what does magic smell like?

In my current Clash of the Titans campaign one of the characters picked up a mutation that allowed his character to smell magic. I ended using the following table to simulate this: Magic Generally – Ozone. Evocation – Coriander. Conjuration – Black pepper. Transmutation – Earthy smell. Abjuration – Freshly Baked Bread Divinition – Chocolate. Enchantment […]

Energy/Level Drain for 5e

I have always liked the idea of level drain as a representation of terror/horror as the given monster actually scares the PC. I never liked the fact you could be de-leveled back to level 1 – though I never saw this happening back in 1e days, PCs were just too careful when dealing with level-draining […]

Bonfire for D&D

My 5e games are fairly lethal – no resurrection magic of any kind, hit points capped at level 10 but monsters not modified and only 1 action a turn. My son calls them “the Dark Souls of D&D campaigns”. The only way my PCs get a rez is if they escape (or are saved) from […]

Quetzal the Sidh Sorceress-Queen

I used the adventure “Spire of Quetzal” as the exit from the Gardens of Ynn. My PCs did what they could to avoid combat with Quetzal and after she possessed a character, knocked that character out before fleeing back to their homeward – The Ninth World. Here are her 5e stats. I changed Quetzal to […]

the wild hunt

One of the Maleficence was the wild hunt which my sorcerer player rolled. The Wild Hunt eventually caught up with him and here are the 5e stats. Fiend Folio was my main inspiration. The Wild Hunt The Wild Hunt exists in all the lands where Druids and their deities’ dwell. It is a physical manifestation of […]

Dante the Will-O-Wisp

Dante is a devotee of Thanatos and Orcus. In his mind they are the same being. Whenever Dante makes an attack that does psychic damage the target hears a heavy metal power chord plays (intro, set). If Dante successfully uses consume life the target is sent straight to Orcus’s realm in the abyss and rises […]

Demogorgon in a Bottle

Due to some absurd (and fun!) random tables my players got Demogorgon in a Bottle. Demogorgon has become his own character over the last few sessions constantly trying to make a deal with the party to let him out – which the party refuses. But they are caught – they dont want to let him […]

Maleficence (Magical Calamity Table)

Decided to consolidate the magical calamity table for the sorcerer into 1 table. D16 for doubles, d24 for triples and d30 for quadruples. die Effect 1 Stop: Absolutely nothing happens (time stops for 1d4 rounds, 100 ft radius, the sorcerer is not affected but otherwise the standard time stop rules apply). 2 For the next minute, you can […]

Sutolore the Outcast Varrangoin

My PCs ran from this guy abandoning treasure in fear. Posted here for reference. Varrangoins resembled emaciated man-sized humanoids with huge leathery bat wings, terrifying skull-like faces, and dark grey or black skin. Their tails were barbed on their ends and filled with a potent poison.[1]Varrangoins were extremely sensitive to sunlight. Each varrangoin had an […]

The Dream – Meme Virus

My players keep traveling back to Ynn and finally got infected by the Dream. The Dream is a meme virus – that is, a bad idea – that killed off the sidh and destroyed Ynn. Three of my seven players got infected but I put off running the disease because I couldn’t think of satisfactory way to […]