here there be dragons

Heck yeah! Lets do it now!

First I made my own silicone molds because buying molds is espensive …

Supplies:

Pourable silicone, a bunch of stir sticks, a marker, a dice set, some clay of some sort, and some appropriate sized cups

First I mix the silicone according to instructions, slowly as to make as little bubbles possible but long enough to be thorough. Thump the silicone to get all the bubbles out.

Then I put a LITTLE bit of clay on the “1” side of a die. Very little is needed but it helps stick the die to the bottom of the cup when you pour in the silicone. I write the type of die, such as d6, on the outside of one of the cups so I know which mold is which when I’m done.

Then pour in the silicone super slowly and gently or it might knock the dice off the clay. Try to cover the dice completely without using too much otherwise it will be hard to get dice out. Wait for about 24 hours for the silicone to harden then gently cut down the side of the cup. A clean cut means you can put tape over it and use it again.

Here is how my mold came out (in use as of now lol). You take the clay out then with scissors or an exacto knife or something, cut gently so you can get the die out. Then use your marker to write on the bottom of the mold what die it makes. Yes it will fade, I haven’t come up with a better way yet.

Then I bake the molds in my oven between 250 and 275 for 2 or three hours. If the silicone isn’t set right it can react with the resin and leave the dice sticky (if you have sticky dice just put them in the oven, same as the molds).

Now for actually making the dice!

(This part will differ as everyone’s process is a little different)

You will need:

A towel you don’t mind getting dirty, some resin, measuring cups (resin might come with them), stir sticks, anything you want to put in the resin, a heat element (a lighter, heat gun, hair dryer, matches, your breath etc.), possibly some tape, and your molds.

First I heat up my molds in the oven (same as above when I was curing them, 250 degrees for however long I need) I find heating them up helps pop bubbles when I pour in the resin but be sure to make them cool a bit or your resin will boil while in the mold!!!

While those are cooking I pour resin but first! to save money I take my two plastic measuring cups and label one A and the other B and I only use solution A in cup A and solution B in cup B. I do the same to two stirring sticks as well.

(I got some really nice measuring cups when I ordered some molds once)

Measure out the same amount of A and B and mix in a separate plastic cup, make sure you use those A and B labeled stir sticks to scrape out almost every drop. Then stir agonizingly slow as to make the least amount of bubbles possible.

Some people like to add their “others” (beads, acrylic paint, glitter, etc.) to the resin before they mix but I like to do it after. You see, when you mix part A and B the resin looks SUPPPER cloudy and I like to make sure I’ve stirred it all completely before I add anything. Make stir you stir it til it looks like clear crystal water or your dice will turn out bad.

If there are a lot of bubbles you can use a “heat element” to get rid of them. I use a long lighter like this:

And whole the resin won’t catch fire, be careful not to melt the plastic cups. And never heat the resin in the oven or microwave because it will get so hot it will melt the cups and stink up your house. (I’ve done this before)

I like to take out my molds from the oven before I add my paint or anything, so they can cool while I slowly stir in the extra. When they cool off, if you see any molds with some major gapped seams use tape to seal the sides together. You’ll have to be careful because most tape doesn’t stick to silicone so I tape it to it’s self.

Then I put all my molds in a box and wait at LEAST twelve hours. If they came out wrong you might have mixed the resin wrong, the resin reacted to your additive or molds badly, or even something I’ve never encountered.

When the dice are done I use a rotary tool to shave down the stumps and very fine grit sand paper to make it smooth. However this will make the dice matte and not shiny. I haven’t got it yet but I’m planning on using resin polish to shine them up but I’ve heard other things work too.

To number the dice I dab fingernail polish onto the numbers then use an old rag and fingernail polish remover to clean it up. And viola! Done!

Ratcatchers: Especially in an urban campaign, this term is chosen specifically to disrespect and belittle adventurers. It comes from a more literal place, people who catch and dispose of rats and other vermin. It implies that adventuring is dirty work, unprofitable, undeserving of praise or respect.

Mercenaries: This one is more matter-of-fact. It’s still not a respectful term by any means, but there is a sort of professionalism to it. It also implies greed, that the PCs aren’t willing to do anything without the promise of pay. Also, there is the assumption that they are going to choose the violent solution to any problem, unless 

Mercs: You might think this would be the same as mercenaries, but there is a wholly different intent behind the shortened version. This term assumes that the PCs are aggressive, that they only solve problems with violence. Not only that, this term implies that the violence isn’t just a means to an end, but something they actually enjoy.

Rogues: Not in the same context as the class. This is used to describe people who are likable despite their lawlessness. There is an implied charisma or charm, but also the assumption of greed as primary motivation.

Scoundrels: Like rogues in almost all ways, but without the requirement of likability. Still charm and charisma, just often more sleazy than actually likable.

Madcaps: Again, similar to rogue, but with a heavy implication of madness. Villagers who live near a haunted forest might call adventurers who go in there “madcaps.”

Bounders: Like scoundrels, but even without an implied charm. These are people without any sense of honor, motivated purely by greed.

Fixers: This one is straightforward. It doesn’t actively disrespect the PCs, but it also doesn’t elevate them above others. They are simply here to fix a problem, and after the problem is fixed, they’re useless.

Dungeoneers: This one is certainly more specific. It is similar to mercenaries, in that it doesn’t carry any respect, but it does have a professional air. Unlike mercenaries, there is an implied intelligence; a dungeoneer is an expert at dungeon-crawling. There isn’t as much of an emphasis on violence, instead there is an implied sneakiness. However, there is still an implication that greed is the primary motivator.

Explorers: This term may not be used for most PCs, but when it does apply, it is used in a respectful manner. It assumes even more intelligence, and it implies a scholarly bent, that the PCs are motivated by knowledge, not greed.

Wanderers: Like explorers, but without motivation.

Vagabonds: Like wanderers, but with the implication of being problematic to the community. Or, a sort of wandering scoundrel.

Pathfinders: Like explorers, but with the implication that they are clearing the way for the spread of civilization. There is an honor to this word, but also more implication of risk or danger.

Adventurers: There is more of an air of respect in this. The use of the word “adventure” implies a sort of storybookishness, there’s less of an implication of dirt and greed. 

Heroes: This is a word chosen specifically to praise the PCs. It implies selflessness, a need to help others, and a certain level of competence.

Champions: Heroes, but tied to a specific place or group. The pinnacle of a community.

Since May 2016 I’ve created well over 200 monsters, NPC’S, weather, hazards, traps, and items to add to Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition adventures and campaigns. Here is a list of FREE available material so far. Use the links below to download them from google drive. New content always available first on my Facebook group page. https://www.facebook.com/groups/dmweber/ Jungle Encounters https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzlzB4FzIyPQemxpMW9ZTDg2VzQ/view?usp=sharing 

Arctic Encounters https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzlzB4FzIyPQMDF6UE45TTZSakU/view?usp=sharing 

Desert Encounters https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzlzB4FzIyPQTWtEb2wza2Q1S28/view?usp=sharing 

Holiday Encounters https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzlzB4FzIyPQd1lsdUhZaXF5blU/view?usp=sharing 

Jurassic Encounters https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzlzB4FzIyPQRGZRcXdqalBhc3M/view?usp=sharing

What’s in the PDF

100 more common magical items, since the first one turned out well. This time, I included a numbers column, so that it’s more usable. Have fun!

Okay, I’m sure you’ve all thought of it, especially first time DMs: what if you go too far? What if you made it too challenging for your players, especially at lower levels. What if you kill off a player because the task was too difficult for their level. It would be different if it was their own fault or if they were just unlucky, but you actually feel bad for sending an adult black dragon at your level two players now. What should you do? They aren’t high enough leveled to get resurrection spells, and you don’t feel it’s fair to make your player make a new character when it was your bad. What is there to do?

Always have a back up plan for an NPC that can bring low level players back to life in a pinch. Consider the players background too, this could play in later to their character development and overall story plot. Here’s a few examples

(Player is a wizard or sorcerer) - after the players last sight was the great sword slicing into its body, your player opens their eyes to see what looks to be ice. Everywhere is ice, only it’s not cold, and they seem to be encased in it and can’t move. A shadow figure appears and with a flash of arcane energy the ice breaks. The player realizes it’s actually a crystal. They fall to the cold floor naked and dazed, the look around and see a few other similar crystals lining the wall. The light hurts their eyes, almost like newborns. Their muscles weak as if never used. They weakly mutter “where… am…. i” to which he robbed hooded figure, obscured by a porcelain mask, says “The Arcanum Consortium”. The name is foreign, you have absolutely no idea what it means. Two more robbed figures appear carrying clothes and some equipment, you ask “who… are…. you….” to which they reply “people who have a vested interest in your survival” and with that the robed figures cast modify memory and the player wakes up in a tavern in the town just before the encounter where they died. New non magical equipment, none of their gear from the previous body present. They do find a pouch with some money in it and a note telling them where to find their companions as well as a shard of blue crystal.

The arcanum consortium is a secret society of wizards who through the use of divination spells figure out who are could potentially be important individuals in the fate of the world. Their goal is preserve arcane knowledge and maintain balance and peace and promote learning and understanding and they take a vested interested in prominent young wizards and sorcerers. They secretly obtain a piece of the PCs body, be it blood or other forms of flesh, and cast a ritual on it that i corpersted Clone and Regenerate spells that grow the new body in a crystal. In their secret lair they have dozens of these crystals, known as Contingents, waiting for the soul of their original body to find them. It’s a long and taxing process that is expensive but necessary, should the players learn of the consortiums existsnce after being reborn it may set them on a quest of discovery (and they may owe the consortium a favor or two). The next time the player receives a restoration spell the memories of the experience floods them all st once, but they still don’t remember how they got back to that tavern.

(If the player is a Druid or a Ranger) - after falling in battle, a Fey spirit appears and sees the fallen nature warden. The Fey spirit retreats and tells one of the local Druid circles. After deliberation it is decided the circle intervenes to raise their fallen brethren (remember druids and ranger circles are loose allies). As the surviving party morns the loss of their comrade they feel a warm breeze sweep through and A Fey spirit goes over to the body and takes the fallen nature warden and retreats back to the grove, beckoning its companions to follow. If the body was never recovered, then a Fey messenger summons them to the grove, with the Fey already retrieved the body from its final resting place. With the aid of the companions the Druid circle places the body in a circular pond and begin casting the spell as a ritual. You can either cast true reserection or reincarnate, personally i like the later better.

Once risen, the Druid or ranger is going to have a tie to that circle (if they don’t already) and again owe them a favor. If you don’t have an existing circle, take the concept of the Arcanum Consortium and apply it to the circle. Call them the Circle of Revival, as they hope to revitalize humanities love for nature and restore balance between the natural and civilized world. Perhaps the Fey spirit that assisted works for a prominent member of the Fey courts who also have a stake in the survival of the characters. Either way, the character will have new connections.

(If cleric of paladin) - they open their eyes to find themselves on the fields of Elysium (or whichever plane their god resides on), face to face with their patron deity. The player is in awe at the realm they’re in, it’s everything they dream of. It’s the physical embodiment of everything they stand for, it’s the manifestation and personification of divinity itself. Their patron deity recognizes this and smiles before saying “you will one day walk these halls and feel the breeze in the meadow, but not yet. You’re time hasn’t come, your fate is still on the material plane” and the character wakes up on an alter at the nearest temple to their deity, with a note on glittering paper telling them where their party is.

(If warlock) - your player wakes up to find themselves floating in a dark liquid. They try to speak but there is no sound, just the void. Suddenly they feel a presence. Is it foul and evil like a fiendish patron, is it warm and glowing like a Fey or celestial, is it alien and foreign like the great old one, that depends on their patron. But no matter the nature or the form of the patron, they all say the same thing “I’m not finished with you yet. We have a Pact, you’re not getting out of it so easily”. The players then wake up gasping for air in a field not to far from where they were slain, the ground around them scorched from the fiend or glowing from the celestial or fey or just mutated and twisted from the great old ones presence when sending their servant back to the material plane.

(For non magic users) - a traveling healer with similar views and alignment had heard that the adventurers embarking on the daring exposition and thought it might be prudent to tag along as they felt the party was ill prepared. Just in time too it looks like. This gives the opportunity to introduce a reoccurring NPC who may offer assistance with future healing needs such as restorations resurrections and healing potions too. Not really equipped for combat, after that one time of seeking the party they gave the party a way to find them should they need them again in the future. Perhaps they’re a healer for hire and demand extraordinary prices after already bringing people back to life, perhaps they only wish to help those in need and just admire the characters ambition to take on such a deadly foe, perhaps they felt drawn to the slain character as if by fate.

(DM behind the screen like)

Dragons don’t always want to kidnap a princess for prestige, ransom, or dinner. Roll on the table to determine your dragon’s motive!

1) Conversation: Have you ever been alone in a mountain for 400 years? Well it can get lonely. Sometimes the best thing to do in those instances is kidnap a well cultured princess to discuss current events with.

2) Management Advice: Ruling over a kingdom of kobolds and being the patron of a dragon cult is mentally exhausting work. It’s not surprising that the dragons occasionally hit mental brick walls and are uncertain how to manage it all. So kidnapping the local princess for free advice can really be helpful.

3) Public Relations: Sometimes it is good to be viewed as something more than a terrifying fire-breathing lizard. Who doesn’t want to be seen as regal, majestic, and honorable after all? So kidnapping the local princess to see how she does it seems perfectly reasonable.

Creating a whole class from scratch is…hard work. But i’ve had this idea in my head for a while and i’m excited to put it out there for others!

Amethyst dragons hork up an enormous gemstone that can be spit with pinpoint accuracy up to 75 feet, and explodes on impact with a sixty-foot blast radius

Black dragons just fire-hose a sixty-foot-long stream powerful acid out of their mouths, like HWAAARRRF

Brass dragons exhale either a stream of blisteringly hot air, or a jet of narcotic gas that puts living targets to sleep

Bronze dragons can spit lightning bolts, or alternatively exhale a mind-altering gas that compels people to run away

Copper dragons also have the acid-barf option, or they can exhale a gas that slows down time in the affected area

Crystal dragons exhale a spray of razor-sharp shards, which is expected, but the shards also glow brightly, forcing anyone in the area to save versus blindness

Emerald dragons just scream really loudly

Fairy dragons burp up a cloud of euphoria gas that inflicts no damage, but makes everyone in the targeted area high

Green dragons huff deadly clouds of chlorine gas

Mercury dragons shoot giant lasers

Sapphire dragons have a sound-based breath weapon, like their emerald counterparts, but theirs is an ultrasonic “brown note” that causes psychological as well as physical damage

Steel dragons exhale a deadly poison, with the twist that the vapour always fills a perfectly cube-shaped volume, regardless of surrounding barriers; the dragon can exercise perfect control over the cube’s dimensions

Topaz dragons have a reverse breath weapon that sucks water out of anything in the targeted area, inducing dehydration in living victims