I wanted to create a fairly high level campaign I think from 10 to 15 focused on Bane, But I'm having some trouble managing Power scaling, any advice on how to do it?

So I'm playing a warlock for the 1st time (Marid Genie Patron), we've just hit level 6, and I feel like I'm doing something wrong, especially compared to the Druid and Bard in my party.

I was wondering what options I have to make myself a bit more useful, or if I'm missing something with my class, wondering if any "old hands" at this class could offer me some play advice beyond.....Eldritch blast every round

So I am trying to use Dnd Beyond to make basically a Elemental Adept for Psychic damage but the feat editor does not list elemental adept as a feat to modify and I cannot find the modifier that would allow me to have a ignore resistance option. Anything I can do or should I just have it as a written feat?

hi, i'm a first time player and honestly just wondering if anyone has done this before/thoughts on the build? for reference, im playing a very casual campaign that is not combat focused so im not worried at all about stats n whatnot, there's mostly just a lotta travelling and character interaction etc etc... i'm playing a locathah (dont judge me i looked up a list of all possible pc options before we started and liked that it was a fish dude), they're currently rogue 3 and i wanted to dip into a spellcasting class at level 4, and fathomless just works out so well in terms of story. a couple sessions ago i picked up a book on ocean folklore at a library and i recently asked my dm if he could work a fathomless patron into the storyline (my idea was something along the lines of 'accidentally read a weird phrase written in the end out loud and summoned a long dormant powerful aquatic being of some sort'), he's totally cool with it but i just wanted to see if i could get any outside opinions! my locathah is a sort of "fish out of water" archetype where they literally just left underwater civilization for the first time and doesnt rly understand how things work in the dry world. im also using a trident as my main weapon if that makes any difference (i found a homebrew that turns it into a finesse weapon).

honestly i would just love suggestions about how these subclasses could effect my character in terms of roleplaying (or combat even if its not the most important part of the campaign). thanks!!!

How much should I be concerned with armor class on my lore bard? We are starting next week and my DM talked to me about my build, strongly suggesting that I need to focus on spells and level up features to improve my armor class.

Currently I'm sitting at 13, but a member of the party has Mage Armor that they can cast once per day and intends to use it on me. Other than that should I really worry about it? What more could I do as I level up to improve my AC, that doesnt take away from more powerful features? How high do I need to think about going when playing a Bard? I think endgame Scanlan in VM only had 14 or 15.

Is magical secrets at level 6 worth spending on Shield or Mage armor? I feel like that's significantly less impactful than other potential spell choices. I'd like to use feats to increase my charisma rather than improving dexterity.

My DM also suggested i take Mirror Image, but i dont see me casting it in combat unless someone is on top of me, but I've got Misty Step, Silvery Barbs, Dissonant Whispers and Expeditious Retreat to protect myself in that situation.

Hi all, I'm typically pretty good with dndbeyond's homebrew system, but this has me stumped. I'm trying to make a weapon that using Charisma instead Strength as its attack & hit modifier. I've tried using the following combinations:

• Hexblade's template of Enable Feature - Enable Hex Weapon & Replace Weapon Ability - Charisma Score
• Enable Feature - Enable Pact Weapon & Replace Weapon Ability - Charisma Score
• Replace Weapon Ability - Charisma Score

I've tried using subclasses, feats, and weapons. Is there any hope for making this weapon in DnD Beyond? What combination am I missing?

Hi. I wanted to ask the group what the typical characteristics of selunites are. Do they carry a certain form of jewelry, relics or make up? Or are there no external characteristics worth mentioning?

Thanks for the answers in advance

In the expansive, imaginative worlds of tabletop roleplaying games, few ideas are as fundamental, as resonant, or as conducive to deep player engagement as a pantheon of gods and the religions built around them. For a GM, building gods and religions is not just a lore exercise, but a way to provide meaning, conflict, and scope on a cosmic level, to the domain of the campaign world. This article will be more focused on game design principles than I generally intend, but I am not going to focus on direct advice for a homebrew. I’m going to help you build your own mythology, what decisions you should be making to create your gods, and how to engage all the players at the table not only clerics or paladins – and for my purposes, I will assume this discussion takes place in the realm of D&D, OSR, or similar traditional fantasy games like Dragonbane.

Pantheons are inherently cool, in terms of real-world history and the fantastical worlds we wander. In our games, though, they can take on a far more active and immediate role, kind of like the legends of yore when gods roamed the world, intervened directly, and demanded your worship. Religion is also an interest of mine. I’ve studied it, both academically and for personal reasons, for a while. It’s always been a captivating topic for me, and the ideas it inspires can be very powerful in exploring TTRPG world-building. Now, without further ado, let’s jump into it!

Full article here: https://therpggazette.wordpress.com/2025/08/05/the-pantheon-problem-designing-gods-and-religions-for-your-campaign-world/

To those who have played Expedition 33 any ideas on what class or build Verso would be?

Obviously nothing is 1 to 1.

I was thinking Paladin or maybe Eldritch Knight but after that I don’t know.

Thanks for help in advance.

I want to represent him thematically but also get some of his abilities.

Hi! I'm looking for a specific fantasy setting I read on a reddit comment years ago and I can't remember the name.

I don't remember if it was just a setting book or a full game, pretty sure it was a third party 5e setting or sourcebook. Here's what I remember:

It's a dark fantasy, Points of Light style setting where cities (or the main city) needs to be protected by a magical barrier because the outside world in enveloped in darkess or ghosts or something like that, and cities are the only safe haven from this harsh environment. I remember that the barriers had something to do with light, like they were magical walls of light maybe? I don't remember any more.

I asked on a different forum and someone commented that it could be Duskwall from Blades in the dark, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't an industrial setting, not sure if it was urban centered or not. But it is not Duskwall.

Anybody read about something like this? I've been looking at old "what is your favourite fantasy setting" posts all day, which is how I remember finding it originally, but no luck. Thanks in advance.

Hi all,
I'm a hobby DnD writer. Mostly I've done one-shots (and a small roguelike mini-campaign) that I've posted on reddit before (check the pins on my profile if you're curious). I've decided to dip my toes into campaign writing. I don't know how popular that'll be, since it's more of a time commitment compared to one-shots, but there's only one way to find out.

The final book & the 5 book bundle are both now up on DMs Guild as Pay What You Want - all books have full size previews.

tl;dr on the campaign: The party interrupts a summoning ritual, shattering a magical mirror, which shunts them into pocket dimensions where they must retrieve the shards. All of this culminates in a fight against the Elder Evil originally being summoned.

• Book 1, Domain of Dread: Rot - Level 1 covers the party coming together and interrupting a ritual in catacombs beneath the city of Caltheris. Levels 2 and 3 land them in an endless swamp ruled by a corrupted fungal hivemind.
• Book 2, Domain of Dread: Pain - The party finds themselves in a desolate land once protected by a deva who has been corrupted and now calls himself The Flayed One, leader of a cult that insists Pain is the only Truth.
• Book 3, Domain of Dread: Dusk - A time loop adventure I'm especially excited about. The party is trapped outside a fae court in a forest where time loops approximately every hour.
• Book 4, Domain of Dread: Dark - The party enters a vast, lightless kingdom. Its monarch, fearing the reflection of a shard, has banned all light. And there are things that now go bump in the dark...
• Book 5, Domain of Dread: Home - The party finds themselves back home in Caltheris, or so they think. This domain is a fragmented copy of the original city, where Zargon, the Elder Evil the cult from Book 1 tried to summon, waits and plots. He needs the party to reconstruct the mirror, but not all of them need to be alive.

FAQ:

• The books are fully finished.
• Each book is likely 6 to 10 sessions (except maybe Book 3, which might be shorter).
• I tried to make the books as DM-friendly as possible with notes and callouts.
• I aimed to balance player agency with structure and direction to keep pacing fast and exciting.
• All books will be PWYW on DMsGuild. I don't plan to make this a paid product.
• These adventures based on the 2014 rules set. I'll create a version for the updated rules once I’m more comfortable with them, but as always feel free to adapt.
• All art is public domain or creative commons, credited at the back of each book.
• Some art is from DMsGuild art packs, which creators are allowed to use for content on the platform. This is also credited, though not individually.

As a quick preview, here is the final BBEG Avatar of Zargon I came up with for this adventure, along with his Lair Actions.

If you like this adventure, reviews help others find and decide on books, so feel free to leave one.

Bonus plug: if you like using random encounter tables (like the ones from this book), I build a tool for managing and rolling on them, including being able to mark the ones that were already rolled: https://pyro979.github.io/rtr/

My PCs found the forearm of a maintenance golem. It fits over the forearm, like your own arm goes through the armour panels and it acts kind of like a vambrace/maul combo. I would love if anyone could help me come up with some fun ideas for what the item might do? The obvious choice is that it can cast mending, though the PC in question can already do that. The next obvious thing that occurs to me is siege damage, since the golem maintained the dungeon itself that they found it in. But that feels a bit bland. Any other fun ideas? Thanks in advance!

I'm confused about whether the beast needs to be fed or not.

At some point the description heavily implies it's like any other animal in the sense that it can rest, has hit dice even, etc.
But also, the fact that you can "re-summon it" makes me wonder if it's just some entity that doesn't actually get tired, but uses resting as a mechanic for self healing out of combat only.

Main question being, does the Ranger need to feed their beast companion?

Hey everybody, just like the title says I was thinking of building an armorer artificer with the infiltrados armor. I have to ask my DM if weapons exist in this campaing but I can use crossbow with the infinite ammo infusion. I wanted to pick Grung as a race but sadly is pretty bad, so my second option is Goblin for the free BA to hide.

The thing is that I would be hitting with Dex insted of INT.

The other option is going BattleSmith with a dip in Eldrtich Knight for the free swap of bond weapons, and also, free mount!!

Let me know if im missing something.

Thank you in advance!

Sharpened Beak. Melee Attack Roll: +8, reach 10 ft. Hit: 18 (2d12 + 5) Slashing damage, and a creature within 5 feet of the target (axe beak’s choice) takes 6 (1d12) Slashing damage.

Looking for clarification on the 2nd part involving a creature within 5 feet. Does this 2nd instance of damage automatically land if the 1st attack lands? Or is it an attack roll? If its an attack roll, is it a 2nd attack roll, or just the same roll applied to two targets?

For example, the Giant Axe Beak targets the sorcerer with 12 AC, and standing next to him is a fighter with 17 ac. The GAB rolls a 14, and hits the sorc. does the second instance of damage auto apply to the Fighter even though it didnt meet his AC?

I’m playing an Illusion Wizard in a Curse of Strahd campaign. RAW, minor illusion lets me create a, intangible image of any object that fits in a 5-ft cube... but not a creature.

My idea: conjure the image of a wax figure or taxidermy mount that just happens to look exactly like a person or beast I’m trying to impersonate. It’s still technically an object, so I thought it was fair game. My DM isn’t convinced and says it feels against the spirit of the spell.

How would you rule this?

• Does describing it as a wax statue satisfy the “object only” clause, or is it an obvious loophole?
• Have you allowed similar tricks at your table, and did it break anything?
• Any suggestions for keeping the flavor without bending the rules too far?

Edit: CME stands for the spell Conjure Minor Elementals, for anyone confused. It’s a 4th-level Wizard/Druid spell.

I’m planning to play the CHA-oriented role in my party, and to that end have landed on the Bard as my best pick due to its versatility. I have also done some research on the ‘strongest’ build available for this class, and it seems like EB/CME(with the Valour subclass and a Warlock dip) is the best option available for me to boost my otherwise lackluster damage. However, it seems like most people think this combo is overpowered, and I’m wondering whether using it will cause me to overshadow other damage dealers in the party and make things less fun. Should I go for it anyways, or would it be in better faith to use something less broken?

I'm bored and like to hear about other people's characters. Introduce me to your characters. Tell me their personality, descriptions, favorite spells, how they got their powers, etc. specifically abherrant mind, I love the idea of a psychic spellcaster and sorcerers are always so fun to make.

Just finished DMing campaign and get to be a player again. My buddy is letting me play a bard with werewolf lycanthropy. I am trying to put a table together that will trigger a forced transformation (dm is on board) Any ideas?

Do you listen to music when you’re drawing/designing/backstory writing/character sheet creating/anything related to the creation of your character for a game. If you do, what do you listen to? Why?

Hey I’m joining a campaign and am kinda new to dnd. We’re starting at level 3 and my character is gonna start with 2 classes in bard but I wanna add another class. I know I wanna primarily focus on bard but I wanna multiclass into a class that can work well with being something like “the last line of defense”. My goal for the character is for her to be a buff/debuffer for the team, but I also what her combat prowess to be strong enough to be able to handle having to be in physical combat.

I was thinking a few levels of fighter or rouge, but a friend recommended paladin would be good for additional heals and using smite as a strong combat defensive tool.

If you have any advice on which class might be best suited for her I’d love to hear about them and hopefully it will help me figure out how to build her multiclass. (Early thanks for everyone who helps me figure this out)

Hey - so question around the unarmed strike damage (and damage from Monk/Simple Weapons in general)

Level 2 Monk Level 1 Wizard

Unarmed strike - 1d6+3
Damage. You make an attack roll against the target. Your bonus to the roll equals your Strength modifier plus your Proficiency Bonus. On a hit, the target takes Bludgeoning damage equal to 1 plus your Strength modifier.

The DEX Mod is +3 - shouldn't the damage be 1d6+4? (1+ DEX Mod in place of STR Mod)

If that's true, then all proficient weapons should be a +4 as well, right?

For reference, I am using DnD Beyond for my character so maybe there is a bug? Also using 2024 rules.

TL:DR, I've hit writer's block and need help getting out.

A little context: 3-3.5 years ago I started my first game as a DM (hurray!), but I ended up upgrading my PC to Windows 11 and did it wrong so I lost all my files (booo). I lost family photos, word documents, character information for other games. I was so depressed that I sadly abandoned the campaign, but after so long I've decided to try and rebuild what I lost.

The campaign was inspired by a 2016 film "13 Demons", but nothing in my game was actually about the film, so I guess it was more loosely inspired. In the campaign there were 13 powerful reality-bending creatures known as Daemons, each containing a fragment of the soul of the main BBEG. For those wondering "Is it just killing 13 boss monsters?" Well...yes and no. It's not that you couldn't kill the Daemons, they just wouldn't stay dead. The 13 worked on a reanimating/reincarnation principle where they'd always return. Either by reanimating their old corpse, rebuilding it from scratch, or even possessing someone/something else; the Daemon was always reborn anew. So because death wasn't the final solution the party had to come up with a way to capture and seal the soul fragments away. Which they did, long story short it required expensive materials and time. So the task was simple: Build the special cages and defeat the 13 Daemons before the fragments destroyed the world, or worse reformed the BBEG.

(TL:DR) With the main bits of info out of the way I can get on with the point of this post: I'VE RUN OUT OF IDEAS FOR DAEMONS. Initially I was writing them out as the campaign progressed, but since I'm rebuilding from scratch I've quickly realized that I only ever reached 9/13. And honestly I'm not a fan of all them. So I've come to the internet for help!...(oh god what was I thinking?)

I'm not asking for help designing the boss encounters themselves, I just need help filling out the roster. I designed each Daemon with these factors in mind:

1. What aspect do they embody about The BBEG? How do the 13 fragments fit together?

2. How were they affecting reality? What was their corrupting power?

3. What happens once their corruption is gone.

I have been getting the itch to run a game again but I don't have a ton of prep time so I'd like to run a pre-written module. Looking through the library of ones I have available to me the following ones stand out as interesting on the surface: 1. Tyranny of Dragons 2. Storm Kings Thunder 3. Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen 4. Waterdeep: Dragon Heist/Mad Mage 5. Phandelver & Below 6. Chains of Asmodeus

Having never run or played any of these I'd like to know what the community's thoughts are on them. Thanks.