Current Project

The Roc

So, the idea here is to take a creature or element in D&D and make something that features that element in almost all of its glory. So here, we will have a brief "one night adventure" featuring the Roc, the iconic big bird of legend.

The Design Diary

+ Behind The Scenes

The Roc's Key Features
Narrative: Rocs make their first big appearance in the stories of Sinbad. There, they feature in two distinct tales: in one, they are used by some locals in a rather clever method of gathering diamonds from a valley filled with giant snakes. In the other, Sinbad's crew eats a roc egg, and then the ships are destroyed by the adult rocs dropping…er…rocks…on them. In D&D lore, the roc occupies a strange space somewhere between a monstrous threat, and a potential domesticated animal friend. High-level druids might take roc form. Cloud and storm giants use rocs as guardians and mounts. They are accompanied by normal eagles and buzzards. There are even some Pathfinder rules for baby roc animal companions. For all their size and ferocity, they aren't considered much more than a normal animal.

Mechanics: Mechanically, the roc's tricks are mostly about grabbing and dropping — nothing too interesting, really, though enough befitting their animalistic nature. They have keen vision (makes sense for a creature patterned after eagles), and, rather surprisingly, are considered fairly stealthy for such large creatures.

Encounters:

• Combat: Given their limited attack variety, rocs are not exactly combat machines. They can be dangerous encounters, thanks to falling damage, but they aren't exactly clever or varied, and given their nature as normal animals, they are much more likely to be chased off than to bother fighting to the death. "War-trained" rocs raised by giants can be an exception to this, of course.
• Interaction: Rocs are interesting in interaction scenes. A party has a lot to gain by making friends with a roc, and the ability to befriend and tame and train such an immense, powerful creature can be quite the accomplishment for any wilderness-focused character, much in the same way that taming a dire beast can be. They might just be dumb animals, but little says "I am good with animals" more strongly than a 60-some-foot wingspan flying you around the ocean.
• Exploration: The lair of a roc is a dangerous, mountainous region, making exploration scenes difficult. Their nests are supposedly inaccessible from the ground, giving mountain-faring characters a good chance to shine. The roc's treasure is minimal (coming mostly from ships it may have wrecked and the value of eggs and feathers). It makes a good challenge, but might need a better carrot.

The Roc Adventure Overview

• Hooks
  • (Mercenary) There is an island in the tropical sea with a valley carpeted in diamonds. There is an enclave of merchants there with access to it, though they jealously guard their secrets.
  • (Hero) A merchant ship has gone missing in the tropical seas. A grieving widow wants to find out what happened to her missing husband, and will supply a ship for the journey.
  • (MacGuffin)