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I'm working on a D&D campaign where a town is stuck in a time loop. my players can do whatever and the day doesn't repeat exactly; every day is a different day, the sun revolves around the planet and monday ends and tuesday begins, but the townsfolk are stuck doing the exact things they did the day they were cursed and are trapped repeating what they did over and over until the curse/enchantment/spell is broken. The townspeople are unable to interact with the players.

Is there any monster or item, homebrewed or official, that could trap a large group of people in a time loop? I've looked everywhere and I can't find what i'm looking for so far.

The players are at level 2.

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    \$\begingroup\$ Welcome to the stack and please take our tour to learn more about us \$\endgroup\$
    – NautArch
    Jan 2, 2020 at 16:30
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    \$\begingroup\$ Unfortunately, I think your question is a bit too broad and open-ended for us as it currently is written. Focusing on whether or not there is an existing monster or item that could trap someone in a loop is definitely something we can do. But the latter on what to homebrew is not. I've made an edit to focus that for you, but you can always roll it back or edit it yourself after. Once you've got enough rep, you can join our Role-playing Games Chat or review our list of forums. \$\endgroup\$
    – NautArch
    Jan 2, 2020 at 16:32
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    \$\begingroup\$ Are you looking for a specific, official content creature or item? Something more specific than "You're the DM, do what makes sense for the plot"? \$\endgroup\$
    – guildsbounty
    Jan 2, 2020 at 16:41
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    \$\begingroup\$ Are you comfortable converting to 5e monsters from previous editions? \$\endgroup\$
    – Hey I Can Chan
    Jan 2, 2020 at 16:52
  • \$\begingroup\$ Your thesis question is trap "a person", but you describe many people being trapped. Am I correct in assuming the latter is the goal? \$\endgroup\$
    – David Coffron
    Jan 2, 2020 at 17:18

2 Answers 2

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No object or item but there is a person

That person is the DM.

It’s good to be the Dungeon Master! Not only do you get to tell fantastic stories about heroes, villains, monsters, and magic, but you also get to create a world in which those stories live.

Dungeon Master’s Guide p.4

This sounds like a really fantastic story. So tell it. Create whatever you need to make it work.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ more specifically the DM is not constrained by the same spells the players have access to. \$\endgroup\$
    – John
    Jan 3, 2020 at 3:30
  • \$\begingroup\$ If the OP wants to tie the time loop as closely as possible to published D&D content, an Androsphinx might be a good starting point. It still would need a good deal of DM fiat, though. \$\endgroup\$
    – Upper_Case
    Jan 3, 2020 at 22:06
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Perhaps this could be done with a Wish spell, or a series of Wishes cast day after day by a group of wizards responsible for imprisoning the town.

Another idea is a modified "deck of many things" with an over-abundance of Fate cards: "The Fates: Reality's fabric unravels and spins anew, allowing you to avoid or erase one event as if it never happened. You can use the card's magic as soon as you draw the card or at any other time before you die."

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  • \$\begingroup\$ How is the Fate card applicable here? This isn't one event that we're talking about. \$\endgroup\$
    – NautArch
    Jan 2, 2020 at 18:43
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    \$\begingroup\$ "I wish this day would never end." \$\endgroup\$
    – Ryan C. Thompson
    Jan 2, 2020 at 18:46
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    \$\begingroup\$ @RyanC.Thompson And if you're at the "let's just wish this to work" level, you may as well just handwave it and say "it is because of story." \$\endgroup\$
    – NautArch
    Jan 2, 2020 at 18:54
  • \$\begingroup\$ I agree with @NautArch on this one. It's fully within a DM's rights to just make up a McGuffin, curse, magical effect, monster ability, etc. to explain weird plot-required shenanigans. I mean, unless the goal is a cautionary tale about the hazards of Wish. Which, hey, that could be fun. \$\endgroup\$
    – guildsbounty
    Jan 2, 2020 at 19:14

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