Spes Magna Games

Today I take a break from B/X D&D class creation and leap back over to 5E D&D with an idea about how to introduce some wuxia-inspired martial arts mayhem into the game. Here’re my initial, rough-drafty thoughts.

Step One: Remove the monk as a character class option. No, seriously.

Step Two: Every character class gets proficiency in Strength saving throws and Dexterity saving throws. If a character class already has proficiency in Strength and/or Dexterity saving throws, the character gains Expertise in the saving throw.

Step Three: Choose two skills from Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, and Stealth. These are additional skills.

Step Four: Add the monk class features listed below to every character class. “I am serious, and don’t call me Shirley.” Each monk class feature is gained at the normal level as if the character were a monk.

• Unarmored Defense
• Martial Arts
• Ki
• Flurry of Blows
• Patient Defense
• Step of the Wind
• Unarmored Movement
• Deflect Missiles
• Slow Fall
• Extra Attack (unless the character class already has this feature)
• Stunning Strike
• Ki-Empowered Strikes
• Stillness of Mind
• Evasion (unless the character class already has this feature)
• Purity of Body
• Tongue of the Sun and Moon
• Diamond Soul
• Timeless Body
• Empty Body
• Perfect Soul

Step Five: Classes that get to choose a subclass may choose a monk subclass. I guess you could do this for other classes, replacing, for example, a wizard’s Arcane Tradition with a monk subclass.

Step Six: Add Wuxia Movement to the game.

Wuxia Movement: When you take the Move or Dash action, up to half of your movement (round down to nearest 5 feet) ignores difficult terrain or other obstacles so long as you can describe the cool acrobatic moves you make while moving. You can leap over things (no Strength [Athletics] required), run up walls, skip across water, et cetera. When your movement ends, you suffer any negative effects related to terrain, environment, or gravity deemed appropriate. You may also suffer negative effects for doing things like dancing across lava, et cetera. Your Wuxia Movement does not provoke opportunity attacks when you move out of an enemy’s reach (assuming you describe why).

Tags: 5E D&D, Character Classes

Merry Eleventh Day of Christmas!

Ug. I’m tired. Today was my first day back on campus after Christmas vacation (which, the observant among you will have noticed, once again ended early as there are still Days of Christmas left). I like to make a big splash after an extended time away from school, so my students got class/homework, reading assignments, and a new poem to memorize. Huzzah.

So, if you’ve not seen The Last King, you owe it to yourself to watch it. It’s a hoot, and it has without a doubt the best scenes involving good guy medieval warriors on skis fighting to save the baby heir to the throne from bad guy medieval warriors on skis. Seriously. Check out the trailer at this link.

And now a new magic item.

Skis of Travail
Wondrous item, rare (requires attunement)

These finely crafted wooden skis are each about five feet long. It requires an action to don or doff the skis, and the magic of them makes poles unnecessary. While wearing the skis, you not only treat ice and snow as normal terrain, but you gain a +10 foot bonus to your speed. You also enjoy these abilities:

• You can use your bonus action to Dash across ice and snow.
• When using the skis to move across ice and snow, foes make opportunity attacks against you with disadvantage.
• As part of your move when skiing across ice and snow, you can jump three times the normal distance, but no farther than your remaining movement would allow.

Tags: 5E D&D, Christmas, magic items, movies

Merry Second Day of Christmas!

Most important of all, he taught his son to beware of…[t]he Abominable Snow Monster of the North: he’s mean, he’s nasty, and he hates everything to do with Christmas. (Sam the Snowman, describing the Abominable Snow Monster)

The Abominable Snow Monster of the North
Large giant, chaotic evil

Armor Class 15 (natural armor)
Hit Points 114 (12d10+48)
Speed 40 ft., climb 40 ft.

STR 20 (+5), DEX 12 (+1), CON 18 (+4), INT 7 (-2), WIS 11 (+0), CHA 7 (-2)

Skills Perception +3, Stealth +4
Damage Resistances bludgeoning from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities cold
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Giant
Challenge 5 (1,800)

Bounces. The abominable snow monster has an elastic body. It takes half damage from falls.

Enraged by Red. The abominable snow monster hates the color red, which it can see even with its darkvision. When attacking a target bearing the color red, the abominable snow monster has advantage on its attacks.

Keen Smell. The abominable snow monster has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on smell.

Non-Swimmer. The abominable snow monster cannot swim. Its swim speed is 0 feet, and it always fails Strength (Athletics) checks made to swim.

Snow Camouflage. The abominable snow monster has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in snowy terrain.

Actions

Multiattack. The abominable snow monster makes two attacks: one with its fangs and one with either its greatclub or its talons.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (1d10+5) piercing damage.

Greatclub. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (3d8+5) bludgeoning damage.

Talons. Melee Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 12 (2d6+5) slashing damage.

Rock. Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, range 50/200 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (2d10+5) bludgeoning damage.

Reactions

Bounce Back. The abominable snow monster can use its reaction to immediately stand up when knocked prone.

Tags: 5E D&D, Christmas, monsters

Merry First Day of Christmas!

Today’s long-awaited post wormed its way into my brain this morning while ushering in the narthex before Christmas morning Mass. Enjoy!

Hermey’s Ferocious Forceps
Weapon (great forceps), uncommon

These over-sized forceps are a magical simple melee weapon with the Two-Handed property. A successful attack roll inflicts 1d4 plus Strength bonus points of piercing damage, unless used against a creature with teeth, in which case the forceps inflict 1d6 plus Strength bonus damage. On a critical hit, the forceps inflict double damage as normal. A toothed creature who suffers a critical from the forceps has disadvantage on its bite attack until it takes a short or long rest or receives magical healing.

Tags: 5E D&D, Christmas, magic items

I’ve not posted a new monster for 5E D&D since December 2020. Shocking, I know. So, to remedy that oversight, here’s an oldie-but-goodie glommed from 1978’s Gamma World from TSR. Merry Christmas in July!

N.B. That link goes to my DriveThruRPG store’s products, which are on sale for a few more days.

Standing nearly 10 feet tall with a wingspan of just over 25 feet, the yexil move clumsily on the ground but with grace while in flight. It has deep orange fur, a sinuous neck, and a leonine head with large eyes and insect-like mandibles. Yexils are omnivores with a fondness for eating manufactured clothing, the more colorful and fashionable the better.

Yexil
Large beast, neutral

Armor Class 14 (natural armor)
Hit Points 75 (10d10+20)
Speed 25 ft., fly 75 ft.

STR 18 (+4), DEX 11 (+0), CON 15 (+2), INT 8 (-1), WIS 13 (+1), CHA 10 (+0)

Saving Throws CON +4
Skills Perception +3
Damage Resistances cold
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages understands Common but can’t speak
Challenge 4 (1,100)

Dive Attack. If the yexil is flying and dives at least 30 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with a melee weapon attack, the attack deals an extra 9 (2d8) damage to the target.

Flyby. The yexil doesn’t provoke an opportunity attack when it flies out of an enemy’s reach.

Keen Sight. The yexil has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight.

Actions

Multiattack. The yexil makes two attacks: one with its mandibles and one with its talons.

Mandibles. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d8+4) piercing damage.

Talons. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8+4) slashing damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 14). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the yexil can’t use its talons on another target.

Searing Eyes (Recharge 5-6). The yexil fires twin beams of intense heat from its eyes, affecting a line 75-foot long line that is 10 feet wide. Each creature in that line must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw, taking 17 (5d6) fire damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.

Tags: 5E D&D, Gamma World, monsters