sabato 26 agosto 2017

5 New Magic Boots

There you can find 5 magic boots for D&D 5e, some hombrewewed and some converted from previous editions of the D&D game.

Boots of Balance
Woundrous item, uncommon (requires attunement by a Rogue)

While wearing these boots, you ignore the effects of difficult terrain.

These boots have 5 charges. While wearing them you can use a bonus action to gain advantage in any Dexterity (Acrobatics) check that involves movement, such as walking on a rope or on a rooftop.
The boots regain 1d4+1 expended charges daily at dawn.

Boots of Carrying
Woundrous item, common

While wearing these boots, your Carrying Capacity is doubled (Strength score multiply by 30).

Deceptor's Boots
Woundrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)

While wearing these boots, you can cast the gaseous form and invisibility spells. Once cast, you can't cast that spell again until the next dawn.

Boots of Jumping
Woundrous item, common

While wearing these boots, you can cast the jump spell. Once cast, you must take a short or long rest to use this power again.

Boots of Tracks
Woundrous item, uncommon (requires attunement)

While wearing these boots, you can choose to leave tracks different than yours. The tracks can be of any humanoid or beast creature.

Bye.

The DM.

sabato 19 agosto 2017

La "Paura" della Magia

Premessa: Questo post tocca elementi profondi del nostro essere DM, che addirittura potrei definire "valori". Quando si parla di valori, ognuno ne è intimamente toccato e può essere urtato. C'è chi non si riconoscerà e c'è chi dirà che non è vero.
Qualche settimana fa avevamo lasciato il post sulle campagne low magic di D&D con due domande in sospeso:
1) Cosa vi dà fastidio della magia in D&D da doverla modificare?
2) Perché i DM mi chiedono lumi su come gestire un mondo con limitazioni sulla magia e sulle classi arcane/divine e nessuno invece mi chiede lumi su un mondo senza guerrieri e/o ladri?
Le due domande sono molto più legate tra loro di quel che sembra.
Inconsciamente o no, che lo ammettiamo oppure no, a ognuno di noi DM, in misura più o meno intensa, la magia fa "paura".
"Paura" perché è vista come:
Facile. La magia può abbassare notevolmente la difficoltà di uno scontro oppure può altrettanto facilmente far superare un ostacolo o risolvere un mistero che come DM ritenevamo ostici.
Overpowered. Con la magia ogni cosa diventa facile. Quindi come DM andiamo in crisi perché riteniamo di non saper porre sfide credibili ai PG.
Imprevedibile. Proprio perché rende le cose facili, la magia rischia di "rovinare i piani" che come DM avevamo preparato.
Questa "paura" ci porta a pensare "eh no....troppo facile così. Bisogna mettere dei limiti!" E così iniziano ban o restrizioni a classi/spell etc...
Facendo così commettiamo 2 errori
1) Implicitamente ammettiamo che non sappiamo gestire completamente il regolamento del gioco. E perdiamo un'occasione per migliorarci
2) Implicitamente ammettiamo di essere più 'railroad' di quanto pensiamo, perché abbiamo paura che "vengano scombinati i nostri piani" e così siamo carenti nella principale qualità di un DM, che è l'improvvisazione
Giocare a D&D invece è giocare ad un gioco dove la magia, che lo vogliamo o no, è presente (su 12 classi solo 2 non possono mai accedere a spell così come moltissimi mostri hanno capacità magiche), e dobbiamo necessariamente confrontarci con essa.
In un prossimo post vedremo come.
A presto.
Il DM.

giovedì 10 agosto 2017

Missing Giants: Wood Giant (Voadkyn)

There you can find a conversion to D&D 5e of the Voadkyn, a.k.a. Wood Giant.

Thin and Light. Voadkyns are smaller than other giants. They're 9 feet tall and weigh around 700 pounds and they have the physical proportions of humans.

Wood Elves Bonds. Voadkyns inhabit the same forests as wood elves. They have no lairs, choosing to live under the stars or with the wood elves for a while. The strong bond between wood elves and wood giants goes back further than either race can remember. This may account for Voadkyns' fey ancestry.

Solitary lives. Wood giants don't mix with other intelligent creatures but elves.
Humans who have had contact with Voadkyns describe them as friendly enough, but flightly and frivolous, never in great hurry to do anything other than eat and drink large amounts of wine. They don't fight unless forced to defend themselves or their allies.

Treasure Lovers. Voadkyns are fond of finely cut gems and magical items. Sometimes they join an adventurers' party in disguise, just to steal gems, jewels or magical treasure.

WOOD GIANT (Voadkyn)
Large giant, chaotic good (neutral)

Armor Class 15 ( studded leather armor)
Hit Points 67 (7d10+28)
Speed 35 ft.

STR 20 (+5) DEX 16 (+3) CON 18 (+4) INT 14 (+2) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 10 (+0)

Saving Throws Dex +7
Skills Perception +5, Stealth +7
Senses darkvision 90 ft., passive Perception 15
Languages Giant, Sylvan
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)

Fey Ancestry. The wood giant has advantage on saving throws against being charmed and magic can't put it to sleep.

Low Cunning. The wood giant can take the Hide action as a bonus action on each of its turns.

Mask of the Wild. The wood giant can attempt to hide even when it's only light obscured by foliage, heavy rain, falling snow, mist, and other natural phenomena.

One with the Woods. When in an area heavily obscured by foliage, the wood giant can use its action to become invisible until it moves or takes an action or reaction.

Plant Camouflage. The wood giant has advantage on Dex (Stealth) checks when it's in a wood or forest.

Shapechanger. The wood giant can use its action to polymorph into a humanoid of medium or small size, or back into its true form. Its statistics are the same in each form. Any equipment it's wearing or carrying isn't trasformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.

Actions

Multiattack. The wood giant makes two greatsword attacks or two longbow attacks.

Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (3d6+5) slashing damage.

Longbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 225/900 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d8+3) piercing damage.

Bye.

The DM.

martedì 8 agosto 2017

Giants' Allies

Giants are iconic monsters of D&D and they make no exception in D&D 5e.

Storm King's Thunder and Volo's Guide to Monsters have already provided new options for your giants but if to spice up the encounter I suggest to introduce some allies.

Choose one or more allies from the list below; while originally devised for a STK campaign, you can virtually use it in any world, homebrew included.

CLOUD GIANT

1d4 owlbear
1d6 griffon
1d2 wyvern
1d4+2 giant eagle
1d4 peryton
2d6 aaracockra

FIRE GIANT

1d4+1 hell hound
1d2 salamander
1d2 fire elemental
2d4 magma mephit
2d4 firenewt (from Volo's Guide to Monsters)
1d6 duergar

FROST GIANT

1d4+1 winter wolf
1d4 yeti
1d6 saber-toothed tiger
1d4+1 polar bear
1 remorhaz
2d4 ice mephit

HILL GIANT

1d4+2 dire wolf
1d6 ogre
2d4 goblin
2d4 giant lizard
1d4+1 orc
1d6 leucrotta (from Volo's Guide to Monsters)

STONE GIANT

1d4+1 cave bear (use polar bear stats)
2d4 giant goat
1d6+1 black bear
1d6 svirfneblin
1d6 giant spider
1d4+1 aurochs (from Volo's Guide to Monsters)

STORM GIANT

1d6 griffon
1d4+1 hunter shark
1d4 killer whale
1d4 pegasus
1d2 water or air elemental
1 roc

Bye.

The DM

mercoledì 2 agosto 2017

20 new features and actions to make an unique Lich


I have fun modifying official monsters, giving to them unique powers.

 

In the wonderful AD&D 2nd edition sourcebook "Van Richten's Guide to Liches", there's a list of 20 Lich's additional powers.

 

I've converted them in 20 new Lich's features, actions or reactions for D&D 5e.

 

You can rule that actions can also be legendary or lair actions.

 

Choose from 1 to 3 to be added to your lich, or to other undead creatures, making it a truly unique opponent for your players.

 

Some are more powerful than the others, so when you choose them modify accordingly the lich’s CR.

 

Animate Dead by Will (Action). The lich can cause zombies and skeletons to rise with its mere will. Such creatures have advantage on saving throws against the cleric's Channel Divinity: Turn Undead as long as they are within 200 feet of the lich. The lich may rise as many creatures as many corpses are available. 

 

Bone Command (Action). The lich can animate bone and shape it at will. It chooses one of the following effects.

Bone Barrier. The lich call up splinters of bones from anywhere bones are presente and animate them into a protective barrier as per the blade barrier spell. Thre lich doesn't need to mantain concentration on this effect.

Create Structure. The lich form bones into any structure it desires, the only limit being the amoount of bone available. Common structures that can be created are huts, arches, bridges and so forth. The DM determines the structure's integrity and size, according to the scenario and the type and amount of bones available. The structure lasts until destroyed or the lich dismisses it with a bonus action. The DM also determines the hp and the resistance of the bone structure. As a rule of thumb, generally, on a successful Strength (Athletics) DC 15 check a creature is able to breach a bone wall.

 

Chilling Wind (Action). The lich blows a freezing blast of wind. Each creature in a 60-foot cone take 4d10 cold damage and must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened for 1 minute. The frightened target can repeat the saving throw at the end of oeach of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a target's saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the target is immune to the frightened condition caused by the lich's wind for the next 24 hours.

 

Coldfire (Action). Ranged Spell Attack: +12 to hit, reach 60 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (3d6) cold damage. The target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or it takes additional 10 (3d6) necrotic damage.

 

Conjure Undead Legion (1/day) (Action). The lich summons undead creatures that appear in 1d4 rounds in unoccupied spaces that it can see within 120 feet. It can summon

  • 12 undead of CR 1 or lower
  • 6 undead of CR 3 or lower
  • 3 undead of CR 5 or lower
  • 1 undead of CR 9 or lower
 
They obey to the lich's telepathic commands, acting in its turn, and they disappear when they drop to 0 hp or are dismissed by the lich as a bonus action.
 
Doom Gaze (Action). The lich fixes its gaze on one creature it can see within 10 feet of it. If the creature it chooses has 50 hp or fewer, it dies. Otherwise it takes 10 (3d6) psychic damage.
 
Dream Manipulation (Feature). The lich, if it knows the exact location of a living humanoid creature, can infiltrate that creature's mind and manipulate its dreams, turning them into nightmares of the lich's design. The creature is aware that its dreams are tampered with, but it's unable to prevent this. The creature can't benefit of the effect of a long rest. If the lich manipulate a creature's dreams for a week, that creature suffers the effects of a long term madness randomly chosen as described in the DMG.
 
Fool's Feast (Feature). The lich taints the food within 5 feet of it.  A creature that eats the tainted food must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned and die in 1 minute. A poisoned creature can be cured by protection from poison, greater or lesser restoration. 
 
Grasp of Death (Action). Melee Spell Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (3d6) necrotic damage. If the target has 50 hp or fewer, it must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or die.
 
Grasp of Enfeeblement (Action). Melee Spell Attack: +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 10 (3d6) cold damage. On a hit, the target deals only half damage with weapons attacks thtat use Strength and it has disadvantage on Strength checks for 1 minute.At the end of eacht of its turns, the target can make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw. On a success, the effect ends.
 
Ignore Metal (1/day) (Bonus Action). As a bonus action for 1 minute, the lich ignore the existence of metal with its physical body by magically putting itself slightly out of dimensional phase.  It gains immunity from magical weapons made of metal, but it still takes damage equal to the magical pluses of the weapon (e.g. it takes 2 damage from a magical sword +2 made of steel) and it can normally move through metal objects such as an iron door.
 
Imitation Spell (3/day) (Reaction). As a reaction, if it is a target of a spell which is on the wizard list, the lich can immediately take the spell's energies and cast it without expending one of its slots.
 
Improved Defense (Feature). The lich has damage resistance from bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from magical weapons.
 
Improved Spellcasting (Feature). The lich has from 1st to 3rd level slots double than normal and knows 6 cantrips.
 
Meta-polymorph (3/day) (Bonus Action). The lich can use a bonus action to assume the shape of an undead. In all other aspects it is otherwise identical to the druid's wild shape.
 
Painwrack (Action).  The lich fixes its gaze on one creature it can see within 10 feet of it. The creature must make a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw, taking 21 (6d6) psychic damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
 
Regeneration (Feature). The lich regains 10 hit points at the start of its turn. If it starts its turn with 0 hp it doesn't regenerate.
 
Skull Scry (Feature).  The lich can hear or see as the clairvoyance spell through any skull up to 200 miles away.
 
Voice of Maleficence (Feature). After 1 minute of continuous speech of the lich, a creature that can hear it must succeed a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed for 24 hours. While charmed the creature reveals to the lich any secret known. The lich can dismiss the effect whenever it wants.
 
Vortex of Evil (1/week) (Action). The lich summons fiends that appear in 1d4 rounds in unoccupied spaces that it can see within 120 feet. It can choose
  • 1 fiend of CR 15 or lower
  • 2 fiends of CR 10 or lower
  • 4 fiends of CR 5 or lower
  • 8 fiends of CR 3 or lower
    They obey to the lich's telepathic commands, acting in its turn, and they disappear when they drop to 0 hp or are dismissed by the lich as a bonus action.
Bye.

 
The DM