The recent addition of Drops subscription content to DnD Beyond is going to challenge me.
I’m running only a single intermittent 5e campaign right now. The Ferments uses 2024 as its base set, but permits things from Black Flag, 2014 and A5e in general, with a quick scan to make certain that the addition fits within the campaign themes and the setting’s common lore.
In the past it’s been easy to judge what works and doesn’t. Book releases are heavily themed. Most grimdark will not fit in The World of the Everflow. Dragon stuff always fits. Giant stuff rarely fits. The new dinosaur book added to Beyond fits well in an undiscovered-to-this-point land.
But now there are weekly drops. The player facing stuff needs a quick review. Maps and stickers won’t matter because we aren’t using the Maps VTT. The cosmetics are fine, because they help a player connect with their character.
Teos explains the broader program.
Evaluating the content to fit The Ferments and The World of the Everflow
First off, the five feats added are all extra planar in a way that has not been explored in our games through the several hundred sessions of play plus writing and backstory. There’s only been a single Warlock.
Those are going to be easy to ignore. If I could toggle them off at the campaign level I would.
All five feats = no
Pact Seeker background = with lore tweak and different feat
Astral Flood = yes, fully
Buzzing Bee = yes, fully
Insidious Rhythm = yes, fully
Leomund’s Lamentable Belaborment = yes, fully
Sticks to Snakes= yes, but DM content only
The Pact seeker background doesn’t fit as written. The lore doesn’t work because of the demand that the pact is extraplanar, but if a player wanted to rework that and take a new origin feat it would be allowed. Maybe they are seeking a pact with a religious figure, an elder dragon, a scholar or something similar.
There are also five spells in the first Drops.
Astral flood fits unchanged. The Astral and Ethereal are somewhat merged in my world and opening that up to the physical realm would be devastating.
Buzzing bee is excellent. My first encounter with Bee was the useless cantrip from Unearthed Arcana back in the 80s. This is better and needed. It fits the use of animals for the Kin too.
Insidious Rhythm is a fun spell too. The magic of performance by Bards and others would be the path of introduction.
Leomund’s Lamentable Belaborment may not fit combat well. It does fit in social and political settings. Players will definitely find a way to turn a crowded room into a debate-disaster.
Sticks to Snakes is a classic spell, but this version is quite underpowered for 2024. It adds in-combat complexity for low damage. It reads more like a 2nd level spell and not a 4th. For narrative purposes it fits the world well. But it’s a waste for a player. This will be DM content only.
Eleven player facing items this week needed to be reviewed. Next week there will be more. And then there will be more. And more.
It’s going to be too much.
And each drop and each book from every publisher stretches and pushes a world. But fantasy worlds are not only defined by being permissive. They are also defined by what’s forbidden.
Every world a DM and their tables creates can choose to be a global fantasy (kitchen sink) or be as neatly defined as the group wants.
With Drops the default in the Everflow will not be for permission, but to evaluate what a player wants to add as they want to add it in order for us to continue to explore the themes of the world — how strong can the love between person and animal be, who gets to control access to knowledge, how can our local connections make the world better for most.
Walking past Idarak’s I grab a fresh peach off one of his trees. Nightbridge tends to have more of the old fruits and Idarak’s family keeps a small grove. Plus Edarra wants a white bucket soon, with some falls from the Dead Forest (obviously not the red oak or black maple — other trees seem to be seeding too).
Visiting the Dead Forest now is this weird mix of Council Guard, elves, dwarves, Daoudians, Kirtin-ish — crowded and uncommon. We Rudes need to go there because our buckets and casks are expected to have staves and finishes from the Forest. That may not last. Craft has to change and if dragons come back I do not need that risk. Maybe something from the island or up toward Kirtin proper.
Anyway, I’m off to see if it’s safe.
This is a daily assessment in Kirtin-on-the-Lake. There’s so many competing interests. The old neighborhoods and walls don’t mean as much. If dragonken settle in a few blocks that’s a new neighborhood — with magic everywhere.
Refugees from the destruction in Kirtin-in-the-Sky are trying to move in with cousins they ain’t seen in decades. Kirtin is a mess.
The peach is good, though. Really good.
Yaffy’s cackle-call echoes through the street from behind. Yaff hates visiting the forest, because those trees are not for him. He’ll always find a way to dilly-dally on the way. I think he ‘reads’ the neighborhood more than Kyrik, my little ratting dog that stays home, always.
I’m not of the born generation. I don’t have magicks.
The forest seems to refuse us and accept the youngsters with their elementalisms, enchantments and energies. This works in my favor. A few copper to the youth you have these abilities for each of the sticks I can turn into staves.
That peach is already gone. It’s three bites for an old stoney like me. Apple’d be two, but the pit gets in the way. I toss the pit to Yaffy as I sit down on a bench.
Casking for someone up in The Rise means gathering stick for art, proper wood carving ‘ll be needed too. I’ll see if maybe I can convince a dragonken to do it, mayb an elf. Edarra will pay.
Blues and whites without paints thanks to the woods from those trees come from a few kids. Those dragontrees seem to be shedding. There will be new dragons soon.
I shudder.
In-the-sky went from mighty city to flooded caverns with most bridges fallen into the waters.
Douad ain’t to protect us. Kirtin is a fighting force over on the Slope, but without leadership. Is it going to fall like Sheljar to the Necromancer? Broadsheets say the West is many cities without a kingdom now.
I need another peach. Or tea. Or ice cream (magicks are great for a few new discoveries). Or a game.
My mind wanders under this constant pressure of not knowing how this city will fall further into disrepair or if maybe it can rise like Sheljar under the Free City movement.
I stick the staves and falls into my basket. Yaffy leading the way to church. Quar’s followers have the Everflow — that’s better than wine, it’ll heal, even a broken soul.
Then it’s back to work.
This narrative slice of life was an attempt at Tuesday Afternoon, a technique to test world building to see if the created world makes sense for normal people.
Kirstin-on-the-Lake was the center of the Uprising & Rebellion campaign. It is the former winter capital of Kirtin, but was conquered by Daoud for most of the past several centuries. It is now controlled by neither nation with influences of both, with the new council system taking over governance while the Dragons come back to the Dead Forest, goblins land at their airxip tower, and the visitors from Sheljar.
Sudes Rudes is a clerk. His animal companion is a green woodpecker named Yaffy. He also has a non-bonded ratting dog Kryrik. Sudes is a goliath with Kirtin-ish heritage (stone) whose beard is tinged with the blue-greys (wave) more common in Daoud.
Not all desert communities are near an oasis. Long ago the Spineblooms settled in a desert area where the West Thundermoon River took a slow bend. Along that bend in the shallow salty marsh they do their best to raise some rice, as well as some fruited cacti, peppers, vines and largeflower onions in pods.
Originally the Spineblooms were a group of goliath druids, frequently connected to storms and fire. For many generations they’ve lived on The Bend in earthen huts only partially protruding from the ground.
Now, most are not magical. Instead they raise birds — herons (to fish), mynahs (pest control), bulbuls (warnings), waders (fishers) — in an aviary. They frequently trade their rice and catch upriver at the Multunyn Trading Post.
The Location
Based on a sketch by the player that included domed buildings mostly underground
Ensuring environmental oddities of The Ferments are included.
Thundermoon River
Slow, wide and muddy at The Bend, the Thundermoon River floods every early spring and during storms. It is the source of water which has to be filtered prior to use.
Auntie Dauthia Spinebloom kée Dustcaller is here during the daytime, fishing.
Elemental affinity: Water
Hazards: People frequently get stuck in the sands, animals do not. Every second round in the river a person must make a DC: 12 Strength check or be restrained.
Allies: Birds from the aviary are common here.
Max occupancy: 10 medium creatures.
The River connects to Spinebloom Commons (the main home) and lower river marsh.
Lower rice marsh
Less productive than upper marsh, the lower marsh is an edge of wild marsh plants and some rice that isn’t farmed. Within the plants one may find a mud mephit rehydrating, or the chwinga family that settled in the Farm.
Elemental affinity: Mud, water, salt
Hazards: Some chwingas settled here after the mephit flood.
Allies: The chwingas may insist they are allies while acting like foes, or they are foes acting like allies.
Occupancy: 5 medium creatures.
Lower rice marsh connects to the Upper Marsh, Spinebloom Commons and to Thundermoon River.
Spinebloom commons
The main home is inside the Commons. It has a large kitchen and a conversation pit with several small beds cut into the earth at the edges. These ‘rooms’ are frequently sectioned off with blankets or robes, with only a tiny shelf for personal goods. At the entry to the hut is a placement for staves, cudgels and gardening equipment.
Every member of the Spineblooms spends significant portions of their days in the Commons. They will clean items, repair them, play, and gather. All property is communal and the next person will want to use it shortly — it gets left there.
Elemental affinity: Hearth, dust, earth
Hazards: Interior has several changes in elevation. The kitchen has many flare ups that could occur. During certain lunar conditions the conversation pit has a dust devil in the center. Exterior is cluttered with loose tools, toys, cleaning pans and other small chore sites. It is difficult terrain and an improvised weapon is always at hand. Creatures knocked prone may take damage from the clutter.
Allies: There are always Spinebloom children present. Roll 2d4 to see how many. Half will be small. 1d4-1 adults are also present.
Occupancy: 8 medium creatures outside and 8 medium creatures inside.
Spinebloom Commons is centrally located and connects to every other zone, except the Path of Dragons.
Guarase traded for many, many books. This works as a Library from Bastions with a single research project per week of Scheming.
Upper rice marsh — also known as Marsh Chwinga
Once upon a time the upper marsh was highly productive for rice, eels and herbs. Now it has long furrows of damage from two dragon/ken invasions and the curse of the chwingas make it flourish for foods while everyone dreads entering the space.
Elemental affinity: Water, mud, plants
Hazards: Chwingas may take a soul. When a creature drops to zero HP and fails two or more death saves the chwingas can choose to stabilize it, mud wrap the body and have it kept until the mud breaks. There is currently an elven mage encased. The Spineblooms have not attempted to free the elf as its group tried to damage their home.
Allies: In this space the Chwingas act through their blue thoughts, sideways from morality of people.
Occupancy: 7 medium creatures.
Chwinga marsh connects to the lower marsh, the Commons and the aviary.
Unkie homes
Adult and middle aged men are the Unkies. They are kept aside from the Commons and the Aunties. They maintain the extremely competitive nature of goliaths, using their abilities and size to show off during the days.
Most of the Spinebloom Unkies came of age during The Awakening. The elements rage within them, frequently out of control. Lalok is peaceful. Others have wandered away with the few that stay not quite fitting in with the farm’s demeanor weaving with nature and kin to grow and thrive as one.
Elemental affinity: Hearth, fire, air, water
Hazards: These homes have doors with locks and they can be barred from the outside. Random spouts of elemental anger pop up regularly.
Allies: Unkies are usually around, but disorganized and will wrestle solo.
Occupancy: 5 medium creatures outside. Each hut fits 1.
Unkie homes connect to the Aunties, to the Commons, to the River and to the path.
The Unkies are also trained to Rally and Funnel (militia actions).
Auntie homes
Most of the women of the family live in smaller huts here by ones and twos. These small dugouts are protection from the elements, but few have cooking hearths.
Two took significant damage during a dragon attack, one of which collapsed and is now a pit.
Elemental affinity: Hearth, dust
Hazards: The pit-home is a ten-foot fall.
Allies: Aunties are frequently in the area able to help with militia actions.
Occupancy: This is a larger space able to hold 12 medium creatures outside.
Auntie homes connect to the Unkie homes, the path, the aviary and the Commons.
Fruitful Aviary
A mix of cacti and spined bushes the aviary is the home of the non-waterfowl that companion with the Spineblooms. Some of the cacti have fruits that the family eat, turn into jam, and use for meads.
Unkie Lalok Goateye Spinebloom is found at the aviary most times of the day, sometimes sleeping near the spiney bushes. He can create a small pool of water for the bird bath if need be.
Elemental affinity: Plants, water
Hazards: The maze of briars and cacti are spiny everywhere. Those knocked prone will take damage.
Allies: Many birds and Unkie Lalok are present
Occupancy: 4 medium creatures usually separated by the plants.
The fruitful aviary connects to the Commons, the Path of Dragons, the auntie homes and the upper marsh.
Inside the fruitful aviary is an optical telegraph that looks like a large, janky spire. The telegraph connects to Ellis Mills at Pirna Farms. Three small mousekin operate it and stay in a small hut at its base.
Path of dragons
A few months ago this path was simply “the path.” It is bare trail with scratched ruts in hard dirt that heads towards the West Thundermoon Mountains.
Then dragons and their ken attacked. They attacked again. Since the river is where the Maltunyans visit, the path is now the Path of Dragons. Everyone assumes more dragons are coming soon. They left one of their own behind.
Elemental affinity: Dust, sand
Hazards: Drakes, dragons and their Ken may come at any time.
Allies: None
Occupancy: There is no limit.
The Path connects to the Auntie and Unkie homes.
Recently Guarase created a system of locks and canals to flood the path of dragons. A militia action can activate these. When this happens the Path of Dragons becomes difficult terrain and the rushing waters cause disadvantage on Dex-based d20 Tests.
Ask a Spinebloom and Auntie Dauthia is a Spinebloom. If you can convince Duathia to talk she may, eventually tell you she’s a Dustcaller, a separate desert goliath collective that lives even more remotely. She’s mastered the ability to use small dust devils to carry fishing lures and nets around the river, until she catches something.
Every member of the family has a different tale about what Auntie Dauthia did before they found her injured along the path. She was a thief, a sorcerer, clergy with the Reformed Church of Quar, a warrior of the wilds or some other mystical thing. They all agree that there is no better fisher in all the land and likely the world.
Unkie Lalok Goateye Spinebloom
Lalok once left the home to work in a caravan. He’s wandered the Ferments and Western Wildes, seen Telse and the Evereflow, visited the Cliffs of Galinor, and Fort Ooshar. He’s seen everything.
He’ll never tell you about his encounters protecting the caravan. It”s the cities and his friends he tells tales of while sipping on cacti mead and with a flutter of sandpipers around him. He still has a massive pike, a shield the size of a table and a helm missing a third of an eye ridge where is slightly bulging ‘goateye’ is.
Adversaries
Chwingas
These elemental sprites act on their own will, with purposes that center the elements, not people. Though intelligent, it is impossible for normal kin to understand what the chwingas want. They are extremely active when Unkies or ken are in the area. If someone tries to visit the encased elf the chwingas attempt to block that path through mischief and thievery.
Dragons and their ken
Twice ken and dragons struck at the Farm. They damaged upper marsh while attacking the Auntie homes and the Commons. These powerful magic users are not local to The Ferments and remind most of the myths of a time unification, before companionship.
Goblins
A recent raiding party from the south indicated that these goblins know how they can harvest the fires and flames of The Ferments to power their smog-buggies and other creations — as long as someone from The Ferments is with them.
One goblin is now trapped with the chwinga.
Downtime and Quests
Guarase is searching for answers as to why the dragons and their ken came to the Spineblooms. The two attacks leave few clues and lots of damage.
There is a body and two members of the family were away during The Awakening when magic came back to The Ferments.
D&D and its variants are often referred to as “combat simulations” or “tactical combat games” or “dungeon crawling miniature games” in a somewhat dismissive way that seeks to reduce the other things that players have their characters do during sessions and campaigns.
These mostly heroic characters do have a lot of combat support. A vast majority of the rules support violence portrayed in what is now six-second rounds. Combat’s scenes in 5th edition are done in expanded time taking many real minutes for less than thirty seconds of cinematic action.
But combat is not all of modern Dungeons & Dragons. Other pillars are supported.
The three main pillars of D&D play are social interaction, exploration, and combat.
Social interaction in the modern game is mostly done in scenes lasting a few minutes. These scenes take place in real time at the table. Ritual spells do not make sense in the context of social interaction because of the nature of social interaction. Other spell casting is less frequent than in combat, while it can still fit. The main engine of social interaction within the rules are skills (Charisma, Wisdom and Intelligence) and a light dusting of feature from class, archetype, feat or species.
Taking a longer period of time, historically measured in ten-minute chunks, is Exploration. This is abstracted in an opposite fashion from Combat in that where combat sees time expanded, Exploration compresses it. Some, but not all travel makes sense as exploration. Rituals are frequently used. Spells are common. Certain spells and features may make classic exploration challenges meaningless (Goodberry or Find & Remove Traps). But Exploration, the delve into dungeons, the searching the wildes, the entry to a wondrous temple or the site of a majestic floating city is and always will be a part of the D&D genre.
Between the 2014 core books, and Xanathar’s there are 37 sometimes overlapping options for what can be done with Downtime. The 2024 core books and the Forgotten Realms expansions add many Bastion and Crafting options onto this.
Most downtime choices are measured in weeks, though small projects are within days. These scenes are time-compressed frequently taking only a roll or two per character to resolve as weeks, months, maybe even seasons pass. In film, TV and books the montage is how downtime is presented. Pick your favorite heroic montage — we’ll get back to it.
Every class supports downtime activities in some capacity, especially with the 2024 ruleset adding on Bastions. Skill challenges, as adopted to 5e by some homebrewers, make sense as resolution systems for downtime, exploration and sometimes social events.
But downtime is often viewed by players and DMs as accounting, boring academics, spreadsheet management.
Even the name is boring.
Downtime has a branding problem
Stories and adventures are an assembly of beats, eventually leading to rising action, climax and resolution. There are sometimes downbeats, setback.
Downbeats.
Who wants downbeats? Who wants downtime.
Even how downtime is presented, either by name or by style of play (Bastions and Crafting), it is shown as an appendage with little support. Downtime is a thing to rush past, not to enjoy.
A Bastion offers a character temporary refuge from the dangerous world of adventuring, and it provides opportunities for a character to craft magic items, conduct research, harvest poisons, build ships, and carry out a range of other activities.
They do want the ability to craft magic items, research mysteries, harvest fantastic elements, carouse, gamble, set sail across an astral sea, or plot the overthrow of a corrupt regime.
Those are all upbeats, not downtime.
Downtime also a massive part of the game
Acquisitions Inc combines D&D and modern franchise capitalism for fun. It contains franchise rules. It also lists every one of the 2014 options in downtime at its point of publication.
These choices are things heroes do!
The options above belong at your table. At some tables the options in Dragon Heist, Acq Inc, Tasha’s (Group Patrons), Strixhaven (schooling) and other official and unofficial books expand your campaign in ways that make sense too.
Think of your favorite montage scenes in your personal Appendix N. Do they involve plotting the overthrow of a corrupt leader? Do they involve building a guild? Do they involve carousing to gain information? Do they involve long study to craft a previously unknown spell? Do you have a favorite montage that includes sowing rumors? Or mayhap one that involves training for new skills? You probably have one where the heroes prepare for a test of skill, chance or magic?
In traditional D&D that’s downtime.
In the fiction these things advance the plot and add excitement.
making intelligent, secret plans, often to deceive others
behaviour or activities that involve making clever secret plans intended to deceive people
In British English schemes aren’t necessarily deceptive or secret. They are plots and advancements, plans and procedures. They are the many days, weeks, months processes.
Both versions work for modern D&D, but the American concept of intelligent, secret plans especially fits my preferred themes.
Why Scheming? Other considerations
Concerns – while this captured the idea of the character being in charge of things it felt less involved in the plot and continued the ‘set aside’ concept of Downtime.
Occupations – but who wants to do work? That’s spreadsheet life, not plot advancement and fantastic discoveries.
Rejuvenation – is wonderful for healing, but poor for plot advancement and heroic actions over time.
Strategic play – this conveys the proper tone and your schemes should be strategic while other pillars are tactical.
Schemes involve rising action by heroes and antiheroes to get ready for the messy work that needs doing. Schemes are active plots and machinations (maybe that belongs above). Sometimes they are down notes, sometimes they are upbeats. They build rising action.
Unifying disparate subsystems into Scheming
Oracles ready to provide advice after a sacred rite (Photo by Dave Clark)
Crafting, Bastions, Franchises, Group Patrons, Schooling, Carousing, Sacred rites, Grand rituals, Research, Business operations, Running a faction, Guild matters, Training militias, Communal defense, Grand voyages ….
The list goes on.
When these are schemes they are multi-check montages where failure matters and the results fuel the story. They either help or hinder a character or party on their quest. They take time.
Whatever you take to calling downtime (and do include Bastions and Crafting when appropriate for your campaign) you need to unify this set of systems together.
Describe the quest with the amount before the pace of action changes again. Set the expectation that there is time to Scheme.
Players describe their goals using the above activities or a combination thereof to achieve that goal within the amount of time (measure in weeks).
Narrate the results of the actions. These may require skill checks, use of various features or cooperation in the party. If there isn’t meaningful failure there is not a check unless extraordinary success matters. Use an odd number of checks (3 or 5 are best) mimicking skill challenges or use group checks if everyone is cooperating. Or combine the two.
Move on from the Scheme into action with a faster pace taking note of how much time passed and what that means for those that oppose the group.
If that resolution system feels familiar it is because it is the basic rhythm of play at the table, while capturing the montage and compressed time nature of a Scheme.
It’s not a scheme if the activities are passive. It’s not a scheme if it doesn’t advance a quest or plot. It’s not a scheme if it is fast. It’s not a scheme if it is tactical.
Frankly it’s not worth doing at the table if the activity is passive and/or doesn’t advance the quest
Schemes are strategic, long-term, montage-y activities that advance the action fitting a rising narrative building the eventual heroes towards a climax. They should not be the climax, nor the resolution. A denouement can be a scheme as it preps for the next campaign.
Ways to add Schemes to common campaign types
Try working in schemes into your campaign. Use a timehop that creates challenges because the enemy is building a grand army. The timehop also gives the heroes time to train a militia (as in Wheel of Time).
In a heist adventure use a scheme as the way to collect the necessary materials or information, setting up the background before the strike on the location (as the Crows in Shadow & Bone).
Maybe the scheme is to collect a group of allies to help the party cross a perilous ocean or astral sea, commissioning a ship and its crew (as in One Piece).
Play a scheme at your table inspired by the fictions that inspire your D&D.
In the new Forgotten Realms books, Strixhaven, 5e Dragonlance and a recent Unearthed Arcana official D&D is using Feat trees/chains. Every published instance so far is a set of two.
While there are mechanical reasons to have tiered Feats every expression to this point also leans quite heavily into the story elements added. In Strixhaven the feat-taker goes from early student to late in the class. In Dragonlance a squire becomes a knight. In the Realms you are early in a Faction and then a powerful member of it.
The Feat helps tell the story in ways that a subclass wouldn’t because in all cases the feat has two expressions in Tier 1 available where a subclass gets a single expression. By the end of Tier 2 a subclass gets two expressions while a Feat chain can be up to four. There’s more space for story.
An initiate becoming an expert is the most common example. The chain (I prefer that to tree as the published versions are two options linked) naturally fit this.
Let’s explore how a Feat chain could tell a story in my homebrew world by looking at three feats connected to the Church of Quar.
In the Six Kingdoms of the World of the Everflow the Church of Quar is a hybrid church-healing center-merchant guild. It controls access to the healing waters of the Everflow at the Font of Two Paths in Telse. Their tongue became the common language of the Six Kingdoms because of the strong influence of their healing elixir in a world without magic.
No faith, no kingdom, no magic school after magic returned to the land has the influence of the Church of Quar. They’re in every town. That does not mean that every town has an Acolyte, a formal role represented by a member of the faith who is becoming a hero.
The following three feats expand the story of the Church of Quar for heroes (and villains) using the Feat system.
Acolyte of Quar
Origin Feat
You gain the following benefits.
Cultured. You learn an additional culture (or language).
Balm of rest. During a Short Rest you create a balm using a Healing Potion that removes one level of exhaustion and grants the creature advantage on a saving throw versus one condition with a save.
Blessing of the Everflow. When you administer a Healing Potion to a creature they may use a Hit Die to heal as well as gain the benefits from the Healing Potion.
Minister of Quar
Feat (prerequisites: Acolyte of Quar, 4th+ level)
You gain the following benefits.
+1 to Charisma or Wisdom
Oratory. You have Advantage when using Influence Action with Indifferent or Friendly peoples with which you share a culture or language (and Hostile creatures who are members of the Church of Quar).
Lord of Life. You learn the Aid spell and may cast it one time a day without using a spell slot. It becomes a known spell for you.
Lord of Rivers. You know how to create a Healing Potion (vial of Everflow) with only water and herbs. This lesser potion costs only 5 gp and can be created during a Short Rest. This potion is only half as effective as a standard Healing Potion. Sharing this concept is forbidden.
Free Minister of Quar
Feat (prerequisites: Acolyte of Quar, membership in the Reformed Church, 4th+ level)
You gain the following benefits.
+1 to Charisma or Constitution
Rivers and Roads. You learn two cultures or languages and the Religion skill (or another skill if you are already proficient). You have Advantage on Constitution checks brought about by Environmental Effects.
First Aid: Taking one minute you can grant a Hit Point to a stabilized creature. They are also subjected to Blessings of the Everflow if you have a Healing Potion available.
Together these dual Feat chains tell the story behind the Orthodox and Reformed Churches of Quar.
In just the tiniest bits of flavor text you see examples of how two branches of the faith are different, not just in their ability to be heroes, but what is expected from their most ardent believers.
Where a subclass gains features at 3rd, 6th and 10th level (mostly). Classes have feats at 1st, 4th, 8th, 12th (mostly). By 8th level a member of Quar’s faith could take all three faith feats, going on a journey from being part of a merchant-church to dedicated hedge healer.
This story doesn’t need to be connected to a class because they aren’t spellcasters. Plus, in the fiction inspiring the game contains people who are faithful without being clerics or druids or paladins.
Maybe another feat deals with Quars pantheon. After being an Acolyte of Quar the individual is a Devotee to Belsem the Untamed (leaning into animal companionship?) or a Teacher (adherent to Glight becoming an expert at knowing things). These would emphasize branching, which fits the pantheon.
The other pantheons may start dispersed and then unify (The Siblilngs) or emphasize bonding (Az and Sel) or only be about fellowship (Mehmd’s faith).
Maybe an aspect of your world is a military organization and feats could be ranks or branches. Does your world lean into magical schools like Strixhaven? A feat chain from underclass, to senior student, to teacher, to dean could work. A setting that anchors the horrors of the environment could use feats as a way to describe various paths to survival (water, shelter, food, community).
Feats are a discreet, light space that empowers all classes to carry bits of lore that connect to the world mechanically.
This post will not contain spoilers for Season 5 because I haven’t yet watched Season 5 of Stranger Things, though I do know it features more Dungeons & Dragons than Seaons 2-4 combined.
If you were to go into Target this fall you’d see a massive Stranger Things display somewhere in the store. Part of that display would feature the D&D boxed set Welcome to the Hellfire Club, which is a continuation of Eddie’s D&D campaign. It felt late, because Eddie isn’t part of season 5.
It was not late.
Welcome to the Hellfire Club sold out at Target. It sold out on Amazon. A light informal survey of local-to-me stores have it as sold out. The physical boxed set can still be ordered on DnDBeyond.
Sure, that could be a lack of ambition from Wizards of the Coast by not manufacturing enough of the sets.
It’s much more likely that the heavy lean back into D&D by Stranger Things Season 5 drove more desire for D&D the game than previous seasons, Critical Role and Baldur’s Gate 3. BG3’s drive of interest into D&D is hard to quantify, but has an extended window over several years.
Google Trends can show you.
Search trends for Stranger Things
Here are the four adjacent media and D&D
Stranger Things is more popular than the others by far.
D&D, the game, had its biggest boom from the movie, but…
Stranger Things Season 5 nearly matches D&D: Honor Among Thieves
There’s one major difference — lack of tie-in gaming products.
Rime of the Frostmaiden contained a single adventure related to the movie. There was a boutique NPC download related to the movie, but nothing like the amazing boxed set Stranger Things got. Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus was barely related to the video game and its release timing was horrible.
Nothing sold out because of Honor Among Thieves, the best D&D marketing in the history of the game, because D&D wasn’t run as a franchise system with business units failing to talk to each other.
Both the current starter set and Welcome to the Hellfire Club are selling out.
What’s that mean for us Dungeon Masters?
Be welcoming to new and returning players.
Reduce house rules when they join you.
Talk about the intent of your table and what type of play you focus on .
Be familiar with the most popular products.
Help teach your current players to DM.
See if local cafes, libraries, schools, pubs, etc need DMs.
We are responsible for growing this glorious hobby. Thanks to the Creative Commons, various SRDs, the eternal nature of homebrewing and the thousands of other roleplaying games there is always something that’s right for someone.
Find what’s right for your family, your friends and your community.
People are interested. It’s up to you to be the reason they stay interested.
TO: Flasfur Wreltor with Blackbirds and the gobkons Chofs Chupmolea badged al-Chems and Bolnis Abica nox Qawaha via Artok at the Keep
Aboard the ship you’ll find a vial of the corruption I discovered. Additionally this letter’s addendum includes a report of testing as well as a sketch-print of a mechanical hand discovered on this long journey. When I return is unknown. This journey shall be long and ideally fruitful. It is also violent and absurd. Tsavancoast is a land of extreme wealth and extreme poverty, with many artificers, tinkers and crafters mostly gobkon with a few goliaths, plus you wouldn’t believe if but I think there’s a human using cattle to turn wheels like we might a mill. I saw a monkey pushing bellows.
It’s a large city. Where Sheljar is one with the land and full of righteousness Tsavancoast is bright even at night, garish. There’s gambling where we stay. I win regularly.
Sorry. Too long. I get distracted.
You are probably wondering what’s happened with the corruption. It’s a much bigger problem than we or Le Remoden Eisha or the Dragon Council thought. There’s also a local leader in Tsavancoast who is working to spread the corruption while supposedly being in Le Remoden Eisha.
I found that out after repelling an army of walking trees and this weird elf-insect hybrid creatures. Yes, others helped, including some great dwarven sappers who brought down a bridge, scouts that helped save outlying communities, a lot of wizards. It was a staged battle. Midqh helped quite a bit. I learned how to make even bigger fire and booms through its apparatuses.
Anyway, after that massive series of battles — yes, we won, that’s how you’re getting this letter — we chatted with the leaders of the wizard and dragon groups, plus a gent named Ryghast. Don’t ask me the order of who talked to who and when it happened. We were in a casino! I won a few games, many games.
Eventually we chatted. But chatting with Ryghast was difficult. He took me into a magical silence to spill secrets. I tried and tried and tried to break his spells with my own systems. A wizard of his power is well beyond my teknical abilities.
BUT, in his confidence he told me of his double-crossing ways. I immediately told Amos, Rolf, Crag and Nandi, who passed the information around.
Probably created a big enemy. Hopefully he didn’t follow the Sadijh back to the keep. If he did please flee. Artok cannot defend you on his own.
Anyhow, we’re back off to the wilds. The source of the corruption that created that army of trees is our goal. I don’t know when I’ll see you again. I have ideas about what we can do with this hand and I’ve started to work on armored carts with Rolf. There’s also a clockwork amulet that can give one a second chance. My latest invention is to burn a bit of corruption to power our items.
See you again under the Dragon Moon.
Xabal Gaitee Quarter-Flagged Optigraph Balaneer nox Free Tink and non-Commissioned Officer of the Sadijh (on leave in absence)
This recap of the Defense of Tsavancoast is written in first person by Xabal, a gnome artificer, to their hirelings at Xabal’s Workshop set in the Age of Myths campaign.
Traveling the harsh lands of the Ferments? Find everything you need at WEST THUNDERMOON TRADING POST!!! Settled in the foothills of the Thundermoon Mountains a half a day’s ride west of Ourten, WEST THUNDERMOON TRADING POST is the go to location to find all of your hunting and travelling needs.
Run by the Maltunyn family for generations, they’re knowledge of the local terrain, as well as their selection of only the finest gear will ensure your travels will be safe and comfortable. Or you could pick up some of the finest furs and rations provided by master hunter Velthuria Maltunyn, and her daughter Keesrah. If you need a quick repair, or even an herbal remedy or two, Cay Maltunyn has you covered.
With the experience of generations, and a deep love of the land and air, the WEST THUNDERMOON TRADING POST is a must for any serious travelers of the Thundermoon Mountains. Visit the WEST THUNDERMOON TRADING POST today!!!
You can find that brochure throughout the villages and homesteads of the Thundermoon Mountains in The Ferments.
Keesrah Maltunyn, a human guide and drakewarden ranger with a raven named Crow, is the player character who calls the trading post home.
The West Thundermoon Trading Post is about two days south by southeast from Orten. The post is on the southerly road towards a desert region. That road runs roughly parallel to the Thundermoon River. In the hills and mountains are a few fishing and hunting families.
Ensuring environmental oddities of The Ferments are included.
Zonal word map of the Trading Post
Guarded entry
A wooden wall surrounds the Trading Post. The entry is where all merchants and visitors arrive. There are two large doors, which are barred at night. A guard stand rises to the left of the doors, as one exits. It can hold one medium creature and grants them half cover. A ladder provides access.
Elemental affinity: None.
Hazards: Breaking down the closed door requires a DC: 15 Strength check.
The guarded entry connects to the lava forge, the merchant stalls and the loafing sheds.
Lava Forge
A small semi-open air forge where Cay works as a sometime smith. The heat and bellows are from an active fissure where magma surges underneath the trading post. Malk, the goblin captain, now helps out. Malk and Borkin also store their own clutter there, including the smog-buggy.
Elemental affinity: Earth, fire, lava
Hazards: Those knocked prone who fail their DC by five or more take 1d8 fire damage from the forge. Forced movement can result in the tools of the trade being knocked all over, turning the Lava Forge into difficult terrain. Oh, and beware of a lava flare — who knows when that will happen.
Allies: Cay, Malk and Borkin may be present
Occupancy: Four medium creatures.
The lava forge connects to the guarded entry, to the trading stalls and the hunting gate.
Trading stalls
One large and two smaller open stalls sit in the large enclosed central space of the post. Various homesteads and outsiders come through with their wares on a seasonal basis. There’s a central fire pit with some large stones and simple benches frequently with a stew pot and hot beverages available.
Elemental affinity: Fire, air
Hazards: The cook pit can become a fire hazard, doing 1d8 damage to those who fall into it and setting their flammable gear on fire. It provides 10′ of bright light and 10′ of dim light at night.
Allies: Neighbors may be present depending on the season. They will almost always limit their help to rallying the Maltunyns.
Occupancy: 3 in the large stall, 2 in each small stall and room for 12 more medium creatures.
The trading stalls connect to every other zone except the hunting gate.
Loafing sheds
Like everyone in the Six Kingdoms the Maltunyns have space for beloved animals. These sheds are designed for equines, canines as well as the rare bovine or more exotic companions. There are small cabinets for feed and tack.
Elemental affinity: Cold, air
Hazards: When occupied the animals could be feisty.
Allies: None typically
Occupancy: 7 medium creatures.
The loafing shed connects to the guarded entry, the trading stalls and the Maltunyn home.
Hunting gate
Known for the gate that Caile leaves open it’s actually the place where Cay raises herbs. There’s also the gate to the hills where Keesrah and Velthuria hunt. It’s also a lower land, near the river.
Elemental affinity: Water, plants
Hazards: During heavy rains the mud creates difficult terrain. A rapid freeze after rains can lead to icy conditions.
Allies:
Occupancy:
Thundermoon River bridge
A few weeks ago there was a small wooden bridge over the river. Then the mephit mudslide took it out. Now a ford those that cross must be wary of mud mephits who settled in the area after the slide. Heavy rains may bring them back and upriver there is a threat that the open lava could change the river’s path.
Elemental affinity: Mud, water, maybe lava
Hazards: During floods the ford is impassable terrain without aids — ropes, other people or animal companions. Mud mephits may strike at random, the little chaos beasties they are.
Allies: One of the Maltunyn animal companions are frequently in the area.
Occupancy: This is a large space without a limit as it connects to the hills and mountains.
Thundermoon River bridge connects to the hunting gate.
Maltunyn home
A two-story wooden building, the ground floor of the home is mostly accessible to the general public. The main room is a mix of general store with goods on consignment, smithed tools, dried or smoked meats and a few tables with chairs for visitors. This room can be entered from either the hunting gate through a small side door or the main entry connecting to the trading stalls. An outer stair to the second floor reaches the roof of the loafing sheds and a narrow platform along the wall running to the guard stand. There’s a small open kitchen/stove with a root cellar stretching under the homestead wall near the river.
The second floor is two bedrooms and a small aviary.
Elemental affinity: Smoke
Hazards: Bar fights are rare, mostly because Cay is a smith and Velthuria is a scout.
Allies: If the trading post has visitors one of the family or goblins is always present.
Occupancy: 10 medium creatures
Up above the roof of the second floor is a small optical telegraph. A small group of mousekin operate it while living in a converted trading stall.
Velthuria is Keesrah’s mother. A human scout with a small dog, she is the primary hunter and runs the operations such as rentals of the three stalls for merchants.
Cay is Keesrah’s father. A human smith with a miniature pony, he uses a magma powered forge, Cay can craft anything with metals. He also grows herbs.
Caile is Keesrah’s brother, a human with a small dog. Smitten with one of the Drudzhar Caile sometimes wanders off on his own. Ally, but adversary sometimes.
Malk is a goblin captain and was saved in session one. A colonialist they are searching for resources for the Queen. They may become an adversary.
Borkin is a goblin cart driver. They are less colonial and more willing to help the Maltunyns, especially in defense and general labor. Malk is still their boss.
The family is trained at rallying defenses and ranged attacks.
Henkel family
River fishers in the ponds and streams of the low Thundermoons the Henkel family are halflings with river dogs. They are indebted to Keesrah after she rescued Taier one of their younger teens.
The Henkel family are trained at pestering and melee attacks by Keesrah.
Adversaries
Clan Drudzhar
A group of goliaths who live higher in the Thundermoon Mountains. Clan Drudzhar and the Maltunyn’s have been arguing, and sometimes openly fighting, over hunting territory in the mountains for years. One of their children is in love with Caile.
Their home is high in the scrub mountains and was recently near the mud mephit floods. They and the Maltunyns use different styles of traps and will frequently destroy each other’s snares. Birds of prey are their most common companions.
Elements of mud and lava
Mud mephits, magmin and lava elementals roam the Thundermoons. These adversaries are manifestations of The Ferments, a land that refuses to be tamed.
Children of Chorl
Punch-chickens raided a market stall, but quick action by Keesrah and her acquaintance Ellis ended the theft and the punch chickens. The two later learned that the Children of Chorl raided Ourten too. These human-animal hybrids seem to be hiding in the hills or plateau near Pirna Farms, now Ellis Mill.
Kon colonialists
While saving the lives of Malk and Borkin pushed off the investigation by the Queen’s goblins into how the resources of The Ferments could replace the tar trees of their homeland. That colonial raid and investigation may expand.
Downtime and Quests
Keesrah is researching how to create Serpent Scale Mail armor. She’s learned that the elemental drakes do not leave behind enough resources. The dragonkin raiding Spinebloom Farms do. Keesrah completed her armor.
Previously some work was done to reinforce the guarded entry which connects to the road Outsiders arrive along.
In session three the focus was on Keesrah. A duet session handled on Discord due to let turnout, session three was a fine example of the intent behind The Ferments campaign — always find a way to play D&D.
Session four was held at Logan Brewing in Burien, as is typical. Keesrah and Guarese attended.
What did the other characters do? We’ll use downtime to talk about the use of their homesteads as bastions, Xanathar’s downtime actions and/or improving their defenses for Militia Actions. And, due to player feedback we’re including traps in Militia Actions to embrace the case where a homestead may be solo or light on membership.
Keesrah heads into the scrub mountains for food to celebrate the visit of the liquor-creating family of halflings from downway. Her mom is on the trip.
During this trip in horrific weather a mudslide forces a change in path, and eventually she is attacked by mud mephits. It’s a fierce encounter on the edge of failure. But together the two managed to hold off the mephits.
Later in the trip home they notice a fox, Rennard. Using spellcraft, Keesrah learns that fox is the companion to Taier Henkel. Tier is missing, and presumed dead.
Keesrah and her mother, Velthuria, need to cross the mudflow to return home. Using some craft, luck and Crow the Raven the two managed to safely cross the mud mephit slide. Keesrah is punched by a mud mephit swimming through the flow.
After the flow and storm subsides Keesrah and Caile (the brother) head into the hills to talk to the Henkels and then the Drudzhars. One of these conversations goes much better than the other.
As a sign of fellowship, and because of Caile, Taier’s memorial is to be held at the Trading Post — there’s also easy access to the liquors from the visiting family.
The celebration goes well, except for the fight between Caile and Keesrah.
Learned clues
Keesrah Maltunyn learned that the Henkel halflings get along with Clan Drudzhar.
Caile is friendly with both the Henkel halflings and Drudzhar.
Taier Henkel washed away in the mephit mudslide.
Keesrah rescued Taier’s fox Rennard.
Taier’s body was encased in mud by chwingas claiming he gave them a piece of his soul.
Chwingas released Taier when Guarase Spinebloom said he’d find them another bit of soul — maybe his.
Ken raiders with an ambush drake made their presence known. One donated its soul.
Guarase earned a Charm of Heroism granted by the semi–domesticated fey chwinga that now live in the Spinebloom’s rice marsh.
Session four
This was the first session featuring the Spinebloom homestead. It is a series of mostly underground dome structures in a desert environment. Many Spineblooms have some druidic magic and they use this and their traditional growing methods to have the least influence on the environment as possible.
The same river that goes past the Maltunyn’s flows to the Spineblooms. Since The Ferments are infested with extreme elemental influences the desert and scrub mountains are close than is practical in a typical world.
Keesrah and Caile travel along that river to try to find Taier’s remains. That journey includes meeting Guarase who helps them search. There is a mud casing hidden in the rice marsh the Spineblooms farm.
Unfortunately there are also chwingas, little elemental sprites whose morality is not the same as humanity. These chwingas rescued Taier, but kept him cased as a way to protect him during the mephit mudslide.
In order to get Taier free the chwingas demand another soul. Somewhat confused, Guarase agrees. Then the goliath figures out that they mean his soul.
During this exchange the non-chwingas notice two advancing elves and an ambush drake. Keesrah sends Caile and Taier home.
Guarase and Keesrah fend off the elves, while the drake and those elves destroy a third of the rice marsh including many chwingas. When one of the elves is dropped unconscious in the marsh a chwinga captures its soul.
The elves also damage a Spinebloom home.
Keesrah and Guarase learn of more threats to The Ferments, more friends that could be made and the challenges to come in a land that threatens their livelihood.
The second session of The Ferments campaign, an East March style took place again at West Thundermoon Trading Post.
Again, the session started with rolling on the random encounter chart. Only one of the encounters happened, as there was a lot of great roleplay between the characters.
That encounter was with “Chickens with arms and fists” also referred to as “punch chickens.” These larger-than-a-turkey chickens have humanoid arms coming out of their wing joints and are semi intelligent.
Session two started with a brief recap of the last session and a reminder of the nature of the East March campaign — problems come to you.
Then Keesrah spoke to her brother, Caile, about the situation with the open door up to the game trails. That conversation leads to the discovery that the brother is dating one of the goliaths in the rival clan up in the hills. Keesrah leans on the young love bird to keep the doors and gates closed as the brother mocks Keesrah for the fight with the fire snakes.
Ellis, a guest (another PC) enters the compound seeking materials for their homestead. He’s taken over an abandoned plateau homestead nearby. Those religious zealots left the region nearly 30 years ago during the time of the born generation. With decades of wear on the home, mill and other equipment Ellis will have to work hard to reopen the spring-fed mill and granary.
Needing smithed goods, Ellis chats with Keesrah’s father, Cay, and the goblin Malk. During those conversations Keesarh and Ellis learn that Malk is not merely a refugee, but has strong goals to learn how to take the magma and steam power from The Ferments to the Queen.
This learning is specifically called out in the quick recap as a note for all players. As was the brother's love interest.
One piece of advice I try to follow is to remind players of the clues their characters learn. Our memories of a game are more fallible than our characters' memories of their lives.
Learned clues
Malk (goblin leader) is a taker. They want to take whatever they can from The Ferments that helps the Queen.
Keesrah’s brother has a lover up with the Goliath Clan Drudzhar.
Ellis homestead was previously abandoned by religious zealots during the Born Generation when magic returned.
Someone is creating animal hybrids.
Those first three clues are from the conversations between the characters and the named NPCs.
The fourth clue was an interjection because I could tell the table needed some action, plus there were two random encounters rolled and we hadn’t gotten to either.
Using the open door to the game trail from session one, and the obvious wealth of the trading post as inspiration the punch chickens were the easier of the two random rolls to integrate.
Punch chickens
Three punch chickens are discovered by Ellis’ lynx, Lenny. The lynx flushes them out of one of the merchant booths. Those armed chickens are carrying some goods away, sprinting towards the open door.
What are punch chickens?
Statistically they are axe beaks (Black Flag page 371) that punch rather than poke. Their special ability of Evasion turns out to be too significant for 2.5 combatants.
Deadly encounter
This is a deadly encounter with two characters and one combatant animal companion. The action economy combined with consistent dodging means both characters are dropped unconscious. The final roll comes down to Ellis’ lynx versus a wounded punch chicken. The lynx lands the fatal blow.
Keesrah did bar the door preventing a simple escape, so even if they had completely failed there was a narrative success available via the peasants and non-heroic NPCs.
Keesrah’s mother, Velthuria, helps the group heal.
During the recovery the group used some social checks to learn that the punch chickens likely originate from a group that myths call the Children of Chorl (an evil transmuter who tried to create various hybrid creatures).
