Tyranny of Dragons Player Introduction

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The Uneasy Peace is ten years old in the Fractured Empire. But while major armies of the Church and the Imperial claimants have set aside their swords for the time being, the lands are far from free of conflict.

Petty rulers and warlords each continue their battles over their small portions of the former imperium. So called “free cities” expand their mercantile control over regions and contend constantly with the scourge of bandits. All while cults of old gods and darker entities craft their plans in their secret lairs and strongholds.

The ancient treasures of bygone days are but a distant memory, not only found on occasion amidst dark ruins. There are many who worship demons and devils, but your region is alight with rumors of dragon worshippers. Magic is strange and foreign, the domain of evil cultists and priest crafts, for you are far from the magical courts of Uquance and the still more distant wonderous city of Ptolus.

You find yourselves at this time, escorting a small caravan from the dwarven trade hold of Steelsmelt to the small town of Thorntide. 

Things to Keep in Mind

• Your character will start at level 3
• Your character needs motivation to investigate and oppose the efforts of evil dragon worshipping cultists
• You’ll have more fun if you try to tailor your character choices and background to the setting and themes mentioned above 
• Connections to other player characters in your backstory will make roleplaying more fun 
• You should have character reasons to be heroic, and not just be out for yourself in this campaign 

Character Ancestry Options

These are the available ancestry options for this campaign. These reflect the most common ancestries in the region in which the characters find themselves.

• Dwarves (Player's Handbook)
• Elves (Player's Handbook)
• Gnomes (Player's Handbook)
• Goblins (Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse)
• Half-Elves (Player's Handbook)
• Halflings (Player's Handbook)
• Half-Orcs (Player’s Handbook)
• Hobgoblins (Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse)
• Humans (Player's Handbook)
• Kobolds (Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse)
• Orcs (Mordenkainen Presents Monsters of the Multiverse)
• Tieflings (Player's Handbook)

Additionally, you may reallocate your ancestry ability score increases as you see fit, putting either +2 and +1 in two abilities or a +1 to three abilities.

Classes

Choose from the following class options:

• Barbarian 
• Bard
• Beastheart (MCDM)
• Bloodhunter (DnD Beyond 2022 version)
• Cleric
• Druid
• Fighter
• Monk
• Occultist (KibblesTasty)
• Paladin
• Pugilist (Benjamin Huffman)
• Ranger (Use revised ranger from Tasha's Cauldron of Everything)
• Rogue
• Sorcerer
• Warlock
• Warlord (KibblesTasty)
• Wizard

Due to potential balance issues with some classes, this campaign will not feature multiclassing.

Subclasses

Your play through will be greatly enhanced by picking a thematic subclass. Work with the GM to see how a given subclass can be worked into the world. You might have unique or specialized skills from the context of the setting. Particularly thematic choices that will be cool to work into the campaign are in bold. Choose from the following subclasses:

Barbarian Subclasses

Barbarians have heart and spirit. They refuse to give up, fighting through pain to defeat their foes with great strength. Barbarian characters often originate in less populous areas, but are not unknown in cities. Depending on their background they may display various powers or traits.

• Ancestral Guardian (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Battlerager (Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide)
• Beast (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Berserker (Player's Handbook)
• Booming Magnificence (Tome of Heroes)
• Dragon (Tome of Heroes)
• Giant (Bigby’s Glory of the Giants)
• Harrier (Book of the Righteous)
• Hellfire (Tome of Heroes)
• Herald (Tome of Heroes)
• Inner Eye (Tome of Heroes)
• Instinct (KibblesTasty)
• Mistwood (Tome of Heroes)
• Storm Herald (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Thorns (Tome of Heroes)
• Totem Warrior (Player's Handbook)
• Wild Magic (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Zealot (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)

Bard Subclasses 

Bards inspire and persuade. While they might be a quintessential bard, performing and singing you can also create bards that are wily politicians with silver tongues, or different flavored magical archetypes (do not think you have to flavor yourself as a bard when you play a bard).

• Creation (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Echoes (Tome of Heroes)
• Eloquence (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Entropy (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Fool (KibblesTasty)
• Four Suits (Griffon's Saddlebag)
• Glamour (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Grandmother’s Tales (MCDM - Arcadia 8)
• Greenleaf (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Investigation (Tome of Heroes)
• Lore (Player's Handbook)
• Merchantile (Griffon's Saddlebag)
• Shadows (Tome of Heroes)
• Sincerity (Tome of Heroes)
• Springtide (MCDM - Arcadia 2)
• Swords (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Tactics (Tome of Heroes)
• Thunder (Kibble’s Compendium of Crafting and Creation)
• Valor (Player's Handbook)
• Virtue (Book of the Righteous)
• Whispers (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)

Beastheart Subclasses 

Beasthearts are warriors closely tied to their animal companions. While rare amongst city dwellers, they are not unheard of. Most beasthearts hail from the wilds or frontier lands where people still have a closer bond with the earth.

• Ferocious Bond
• Hunter Bond
• Infernal Bond
• Primordial Bond
• Protector Bond

Bloodhunter Subclasses 

Bloodhunters deal with the dark and gritty side of magic, drawing on a variety of sources for their powers, including fueling their magical effects with their own blood. They are often strong monster hunters and fighters.

• Dragoon (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Eye (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Giantfeller (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Ghostslayer 
• Infected Mind (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Lycan
• Mutant
• Profane Soul

Cleric Subclasses

Clerics act in many roles but in all of them they serve a divine force or deity. Some are village priests. Others are powerful holy warriors. Others are counselors to kings and queens. Still others preside over the churches of their gods. 

• Air (Book of the Righteous)
• Anathema (MCDM - Arcadia 9)
• Arcana (Player's Handbook)
• Atonement (MCDM - Arcadia 9)
• Balance (Book of the Righteous)
• Beauty (Book of the Righteous)
• Beer (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Creation (Book of the Righteous)
• Death (Dungeon Master’s Guide)
• Dragon (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Earth (Book of the Righteous)
• Fire (Book of the Righteous)
• Forge (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Grave (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Hunt (Tome of Heroes)
• Judgement (KibblesTasty)
• Justice (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Knowledge (Player's Handbook)
• Life (Player's Handbook)
• Light (Player's Handbook)
• Martyr (KibblesTasty)
• Mercy (Tome of Heroes)
• Moon (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Mountain (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Nature (Player's Handbook)
• Ocean (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Order (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Pantheist (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Portal (Tome of Heroes)
• Prophecy (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Repose (Book of the Righteous)
• Serpent (Tome of Heroes)
• Shadow (Tome of Heroes)
• Speed (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Tempest (Player's Handbook)
• Travel (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Trickery (Player's Handbook)
• War (Player's Handbook)
• Water (Book of the Righteous)
• Wind (Tome of Heroes)

See the specific campaign for potential restrictions on cleric subclasses and the deities you can select. If a cleric offends their deity they can switch their subclass to the Anathema domain if they choose to remain in opposition to the god or pantheon. Alternatively a cleric can switch to the Atonement domain to signal a journey back from such transgression. Consult with your GM if you’re interested in trying out these subclasses mid-campaign. Alternatively you can start at first level with one of these subclasses if you prefer to be at odds with your deity or want to be striving to regain their good graces. Atonement also is part of the portfolios of some gods.

Pantheons:

• The Nine
• The Heavenly Choruses

Druid Subclasses

Druids are uniquely tied to nature, drawing upon natural forces of magic. Their druidic circles offer them unique powers, and are often organizations to which they belong.

• Ash (Tome of Heroes)
• Bees (Tome of Heroes)
• Crystals (Tome of Heroes)
• Dragons (Griffon's Saddlebag)
• Dreams (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Elements (KibblesTasty)
• Green (Tome of Heroes)
• Grove (KibblesTasty)
• Land (Player's Handbook)
• Moon (Player's Handbook)
• Sand (Tome of Heroes)
• Shapeless (Tome of Heroes)
• Shepherd (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Spores (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Stars (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Stones (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Sun (KibblesTasty)
• Wild (KibblesTasty)
• Wildfire (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Wind (Tome of Heroes)

Fighter Subclasses 

Fighters are specialists in the art of war, training themselves and their comrades to improve their mastery of arms. Most fighters may not have magic, but they'll go toe-to-toe with any monster or challenger, fighting to the death for their friends.

• Adventurer (KibblesTasty)
• Arcane Archer (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Battlemaster (Player's Handbook)
• Brawler (KibblesTasty)
• Cavalier (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Champion (May use the improved version from KibblesTasty) (Player's Handbook) 
• Chaplain (Tome of Heroes)
• Crusader (KibblesTasty)
• Eldritch Knight (Player's Handbook)
• Griffon Knight (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Hospitaler (Book of the Righteous)
• Legionary (Tome of Heroes)
• Mammoth Hunter (Raider's Guide to Valika)
• Psi Warrior (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Pugilist (Tome of Heroes)
• Radiant Pikeman (Tome of Heroes)
• Rune Knight (Tasha's Cauldron of Everything)
• Samurai (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Shieldbearer (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Timeblade (Tome of Heroes)
• Tunnel Watcher (Tome of Heroes)

Monk Subclasses 

Monks are train their bodies, minds, and spirits, seeking to bridge the gap and give them unity in purpose. They are deeply focused, trying themselves and testing their resolve. They are deeply spiritual beings, respecting the land and gods, but not necessarily religious, rather guided by their own personal beliefs on the world. They are also fierce fighters.

• Ascendant Dragon (Fizban's Treasury of Dragons)
• Astral Self (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Concordant Motion (Tome of Heroes)
• Dragon (Tome of Heroes)
• Drunken Master (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Four Elements (Player's Handbook)
• Humble Elephant (Tome of Heroes)
• Iron (Book of the Righteous)
• Kensai (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Mercy (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Open Hand (Player's Handbook)
• Shadow (Player's Handbook)
• Still Waters (Tome of Heroes)
• Sun Soul (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Tipsy Monkey (Tome of Heroes)
• Unerring Arrow (Tome of Heroes)
• Wildcat (Tome of Heroes)

Occultist Subclasses 

Spellcasters linked to occult powers of nature, occultists often derive their power from the natural or arcane magic of the world around them, but may also call upon otherworldly sources.

• Witch
• Hedge Mage
• Oracle
• Shaman

Paladin Subclasses

Paladins are oathbound warriors, usually a part of a holy order or an order of knights. They must chose a deity to serve who provides them their magic. Should they break their oaths they might transition their subclass to the Oathbreaker, or the Oath of Treachery.

• Ancients (Player's Handbook)
• Ascetic (Book of the Righteous)
• Battle (Book of the Righteous)
• Conquest (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Devotion (Player's Handbook)
• Eagle (Book of the Righteous)
• Elements (Tome of Heroes)
• Glory (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Guardian (Tome of Heroes)
• Hearth (Tome of Heroes)
• Justice (Tome of Heroes)
• Mercy (Book of the Righteous)
• Oathbreaker (Dungeon Masters Guide)
• Perfection (Book of the Righteous)
• Purification (Spectre Creations)
• Radiance (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Redemption (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Safeguarding (Tome of Heroes)
• Sanity (KibblesTasty)
• Silence (KibblesTasty)
• Spelldrinker (Griffons Saddlebag)
• Thunder (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Treachery (Unearthed Arcana)
• Vengeance (Player's Handbook)
• Watchers (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)

Pugilist Subclasses 

Pugilists face enemies with their fists and self determination. They break through barriers, battering down all foes. Some come from the mean streets, others trained in boxing and combat sports. Your pugilist could be the scion of a noble house that enjoys street fighting, or a former gang member, or any other background you can think of.

• Arena Royale (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Bloodhound Bruisers
• Dog & Hound (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Hand of Dread (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Paradox Consortium (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Piss & Vinegar (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Relentless Revenant (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Rift Hitter (Ultimate Adventurer’s Handbook)
• Street Saint
• Squared Circle
• Sweet Science

Ranger Subclasses 

Rangers walk the frontiers and the deep forests. They find the way when the night is darkest. They track cold trails, slaying monsters out in the woods that lesser beings could never find much less kill. For the Ranger class, please make sure to add the additional class features available in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.

• Beastmaster (May use revised version from KibblesTasty) (Player's Handbook)
• Beast Trainer (Tome of Heroes)
• Bounty Hunter (KibblesTasty)
• Drakewarden (Fizban's Treasury of Dragons)
• Fey Wanderer (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Gloom Stalker (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Grove Warden (Tome of Heroes)
• Haunted Warden (Tome of Heroes)
• Horizon Walker (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Hunter (Player's Handbook)
• Monster Slayer (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Snake Speaker (Tome of Heroes)
• Swarmkeeper (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Vampire Slayer (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Wasteland Strider (Tome of Heroes)

Rogue Subclasses

Rogues are masters at sneaking. Some specialize in assassination or spying. Their talents enable them to get into tight spaces, and get out through their cunning or wits.

• Agitator (somanyrobots)
• Arcane Trickster (Player's Handbook)
• Assassin (Player's Handbook)
• Cat Burglar (Tome of Heroes)
• Dawn Blade (Tome of Heroes)
• Divine Hand (KibblesTasty)
• Duelist (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Fixer (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Inquisitive (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Mastermind (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Phantom (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Sapper (Tome of Heroes)
• Scout (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Smuggler (Tome of Heroes)
• Soulknife (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Soulspy (Tome of Heroes)
• Surgeon (KibblesTasty)
• Thief (Player's Handbook)
• Whisper (Midgard Heroes Handbook)

Sorcerer Subclasses 

Magic flows through the world and the beings in it. In some people this awakens latent magic talents that they must learn to control. More an art than the science of the wizards, at times this magic is released unpredictably.

• Aberrant Mind (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Aether Heart (KibblesTasty)
• Child of the Sun (MCDM - Arcadia 2)
• Divine Soul (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Divine Inspiration (Book of the Righteous)
• Draconic Bloodline (Player's Handbook)
• Fey (KibblesTasty)
• Fiendish (KibblesTasty)
• Ghost-Touched (somanyrobots)
• Hungering (Tome of Heroes)
• Ironheart (somanyrobots)
• Mazeborn (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Phoenix Spark (KibblesTasty)
• Resonant Body (Tome of Heroes)
• Rifthopper (Tome of Heroes)
• Sea (KibblesTasty)
• Shadow (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Spider-Blooded (somanyrobots)
• Spore (Tome of Heroes)
• Stoneheart (KibblesTasty)
• Storm (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Titan Heart (MCDM - Arcadia 1)
• Wastelander (Tome of Heroes)
• Wicked Witch (MCDM - Arcadia 8)
• Wild Magic (Player's Handbook)

Warlock Subclasses 

Warlocks come by their powers through a pact with a powerful being. You should work with your GM to determine details about your patron, and discuss the details of how you made this pact for your soul. Specific details will be revealed to you by the GM at a time they determine appropriate, probably dictated by the story.

• Accursed Archive (Compendium of Forgotten Secrets)
• Ancient Dragons (Tome of Heroes)
• Animal Lords (Tome of Heroes)
• Arcanist (Rain Junkie)
• Archfey (Player's Handbook)
• Celestial (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Compound (MCDM - Arcadia 9)
• Conquering Host (Rain Junkie)
• Dark Forest (Planegea)
• Fathomless (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Fey (KibblesTasty)
• Fiend (Player's Handbook)
• Flesh (Sebastian Crowe’s Guide to Drakkenheim)
• Genie (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Great Old One (Player's Handbook)
• Great Tree (somanyrobots)
• Hag (MCDM - Arcadia 8)
• Hexblade (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)
• Horned One (MCDM - Arcadia 2)
• Hunter in Darkness (Tome of Heroes)
• Knowledge Keeper (KibblesTasty)
• Old Wood (Tome of Heroes)
• Oracle (Book of the Righteous)
• Overseer (KibblesTasty)
• Primordial (Tome of Heroes)
• Swindled (MCDM - Arcadia 9)
• Tempest (KibblesTasty)
• Unyielding Sun (somanyrobots)
• Wyrdweaver (Tome of Heroes)

Warlord Subclasses 

Warlords are might leaders in combat, empowering their allies to push themselves farther and directing the battlefield. Warlords might be powerful knights soldiers, or self-taught masters of tactics. They make great leaders and politicians.

• Commander
• Chieftain
• Dancer
• Dreadlord
• Noble
• Packleader
• Paragon
• Tactician

Wizard Subclasses 

Wizards turn the arcane into a subject to be studied. They believe that with time one can learn and unravel most magical mysteries and thus are always searching for new spells and ways to improve their magic. Wizards are quite powerful as they grow in experience. They can come from almost any background but are unified by having received some form of magical training in the past. Some join arcane groups of wizards, while others take a path of religious devotion and become powerful heirophants.

• Abjuration (Player's Handbook)
• Angelic Scribe (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Astromancy (somanyrobots)
• Bladesinging (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Cantrip Adept (Tome of Heroes)
• Conjuration (Player's Handbook)
• Courser Mage (Tome of Heroes)
• Divination (Player's Handbook)
• Dragon Masks (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Elementalist (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Enchantment (Player's Handbook)
• Entropist (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Evocation (Player's Handbook)
• Familiar Master (Tome of Heroes)
• Ferromancy (somanyrobots)
• Geomancy (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Gravebinding (Tome of Heroes)
• Illumination (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Illusion (Player's Handbook)
• Innovation (KibblesTasty)
• Liminality (Tome of Heroes)
• Pathology (KibblesTasty)
• Ring Warden (Midgard Heroes Handbook)
• Scribes (Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything)
• Spellsmith (Tome of Heroes)
• Theurge (KibblesTasty)
• Transmutation (Player's Handbook)
• Wand Lore (Griffon's Saddlebag)
• War (Xanathar’s Guide to Everything)

Connections

All players will roll a d100 to determine their connection to each other player. 

Short & Long Term Personal Goals

Roll 1d6 twice per character to determine their short and long term goals. The players can modify the goals based on their own preferences.