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Low CR Encounters

Ranamancy and Revolution: What Frogs Bring to Your Table

June 30, 2025September 26, 2025 / Chris Gladis / Leave a comment

Frogs may be CR 0, but they’re rich with storytelling potential. From druidic spies to prophetic omens, frog-filled festivals to sudden amphibious plagues, these humble hoppers can shape a world in ways dragons never will. Sometimes, the strangest stories begin with a single croak in the reeds.

Blood and Bother: Deploying Stirges with Style

June 23, 2025August 24, 2025 / Chris Gladis / 2 Comments

They're not glorious. They're not clever. They're just tiny, fleshy vampires that cling to your face and suck your blood—and somehow, they might be the perfect low-level monster. Stirges aren't here for epic stories. They're here to remind your players that danger doesn't always roar... sometimes it sucks.

Beasts of Burden and Emotional Baggage: The Case for the Mule

June 19, 2025June 9, 2025 / Chris Gladis / 1 Comment

Make your players care deeply about a humble NPC. and then put it in danger. The mule can be a simple but powerful tool for emotional investment and narrative tension.

The Camel Conundrum: Breathing Life into Beasts

May 22, 2025June 29, 2025 / Chris Gladis / Leave a comment

The blog discusses enhancing the narrative potential of mundane beasts like camels in the D&D universe. Rather than treating them as mere objects, it suggests creating cultural contexts and engaging storylines around their roles, such as competitive racing and religious significance, while acknowledging the limitations of their basic stat blocks.

Death Dogs: Two Heads, No Mercy

May 19, 2025June 22, 2025 / Chris Gladis / Leave a comment

Not every creature your party faces needs to have wings and scales and tentacles. Some just need two mouths full of foam and a hunger that never ceases. The Death Dog is threatening in a way that your players might not expect. It does have two heads, which perhaps is a danger sign as it … Continue reading Death Dogs: Two Heads, No Mercy

Dust and Memory: The Bone Naga

May 1, 2025May 2, 2025 / Chris Gladis / Leave a comment

Ancient creatures with perfect memories that shouldn't die... but sometimes do. The Bone Naga is a corruption of divine creatures, and an excellent addition to your game.

Jackalweres: Tricksters, Thieves, and Hypnotic Hustlers

April 28, 2025April 28, 2025 / Chris Gladis / 1 Comment

What is a Jackalwere and how can you use it? Come see how these tricky beast-fiend-people might make a striking appearance in your campaign!

Meet the Blink Dog: Your New Favorite Fey

April 21, 2025April 28, 2025 / Chris Gladis / Leave a comment

The Blink Dog is a fey creature capable of many things in your campaign. If you need a quirky companion or a frustrating enemy, the Blink Dog might be the creature for you!

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