A Reasonable Expectation of Death

If you are a Dungeon Master, you are responsible to give your players a gift: Let them die.

Let the players feel failure. Don't rescue them by manufacturing last-minute turns in their luck. The dice determine their luck. I have taken to rolling out in the open, not behind a screen, so they can see that, yes, their character was hit for 22 points of damage and whining about the unlikelihood of such a number won't matter.

What makes adventuring exciting? The ever-present danger, the joy of discovery, the possibility of failure, and the improbability of success.

The dice determine the winner. There are winners and losers in D&D. It may change from moment to moment, but there are those who succeed and those who fail. Sometimes the ones who succeed die. Sometimes the ones who fail still live to play another day. The measure of success is not who lives, but who plays well, who has fun, who makes memorable mistakes. The point of playing a role is to try things you wouldn't do in the real world. That's what makes it fantasy!

The Wyvern

The Wyvern is a wild beast, considered of the draconic family by most philogenies. It lacks the cunning and willful evil of a true dragon, but is possessed of a terrifying savagery that even the well-seasoned adventurer finds chilling.

To hear the wyvern's wail echoing through a rocky canyon where there is no open escape or to hear the call of this beast trailing to the ear from across an open plain is to know fear at its most primal.

The truly mad or the truly bold may find in the wyvern a grudging yet fearsome mount. Those who ride on the back of a wyvern are among the legendary lunatics of the land. If a mighty courser or stallion turns on its rider, the cavalier may be trampled or have his brains dashed inside his helmet. Such a fate would be desirable to the result of a failed wyvern wrangler.

The wyvern's claws and jaws are formidable, yes, beyond the fright of even a lion or bear. Its wings, of course, give it mobility and swiftness beyond most other natural hunters. But its tail, Oh! its tail- therein lies its greatest power. For in the tail of each wyvern, from hatchling to elder, is a sting of such potency as to fell a brigade of hardy troops. One sting from a wyvern's tail has laid dynasties to waste, toppled the heritage of many great houses. Even a strong knight would do best to steer clear of such venom!