Adventures in the Forgotten Realms as Told by Flavor Text

The noble steeds of the elven gods can sometimes be persuaded to allow mere mortals on their backs.

Blink dogs protect the wild places of the world, driving away evil influences.

When all hope fails, its light remains.

"Not all of us have darkvision, okay?"

"I swore a sacred oath to protect the weak and punish those who threaten them. As long as I draw breath, I will protect you."

"When darkness closes in around us, my blade will light our path."

Courage is neither a shield nor an axe, but the will to wield both in defense of the innocent.

Flumphs siphon thoughts and energy from evil aberrations, and are often eager to share the dark knowledge they obtain with friendly adventurers.

"I'll make sure you never mistake a roper for a stalagmite again."

This fight was over the moment you picked up that clumsy cleaver of a sword.

"You're not the first to underestimate me."

A paladin's steed is a celestial spirit in animal form.

His mind is a tranquil meadow, his fists a raging storm.

Selûne guides her devotees with majestic wisdom and grace.

"Can't see this airship crashing in the near future. Sturdy as a rock."

Her light touches every corner and her wings brush either wall, leaving no place for evil to lurk.

"They fall for it every time."

Magic can knit the body back together, but the courage to fight on comes only from within.

"We are a product of our ancestors, the apotheosis of countless noble generations. Speak their names with reverence, and they will guide your path."

"Don't give up! You are steel and fire, and victory is yours to seize."

Swift eyes to scout the way ahead.

"When I made my oath to Moradin, I left selfishness and cowardice behind. Every battle, I make that commitment anew."

"Hold on to your lunch!" ~ Bartleby, gnome wizard

Her tales of glory light a fire in the souls of the next generation of adventurers.

White dragons are unparalleled hunters, keenly focused on slaughtering their enemies.

"Hand over your loot and no one gets hurt!"

Elemental Evil distorts the natural elements, limiting them to aspects of destruction.

"This path is closed to you!"

"I'm always happy to lend a hand!"

The only place you can be sure it's not is wherever it appears to be.

Unlike most warlocks, those who make pacts with archfey are drawn to pranks and whimsy moreso than death and darkness.

"You studied hard. How delicious!"

She puts some coin in the Guild's pocket and sends a message at the same time.

"Shed your thoughts and let my will flow through you."

"Your purpose may change along with your shape, but you will serve regardless."

Pixies are well known as pranksters, but some delight in more helpful magic.

Frost giants carry the trophies of their greatest victories into battle, fashioned into armor of strength and savage beauty.

The way opened before him, and the dust of centuries stirred in the air.

"Metal armor? A poor choice."

"Ah, the old 'trap door under a rug' trick. This is almost too easy."

Wings take flight on whispered wind.

"My psychic blade cuts the mind and severs thoughts. Even if you survive, you'll never remember I was here."

Don't.

A lucky draw from the Deck of Many Things gave Voltusk an inexplicable flash of understanding that he spent the rest of his life trying to repeat.

The raging behir reared back, opened its terrible maw . . . and collapsed in a fit of horrifying giggles.

"Lady Luck, smile on me!"

Maybe a little *too* convincing.

"Give me just a moment! I almost have it."

"Looks like we've got company."

Silent. Slithering. Sinister.

Black dragons revel in the collapse of humanoid kingdoms.

"Relax. I'm a professional."

Those who die in the dungeon become its guardians.

"That's a pretty ring! Trade you my knife for it."

"The Reaper bids you rise!"

The good will be corrupted, the kind will be devoured, and all will be dragged into the bottomless Abyss.

"I'll know what you know soon enough." ~ Nihiloor, Xanathar Guild spymaster

Though their forms embody Lolth's image, driders are those unfortunate drow who have failed the Spider Queen.

"I think of it as giving them another chance to achieve their potential." ~ Nestus Wrasse, necromancer

In the end, there was nothing beautiful to be seen.

A doom denied—or, perhaps, delayed.

A drastic measure for dangerous times.

Freed from the need to pay tribute to the dragon, the villages gladly paid the dragon-slayers instead.

There is a stillness that walks with him, the quiet that follows great tragedy, when even the mourners are too exhausted to weep.

"I'll take care of it. You just be sure to hold up your end of the deal."

"And to think, a year ago I was picking pockets in Waterdeep."

Aramil issued a long, heroic challenge, then the lich felled him with a single word.

Erigan cried out in pain as a hideous weakness settled into his bones.

Ghouls devour the dead and any living creatures unwary enough to fall into their grasp.

"Buy something or get out."

Unsuccessful vampire hunters often wind up as ravenous spawn.

Wights want the world to resound with echoes of their own cruel hatred.

"The air is sweet with the taste of your fear."

"On the plus side, Throg no longer thinks he's clever." ~ Xanathar

"This one is for goblins, this one is for owlbears, this one is for toast, this one is for . . ."

Click your heels and become the wind.

"My grandmother saved the life of a brass dragon, and in return she was given a glimpse of the fire in its heart—a glimpse she passed down to me."

A simple fire spell that grows in intensity along with its caster.

"How do you kill what's already dead? *That's* how."

Hate gets you only so far. A pointy stick can close the rest of the distance.

In a hobgoblin's view of the world, the weak owe tribute and fealty to the strong.

Hobgoblins do not fear death, for those who fall in battle have gained glory eternal.

Bugbears move with surprising speed for their size and bulk, a fact that has led to the demise of many unwary adventurers.

Anything can be a weapon if you swing it hard enough.

The ancient dragon Imvaernarhro has earned his fiery nickname.

"Today? That'll cost you extra."

"We tried your way. Now we do it my way!" ~ Jym, barbarian of Baldur's Gate

A tried-and-true favorite of many wizards, whatever their school.

Sometimes one fireball isn't enough.

"Most folks got mayhem in their hearts. Just gotta know their price."

Red dragons consider the world and every creature in it as theirs to command.

"They don't seem scary, but then you're suddenly standing there in your underclothes without a weapon. Then everything looks like a threat." ~ Jarro, battle master

Fortune favors the fortunate.

"There is only one way forward: into legend."

"If you had just one wish, what would it be? Gold, or angel song? Finding a lost love, or finding your way back home? Let me sing a song about one wish that came true . . ." ~ Ellywick Tumblestrum

Xorns are native to the Elemental Plane of Earth, where gems and rare stones are plentiful. When summoned elsewhere they can be quite destructive in search of food.

"Easy now, everyone. I'll take care of this." ~ Nadaar

"I have the shot. Shall I take it?" ~ Varis, Silverymoon ranger

Fire giants love to fight on a large scale, and Duke Zalto is one of the greatest warmongers of his age.

Capable of moving swiftly through even tightly-packed earth and leaping surprising distances above ground, bulettes are difficult to escape once they've caught scent of prey.

As the iron bars of the portcullis parted like reeds, the defenders of the keep suddenly felt much less secure.

"Move it, Varis, or I'll pick one for you!" ~ Ellywick Tumblestrum

The realms protected by druids of the Circle of Dreams are gleaming, fruitful places, where dream and reality blur together and the weary can find rest.

Druids of the Circle of the Moon are fierce guardians of nature who haunt the deepest parts of the wilderness.

"You might be four times my size, but I will not be ignored!"

Large as horses, dire wolves must hunt often to satisfy thier ravenous hunger. A mere human does little more than blunt their appetite.

Since the fall of Elturel, they've walked the Sword Coast from Tethyr to Icewind Dale, eyes always on their prey.

Yipping and cackling, the hunters tore through the village, leaving nothing but snapped bones and burning homes in their wake.

Green dragons take special pleasure in corrupting the good-hearted.

A shepherd's crook is useful for cleaning bits of wool out of the teeth.

"Wake up, my friends! There are deeds to be done and treasures to be won!"

A job well done means a rest well earned.

"You see, stalac-*tites* grow down from the ceiling, while stalag-*mites* reach—AAHHHHHHHHH—"

Its life force entwined with its tree, a dryad is an elusive and solitary being that wishes only to be left alone.

The ancient green dragon Claugiyliamatar is often seen with a mangled corpse dangling from her mouth.

Many people believe a misguided wizard created the first owlbear, but others insist that these creatures have always dwelled in the Feywild.

The dragon's noxious breath withered the forest. The whistle of a hundred arrows filled the air. The ground roiled as if shaken by an earthquake. The tyrant fell from the sky.

Underground civilizations maintain magical barriers around their settlements to deter these monsters.

With the right weapon, a fearsome beholder is nothing more than a big floating bullseye.

"I could help you, or I could eat you for lunch. I haven't decided yet."

"Every coin helps rebuild the town they destroyed."

When it rises, nations fall.

"See how the statues all have chunks bitten out of them? We're dealing with a basilisk, or I'm a froghemoth." ~ Larissa Kyriln, learned warlock

"There's a new ballad waiting to be born around every corner."

Gold dragons are the greatest of the metallic dragons in size, power, and wisdom, and often take it upon themselves to safeguard mortal communities from evils that might threaten them.

"Knew I'd find ye in trouble if I came out an' looked for ye!"

"A pact is a tool, not a damnation."

"Plant what you wish to see grow. Listen for the stories you want to hear told."

"Someone took the time to carve these inscriptions. The least we can do is care enough to read them."

"My children will rule over all!"

"Eilistraee teaches us that we are not bound by the circumstances of our birth. We all may find beauty and light, if we have the courage to seek them."

"The beholder told me I had a good eye for details. Who was I to argue?"

Leave no treasure behind.

"Wait, is that a secret door? I can't tell for sure . . . there's some blood in the way."

"I see all things as they truly are! I see . . . decay in all flesh, and betrayal in every heart."

"If you're so mighty, scaled one, then why are you dead?"

Once an iron golem is set to a task, it won't turn aside until that task is complete or it has been destroyed.

Lightweight, flexible, and protective.

Parts of Faerûn still churn with the magic of arrogant Netherese archmages long dead.

There is wealth enough inside to cause the rise and the ruin of dynasties.

You've traced the tensions in Ten-Towns to the dwindling reindeer populations ... but what has been hunting them?

Seeking to learn why the ancestors have fallen silent, you've made your way to their ancient cairns.

Searching for a vanished caravan that was bound for Silverymoon, you've come to a bank of mysterious fog.

Venturing beneath the desert sands, you've discovered an alien power pulsing with inconceivable energy.

In crystal-studded waters far below the surface, you've discovered an incubating egg of mysterious origin.

After careful study, you've determined that the giant ruins served to track the movement of the planets ... and they will soon align once more.

As your ship clears the edge of Waterdeep harbor, you notice pirate sails on the horizon. What has made them so bold?

Alarmed by the news you brought, the storm giant king of the Maelstrom has called his kin to council.

As a plague ravages the world above, you've made your way into the Underdark in search of a fungal panacea.

Your search for a stolen artifact has brought you to the edge of the Mere of Dead Men.

As you trudge through the sewers of Baldur's Gate it dawns on you: where are all the rats?

You expected to meet hostile drow in this ancient ruin . . . but they fled long ago. What darkness could have driven them out?

You meant to simply rest in Hundelstone, but the miners have told you stories of whispers in the dark below.

Your path lies across the Spine of the World, where every cave hides some new danger.

You've ventured deep into the heart of the mountain to determine what can calm its quaking rage.

As you make camp near the ancient ruin, you hear the sound of drums echoing in halls where no dwarf has lived in generations.

As the sun reaches its zenith on the day of the solstice, a castle shimmers into view on the hilltop, just as the ancient text predicted.

As you venture deeper under the boughs of Neverwinter Wood, arrows in a tree trunk suggest you might not be welcome.

As monsters from the Underdark rampage across the world above, you've delved deep underground to determine what has driven them upward.

Before the elf queen will aid you, you must find a way to cure the strange rot afflicting the roots of the ancient trees.