Summary
There are many player types inDungeons & Dragons, with some looking for glory while others want a good story. All of them can use the Deck of Many Things to encounter riches and solve their problems, but they will have to deal with the possible consequences that will threaten their lives.
Players that are looking for pure action actually relish these outcomes, wanting to fight the biggest and baddest creatures in the multiverse. The Deck can offer them a plethora of encounters, no matter the setting or location. If you stack up a Deck with these cards, get ready for non-stop action.
8Cards From The Deck Of Many More Things
The more, the merrier
The most powerful monsters found in the different incarnations of the Deck areall in the original set, but those cards alone aren’t enough to make a Deck with substance. If you’re adamant that you only want combat encounters out of the draws, consider adding cards from the Deck of Many More Things.
These monsters might not be as mighty as the ones found in the original Deck, but sometimes you need filler enemies to kill time between the boss fights. The most notable cards you may add are the following:
7Knight
A little help goes a long way
It’s ill-advised to not include a single beneficial card for the players since there’d be very little incentive to keep drawing cards. If your players are up to it, however, you could keep the deck as deadly as possible. The only good card that’s recommended in these cases is the Knight.
Combat-focused players would want very little help in achieving their goals, but the Knight is a form of aid that they control. This card gives them control of a fourth level Fighter (or a Deck Guardian construct, as detailed in the Book of Many Things). It won’t feel like cheating since they’re the ones dictating what the new ally does.
6Void
A fight with purpose
In the original incarnation of the card, Void traps the soul of the character that draws it, and it’s up to the rest of the party to rescue them. While the rescue mission does involve combat, there’d be one player having to sit this one out.
The best method of applying Void for combat-focused players is to have the affected one play a cursed character. This character needs to reclaim their soul or be affected by a penalty. The Book of Many Things not only comes with options for penalties for the character but even comes with a detailed dungeon to keep their soul in.
5Donjon
An eventful escape
Donjon, much like Void, incapacitates a player without letting them continue to use their character. This is because Donjon traps the character in suspended animation, and it’s up to the rest of the party to rescue them. For combat-hungry players, it’s best to use the incarnation of the card shown in the Book of Many Things.
Here, Donjon is expanded into the Donjon Sphere, a multi-layered dungeon filled with traps and hostile creatures. The trapped character can have their solo adventure while everyone else continues on, or you can have Donjon trap everyone at the same time so they all get to enjoy the dungeon.
4Throne
A keep in need of clearing
The Throne card, while presenting no immediate danger, can be very exciting for combat-hungry players. This is because the card gives them ownership of a keep somewhere in the world, but that’s been overrun by creatures.
You can think up plenty of ways to build such an encounter, but the Book of Many Things already has you covered: it presents Harrowhall, a detailed keep withcreatures and lore all around them. Once they clear the area, players will now have a base of operation from which to launch their next adventure.
3Rogue
A sudden enemy appears
Combat-heavy campaigns have plenty of ways to throw enemies toward the players, but at times, you need a good antagonist that backs all those enemy forces. When the Rogue card is drawn, an opportunity presents itself: The card makes any NPC chosen by the DM to be antagonistic toward them.
Now you can have some King be hellbent on the destruction of the party, no matter the cost. The card justifies it all, so you can have the players be wanted fugitives without them having to commit any crimes. If they used to be friends with the King, all the better since it adds to the surprise.
2Flames
One hellish encounter
Drawing the Flames card doesn’t mean that one fight is coming, it means several are coming. The card earns the ire of a powerful Fiend to whoever draws it, but it doesn’t mean that it immediately goes after the party. Instead, it plots and wears them down until it’s the perfect time to strike.
The Book of Many Things offers a few options on who the enemy can be. A great example is Aurnozci, the Caged Worm. This Demon will want to devour the party, but its inability to leave its Abyss Layer prevents it from chasing them directly. Instead, it’ll send cultists to draw them in or even to capture them and throw them to its maw.
1Skull
The most direct encounter
Drawing the Skull card summons an Avatar of Death, a powerful creature that will stop at nothing to slay whoever draws that card. Being slain by it is one of the worst ways you can meet your end since you don’t simply die; you become an undead cursed to forever roam the land.
This is the best and most dangerous card for combat-focused players, since they have to defeat the summoned creature alone. If anyone helps them, a new Avatar is summoned for them. If your players are too high level, consider scaling the damage the creature deals with since its health already does so.
