Jamison Stone's Blog, page 6

Press Ghosts Into Service with Binding Chains

Spooky month is coming soon to our shores. Talk of ghosts and other creatures of the night are a few short weeks away, but things being spooky is an all year round appreciation for me.

When we read ghosts in the Monster Manual we always see them as loose spirits, roaming and wandering, bringing misfortune to the living. This often calls in Clerics and other Adventurers to perform some kind of exorcism to clear the space of spirits.

Some particularly thrifty mages in the past decided that binding these ghosts into service is a handy practice. The lost soul cannot resist as it works in the service of those who place it in Binding Chains.

By attaching lanterns, the ghost guards and lights the way - Archive Haunt by Cristi Balanescu

The ghost is one of my favourites. The tortured soul stuck in the liminal space between living and dying can provide all manner of characters. The poltergeist throwing things about the room is terrifying. Then again the sweet old lady who haunts her home, while all her cats who look up, not really noticing the difference as they can see her new spectral form.

There's another kind of ghost I like to include in games I Game Master.

Bound Geists

When we read ghosts in the Monster Manual we always see them as loose spirits, roaming and wandering, bringing misfortune to the living. This often calls in Clerics and other Adventurers to perform some kind of exorcism to clear the space of spirits.

Some particularly thrifty mages in the past decided that binding these ghosts into service is a handy practice. The lost soul cannot resist as it works in the service of those who place it in Binding Chains.

These bonds are notoriously hard to make. Binding Chains are made of blessed iron, and covered in several runes to keep the ghost contained and placid. The complexity of what a bound ghost can do is already very limited. They remain reflections of their former self, and do not have the full faculties they had in life. As such, work like guarding and enforcement is the normal use for spirits.

Binding Chains can be used on an ethereal undead creature, Challenge Rating 5 or lower. It must succeed on a DC 14 Dexterity Saving Throw, or the chains will magically collapse around them. They remain in the service of the creature who bound them in the chains, until the chains are removed.

Now we want to hear from you. Where would you see these chains being made and used? Would your characters enjoy a pet ghost to terrify their enemies? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

The Minds Behind Dragonlance Unveil 'Skyraiders of Abarax'

Dungeons and Dragons is rich with places to set our adventures to. Homebrewers and story tellers such as myself enjoy making worlds from the beginning. By combining elements of fiction we love and putting our own spin on them to make something truly unique. We here at Apotheosis Studios have dreamt up such spaces, like the City of Yon'Cath, and the Shadelands.

The fine people over at Wizards have also offered us many worlds that they've set their own games in, and made into official settings. The Forgotten Realms is among their most popular, but new realms from Magic the Gathering have since made it through.

Writers Tracy and Laura Hickman have been back at it, and since their legendary worlds of Dragonlance and Ravenloft, they have now created somewhere new for players to adventure into.

Skyraiders of Abarax

Tracy and Laura Hickman are best known for creating the magically gritty world of Dragonlance. The upcoming book Fizban's Treasury of Dragons. We do not, however, have any sign that there will be an official jaunt to Dragonlance any time soon. Fizban's is a release I am very excited for, but I would enjoy seeing this setting put into print.

The average party isn’t average in abarax - Skyraiders of Abarax Splash Art by Maerel Hibata

In the meantime, the creators of this setting have announced they're doing something new. These creators have announced that they're writing their own setting into existence: Skyraiders of Abarax.

The artwork we've seen for this new setting has been very detailed, and we have a great deal to assume and work with already. From what we can gather, the focus of this setting is around pirates on airships. This is a story style I truly love. Sky pirates are such an evocative visual, they seem to be a kind of trope that's super unique but feels very familiar. Neil Gaiman's Stardust or perhaps Mortal Engines is where I can really recall them, but they're some disconnect as to where else we know such a familiar trope. In the games I run, I know of at least three different airship pirate crews.

This is a setting I'm very interested in looking into. These creators are seasoned storytellers and the concept is exciting. I'm very interested in seeing what direction this goes. Learn more about Skyraiders of Abarax right here.

Now we want to hear from you. Is an aerial setting full of sky pirates a world you're interested in? What other fantasy tropes that feel common do you want to see brought to 5th edition? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Mercury Elementals - The Twisting Toxic Scourge

The quicksilver elemental slurps forth, sowing venom - Quicksilver Elemental by Tony Szczudlo

The elemental is a classic in the world of Dungeons and Dragons. The embodiment of a natural energy in a human like shape. We've covered elementals a lot on this blog, simply because they interest me so.

Most elementals in Fifth Edition Dungeons and Dragons are based on alchemy's cardinal elements of alchemy. Air, earth, fire, and water. The tornadoes with faces and lumbering rock men of old are always classic monsters that have been played out frequently and to great effect in fantasy and science fiction.

Alchemy also treats several fairly common metals as key building blocks of the universe. It's interesting to try and build monsters in that kind of space.

Mercury Elemental

Mercury Elemental stats generated with Homebrewery

The twisting shape of quicksilver has been used in chemistry, alchemy, medicine, and poisonings across history of our world, and the worlds of dungeons and dragons. Living mercury is an even rarer thing, making the Mercury Elemental a truly formidable thing.

Mercury Elementals do not have a solid form, as it's the only metal that's liquid at room temperature. Much like Gold Elementals, the Mercury Elemental is a living liquid creature, much like an ooze. It glides with far greater motility and adhesion than the Gold Elemental. They're significantly larger and more dangerous than Gold Elementals as a result.

Their liquid nature makes them resemble the oozes and other slime creatures of the world. Rippling tentacles that bludgeon their enemies are always a threat from any ooze. The highly toxic nature of mercury is what adds to the deadly nature of this elemental.

Deadly Quicksilver

The elemental is particularly prized by magical practitioners. Mercury always has its uses in potions and craft. The creature can occur anywhere and may be found in the magical fallout of any location, making it a terrifying wandering monster.

Now we want to hear from you. Where would Mercury Elementals occur in your world? How do you imagine elemental forms of other alchemical metals? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

The Archon of Due Diligence Hunts The Unholy and Holds Paladins to their Oath

The Paladin, the holy knight, the smite cannon that sometimes heals your party and all-times makes the big party decisions. The Paladin is the pillar of a lot of parties for your game of 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons.

The typical association is that the Paladin is Lawful Good. The squeaky clean, square jaws titular heroes and legends. They work on the straight and narrow, doing what's right for the good of the people. But not always. It's hard to keep a moral code. In a world of adventures, the horrors of fighting monsters constantly can be daunting. For the Paladin, being a champion of their holy cause, there's even more pressure.

With all this responsibility, it's a wonder that more don't snap.

Archon of Due Diligence

Any deity can have Paladins working at their service, spreading the tenets of their faith and the power of their domains. It's in the deity's best interests to have their Paladin spread fine words, and act in the duties befitting the faith. At the same time, any non-evil deity may have Angels in their service. One such Angel is the Archon of Due Diligence. Archons may serve an evil deity, ensuring Evil aligned Paladins spread the destruction and dissent that is befitting their god, and punishing their restraint or hesitation.

The Archon of Due Diligence comes for the wayward and unrighteous - Illusory Angel by Allen Williams

The first of these angels were created when the first mortals took the first services as Paladins. The gods cannot watch over all their Paladins all of the time. The one or more Archons of Due Diligence supervise them this way.

The Archon looks much like many other Angels in some ways, but different in others. Their forms appear illusory or ethereal. Their wings blend into their bodies while their garbs shift constantly. They take largely humanoid appearances.

It is their singular mission to oversee the Paladins of their god's faith. If they stay true, sincerely committed to the path they walk, then there's no trouble at all. The majority of Paladins never interact or even know of their existence. If the Paladin ever acts in ways that go against their oath, or in ways unfavourable to the deity, then they will be pursued by the Archon. This watching Angel will begin to hunt this Paladin.

The following will begin small then become increasingly more dramatic. First they will appear in dreams, offering wisdom and retorts that become more scathing and harmful as the time goes on. If they do not repent, they will appear in their physical form. They will offer their warning to the Paladin, insisting on their repentance once. The Angel will continue to visit the Paladin, with invocations more and more severe each time.

In a combat encounter, the Archon will only engage with the Paladin that works against its faith. Others that get involved will be ignored as it does its efforts to defend itself against interlopers.

Archon Stats Generated with Homebrewery

Guardian of Faith

The Archon will try its utmost to scare or encourage wayward Paladins to the light of faith. Those who atone for their sins are rewarded for their efforts to cleanse their souls. Those who continue down a darker path will be hunted mercilessly.

For the parties that do not have a Paladin, this monster can still be a real threat to the kingdom. There may be reports that a destroyer may be plaguing a religious institution and it's up to our heroes to stop it.

Now we want to hear from you. Do you have any immoral Paladins that would fear the Archon of Due Diligence? How would you use them in games you GM? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Fingers of the Void - Floating Thought Eager to Drift to the next Thinking Mind

The worlds of Dungeons and Dragons are populated by the truly monstrous, bizarre, and scary. The thrill of adventures that has brought people to play, and the player characters back for more and more, will always be the threat and the welcome challenge the players and adventurers need.

We adventurers are used to a fine selection of recognisable, classic monsters. Dragons and Oozes are staples of D&D and the fantasy genre. Beings made of living elemental energy are some of my favourites too. But this is high fantasy, it's time for things to get weird.

Fingers of the Void

In the gap between worlds, usually the Astral Plane, where things are twisted and cosmically uncertain, the natural fauna doesn't subscribe to the same rules of evolutionary biology as things in the Material World of most games of Dungeons and Dragons.

They drift over sleeping minds in the cityscape - Narcomoeba by Howard Lyon

The Fingers of the Void are fairly common in this endless, swimming space outside of the world. What may resemble an immense jellyfish to us may lead to some adventurers having false assumption. Perhaps they're stupid and we should avoid their tentacles. The Fingers are immensely ancient, absorbing the lost dreams and remaining essences of those that drift through the Astral.

Fingers of the Void Stats generated with Homebrewery

The effortless gliding creature sometimes hungers for more than just energy and thought. Every few centuries, it may have the desire to eat a medium or smaller creature whole. The energy it breaks down sends it in a deep hibernation for a time.

Drift Through Time

The Astral Sea is not a confined space. There are spontaneous magical effects that can send things or beings through, as well as the effects of certain spells. Outside of their native Astral Plane, the Fingers are very subdued, eager to drift aimless through the air. The vast majority of the time, they're incredibly docile, and will drift throughout the alien world.

Fingers at times can linger in a space, stealing far more thoughts and dreams from the locals it drifts over. Aspects of its biology make it invaluable to alchemists and spell casters, seeking to understand the wider strangeness of The Astral Sea.

Now we want to hear from you. What strange creatures linger in the space between spaces? Where would a creature like this exist in the games you DM? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Send Danger to Your Enemies as it Ricochets Across the Dungeon

The magic of Dungeons and Dragons pervades every part of the worlds. It influences how some of the many of the creatures in these worlds come into existence. Studies as real as maths or science in our world, are taken with the same seriousness in the worlds of D&D.

They didn’t aim it very well… Ricochet by David A. Cherry

I encourage all GM's, in both D&D and other TTRPGs to brew new rules and features regularly and often. When a Game Master, such as myself, wants to develop new spells for their setting, inspiration can come from anywhere. I was recently watching one of my favourite science channels on YouTube and the charismatic voice over narrator said: “imagine tossing a ball at a wall, and it coming back faster than a bullet”.

The Ricochet Spell

Ricochet is a simple spell that can add a lot of deadly punch to your Mages' combat encounter. It was discovered by accident by student wizards hundreds of years ago. The apprentice wizards were tormenting one of their class mates during an Evocation class. They flicked a small pebble from the university courtyard. The stone flew past it's mark, but hit the far wall. The stone flew back to their target much faster than it was thrown - fast enough to rip through a young student. A very messy way to discover new magic.

The Ricochet Spell Generated with Homebrewery

This spell fills a tiny, palm sized object, with increased energy so that it moves out with high speed to destructive effect. The damage doesn't come from the initial impact. The spell needs the projectile to hit against a flat surface, and take another trajectory as it flies away. The projectile gains energy as it bounces off its target.

A skilled user of this spell relishes using it in close quarters. Many mages struggle with area of effect spells harming their allies in tight dungeon corridors. The Ricochet user who can judge angles and trajectories on the fly can truly tear through the enemies as they advance through.

Now we want to hear from you. Would you bring Ricochet into games you Game Master? Which characters that you play would love to use this spell? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Find The Truth of a Bloodline with The Sangueous Ritual

In the worlds of Dungeons and Dragons, things are different to our lives in our world. Things are unclear in a world without the clear answers of science. Magic is able to find analogues of these things, and it works well. GPS can be covered with Divination, and researching the past is handled masterfully with the Legend Lore spell.

An issue that has occurred in the stories I GM and the fiction I write is that of blood. The sanctity of a royal blood line and the credibility of an heir is always an interesting source of drama for any slice of fantasy or historical fiction, and it can be relevant here. Or it can make for a great paternity test for the lusty Bard.

The Sangueous Ritual

Derived literally from blood, this simple ritual can determine if any two individuals have a direct genetic relation.

The oldest forms of magic involve blood or some manner of essence sacrifice. It's believed that harming the caster makes them more willing to be truthful. In the case of The Sangueous Ritual, the drawing together of like with like blood is usually the confirmation that the relation is strong.

Photo by Fine Vintage Design

Conducting the ritual is easy enough. It requires a simple bowl with two channels, one for a drop of blood from each concerned party to run down. The two involved in the ritual both take 1 necrotic damage, which cannot be avoided or redirected in any way. The blood flows down the channels in the bowl. The channels, have enough of a dip that the droplets of blood will collect nicely and not spill, but this happens only if they're. If they mix in the centre as one liquid, then they were magically drawn together through the ritual, making the two participants blood relatives.

The conduction and use of this ritual varies greatly across the worlds of Dungeons and Dragons. Some consider the bloodlines of rulers so well curated that it doesn't even seem necessary. Others think it's an absolute necessity to ensure the safety of the kingdom. In high magic settings, certain street level magical healers offer it in their store to ensure whether or not the Bard needs to keep it in their pants (as personally annoying that trope is).

A Bowl of Answers

In lower magic settings, this ritual can decide the fate of a kingdom. In an ongoing campaign, the death of a ruler and the continued appearance of more and more heirs can plunge the adventurer's base town into chaos. Seeking out one of the Sangueous bowls and a mage that knows and conduct the ritual, can ensure a safe future. It can be anything between a short fetch quest to a nation spanning arc all of its own. The DM's inventive imagination will never be bled dry.

Now we want to hear from you. HHH...? HHH...? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

The Village of Smile is a Designated 'Adventurer Free' Town

The world of an adventurer is perilous and uncertain. They can go from heroes emerging victorious from a dungeon under the mountains, to most wanted in their base town for disturbing the peace and killing those that cross them. As a Game Master, I suffer not a Murder Hobo to live.

When adventurers are on the road, seeking shelter and a place to Long Rest before they make it to the next site of their adventure, a small, quaint village is an ideal place. A kindly tavernkeeper will fill them with food and rumours, and the local shopkeeps will be eager for big city coin in their small businesses. Or that's how most would do it. I like to put fun spins on the conventional.

The Village of Smile

Village by GrandBlue Fantasy

Smile is the quaint village on the grand intercity roads, in the wilderness of any classic Dungeons and Dragons setting. To the unaware adventurer rocking up, they may think it's the perfect place to pit stop. As they approach the squat buildings and small enclosures of farm animals, they'd see the signage around the outside of the town. Big red stop signs around stick figures of fighters and wizards. Slogans like “there be no treasure here” and “heroes-b-gon” in big black letters.

For any curious adventure, likely not phased to obey signs like this, they'll find a wall of tutting and disapproving head shakes from each NPC wandering around the dirt road. Entering any of the stores; the tanner, baker, blacksmith, they will immediately be shooed away or have the sign turned to 'closed' and the door locked in their faces.

The only place they'd be reluctantly permitted into is the tavern: The Homestead. By the door, a pinned board says “no spells, no swords, no service”. The barkeep will explain the significance of Smile being well placed in the world. It's a village in the shade of a great mountain with which contains endless caves abandoned by Dwarves and is full of goblins guarding what little remaining treasure there is. The forest just under a mile from Smile also features an immense wolf run, where lycanthropes have hunted for hundreds of years.

Adventurers used to flock in their hundreds for treasure hunting and monster slaying. They turned the once peaceful township into a rowdy dive for adventurers of all alignments. The town collectively decided enough was enough, and no longer permits this kind of traveller to stay for more than one night, or use its services. The party may check into the lodgings at The Homestead for one night only, and must vacate at first light.

An Adventurer Free Zone

Adventurers have a reputation of being raucous and demanding the attention of multiple NPCs when they go anywhere. It makes perfect sense to me that there would be places in the world of Dungeons and Dragons that reject adventurer influence.

Now we want to hear from you. Would you let your players pass through Smile, or will they be even more strict? What other kinds of locations in your world are 'no adventurers allowed'? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Take a Break from Existence by Flickering Out

The life of an adventurer in most games of Fifth Edition Dungeons and Dragons is turbulent and dangerous. I say most because I don't want to generalise. I have a gaggle of players who want to play a One Shot of various peasants in a town near a famous dungeon, all doing their best to live a normal pastoral life while pesky adventurers keep messing things up. This will make it into their games, and it's own article very soon.

As for the usual main character in a game of D&D, the outside world full of monsters and opportunity is dangerous. Particularly for those who try to master arcane arts. Wizards don't spend the time learning to defend themselves the way fighters do. Though their magic gives them this kind of defence.

Fateful Flickering

The mage can truly feel the pressure when faced against many foes. This is why some who have mastered Conjuration spells, the art of being able to make things appear or disappear, have mastered a rare magical art called flickering. Sometimes it's useful to take a break from existence.

Out, Swift and ethereal - ‘Flicker of Fate’ by Tomasz Jedruszek

The flickering effect is a hard to master magical form of displacement. Most Conjuration teleports a person or object across distances great and small. Flickering can appear like a Conjurer is putting themselves into a later point, much like the Blink spell. In actual fact, Flickering just sends them to the Ethereal in a much more controlled.

Discovered by accident by hedge mages hundreds of years ago, Flickering has been used consistently to ensure a quick moment of reprieve and safety from danger. Some circles consider removing and returning yourself from existence cowardly, while others consider it crafty.

Flicker Spell Generated with Homebrewery

A particularly tricky NPC may use this spell to their advantage. As annoying as it may be to players, imagine how the monsters feel, unable to land a hit on a squishy wizard because they consistently turn to smoke.

Now we want to hear from you. How would characters you play use Flickering? How would NPCs you DM use Flickering? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .

Oozes that Strike Back - The Spiked Slime

In the world of Dungeons and Dragons, the numbers of each kind of monster are fun to think about. Some monster types are much more prevalent than others in the many core books released by Wizards. Monstrosity is a catch all for a lot of monster types, and classics like Dragons will always be well represented.

There is one creature type that has the fewest, and that's ooze. Oozes are the most niche to use in a lot of Dungeons and Dragons. As wandering monsters go, the ooze is classic. The image of the Gelatinous Cube, which featured in D&D themed hit Onward. It's for that reason that I find the huge absence of oozes quite surprising.

Spiked Slime

The slurping, squishy nature of a slime is a given. The living liquid that besieges dungeons, areas deep underground, and the particularly unclean. These thick goo entities glide and slide, engulfing and whipping at their enemies in their largely liquid forms. Whoever said they had to be completely fluid?

Slimes with spikes - Mitotic Slime by Raymond Swanland

Spiked Slime is a truly feared threat for those who encounter them deep underground. The yellow ichor has a somewhat translucent quality whilst being the colour of pus.

The majority of the time, Spiked Slimes are very similar to most other oozes. They slink around in an amorphous, liquid form. When threatened, they become able to attack in ways that most oozes otherwise do not. The Spiked Slime has an uncanny ability to control the surface tension of its liquid body. It can draw parts of itself up into sharp spikes or carpets of barbs. What can usually be considered soft or liquid, this slime can become spiky or sharp. This also allows the Spiked Slime to become tough and resistant to physical attacks.

Spiked Slime stats generated with homebrewery

Oozing Danger

The Spiked Slime is a particularly unique threat in the world of oozes. The lightly acidic spikes can be a thing that many rightly fear. As with many creatures here on the Apotheosis Studios blog, they make for an excellent wandering monster. I can see the adventurers being commissioned by an eccentric Druid or Wizard to extract samples to understand its aggressive tendencies or how it can solidify so quickly. There is little that can be said for sure about Spiked Slimes.

Now we want to hear from you. Where would the spiky goo strike your players? What other kind of oozes have you featured in your games? Let us know in our discord server or in the comments below.

Adam Ray contributes much for adventurers here on Apotheosis Studios. As co-founder of fantasticuniverses.com , they write about card gaming and PC gaming to a corner of the internet he carved out themselves. On Youtube, they can be found game mastering for No Ordinary Heroes , or editing the antics on The Hostile Atmosphere . Find where they dwell by climbing their Linktree .