All games ran on the server must fit within the server’s setting of the D&D 5e Forgotten Realms setting and broader multiverse. The PC are adventurers of the Hawthorne Guild, venturing forth from the city of Hawthorne to take on a variety of missions. You are free to use elements of the server setting in creating and running adventures and should bear the following information in mind.
You should consult relevant lore before running games. The server uses the 5e Forgotten Realms setting and broader D&D multiverse, taking official 5e sourcebooks from most recent to oldest as primary source material, with major server specific lore found in #resources (including Hawthorne Arcana, the Hawthorne Adventure Locations and the Hawthorne Monster Compendium).
Older edition material from most recent to oldest can also be referred to as supplemental source material, with 5e sources taking priority. If you have any questions regarding relevant lore, you can consult fellow DMs and Lore Consultants in #dm-chat and #lore-discussion.
The Hawthorne Guild server is a persistent shared game world, with the events of your game able to alter the course of the guild’s story as well as elements of the shared server setting. The events of individual adventures are recorded in #session-logs. You are free to run adventures that interact with and further develop elements of the setting, including the city of Hawthorne. However, avoid sweeping and dramatic changes to the setting that can make it difficult for or would prevent other DMs from using major aspects of the shared game world without collaborating with your fellow DMs and Lore. A DM always has the right to use existing setting material in the sources listed above in their adventures.
Major named NPCs feature in the server’s setting, such as Mordenkainen. Only Full DMs can feature such NPCs in their adventures in either a noncombat or combat capacity. Even so, the use of major named NPCs in this way should bear the above in mind: the DM should avoid sweeping changes to that NPC that would prevent their intended use by other DMs, without collaborating with other DMs and Lore. A Full DM always has the right to use major named NPCs from the sources listed above in their adventures.
You can of course create and use your own NPCs. You can also use another DM’s NPCs in adventures, provided you have that DM’s consent to do so.
The world of Toril in the Forgotten Realms is only apart of the broader multiverse that makes up the D&D 5e setting. You are free to run adventures in Wildspace or in other planes of existence; review the relevant material and reach out to fellow DMs and Lore if you have any questions.
You can also run adventures in other worlds and campaign settings, but only for worlds that have an official 5e source material, such as the world of Eberron. Travel to worlds not described in an official 5e sourcebook requires a request in #dm-requests to the Lore team. How the PCs can travel to another world is up to your discretion as a DM, but common methods of travel are described in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything.
Also consider the following for games in other worlds:
Besides running oneshots, you can choose to run a connected series of games as a multisession or campaign on the server, either featuring a set list of “locked in” PCs (who can’t join other adventures while in the multisession) or as an open series of games for PCs to drop in and out at your discretion. Loot and rewards can persist between individual games of a multisession: loot you may have selected or rolled for one game of a multisession can be found in a later game in that multisession.
You are free to run published adventure modules on the server, making any adjustments as necessary to fit the server setting and server rules regarding loot and other rewards. However, only Full DMs can run official hardcover WOTC 5e adventures, with a request in #dm-requests to both Lore and Rules. As this is a shared game world, some official adventures either already have been ran or are more appropriate for a server campaign ran by multiple DMs, not just one.
The most common type of challenge that PCs will face are monsters, typically encountered during combat. When selecting monsters for your adventure, the list of all allowed monsters on the server can be found in Allowed Content. Any DM can use any of the monsters in the Fair Game category, but Full DM Only monsters can only be used by Full DMs. Either way, please be sure to review a monster’s statblock and associated lore if you plan to include it in an adventure. The official game rules provides guidance on how to select and balance combat encounters, but feel free to reach out to fellow DMs in #dm-chat or Lore and Rules if you have questions or need assistance.
You can reflavor monsters in Allowed Content, provided there are no significant mechanical changes and the reflavor makes narrative sense. You can also use existing official guidelines on customizing monsters:
If you have the Homebrew tag, you can further modify existing monsters and also create and run homebrew 5e monsters in your games. See Appendix A at the end of this document for how to apply for the Homebrew tag.
As a result of overcoming challenges when adventuring, PCs can find and acquire treasure and loot. Any loot and treasure rewards the PCs can find should make narrative sense (e.g. wolves are unlikely to have gold), and the PCs must overcome some kind of challenge (in combat, exploration, or social interaction) to get the reward. Sessions which farm or award gold, loot, or XP are not allowed. Additionally, gold and loot rewards can only be obtained for sessions lastings 3+ hours. DTP and XP can still be earned for shorter sessions.
Currency, gems, art objects, equipment, and other items which have a gold value can be found in an adventure. The maximum gold allotment per player for a single game is below, depending on the Average Party Level (APL): the average level of all PCs, as rounded using the normal mathematical rules. For multisessions, the gold allotment can be pooled across games.
| Average Party Level | Maximum Gold Reward |
|---|---|
| 3 - 4 | 120 GP/PC MAX |
| 5 - 6 | 240 GP/PC MAX |
| 7 - 8 | 400 GP/PC MAX |
| 9 - 10 | 600 GP/PC MAX |
| 11 - 12 | 940 GP/PC MAX |
| 13 - 14 | 1,220 GP/PC MAX |
| 15 - 16 | 1,540 GP/PC MAX |
| 17 - 18 | 1,900 GP/PC MAX |
| 19 - 20 | 2,300 GP/PC MAX |
Each session has a number of item slots equal to the number of players in the game for magic items and other loot, and loot is divided into different tiers.
| Loot Type | Requirements to Award | Item Slots |
|---|---|---|
| T0 | Bonus loot for any game | Predetermined bonus slots = half the # of players (rounded down), with up to 1 T0 permanent. |
| T1 | APL 1+ game (Bonus loot for APL 17+ games.) | Up to # of players. As bonus loot for APL 17+ games, add up to 1 T1 permanent or 2 slots worth of T1 consumables as either predetermined or from a roll at APL 4. |
| T2 | APL 5+ game | Up to # of players. |
| T3 | APL 11+ game | Up to # of players. (Full DM Only to predetermine) |
| T4 | APL 17+ game | Up to # of players. (Full DM Only to predetermine) |
| T1+, T2+, or T3+ | APL 1+, 5+, or 11+ multisession of 3+ games | 1 item slot each (Full DM Only). Up to 1 T1+, T2+, and T3+ item per APL 1+, 5+, or 11+ multisession of 3+ games. |
| T4+ | APL 17+ multisession of 5+ games | 1 item slot (Full DM Only). Up to 1 T4+ item per APL 17+ multisession of 5+ games. |
| Tier S | APL 20 multisession of 8+ games | 1 item slot (Full DM Only). Up to 1 Tier S item per APL 20 multisession of 8+ games. |
All loot that can be awarded on the server can be found in Allowed Content and any loot for the session must be indicated in #treasure-log using the pinned format and can be posted anytime before or during the game. When selecting loot for your game, you can choose to roll, predetermine, or use a combination:
If you are rolling for loot, use the pinned format in #treasure-log and the bot command: /hgenloot [# of players] [APL]
If you are predetermining loot, you can fill the item slots with items up to the party’s tier of play (e.g. up to T2 items for APL 5 - 10 games), selecting from T0 - T4 loot in Allowed Content from either Rolled or Select Loot. No more than half of the game’s item slots (rounded down) can be permanent items.
For a combined approach, predetermine some of the game’s item slots and roll for the rest. Use the command parameters predetermined_perms and predetermined_cons for the number of predetermined permanents or consumables if any.
Loot rolled for a given game can’t be awarded in other games and must be rolled separately. As such, it’s recommended to only roll loot once you’ve finalized the participating players and PCs. If any players leave during a game, you can still award the loot you declared in #treasure-log. If you need to amend or clear a loot roll for any reason, contact an Auditor to do so.
T0 Loot is bonus loot you can add to any game and doesn’t count against the game’s item slots, with a number of bonus slots as per the table. The maximum number of duplicates for a given T0 consumable per item slot is up to 4 (up to 15 for ammunition), except as noted otherwise. See Allowed Content for details.
T1 to T4 loot takes up a game’s item slots, and a game can’t award loot of a tier greater than the game’s tier of play (as determined by the game’s APL). The maximum number of duplicates for a given T1 to T4 consumable per item slot is up to 3 (up to 20 for ammunition), except where noted otherwise. See Allowed Content for details. Any DM can predetermine T0 to T2 items, but only Full DMs can predetermine T3 or T4 items. In addition, for APL 17+ games, you can add bonus T1 loot to the game by rolling for the same item slots but at APL 4 and selecting 1 T1 permanent or 2 slots worth of T1 consumables to add as bonus loot. Alternatively, you can predetermine the same to add as bonus loot.
Unlike T0 to T4 loot, multisession loot is only awarded as part of a multisession with a minimum required APL and number of sessions. Multisession loot uses item slots as normal but also requires a multisession of the appropriate APL and length to award. Tier 1+ (T1+), Tier 2+ (T2+), Tier 3+ (T3+), Tier 4+ (T4+), and Tier S items each have their own minimum APL and session requirements as per the preceding table. Only Full DMs can award multisession loot, and a list of all available multisession loot is in Allowed Content.
You can add minor item properties to items you award as described in the 2014/2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide (some properties can only be used by Full DMs), and Full DMs can use the rules for Sentient Magic Items to award sentient items. For full details, refer to the associated sheet in Allowed Content.
You can add trinkets to your game, using official WOTC 5e sourcebook tables, which don’t count against a game’s item slots. You can also drop custom trinkets that have no notable mechanical benefit.
The following is a summary of other rewards you can use in your games. For details on each, refer to the relevant sections of the Allowed Content document.
You can submit a request in #dm-requests to Rules for a homebrew magic item of your own design to award in a game. It’s recommended to use existing 5e magic items as a reference and starting point in designing an item, and the item’s final design and loot tier is collaboratively determined by you and Rules. You must also provide a session outline with the following:
While PCs can’t acquire the Deck of Many Things (nor the Deck of Many More Things or Deck of Wonder), you can use these Decks as part of adventures, with any lasting effects of a Deck localized to the adventure and expiring and reverting at the adventure’s conclusion. You can award PCs individual cards of a deck as described in Book of Many Things and further detailed in Allowed Content for their loot tiers and their use.
Relics of Emergence are special multisession loot that Full DMs can award, based on the Vestiges of Divergence from Explorer’s Guide to Wildemount. They are evolving items that respond to a specific wielder and change between three states: an initial Dormant state, an evolved Awakened state, and finally a completed Exalted state. Relics of Emergence are homebrew items that a Full DM must submit a request to award following the Homebrew Item process, with statistics for each state. As unique items, there is only ever one copy of a specific Relic of Emergence. A Relic of Emergence can be evolved in the multisessions of other DMs with the original DM’s consent.
Hoard Magic Items (from Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons) are evolving items that Full DMs can award and that can exist in four states corresponding to a dragon’s age category: Slumbering (any age), Stirring (young), Wakened (adult), and Ascendant (ancient). Hoard Magic Items use the normal loot distribution rules and can be upgraded as detailed in Allowed Content, as based on the written rules for them described in Fizban’s Treasury of Dragons.
Supernatural Rewards are acquirable extraordinary abilities which come in the following types and as further detailed in Allowed Content:
Marks of Prestige are rewards reflecting a PC’s fame and prestige due to their deeds, as detailed in the 2014 and 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide and detailed in Allowed Content with the following types available as written: Letter of Recommendation, Medal, Parcel of Land, Special Favor, Special Right, Stronghold, or Title. Marks of Prestige don’t take up a game’s item slots.
A PC that obtains a parcel of land or a stronghold in a world location in this way can use it to establish a Bastion as described in Appendix B of the Player Guidelines.
In addition to the Mounts listed in Equipment in Allowed Content, specific creatures can be acquired as mounts from adventures only. Acquiring such mounts follows the normal item distribution rules, with mounts treated as the equivalent of permanent items (1 mount per item slot). You can use the previous rules on Customizing Monsters for any mount you award.
Renown reflects a PC’s standing with a group as detailed in the 2014 and 2024 Dungeon Master’s Guide and as further detailed in Allowed Content. PCs start out with a Renown score of 0 but can accrue Renown with respect to a group. Upon achieving specific ranks within a group (dependent on the PC’s Renown score, level, and number of group missions completed), they can gain access to Renown Perks, which don’t count against a game’s item slots. The nature of a Renown Perk is at your discretion provided their effects don’t persist beyond the adventure. You can otherwise submit a Rules request for more mechanically significant Renown Perks that persist beyond the game.
You need 1 or more players to play in your game. You can list your game in #game-listings using the pinned format to recruit players and then then make a corresponding post in #game-advertisement using the pinned format and ping players. Your listing must include the following info:
Hawthorne Guild