So you’re playing a character with a really high Intelligence, a really high Wisdom or both. You, on the other hand, are just an average guy who likes to play D&D. Your real-life Intelligence and Wisdom are probably somewhere between 8 and 11 (I’ll be generous). So how do you make the most of a smart character’s best attribute?
Tag: DM
The PCs are camping in the wild. Someone, or something, approaches in the middle of the night. In this circumstance, combat should only be considered as a last resort.
Setup
Presented below are three possible reasons for the PCs to be engaged in this skill challenge.
- The PCs are in the process of setting up a permanent base camp. The location has strategic importance and needs to be secured.
- There are few defensible locations to make camp in this area. Leaving this one means resting out in the open, exposed to all possible threats.
- The PCs have setup camp in hostile teritory. The sounds of combat may alert nearby hostile forces.
The exact nature of the threat is left up to the DM. Some of the DC may need to be altered depending on the creature threatening the camp.
Do you think your really high Endurance is only good for holding your breath? You couldn’t be more wrong. Here are 10 new and creative ways to get more out of Endurance. So, for all those Fighters who have training in Endurance and don’t know what to do with it, read on.
A recent earthquake has uncovered a temple from a long-forgotten age. Rogues from a nearby town immediately tried to loot the temple, but were injured or killed by magical traps still active within. The head of the local church believes that if magic preserved the traps, perhaps it also preserved books, tomes, or other magical artifacts. He has been trying to put together a party to explore the temple, but the local folk are too afraid to do it.
Setup
- The party’s Cleric or Paladin is requested by his order to help his fellow worshiper and recover any books in the temple.
- The head of the church hires the PCs to recover any books that might be preserved in the temple.
- The PCs fear that powerful undead may dwell inside the ancient temple. If they don’t act quickly to destroy the evil, it will threaten the welfare of the nearby town.
Are you proud to be a gamer? Or do you hide the fact that once a week you play Dungeons & Dragons? I’m 34 years old, I’m a gamer and I’m proud to admit it.
I’ve been playing RPGs since I was 10, so 24 years now. And during that time I’ve met many different types of gamers. Most, like me, are proud to be gamers. Others are what I like to call “in the closet gamers.” They loved to play D&D, but would die a slow and painful social death if anyone outside of our immediate gaming group learned this terrible secret.
What would a fantasy setting be without magic and divine beings fighting their celestial wars? At this point you have decided which historical and fictional elements to use in defining your campaign world. You are now ready to start fleshing the world out in greater detail.
The PCs travel through a particularity hazardous section of underground passages.
Setup
- The PCs are searching for a long lost treasure or artifact. Their search has led them deep underground.
- Miners from a nearby community discover a preexisting passage that leads deep underground. The PCs are hired to explore the cavern and see where it leads.
- An escaped criminal flees through a cavernous mountain passage. The PCs are hired to capture him.
This skill challenge is broken into five encounters. In order to overcome the skill challenge the PCs must complete all five encounters. The DM can present the encounters in any order he sees fit. Each encounter will indicate the maximum number of successes that can be earned during that encounter. Failures are cumulative and carry forward through the entire skill challenge.
In the last article we dealt with the Next Steps in campaign design, today we’ll discuss various campaign settings, historical periods, novels and talk about the themes that exist within the fantasy genre. This is my favourite part of design as it’s where you get to really dream about the different possibilities. Make sure you have your notebook handy and any of the Resources that you’ve collected to help you along the way. You’re bound to have more than a few flash insights at moments that you aren’t actively working on your campaign world and you’ll want to jot them down for future use.
The lord of the land is ill and dying. The man next in the line of succession is a tyrant. There are rumours that the lord has an illegitimate son who could challenge for the throne.
Setup
- The reputation of the PCs honesty and fairness has reached the ear of the lord’s loyal aide. Since the PCs are neutral and have no stake in the outcome, he hires them to find the rightful heir if he exists.
- The PCs have had run-ins with the tyrant before. His rise to power would be the beginning of huge long-term problems for the PCs. A different heir would make their lives easier.
- A letter from a close friend or family member arrives explaining the situation, pleading for the PCs to help in any way they can.
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Necromancer Paragon Path
With the launch of Open Grave, Wizards of the Coast have begun to release powers and rituals geared towards Necromancers. They have also announced that the Arcane Powers source book will have a Necromancer Paragon Path. While I’m glad that this is upcoming, I still believe they provided a disservice by not having any specialists in the first PHB.
Building on the Necromancer: Heroic Tier we published a few weeks ago, we now present the Necromancer: Paragon Path, an option for you to play until the official version is released. If you are interested in the Necromancer at the Epic Tier, visit our article about that.
We see the Necromancer as an individual who fights for good but is often mistaken as evil. Just like the early practitioners of medicine in our own world, who dug up graves to study anatomy. A practice that was deemed unethical and morally wrong at the time. The Necromancer is an individual who walks the dividing line of ethical behaviour.