Create D&D factions for your players to join!

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[TheLSpike]

Thank you for this video! Im currently worldbuilding a continent where I am going to run a casual (once per month session) campaign in with the intention to bring my weekly gaming group to once they finished their campaign that takes place in a different continent.

I had a country that was very central with limited access to natural resources and I had a hard time explaining why it existed and wasn't taken over yet by other nearby countries. But your idea of a magocracy where even the simplest people know some basic magic was a good excuse for this place's continued persistence.

[namelessspook]

I've always liked the idea of using factions for the players to join. I'll have to give it another go in the next long game I get to run.

[mathmusicandlooks]

Love this! I’ve found that nothing has made my homebrew world feel quite so intricate and lifelike (and easy to populate) more than creating various factions throughout the world and figuring how they interact.

[CitanulsPumpkin]

The two most underrated faction books in D&D are easily Guild Master's Guide to Ravnica and Mythic Odysseys of Theros.

Ravnica offers ten guild factions with distinct themes, goals, types of members, and all the tables, guides, and prompts needed to run any number of the guilds as working against or with each other or the party.

Theros has fifteen gods, and the churches of those gods get the same treatment the Ravnica guilds got.

That's 25 fully developed factions and the tools to run them in all kinds of roles in the campaign, ready to be renamed and dropped into any setting you're running.

[RookSha]

A thought on a ruling class of powerful mages: I would say that it would be more likely for a world like this to have magic become gatekept heavily and magic be a sign of noble blood, with common mages being identified at a young age and adopted into noble houses or by curtailing any lowborn mages in some way. keeping the power for themselves would be a more realistic or grim/low fantasy way of looking at it in my eyes, and presents an interesting challenge for characters in a world like that.

[Teraclon]

Loving the content. Have missed your videos, mate!

[vinimagus]

Great video! Thanks so much!

In Karameikos (Mystara), my players are foiling the Iron Ring's plans (hence, the Black Eagle Baron's and his court Mage's plans as well). Dethrone Tyranny!

Also, the PCs are members of the "Emerald Knights" order.

Best wishes,

V

[sleet]

I like the idea of giving bonuses to persuasion and deception checks when speaking with people from a faction you have gained a reputation with. It could even go both ways if your not careful, piss off the wrong faction and you might find it more difficult to speak with them in the future. Though as a DM you might have already thought to just raise or lower the DC when speaking with people from certain factions but giving them a +1 or -1 depending on the faction their speaking to instead might make them want to try and raise their rep with that faction. Just a thought.

[lordjalor]

World, History, and Factions... thank you for this amazing trifecta of Prep Worldbuilding!! Love the content!

[benelder]

Got these three saved for regular viewing 😁 fantastic guidance from all of them!

[KIBBLESANDBACONBITS]

These videos have been a fantastic guide for someone who is trying to create a Homebrew setting for the first time. Thank you so much!!

[talscorner]

A sidenote.
Regardless of type, every faction is an interest group; they're there to do Thing.
What is Thing? Why is that faction doing Thing? How is that faction doing Thing? And, last but certainly not least, who is their opposition and what are their motives?

"But, wait!" I hear you say "What, How and Why are the exact same questions you ask yourself when writing an adventure!"
Pre. Cisely ;)
Factions drive conflict and plot, because they are made of *people* with motives and resources.

[birdland]

every video is cozy and includes solid tips, love this content

[SpySkater]

This video is very timely. I’m hoping to DM my very first session ever in October and I wanted to create some factions for the world. Thanks

[unusualmuse]

Can’t wait to check out the Riftwater Isles; sounds like exactly what I’ve been looking for!

[papallegatepoope]

one thing that always puzzled me was how secular many games feel. like the biggest thing that feeds into this imo are general pantheons. Like instead of having religions tied to cultural identity you have a big list of Gods and everyone just picks a few they like. So instead of having a powerful faction in an institutional church you just have a bunch of epic level beings that people favor to different degrees.

[whiskeySeen]

A fraction of factions need actions to match them and eggs that will hatch em like ash catchem

[QuatarTarandir]

A really good example of rival factions are the Assassins and Templars from Assassin's Creed. Especially since in the game you often have to kill lower ranked Templars before the main target is available. As well, they have a really cool history that's tied together for thousands of years

[Andrew.Downing]

There is a reason I signed up for your patreon!

[xandernolan]

Great vid, dude. Comprehensive and succinct. Lots of good info.