Homebrew Rules for Dominion
Disclaimer: This list of rules come from my own experiences in DND in campaigns, as well as things I've seen and learned by watching professionals and studying what they do. As such these are tested and non-experimental rules that you probably already know to some degree. All of my experimentation lies in my homebrew mechanics, which can be found in the Homebrew + You section of this players handbook. The rules i have implemented are designed to limit Min-Maxing and players making characters based solely around stats. While i am fine with powerful characters in my campaigns, the roleplay element is what i am seeking with Dominion.
I want to tell a story not write a video game.
Milestone Progression (Level Locks and T2TR's)
Dominion utilizes homebrew progression to a certain extent, backstory quests and development, interactions, questing, side questing and the like will grant your characters levels once the DM believes you have earned them, but eventually, you will reach a point where these wont level you up anymore and you will become LEVEL LOCKED. Once this happens, you must seek out the Threats to the Realm and slay them in order to gain more levels. Being level locked isn't so bad however as it allows you plenty of free time to quest and gain treasures and find the abundance of magical items scattered around the world.
Threats to the Realm (Or T2TR) are the BBEG (Big bad evil guy's) of the campaign. There are MANY Threats to the realm and they all have agendas during your progress. Every time you long rest or a day passes in game, they will move closer to fulfilling their goals. There is no railroading however, and whatever Threats you face are yours to decide upon, and some are far more dangerous (And lucrative) than others!
This allows the players to make decisions with their time. Do you want to level up? Do you want to seek a glorious treasure? Do you want to get drunk in a tavern and forget what just happened to your party? You have clear directions as to how to obtain those things.
No Material Components
Spells and Abilities require concentration and level to cast, but can be cast without requiring material components. The only exception to this rule is Gold Cost. Any spell requiring an amount of currency to cast must still be done that way. Verbal and Somatics must be performed however.
One exception to this rule comes from the Secret Spells section below.
Surprise from Stealth / Rewarding Surprise
Players are only awarded surprise if attacking from stealth to gain advantage on initiative. Taking a swing at an enemy in conversation or just for fun wont award surprise it will just begin initiative after the attack lands / misses.
Proficiency Swapping
If you have Proficiency in Acrobatics or Athletics you can choose to swap the required roll action when requested by the DM. This can't be done in combat, just when used to mantle, climb etc. The DM has final say on when it is appropriate to conduct a swap, and you MUST describe your action if you wish to use this function. Example:
| The player attempts to climb a tree using Athletics, they grab a firm branch and pull themselves up. |
| The player attempts to climb a tree using Acrobatics. They sprint to the tree and run up it using their momentum to throw themselves onto the branch. |
Item Economy
No item (even of legendary rarity) is worth more than 10,000 gold pieces in Dominion. Furthermore, quest rewards shall be higher in reward and exploration/trading shall be much more lucrative. Side Quests are especially designed to reward the player with more than the Main Quests do. As Dominion is a High Magical world setting, the economy of Magic Items is increased greatly. This is a big part of why the economy is so different from Vanilla 5e. Furthermore the "Very Rare" item class has been changed to Mythical to express its value better.
Item Value Table:
| Common Magical Items |
50-100gp |
| Uncommon Magical Items |
100-300gp |
| Rare Magical Items |
300-1,000gp |
| Mythical Magical Items |
1,000-5,000gp |
| Legendary Magical Items |
5,000-10,000gp |
The Types of Magical items and their values have been limited and changed to compensate for the currency changes. The banned items and the new values are at the DM's discretion.
Another change lies in Copper Coin. In Dominion Bronze Coin is used instead of Copper as a currency. All other currency are the same as core DND and electrum is as usually... banned. (because fuck electrum that's why.)
Secret Spells
No spells are banned in Dominion, as all spells in DND have their uses, however some spells are so powerful that it makes little sense for them to just miraculously be learned by a player. This is where secret spells come in. Secret spells are powerful spells that are not banned, however in order to take these spells you need to learn them from someone in game who knows them. Similar to how high level spells are gained in Skyrim and other roleplaying settings. The advantage here is that you do not need to level up in order to take the spell, you just need to be the appropriate level to use it, have a spell slot in that level, and find the person who knows it. This treats extremely powerful and endgame spells as legendary items rather than spells you suddenly mysteriously comprehend.
List of Current Secret Spells and the Methods to Acquire:
| Raise Dead/Revivify |
The diamond is now a magic item that must be Quested for. |
| Conjure Woodland Beings |
Instead of holly berries it is now learned from a special location in Dominion. |
| Polymorph |
The Cocoon is now an elaborate magic item tied to chromatic dragons that grants this power. |
| Plane Shift |
The rod is now a magic item that must be found in order to cast the spell. |
| Remove Curse |
Remove Curse can be used but the Variant to cure Void-Ridden state is learnable. |
| Simulacrum |
The component cost requires a ritual similar to Golem Craft to create a reusable casting focus. |
| Wish |
The cost of Wish is not XP but something more precious giving Wish Casting consequences. |
Learning a spell can be a part of a player characters personal quest, it can be a dream they have if they are a wizard / sorcerer etc. and desire to learn it, but in general a quest is associated with gaining these spells. Alternatively they can be gained from magical items in the world easily enough or for limited use from scrolls. Other measures exist for Revivify and Raise dead as well as Remove curse in the homebrew, allowing the same effects to be gained, and Remove Curse is very easily attained in game. This was done not to limit the ability of players to cast these spells but to make these legendary spells seem more powerful, special and rewarding to use, and rewarding good role-players for their efforts.
Curing Veiled Status Effects
The "Veiled" Status is a unique condition in Dominion. It is a form of mutation caused by exposure to the energy of the Veil, which can have positive and negative side effects on your character. However, as you already are probably assuming you can use Lesser Restoration or Remove Curse on it, you are mistaken. Veiled status is a Magical Condition and is not a Disease or a Curse. It is more or less a genetic mutation. A ritual can be conducted free of charge in any major settlement to remove the condition, though it takes a short period of rest determined by the severity of the condition and how many traits have been gained. There are several ways to remove the Veiled status that can be obtained in game.
| Unveiling Rituals |
These are done in cities and often times are free of charge but take the longest time to complete. |
| Veil Stones |
These Expensive Gems can be purchased to easily transform Lesser Restoration and Remove Curse into the necessary spell to cure it. |
| Veil Ritual Kit |
Can be purchased from Veil Practitioners in any city and take 60 hours to learn. These allow you to perform cures without costs or spell slots. |
Casting Veil Stone Spells or using un-attuned Ritual Kits will cost you a spell slot. Veil Stones can run upwards of 300-500gp but can be used anywhere.
Injury Rules and Massive Damage
These are very common rules in a lot of campaigns that add lingering effects on characters that can enhance roleplay and add some more dynamic story elements. These take place when a character receives a sudden enormous hit point drop, or falls unconscious during battle but succeeds their saving throws.
| Lingering Injury |
When a character falls to 0 hitpoints make a Constitution saving throw (DC 10). Success prevents the effect, but you still fall to death saves. If saves are succeeded or you return to life, roll a 1d20 to determine what injury was sustained. These can be as simple as bruising or simple scars to broken or missing body parts. |
| Massive Damage |
When a creature takes damage from a single source equal to or greater than half its hit point maximum, it must succeed on a Constitution saving throw with DC 15 or half the damage receive (whichever is higher) or suffer a random effect determined by a roll on the System Shock table. |
| Wounds |
Instant death does not exist in this campaign. Instead if you take massive damage that brings you to 0 Hitpoints, you will instead receive a wound but be able to roll death saves. Wounds are of the three Tables listed here, the most brutal and unforgiving, but are accurate to the roleplay, if a dragon bites your torso and deals 40 damage and you had 5 health left, it makes logical sense that would leave a permanent mark on you (if not kill you outright). Wounds from this table include loss of limb, loss of a sense, a lasting phobia or trauma, Mental or Physical damage that removes stat points, and other such nasty events. A punishing reminder of a foolish mistake your character will now remember forever. |
Note: These are not meant as punishments but as good roleplay for logical situations in storytelling where your character is changed by a haunting event. You chose how your character reacts and would behave in a situation like this, and as always you decide how to overcome it. Dominion is a dangerous land and not for the faint of heart to tread.
