#eyeballs of most DND races

[scribblewise]

Do your own reseaarch

[possibly-in-wonderland]

some modern girl falls into middle earth concepts (the hobbit & lotr)

reader has a gold tooth or two, obvs the company is interested but what happens when thorin gets that gold sickness lmfao

reader has hella tattoos/piercings/body mods (tatted eyeballs, pointed ears, split tongue, fangs, etc) and explains the process to the company (maybe dwalin gets the hots). this is, of course, after the company finds out reader is in fact human and not some odd race they've never heard of

black or native american reader (bc u know how dwarves & elves are with hair)

reader who speaks norwegian and has studied norwegian history (bc why not) and likes to draw comparisons between scandinavian culture and dwarven culture (idk why lmao)

italian reader (bc food)

reader with dai yueqin-length hair (aka if its not up its a tripping hazard to everyone)

reader who's a part of the sca

deaf!reader (maybe bifur's sign language is similar to asl and they end up becoming friends)

blind!reader (reader likes touching faces, im just imagining reader touching one of the dwarves' faces and being like "oh wow ur very handsome", maybe reader likes bigger noses, bigger ears, longer hair, and beards bc they feel interesting as opposed to a clean-shaven face and smaller features)

reader with a beard fetish (*everyone looks at nori and his glorious beard*)

stoner reader who, after falling into middle earth, found themselves constantly stoned stupid due to eating a brownie before the fall (and by some weird magical thing, their body is now "glitched").

alternatively, stoner reader who had seeds on them before they fell.

metalhead reader (specifically eddie munson-style...so thrasher obsessed with dnd).

crackfic idea: introducing the dwarves to diggy hole (lmao)

reader, who's obsessed with stories, tells the company a different story from their home world each night (like a story about a young viking managing to train the most ferocious dragon (how to train your dragon)). later, reader ends up retelling snow white and the seven dwarves.

some sort of bl2 x hobbit crossover (reader's a siren but not from the borderlands universe, and in this case their magic is more like pony magic from mlp friendship is magic or bonnies magic from vampire diaries). they dont get any markings or anything until they "leech" the gold sickness from thorin (which, in turn, affects the reader by making their powers more awesome). obvs there's some limitations (they lose the ability to fully control their limbs and are pretty much wheelchair-bound for a few months). reader is pretty much a demigod (probably just as powerful if not maybe a little less powerful than gandalf).

reader fell into middle earth a couple thousand years ago but due to some weird aging thing and middle earth time working differently than modern earth time they age differently. they've become some minor witch or wizard.

reader "scent marks/chins" to show love (like a rabbit)

reader whos part of modern royalty from our world (and enjoys middle earth more than anything bc they don't have to be "propper" all the time, maybe their more of a princess diana royal)

speaking of princess diana: reader gushes over princess diana

post botfa: fem!reader flirts with dis (lol)

reader pretends to by psychic (like in psych) but in reality they've read every book part of the lotr/hobbit universe and know everything (maybe they understand some of their languages as well, not enough to be fluent but enough to pick out certain words)

reader grew up DEEP in the mountains of west virginia (and likes to sing country roads at random points, though they change some of the lyrics bc they don't have the crayons nor willpower to explain a radio)

reader knows "big bad john" and "the cajun queen" by jimmy dean by heart

reader quietly singing jolene after the events of mirkwood

reader lives life by the kenny rogers song "the gambler"

most of the songs the reader knows are either by dolly parton or kenny rogers (or any other artist similar like reba)

reader casually talks about the horrors of our world like its the most normal thing (ww2, systematic racism, the truth of thanksgiving, climate change, 2020, the patriarchy and how they treat women, etc)...everyone looks horrified

reader writes hozier-style songs

reader is the biggest fucking flirt (but by that, i mean they'll flirt with trees...not just ents, no, trees...and rocks)

reader, a seemingly innocent-looking woman, was a deathmetal vocalist in our world

reader has a thing for watching blacksmiths and metalsmiths (i used to like watching forged in fire until i realized they were a bunch of sexists)

reader has the deepest southern accent-

reader is a little insecure only to find out that everything society deems gross and unsightly in our world is hella attractive to dwarves (body hair, extra weight, etc)

reader has abandonment issues and is terrified the company or fellowship are gonna abandon them at any point

reader introduces the company/fellowship to truth or dare, reader get's dared to tell the group their biggest secret, they pull out their childhood stuffed animal from their bag and introduce the group to said stuffed animal. reader thinks the group will laugh at them. the fellowship finds it endearing. the company also finds it endearing (esp dori, bifur, and bofur).

reader goes on a tangent about frontal lobes for a solid 15 minutes straight with no stopping bc of that one hyperfixation they had a few years back.

reader with chronic pain. they never talk about it but something goes wrong, reader and (we'll say dwalin) switch bodies. the pain is so bad dwalin is keeling over and after they get switched back everyone has a little more respect for reader than before. ("what do you mean tHIS IS NORMAL EVERYDAY PAIN? YOU MEAN TO TELL ME THIS FLARES UP AND GETS WORSE??? THIS ISNT EVEN THE WORST OF IT???" reader shrugs "eh u get used to it after living with it for ur entire life")

reader doesn't like wearing shoes, but has feet as strong as a hobbits so its fine

everyone's explaining what folktale they tell children in different cultures when asked where babies come from. the dwarves talk about being born of rocks, hobbits talk about being born in gardens, the human reader tells the story of the stork

idk i kinda wanna mix some of these together

[cappurrccino]

race & class for the player asks and then heart for nyalori

Race: What's your favorite race to play? Is there a race you default to or play more often?

Ooo, y'know I actually don't think I have a favorite necessarily? I really enjoy playing the "weirder" races, bc things like a centaur or a fire elemental or a warforged or a real weird sea elf feel like they innately have a lot more flexibility for playing around with motivations or backstories, BUT you can also do that with every race, so usually my choice comes down to what feels best for the character I'm trying to build As for a most played, I think (at least in terms of 5e) it's tiefling? And only because I've played two of them

Class: What's your favorite class to play? What's your favorite character build you've ever played?

Favorite in terms of just going wild is probably fighter (tho barbarian is also extremely good). Just being able to "no thoughts, head empty, 5 attacks" is really a delight Favorite in terms of gettin' REAL silly with it is probably bard, and specifically Alexa. I love the spells and subclasses bards get and I really loved playing Alexa and getting clever with her spells and attacks and that one bard feature that let me be really annoying and cast command every round for free.

Heart: What drives your character? Do they have a theme, question, mission, etc. that they're holding onto? How did you pick it for them?

Nyalori's primary driver is curiosity of a very... disney princess variety, which wasn't necessarily my intention when I thought her up, but is really fitting for who she ended up being. She just wants to know what else is out there in the world, especially now that she's got encouragement and spells from deep sashelas! Plus, it brings a fun sort of discordant vibe clash when compared to the vibes of her home, bc it is so NOT a disney princess setting and was thought up when I was eyeballs deep into cthulhu mythos lore because I had recently finished Shadow Over Innsmouth and my two main thoughts were "sea elf tempest cleric could be a fun thematic combo" and "heehoo hostile fishfolk" She does now have a secondary question of "why the fuck does no one know my home exists" which I'm sure will be fun for her to discover answers about :)

[ send me a DND ask! ]

[papermonkeyism]

Alright, I have now officially seen Critical Role campaign 2, had some time to watch the campaign wrap up and just generally put thoughts in a row.

Some of said thoughts, in no particular order:

I appreciate how, like, 90% of the muscle mass of the group is firmly on the lady-side of the party. Personally quite happy about that.

I don't think I ever really got over the character death, but I do appreciate the narrative weight of it and I have a huge soft spot for the character we got out of it so. Man, the story would have been so different, huh?

I hadn't thought one could steal a ship by accident but

Lots of eyeballs in this campaign.

The entire Happy Fun Ball thing.

Jester having the Sending spell was amazing.

Speaking of Jester, I lost my shit with the blueberry cupcake. You know the one.

Personally very pleased by getting to know characters of races that usually get portrayed as evil by default as people, as this has been one of my pet peeves in fantasy genre for decades.

Love the character designs of some of the NPCs. Special shoutout to Orly and the moorbounder salesman.

I really, really enjoyed watching Caduceus interact with his family. That was all very authentic sibling relationship shenanigans, and I love it so much.

Also the dinner scene.

Really, I have only experienced three of Taliesin's characters so far (Mollymauk, Caduceus and Ashton), but I got to say I really appreciate how he does characters. Very aesthetic.

(the reunion two parter is going to be interesting)

The Travelercon. Just... the Travelercon

I still think Yasha "negative 2 charisma modifier" Nydoorin attempting to flirt was the funniest thing ever, in a sweet way.

This was overall gayer than I expected. I'm used to keeping my expectations low to non existent, so I was quite happy to be surprised. Cozy.

Speaking of, I now understand why I keep seeing so much fan art of the sad trash wizard with a drow.

The M9 took one look at Essek and decided to adopt him

I think Caleb's character arc is the one that left me the most impressed, but they all got their chances to shine. I am weirdly proud of all of these make believe people.

Honestly, looking back, they really did get far during the course of the game. What started as a mistrusting bunch of colourful assholes grew into a tight knit and surprisingly functional found family. Specially that last battle of the series, it was efficient and had so many character points in it.

I think my favourite parts were all the heart to heart conversations between the characters sprinkled throughout the series.

Fun little extra, my local library has a copy of the Explorer's Guide to Wildemount, the DnD sourcebook for the setting/continent this campaign takes place in, and I've borrowed it couple times during my watch through. It's been special bit of extra fun to whip out the giant map that comes with the book and follow the party's travels on it while watching the game sessions.

(I may or may not have bought myself the Beauregard sleeveless hoodie thing with my last month's fun money. It is soft and comfy and it has pockets.)

And so many other thoughts, but that was literally 141 episodes with the combined runtime of over five and half hundred hours. Took me about a year or so, though 3/4 of the campaign was marathoned within the last three-ish months because of not having social life.

I think I want to give a bit of a rewatch to the first episode or few, now that I've seen the whole story. Refresh how it all started.

[mypunkpansexualtwin]

💪 thaavia?

Ooh, excellent choice, prince.

💪 : What is your OC’s most physically attractive attribute?

That's a tough one, because while Woman Built Like A Bear Both In The Gay Way And In The Animal Way is not everyone's thing, for those who do like it, she's not a snack, she's a buffet.

But if I had to pick just one, it's probably a tie between her hair, hip-length salt and pepper with a meticulous care routine to keep it soft and pretty, naturally loose curls and waves even when she hasn't kept it braided all day.

OR her eyes. I've got a personal headcanon for dnd about Goliath physiology that as part of the adaptation to mountain tundra conditions, there's a natural lens over the eye that protects against snowblindness, and it comes in different colors like other races irises but obscures most of the eyeball, making it look like they have solid-colored, pupil-less eyes. But up close you can see it's structured just like anyone else's.

Anyways, yeah, between that sunlight-gold color, the absurdly long lashes, and her natural intensity not to mention the crow's feet that I can't capture in heroforge, her eyes are striking as hell and probably the prettiest thing about her.

Anyone else who feels like asking about my nerds, feel free to ask!

[dm-clockwork-dragon]

Space! Aliens! Living Gas! I’m too sick to be Clever!

Say Hello to the Auroros!

So I was all set to write up a whole thing about the distinction between fantasy and Sci-fi, and why, even in DND, I consider myself a Science-fiction author. But it’s been two weeks, and I’m still sick, so lets save that for another time.

I’m always on the lookout for interesting ideas, and with my campaign setting slowly expanding beyond the prime world of the material plane (Terra), I’ve started trying to imagine what sortof life might exist beyond the stars. I’m not sure how many people understand how hard it is to imagine aliens in a fantasy setting where players routinely battle sentient eyeball monsters and giant fire-breathing lizards with wings, but let me tell you: it isn’t easy. Pretty much any strange alien creature you might expect to find in a sci-fi show has a similar equivalent that already exists in dnd - even if it hasn’t been ported to 5e yet.

But the thing that has always struck me about alien life is that if it exists (and by shear probability alone, it must), it is bound to be so different from what we find on our own planet that we may not even recognize it as life at all. I wanted to try and exemplify that as my campaign setting expanded into space, by making alien life as exotic as possible. But this creates it’s own problems. When a race become so strange and inhuman, it becomes difficult to model it in 5e without breaking the game. Extra limbs, the ability to move through solid objects, unique senses that are not found in other more Terrestial races - All of these things have the potential to greatly imbalance an alien race, which makes building a playable character a true balancing act of imagining not just what special powers these aliens might have, but also what abilities they might not.

One way I have opted to do this is to imagine that in my Campaign setting, magic is a force mostly unique to Terrestrial life. While aline races may have the ability to change their shape, fly amongst the clouds, or manifest powerful psionic forces, they are at a complete loss when encountering magic. To most of these races, magic is a completely alien technology - something they have difficulty even beginning to understand, and by extension, something they often fear.

But enough of my rambling. It’s late, I’m sick, and I really need to sleep. I’ll See you all in the stars. Or something. I’m too sick to be clever right now. As usual, the preview here is low resolution, and probably out of date. For the latest high-resolution PDF, as well as a whole host of other work I have done, check out this handy dropbox link. And be sure to tell me what you think! If you like what I do and want to support me or just generally help out, Check out my Patreon, or throw some coin at me through Paypal.me. If you wanna just come say hi on my Discord, that’s great too!  

[brightload6]

Dmg Pdf Dnd 5e Map

Dnd 5e Monster Manual Pdf

Dnd 5e Players Handbook Pdf

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Resources & Links Page. The 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Master's Guide was released in 2014 as the last of three core rulebooks for the new edition. On the staggered release schedule, Jeremy Crawford wrote 'our small team couldn’t finish the books at the same time and also ensure their high quality. We could either stagger their releases, or we could sit on the books until all three were finished'. The D&D Fifth Edition Dungeon Master's Guide on p14 suggests using three map scales: Province - 1 mile per hex, 5 miles per inch; Kingdom - 6 miles per hex, 30 miles per inch; Continent - 60 miles per hex, 600 miles per inch; The DMG suggests that these scales are useful in that a full page map.

Once download this dungeons and dragons character sheet 3.5 pdf. You can also print this sheet. D&D 5e(5th Edition) Character sheet Fillable Form PDF. This sheet can be used for filling your 5th edition character sheet. In this, you can able to fill the character name, strength, and other options.

A cone in 5e is defined such that. A cone's width at a given point along its length is equal to that point's distance from the point of origin. That is a 53-degree cone, not a 90-degree cone as 3.5e used. Thus the diagrams given from the Pathfinder SRD are not applicable. If you don't want to just eyeball it you have 2 choices.

I'm looking for printable maps of dungeons and combat locations for published D&D adventures that are sized for minis. More specifically I'm looking for the Lost Mine of Phandelver, and Princes of the Apocalypse. I find that pausing a game to draw out an area is both time consuming, and creates an awkward pause in the game flow. Being able to bust out some printed maps would really help. I don't mind paying a few bucks for good maps. Does anyone out there know of a website that might offer a product like that? Any personal experiences out there? Thanks!

With a little elbow grease, a pen, and some white sticker paper I doctored up a D&D character sheet that incorporated my house rules as well as some of the optional rules from the DMG. You can download a PDF of this here (if you would care to). https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5q-SrbFhJetT1l6QmZPT29NSWc/view?usp=sharing I talked about most of the optional and house rules that I'm going to use here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaFWNggKkVE 'O5R' is a combination of some of the ideas from the old school renaissance (OSR) and 5th Edition D&D. See below for more information and for some links. http://samwise7rpg.blogspot.com/2015/05/o5r-dungeons-dragons-5e-optional-house.html Character Creation: Step 1. Determine Ability Scores via 4D6 drop the lowest straight down the line. Start at the first stat, roll, and then record the total for that stat. Page 13, and 173 in the PHB). Step 2. Choose a Race. Page 11, and 17 in the PHB. Step 3. Describe your character. Choose your character's Background and Personality details. Page 13, and 121 in the PHB. A character's starting equipment will be given out based on the details in their Background and Class. Step 4. Choose a Class. Page 11, and 45 in the PHB. The Classes will be limited to the Cleric, the Fighter, the Ranger, the Rogue, and the Wizard (the 'Big Four' plus the Ranger in other words). The Cleric and Rogue will be modified to show the rules changes found below. Step 5. Come together. Page 15 in the PHB. Optional/House Rules: 1. Remove Charisma and all of the associated skills that go along with it. Players will engage in role-playing without any social mechanics. Those skills that are listed in Classes and Backgrounds will be replaced with other skills. Spell descriptions that call for a Charisma saving throw will instead be a Sanity saving throw (see below). 2. Add a Sanity stat, with one skill under it called Mental Stability. This new skill will be one of the ones that replace some of the social skills that I removed in the class descriptions. Seem DMG page 258 and 264 for details on Sanity and Madness.

3. Instead of a static Proficiency Bonus I am going to use the more random Proficiency Dice optional rule found on page 263 of the DMG. 4. I won't be using any of the feats. 5. Inspiration can also be spent like Plot/Story Points which is an optional rule found in the DMG on page 268. I am going to use Option 1 and Option 2. Option 3 is more for GMless games. 6. The XP character advancement chart will be modified to stretch out levels 1-6 a bit, as those earlier levels are my favorite in D&D games. 1st lvl 0, 2nd lvl 1200, 3rd level 2400, 4th level 4800, 5th level 9600, 6th level 16300, and 7th level and above are the same as those found in the PHB. 7. Success at a Cost, found on page 242 of the DMG. 8. Side Initiative, which is also in earlier versions of D&D. DMG page 270. 9. Slow Natural Healing which is on page 267 of the DMG. 10. Lingering Injuries which is in the DMG on page 272. 11. Massive Damage found on page 273 of the DMG. 12. No Opportunity Attacks. They are listed in the PHB on page 190, and 195. Reactions to spells and class features still happen as normal. 13. Instant Death happens at negative constitution instead of a negative maximum total of hit points. PHB 197. Make one single Death Saving Throw with Con modifier as a bonus. 14. Traps don't always go off, and they will fail a certain percentage of the time. I still need to figure out how often they should fail. 15. Spellcasters will need to announce BEFORE initiative is rolled if they will be casting a spell or not (remember that I will be using Side Initiative). This is to show how obvious it is with they waving their hands all over the place and muttering dark words that a spell is close to being cast so that they can be targeted by the enemy. If a spellcaster takes one hit point of damage before it is cast (before their initiative) the spell fizzles and it will not be cast that turn. They do not lose any spell slots however. 16. Shields can block successful attacks a percentage of the time. This will be a roll of the dice, but I'm not sure which die to use for this yet however. If the roll is successful then the attack is blocked entirely. This makes shields more important and I just like the way it feels in play. This rule is from the game Dragon Warriors.

Dnd 5e Monster Manual Pdf

O5R Google+ Community: https://plus.google.com/communities/109886975214721228437

Dnd 5e Players Handbook Pdf

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

How To Get Into DnD in 10-ish Easy-ish Steps

Cates here. I just wanted to add my thoughts about joining or starting a DnD game for the first time, as someone who’s been there, done that, and still can’t calculate Rogue Sneak Attack damage to save her life. It can definitely be intimidating entering the world of DnD, but for me the best thing about DnD is running around with a group of people who would literally take a sword in the gut for you. Find a supportive and welcoming group (or start one!) and you’ll be fine.

(Note the “easy-ish” modifier in the title. If you’re a hardcore DnDer who thinks that 5e is a travesty and we all should have stuck to 3.5e, or if you’re the kind of person who gets annoyed about DnD suddenly being “mainstream” and “popular”…chances are some of what I’m about to say will make your eyeballs twitch.)

1.       Use other media as a way into understanding DnD. My absolute number one recommendation would be to see or read the play She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen. Not only is it a beautiful send-up to nerd culture in general and DnD in particular but because the main character is playing DnD for the first time, it actually provides a decent overview of the mechanics of the game. Another entry point is, of course, Stranger Things—the first season in particular establishes a pretty solid picture of what playing DnD is like.  

2.       From there, find a podcast, YouTube channel, or similar where a group plays DnD, and watch to get a sense of how things work. Film Reroll is fun but that’s GURPS, a different system than DnD. The Adventure Zone is another good one. By far the most popular is Critical Role. I personally don’t care for Critical Role (put away your torches and stink bombs, please,) but it seems to work for other people.

3.       Purchase (or check out from your local library,) the DnD Player’s Guide, 5th Edition. (The most current edition.)

4.       Now that you have a sense of how DnD works, find a game. Bug mentioned some good avenues, like comments sections on Podcasts. To that I’d add check out Reddit subs, Facebook groups, and your local game store if you’re lucky enough to have one. Most game stores have resources for finding parties or even host games at the stores themselves.

5.       Another option: get together a group of friends, form a party, and stumble your way through one of the early level adventures. If no one wants to DM, do what my second party* does and rotate DMs. We each take turns running an adventure, and while each of us does so our character is off on another quest/on vacation/bringing goblin corpses back to life/etc. Ideally, you’ll have at least one person in the group who has some experience with DnD, but if you don’t…so what? The internet is an endless bounty of information. Some of it is even accurate!

*As opposed to the one I’m in with Bug where I’m the permanent DM. 

6.       Figure out what you want from a game of DnD. Are you there for the complicated character backstories? Does the complex system(s) of magic fascinate you? Do you want to be like Legolas from LotR, or like River from Firefly, or like the Incredible Hulk? This will help you get a sense of the kind of character you’d like to play. Some people will wildly disagree with me, but here’s my rough-and-tumble ten second mini guide to figuring out your class as a first time player.

Want to be the smooth talker, the one who gets info from the local bartender? Be a bard, or a rogue who leans into Charisma instead of Dexterity.

Want to be really useful/involved in combat situations? Be a barbarian.

Want to use magic? Be a cleric. Your team will thank you. If you want a more “hardcore” magic class, go with sorcerer over warlock or wizard.

Want to come up with unusual solutions to specific problems? Be a druid.

Want to be sneaky? Be a rogue or a ranger. 

Want to be some combination of the above/figure it out as you go? Be a fighter. Fighters get overlooked as a class because they seem so generic, but that’s actually the advantage of playing one. It’s so broad you can pretty much do whatever you want with it, taking on just about any of the roles I listed above.

7.      Keep in mind that to set your party up for success you’re going to want at least one of each of the following: a healer, a magic user, a ranged (long-distance) fighter, a tank, and a talker. Now, this doesn’t mean you need a party of five, because one character can take on multiple roles. For instance, in the game where I DM, mine and Bug’s brother plays a character who is the party’s main talker and their main magic user. We also have a healer who can be a tank when needed. Basically I just wouldn’t recommend that you have a party consisting of a wizard, a sorcerer, and a warlock, or a fighter, a barbarian, and a monk. Cover different areas of expertise and you’ll have a happy and harmonious party that actually stands a chance of surviving their first combat.   

8.       Resist the urge to use unusual races or classes for your first game. Trust me when I say that you’ll have so many other things you need to work out, sorting through a class or race that isn’t clearly outlined in 5e is a headache you don’t need. More to the point, it’s a headache that your DM doesn’t need. The amount of work that goes into figuring out how to give an unusual class or race a good combat experience (ie, one that doesn’t kill them and one where they don’t kill all the enemies with a snap of their fingers) is a ton of work…and that’s only one aspect. If you really want to be unique, look at the subclasses and subraces. There are some delightfully strange varieties in there.

9.       Similarly, for the love of the Ellimist make sure everyone is clear on the goal of your standard game of DnD: you are a party of adventurers. For the game to work, you need to, for whatever reason, work together. Keeping a whole bunch of secrets from your party, excessively lying to your party, and going against the party’s goals are all ways to make the game waaaaaaayyyyyy less fun for everyone involved. This doesn’t mean that you have to be an open book, but keep in mind that is a COLLABORATIVE, not COMPETITIVE, game. Save the trickery and theft and all for the monsters your party will fight. For instance, in my first game I played a gnome who was disguising himself as a woman because he was on the run from a sorcerer who’d kept him enslaved. He lied about his gender and his name and was vague about his backstory, but he didn’t tell any lies that were aimed at getting a leg up on his party members. Eventually as they bonded he came to trust them and revealed his past, and the party helped him disguise himself as an elderly dwarf so they could take down the sorcerer (it made sense in context : ). Tl;dr: work with your party, not against them.

a. For all my “well, but in my party…” friends, if your game features a bunch of cutthroats all trying to assassinate each other, or if your character was secretly planning on murdering another player’s character for Reasons, that’s fine. All I’m saying is don’t do it in your first game, or you’ll never get off the ground.

10.       Within reason, ignore the minutiae. Don’t worry too much about money, food, or how much weight you’re carrying. (At this point I’m assuming some of my hardcore DnDers’ eyes are popping out of their heads.) Again, note that I said within reason: this doesn’t mean that you can take whatever kind of weapon or armor that you want, and you shouldn’t have a never-ending supply of arrows, nor should you be able to purchase that super rare artifact. But if you focus too much on this stuff, you’ll have a hard time getting anyone (yourself included) invested in the game. If this sort of hyper realism appeals to you, add it in after a few sessions. But give yourself a break at the start and don’t roleplay every afternoon tea.

Remember, a good DnD game is a game that you enjoy playing. A good DnD party is one in which the characters AND the players respect each other. Don’t metaphorically or literally split the party, and you’ll be fine. 

[iironwreath]

dnd character questions - union

stolen from solfell-dnd, original here!

1) What is their full name, and does it have any special relevance? Alternatively, what nicknames do they have?

Union, though his full name is a secret! Union was originally given to him by his parents and original church when he set out to look for his twin sis, and he considered changing it when he became a cleric of Eladriel but decided that “uniting” those around him was still a virtue he wanted to embody. He decided he still liked it and gave it a meaning of his own instead.

2) What hobby would they like to be good at?

Knitting, lbr. That or candle-making. He wants to keep people warm and he also likes to make light. He’d probably try and make them smell nice, too, and insist that they have healing properties and give them to people in the hopes that they’ll relax.

3) If they played dnd what race and class would they pick?

Probably human?? He’s so fascinated with the idea of looking like the vast majority of people on the continent. He’d also probably play cleric cuz you can’t pry him away from supporting others, he’d just pick a different domain. 

4) If they could go back in time and change one thing, what would they change?

I think he’d go back and make sure he talked to his sister more growing up and made more of a connection with her or part with Rolf on better terms. 

5) What is their favourite weapon to wield?

His holy light. Fire is easy and natural for him to wield, so his more holy magic (see: guiding bolt, radiance of the dawn, etc) makes him feel accomplished and in control and in touch with his goddess. 

6) If you could behove them one magical item, what would you give them?

That book that boosts your WIS by 2 past 20. I’m sure there are cooler items out there for him, but I just want all the wisdom. His shield of the sentinel is pretty cool, aesthetically, given that it has an eyeball on it and he has an eyepatch.

7) If they didn’t have to adventure, would they stop?

Union would probably stop for a bit with the intention of settling down, but then grow restless and start traveling again. He thinks he can do more good by moving around instead of staying in one place. 

8) What do they look for in a platonic or romantic partner?

Honesty, compassion, and ideally someone who’s as open and vulnerable with their emotions as he is, but he understands that that can be difficult for a lot of reasons. One of his ways of showing love is to be very physically affectionate as well and while he’s alright with not touching friends if they don’t like that I think he’d want someone who was comfortable with him expressing his affection in that way. Bonus points if they like to cuddle.

9) Do they trust easily?

Kind of? Union is always trying to get a read on people cuz you never know who’s like what, and if he thinks he has a good read on you and deems you trustworthy, then you’re good. He’s most suspicious of people he can’t get a bead on (aka Cade, but he’s grown a lot on him). But don’t forget that you can LOSE that trust, too.

10) What is their favourite colour?

Yellow!

11) Diplomatic or aggressive?

Diplomatic, but Union can get testy if someone gives him lip or is unnecessarily difficult. 

12) They get arrested, and thrown in jail, how do they escape?

Set the prison on fire If Union is in there for a crime he committed, he’s not gunna try and escape until he does his time or unless his friends need him.

13) Would they leave their party for any reason?

Nothing short of him literally dying or going into a coma, probably. I can potentially see a serious issue with his sister pulling him away too, but he’d still make sure everything with his party and what they were doing was resolved before departing.

14) If they could own any creature as a pet, what would they have?

I bet he’d pair well with cold-blooded creatures like a gecko, they could just sit on his skin all day and they’d never be cold or move to his armour if they’re too warm. He himself would probably like a sphynx cat though.

15) How have you influenced your characters personality?

A lot of Union’s affection is me but with the dial turned up. His desire to be a helpful and productive member of his team and nurture growth is also something I feel strongly. 

16) Do they have any tattoos? If so what? If not, do you think they would get one in the future?

I think he might have a small tattoo on his ankle that he occasionally forgets about, but I’m not sure what of. A sunflower, maybe.

17) Where would they like to be in ten years time?

Alive.

18) What do they look like? Either description or picture.

Union is a 5′10″ red-skinned tiefling with horns that kind of swoop up and backwards a little bit. All of his limbs and features are long, sharp, and a little gangly. He’s a beanpole with armour, basically. He has black schlera and violet irises with slit pupils, though one side of his face is mostly taken up by a large eye patch to cover up some nasty scarring. 

He tends to wear mostly robes or nice dress shirts with pants. His hair, chalk white, is usually kept in a high ponytail but he’ll also wear it in a loose bun, low ponytail, or half-ponytail. He knows how to braid it but doesn’t usually take the time.

19) What genre of music would they be into?

Aside from the obvious affinity for choirs and holy music he’d also be into like..Enya..and jazz music. I’m not very good with genres, so answering this question is hard

20) What would be the worst thing someone could say to them?

Your interference does more damage than good. No matter how hard you try, you’ll always hurt those around you instead of help. You being in someone’s life makes it harder, more complicated, more miserable, and you always leave people worse off than you found them.

[youhadmeathewwo]

Dani ‘n’ Dungeons ‘n’ Dragons

My first fic in a long time! It’s good to be back. Made for @moreroads​ for the Secret Slackta 2017.

Dani - Dani Phantom to her friends - looked nervously around as she climbed down the wide, dimly-lit stairs to Sam Manson’s basement. At the bottom lay a hallway bigger than some apartments; through a doorway was her goal. ​ Clutching her filled-out character sheet, Dani stepped into the room. The others were already there; Sam, sitting at the head of a long mahogany table, rulebooks by her side. Valerie, at the other end of the table, talking across it to Sam. Danny Fenton, chatting to Tucker Foley. Tucker had a big grin on his face, while Danny sipped his soda. ​ “...anyway,” Val said to Sam, “I can’t make it next week, so Leo’ll be subbing for me.” Sam nodded. “Got it.” She made a note on a pad and turned to look at Tucker, who was still talking loudly with Danny. ​ “...all I’m saying is,” Tucker said, “the bag can hold all of this stuff, right? So what you do is, you put the stuff in the bag, you build a room, stock it with really nice furniture and rugs and soda and stuff—“ Jazz Fenton, who had her nose in a sourcebook a few seats downstream from Danny, spoke up. “This isn’t DnD Modern, so soda hasn’t been invented yet.” ​ “Whatever they drink in medieval times, then,” Tucker countered. “Anyway. So you do all that, and then you have...” He spread his arms wide for emphasis. “...the perfect bachelor pad.” Valerie Gray, at the end of the table, looked across it at Sam. Their eyes met. Both girls did their best to keep a straight face. A quiet snort echoed through the room. ​ Dani chose this moment to make her entrance. “Hi Danny!” she said, waving with her free hand. “Ready for some dungeoning and dragoning?” Danny rose from his chair with the speed of a dozen hornets and beelined over to Dani, whispering to her while she was still by the door. ​ “Are you nuts?” Danny hissed, eyeballing the rest of the table to check no one was suspicious of them. “Sam said I could come. It’ll be fun!” Dani whispered back. “What about Val? She doesn’t know about the ghost thing, but she’s already suspicious of me! And she hunts ghosts! What if she—“ “So then if you’re so worried, why are we all playing DnD with her?” Dani interrupted. “Well, uh...” Danny trailed off, flushing a little, and sighed. Turning back to the group, he announced, “Everyone, I’d like you to meet Danielle: my third cousin once removed.”

​There was a chorus of “Hey”s. Sam, in her role as DM, cleared her throat. “Dani’ll be joining us today, so... how about, we all tell her about our characters? So she can get up to speed.” ​ Tucker cleared his throat. “I’m... Shades Eddie, the patron of disco music, spreading a beat around the world, even as...” He grinned. “I’m on a quest to seek out the most beautiful lady in the world.” Valerie sighed. “He’s a bard,” Jazz added helpfully. ​ When no one said anything else, Jazz spoke. “I’ll go next,” she said, picking up her character sheet. “My character is named Florina Lightseeker; she...” Jazz turned the sheet over, looking closely at it. “She’s... here we go. From a holy order of clerics, sent to travel the world and recover the Lightwell Staff, a stolen holy artifact.” ​ Jazz Fenton put the sheet down— and then she began speaking faster. “I was able to give Florina an amulet which gives her a bonus to her attack when she’s using her mace against Evil characters or the undead, or when she’s channeled divine energy at least once in the scene— and she gets an extra channel opportunity after each long rest where...” ​ Sam cleared her throat, sharply. “Sooo, Danny! What’s your character?” ​ Danny set his soda down, and grinned. “My character’s Danny Ph...” Dani’s eyes widened. ​ “...izzle, the Wizard,” Danny finished. Dani blinked. Wait, what? She shot a look at Danny’s character sheet— “DANNY FIZZLE” was written there at the top. Danny looked innocently at Dani. “What?” he said. “He’s pretty neat, for a Wizard! There’s some more backstory, but we can bring that up later.” ​ Dani tried, and failed, to not shoot a glance over at Valerie, sitting at the end of the table with a bowl of nacho chips nearby. When she noticed Dani looking at her, Val realized she was next. As she shuffled her character sheet, getting ready, Dani looked at Danny and blatantly rolled her eyes. ​ “Okay,” said Valerie, as Danny picked his soda back up and leaned in his chair. “My character’s Gh’anne, last of the Empyrean Monks. See, originally, the Empyrean Monks lived in their element-rich homeland, coexisting with their nearby orders, the Pelagic Monks, the Loaman Monks, and the Igneon Monks.” Val wasn’t looking at her character sheet, Dani noticed. “But one day,” Valerie continued, “the Igneon Monks became crazed with fiery power, invading the ancestral lands of the other Monks. Gh’anne escaped— she wanders the world in search of power and allies, as she knows one day she must defeat the leader of the Igneon Monks, Pyroz!” ​ Dani shot a look at Sam. Sam shrugged. Seeing that everyone had finished, she turned to Dani. “And you?” she asked. “Who’s your character?” ​ Dani looked around at the group. Her gaze stopped on Danny, with “DANNY FIZZLE” just below him. After a moment, Dani’s eyes narrowed, and she grinned. “My character,” she said, holding her character sheet behind her back so no one could see it, “is Cassandra Shadowstalker! She’s the daughter of a sorceror and a ghostly stage magician’s assistant, and she roams the world looking for ADVENTURE!” ​ Dani looked straight at Danny, her expression never changing. “And she’s half-ghost.” Danny choked on his soda. ​ Ignoring Danny’s spluttered protests, Dani turned to Jazz. “There is a type like that in the rulebook, right?” Jazz began flipping through books, then nodded. “Mm-hm!” she said, pointing to a page reading, ‘Half-Ætherling’. “It’s a good race for a Rogue, because you get a lot of bonuses to hiding and moving silently, and that sort of thing. The only real drawback is ethereal beings have to be careful around magical—“ ​ Dani cut Jazz off, pulling out her character sheet and grabbing a pencil of the table. “That sounds perfect. What stats do I change?” A few seconds later, Cassie Shadowstalker was ready. ​ =========== ​ “Now then,” said Sam, pressing a switch by her seat. The room lights dimmed; a set of lights built into the table came on, illuminating her face from below. “When we left off last week, you had been ambushed by Deep Stalkers in the hall outside the Lightless Lair of the Great Darkness Wyrm. I want everyone to start by rolling for initiative.“ ​ The sound of dice on hard wood. ​ Sam waited for the rolls, then turned to Tucker. “You’re first, Tucker. What do you do?” Tucker grinned, flipping open his laptop. “I use Bardic Inspiration, on Florina,” he said, clicking a play button. A cheesy disco tune filled the air. He took a deep breath, ready to sing along— and glares from Sam and Jazz stopped him short. Danny quietly shook his head. ​ Tucker sighed, then finished, “And I attack with my lutebow.” He rolled a die, his good mood returning when Sam confirmed a hit. ​ Sam shifted focus. “Danny Fizzle?” Danny tossed his drained soda can into a recycle bin. “Danny shouts... uh... ‘It’s time for you to make like fruit and stop stalking!’ And then he casts Conjure Barrage.” ​ Dani snickered, turning to Val as dice clattered on the table. “Does he do the witty banter thing a lot?” Val nodded. “Mm-hm. It’s pretty good sometimes, though.” ​ Sam, after a lot of scribbling, looked at Valerie. “Val! Several Deep Stalkers are in disarray after getting peppered with flying daggers. What do you do?” ​ Val grinned, pushing the chips aside and taking out a custom-made set of dice that had a reddish sheen. “Gh’anne plants her staff next to the nearest two Deep Stalkers, pushing the button to turn on its Immovable Rod. She spins around, using the staff as a fulcrum, kicks one stalker in the head—“ ​ “Deep Stalkers don’t have heads, they have gaping appendages,” Jazz helpfully pointed out. ​ “—the gaping appendage, then. Whatever. And springs from that one to punch a second in the noodle arms! She pulls back with her staff, loosing it from the ground, and spins to smash a third in the appendage, too.” Val rolled her dice, her grin never wavering. Sam winced once or twice under her breath, then said, “All right, that’s two of them down, and a third gravely wounded...” She turned to Jazz. “Jazz! You’re up.” ​ Jazz looked at Tucker, still playing disco. “So with Tucker’s Bardic Inspiration as a secondary bonus, I channel divine energy. My mace begins to glow with holy light, as I shout a battle cry—“ ​ “What is it?” asked Sam. “Huh?” said Jazz. “What do you shout?” ​ “Uhhh...” Jazz hadn’t prepared for this. “Okay. I shout, ‘Stand back! I’m trained in this thing!’ And I swing.” She tossed her die onto the table. ​ Sam looked at it, doing some calculations. “Okay, with your strength bonus... proficiency bonus... bardic inspiration... divine energy... amulet bonus...” She stared Jazz right in the eye. “The Deep Stalker hears you, and stands well back. You miss.” “But—” ​ “Dani!“ Sam said, cutting Jazz off, “You come upon the party as the battle is going on. You’ve approached while using your invisibility power, so no one is going to try and attack you. What do you do first?” ​ Dani looked at Sam. “Who am I nearest?” Sam checked some notes behind her screen. “Val’s character. Gh’anne.” ​ Dani nodded. “In that case, I move close to Gh’anne, as she battles her Deep Stalkers...” Unexpectedly, she grinned. “...and then I pick her pocket.” ​ Tucker, who had been looking at his laptop, blinked. Danny choked on his soda again. And Val shot a steely glare at Dani. "Watch it, ghost girl,” she said. ​ Dani couldn’t help keeping her grin as she looked back at Val. “This game is gonna be fun!”

“After the perils of the Lightless Lair and the portal to the Rainbow Tunnels, and getting tossed on underground seas, you now know the Gnome-Man spoke true. This is the legendary Gnome War Hammer, the weapon that will save their people. It sparkles with silver and precious, eerily glowing stones.” ​ “Nice!” said Tucker, grinning at Sam. “Gimme gimme.” “Unfortunately,” Sam replied, with the smirk she’d been hiding for the past 30 minutes, “the hammer is gnome-sized. You could about hammer nails with it... maybe.” ​ “Well...” Tucker said, “I take it anyway! We can probably give it back to the gnomes, or something.” ​ “That’s what we were planning to do, Tucker,” Val pointed out. ​ “The hammer is yours. Are you getting out of there?” Sam asked. Everyone nodded. ​ “All right!” Sam clapped her hands. “When you return to the gnomish village, you find out that the Gnome-Man is on an Errand Quest and will be back in a day or two. The party has some free time. What do you do?” ​ “Does the village have a library?” asked Jazz. “It does,” said Sam. “Do you want to look for books on any particular topic?” Jazz thought for a moment, then answered, “Magical psychiatry, mind reading, better healing, works that showcase gnome culture—“ ​ “OK, stop, stop. I’ll handle your stuff in a moment,” said Sam. “Val! What are you doing?” ​ “Gh’anne spends her time praying for the spirits of her lost Empyrean Monks, as she remembers the first invasion of the Igneon Monks...” Dani realized Valerie was staring at her as the girl kept talking. “It was only a few years ago. But she will recall it forever. Gh’anne was—“ ​ One Flashback Later ​ “...and that is why Gh’anne KNOWS she must not fail,” Val finished. Tucker looked up from his computer games; Jazz from her sourcebook. Danny took his head off the table, yawning a little more theatrically than necessary. ​ Sam simply waited, her demeanor polite yet forbidding. “Great,” she said. “So you’re praying.” She made a note behind her DM screen. “Tucker?” ​ Tucker put his computer on sleep and grinned. “Can I hire carpenters here?” Sam blinked. “Carpenters?” “Yeah, builders,” Tucker said. “I hire a bunch of gnome carpenters and have them start constructing my Bachelor Pad of Holding with the diamondwood and beams I stuffed in there earlier.” ​ Dani, who had missed Tucker’s remarks at the start of the game, suppressed a snicker as Tucker and Sam (playing the carpenters’ foregnome) started haggling. When it was over, Sam sighed. “OK, fine. You only pay ten gold. The carpenters head into the bag and get to work.” Sam sipped some water from a nearby glass, then looked at Danny. “Danny Fizzle! What are you doing during this period of rest?” ​ Danny put down the dice he’d been stacking, and started thinking. “Well... I prepared my spells, right?” Sam nodded. “You did.” “In that case...” Danny said, “I examine the Gnome Warhammer. I’m not sure the three merkids were telling the truth when they said all the corrupting enchantments had been stripped off it.” ​ Sam smiled, sweetly. “Roll Arcana, then.” A die hit the table. Sam studied it. “All right. I’ll tell you the results of your examination once everyone’s said what they’re doing.” She counted down the table, stopping at Dani. “OK, Dani, this is basically stuff your characters do over time - they can follow up on their own ideas and quests and things like that. What do you want Cassie to do now that you’re with the party?” ​ Dani looked around. “Can I delay my downtime actions until the rest of the party is asleep?” Sam thought for a second, writing something even as she looked at Dani. “That’ll work. You don’t do anything until it’s night and everyone is resting. Let me resolve everyone else’s downtimes first, then.” She finished her writing, passing the completed note to Jazz. “Jazz! You found these books in the library, with this information in them.” Sam took a breath, then— “Danny! Your magical investigation proves... the hammer’s clean. The magical traces prove that the original villain to curse it was the Great Darkness Wyrm, however.” She shifted focus. “Tucker! The carpenters construct things quickly, collect their fee, and leave. It’s coming along pretty nicely.” Sam shot a sidelong look at Val. “Val! You were praying. Which you did. You didn’t recover any more memories, though.” Val groaned. ​ With the others at ease and Jazz reading, Sam looked back at Dani. “Now, Dani. It’s all you. The party is in your room at the inn. Everyone is asleep. What are you going to do?” ​ Dani’s gaze focused on Tucker. “Carefully, making sure I don’t disturb Shades Eddie over there, I sneak by his bed, open his Bag of Holding, turn invisible, and sneak inside. I want to see this ‘Bachelor Pad of Holding’ for myself.” “Dani,” Sam said, looking at her carefully. “Are you sure you want to do that?” ​ There was a hush. Everyone else at the table had stopped moving, reading, dice-stacking, and was staring at her. Jazz mimed a faint ‘no’ shake with her head. ​ “Of course I do!” said Dani. “There’s nothing Cassie Shadowstalker is afraid of from a bag.” ​ “Now then,” said Sam, clasping her hands. “When you look in the room, you see Tucker’s vision. The room is half-finished, luxuriously upholstered, with a big bed at one corner of the room. The other side is half-finished, with sketches and blueprints tacked on the walls, showing what will go there. It looks like it will be quite cozy.” Sam grinned. “And. As you enter the bag, something feels wrong. There’s a shimmer in the fabric of space around you; the bed and fine furnishings - even the construction debris - appear to be... wavering.” ​ “Wait, what’s going on?” Dani asked. Jazz interrupted, nervously. “I tried to tell you earlier, when you were making her,” she said. “You see, when a half-ætherling enters a dimensionally enhanced space like a Bag of Holding—“ ​ “Jazz,” Sam reminded her. “Not now.” She cleared her throat, and continued. “The feeling only lasts for a few seconds. Then, the bag implodes, and space turns inside out. In its place, you have opened a portal to the Astral Plane, which sucks in you, the Bachelor Pad’s goods, the sleeping forms of your companions, your gear, the inn’s furniture, and a gnome carpenter who took an ill-advised nap. As the portal fades away behind you, you are now trapped on the Astral Plane, with no way back.” ​ Sam shut a rulebook with a snap. “Aaaaand that’s where we’ll end it this week.” Dead silence. Jazz, Valerie, Tucker, and Danny all stared at Dani, faces in various states of anger, shock, and consternation. ​ In the quiet, Dani raised her hand. “Sooo.... does my character gain experience?” she said. ​ ~fin~