It’s finally here: the third and final core book for 5e D&D – the Dungeon Master’s Guide. Let me tell you it was worth the wait. This books if fantastic. It is 320 pages of everything I was expecting from the 5e DMG. If you’re planning to stick with 5e then there’s no question, you’ll want this book.

1. Eladrin 5e Dmg 2
2. Eladrin Unearthed Arcana

I’m going to go through the highs and lows of each chapter. The DMG is massive and there is a lot of great material here. I can’t possibly do it all justice so I’m going to really try and focus on the things that I felt were worth noting; the things I’d want to know if I was reading a review of the 5e DMG. If you have questions about any of the things I discuss or you want to know about something you thought was in there but I didn’t cover, leave me a comment below.

1. Eladrin is one of the core player character races in Dungeons& Dragons 4th Edition introduced in the Player's Handbook. Eladrin are similar in height to humans. They are slim, and even the strongest look simply athletic rather than muscular. They have the same range of complexions as humans.
2. DnD 5e Races and Subraces.pdf. DnD 5e Races and Subraces.pdf.

Eladrin are in the DMG. High elves are just another elf, incorporated into the FR cannon. As for 'fixes', eladrin still exist in the FR cannon but are obviously rare in the FR as they come from the Feywild, and generally remain there.

After I’ve had my piece I’ll give you my final thoughts on the book and then it’s up to you to decide if you want to buy it or not.

General Observations

Before I get into each section and each chapter I want to make a few general comments. First of all I love the style of this DMG. Each section gives you just enough to get the point but not so much as to bog you down in rules and specificity. There is a tremendous emphasis on sharing the general concept and leaving it to you the DM to decide on how to reach the specific. Imagination is more important that hard rules. This is the case throughout every chapter of the book, for better or worse. Personally I think it’s great. It’s one of the things I’m enjoying most about 5e. Show me the way and then let me walk the path on my own. I don’t need you to hold my hand. I may stumble along the way, but I’m going to have a lot of fun in the process. Keep that in mind as you’re reading this review and as you’re reading the DMG.

The art in this book is fantastic, starting with the great cover. The are in the DMG is everything I’ve come to expect in a 5e rule book. After seeing the exceptional job done in the PHB and Monster Manual, I expected nothing less. The full splash pages are beautiful and really give you a sense of what D&D is all about. The fantasy worlds and creatures come to life on every page. There is a little bit of art that was borrowed from previous publications, but I can certainly forgive that.

To say there are a lot of table in the 5e DMG is an understatement. This book is packed full of tables. Every section has tables to help the DM use the mechanics quickly and easily. All the tables reminded me of the original 1e DMG, whihc was a good thing.

Part 1

Chapter 1: A World of Your Own

If you’re a new DM who’s never played before or you’re a player who hasn’t played in a very long time then this chapter provides a great introduction to world-building. If you’re an experienced DM and you’ve played any previous edition of D&D in the last few years then you can skip this chapter.

For experienced DMs the only things that you may want to take a look at quickly is the section on Factions & Renown and Tiers of Play. Although these sections are only three pages each, there is some new and interesting material in there.

The Faction section lacks the details about special missions we were hoping for, which was disappointing. The Renown section talks briefly about attitudes of members and perks. There is new rules on losing renown and new rules for how to use renown for pious characters to measure their devotion. The rest of what’s covered in these sections pretty much repeats what we already know from other 5e sources.

The Tiers of Play section names the four tiers:

• Levels 1-4: Local Heroes
• Levels 5-10: Heroes of the Realm
• Levels 11-16: Masters of the Realm
• Levels 17-20: Masters of the World

There is also guidelines for beginning play at higher levels and an interesting sidebar that recommends how much equipment, money and magic to give PCs starting above level 1 in low magic campaigns, standard campaigns, and high magic campaigns.

Chapter 2: Creating a Multiverse

If you’re an experienced DM who’s ever flipped through a Manual of the Planes (any edition) then you can likely skip this chapter too. It’s essentially all the good stuff from every Manual of the Planes condensed into 25 pages. It’s very useful if your campaign spans the Multiverse, but for everyday adventures, especially the kind you generally see at low levels and introductory play, this is too much too soon. I will call out the great 2-page write-ups on the Feywild, Shadowfell, and Sigil. This is all I was interested in and what was here was enough for now.

Part 2

Chapter 3: Creating Adventures

Download mac os 10.12. This is where the DMG really began to pay dividends for me. The chapter begins with a good breakdown of what makes a good adventure and then talks about the difference between playing a published adventure and one you make up yourself. From there we get helpful hints and many great tables that present numerous options detailing the different types of adventures, complications like plot-twists and side quests, how to create encounters with a strong focus on objectives and monsters, and how and when to use random encounters. This chapter covers how to manage XP budgets to create suitable encounters for your party’s level. It’s brief, but it covers the basics.

What this chapter really illustrated for me was that each section give you a very brief recount of what the intent is, but it leaves the specifics to the DM. This edition is light on rules, and heavy on imagination. They provide framework and it’s up to you to fill in the blanks as appropriate for your gaming group. We’ll continue to see this throughout the DMG in every chapter.

Chapter 4: Creating Nonplayer Characters

The chapter begins with eight tables that let you quickly throw together memorable and unique NPCs just by rolling some dice. Then we get a three pages on NPC party members and hirelings which is something we never got in the official 4e books. There’s a nice optional rule here about using a loyalty score to determine what NPCs will and won’t do in the face of danger.

Then we move on to villains where three more huge tables give the DM plenty of options to choose or roll when they need a quick villain that’s not your standard bad guy. The real gem in this section are the Villainous Class Options. The Cleric can chose the Death Domain and the Paladin can choose Oathbreaker. These are set up like the class options in the PHB, but are skewed for evil PCs. These look very interesting and will make experienced players salivate with delight at the prospect of playing these builds. The Oathbreaker in particular can actually atone and change back into a good aligned Paladin, but it’s a difficult undertaking. Fortunately there’s a DM sidebar to help adjudicate this eventuality. Assuming you want to give up your ability to control undead, your Aura of Hate, or your level 20 Dread Lord status.

Chapter 5: Adventure Environments

If you’ve never played D&D before then this is an important chapter because it talks about campaigns that take place in a dungeon, in the wilderness, or in an urban setting. It talks about how to describe these settings, how to map them, how to fill them with challenges and monsters, and how to survive in the harshest of environments. However, if you have played D&D before then this is another section you can pretty much skip until you need it.

The four pages on Adventures in Unusual Environments, like underwater or in the sky, are nice to have and were entertaining to read through. But the real high point of this chapter for me was the final four pages which were all about traps. After a very brief overview of how to use traps, there are 11 great sample traps. I’m sure all DMs will find clever and creative ways to use these deadly traps in their campaigns soon enough.

Chapter 6: Between Adventures

I think what we all want to know is what can I do with my downtime days? The DMG gives a few additional options beyond those already described in the PHB.

• Building a Stronghold: Spend 60-1,200 downtime days and 5,000-500,000 gp and you’ve got yourself a brand new stronghold.
• Carousing: When you want to party like it’s 1999 then spend those downtime days on some serious partying.
• Crafting Magic Items: Aside from the time and resources required to actually acquire the materials that the DM decides you need to make your magic item, you have to spend some downtime days.
• Gaining Renown: Want to rise through the ranks of your faction? Spend some downtime days to make a name for yourself.
• Perform Sacred Rites: Pray long enough and you’ll get inspiration for it. How much is up to the DM.
• Running a Business: Adventuring is hard work, so when the monsters are defeated come home, relax, and work at your day job.
• Sell Magic Items: In a world with few magic items there are fewer still who can afford to buy them. It takes many downtime days to find a suitable buyer. Maybe you should just keep the item?
• Sowing Rumors: Now the Bard and the Rogue can put those social skills to work by slandering your enemies and making the party sound more heroic than they really are. The bigger the town the longer it takes.
• Training to Gain Levels: As a variant rule the DM may require you to train before you can advance to the next level. Don’t worry it’ll only take 10-40 days depending on your level.

Chapter 7: Treasure

Most of this chapter is the description of magic items. Like the spell descriptions that make up so much of the PHB, you won’t need these descriptions until the items come into your game. However, the descriptions are wonderful to read. Most items have full colour pictures which always makes an item seem special. Some of the illustrations pay homage to previous editions of D&D. For example the Manual of Bodily Health looks a lot like the 3.5e Epic Handbook, the Talisman of the Sphere is shaped like the demon face carving some may recognize from the Tomb of Horrors, the Deck of Many Things shows the faces of nine cards that look similar to the cards provided with the 4e Madness at Gardmore Abbey, and the Book of Vile Darkness looks a lot like the 3.5e supplement of the same name. Also included after all the descriptions of magic items are details for sentient items and good old artifacts.

Eladrin 5e Dmg 2

Aside from the 75 pages of magic items there are also a few other details worth noting in this chapter. At the beginning are some great tables for determining treasure by challenge rating. Following that, there are random magic item tables (tables A-I) with each table listing increasingly more powerful items. It’s got a very old school look and feel to it.

Other good tidbits include 11 tables for randomly determining gem and art objects. They’re not as detailed as the ones in the classic 2e Forgotten Realms Adventures hardcover, but they’ll certainly do the job. There are also good options presented on attuning items, identifying items, and cursed items – so players beware.

One thing I do in my home camping is allow PCs to mix potions. It often creates some random happenstance. There is a table in this DMG that lists some possible consequences of mixing potions. It’s not as imaginative as my list, but it’s nice to see it included.

Finally there are six pages that talk about other rewards beyond gold and magic items. These include things like blessings, medals, land, favours, strongholds, and training. The last section in rewards is Epic Boons. They’re only available to PCs who are level 20 and they are truly epic.

Part 3

Chapter 8: Running the Game

A lot of what’s in this chapter is covered in the free DMG Basic Rules PDF that Wizards already made available on their website. If you’ve DMed before, especially D&D Next or 5e then this is just a good refresher. For new DMs this section will tell you everything you need to know to run a good session. It covers a lot of details but each section is very short and to the point.

We get a few optional or more advanced rules in this chapter including ways to adjust monster damage severity, as well as guidelines for using maps (grids or hexes) and how to determine the tactical aspects that come with it such as flanking to gain advantage and facing rules. There are rules for handling chases, stats for siege equipment, and two pages on poison including the details for some of the deadlier varieties.

Chapter 9: Dungeon Master’s Workshop

This is where they’ve hidden the best stuff in the new DMG. This is all the stuff that we didn’t get in previous editions. When I got my DMG this is the chapter I flipped to and read first. It was all the modular stuff they promised us when they first released D&D Next. Some of these things I’m itching to use in my games, others I’m sure I’ll never use. But I’m certainly glad that all of this stuff is in here because you never know what you may want to add to your campaign down the road.

Before I get into some of tis stuff I want to stress that this is all optional. None of what’s in this chapter is expected to appear at every game table. If you like or dislike something you read in this chapter, talk to the players and DMs in your group and as a group collectively divide which ones you think will work and which ones wont.

• Proficiency dice replace the flat modifier in your traied skills. Instead you get a proficiency dice to roll when using skills you’re trained in. It eliminate auto-success and allows you to try some crazy and wacky stuff knowing that if you roll really well it just might work.
• Hero points are basically the 3e action points. You get a set number of hero points and when you spend one you roll 1d6 and add it to the check. You can also just cash in the points to do cool things including automatically stabilizing if you’re dying.
• Honor and Sanity scores. If you want to play a game with a traditional Asian feel or you want to port in your Call of Cthulhu campaign to D&D, now you have mechanics that will help you do both.
• Healing and resting options allow you to speed up healing by using healing surges like we did in 4e and making a short rest take only 5 minutes. Or you can slow down healing making short rests 8 hours and long rests 7 days.
• Firearms and Explosives will certainly change a traditional D&D campaign, but it does open doors to wild west themed adventures, something my home group has wanted to do for a long time. To take things one step farther there even guidelines for introducing alien technology.
• Plot points borrow heavily from the Dresden Files declaration mechanics. If you want something to happen or you want to change the scene as its unfolding, use a plot point. One interesting variant is to use plot points to change DMs mid-adventure.
• Initiative variations include doing group initiative for team heroes vs. team monsters, applying speed factors to individuals based on weapon type, and my personal favourite, making initiative a passive Dexterity check for everyone all the time.
• So you have the Monster Manual but you can’t find the exact monster you need? No problem. Now you can create you own monster. There is a 20-step procedure for making monsters that literally breaks down each line of a the monster’s stat block. As you add each ability, power, or magical spell the tables explain how the monster’s power level and CR change. This is the most in-depth monster creation I’ve seen in any edition yet it’s quite simple and easy to follow. Experienced DMs will love this. You can even give monsters class levels and spell casting abilities. It’s the best parts of monster creation from 3.5e.
• Want to create a magic item? Now you can. But in a system that’s magic light make sure that this item will add something necessary and doesn’t just feel like a better version of something else.
• Finally there are guidelines for adjusting what’s already in the PHB including new sub-races, adjusting the classes and making your own backgrounds. The Eladrin and Aasimar are both presented as example sub-races.

Appendix A: Random Dungeons

This is the down and dirty way to create a dungeon. There are 12 pages jam packed with tables allowing the DM to roll up a dungeon in just a few minutes. It’s got everything fom door type, to stairs, to the dungeon’s purpose, to the state of the dungeon when the PCs arrive, to traps, and all kinds of dungeon dressing.

Appendix B: Monster Lists

This is everything we wanted in the 5e Monster Manual and didn’t get. Monsters listed by 11 different types of environments and monsters listed by challenge rating.

Eladrin Unearthed Arcana

Appendix C: Maps

You need a quick map, here are nine that should work. Some of the maps may look familiar. On pg 312 is the Vault of the Dracolich map, on pg 314 is a boat from The Talon of Umberlee Lair Assault, and on pg 311 is an updated version of the map printed on pg 95 of the original DMG.

Appendix D: Dungeon Master Inspiration

Want to become a better DM and a better storyteller? Here is a lost of great books and resources. Enjoy.

Thoughts

The only negative thing I can about the 5e DMG say is that it’s expensive, but even that’s not such a big deal. I think the investment of $50 US / $58 CAN is well worth the price considering the quality of the book you get. When balanced against the number of years I’ll be using and referencing this book, I think the price is right. Remember that only one person in your gaming group actually needs a DMG, but if you’ve got the money I’d certainly recommend you pick it up. Christmas is right around the corner. Why not ask Santa to get you a DMG?

What more can I say about this book? This is the DMG that we were waiting for. It delivered on all accounts in my opinion. The history of D&D is deeply steeped into all the 5e core books and the DMG is the best of them. If you’re a serious gamer you’ll want the 5e DMG.

• Final grade: 10 on a d10

Take the Poll

Related reading:

[jetpack_subscription_form title=”Looking for Instant Updates?” subscribe_text=”Subscribe to the Dungeon’s Master Feed for up to date info from your favourite D&D site.” subscribe_button=”Sign Up Now”]

Aasimar are one of three core Planetouched player races in Dungeons & Dragons, alongside their counterparts the Tiefling and the Genasi. Descendants of unions between mortals and angels, aasimar are characterized primarily by their tendency towards physical perfection and their natural inclination towards the goodly alignments. Whilst they may bear physical manifestations of their divinely-touched lineage, these are never freakish and usually tend to be quite subtle; hair the color of silver or gold, metallic-colored eyes, ivory-white skin, or a beautifully melodious voice are mentioned, though more drastic features are possible, such as regal tails, birdlike or leonine lower bodies, and vestigial wings. Needless to say, their ancestry gives them a strong inherent affinity for the Paladin and Cleric classes.

Aasimar are uncommon on the Prime MaterialPlane, but are vastly more common in Sigil and on the Upper Planes.

Like pretty much every planetouched, aasimar tend to be portrayed as human + angel, with the occasional handwave by the designers that 'aasimar traits are dominant' and thusly an elven or dwarven aasimar would still have the same statblock. For a rare exception to this, see the Celadrin, an elf/eladrin aasimar variant.

• 2In AD&D
  • 2.1The Not-So-Legendary Aasimar Tables
    • 2.1.2Aasimar Appearance
• 4In Pathfinder

Aasimar Controversies[edit]

None of the planetouched have been free of their controversies, but aasimar arguably got hit a little harder than their cousins from the Lower Planes and the Elemental Planes did. The big issues are two-fold:

Firstly, some argue that aasimar actually manage to be even bigger Mary Sues than the tieflings do. After all, their description comes with many standard traits of the dreaded Sue actually written in, such as being incredibly beautiful, instantly likable without even trying, and are almost always good guys/girls. Yes, they are the literal children of angels, but even so, there are complaints that they get slathered with a bit too much authorial loving. Though, ironically, they also tend to get the shaft compared to tieflings in terms of actual story focus, so go figure.

Secondly, some argue that the aasimar are.. well, to put it bluntly, that they're boring. They're not alone in this, genasi get the same accusation thrown their way, but it is noted by some that their fluff does tend towards painting them in a generic 'they're good because they're born to it, they're always the goody two-shoes race', and some find this less inspiring than the tieflings and their struggle to define themselves despite the expectations others have about them due to their ancestry and despite the temptations of their dark heritage. Also, let's be honest, there are a lot of angst edge-lords in this hobby who think grimdark = deep and noblebright = boring. It's about the same way Batman gets spoken of in hushed, orgasmic tones while Superman is sneered at for being a 'boyscout,' despite both being loaded down with Sue-traits.

In fact, this attitude is common enough that even WoTC gave it a nod, which led to the temporary replacement of aasimars with the deva race in 4th edition. When discussing adding them to 5e early on, Mike Mearls specifically called attention to this complaint, and expressed a desire to avoid it, since he was a fan and didn't want them to be 'boring.'

In AD&D[edit]

Unlike tieflings, who lucked into being part of the original Planescape boxed set, aasimar didn't come out until two years later. Whether or not this had any impact on their popularity vs. tieflings is anybody's guess. Aasimar were part of the expanded planar racial PC offerings presented in the Planewalker's Handbook, alongside the Genasi and the Rogue Modron, where they came with the following stats:

Ability Score Minimum/Maximum: Strength 8/18, Dexterity 5/18, Constitution 5/18, Intelligence 11/18, Wisdom 11/18, Charisma 13/18

Ability Score Adjustments: +1 Strength OR +1 Charisma, +1 Wisdom, -2 Constitution

Class & Level Restrictions: Fighter 14, Ranger 14, Paladin 14, Wizard 14, Cleric 12, Druid 15, Thief 15, Bard 9

Multiclass Options: Fighter/Priest, Fighter/Mage, Fighter/Bard, Ranger/Mage, Ranger/Priest, Mage/Priest, Mage/Thief, Mage/Bard, Priest/Bard

Thieving Skill Adjustments: +10% Find/Remove Traps, +5% Move in Shadows, +10 Hide in Shadows, +5% Detect Noise

Infravision 60 feet

+1 to Surprise checks

Halve damage from Heat and Cold attacks

+2 bonus to saves vs. magical Charm, Fear, Emotion and Domination effects.

Non-Wizard aasimar have Magic Resistance 10%

Alignment Restriction: Any Non-Evil

The Not-So-Legendary Aasimar Tables[edit]

As mentioned above, aasimar, like tieflings, were given a fluff as being a very mutable 'bastard' race, but not the stats to back it up.. at least, in their initial publication. In the relatively obscure 'Warriors of Heaven' sourcebook, which also detailed the celestial races and even made PC race options out of them, the Aasimar finally received what the tieflings had back in the Planeswalker's Handbook; randomization tables. However, these were actually presented as being for aasimar NPCs and so very little attention was given to using them to customize PCs; a single sentence saying that a player could give up their default 50% resistance to heat & cold for 1 roll on the Aasimar Abilities table was all the info we were given. Of course, nothing stopped/stops a DM from simply stealing the Tiefling randomization rules (make 1d4 rolls on Appearance and give up the heat/cold resistance, saving throw bonus and magic resistance to make 5 rolls on Abilities).

Aasimar Abilities[edit]

• 01-03: Alter Self (1/day)
• 04-06: Augury (1/week)
• 07-09: Blur (1/day)
• 10-12: Comprehend Languages (1/day)
• 13-15: Detect Evil (1/day)
• 16-18: Detect Lie (1/day)
• 19-21: Detect Magic (1/day)
• 22-24: Enthrall (1/week)
• 25-27: Feather Fall (1/day)
• 28-30: Know Alignment (1/day)
• 31-33: Light (1/day)
• 34-36: Mirror Image (1/day)
• 37-39: Protection From Evil 10ft Radius (1/day)
• 40-42: Protection From Normal Missiles (1/week)
• 43-45: Read Magic (2/day)
• 46-48: Shield (1/day)
• 49-51: Strength (1/day)
• 52-54: Water Breathing (1/week)
• 55-57: Half damage from Fire
• 58-60: Half damage from Cold
• 61-63: Half damage from Electricity
• 64-66: Half damage from Acid
• 67-69: +2 to save vs. Poison
• 70-72: +2 to save vs. Fire
• 73-75: +2 to save vs. Cold
• 76-78: +2 to save vs. Electricity
• 79-81: +2 to save vs. Petriciation/Polymorph/Paralysis
• 82-84: +2 to save vs. Rod/Staff/Wand
• 85-87: +2 to save vs. Spell
• 88-93: Celestial Aura (-2 penalty to enemy attacks)
• 94-96: Immune to nonmagical weapons
• 97: Immune to energy drain attacks
• 98-99: Roll twice, rerolling results above 97
• 100: Roll three times, rerolling results above 97

Aasimar Appearance[edit]

• 01-04: Silvery skin
• 05-07: Green-tinted skin
• 08-10: Blue-tinted skin
• 11-14: Golden skin
• 15-16: Pointed ears
• 17-18: Ridged ears
• 19-20: Doglike ears
• 21-25: Angular face with high cheekbones
• 26-29: Perfect white teeth
• 30-31: Long, distinguished nose
• 32-33: Hooked nose
• 34-36: Crystal-blue eyes
• 37-39: Bright green eyes
• 40-42: Gleaming silver eyes
• 43-45: Golden eyes
• 46-48: Six fingers per hand (including thumb)
• 49-50: Fingers one inch longer than normal
• 51-52: Animal horns on head
• 53-54: Silver or gold fingernails
• 55-57: Long, slender arms
• 58-60: Long, slender legs
• 61-65: Featherd Wings (MV Fly 18 [D])
• 66-72: Vestigial wingbones on shoulders
• 73-76: Opalescent skin
• 77-80: Naturally tanned skin
• 81-83: Body covered with speckled markings
• 84-85: Bald, hairless
• 86-89: Small feathers rather than hair on 1d10x10 of body
• 90-95: Special Side Effect (roll on Side Effects table)
• 96-98: Roll twice, rerolling results above 89
• 99-00: Roll three times, rerolling results above 89

Aasimar Special Side Effects[edit]

• 01-10: Sweet, fresh odor surrounds body
• 11-15: Surrounded by an aura of calm that grants +2 to morale checks for good-aligned creatures within 30 feet
• 16-25: Heals twice as quickly
• 26-30: Susceptible to fire (+1 point of damage per die)
• 31-35: Susceptible to cold (+1 point of damage per die)
• 36-45: Presence eases animals (+4 to reactions)
• 46-50: Touch inflicts 1d4 damage to evil creatures
• 51-55: Odd skin composition gives base AC of 1d6+3
• 56-60: Takes 1d6 points of damage from a splash/vial of unholy water
• 61-70: Can be turned by evil priests
• 71-75: Can speak telepathically (range 1 mile)
• 76-80: Can leap up to 15 feet vertically or 30 feet horizontally
• 81-85: Natural (ground) movement rate of 15
• 86-90: Can't be held or ensnared, as per a free action spell
• 91-98: Can speak any language
• 99-100: Eyes have the power of true seeing (as per spell)

In 3e[edit]

Aasimar showed up all over the place in 3e, starting as early as the Monster Manual. Like many other 'human-descendant' races, they made their ultimate appearance in Races of Destiny, which presented their finalized racial statblock. Fluff-wise, they were basically unchanged from 2e.

+2 Wisdom, +2 Charisma

Outsider (Native)

Medium

Base land speed 30 feet

Darkvision 60 feet

Daylight (Sp): 1/day as either a 1st level caster or a caster of class level, whichever is higher.

Resistance 5 to Acid, Cold and Electricity.

+2 racial bonus on Listen and Spot.

Favored Class: Paladin

Level Adjustment: +1

Like most exotic races, nothing they had was really worth that level adjustment, especially compared to the bonus feat Humans got.

Player's Guide to Faer没n introduced the 'Lesser Planetouched' variant rule, wherein ALL planetouched, be they Aasimars, Tieflings, Genasi, or whatever, and regardless of whether they were players or NPCs, counted as 'Humanoid (Planetouched)' rather than as 'Outsider (Native)', thus cutting them off from Darkvision, martial weapon proficiencies, the ability to take outsider forms with polymorph spells, immunity to 'person' spells, and nothing else of importance, in exchange for dropping the level adjustment. This was widely misinterpreted as a subrace that individual players could take during character-creation, leading to a lot of skub.

In Pathfinder[edit]

In Pathfinder, it's noted that a lot of Aasimar actually tend to go evil either because superstitious yokels tend to pile on emotional trauma and guilt until they snap by constantly harassing them for 'blessings' that the aasimar can't actually give, or because they realize everyone automatically expects them to be capital-G Good Guys/Girls and so they can easily manipulate people. This is yet another way in which Pathfinder likes to present itself as the GrimDark D&D equivalent setting. They can have lots of different possible starting types, depending on which kind of celestial they descended from. Interestingly, supplements explicitly encourage white-hot holy-on-unholy action by stressing the odd sense of kinship most aasimar feel for their similarly-bullshit-cultural-expectation-wracked fiend-blooded counterparts.

Notably, the very first Golarion Adventure Path, Rise of the Runelords, made before Pathfinder was a game in its own right rather than an extension of the 3.5 system, features an aasimar as the main villain for the first module, who, after a lifetime of mistreatment and abuse at the hands of her foster father, the town priest, and after being knocked up and abandoned by a passing rake, swore her soul to Lamashtu and began mutating into a monster.

Naturally, the Pathfinder Aasimar sourcebook, 'Blood of Angels' follows the same plans as the Tiefling sourcebook 'Blood of Fiends', giving a D100 table for alternative traits to replace the vanilla aasimar's spell-like ability, and racial variants for aasimar recognizably tied to one of the existing celestial races - Agathions, Angels, Archons, Azata, Garudas and Peris. It also states that as Tieflings have increased in number as a result of the Worldwound and Cheliax bringing a shit ton of fiends to the material plain Aasimar have also increased in numbers for some unknown reason. It also states Aasimar are not only those with celestial ancestors, but also children born of miraculous and normally impossible births whose parents prayed for children (old, infertile, incompatible races ect.). There's a sidebar that mentions the old 'Aasimar of all races use the same statistics', but adds one wrinkle that small races produce Aasimar that are small size with no other stats changes. Note that the lower strength and speed of most small races isn't actually an inherit part of being small, so small Aasimar are strong and quick for their size. The Kingmaker video game has a minor NPC mention that just having celestials and consecrated stuff around the parents can result in children being born Aasimar.

Statwise, the Pathfinder Aasimar looks like this:

+2 Wisdom, +2 Charisma

Outsider (Native)

Medium

Base speed 30 feet

Darkvision 60 feet

Skilled: +2 racial bonus on Diplomacy & Perception checks.

Spell-Like Ability: Daylight 1/day with caster level equal to the aasimar's character level.

Celestial Resistance: Aasimar have Resistance 5 against Acid, Cold and Electricity.

Pathfinder Aasimar Strains[edit]

Idyllkin are descendants of Agathions, the Pathfinder equivalent of Guardinals, which gives them slight bestial physical traits (think 'divine catgirl' to the Agathion's 'divine catfolk') and a natural prediliction for the Neutral Good alignment. They have a tendency to be nomadic and feel a strong connection with nature, tending to be druids or nature clerics more than the traditional aasimar affinity for paladins. An Idyllkin changes its ability modifiers to +2 Constitution and +2 Charisma, its Skillful bonuses apply to Handle Animal and Survival, and its Spell-like Ability is Summon Nature's Ally II. They can also take the racial traits Enlightened Warrior (can become a Monk with a True Neutral or Neutral Good alignment) and Speech of the Wilds (gain one extra language).

Angelkin descend from angels, which in Pathfinder are their own kind of 'Any Good Celestial'. These guys take the Mary Sue aspect of the aasimar and crank it up notch, being described as 'mortal paragons of exceptional beauty'. Ironically, they're noted for being the one aasimar strain most racist against tieflings, despite their personal belief in embracing the idea of harmony. An Angelkin changes its ability modifiers to +2 Strength and +2 Charisma, its Skillful bonuses apply to Heal and Knowledge (Planes), and its Spell-like Ability is Alter Self. They can also take the race traits Celestial Tracker (+1 trait bonus to Survival checks made to track, ignore 24 hours since they were made) and Planetar's Vision (critical melee weapon hits against ignore damage reduction equal to the critical multiplier of your weapon).銆x80Their stats adjustments make them ideal for Paladin, battle Oracle, or Bloodrager, especially since most the other races with bonuses to charisma and strength are dumb and make the limited skill points worse.

Lawbringers descend from Archons, meaning that at best they're champions of justice, and at worst they struggle with which is stronger; their need for order or their need for good. They tend to be naturally patient, disciplined, and skillful, but they prefer routines and are uncomfortable outside of a clear hierarchy. A Lawbringer changes its ability modifiers to +2 Constitution and +2 Wisdom, its Skillful bonuses apply to Intimidate and Sense Motive, and its Spell-like Ability is Continual Flame. They can also take the race traits Good Influence (+1 trait bonus on Diplomacy checks made to convince non-good creatures to act good and non-lawful creatures to act lawful; this stacks) and Lantern Spirit (Continual Flame can be cast as a Move Action). Decent Clerics and Warpriests, but the real prize is that as an SLA Continual Flame has no cost. No other race in the game has a built in 'make 54.99 GP a day for nothing' from level one.

Musetouched descend from the Azata, Pathfinder's version of Eladrins, and this makes them both extremely capricious and, ironically, one of the aasimars best able to blend in. They tend to easily pass as beautiful and graceful elves or half-elves, for obvious reasons. Possessed of wanderlust and natural talents in music, which means many become bards, they are particularly opposed to tyranny. They have a rather strong resemblance to the Celadrin, elven/firre planetouched who first surfaced in the pages of Dragon Magazine. A Musetouched changes its ability modifiers to +2 Dexterity and +2 Charisma, its Skillful bonuses apply to Diplomacy and Perform, and its Spell-like Ability is Glitterdust. They can also take the racial traits Bralani's Step (once per day, increase distance covered by a move action by +5 feet) and Lillend's Harp (+1 trait bonus on Perform (String) checks, increases to +2 when using string instruments to make a Bardic Performance). Naturally perfect for Sorcerer, Bard and Oracle.

Plumekith descend from the Garuda, noble but impetuous celestials who resemble humanoid birds with beautifully colored plumage. Like their parents, Plumekith tend to be noble but very impulsive, and grow feathers; sometimes in vestigial wings on their backs or arms, sometimes in place of hair. Like garuda, they tend to have a very intense hatred for snakes and serpentine monsters. A Plumekith changes its ability modifiers to +2 Dexterity and +2 Wisdom, its Skillful bonuses apply to Acrobatics and Fly, and its Spell-like Ability is See Invisibility. They can also take the race traits Snake Hater (+2 trait bonus to Knowledge (Dungeoneering), which is always a class skill for you) and Toxophilite (+2 trait bonus on attack rolls made to confirm critical hits with bows).

Emberkin descend from the Peri, former devils who redeemed themselves and were transformed into angels that resemble white-skinned humanoids with wings of fire. It goes without saying that emberkin tend to have 'igneous' features, from bright yellow eyes to flames that flicker amongst their hair. Whilst many feel an insatiable need to perform good, just as many feel the exact opposite; emberkin are noted as the aasimar strain most likely to revolt against their heavenly ancestry and embrace evil, which presumably makes them the aasimar most sympathetic towards tieflings. An Emberkin changes its ability modifiers to +2 Intelligence and +2 Charisma, its Skillful bonuses apply to Knowledge (Planes) and Spellcraft, and its Spell-like Ability is Pyrotechnics. They can also take the race traits Burnished Skin (+2 trait bonus on saving throws to disbelieve illusions) and Pyromancer (+1 trait bonus on damage rolls for fire spells). Nothing uses Charisma and Intelligence except Arcanist.

Pathfinder Aasimar Tables[edit]

There are two tables of note in 'Blood of Angels'. Firstly, we have the purely cosmetic table, which builds upon the version seen in AD&D, where you roll a D100/D% and compare to the table to see what you get:

• 1 Arms: appear sculpted from marble
• 2 Arms: extra long
• 3 Arms: feathered forearms
• 4 Arms: scaled forearms
• 5 Arms: seemingly boneless
• 6 Build: always slender
• 7 Build: beautifully proportioned
• 8 Build: graceful
• 9 Build: unusually light
• 10 Build: well-muscled
• 11 Digits: extra long
• 12 Digits: metallic nails
• 13 Digits: odd number
• 14 Digits: shining talons
• 15 Digits: unusually colored nails
• 16 Ears: catlike
• 17 Ears: feathered
• 18 Ears: long-lobed
• 19 Ears: pivoting
• 20 Ears: pointed
• 21 Eyes: catlike
• 22 Eyes: glowing
• 23 Eyes: iridescent
• 24 Eyes: jewel-like
• 25 Eyes: multicolored
• 26 Face: baby-faced
• 27 Face: metallic lips
• 28 Face: perfectly symmetrical
• 29 Face: unearthly beauty
• 30 Face: white scar
• 31 Hair: animated
• 32 Hair: feathers
• 33 Hair: heatless flames
• 34 Hair: metallic
• 35 Hair: turns silver in moonlight
• 36 Hands: always cool and dry
• 37 Hands: blackened knuckles
• 38 Hands: glowing palms
• 39 Hands: leave contrails
• 40 Hands: fingerprints look like holy symbols
• 41 Head: animal features
• 42 Head: bald
• 43 Head: draconic features
• 44 Head: halo
• 45 Head: unusually shaped
• 46 Legs: clawed feet
• 47 Legs: extra long
• 48 Legs: feathered shins
• 49 Legs: metallic scaled shins
• 50 Legs: unnaturally small feet
• 51 Shadow: animated
• 52 Shadow: bright
• 53 Shadow: metallic
• 54 Shadow: prismatic
• 55 Shadow: winged
• 56 Skin: ashen
• 57 Skin: feathered
• 58 Skin: furred
• 59 Skin: glittering
• 60 Skin: glowing
• 61 Skin: iridescent
• 62 Skin: metallic scales
• 63 Skin: metallic sheen
• 64 Skin: prismatic scales
• 65 Skin: unusual hue
• 66 Voice: echoes dramatically
• 67 Voice: musical
• 68 Voice: unusually high
• 69 Voice: unusually low
• 70 Voice: words you speak aloud seem to be heard mentally
• 71 Wings: butterfly
• 72 Wings: feathered
• 73 Wings: light
• 74 Wings: metallic dragon
• 75 Wings: prismatic
• 76 Other: always look clean
• 77 Other: always well lit
• 78 Other: androgynous
• 79 Other: breathing sounds like ocean waves
• 80 Other: clothing billows even without wind
• 81 Other: covered in freckles
• 82 Other: don't sweat
• 83 Other: floral breath
• 84 Other: fox tail
• 85 Other: melodic laugh
• 86 Other: multicolored tears
• 87 Other: nearby bells ring when you pass by
• 88 Other: no body hair
• 89 Other: pearlescent teeth
• 90 Other: random choral sounds
• 91 Other: sacred birthmark
• 92 Other: stigmata
• 93 Other: sweet scent
• 94 Other: sweet taste
• 95 Other: trancelike sleep
• 96 Other: unicorn horn
• 97 Other: unusual footprints
• 98 Other: unusual temperature
• 99 Roll twice, ignore any result of 99 or higher.
• 100 Roll three times, ignore any result of 99 or higher.

The second table covers alternate racial traits, which you take in place of your normal Spell-like ability. That means you sacrifice it for one of these traits, or at least a roll on the table.

• 1 You can channel 1d6 points of positive energy once per day as a supernatural ability.
• 2 You can use cure minor wounds 3/day as a spell-like ability.
• 3 As a move action, you can manifest or dismiss a halo around your head that sheds colored light as a torch.
• 4 Once per day, you can drink a flask of holy water to heal 1d6 hit points.
• 5 You gain a +4 racial bonus on Knowledge (religion) checks pertaining to a deity of your choice.
• 6 You possess taloned fingers that act as natural weapons and deal 1d4 points of damage.
• 7 You gain DR 2/evil.
• 8 You use your Charisma score instead of your Constitution score to determine how many rounds you can hold your breath.
• 9 You gain an additional +2 racial bonus to your Strength score.
• 10 You can subsist entirely on honey and wine.
• 11 You can breathe both thin and stale air without ill effects, and you never suffer from altitude sickness.
• 12 You have a natural swim speed of 20 feet.
• 13 You gain a +2 racial bonus on attack rolls made to confirm critical hits against evil outsiders.
• 14 You possess the Unnatural Aura universal monster ability, except the DC to make animals come near you is equal to 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Charisma modifier.
• 15 Once per day, when you are at 0 hit points, you can take a full round of actions without losing a hit point and falling unconscious.
• 16 You display exceptional grace and easily keep your balance, granting you a +2 racial bonus on Acrobatics checks.
• 17 You can cast Spear of Purity (Ultimate Magic) once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 18 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws made against poison.
• 19 Once you've reached adulthood, you never appear to age, although you still suffer the normal aging penalties and die when it is your time.
• 20 You gain an additional +2 bonus to your Dexterity score.
• 21 At will, you can cast an illusion on yourself that causes any metal armor you wear to appear to be made of shining silver or gold.
• 22 You gain a +1 racial bonus on Will saves.
• 23 You can cast Create Water three times per day as a spell-like ability.
• 24 You gain Sonic Resistance 5.
• 25 Once per day, you can exhibit a burst of speed and move as if your base land speed were 50 feet for the duration of 1 round.
• 26 You gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC against attacks of opportunity made by creatures of the human subtype.
• 27 You have a knack for creating high-quality objects, giving you a +2 racial bonus on any one kind of Craft check.
• 28 Once per day, for 1 minute, you can understand and be understood by any creature as if using the Tongues spell.
• 29 You gain a +2 racial bonus on initiative checks during the day.
• 30 Pick one weapon that normally deals lethal damage; you can use that weapon to deal non-lethal damage without the usual -4 attack roll penalty.
• 31 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against charm effects.
• 32 You can cast Shield Other once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 33 Coins and other small metal objects that pass through your hands become perfectly clean and shiny.
• 34 You gain a +2 dodge bonus to your AC against attacks of opportunity from evil outsiders or undead.
• 35 You can case Aid once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 36 Nonmagical insects will never bite or sting you unless magically compelled to do so.
• 37 You gain a +2 racial bonus on checks made with any one Perform skill.
• 38 Once per day, you can generate a glowing aura that emanates in a 20ft radius centered on you and lasts for 1 round. All creatures at negative hit points within the aura are immediately stabilized.
• 39 You can perfectly mimic the sound of any animal.
• 40 You gain an additional +2 racial bonus to your Intelligence score.
• 41 Three times per day, by singing for 10 minutes, you can put a willing creature to sleep, granting them immunity to Nightmare and similar spells for the duration of their rest.
• 42 You grant a +3 bonus when you Aid Another instead of the normal +2 bonus.s
• 43 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against fear effects.
• 44 By standing atop a grave and meditating for 10 minutes, you immediately learn the name of whoever lies buried in that grave.
• 45 You have catlike ears that grant you a +2 racial bonus on hearing-based Perception checks.
• 46 Once per day, you can breathe frosty air in a 10-foot cone. This acts as a breath weapon that deals a number of points of cold damage equal to 1d4 + lj2 your level, to a maximum of 1d4+5.
• 47 You feel sick to your stomach and take a -1 penalty on ability checks when within 30 feet of an evil outsider.
• 48 You can cast weapon of awe (Advanced Player's Guide) once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 49 You gain a +1 racial bonus on Reflex saves.
• 50 You gain an additional +2 racial bonus to your Wisdom score.
• 51 You can make fruit ripen with a touch.
• 52 You can understand any written material as though under the effects of comprehend languages.
• 53 You gain a +2 racial bonus to your CMD.
• 54 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and effects that would cause you to become dazzled.
• 55 You can cast augury once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 56 You can cast zone of truth once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 57 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Heal checks.
• 58 Any creature that bites you must succeed at a DC 12 Fortitude save or become sickened for 1d4 rounds.
• 59 Any good creature you call via summon monster remains for 3 rounds longer than usual.
• 60 You always know the current position of the sun.
• 61 You gain a +1 racial bonus on attack and damage rolls against evil outsiders.
• 62 You gain a +4 racial bonus on saving throws to remove any temporary negative levels you possess.
• 63 You have a strong and stable build. You gain a +2 racial bonus to CMD against bull rush and trip attempts.
• 64 You gain a +4 racial bonus on Intimidate checks made to demoralize foes.
• 65 Once per day as a full-round action, you can summon a silver holy symbol out of thin air. The holy symbol remains in existence for 1 hour or until you drop it.
• 66 You are immune to undead creatures' create spawn special ability.
• 67 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Sense Motive checks.
• 68 You can cast whispering wind once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 69 Your tears cure disease. You can cast remove disease once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 70 You gain an additional +2 racial bonus to your Constitution score.
• 71 You gain sustenance from sunlight. Standing in direct sunlight for half an hour nourishes you as though you had just eaten a hearty meal. You still need to drink water.
• 72 You gain spell resistance equal to 10 + 1/2 your Hit Dice.
• 73 If your body is placed on consecrated ground and prayers to your deity are recited continuously for 24 hours, you return to life as if by a raise dead spell. This ability works 1d4 times in your lifetime.
• 74 Your kiss invigorates others. Once per day, you can kiss a creature to change its condition from exhausted to fatigued, or from fatigued to normal.
• 75 You can sense when a creature is pregnant by standing within 10 feet of the creature.
• 76 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws made against curses.
• 77 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Knowledge (planes) checks.
• 78 You are always comfortably warm. You gain a +4 racial bonus to resist environmental cold effects.
• 79 You always know the current position of the stars.
• 80 You gain fire resistance 5路
• 81 You heal double the normal amount of hit points while resting.
• 82 You can cast mending three times per day as a spell-like ability.
• 83 You feel energized and gain a +1 racial bonus on ability checks while you are within 30 feet of a good outsider.
• 84 You gain a +4 racial bonus to resist environmental heat effects.
• 85 When targeted by lesser restoration or another spell or effect that cures temporary ability damage, you heal an extra +1 point of temporary ability damage.
• 86 You can cast blessing of courage and life (Advanced Player's Guide) once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 87 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Handle Animal and Ride checks.
• 88 Once per day as a move action, you can make a melee weapon you are wielding holy. The enchantment lasts for 3 rounds or until you drop or give away your weapon.
• 89 You gain a +2 racial bonus on saving throws made against disease.
• 90 You gain an additional +2 racial bonus to your Charisma score.
• 91 If you die, your body can never be reanimated as an undead creature.
• 92 You gain a +1 racial bonus on Fortitude saves.
• 93 You can summon a lantern archon once per day as though by summon monster III.
• 94 You can speak to horses and other equine animals.
• 95 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Diplomacy checks.
• 96 You gain a +2 racial bonus on Use Magic Device checks.
• 97 You gain DR 2/magic.
• 98 You can cast compassionate ally (Ultimate Magic) once per day as a spell-like ability.
• 99 You have a natural fly speed of 20 feet (poor).
• 100 Roll on this table twice, ignoring any further rolls of 100.

In 4e[edit]

You saw that bit above about how 4e dumped aasimar for Devas? Yeah, that's not entirely true.

See, whilst not referred to by name, 'The Ecology of the Deva' in Dragon Magazine #374 featured the fact that Devas can interbreed with other races, which produces offspring who are of the non-deva's race, but inherently touched by their angelic heritage - which is the very literal definition of what aasimar are. This was supported by the Bloodline feat 'Deva Heritage', which lets you play one of these angel-touched mortals.

'Deva Heritage' grants you a new racial daily utility called Astral Splendor (so long as you are not bloodied, you can enter a stance that causes you to shed light in a 6 square radius and inflicts a -2 penalty to attack rolls against you), as well as a +2 to all Perception & Insight checks against angels, devils, devas and rakshasas. It also means you qualify for either of two feats; Heavenly Heritage (gain temp HP equal to your Wis bonus when you take Cold or Fire damage) and Radiant Recovery (gain temp HP equal to your Con bonus if you get hit or hurt by an attack that causes Radiant damage).

In 5e[edit]

Aasimar returned to 5e in the DMG as the sample race for showcasing the 'build a race' rules. They're basically Tieflings flipped to a more Celestial aspect, complete with sharing the same +1 Mental Stat (Wisdom, for Aasimar) +2 Charisma bonus, Darkvision, Damage Resistance (Necrotic + Radiant) and spell-like abilities at level 1 (Lights), 3 (Lesser Restoration) and 5 (Daylight) format. They were recently voted one of the three most-popular races for a new D&D expansion to create in detail, with Mike Mearls professing they were his favorite race and that he really wanted to do them right because, in his own words, there's a tendency to make the good guys boring.

The first 'official' release of the 5e aasimar didn't happen until November 2016, when they were one of the player races added in the Forgotten Realms-based 'Volo's Guide to Monsters'. This version takes them a good way away from the 'radiant tiefling' ruleset, giving them new lore that described each aasimar has a celestial guide or deva who speaks to them through dreams, exhorting them to do good.. often in a very harsh and inflexible way (this is the cure for 'Aasimar being boring'. It works.) They have three subraces, that gain special abilities at third level: the Protector aasimar, who gets +1 Wisdom and can sprout wings and fly around dealing extra radiant damage on their spell and weapon attacks; the Scourge aasimar, who gets +1 Constitution and can turn into a living divine sunlamp that deals Radiant damage to everyone around them,including themself; and the Fallen Aasimar, who, having turned to evil, gets +1 Strength, causes fear in others, and deals Necrotic damage instead.

See Also[edit]