48
votes
Accepted
How can I make people fear a player with a monstrous character?
Frame challenge: why wouldn't you lock this character out of almost every interaction in town? Even in a progressive city like Waterdeep, I wouldn't expect to see bugbears in the open interacting with ...
- 6,605
47
votes
Accepted
Convincing my Curse of Strahd DM to reduce an inflicted character flaw that goes against my character's core beliefs
You're in Ravenloft, a setting designed around dread, horror, and the inevitable moral corruption of even the best good people, exploring the temple of the darkest forbidden knowledge in known ...
- 244k
45
votes
Accepted
How is it possible for this NPC to be alive during the Curse of Strahd adventure?
He's a wizard
I mean, he's one of the most powerful wizards the multiverse has ever seen. It's not really surprising he hasn't died of old age-- Clone, for example, is only an 8th level spell and ...
- 67.8k
42
votes
Can I defeat Strahd von Zarovich by stuffing him in a bag of holding and tearing it?
According to page 24 in Curse of Strahd (using this related answer):
No spell - not even wish -- allows one to escape from Strahd's domain. Astral Projection, teleport, plane shift, and similar ...
- 7,699
40
votes
Accepted
Why is it so important for the party to acquire the Tome of Strahd?
It reveals some key backstory that makes the PC's journey much easier.
It helps with certain encounters involving Sergei and Ireena.
p156 notes this.
The PCs have no obvious way of learning that ...
- 19.1k
39
votes
Accepted
Can I defeat Strahd von Zarovich by stuffing him in a bag of holding and tearing it?
I see a couple of problems with this plan:
The size of a bag of holding. While the bag has internal volume sufficient to hold Strahd, getting him inside may prove impossible.
This bag has an ...
- 2,045
37
votes
How do I present an unbeatable encounter without frustrating my players?
how can I present such an encounter, which is essentially unbeatable at this point, without frustrating them?
Not every encounter has to be "winnable"
There will always be encounters in ...
- 23.7k
35
votes
Is what my DM did impacting player agency in a negative way?
It's not denying agency if opponents use their resources to counter character actions
Player agency means that the character had control over their decisions, and these decisions affect the game world....
- 129k
32
votes
Can I defeat Strahd von Zarovich by stuffing him in a bag of holding and tearing it?
There are several problems
1.) Nothing Leaves Ravenloft
A central problem in Ravenloft is that it is all but impossible to leave that plane. Relevant text can be found here (Curse of Strahd, p. 24, ...
- 38.4k
32
votes
Accepted
In Curse of Strahd, if Strahd is able to allow the Vistani to come and go as they please, can he also grant this ability to PCs?
It depends on exactly what we’re talking about
Up front, be aware that while Curse of Strahd only notes that Barovia is found in a remote demiplane far from the rest of the multiverse and doesn’t give ...
- 357k
32
votes
Accepted
How can a Wizard procure rare inks in Curse of Strahd or otherwise make use of a looted spellbook?
"Rare Inks" (and the needed components for experimentation) are, presumably, assumed to be available as a rule
There are no references in any 5E Adventure that I can recall (and I've read ...
- 66.1k
30
votes
What happens if you put a Bag of Holding inside another Bag of Holding in Barovia?
You sort of cut off the rules text, there. If you keep going, it is actually very specific and covers this question:
No spell -- not even wish -- allows one to escape from Strahd's domain. Astral ...
- 77.8k
29
votes
My players want to use called-shots on Strahd
For this particular scenario, it's simply not possible.
From the Vampire (added bold for emphasis):
Stake to the Heart. If a piercing weapon made of wood is driven into the vampire's heart while ...
- 8,177
29
votes
How to deal with a player who makes bad characters and kills them?
Step 1: be a good friend, be fair
Your rule about replacements for dead characters not being rolled up is needlessly penal.
he said he felt that I was unfairly punishing him, that he didn't
think it ...
- 144k
29
votes
Accepted
What is Strahd von Zarovich's weight in bat form?
Up to the DM
There are no official creature weights in 5e, just size categories. Specific heights and weights are up to the DM to narrate to fit the story.
This DM would say it weighs what a normal ...
- 126k
28
votes
Accepted
What happens if you put a Bag of Holding inside another Bag of Holding in Barovia?
Item breaks, but nobody leaves because Barovia has already considered that option.
Curse of Strahd explains the "you can't leave" aspect of Barovia:
No spell-not even wish-allows one to ...
- 19k
28
votes
How can my group move on from believing there is a traitor in their midst when there isn't?
You're too late to rebuild trust...but why do it at all?
This is probably an answer you don't want to hear, but you've spent the campaign up until now with Strahd turning the players against each ...
- 126k
26
votes
Accepted
Curse of Strahd - Does NPC ability trump Inspiration rule?
The NPCs ability to grant inspiration every turn doesn't in any way alter inspirations normal limitations. Inspiration can potentially be used multiple times in a single turn (or on any other creature'...
- 6,457
24
votes
Where can I educate myself on D&D universe lore, specifically on vampires and supernatural monsters?
What counts as a spoiler depends on your table...
The best source for lore on monsters for DnD 5e is the aptly-named Monster Manual book. It contains varyingly long lore dumps ranging from a couple ...
- 54.1k
24
votes
I have a player who will not stop cheating
Given this is a school club activity, you most likely have a staff advisor for your club. You should talk to your club advisor about this problem player, specifically about how they're ruining the ...
- 16.1k
24
votes
Is what my DM did impacting player agency in a negative way?
I think the question here is: did Strahd always have that Wish spell? Did the DM decide in advance that Strahd has access to one Wish?
(I'm pretty sure the Curse of Strahd campaign as written does ...
- 90.5k
23
votes
Can Strahd use his Unarmed Strike (that grapples) as an opportunity attack?
Strahd can use the action as an opportunity attack
When you leave a creature's range, you provoke an opportunity attack. The options for what you can do during an opportunity attack are in the Combat ...
- 75.9k
23
votes
Accepted
Why are there two King of Diamonds entries for the Curse of Strahd tarokka card readings?
For balance
There are other tarokka cards with multiple results. The point is to allow the GM to choose which reading is the right one for their game. Here, if the players are very good, give them a ...
- 4,023
22
votes
I have a player who will not stop cheating
Don't try to use in-game means to fix it.
Trying to use the game itself to deal with the problem player (hereafter TPP) is going to run into several problems, foremost among which that TPP is playing ...
- 9,677
22
votes
How can I make people fear a player with a monstrous character?
Mongrelfolk
I have run this campaign a couple times now and have run into this issue. I have had Tabaxi and Minotaur players and handled them by having the populace assume that they are "...
- 1,770
21
votes
How can I prepare for DMing the Curse of Strahd adventure effectively?
Ask "What would you like to do next session?"
This is a question I ask my players at the end of a session where the next steps are quite vague. If they're in the middle of a dungeon crawl ...
- 2,824
21
votes
How is it possible for this NPC to be alive during the Curse of Strahd adventure?
The dark wanderer's answer is of course correct. I'd like to add some supporting Greyhawk lore and potential explanations for Mordenkainen's apparent longevity.
According to the D&D 3e Epic Level ...
- 83.9k
21
votes
How do I present an unbeatable encounter without frustrating my players?
It's ok to be frustrated
You hit the nail on the head, "that's kind of the point".
In many stories it's common to have the protagonists face off against an enemy they cannot possibly beat at ...
- 1,717
21
votes
What is Strahd von Zarovich's weight in bat form?
I'd use Occam's razor to say he weighs the same as a normal bat. The reasoning for this goes:
He can masquerade convincingly as a normal bat. That's attractive to me as a DM for plot purposes. It ...
- 17.4k
21
votes
Accepted
How do I rule on spells without casters and their interaction with things like Counterspell?
The best example of this I could think of is Glyph of Warding, which can automatically cast a harmful spell on the creature triggering it.
This has obvious similarities to the situation you describe; ...
- 12.9k
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