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hey here’s a website where you can report webpages that contain child abuse content, including pedophilia and “non-photographic child sexual abuse images.” it’s a reputable resource that helps to shut down around 60,000 websites a year

boosts appreciated, this is a site we should all have bookmarked

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People loooove complex characters until they’re women

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rb if you’d wipe all pedophiles off this earth

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D&D 5e Homebrew Mechanic: Heroic Rescues

Sometimes the GM might throw players a bone if they are about to die in an unspectacular way, but that feels like the players have plot armor. The Heroic Rescue puts power in the hands of the players to save their comrades instead of a deus ex machina from the GM.

Instead, players get to narratively attempt to do something you might only see in movies, something which you might not have gotten to do without a readied action.

Heroic Rescues can make players survive easier in your campaign, so it’s essentially a stronger version of Inspiration. How often you allow players to use Heroic Rescues in-game dictates how easy it might be for players to escape bad situations. Here are some examples of frequency:

One player can attempt a Heroic Rescue each session.

Each player can attempt one Heroic Rescue each session.

Only one Heroic Rescue can be attempted each in-game day.

Any player can spend their Inspiration to attempt a Heroic Rescue.

Players accumulate one Heroic Rescue use at each level, and may gain additional uses through excellent roleplaying or as rewards from powerful beings. Uses do not replenish.

Players have one Heroic Rescue use which replenishes when they complete a long rest.

Players accumulate one Heroic Rescue use at 1st, 5th, 10th, and 15th levels. They replenish whenever they complete a long rest.

Heroic Rescues

When a creature falls to 0 hit points, fails their final death save, or is about to fall victim to a deadly peril, a nearby ally can use their reaction to perform a Heroic Rescue. 

The rescuer describes how they attempt to rescue the victim. In general, a creature cannot attempt an action that makes them move beyond their movement speed nor can they attempt something that would take longer than an Action. 

The GM assigns an ability that best exemplifies the rescue action and sets a DC. The rescuer then makes a saving throw using that ability. If the save is successful, the victim is rescued from the danger. The rescuer makes the necessary movements and actions to do so. If the victim was already at 0 hit points, they become unconscious at 1 hit point.

Examples

(DEX DC 20) Making a ranged weapon or spell attack to knock a weapon out of an enemy’s hands before it lands a killing blow.

(STR DC 15) Running to a downed ally and yanking them out of the way of a falling chandelier. 

(DEX DC 15) Standing below a falling character and attempting to catch them.

(STR DC 15) Holding back an executioner’s axe mid-swing.

(INT DC 20) Reversing a baleful magical effect wasting away a creature’s body.

(WIS DC 20) Taking on a psychic attack meant for your weakened ally and resisting it through force of will.

(CON DC 15) Holding up a burning-hot obstacle so your ally can escape.

(CHA DC 20) Convincing your charmed ally that you love and care about them to break the charm’s effect.

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i still don’t get why bards are the horny class bc their main stat is charisma when the sorcerer, warlock, and paladin both have charisma as their main stat and like i can kinda get paladins bc the phb kinda has them look like youth pastors with a great sword but like warlocks literally cannot exist without some magical sugar daddy granting them magic powers and sorcerers are literally all descended from monster fuckers and yet i’ve yet to see anyone make a warlock or sorcerer that was just the biggest fucking thot in the material plane and you know what you can make your paladin follow the god of fertility and boom they can be the sluttiest one in the entire multiverse have you met a catholic person???????

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Reblog and you’re guaranteed to be successful at whatever you do next!

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If the DM is 15 minutes late we're legally allowed to level up

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20+ Shopkeeper Greetings For When Your Players Go Shopping!

The shopkeeper greets you with a nervous but friendly “Finest wares for the finest prices. I promise.”

The shopkeeper greets you with a warm “Welcome, how may I be of service to you today?”

The shopkeeper greets you with an apathetic “What is it? Need something?”

Before you begin to peruse, the shopkeeper greets you with a passive aggressive “All store prices are final and non-negotiable, understand?”

The shopkeeper greets you while pushing away another customer with a crude “Next!”

The shopkeeper greets you with a rather pushy “What do you need?”

The shopkeeper greets you with a gentle bow.

The shopkeeper greets you with a boastful “I have the best goods for miles around.”

The shopkeeper is reading something and completely ignores you.

The shopkeeper welcomes you with a friendly smile but no words.

The shopkeeper is talking with somebody and pays no attention to you.

The shopkeeper greets you with a rather aggressive “You break it, you buy it.”

The shopkeeper is busy arguing with another client and is unable to welcome you.

The shopkeeper is busy with another client, but a quick glance your way shows you’ve been noticed.

The shopkeeper welcomes you with a friendly, but odd glance.

The shopkeeper stares at you as you enter the store.

The shopkeeper greets you with a rude “Be quick about your business.”

The shopkeeper is busy with another client, but still manages to welcome you.

The shopkeeper is clearly pretending to be too busy to welcome you.

The shopkeeper greets you with a hearty “Welcome. If you need any help, all you have to do is ask.”

The shopkeeper seems to be sleeping on the desk.

The shopkeeper welcomes you with a courteous bow and a friendly “Welcome to my humble store, it is my pleasure to be in your presence.”

The shopkeeper greets you with a rehearsed “I got the best deals anywhere.”

The shopkeeper greets you with an impatient “Time is money, friend.”

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A portrait of a blood elf for @hoparnoz  ( ‘ u ‘ )

I’ve included another point in the process I liked a lot, and two other sketches that I didn’t go with when sketching her out.

I’ve included an alternate version on DeviantArt. 

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Narrating Combat in D&D

Combat descriptions are always difficult to come up with on the fly. Here is a guide with some tips and tricks to make your combat more interesting and dramatic!

image credit: Michael Komarck

Hit Points

When a creature or player gets hit by an attack, think about the situation surrounding the attack. Has the creature already taken damage? Figure out how much damage is being dealt before describing the attack. Is it a lot of damage or a little? How tough is the defender? is it merely a pinprick to them or a grievous wound? No matter how you slice it, hits always come back to one thing: Hit Points.

So something important that you should know about Hit Points: just because you subtracted “Hit Points” and they took “damage” doesn’t necessarily mean you actually drew blood. Most people always default to “you stab them in the face/chest/neck.” Well that’s a pretty gruesome and very lethal hit. Most creatures would probably just flat-out die from that. This isn’t a Tom & Jerry cartoon where creatures squash and stretch to absorb the damage.

To help ease into a creature’s eventual demise over a large span of Hit Points, try describing nonlethal ways that creatures and players “take damage." Have each attack wear down the creature. Only draw blood when a player lands multiple blows or rolled a high attack or damage roll (basically when the player feels good about their attack) or when they fall below half hit points. That’s why we use the term "bloodied,” after all! Here are some examples of some pre-bloodied attacks:

Your deft swordplay is wearing out the defender as they struggle to parry your strikes!

The creature is backed into a corner, its options for defenses running thin!

Their weapon is buffeted by your blows and knocked away. Now’s your chance!

The horseman is knocked from their mount, leaving them battered and bruised as they roll back to their feet!

Your ambush forces the orc to deflect your dagger with their bare hand to save itself. It yowls in pain!

Your mace clobbers the knight upside its head, dazing them as a metallic sound reverberates through their helmet! Backpedal in confusion.

The wizard wrinkles their brow as they deflect your attack with a hasty shield, this one weaker than the last. Their concentration seems to be failing!

Once a creature is bloodied, then you can start with the more lethal attacks. Save the head, neck, chest, and femoral artery hits for when the creature is about to die. But by all means, stab them in the kidneys, flay some muscle from their arm, chop off one of their antennae or extra limbs. Don’t be afraid to impart status debuffs for certain hits (even if the attack wasn’t necessarily a crit). For instance, if they take a leg wound they might have slightly reduced speed as they limp around the battlefield. Perhaps you cut off their hand or shot out an eye, rendering the part useless until they receive magical healing. Here are a list of almost-lethal places where I like to describe hits that works for most humanoids:

Hit Table (1d10):

1: Eyes: blind them for 1 round if just one eye, or permanently if both.

2: Ears: deafen them for 1 round if just one ear, or permanently if both.

3: Hand/Fingers: deny them the use of that hand. If they wield a two-handed weapon, they do so with disadvantage.

4: Arms: if just a wound, give them -1 to attacks with that arm. If the limb is chopped off, obviously they can’t use it.

5: Legs: half their speed. Reduce their speed to 5 ft. if the limb is chopped clean off.

6: Belly: reduce their speed by 5 ft. and give them the Poisoned condition.

7: Lower Back: no major negative impact, but they shouldn’t lift any heavy objects for 6-8 weeks.

8: Side Torso: no major negative impact, but they should definitely have that looked at for internal damage.

9: Shoulder: no major negative impact. Make sure they wear a sling so it heals properly.

0: Butt: hilarity ensues. They can’t sit down without immense pain.

Misses

Yes, it’s really fun to hit with an attack and roll high damage dice, but people oftentimes will remember a great missed attack just as fondly. In fact, a DM that doesn’t describe a miss could risk making that player feel left out or frustrated if they miss often. So make the misses memorable and dramatic.

Keep in mind what sort of weapon they were using when they missed, or what sort of things in the environment maybe got hit instead. Heck, maybe a miss might help their situation if they break something that puts them on the advantage! Maybe they hit a support beam instead of the gnoll. You have them roll for damage, and it’s a huge amount! The support beam snaps and rocks from the old mine start to cave in a 20 ft. radius! Have everyone roll DEX saves!

Something like that works especially well on a critical failure. Always describe a critical failure in a special way, maybe imposing a debuff on the person who missed or changing the situation somehow. A comical gaffe is always welcome here, as well.

Critical Miss Ideas:

Attacker strikes a nearby object instead

Attacker’s weapon becomes damaged or broken (unless it’s a magical item)

Attacker’s weapon becomes stuck or disabled for their next turn (maybe a sword stuck in a log or a jammed crossbow)

Defender knocks the weapons from the attacker’s grasp

Attacker accidentally strikes themselves for half the normal damage

Defender rolls out of the way, repositioning themselves behind the attacker.

Personality

Accentuate the creature’s personality by characterizing HOW they perform certain actions. A duelist might stab precisely for your thigh, but an ogre might swing a club clumsily. This can lead to comical gaffes, like the duelist yelling “ha-HA! …oh?” as their sword slips past you and they fall on their face, despite you just calling their strike precise. The ogre can easily miss their swing and because of the clumsiness you described causing them to follow through and spin around, getting dizzy and confused for a turn.

Consider how the creature is reacting to their current Hit Point status. Do they clutch at their wound? Do they punch their wound and roar at their attacker? Are they unphased by their wound like an undead? Are they on the ground writhing in pain?

Diving into the character of an enemy will help you guide both their combat decisions and how you narrate the action. Here are some common fighting personality tropes:

Cocky: A cocky creature is fearless, but to an extent where they may make mistakes. They will also likely taunt their enemies.

Clumsy: Big, dumb creatures or drunken brawlers will not pay any heed to their surroundings, maybe even be easier to fall prone or fall for combat tricks.

Stoic: A stoic creature is likely able to notice everything in combat as they approach the battle logically and without emotion. Think highly-trained warriors like knights or samurai.

Fearful: A fearful attacker is actively trying to get away from or avoid combat.

Fearless: A fearless creature is what you typically see of a heroic attacker.

Gleeful: A gleeful attacker delights in violence and will do whatever they can to cause pain.

Angry: An angry attacker will fight recklessly without regard to their surroundings.

Hungry: A hungry creature is looking for a meal. If they get seriously hurt, they will likely just leave to find easier prey.

Confused: A confused creature will be on the defensive. It wasn’t planning on fighting today.

Environment

Use the environment to guide combat. Even if your players aren’t clever enough to utilize the environment, that doesn’t exclude the enemies! And hey, if players witness what the enemies are doing, maybe they will learn to follow suit or just be inspired to fight more creatively. I actually had an NPC fighting alongside the players one time. They went into a cave with some bugbears around a smoldering campfire. He first kicked some of the embers up into one of the bugbears’ eyes, blinding them for a turn. Then he kicked a bugbear over a log and face-first into the fire. The other players were simply on autoattack mode, but were thankful for the debuffs provided by the creative use of environment.

I can’t really provide a complete list for this, as there are nigh-infinite combinations of generic objects that can be used to gain an upper-hand, but here is a link to one of my older posts about using environmental factors in combat!

For more content on narrating spellcasting in combat, check out this post!

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Top Tips for your First DND Character!

I’ve been playing for a few years now, and my three characters so far have each built on what I learned in the previous game. But my DM told me my most recent one is “on a new level” (HELL YEAHHH) and I wanted to share what I did differently making him!

Be good at one thing - negatives elsewhere are fine

With my first character, I put my ability score increases where I had negative modifiers rather than actually making him better at things that mattered. He’s a rogue, he doesn’t need to be strong! It’s okay to be bad at some things (even REallY BaD) if you’re good at your class-specific skills. A noodle-armed, wise druid is an effective druid.

Don’t make them you

My first two characters’ morality aligned pretty closely with mine; my newest one does not. It’s easier to separate myself from him and his decisions and have more fun playing the game. Fights between characters are just fights between characters that way; it doesn’t feel like they’re yelling at you!

Give them a goal

This is the biggest difference between my first two characters and my newest one. My first character wants the party not to murderhobo everywhere, my second wants sort of nebulous world peace; my third is in the Feywilds seeking his best friend who vanished, and will do anything to accomplish his goal. He’s got a hypocritical streak because of that, and he doesn’t think things through (he made a rash promise to an archfey last session that is definitely going to come bite him, all because she said she might have information to help him find his friend). Again, it’s helping me separate myself from any consequences he might bring on himself, but it also makes it easier to play him and make decisions for him, and to give the DM some good good drama buttons™ to push in the game.

Feel free to reblog this with your own tips! Making characters can be really daunting, and these are easy strategies to work towards in the process.

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D&D: Alternative Take on Skills

In Dungeons and Dragons, we are to make skill checks for when we want to do something like bashing through doors, picking locks, or trying to convince someone that you’re not just three kobolds in a coat. But sometimes the skills you have don’t fit the mold of the situation. For example, you are trying to diagnose somebody with a broken leg, but your wisdom score sucks compared to your intelligence despite being proficient with medicine. Normally, this makes your medicine skill pretty useless, but what if we change what ability score we are using with which skill?

In D&D, you don’t need to use the ability score that your skill is often paired up with. The fact that the books often organize checks as your Ability (your Skill) should tell you that the game allows for you to change which ability score can be used with which skill in any check.

In the example with diagnosing a sick or injured person, it is expected that you would make a Wisdom (Medicine) check, but the more accurate check would actually be Intelligence (Medicine). You are trying to identify the problem with knowledge and logic, so realistically your Intelligence score is more appropriate than your Wisdom which implies you know how to cure the problem rather than learning what it is. In the case where you need to perform a surgery, a Dexterity (Medicine) check would fit as it represents the need for steady hands during a delicate procedure.

It is one of those lesser known rules of the game due to how rare it is that official modules ask for these nonstandard checks. Xanther’s Guide to Everything is one of the rare times an official book tells you can do this, and it is honestly something I wish more DMs other than myself do in their games. That and using tools as checks that isn’t thieves’ tools. Changing what ability scores are paired with what skills also really expands what your character can do.

Here are some more examples:

Charisma (Athletes): You are coaching somebody else into accomplishing an athletic feat like lifting weights.

Constitution (Stealth): You are holding your breath while hiding underwater to stay out of sight from some nasty foes.

Wisdom (Nature): You are doing some gardening.

Charisma (Religion): You are preaching a sermon for your religion/god.

Strength (Animal Handling): You are trying to wrangle an animal that’s out of control.

Intelligence (Acrobatics): You have vast knowledge of how to perform many acrobatic feats and what they are called.

Dexterity (Performance): You are juggling objects for the purpose of entertainment.

Strength (Intimidation): You can break something to show the other guy that you mean business.

The list can go on forever, but the point is that as long as you have the imagination and willingness to stray from the concept of marriage between abilities and skills then your games can greatly improve in quality. Characters who feel like they are pigeonholed into one job can find themselves with more wiggle room. This also breathes new life in skills that barely get any use because either magic or the DM replaces the need for them.

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An Amateur DM’s Worldbuilding Thoughts...

I should write my own sea shanties for my nautical campaigns.

There should be a stage in the tavern in case the Bard wants to perform.

I wish I knew more about food so I could write better tavern menus.

A lot of NPCs are probably farmers; potato farmers, fruit farmers, cattle farmers etc.

I should include more diverse NPCs.

Natural disasters can be the basis for an adventure, what’s causing the tsunamis on the coast, what’s making volcanoes erupt and earthquakes happen.

I should use weather and environments to evoke emotions and imagery way more.

Asian hair tends to be thick and straight, whereas European hair tends to be thinner and can be wavy, and African hair tends to be coarse and have very tight curls.

Historical accounts suggest that some women tried to bleach their hair with lemon juice or darken it with indigo or even mud to fit the current trends, so maybe the players meet a lighter haired woman who smells faintly of lemons!

A wizard’s spellbook probably has stains on its parchment from various foods and drinks.

A mute NPC would be a fun way to test myself and see if I can express concepts and ideas to the Party without just saying them.

“Common” often refers to English, but what about different dialects?

I should come up with more fantasy slang and insults.

Some regional fantasy greetings would be a cool way to immerse the Players in the world, such as “Be Pleasured.” meaning “Hello!”.

I should expand on the cosmology of the material plane, what constellations are in the sky, can the Players see other planets if they look up, how many moons does the world have?

The Party, when they’re famous enough, probably have random people wanting to speak with them or get their autograph, which would be a great way to break up any monotony caused by shopping montages or downtime activities.

In a busy urban city, there’s probably a lot of street food and street performers.

In a big city, there’s probably a lot of horses and carriages passing through, so the Party probably aren’t walking in the middle of the road unless the road is too small for that sort of thing.

A country is probably broken up into provinces, counties or territories, and cities are probably broken up into districts.

What’s the longest road or trading route in the world? And why is it so popular?

What’s the longest river or mountain range in the world? Where’s the highest mountain located?

Where are the fault lines in the world? Would there be lot’s of mountains or lots of earthquakes there?

Which countries have the best archers or soldiers or cavalry? Which country has the best naval fleet?

If giant animals and dire beasts (like dire wolfs and giant owls) exist, would people try to use them like cavalry, with people flying giant owls carrying power-kegs so they could drop bombs on the bad guys, or people riding armoured dire beasts into battle…

Certain regions probably have certain cuisines, which would be reflected in their tavern menus.

Different cultures have different views on music, as well as different superstitions and different folk tales.

Different cultures have different architecture, from wood or stone buildings to tents to maybe no “Buildings” at all!

Before a person becomes an adventurer, they were most likely a farmer or labourer of some kind.

Wizards and bards would be great translators.

What does the flag or banner of each country look like, or do certain parts of the country have their own heraldry or coat of arms?

People from the Underdark probably eat a lot of fungus, plants and bugs, so most probably don’t even know what “Meat” is!

There’s lot of downtime entertainment that could engage the Party, from underground fight clubs to libraries to arenas and theatres.

Each district or province of an area probably has their own landmarks, from rivers and castles to statues and other more fantastical landmarks like famous magic shops.

Festivals, Fairs and Concerts are always a fun way to introduce players to a new culture or city. Perhaps it’s a noble ball that’s invite only, or perhaps the festival doesn’t even take place on this plane of existence!

Most birds don’t react to super spicy food (like chilli peppers) like humans do, so most bird-like D&D Races (like Kenku and Aarakocra) might absolutely love (or hate) spicy food!

Sunlight entering water can travel about 3,000 feet under the right conditions, but there is rarely any significant light beyond about 600 feet, meaning you could potentially have underwater combat take place in complete and utter darkness!

Does my world have fishing laws? Like do they care about fish population enough to have laws to help prevent over-fishing?

A party member hears footsteps and whispers from outside their room, only to open their door and find another patron of the inn trying to sneak to their room without waking anyone up.

Fantasy street food can be pretty much anything! From chocolate to meat on skewers to noodles or even sausages stuffed and grilled quickly right in front of the Players as they walk through the streets!

It’s definitely a strength check to try and break out of bonds, but it’s a dexterity check to wiggle yourself out of handcuffs or bindings, remember that!

 Hobo Symbols (an actual thing created by wandering adventurers and nomads) could make for a great way to communicate places of interest to a Party of New Adventurers.

I should use Electrum Pieces more often.

Characters with more siblings means more fun and relevant NPCs you could put in interesting positions. For example, imagine the brother or sister of a Party Member working for the opposing side during a war….

The BBEG could have multiple enemies or allies in high and low places, meaning potential new allies and enemies for the Party to make.

If you want your Players to think you’re a galaxy brain DM, drip feed info little by little into parts of the campaign from the very start, both in and out of combat, that way when the big reveal comes along, the Players think you’re a big-brained master of plot and storytelling!

Some taverns could have darkened or tinted windows, since that’ll make every drunkard inside think it’s still early in the night.

If a band of bards is playing in a tavern, the Party can probably hear the noises from outside.

More taverns should have a dance-floor!

There should be more families in taverns and inns, since most taverns and inns are similar to hotels or restaurants.

The walls and ceilings of a tavern could be filled with all sorts of things: Light fixtures, chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, wooden beams supporting the walls. Or maybe something more artistic: Paintings, mounted animal heads, tapestries, curtains hanging above windows and doors, just to give a few examples…

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“I can excuse necromancy, but draw the line at tax evasion!” - the party cleric.

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Felix the Warlock

Forgot to post these before now but hey! Here’s some doodles of a Dragons n’ Dungeons fancyman whose waking hours are tormented by a dudebro squid! 🐙

(DON’T EDIT, REPOST TO OTHER SITES OR ACCOUNTS)