Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #32 “Don’t Feed the…Flowers?”
Out of the Box introduction
The range of plant-based foes in fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons is small. Treants, awakened plants, blights, shambling mounds…and very little else. There should be more. A lot more. [NERDITOR’S NOTE: 33 in official sources. Thanks D&D Beyond!]
Carnivorous plants exist in our own world and come in a wide variety of colours and use many techniques to grab their prey. Ambulatory plants are a staple of fantasy (including those already listed), but are almost always magical or otherworldly in nature. If there existed actual mobile, carnivorous plants of such a size as to be a real threat, then they would be a true terror.
February 9, 2018
0
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, series 2, #31 – “Beardtoberfest”
Out of the Box introduction
A question that comes up a lot has to do with something we, as gamers, take for granted. Games. I cannot recall the number of times I have heard the question “how can I give my players games and puzzles they can do in a (insert community)?” The answer is actually pretty simple, especially for those Dungeon Masters who may live in more rural settings. Community fairs and festivals are a great resource for mundane competitions of all kinds. When one takes simple competitions like tests of strength, accuracy and endurance into consideration, the variations become endless. Consider the games presented in any carnival midway, or competitions like those associated with lumberjacks or “mountain men”. You’ll have a WIDE array of games easily replicated in a medieval society.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #30 – “Alt-itis”
Out of the Box introduction
A common problem some Dungeon Masters have to deal with is one of players desiring to change characters often. I can admit that I, too, love making a wide variety of characters even if they may not see play. If a player isn’t focusing on the character they are playing at the time, this may lead to decision making not only affecting the distracted player at hand, but may ripple out to the characters around the distracted character. It may even affect the DM. This can grow into a problem where some players spend more time making characters than actually playing one.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #29 – “Drinking Problem”
Out of the Box introduction
There are established rules for sentient magic items, and Out of the Box has already delved into that resource. However, as one might assume, this rule typically applies to permanent magic items like swords and such. The precedent has been set for other types of items (also permanent) that could take on their own sentience. I can think of two superheroes who wear armor or symbiotic suits possessing sentience, and I’m sure we already know a story about a ring that may also have a similar property. The following example will take a consumable magic item, make it not only sentient, but permanent and quasi-alive.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #28 – “Crackpot”
Out of the Box introduction
It’s always important to read every detail in a description of any monster or environment. The notes, flavour text, or even the spell descriptions can hold clues to running a given encounter in a completely different way. In the past, I have discovered little facts about hags that have completely altered my campaigns, and they are but one monster. This trick is no real trick – it’s just taking the time to read the fine print.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #27 – “Water Slide”
Out of the Box introduction
I cannot speak for every Dungeon Master, but I can admit some of my favorite references in D&D are the Wild Magic Surge table, the Wand of Wonder table, and the Potion Miscibility table. Why? Players do not accept the endangerment of their characters at most times unless, it seems, it is by one of these tables. This random fun seems to delight both the player it affects and the DM who witnesses it, regardless of who rolls for it.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #26 – “Resident Echo”
Out of the Box introduction
It is rare for a group of players to really hook into a world’s lore or history. That history is actually more than the great tales of kings and dragons. History is more of a collected recording of the lives of many people, great and small, poor and rich. In this historical context, lore is revealed through the lens of the people living through these times.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #25 – “The Nursery”
Out of the Box introduction
There are some classic Dungeons & Dragons monsters that don’t get the love they deserve. I can remember being paranoid to walk through any cavern because piercers might be around. Low level characters had to face these along with all the Gygaxian horrors camouflaged as other things, or attacked the characters to punish them for their curiosity.
In this particular case, we’ll use a piercer, as well as it’s progenitor, the roper. One would think the two would be inexorably linked in many encounters, but I’ve seen all of one in the last several years.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #24 – “Perchance to Dream”
Out of the Box introduction
When creating encounters or trying to place the same, the concept of the location can become the choke point of the issue. Sometimes it’s not about where something happens, but when. Special (or even mundane) moments in time can be made truly special by inserting unexpected circumstances or interactions.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #23, “The Librarian”
Out of the Box introduction
A classic monster from D&D has always been the beholder. However, when one says that word, it tends to conjure images of the largest and worst version of the species. To be fair, there are a lot of different versions of this species, each with their own specialty. They range in power and size from the tiny gazer to the undead eye tyrant, with a few variants to fill the gaps in between.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #22 – “A Cry for Help”
Out of the Box introduction
The ever-present truth of player character groups is that they should be working together to achieve an end. Cooperation to overcome the odds is a core tenant. Working together and developing a synergy or symbiotic relationship means characters who might not necessarily overcome a challenge or monster on their own are more likely because their abilities overlap well.
Monsters should be no different. Nerdarchy has raised the concept of Monster BFFs before, but there are variations that can overlap to devastating consequences. I have raised this subject before in Series 1 (A Friend in Need), but it bears revisiting to show there is more than one way to skin a cat. (With appropriate apologies to all cats reading this). The concept of the mimic and oytugh working together was certainly dangerous, but had an air of absurdity and hilarity that made Dungeon Masters always chuckle a little when they read it.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #21 – “The Solution”
Out of the Box Introduction
A common plot device in movies from the ’50s-’70s was the “switcheroo”. In essence, modern-era suspense loved to lead the audience/reader into one set of expectations only to twist them at the last minute. The hero did not always win.
Things have changed since that time. We have come to assume the good guys win. The problem is the assumption of victory, and the culture of entitlement it spawns. Heroes of any kind should never assume victory nor fulfillment. They should strive for it. They should earn it. They should also realize mistakes or poor judgment can affect things along the way, and those errors could reasonably lead to the downfall of the heroes in question. Mythology allowed for this. Modern stories do not.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #20 – “Spear of the Gods”
Out of the Box Introduction
Adding depth, mystery, or lore to a setting can only help it. Searching through dusty tomes and scrolls isn’t the way many adventurers prefer to do so, though. A Dungeon Master can add this depth through the right encounter, especially if the image is striking.
Give the players pause, and you’ll motivate the player characters. Most have a natural curiosity that will propel that learning forward. Better still, they won’t know they’re learning a history lesson, because it will be in the form of an adventure and exploration.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #19 – “Genie in a…”
Out of the Box introduction
Reinterpretation means more than a simple reskin. By reimagining classic tropes, stories, faerie tales, movies and the like, Dungeon Masters have an endless supply of inspirations for encounters and adventures.
One old trope rarely used anymore is literally the “genie in the bottle” routine.
But, let’s be honest, there is more than just one way to reimagine the old cliche to make it fresh.
Out of the Box D&D Encounters, Series 2, #18 – “Pull!”
Out of the Box introduction
A pair of hill giants can make a very bad day for a village in a D&D game. [Art by Wayne Reynolds]
I was inspired by an older broadcast by the truly talented AJ Picket on his channel “The Mighty Gluestick”. In a video wherein he described “what would happen if a giant hit a player character with a tree”, he said that they would, to paraphrase, “go flying”.
So, that inspired me to think one thing. What would happen if a giant, say a hill giant (to get the ball rolling), flung a player character into the air?
Well, that inspired research. Considering that improvised weapons (page 147-148 Player’s Handbook) references ‘a dead goblin’ as a viable possibility, then it’s on the playing field that a body could be used as a weapon.
