Nothing brings about honesty like a life-and-death situation but this puzzle demands truth in the face of peril! The Fountain of Truth includes clues to its purpose and function, guidelines for GMs to determine its flow, and a trio of scenarios to use it: a cure for the worthy, fire trap, and the reverse fountain. Directly designed by Elizabeth Orchard, illustrated by Khanh Luong. ...
2022-12-28 21:49:25 +0000 UTC View Post
Warlocks take the cake when it comes to making compacts to gain power—but why should they? Warriors and ne'er-do-wells can make just as much use out of a fell bargain! Consider imbuing an adventurer with the potent features of the Clawcursed martial archetype or Cursehanded roguish archetype to explore a new way of roleplaying this rich dynamic without the need for arcana, fey, fiends, or any...
2022-12-23 22:32:05 +0000 UTC View Post
The dragon turtle Damantharn (scourge of pirates and protector of the remote settlement of Swellgate) suffers from a terrible illness that resists magical healing. Without treatment they are certain to die—courageous and capable adventurers are needed to delve inside the dragon turtle’s very body to purge the plague from within! This adventure for 4 to 6 PCs of 4th–6th level diagnosticall...
2022-12-18 22:21:09 +0000 UTC View Post
The adventurers have beaten back a resurging tornado, put stop to the crystallization of an arctic entity of epic scale, and fought a living storm—then the dreams of flames begin, inexorably drawing them towards the far reaches of untamed mountains and possibly their doom. Once they have found Eruption Temple should the party fail to stop the machinations of the fiery avatar Derxan within the...
2022-12-11 19:08:49 +0000 UTC View Post
A storm like no other rages in the distant Hinterlands with no sign of stopping any time soon—for this is no anomaly of weather but a living tempest. The adventurer Frida Montesro has learned this the hard way and fights an impossible battle against the furious elemental, unaware that unless others intervene it will stop at nothing to kill her and then slay everything else it can find! Daring...
2022-12-06 00:34:59 +0000 UTC View Post
Why should adventurers be bound to terra firma or the seas, delving below the earth into dungeons or out upon the oceans for plunder—why not take to the skies instead? This article reviews the many denizens of the air from elves to gnomes or warlords, introducing two new CR 7 aerial threats: the psionic brainstorm and hunting caelumos! Driftingly designed by Anthony Pryor, illustrated by Erik...
2022-11-28 15:50:26 +0000 UTC View Post
Something's gone awry in the town of Meadowbridge—cattle lay slaughtered in the field, houses are locked tight, and its halfling denizens are holed up in the Haystack Inn. What troubles them? A bulette matriarch (CR 8) beneath the settlement that's spawning bulette hatchlings (CR 3) that are eating up all the small folk they can find! Dynamically designed by Marc Kenobi, illustrated by Phil S...
2022-11-22 15:37:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Far removed from the mainland of Elissar, the people of Leapsheep rarely have any need for adventurers. Their recent troubles are unprecedented however, and in their desperation they’ve reached out to a noble on the mainland to hire help. They couldn’t have done so soon enough: the mysterious abductions plaguing the island ...
2022-11-17 13:35:31 +0000 UTC View Post
What's better than a bit of fine liquor? A bit of enchanted liquor! This batch of magical booze details incredible concoctions from the dreamy archfey's delight to a bolstering shot of confidence, communication-enhancing soliloquy wine, and more—plus essential drinking implements like Alvis Kegswill's pick-your-poison pouch flask or the jar of ...
2022-11-12 14:08:47 +0000 UTC View Post
An ancient and primal force seeks to once more take hold in Elissar, an entity that consumes heat and light until all is as frozen as its soul. This chilling terror has been banished from the realms material but a relic able to bring it back—the Void Heart, a gemstone that distills the impossibly cold void into corporeal form...
2022-11-05 22:19:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Ancient and terrible danger has been unleashed upon the realm of Ostinad, a tempest of such incredible size and ferocity that it threatens to tear the lands of the horse lords asunder. In the eye of this savage storm its calm winds swirl about a nameless temple in a forgotten canyon—and it is here where the primordial elemental Wildwynd whirls, growing in power with every passing day. To best...
2022-10-28 22:42:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Illusionists are the trickiest of mages and their mendacious practice of magic is as manifold as their imaginations. One of their most celebrated practitioners was the gnome Tribwil, his work with figments famed for its nuance and the lofty heights of arcana it reached. This article includes more than a half dozen of his incredible spells: aggressive identity sublimation, chaotic crowd, dra...
2022-10-22 13:08:44 +0000 UTC View Post
Humble farmsteads and friendly smiles hide a secret in the idyllic region of Shining Valley—long ago the Dreamers magocracy ruled the realm through the power of psionics, and the ruins of their capital sit in Alldeep Forest. The Cult of Terror (feared across the land) have discovered a site of great power there where they've conjured an alien from the Realm of Dreams. Its influence has now sp...
2022-10-16 12:03:21 +0000 UTC View Post
A lost soul does not always remain so—most especially when a fiend has an interest in it. Hell's Huntmaster is tasked with tracking down and collecting the wayward few that escape the realms infernal, and as the party are traveling they come across one such individual: a fool named Jansan, tricked into damnation by another. Should the noble survive great wealth can be gained by anyone who fin...
2022-10-12 13:08:04 +0000 UTC View Post
This article presents distant alien intelligences to incorporate into the realms of medieval fantasy, along with details of the cults that worship them and what elements of their nature can be comprehended by mortals. Behold the Great Nothingness known as Axu-Nagos, Saukkassus the Dreamer, and the Maker of Monsters Mortulos—and taste the power they offer with the Book of Dreams or po...
2022-10-05 22:57:01 +0000 UTC View Post
A group of doppelgangers are seeking a hidden portal that will allow them to bring thousands of their kind out of exile to invade. Unfortunately the map that would guide them was disguised inside an enchanted locket taken from their now dead leader—jewelry that has found its way to the party! This mini-adventure for 4–5 PCs of 3rd–5th level was dastardly designed by Marc Kenobi, illustrat...
2022-09-26 22:09:43 +0000 UTC View Post
Regular zombies failing to inspire fear? Reaching for more from your skeletons? Look no further! This article includes the high-flying corpse-throwing carrion swarm (CR 8) along with a trio of statistics for diseased zombies: the crepitus (CR 2), crepitus elite (CR 6), and devastating crepitus swarm (CR 16). Damnably designed by Mike Myler, illustrated by Gui Sommer.
2022-09-20 17:22:59 +0000 UTC View Post
In the cold tundra of western Laskia there is a famous establishment that people travel from far across Elissar to visit: the Redstone Spa. The Ashe family have run it for generations but there are rumors that a rivalry is brewing between the sons and daughters of the proprietor Layla, and as she reaches the end of her life her...
2022-09-15 12:38:38 +0000 UTC View Post
Getting tired with glowing swords and floating gems? Has that old bag of tricks lost its charm? Consider rewarding adventurers with loot they can really love—specifically the kind that loves them back. Within this issue are five such symbiotic magic items (the blood swarm, burrowing crystal, fel worm, shell swarm, and soulshadow caul) that feed upon their hosts in e...
2022-09-10 14:58:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Now on Kickstarter and already fully funded and past the first stretch goal is this essential tome for creating, exploring, and running dungeons in your 5E or A5E game.
Dungeon Delver’s Guide is a comprehensiv...
2022-09-09 16:19:39 +0000 UTC View Post
Would-be usurpers—siblings thirsty for power, rivals eager to take for their own, clever creatures seeking to control mortals—are always grasping at the reins of power and the defenses against them are myriad. The Vandt Ascendency are a prime example of the most clandestine and successful kind of organization bound to the throne by loyalty, a group of dedicated mages focused on protecting t...
2022-09-04 22:51:58 +0000 UTC View Post
The party’s travels are interrupted by people in disarray outside the Ducking Shoe Inn. These villagers from Treecrest are in a panic, eager to find help dealing with overgrown avians the sheriff has allowed to run rampant leading to chaos and death. Finding and dispatching of these beasts won’t be a simple matter however—brickbeaks are stealthy amongst the marsh and deadly foes. Duckedly...
2022-08-29 12:35:17 +0000 UTC View Post
Espionage and the gathering of intelligence has existed in one form or another since the dawn of recorded history. Nations, guilds, and other organizations employ agents and operatives to gain useful intelligence and to accomplish their tasks they use a variety of tools—often easily hidden, mundane, and cunning tools. Presented here are 8 items employed for espionage ranging from the simple y...
2022-08-22 14:16:30 +0000 UTC View Post
One of the most promising monks from the Monastery of the Sun has twisted their martial discipline to terrible effect, and in his wake he leaves not only murder but death itself. With every life taken the traitor's power grows—and if not stopped soon he will bring ruin to a city that might well make him truly unstoppable! This adventure for 3–5 PCs of 6th level was diligently designed by Ty...
2022-08-15 13:21:20 +0000 UTC View Post
There are consequences when wild magic is left undisturbed and the Quendrian Wood is a fine example of a place altered by unfettered arcana. While traveling in this enchanting forest beware the bloatfrog (CR 1/2) for there may be a far deadlier bloatfrog swarm (CR 8) to follow it, and watch out too for the grasp of daggerthorn sweetvines (CR 5) or the spitting of mud-covered mucklings (CR 3). M...
2022-08-10 23:03:10 +0000 UTC View Post
It's time to play an adventurer that reaches beyond the scope of the bolstering bard, leaf loving druid, and disciplined monk—contained herein are archetypes perfect for such a foray! The College of Misery teaches how to heckle foes and allies alike. Similarly unlike their peers, druids in the Circle of Corruption embrace the powers of aberrations, monstrosities, and oozes as they spread pest...
2022-08-04 20:49:36 +0000 UTC View Post
What makes a villain? In the case of this deranged giant, ambitious crimelord, and murderous warlord it is a specific item that personifies their wickedness. This article includes the giant puppetmaster (CR 10) and puppetmaster's crossbar, gnome steamlord (CR 13) and gnomepower armor, and lunar warlord (CR 16) and Moonmask. Daringly designed by Mike Myler, illustrated by Erik ...
2022-07-26 15:42:12 +0000 UTC View Post
Ambition and strength are the two greatest attributes of this warrior and he has both in spades. After years of turmoil waiting in his father's shadow Toron murderously stepped to the fore and he hasn't looked back since, leading his forces from the front and earning the moniker of the Blue Demon for the blood he sheds every time he walks the field of battle. Dangerously designed by Tyler Lee, ...
2022-07-22 12:55:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Finding the Book of Endless Life doesn't get the party very far—it needs to be opened, a task that is not so simple as undoing a clasp. To access this powerful enchanted tome the adventurers must seek out an expert on the Library of Wholeness (such as the sage Loremaster Dalwyn), find runestones to help finish crafting the ivy key needed to unlock the book, best the...
2022-07-15 16:25:34 +0000 UTC View Post
Powerful magic can merge flesh and metal into one, remaking both into something altogether greater. The reforged are perfect examples of what this synthesis can achieve, their muscles enhanced by arcana and steel. This article includes 6 kinds of reforged: mentalist (CR 6), soldier (CR 1/2), sniper (CR 6), striker (CR 2), warden (CR 7), and zapper (CR 3). Dually designed by Levi Thompson, illus...
2022-07-10 13:01:23 +0000 UTC View Post