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When you realize it’s fucking cold out ~~~~

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Beyond this, consider how these professions might vary depending on who the customers are - nobles, or lower class. Are they good at their job or just scraping by? Do they work with lots of other people or on their own? City or village?

For younger characters:

Apprentice to any of the above

Messenger/runner

Page/squire

Pickpocket

Shop assistant

Student

Looks after younger siblings

(Images all from Wikimedia Commons)

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Creating Deities and Pantheons

Creating Deities

Divine Portfolios

A deity has a certain realm that it lords over called a divine portfolio. A portfolio contains one or more species, places, things, or ideas that explain what the deity is all about. For instance, the Greek god Poseidon’s divine portfolio would include the seas, storms, waterborne travel, and horses.

Minor deities will only have one item in their portfolio, but major ones could have many. Further, a major deity that wished to delegate its power, perhaps to one of its children, could bestow one of the items in its portfolio onto another deity. Perhaps one deity goes to war with another in an attempt to seize an aspect of another deity’s portfolio for themselves.

New deities could even be created by filling a new role if a divine idea is not currently in any other deity’s portfolio.

Generally, the more power a deity has, the more broad the aspects in their portfolio will be. Likewise, lesser deities will have more specific aspects in their portfolio. For instance, a god of nature will be more powerful than a god of trees.

When creating your own pantheon of gods, try to divide up aspects into deities’ divine portfolios bearing all of this in mind.

Holy Symbol

A deity should have some sort of holy symbol that clerics can use for a spellcasting focus, but a symbol is more than that. A symbol lets mortals rally beneath it and recognize the deity’s followers. It a deity’s free advertisement to their people.

The symbol of a deity should reflect their portfolio in some way, as well as their alignment. It should be something unique that is easy to recognize, but also easy to replicate.

Favored Weapon

Many deities have some sort of weapon that they use and favor more than others. The deity will almost always use this weapon when manifested as an avatar. Wielding the same weapon as one’s deity shows an extra step of devotion to them, even if you aren’t a cleric to that god.

Random Portfolios

When creating your own deities, roll on the Random Portfolio Aspects table multiple times to find a random divine aspect to populate their portfolio. Some aspects defer you to another table to find a more specific aspect.

You can also use these tables as a jumping-off point to create your own portfolios and aspects, as there is no way to have a complete and exhaustive list.

Pantheons

Pantheons are groups of deities. Your setting could have one or several pantheons. Perhaps you include pantheons from a variety of settings and incorporate them all in one place. Maybe different kingdoms or countries worship different pantheons, or just group the same deities in different ways. Our own world has many religions, each with their own god or sets of gods, so why can’t your setting?

While it is possible to have a monotheistic setting where only one deity exists, polytheism tends to be more interesting and supportive. Multiple deities allow for players to choose who their character believes in. If they are a divine caster, they can choose where their powers come from. This choice affects a player’s character and creates additional roleplaying opportunities as they confer with folks of the same or different religion.

Types of Pantheons

Some settings may have multiple pantheons. Here are some pantheons that can easily exist in the same setting.

Racial Pantheon. A race or species could have a whole group of gods to worship that are unique to them. For instance, the elves of your setting may worship their own set of deities. People might commonly refer to the “elf gods” or “dwarf gods” in such a circumstance.

Aspect Pantheon. A broad aspect or domain normally placed in divine portfolios may have its own pantheon. For instance, your setting may have a pantheon of death gods who take on aspects like death, undeath, afterlife, martyrdom, murder, plague, famine, and drought. All the minor aspects should be related to one greater aspect.

Regional Pantheon. In your setting, a certain region like a kingdom, country, or continent may worship different deities and have an entirely different pantheon that hold sway in their lands. Each region could have a pantheon all their own.

Religious Pantheon. Many religions exist in our own world, some of which have their own pantheons of deities. Different pantheons could have arisen in your setting from religions that developed separately. This works especially well if your deities are created through mortal belief.

Creating Pantheons

Myths. Deities in a pantheon often take on different responsibilities in running the universe, or at least take part in its history or its creation. Try to come up with myth surrounding each deity that explain why that deity exists. A deity should have some significance or importance within any pantheon you create, and your pantheon should cover a broad spectrum of created things.

Deific Relations. Deities should have complex relationships with one another to create a robust pantheon. Pick one or more from the Divine Relationships table when deciding how two deities relate, or roll randomly. Trying to justify how conflicting or unusual relationships occurred can create unique and interesting ideas. Is one deity’s son also their lover? Don’t be afraid to tread in the realm of mythological fantasy or dream-logic here.

Remember, existing myths are likely far stranger than anything you can come up with. A Norse cow licked a god out of primordial ice. In Greece, Athena was born of Zeus’s cracked skull after he tried to eat her. The Egyptian ferry to the afterlife has a mast that is the phallus of a fertility baboon-god. So you can get pretty unusual with your myths.

Pantheon Metagame. When designing a pantheon, you should also consider satisfying different elements that exist in the game. Each player could very well worship a different deity that supports their worldview in some way.

A good start is creating gods with various alignments, not just good and evil. With nine possible alignments, you can create some interesting deities. If you are making an entirely random deity, you can roll from the Deity Alignment table to determine the deity’s alignment.

Another game-related thing to consider is creating deities that will cater to existing character archetypes, such as mages, naturalists, outcasts, spiritualists, and warriors. Many pantheons have deities that would be worshiped by different classes. Try to provide deities that are tempting for each archetype to believe in, or ensure that some of your deities are more universal so many different classes would be interested in them. If you are creating a random deity, you can roll from the Archetype Patron table.

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Blood Borne Monster Handbook: Central Yharnam Part 1

So i guess october will be Bloodborne Month on my blog. Legit though, i have a good pipeline set up (which is why there was no content last month) to work on these things. So more will come in the following weeks for sure! (Also i will get those trap rooms ready for the DMs Guild)

Cover Artwork by Victoe Garcia All Artwork except Scourge Beast by From Software Scourge Beast Artwork by EdwardDelandre

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I got this lovely spellbook from Etsy (seller is Estragonhelmer), for divine magic casters in D&D/Pathfinder.

Seeing as I mostly play Paladins (both holy and secular knightly variants), I really like the look of it, and couldn’t resist inscribing it with my spells, trying some calligraphy (still learning) and bottoming the page with a passage from a holy text IRL that sums up the feeling of what the spell is trying to accomplish; seeing as Divine Magic is essentially prayer, I think it fits. :)

@wearepaladin @wearecleric

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The Littlest Wererat

You enter the town and hear rumors about a wererat. It turns out that its just a little girl who uses her wererat powers to politely tell mice and rats to leave people alone.

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Idea: Once, Twice, Shoot!

On another account, I might be getting involved in a RP where the two characters involved will need to swordfight. Should we decide a “winner” should be determined between the two, I made this quick 5-sign Rock Paper Scissors system that we could work with:

I’m sharing it here ‘cause this could actually be an interesting substitute for certain tabletop mechanics.

DMs; tired of the “do whatever you want as long as you roll high enough on a d20″ system? Have a campaign with some roshambo systems like my fencing system above! Physical battle, magical battle, ranged battle, persuasion, seduction; get creative with different places a roshambo system could fit in!

Plus, limiting the commands like this could simplify the game for newcomers, and could offer more chance or individuality with enemy NPCs. You can set enemies with certain commands, and either set each command’s frequency or just roll for a completely random skill.

You could assign number values to the skills, such as:

1d6:

1) Attaque

2) Bind

3) Coulé

4) Parry

5) Thrust

6) Roll again.

… but if you just stick to RPS systems of 3 signs, you could do 1d6, or go look up rock-paper-scissors dice. I have a pair of large d12s with sides labeled Rock, Paper, or Scissors!

Happy gaming!

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Give your campaign a sewer level. By which I mean push your players down a manhole.

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skelator having issues in he-man & shera a christmas special

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D4 Taverns of Waterdeep

Yeah, you could go to the yawning portal, but you could end up in one of the numerous other inns around the historic city. Roll on the table for your random tavern! (Inspired by Ed Greenwood’s ‘Volo’s Guide to Waterdeep’ 1992)

1) The Gentle Mermaid: Located near the docks, this establishment has the largest and richest gambling halls in Waterdeep.The establishment keeps their clients safe and comfortable by hiring a strong security that does not send mixed messages to possible thieves or rabble rousers.

2) The Misty Beard: This unique tavern is run by two half elven sisters who are willing to hire the more monstrous beings of the world. Their presence adds an air of mystery to the establishment allow the sisters to increase their prices. It is not uncommon to see a Minotaur busboy, a sprite wiater, or a myconid cook through the kitchen window.

3) The Full Cup: This small tavern on the seedier side of town has a lovely ‘Beware Monsters Within’ sign posted on the door. It refers to its clientele of course who are a bit rough, don’t flower their words, and love to add to the pile of rubble outside composed of broken tables and chairs from their fighting. You aren’t considered a regular until you earn your first black eye in a brawl there.

4) Felzoun’s Folly: This three-story bustling eatery is filled with the aroma of fine seafood and quiet whispers. It is said that you can fence stolen wares with many of the merchants here or buy illegal wares. There is one tale of a merchant lord who wholesales a band of mercenaries to win his feud over dinner here one evening.

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D4 City Pickpockets

‘I rolled a 76 on my slight of hand! What did I find!’ Tired of just handing them a coin purse? Roll on the table to determine what they nicked from their victim.

1) Wooden Beholder Toy: A rare find since it was discontinued for its association with Xanathar and his brutality. (can be sold to a collector for 10 gp)

2) Jade Dice: A fine crafted set of common gaming dice used in various games. (20 gp)

3) Tiny Shovel: This tiny spade looks like it’s meant to be used by a child in the sand, but it’s actually magical and allows the wielded to use the cantrip Mold Earth at will. (100 gp)

4) Mithril Flask of Nyanzaru Rum: This dark spiced rum is crafted by the merchant princess Kwayothe. A lovely and rare drink in a Mithril flask. (125 gp)

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This is the lucky clover cat. reblog this in 30 seconds & he will bring u good luck and fortune.

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The fourth installment of the d100 Common Magic Items. A warning that some might be verging into ‘Uncommon’ and some are sinking into joke territory.

Created with lots of help from @korvusdnd

Note: These range from common to uncommon. In general, their cost can be higher than what it says on the sheet (Common magic items run from 50gp to 100gp, and uncommon can be as much as 500 gp, but they might be worth more in settings where magic is rarer). They are intentionally vague at times, so that the DM can fill in whatever details are appropriate.

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i mean the zombie apocalypse is technically just a bunch of humans voreing each other

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Monster Hunter D&D ½

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(Context: I play as a Kenku named Cackle. Our group just cleared a dungeon full of skeletons, but decided to go back and rest before taking on (presumably) the boss. There’s a child’s skeleton located in a doorway leading to the dungeon halls.)

Me: (IC, after the party is refreshed and full of confidence) Cackle absently kicks the skeletal remains they initially found aside.

Sorcerer OOC: CACKLE

Rogue OOC: CACKLE

Everyone: CACKLE

DM: Make a Wisdom saving throw.

Me: FUCK (fails the throw)

DM: After Cackle thoughtlessly kicks the skeleton aside, she finds herself unable to move. A rage seeps into her very bones, but it is not her own. Slowly, her hand reaches for her mace.

Cackle (possessed):  FOOLS.

Warlock OOC: WOW

Paladin OOC: OH NO

Sorcerer OOC: NO

Bard OOC: CACKLE

Paladin OOC: CACKLE

Everyone: CACKLE!