Category: Playing D&D

  • Chupmolea Transit Center of Sheljar

    When the Queen’s Fleet discovered Sheljar they landed in the NW suburbs where the cliffs become hills. There’s a cave system that they originally used to hide their aixips. Now, after the elimination of the Necromancer and the Tunneling Nightmares, their little neighborhood among the hills is a densely populated, for the Free City of Sheljar, space that is a transit hub by sea and sky. Each of the guilds are represented in the many dozen gobkons that have settled in the space.

    The main space where all peoples of the Everflow interact with these goblins, hobgoblins, and mulgobs is the Chupmolea Transit Center of Sheljar. It has space for seafaring vessels, multiple sky gondolla cables and a spire for airxips to dock as well.

    Paths

    1. A cable car gondola to the Grand Entry to the Free City of Sheljar.
    2. A harbor with regular small ferry service to the City Center.
    3. A cable car gondola to the City Center.
    4. Exit to the Chupmolea Square, the main plaza in the goblin suburb. There are hills to the Western Wildes beyond the plaza.
    5. A high, arcing bridge to a tiny island now occupied by a dwarven family.
    6. Swyns café.

    Peoples

    Chupmolea – Grand Mistress of cables, she rode with the Queen’s Fleet as part of a minor house. Her quick thought to connect the bog-city via sky-cable gondola earned her two flags. On her left shoulder are now five flags, two from her house and three she earned. She has a hook-spear used to guide gondolas to their spaces.

    Swyn – a mulgoblin that discovered the power of coffee. Their café is a center of gossip and a primary spot for non-goblins to meet goblins. Swyn is always in an oilcloth apron (effective as leather armor), has random burn scars from roasting coffee, and carries a small, for them, cup of coffee.

    Blerxa and Patha – two goblins of different guilds, these sisters are arguing over maintaining a connection to the Queen. Blerxa has many more flags on her left shoulder, nearly running out of space. Patha has a single flag for self and one for house.

    Umikdrael Honorfeet – one of the dwarves from the nearby isle. He seems a bit lost and flustered by all the damn noise. He is constantly glancing at his notebook and then at the skyline. There is a lantern drake sitting on his hat.

    Peculiars

    The air reeks of burning tar from tar trees. There are fresh trees in the hills. But here in the city they are burned to power numerous teknikal devices.

    A constant clamor of mekiniks hammers in the background and foreground. There are grinding gears, ratchets, pneumatics and other systems that cause this neighborhood always loud.

    Unfortunately the brackish waters of the bog-city in this area are covered with a thin film of soot and tar.

    I’m doing Lore 24, an attempt to write small lore elements daily in the year 2024. Each element will be something that’s come up in play or will come up in play within my homebrew World of the Everflow — there will be actionable threads for PCs to grab onto and advance the story.

  • Grand Entry to the Free City of Sheljar

    Grand Entry to the Free City of Sheljar

    This is the main gate to Sheljar is the Grand Entry. Before the Necromancer and the Tunneling Nightmares, the Grand Entry would see thousands enter and start the gentle switchbacks down the 500-foot cliffside. There is a massive waterfall from the river the road from Telse follows at this point. Stone gates covered in glass guard the switchback path down to the bog city. There are a couple rickety, but new, cable lines that run from a secondary gate to two separate bog-isles. There is also a rapid descent used by climbing and flying companions.

    Back to the Grand Entry to the Free City of Sheljar.

    Once through the gates the vantage point shows all of the bog-city and its surroundings, when the fogs aren’t covering the lowlands. There are four paths available, three personalities and a few things that someone new to the region is sure to remember.

    Paths

    1. The switchbacks have a low stone or wood edge with ropes every foot up for 5 feet along the outer edge. There are posts every eight to ten feet. The once cobbled stones are frequently loose.
    2. The river is low and slow, heading from the communities to the south by southheast, and what is now the shell of an active volcano. When the volcano erupted there was a mudflow the ripped through the old barriers preventing barges and rivercraft from going over the cliff.
    3. The main cable runs from the left of the river, if you are facing the cliff looking out over the bog-city, to the large island near the northern edge of the bog that has the old city center with the library of Sheljar, the palace, and a few other government buildings.
    4. The second cable heads out towards the northwest and the former suburb that is now where the goblins settled prior to the Free City being freed.
    A hex map of the region around the bog-city of Sheljar.
    A hex map that shows Entrytown, the bog-city of Sheljar, the statue, harbor, and what is now the goblin village to the west.

    People

    • Guardian Bilth Ferien – wrapped in the cloak of the free city Bilth is a former ferryman who now is the senior government representative at the Grand Entry. His animal companion is a massive horned ox. A human, likely with some goliath in his ancestry, Bilth is 6’9″ tall and wields a staff only a fool would call quarter. The are five other guards with him in daylight hours. Bilth is strong and enduring.
    • Cablemistress Shelmigarii – a tiny goblin, Shelmigarii runs the cable system. She always has either a wrench or hammer in one hand. Aiding her are a crew of four mulgoblins (bugbears) Her hobgoblin husband often runs the nightshift. They are all done up in oilcloth and canvas with big floppy hats common for Kon. Shel is smart and charismatic.
    • Fek – a gnome fascinated both by the functioning cable system and by near-constant stream of Kin-ish returnees with their animal companions, Fek is slightly in the way, not helping. They are always taking notes in their notebooks. They clearly are able to cast spells, but none have seen it happen yet. They are smart and dexterous.

    Peculiars

    • The stone of the main gates is covered in colored glass baubles from Bel’an’faire off to the far south. These baubles can glow in the sunshine and now with magic’s return are frequently lit at night.
    • A giant statue, with a head level to the top of the cliffm can be seen at the edge of the harbor except on the foggiest days. From behind it is humanoid in the clothing of ancient Sheljar prior to it being the center of an empire, roughly 3,000 years old.
    • There is a frequent fog over the bog-city, hovering about 25-50 feet above the islands. Once called the Stench of Sheljar it is now purely natural, hiding the extent of occupation from those along the cliffs or at sea.
    • The gobkon on the cables are surrounded by mountain goats and scavenging birds. None are animal companions. These will follow people who choose to climb down the sheer cliff.

    I’m doing Lore 24, an attempt to write small lore elements daily in the year 2024. Each element will be something that’s come up in play or will come up in play within my homebrew World of the Everflow — there will be actionable threads for PCs to grab onto and advance the story.

  • “Mom, where do dragonborn come from?”

    “Mom, where do dragonborn come from?”

    That’s a question I didn’t have an answer for. A player wanted to be a dragonborn, but they don’t exist in the world as I built it. That’s not always a great reason to not allow a race.

    When you build a limited world players either need to buy-in completely or you can work together to figure out how the character fits.

    When a player asked to be a warforged he came up with an incredible backstory. They were the only warforged, built by those that became gods. Wakened for unknown reasons (we knew it was because of the rediscovery of the powers that those who created them used) the warforged is an outsider who knows that the myths of the founding are reality, that idyllic times of the past can be recreated using the same tools that the past used.

    This also made sense because the player wasn’t familiar with the world as it is. Instead they created what it was and together the player and character learned the current reality.

    When I was approached about a player being a dragonborn I wasn’t ready. We worked the character in with no backstory, knowing that at some point it will come up again.

    Then DnDBeyond presented the following idea;

    The Rise of Dragonborn and Kobolds

    As the Dungeon Master, you can craft unique origins for draconic folk like dragonborn and kobolds. You could decide that the burst of magical energy released by a dragon’s death could lead to the spontaneous emergence of these people in nearby areas. Just as mysteriously as a dragon egg could appear, a dragonborn infant could be found napping among resting sheep. In such a case, would the party be responsible for ensuring the child’s safety? And what will they do or say if the child has been imbued with some of the dead dragon’s memories? Such an ill-fate could lead the child to grow up to resent the party and even become a villain themselves.

    What Happens When a Dragon Dies in D&D?

    Now, my brain started flowing.

    The dragonborn PC would be the ‘child’ of the first dragon the party had slain. They would be the embodiment of some part of the dead black dragon, with others born of the slaying being all of the evil parts. Some would even be able to bond and break bonds of animals. Black dragons hoarding bondings, making them incredibly hated in the World of the Everflow.

    The player took this up, learning about his characters birthing through play. The group has encountered a few other dragonborn, always black.

    This also gives the group something to think about — they’re about to fight up to three more dragons. What will that mean for the future dragonkin? Will they be mostly evil as the first dragonkin?

    Lessons for any DM

    • When a player approaches to play something unallowed in your world try to discover a lore path towards yes
    • Is it just the mechanics they want? Re-lore the banned item into something that makes sense
    • Use this opportunity to build a world together, rather than have it be only the DM’s world
    • Every thing you read is prep for your next session

  • Barbers and bloodletters – hedge healers belong in your D&D campaign

    Barbers and bloodletters – hedge healers belong in your D&D campaign

    Waterdeep, Tear, Dragaera City, Tajar, Zobeck — whatever the city in your world, there are barbers. The technology exists, and the art of Dungeons & Dragons provides a dazzling array of hair and beard styles that go well beyond those from the real world. But how would you play a barber or stylist in D&D?

    That’s easy, via backgrounds. They’re what you were before. Maybe some heroes, especially rogues and bards, would learn to use their common implements as weapons. But anyone could be a stylist or barber before.

    Get your shave and a haircut for two silver.

    Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

    Barber

    Whether in a big city or travelling between cities, you are an expert at maintaining hair whether on face or head. With your scissors or razor you create art with hair. Additionally you are capable of non-magical healing. Depending on your practice you may use leaches, your blades or some other form of blood letting.

    Barbers, under any name, are also strong conversationalists. When others are in your stool or chair they feel welcome, sharing the conversation of the neighborhood and their own life.

    Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Medicine
    Tool Proficiencies: Barber’s Tools, Healer’s Kit
    Languages: No additional languages
    Equipment: Barber’s kit, two Healer’s Kits, two vials of perfume, a stool, pouch with 5 gold.

    Feature: Bloodletting

    Whether via razors or leaches, using an action the Barber grants a willing creature the ability to expand a hit die to heal or recover from certain non-magical conditions (Charmed, Frightened, Incapacitated, Paralyzed, Poisoned, Unconscious). The creature takes on a level of exhaustion.

    Personality traits would be similar to the Folk Hero, the Acolyte and the Fisher.

    Barber’s Kit

    Cost: 25 gp | Weight: 2 lbs

    Proficiency with Barber’s Tools means that you are familiar with how to style hair — cutting it, braiding it, etc. You can color it with various dyes as well. The kit includes a couple razors, scissors, a silver mirror, lotions, dyes, hair ties and other small items to help the barber.

    Photo by Nikolaos Dimou on Pexels.com

    Design Goals

    Once upon a time I read, played and DMed in al-Qadim. The Arab/Turk/etc-ish setting included a barber, part healer and part friendly ear. That barber and their role in post-Renaissance England as “surgeons” fits many of the worlds of D&D.

    They aren’t common in literature and games that inspire our games. That’s okay. They should be. Visiting a barber should be part of the story, even in magical worlds. Mending and Prestidigitation don’t trim your locks or beards.

    Have a conversation, look better, maybe get a tiny bit of natural healing (no, it doesn’t work like this in real life). Also, I really like my stylist Chamaine.

    Custom Backgrounds for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons

  • Highlights from Geekwire’s interview with Wizards of the Coast President Cynthia Williams

    Highlights from Geekwire’s interview with Wizards of the Coast President Cynthia Williams

    Local tech website Geekwire has access to Wizards of the Coast, because they too are local. So sometimes, Geekwire dips into the world of tabletop gaming, the business. Much of the conversation between Cynthia Williams, Wizards of the Coast President, and Thomas Wilde is dedicated to big picture stuff. Now, I’m fascinated by that, but many of my readers just want to play Dungeons & Dragons.

    Williams has some thoughts that are important for players and potential players of the game that aren’t interested in business news.

    Yes, the word race is gone. But its replacement isn’t confirmed.

    I think it’s important to remember that One D&D (a new publishing initiative) is at the point of playtest. I don’t think that we have finalized that the word will be “species.” It’s a word being tested.

    Where D&D in the 80s was much more about escapism and simulation, modern D&D is about story and diversity, the amplification of teamwork.

    Our games teach that diversity is a strength. D&D in particular will teach you that together, you can overcome tasks, challenges, or an adventure that you wouldn’t have been able to on your own.

    …

    I love the stories of people playing Dungeons & Dragons and being able to express who they are in that game, which leads them to being able to express who they are in their real life. We’re very much cultivating that level of diversity as we’re inviting players in.

    There’s a push about the upcoming movie and mention of the next big video game release after Baldur’s Gate, too. Wizards owns six video game studios now.

    It’s interesting to see that Magic grew to a billion dollar brand even as it has issues with the fanbase. There’s also more evidence that the D&D side is hoping to hit that number, but through a different path that isn’t about microtransactions or a flood of book releases — instead D&D has a movie, a TV show and multiple video games to get to that number.

    Read the whole thing

  • Riff off everything — adding official monsters to your unofficial world

    Riff off everything — adding official monsters to your unofficial world

    Earlier today Wizards of the Coast released eleven free monsters in the Monstrous Compendium 2: Dragonlance Creatures. These are available for anyone with a free or paid account on DnDBeyond. You can access them through frontpage access.

    My campaign world doesn’t need more monsters, but it does need more ideas. That’s a great way to look at settings and adventures — they are other people’s ideas to put into your world. That’s a short cut to worldbuilding, and a great one.

    Goblins in the World of the Everflow are part of a smog-punk society building gadgets, very much like Tinker Gnomes, but grimy and greasy. Today’s release is an opportunity for me to use several new inventions in my world.

    The Nevermind Gnome Inventor has three inventions. The Flying Fangtrap is a springwork device with tiny wings that pinch and pierce to do damage and may even stop the movement of the target.

    In my world the Thunderscream gadget is an opportunity to latch onto the concepts from the Airmatics and Waterwerks Alliance. They could build a cannon of screaming sounds that damage like a breath weapon.

    Of course the Alchems Sisterhood would invent Flash Powder, the blinding simple fireworks that can aid the goblin to escape.

    The more complex Nevermind Gnome Mastermind has even more inventions that I will use at my table.

    Clockwork Claws that act like a third arm, or even a first or second arm; Chattergrab is essentially a grenade that is a bear trap; Phasmoball would be another invention from the Alchems.

    In just this one free download the World of the Everflow has six new inventions for goblins. You can borrow from official materials for your own world too.

    Maybe your world needs some undead knights? Use the Foresworn.

    Another variety of magical giantkin? Irda.

    Humanoid walruses? Thanoi.

    A unicorn older than every forest? Forest Master has impressive powers and is not the passive unicorn at the game’s core.

    Everything you encounter can be part of your session prep or worldbuilding, especially if it is a free release from the creators of the game.

    Fediverse Reactions
  • NewbieDM Review: Dragonlance Shadow of the Dragon Queen adventure

    NewbieDM Review: Dragonlance Shadow of the Dragon Queen adventure

    Newbie DM reviews the new Dragonlance book and board game. Head on over and take a look. I’ll be borrowing the random actions to represent larger conflicts for the Uprising & Rebellion campaigns.

    newbiedm's avatarwww. Newbie DM .com

    Lets get one thing out of the way… Dragonlance: Shadow of the Dragon Queen is not a Dragonlance setting book. You have to go elsewhere if what you’re hoping for is a Dragonlance Campaign Guide, or a 5e version of Dragonlance Adventures. It’s also not a sequel to Hoard of the Dragon Queen (in case you’re not sure what’s going on and think it may be). 

    And what’s going on is that WOTC has decided to revive the Dragonlance brand for 5th edition D&D, in the form of an adventure and a mass battles board game named Warriors of Krynn that allows you to play the same characters in both. A deluxe edition includes both those things plus a DM Screen and an alternate book cover. The adventure takes place in the War of the Lance time period–for those who don’t follow DL, it’s probably the setting’s most iconic time…

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  • Adding Feats to 5e Backgrounds

    Adding Feats to 5e Backgrounds

    Spelljammer is already on printing two. That’s because they need to make some changes to the Hadozee for reasons of insensitivity. They’re good changes and Wizards of the Coast is changing the processes that allowed the culturally insensitive material to appear first too. This new printing has other errata too.

    The one that sticks out is the addition of Feats to every Background.

    “These backgrounds each give a feat. If a character takes a background from elsewhere and doesn’t get a feat from that background, the character gains one of the following feats of the player’s choice: Magic Initiate, Skilled, or Tough.”

    Dragonlance will have something similar. For Dragonlance this was because these are characters in a war. They must be stronger, tougher, etc. In Spelljammer it kind of makes sense. Normal people aren’t space halflings and asteroid dwarves.

    Similar to the Dragonlance decision my world has an additional feat at first level. In the case of the World of the Everflow these choices are;

    • Kin get a Bonded Companion.
    • Ken get a feat that grants a cantrip.
    • Kon get Artificer Initiate and the Rock Gnome’s tinker ability.

    Similar to the Dragonlance decision to add Feats this was done to add flavor, speaking to the types of powers that people from various continents have.

    With One D&D’s playtest we know there’s a chance at adding Feats for everyone at 1st level.

    What if the One D&D system of 1st Level Feats was added to 5e now?

    You could add Feats to any character in the current game with a minor, but not overwhelming, increase in power with a few simple guidelines.

    1. Only allow Feats that don’t have a +1 to an attribute.
    2. Don’t allow the +5/-10 Feats.
    3. Don’t allow Lucky.
    4. Don’t allow Polearm Master

    That’s it.

    Now you can have flavorful feats in your 5e game at 1st level.

    Instead, attach Feats to Backgrounds

    Now, my current world attaches Feats to racial choices, but one could choose to go the path of Dragonlance, Spelljammer, and Strixhaven. Each of those books assigns their unique Backgrounds specific Feats for flavor.

    A more flexible system would be to attach Feats on a small curve. Those Feats would be selected to emphasize specific stories typically told regarding that Background.

    Using my most popular original Background, the Tinker, as an example. We’ll include the three default Feats from the errata — Magic Initiate, Skilled, Tough. Then only selecting Feats from the Player’s Handbook, Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything, and Xanathar’s Guide to Everything since those are a core book and the two rules expansions.

    Actor reminds me of Paden Fain. Artificer Initiate seems obvious. Linguist fits the wanderer mold. Ritual Caster makes sense to capture the one who picks up hedge magic.

    Putting those on a chart with a curve using two dice can influence the commonality of the Feats.

    Roll 2d4 or choose your favorite.

    2. Magic Initiate
    3. Tough
    4. Linguist
    5. Actor
    6. Skilled
    7. Ritual Caster
    8. Artificer Initiate

    Since it looks likely that Before We Were Heroes won’t be ready before the 2024 edition, I’m thinking of adding that Feat guidance to each listed Background.

    Have another Background you’d like a Feat Chart for, ask in comments.

  • The mistake of abandoning personality via One D&D

    The mistake of abandoning personality via One D&D

    Due to the massive scale of the two playtests that have come out for the next iteration of Dungeons & Dragons reviewing them seems impractical. Unlike Unearthed Arcana they are dozens of pages, with some mechanical changes that make the game a bit easier, some that are hefty.

    Overall One D&D’s tabletop test is backwards compatible so far. A current character could be converted and on a level playing field just by selecting a 1st level Feat.

    In a surprising turn, the Backgrounds available via the One D&D playtest “origins” remove story elements. That’s the first time during the current popularity of D&D that Wizards of the Coast has made a story reduction rather than expansion. No longer are there any personality suggestions, nor personality associated with Backgrounds or Races. That is coupled with changing Inspiration away from rewarding role play to rewarding roll play. The second One D&D playtest also removes Inspiration as a role-play reward and just shoves it to rolling a 1 on a d20.

    This is a mistake.

    Every other change in 5e has been about expanding the stories that are told while expanding how they can be told using our silly dice and paper game.

    Removing Traits, Ideals, Bonds and Flaws is a reduction of story content, a reduction of the style of play which surged D&D into the mainstream. It’s a damn shame.

    Personality isn’t just part of the social pillar. These tiny tools available via backgrounds aren’t locked away from combat scenes. Story and dice should co-exist in modern Dungeons & Dragons. That’s what we see in various livestreams and podcast actual plays. It is one of the grand differentiators from video gaming and board gaming.

    The rules of D&D should include character personality beyond alignment. TIBF expands on alignment and can even replace it, as a better and simpler system with story power.

    No, the TIBF system isn’t perfect. But it’s better than it not existing.

    Fixing Traits, Ideals, Bonds and Flaws

    • Reduce them from the one to two sentence structure to a one to three word phrase.
    • Consolidate the Traits, Ideals and Bonds into a single section and pick two or three there.
    • Have a main list of suggestions rather than have them directly tied to specific Backgrounds, with examples at the Background.
    • Continue to reward role play at the table — my suggestion is to have a specific d20 (I use gold).
    • Have Inspiration dice capped at proficiency bonus uses per long rest, rather than just a cap of one available. People are more likely to use something that they have more than one use of – the potion problem.

    As a lover of backgrounds, I want them to succeed. I want more of them, a lot more. The addition of minor Feats to Backgrounds is glorious (I’m in the process of adding the most common first level Feats to each of my released backgrounds)

    Custom Backgrounds for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons

    And yes, every response to every playtest survey has me saying this. I don’t expect it to change, and it’s sad that the guidance towards story will be reduced in the 2024 version of the ruleset.

  • Introducing Militia Actions to support base defense in urban rebellion play

    Introducing Militia Actions to support base defense in urban rebellion play

    In my Uprising & Rebellion Campaign Two the players decided to take on the Mayor’s forces in the open, rather than the dead of night or through obfuscation. In response the Mayor and his forces attacked their home base, the Rusty Clam. Dungeons & Dragons doesn’t do great for large battles.

    A few tweaks I made to more represent the fiction of a rebellious militia and their allies defending their most significant resource were;

    • Have the minions represent half of a squad. The idea here was that the lesser trained guards would break morale when they lost half their group.
    • Allow the PCs to set up themselves up where they wanted. This is their territory. They know it best.
    • Added actions to represent the other rebels and commoners who side with the goals of the uprising. These Militia Actions operate similar to Lair Actions. That initial use has been modified here.

    Militia Actions

    For the session these operated as a Lair Action for each PC. They were taken on the initiative count 10 after their own initiative, which worked out as PC1, enemy1, Militia Action1. That part was a success.

    Each Militia Action was tied to a saving throw by the NPCs. These were designed for Tier 2 play as that’s where the PCs in question are at this time, but since I used cantrips as a guideline they are easy to adjust.

    Funnel – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause build a wall using objects or themselves to block a path. This wall is 5′ long per tier of play. A successful Strength save (DC 10/15/20/25 based on tier) enables the enemy to ignore the wall.

    Falling or Thrown Objects – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause pick up objects nearby and throw them at the enemy. These objects do 1d8 damage per tier of play in a space that is 5×5/10x/10/15×15/20×20 by tier. A successful Dex save results in half damage (DC 10/15/20/25).

    Overturn Stand or Cart – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause create an area of difficult terrain by using common objects to clutter the path. Any enemy passing through the area moves must use twice their movement through the 5×5/10x/10/15×15/20×20 space by tier. They may attempt to move at normal speed, and if using the Dash or Disengage actions, must succeed on a Con save (DC 10/15/20/25) or take 1d6 per tier damage and fall Prone.

    (this one needs the most work)

    Harass – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause harass and pester the enemies in such a way that limits their defenses. This can be done by word or by minor physical altercation. The next attack by that enemy NPC or intelligent monster is at disadvantage. A successful Int save (DC 10/15/20/25) results in no disadvantage.

    Distract – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause harass and pester the enemies in such a way that limits their attacks. This can be done by word or by minor physical altercation. The next attack against that enemy NPC or intelligent monster is at advantage. A successful Int save (DC 10/15/20/25) results in no advantage.

    Rally – the militia and/or commoners in support of your cause shouts in support of the PCs. The PCs are then granted 1d6 temporary hit points per tier of play. A successful Cha save (DC 10/15/20/25) by the leader of the enemy results in no temporary hit points being granted, this is to represent their ability to speak over or interrupt the rallying calls.

    Changes for the future?

    I may tie these to various skills or tools rather than saving throws. I had the players roll, and asking players to roll under for a success just didn’t make sense.

    Finally, I think I would allow a summoned swarm from the Propagandist use these when the Propagandist commands them via a bonus action. This would help raise the power level of a subclass that lacks in combat, though in many campaigns this wouldn’t be enough.

    Design Goals

    The primary inspirations for these actions were to mimic some of the play of Assassin’s Creed, where the small crowd of neutrals and allies can support your violence. There are also scenes in Black Sails where the common people of Nassau join the fight against the British. The invasion of Tear and other conflicts in the Wheel of Time feature actions by commoners supporting the heroes too. Various Robin Hood tales, the rescue of The Shire, the movie Aladdin, and so many other tales have common peoples helping the heroes by impeding the enemy.

    While highly urbanized campaigns aren’t common in D&D, they should be supported. The literature and other inspirations for the game do have these elements. Our game can include them in ways that are more than just background story.

    What improvements do you see needing attention?