

In general, over the course of a full adventuring day, the party will likely need to take two short rests, about one-third and two-thirds of the way through the day.

And that's all it has to say. I have bolded the sections that are not describing how to use the chart but included them so that you all can see every place the phrase "adventuring day" was printed in every book.

These passages are open to a little interpretation. My reading of these passages is "we are expect all PCs to take an average amount of damage in medium and hard fights. Given that average damage received, you shouldn't throw X amount of Xp per player before a long rest is taken due to loss of life." What this doesn't say, is that the adventuring day is concerned with using up spellslots and other resources.

So I'm asking you all: where did that idea come from?

I wanted to give players the option to apply a smaller version of the Tadpole from BG3 since it is a more biopunk campaign and there have already been several modifications to creatures that have acquired Illithid powers. This version cannot transform into an Illithid and cannot be controlled by an Elder Brain since it is a 100% artificial being, but it can acquire the chosen powers. What would be the rarity level since it does not count towards the magic item limit? In addition to any ideas of limitations for the Tadpole.

I already know of KibblesTasty and laserllama - I'm just looking for more variety. My GM is open to homebrew, but they'd rather have balanced content than not.

Hey, my players are currently navigating an underwater temple, and I’m looking for a ‘scourge’ of sorts to be infecting the sunken temple; something that would most likely be avoiding the areas that are filled with water to protect itself.

Any creature that has a normal or conditional weakness to water or cold damage would suffice, thank you!

I'm looking for some really horrific - and preferably lesser known - creatures. Anything come to mind?