Sean Does Games

A Sample Gnome Settlement Riverhill Burrow is a mid-sized gnome community woven into the hilly countryside a day's travel from the capital of the kingdom. Most of its residents are members of the either the Erfseg, Lenskor, Nackle, Oaendin, Belren, Fenbaer, or Dallun clans. A few other clans are present but not in any appreciable numbers. There's also a minor contingent of denizens from other humanoid races, but these are mostly apprentices who remain only until they complete their training. The Butter Barrel River flows to the west of the main burrow complex. A series of clever pipes diverts water for both drinking and sanitation. Its currents power a rather industrious mill. But perhaps most importantly the river is home to a number of fish and freshwater crustaceans the collection of which provides a pleasant afternoon's diversion on a warm summer's day. It's also one leg of a salmon run. The Kingsgold Highway, one of three major roadways to the kingdom...

In Dungeons and Dragons, a natural 1 occurs when a 1 is rolled on a d20 for an ability check, attack roll, or a saving throw. It is generally treated as a failure no matter the bonuses that can be applied to the score. It's a pretty straight forward concept that guarantees no matter how skilled a character might be they can still make a mistake--sort of like real life. That's all well and good, but a little dull because many times mistakes have both short term and long term consequences that go beyond simple failure. Because of that, and because as a DM I'm a bit of a sadist, I like to use natural 1s as an opportunity to inject a little chaos into the story. The goal in doing so is never to kill or punish the characters but instead to heighten the stakes, ratchet up the tension, and have a little fun. This, of course, applies to NPCs and creatures as well. No one or no thing is immune to the evil whims of a natural 1. The following describes a few kinds of consequen...

A Collection of Gnome Encounters You'll Not Soon Forget The following adventure hooks were created with Dungeons and Dragons campaigns in mind but they are suitable for any setting that includes, indulges in, or flirts with, gnomes and gnome story lines. These encounters can be used either as side quests or as full story arcs. This is the fourth set of ten encounters. I will eventually compile and flesh out all of the encounters as part of a release on the DMs Guild, so any feedback is always appreciated. The Encounters (31-40) 31. A gnome barber fawns over a party member's hair. He or she begs for the honor of fancifying their follicles with a grand style befitting royalty. He or she guarantees the party member will become the talk of the town. 32. The party stumbles upon a huge heap of scrap metals, discarded jars, shattered vials, empty barrels, used spell components, broken magic items, damaged weapons, and spare equipment. A gnome in faded magician robes...