Johto Pokedex 5E

Johto Pokedex

The Johto pokedex for 5E will be coming soon!

Ages ago I created the Kanto pokedex, a book containing the stats of the original 151 pokemon for D&D 5e.

After the success of the Kanto pokedex, I’d received inquiries about doing a johto pokedex. At the time, I wasn’t able to do a new pokedex. The time commitment was too large, and I wanted to work on some other projects first (cough cough, Archive of Magic Items).

Well, it has now been long enough, and the Johto pokedex is almost ready to debut!

I’m excited about this version, because I’ve learned a lot about monster creation since the original Kanto pokedex. Many of the pokemon I stated were very powerful or imbalanced. I’ve applied what I’ve learned since then, and you should see a more balanced array of pokemon. Don’t get me wrong, there are still going to be some outliers, but since I’m not going to playtest each pokemon, we’ll have to live with that. Feel free to let me know if you see anything significant though!

Here are some previews from the pokedex! If you’re interested in when the full pokedex releases, follow me for updates!

Click here if you want to see the Kanto pokedex.

Gotta Catch ‘Em All!

A Belated Valentine's Monster, The Love Angel <3

Happy Valentine's Day!

I know I'm late, but I wanted to share a Cupid monster with you, the Love Angel! Hope you enjoy!

Villain's Handbook Series

In case you weren’t aware, I’ve been slowly creating a product line on the DMs Guild, the Villain’s Handbook series. These FREE books take an iconic villain, like a dragon or werewolf, and goes over some ways you can use them as an effective villain.

Each handbook has some story ideas and plot hooks you can use with these villains, every one includes at least one new monster/NPC stat block.

The latest entry is The Tyrant, and we also have handbooks for Dragons, Orc Warlords, Barbarian Chiefs, Slavemasters, and Werewolves. Go check it out, they’re already free but are also part of the New Year, New Campaign sale at DMs Guild.

Let me know what villain you want in the next handbook!

Simplified Spells: Evocation

The Challenge

I’ve always wanted a better magic system for D&D. I understand that they’re tied to using Vancian magic, but it’s always kept me from playing a magic user. 5th edition has made it a lot better, in my opinion, but I still find it lacking.

One of my issues is that there are so many spells with very minor differences. Part of this is because, in the core rules, there isn’t a way to customize spells (GM can always change things, of course). We have the firebolt cantrip, which does 1d10 fire damage, but what if you want to do cold or lightning? Sure, you could take shocking grasp, but that’s a melee spell. Why can’t we just have arcane bolt, and then pick an element?

Many RPGs have been moving toward a more narrative, free-form style lately. The new Genesys system, for example, has a very open spellcasting system. I want to see if we can incorporate something like that into D&D.

Let’s try focusing all of the spells from a D&D arcane school into a single spell, starting with evocation. Evocation is generally pure damage, which is the easiest type of spell to balance. Let’s make the damage spell, our catch-all spell for damage.

Taking a look at all of the spells that deal damage, and the spell creation rules in the DMG, we can plot out the amount of damage a spell should do at certain spell levels. Our goal here is to:

1. Use damage similar to that of existing spells
2. Make something easily scalable

Certain spells like fireball break the mold, so it’s not going to be an exact match. Some normal spells are going to be stronger or weaker than our damage spell. We can eventually go back and start working on refining the process, but for now we’ll have to accept those discrepancies. Here’s the first pass at the numbers:

Spell Level	Damage
Cantrip	1d10 at 1st level 2d10 at 5th level 3d10 at 11th level 4d10 at 17th level
1	3d8
2	5d8
3	7d8
4	9d8
5	11d8
6	13d8
7	15d8
8	17d8
9	19d8

Spells that target one creature should deal more damage than those that deal damage to multiple creatures. Taking a look at other spells, some have additional effects or abilities that happen as well. All of these spells should deal less damage overall than a spell that deals pure damage.

An easy way to model this would to reduce the size of the dice used.

Let’s take a level 1 spell that hits one creature. By our rules, it would deal 3d8 damage. If we want to hit multiple creatures, then reduce the d8s to d6s. Now, our spell deals 3d6 damage. Let’s update the chart to show what it looks like with lower damage dice.

Spell Level	Damage	Additional Effect Damage
Cantrip	1d10 at 1st level 2d10 at 5th level 3d10 at 11th level 4d10 at 17th level	1d8 at 1st level 2d8 at 5th level 3d8 at 11th level 4d8 at 17th level
1	3d8	3d6
2	5d8	5d6
3	7d8	7d6
4	9d8	9d6
5	11d8	11d6
6	13d8	13d6
7	15d8	15d6
8	17d8	17d6
9	19d8	19d6

You can choose to stack this multiple times as well. If someone wants to affect an even larger area, or have two extra effects, reduce damage die size by another step, from d8 to d4, for example.

A benefit of this system would be flexibility and ease of use. However, does require the GM to decide what kind of effects are acceptable. Instead of specifying exactly what kind of effects are allowable, let’s list some suggestions. This way, each group can decide what works best for them. Some may allow a wider range of effects, while others may require a more focused approach. Both work, but here are some suggestions.

Effect Examples

·         Area of effect: (cone, burst, etc) Hits multiple creatures, allowing a saving throw for half damage.

·         Target can’t take reactions

·         Target can’t regain hit points

·         Reduce target’s speed

·         Divide the attack between multiple targets

·         Force target to make a saving throw instead of attack roll, taking no damage on a successful save

·         Inflict a condition

·         Impose disadvantage on next attack (2)

·         Grant advantage on next attack against it

Using the Spells

I can think of two ways of using this system.

1.       Customized Spells. Whenever you learn/prepare a spell, you decide which extras or flaws to apply at that time. This lowers on-the-fly spellcasting flexibility, but allows you to pick and create the spells you want to use. This would be the easiest to introduce, since it fits in to the current spellcasting system easily.

2.       Ad Hoc casting. With this method, you just prepare the Destruction spell once. Whenever you cast it, you can choose to add extras or flaws as needed. This grants the most amount of flexibility, since you can tailor your spells to do what you need. However, it only counts as one spell, which means that spellcasters have an infinite amount of damaging spells with one prepared/learned spell. Once we have a full spellcasting system overhaul, we can have a resolution to this, but as of right now I don’t have a good solution for this problem.

The Spell

Anyway, here is what our new destruction spell looks like!

This is my first attempt at simplifying the spellcasting system in D&D 5th edition. If you find this interesting, let me know if you have any other ideas or suggestions!

Fight a Super Saiyan! The Unleashed Monk NPC

This week's entry to the NPC Gallery is the Unleashed Monk.

Ok, it's not actually a super saiyan. But it's what I thought of as soon as I saw the picture.

The unleashed monk is what I see as a fantasy version of a fighter going super saiyan. Instead of it being an ability utilized due to heritage, it's something any sufficiently trained monk can use, although with danger to their own body.

Check on the CR 18 Unleashed Monk.

Cinematic Death in D&D

How can you handle a fitting, cinematic death for a PC when death can happen suddenly and randomly?

Adam Koebel posted this comment to Twitter, and it generated a lot of conversation.

the most significant change i think D&D needs to make it really work for RPG-as-show is a way to maintain character throughout a campaign without taking the fangs out of the system. an alternate-to-death failure state.

— adam koebel (@skinnyghost) January 1, 2018

Adam’s comment is specific to streaming, but it’s an interesting idea. D&D’s rules allow death to happen at any time, which works in most games. However, streamed games are for an audience, and their needs are sometimes different. Gaming groups that focus on character development and story may find that they want some more agency in their characters destinies. How can we accommodate this?

Changing the normal rules of D&D isn’t necessary, since this is something that individual tables can house rule themselves. At its core, this is about wanting more control over the shared story, so a possible solution should be narrative in nature. The fewer rules, the better.

So...this is how...I die...

I have a quick solution that I’ve put together, and I’d like to hear your opinions on it.

When a character would be killed, they are instead stable and unconscious at 1 hit point, but they are marked by Death. The character will meet their end soon, or be forced to retire from the adventuring group. Work with your GM privately to decide how your character will move on.

Mortal wounds are one way of handling this, but aren’t necessary. You know the character will die, so you can work on making it as heroic or fitting as you need. If don’t have anything in mind, or think the death will serve the story, you can die in the moment!

When you can specify a time of death for your character, you avoid the issue of having a player sit around and not participate in the game. A character’s death is unfortunate, and not being able to participate for an indeterminate amount of time can be frustrating. Death is set up to be a penalty, instead of another story moment.

Come back into the Light.

Resurrection in D&D can cheapen death. Once you achieve a high enough level, the basic rules allow for death to be a revolving door. This feels good when a character you like gets to keep playing, but removes the importance of death. When you allow players to find a fitting death for their character, resurrection isn’t as necessary. With this idea, you can get rid of resurrection magic entirely.

What do you think? Do you have any ideas, or do you do something differently for your game? Let me know!

Designing an NPC

Today we're going to go through a step-by-step process for designing an NPC!

There are many ways you can go about creating an NPC. When I need to come up with a cool NPC, I head to the internet to find a cool picture to use for inspiration.

Let's use this cool picture from Daniel Kamarudin (theDURRRRIAN)

What are your first impressions of this person when you see this picture?

Here are some of mine

• Physical power
• Heavy armor
• Iconic helmet

I think this person is a fighter. Based on his unique armor, he probably has a nickname. His helmet looks like it has a horn, so let's call him The Rhino.

No, not that rhino

Well, if we call him the Rhino, we need to give him a charge ability, don't we? Let's add a charge.
To look at how charge works, look in the Monster Manual for monsters that already have it. Here's what we'll use.

• Charge. If the Rhino moves at least 15 feet straight toward a target and hits with a melee attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 18 (4d8) bludgeoning damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 18 Strength saving throw or be knocked prone. Charge only applies on the first attack that hits in a turn.

Most of this was taken directly from an existing monster, all that changed was the distance required to move and the damage/DC.

What other abilities can we give The Rhino? He's got a big shield, let's use that. A number of NPCs in the Monster Manual have "Parry", let's use that. (Parry appears to add a creature's proficiency to their AC as a reaction).

The Rhino looks like an aggressive person. I want him to be able to use the shield offensively, so let's give him a Shield Bash ability. I could make it just a simple damaging ability, but I want to try something different. Let's have the shield bash just move the target if they fail on a saving throw. This won't change the Rhino's Challenge Rating (CR) at all, so we can add it without worry.

• Shield Bash. When The Rhino hits with a melee attack, it can use a bonus action to try to push the target. The target must make a DC 18 Strength saving throw, or be pushed back 5 feet on a failure.

Let's move onto some of the more numerical aspects, the statistics.

The Rhino looks incredibly strong. The highest level a human can normally achieve on Strength is a 20, so let's use that.

He doesn't look very agile, so I wouldn't put his Dexterity high. He's a skilled fighter, so let's do just slightly above average, 12.

Constitution looks like it would be high as well, so let's make it an 18. I could see making it a 20 as well.

I see the Rhino as surprisingly insightful instead of having book smarts, so I'll give him a higher Wisdom instead of Intelligence. We don't need to make him dumb though, so I'll give him average Intelligence of 10.

Finally we come to Charisma. I mean, that's a pretty looking dude, but Charisma isn't just appearance. I'm starting to get an idea in my mind of The Rhino, seeing him as a leader. Let's give him a 14 on Charisma. It's not super high, but it's certainly above average, making him an effective leader.

Before we go any further, let's talk about where we stand with The Rhino. He's shaping up as a physically strong warrior, who also leads. To get a nickname like The Rhino, I'm thinking that he has to be a mercenary. They get cool names, right? Anyway, The Rhino is a leader of a mercenary group, we can figure out who later.

With this new information in mind, let's do saving throws quickly. We can add two saving throws without affecting the CR. A good idea is to look at the weakest stats and apply the saving throws there if you want to reduce the character's weaknesses. I want the Rhino to be an all around good fighter, so I'll amplify his weakest saves, Dexterity and Wisdom.

The Rhino's skills can come naturally from the vision we have. Athletics is obvious, due to his physique, as well as Intimidate. I see him as surprisingly insightful, so let's go with Insight. Finally, even though he's not smart, he's a tactical leader. I think he's well read with historical battles and tactics, so let's give him History as well.

Armor. Looks like he's got heavy armor, so let's call it plate. He's got a shield, so add those together for a total of AC 20.

The hardest party is figuring out hit points and attacks. For beginners, I would suggest looking at the hit die and number of attacks of a similar creature to the one you want to make. For the Rhino, I see him as a big, beefy tank. He has a large AC, so let's give him a large pool of hit points as well.

For his attacks, three is a good number for a melee fighter. He's not getting damage from anything else except his charge, so he needs multiple attacks to keep his damage up. One thing I did was increase the damage he deals with melee weapons. A maul would usually deal 2d6 damage, but I doubled it to 4d6 to make him a bigger threat.

Finally, we calculate his Offensive CR and Defensive CR, and then find the average. By doing the math, we come out at a pretty big CR 13. Playtesting is important in figuring out the real CR a monster/NPC should be, but this is a good guideline to use.

That's it! We've made an NPC. This is what our final version looks like.

The Rhino

That's the very quick, very brief run-through of designing and creating an NPC. I hope this was helpful, and stay tuned for more in the future. I'm adding an NPC gallery in the Homebrew section where the Rhino and other NPCs will live.

Do you have an NPC you want to stat out? Hit me up on twitter @pirategonzalez and let me know what you have!

Archive of Magic Items

Pirate Gonzalez Games is Working on a Kickstarter!

Coming to Kickstarter soon will be the launch of the Archive of Magic Items (AMI)!

Chainsaw Blade

Since the launch of D&D 5th edition, I’ve been creating fun, unique magic items for the system. A few years and 300+ magic items later, and I’m finally going to launch a Kickstarter for publishing!

The writing is already done, although some playtesting of tricky items is still needed. The majority of the kickstarter costs are going to art! The items I’ve created may sound cool, but seeing them fleshed out brings it to a whole other level.

I’ve already tapped Matthew Sargent (@mbsargent) and Alli Grimes (@gracefulxdead) for some initial art, which you can see here. With a successful Kickstarter, I’ll be able to put in more art!

I’m expecting to launch Q1 2018, but stay tuned for updates!

If you’re interested in helping to be part of the playtest, reach out to me on Twitter @pirategonzalez

I hope you like it!

Undertale- Sans Stats

SPOILERS FOR UNDERTALE AHEAD

The hardest boss in Undertale is the most surprising. Laid back skeleton Sans has been holding back, and the only reason you’re alive is because he made a promise to someone.

i'm sans. sans the skeleton

This stat block mechanically represents his abilities in a D&D world situation. He’s incredibly powerful, with the ability to use Reverse Gravity, a 7th level spell, at will. Size limits don’t apply to this, so even the largest threat is still going to get affected by this spell. His only real protection is his incredibly high pool of hit points and his ability to use shortcuts to escape.

If you’re fighting sans in D&D, you probably did something wrong. He is Karmic Retribution incarnate. And if you can’t SAVE and LOAD, you’re screwed.

you're gonna have a bad time.

Sans was an interesting character to me, and can be seen as an archetype. He’s a lazy friend with incredible power, who only interferes when absolutely necessary. He knows that when faced with people who can control time, he doesn’t stand a chance, so why bother? You can create a Sans-like NPC in your game.

If deities that can alter reality or change time exist, there’s not much you can do against them. The NPC has incredible power, akin to a demi-god, but knows that any major actions they take are meaningless. They become fatalistic.

When the NPC can’t sit aside any longer, they finally step in. They have a strong ideal that propels them to act, even with knowledge that it may not matter. They’re going to give it their all. And you better hope that they’re not fighting you.

Here is the statblock for Sans! I hope you enjoy it.

Ant Extermination: Side Quest

A few months back I made a free, short D&D 5e adventure called Ant Extermination: Side Quest. Ants accidentally got into an alchemist's growth formula, and turn into giant ants! You can check out the adventure here.

While making the adventure, I created four new Giant Ant variations. Not all of them made it into the adventure, but I hope you can use them yourself!