The Game Master's Book of Non-Player Characters: 500+ unique villains, heroes, helpers, sages, shopkeepers, bartenders and more for 5th edition RPG adventures

(Hardback)

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Description

From the #1 Best-Selling author, Jeff Ashworth, comes the latest addition to The Game Master series, with more than 500 NPCs ready to populate your campaign whenever you need them! As is often the case in tabletop roleplaying games, players often venture into locales or look for answers in places and among people busy Game Masters simply didn't anticipate. Or, just as often, an adventure won't have fully fleshed out characters in place for the locations and encounters outlined for gameplay. The Game Master's Book of Non-Player Characters solves these issues and more by providing Game Masters with the information they need to "fill in the holes" in their campaign play. It will enable GMs to instantly add depth, color, motivation and unique physical characteristics at a moment's notice to unexpected or underwritten characters as they pop up during gameplay, ensuring every session is a memorable one for players and GMs alike. This edition also includes more than 50 hand-drawn illustrations of select NPCs detailed in the book, 3 bonus one-shot adventures, and a foreword by online influencer Jasmine Bhullar.

Reviews

"What I love so much about this, is that the writing is just so good and it's all these characters you can use for different adventures or different encounters in underground locations or big cities or small towns. It's so useful."
--John August, screenwriter of Big Fish

"The Game Master series is...a fantastic selection of tools for dungeon masters."
--The Geekly Grind

"Great recommendation, if you...play Dungeons and Dragons."
--Craig Mazin, co-creator of the HBO series The Last Of Us

"A well-organized, easy-to-navigate, and easy-on-the-eyes tome."
--Seamus Conneely, Cannibal Halfling Gaming

"Where has this book been all my game-mastering life Finally, relief for the beleaguered GM who dreads the thought of their players deciding to, ya know...talk to people! Stress no more. Everyone--and I mean everyone--is in here."
--Philip Athans, New York Times bestselling author and former Wizards of the Coast editor

"This book makes your spontaneous storytelling moments feel like you had planned for them all along. Every NPC becomes a potential jumping off point for a new adventure!"
--Pat Kilbane, Director of the D&D documentary The Dreams in Gary's Basement

"A wonderful resource full of colorful individuals to populate your worlds, but also as a collection of launching points for what could be branching side quests, story arcs or adventure hooks."
--Jasmine Bhullar, @ThatBronzeGirl and Twitch.tv/ThatBronzeGirl

"I cannot wait to use some of these ideas for future campaigns."
--Rex Hadden, MuggleNet

"A great addition to any DM toolkit."
--The Mary Sue

Author Bio

Jeff Ashworth is a writer, editor, storyteller and gamer whose credits include work for Disney, Nickelodeon, and World Wrestling Entertainment. He is the author of the bestselling RPG reference The Game Master's Book of Random Encounters. He and his wife live in New York City with their dog, Zelda. Jasmine Bhullar is an internet personality and content creator best known for her daily livestreams at twitch.tv/thatbronzegirl. She got her start on Geek & Sundry and is now the creator, host and GM of Shikar, a new D&D 5th Edition game on Twitch.