Glossary

Core terms used across C5e. Entries link to the procedure or page where the term is defined in detail.

A

Abandoned. A lair occupancy state: the original lair occupants are long gone; no formations, no guardian features, sparse or no treasure. See Lair Encounters.

B

Basic Game Loop. The root cycle of play: Describe → Declare → Adjudicate. Many game procedures (travel, encounters, combat, faction turn) are this loop running at a different pace. See Basic Game Loop.

C

Citizen. A settled inhabitant of a domain who contributes to its economic and social structure. Not a soldier, nomad, or faction member.

Citizen Output. A domain's monthly gold income, equal to 1 gp per citizen. Spent on projects; does not accumulate. See Monthly Domain Refresh.

Controlled hex. A hex that a faction with active patrols enforces. The opposite of uncontrolled.

Core formation. The main fighting body of a faction. Defined per template; the default composition of a patrol.

D

DDA. Describe / Declare / Adjudicate. The three steps of the Basic Game Loop.

Diminished. A lair occupancy state: the faction has been reduced to a leader formation and a few followers. See Lair Encounters.

Distance. How far apart two parties are when first noticing each other. Step 1 of the Encounter Staging procedure.

Domain. A faction that holds at least one controlled hex and supports at least 100 citizens. Distinguished from a faction by the presence of citizens and the corresponding monthly economic refresh. See Monthly Domain Refresh.

E

Encounter check. A 1d20 roll made periodically during travel or exploration. A result of 18+ is positive, triggering Wilderness Encounters.

Encounter Staging. The procedure that sets the conditions of a known encounter — distance, grounds, reaction, surprise. See Encounter Staging.

Expedition. A group traveling together with a single leader and a recorded composition (units, mounts, vehicles). See Travel.

F

Faction. Any organized group of consequence: a cult, a tribe, a warband, a guild. A faction with controlled hexes and 100+ citizens becomes a domain.

Faction Action. One of the eight broad activities a DM-controlled faction takes during the Faction Turn: Strike, Build, Recruit, Scheme, Parley, Pursue, Discover, Disaster. See Faction Turns.

Faction Rating (FR). The strength tier of a faction, parallel to a creature's challenge rating. Set at faction creation and used to size encounters and resolve faction-turn rolls.

Faction Record Sheet (FRS). The fillable sheet recording a faction's composition, lair, treasure, and FR. Output of the Faction Generation system. See Faction Generation.

Faction Turn. The monthly procedure where each DM-controlled faction takes one broad action. See Faction Turns.

Forage check. A daily Wisdom (Survival) check during travel that feeds the expedition off the land. See Travel.

Formation. A defined assembly of creatures that act together in encounters. Templates define Core, Support, and Leader formations.

G

Goal. A one-line objective for a DM-controlled faction. Drives the "Pursue" result on the Faction Action menu.

Grounds. The terrain features between two encountering parties: cover, concealment, hazards, and so on. Step 2 of the Encounter Staging procedure.

H

Held. A lair occupancy state: the lair is in active use; full formations, features, and treasure per the template. See Lair Encounters.

Hex. A six-sided region on the campaign map, 6 miles wide, identified by terrain type and (if developed) faction or domain control.

L

Lair. A faction's physical seat. Generated by the faction template's lair step: areas, features, and environment.

Lair Area. A distinct space within a lair (entrance, common hall, sanctum, vault, etc.).

Lair Feature. A trap, alarm, hazard, guardian, defense, or secret placed within a lair area.

Lair occupancy. One of four states a sighted lair may be in: Abandoned, Squatted, Held, or Diminished. Determined by Step 2 of Lair Encounters.

Leader formation. The faction's most senior member or members.

M

Monthly Domain Refresh. The upkeep procedure where domains refresh citizen output, resource units, and food. See Monthly Domain Refresh.

N

Navigation check. A Wisdom (Survival) check made when entering a new terrain type during travel. See Travel.

P

Pace. The speed (in game time) at which a game procedure runs. Combat is the fastest pace; monthly turns are among the slowest.

Patrol. A faction's standard expeditionary force, encountered in a controlled hex on a 1d4 = 1 result. Composed of one Core formation from the controlling faction's template.

Project. Any organized domain effort requiring time, gold, and resources. Categorized by scale: Tiny (immediate), Small (1 week), Medium (1 month), Large (2 months).

R

Reaction. The initial attitude of an encountered party. Step 3 of the Encounter Staging procedure; resolved with a 2d6 roll.

Resource unit. A monthly extract from a tapped resource hex. Does not accumulate; expires at month's end if not consumed by a project.

S

Squatted. A lair occupancy state: a wild creature has moved into the empty lair. No formations or guardian features; treasure determined by the squatting creature. See Lair Encounters.

Stronghold. A faction's fortified lair. Used interchangeably with lair when the lair has substantial defenses.

Support formation. A specialized force within a faction (mages, scouts, agents, public-face NPCs). Defined per template.

Surprise. Determination of who notices whom first when an encounter begins. Step 4 of the Encounter Staging procedure.

T

Tapped resource. A hex resource the domain has invested in extracting via a medium project. Produces one resource unit per month.

Theme. The "subclass" of a faction template, determining flavor variants (e.g., Beast Master kobolds vs. Lava kobolds).

Travel. The procedure that moves an expedition across the map day by day. See Travel.

U

Uncontrolled hex. A hex not enforced by any faction's patrols. May contain wild creatures, lairs, or be open wilderness.