Bullywug Courts
The ultimate materialists, bullywugs are swamp creatures through and through. These frog-like amphibious humanoids must stay constantly moist, dwelling in rainy forests, marshes, and damp caves. Selfish and greedy, bullywugs overwhelm opponents with superior numbers and ambush tactics when they can, but flee from serious threats when they or their wealth is in danger.
Bullywugs have green, grey, or mottled yellow skin that shifts through shades of grey, green, and brown, allowing them to blend in to their surroundings. They are wetlands survivalists, crafting simple weapons and armour from the natural world around them, and they can deliver a nasty bite up close.
Mud Dwellers. Bullywugs live in small communities called courts, usually only a single village large, with up to fourty or fifty bullywugs plus their assorted frog and toad companions. Their villages are tightly packed and half underwater, with wood, mud, and thatch structures built into the living plants of the swamplands around them.
Bullywugs lay pairs of eggs into the soft mud below their courts, and young bullywugs look and act like oversized tadpoles for the first few weeks of their life. They quickly metamorphosize into adult bullywugs, but will continue to grow over the course of their life, living to be around sixty years old at most. Bullywugs care about their tadpoles dearly, but once they become adult bullywugs, maternal feelings disappear as the new adult is now a competitor for the court's treasures.
Material Hierarchy. Bullywugs see wealth as the ultimate form of power, and compulsively hoard treasures, trinkets, shiny objects, and anything else they see as could be valuable. Each bullywug constantly measures their personal wealth and that of those around them, and a foul plutocracy forms where the wealthiest bullywug is considered the most powerful, known as the sovereign, and every bullywug below them has less power the less treasure is in their hoard.
The acquisition of further treasure is one of the major goals of every bullywug after survival. They constantly scour the swamps to see if there is anything valuable to take, and bullywug raids are one of the most common forms of interaction with other humanoids, as they love to take merchant's supplies, gold coins, or metal objects, which they usually cannot make on their own or find in the swamp. They are fiercely territorial and do not often tolerate others in their swamp, as those creatures may take wealth or treasures away from the court.
Masters of the Wet and Soggy. Bullywugs find their connection to wetlands very spiritual, and ensuring their correct and traditional place in the natural world is very important to them. While they happily loot and take things that are of humanoid-craft, they make little advanced products for fear of disturbing the natural balance, as they picture themselves as the proper rulers of the swampland. They farm, hunt, and fish only as much as they need to, and non-material wealth is shared equally among the members of the court.
While they do consider themselves superior, if they believe that cooperation will earn them more treasures they will work with other peoples and serve under different species. Black dragons and their massive hoards are especially prone to becoming the lord of a court of bullywugs.
Bullywug
Medium humanoid (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 15 (hide armour, shield)
- Hit Points 11 (2d8+2)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 13 (+1) 7 (-2) 10 (+0) 7 (+0)
- Skills Stealth +3
- Senses passive Perception 10
- Languages Bullywug
- Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
Amphibious. The bullywug can breathe air and water.
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The bullywug can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The bullywug has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The bullywug's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Multiattack. The bullywug makes two melee attacks: one with its bite and one with its spear.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4+1) bludgeoning damage.
Spear. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d6+1) piercing damage, or 5 (1d8+1) piercing damage if used with two hands to make a melee attack.
All bullywugs are trained in some degree of combat. Bullywugs prize strength and prowess. Those who cannot find great treasures for the sovereign must prove their value in other ways if they are to advance in the court hierarchy, as well as to protect themselves from the swamp's dangerous denizens. Their tactics are simple, but effective: stay in the water, and stay out of sight.
Variant: Veteran Bullywug
Bullywugs who have stayed alive long enough tend to be much stronger than normal. Veteran bullywugs have the following changes to the bullywug stat block:
- They have 22 (4d8+4) hit points.
- They have a 14 (+2) in Strength, so that their melee weapons have +4 to hit and deal an additional 1 point of damage each.
- They have a CR of 1 (200 XP).
Giant Frog
Medium beast, unaligned
- Armor Class 11
- Hit Points 18 (4d8)
- Speed 30 ft., swim 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 12 (+1) 13 (+1) 11 (+0) 2 (-4) 10 (+0) 3 (-4)
- Skills Perception +2, Stealth +3
- Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 10
- Languages none
- Challenge 1/4 (50 XP)
Amphibious. The giant frog can breathe air and water.
Standing Leap. The giant frog's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 4 (1d6+1) piercing damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 11). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the frog can't bite another target.
Swallow. The frog makes one bite attack against a Small or smaller target it is grappling. If the attack hits, the target is swallowed, and the grapple ends. The swallowed target is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the frog, and it takes 5 (2d4) acid damage at the start of each of the frog's turns. The frog can have only one target swallowed at a time.
If the frog dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse using 5 feet of movement, exiting prone.
Bullywugs use their kinship with other amphibians to great effect in their courts. Normal sized frogs and toads are used as pets, alarm systems, communications, and pest control within their hamlets and farms. They use giant frogs to great effect as well, as they are of excellent size to be used as workbeasts and hunting companions.
Bullywug hunters use giant frogs to help corner prey, using their powerful bites to grab prey and hold it in place for easy captures, or drag prey into the water for easy kills. Giant frogs are also used as guards for bullywug aristocracy, considered to be more loyal and less bribeable than the bullywugs are themselves. The frogs are also used as pack animals for when bullywugs are on the move or when bullywugs partake in trade.
Bullywug Predator
Medium creature (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 14 (hide armour)
- Hit Points 16 (3d8+3)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 12(+1) 14(+2) 13(+1) 9(-1) 13(+1) 7(-2)
- Skills Perception +5, Stealth +6, Survival +5
- Senses passive Perception 15
- Languages Bullywug
- Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)
Amphibious. The predator can breathe air and water.
Keen Hearing and Sight. The predator has advantage on any Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing or sight.
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The predator can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The predator has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The predator's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Multiattack. The predator makes two ranged attacks.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4+1) bludgeoning damage.
Poison Dart. Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, range 80/320 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4+2) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage.
Peering out from the rushes, bullywug predators are eyes and ears of a bullywug court. They know the swamp like no others do, and their arrows provide for much of the food the court needs. Though they are not the most esteemed members of the court, they are some of the most useful, and higher-ranking bullywugs grant predators some respect.
Bullywug predators are ambushers who rely on the water for much of their technique. They'll wait below the surface of shallow water, and when prey gets close, emerge up and let loose a flurry of darts made with toad poison. If their mark is still alive, they'll retreat into the water for their own safety and let loose further shots when they can, or set giant frogs on them to make sure there's no escape.
Bullywugs rarely communicate with non-bullywugs aside from their raids, but if they do, it is done through the predators. Some of them have picked up enough Common to get by in dealing with other humanoids, and predators will often act as guides for swamp travelers in exchange for material goodies.
Bullywug Toad Rider
Medium humanoid (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 15 (hide armour, shield)
- Hit Points 33 (5d8+10)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 14 (+2) 12 (+1) 14 (+2) 7 (-2) 12 (+1) 7 (-2)
- Skills Animal Handling +3, Stealth +3
- Senses passive Perception 11
- Languages Bullywug
- Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Amphibious. The toad rider can breathe air and water.
Skilled Rider. Attack rolls made against the toad rider's mount are made at disadvantage.
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The toad rider can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The toad rider has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The toad rider's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Multiattack. The toad rider makes two melee attacks. If the toad rider is mounted, it can have its mount make one attack instead of one of their own.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4+2) bludgeoning damage.
Spear. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6+2) piercing damage, or 6 (1d8+2) piercing damage if used with two hands to make a melee attack.
In the swamps, mobility is everything. Being able to move quickly through the ferns, mangroves, and waterways is essential to navigating the marshes and wetlands bullywugs call home. In order to do this, many bullywugs train in toadback riding. These bullywug toad riders are maneuverable adversaries, leaping and hopping from land to water and back again, always on the move to get advantages on the battlefield. They often work in legion with unmounted bullywugs in order to flank their opponents in combat and strike them down with their spears or the venomous bites of their toad mounts.
Becoming a toad rider is to get on the fast track to advancing in the bullywug hierarchy. Toad riders have better connections to the bullywug sovereign, and they are some of the first ones to be able to reach any potential treasure source that the court finds it its domain.
Giant Toad
Large beast, unaligned
- Armor Class 11
- Hit Points 39 (6d10+6)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 15 (+2) 13 (+1) 13 (+1) 2 (-4) 10 (+0) 3 (-4)
- Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 10
- Languages none
- Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Amphibious. The giant toad can breathe air and water.
Standing Leap. The giant toad's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 7 (1d10+2) piercing damage plus 5 (1d10) poison damage, and the target is grappled (escape DC 13). Until this grapple ends, the target is restrained, and the toad can't bite another target.
Swallow. The toad makes one bite attack against a Medium or smaller target it is grappling. If the attack hits, the target is swallowed, and the grapple ends. The swallowed target is blinded and restrained, it has total cover against attacks and other effects outside the toad, and it takes 10 (3d6) acid damage at the start of each of the toad's turns. The toad can have only one target swallowed at a time.
If the toad dies, a swallowed creature is no longer restrained by it and can escape from the corpse using 5 feet of movement, exiting prone.
While giant frogs are the work animals of a bullywug court, giant toads are weapons of war. Growing to the size of a compact crocodile, a giant toad's primary use is to be the weapon of choice for bullywug cavaliers. Equipped with a venomous bite and an oversized stomach, giant toads let out bellowing croaks as they emerge from the water to strike at the bullywugs' enemies, rider on toadback. They are effective on land, but even more so in the water, where they can move in three dimensions significantly faster.
A group of toads is called a knot, and the knot of a bullywug court is one of its priceless treasures. The court's sovereign is the owner of every toad in the knot, and they allow other bullywugs permission to use them for the protection of the court or for the sovereign's personal desires.
Bullywug Raider
Medium humanoid (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 14 (hide armour)
- Hit Points 46 (7d8+14)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 16 (+3) 12 (+2) 14 (+2) 7 (-2) 10 (+0) 7 (-2)
- Skills Athletics +5, Stealth +4
- Senses passive Perception 10
- Languages Bullywug
- Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Amphibious. The raider can breathe air and water.
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The raider can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The raider has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The raider's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Multiattack. The raider makes two melee attacks.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d4+3) bludgeoning damage.
Partisan. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d10+3) piercing damage.
Poison Dart. Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d4+3) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage.
A bullywug court is highly territorial of its land. Without the swamp, the inhabitants would have nothing, and as such any assaults or incursions are defended against with utmost ferocity. Even benign activities such as travelling carts may be considered an offense to the court's ownership, and thus an acceptable target for the bullywug raiders.
Raiders are the elites of the bullywug court. They are powerful warriors who fight for the court's defense, and they also are most frequently the ones to bring back new treasures home. Armed with toad-poison darts and partisans, they can burst out from the swamp for a deadly attack, hoping to overwhelm foes with a quick assault and then be able to loot or ransom them for further rewards.
Bullywugs are organized and unified in a fight, as danger brings out their collective defensive mentality. But the moment combat is over, their animosities return as they squabble and steal from each other in order to bring home the finest rewards for the prestige of treasures.
Bullywug Swampspeaker
Medium humanoid (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 11 (16 with barkskin)
- Hit Points 27 (5d8+5)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 12 (+1) 12 (+1) 13 (+1) 12 (+1) 15 (+2) 7 (-2)
- Skills Nature +5, Stealth +3, Perception +4
- Senses passive Perception 14
- Languages Bullywug, Druidic
- Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Amphibious. The swampspeaker can breathe air and water.
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The swampspeaker can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The swampspeaker has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The swampspeaker's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Spellcasting. The swampspeaker is a 4th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following druid spells prepared:
Cantrips (at will): druidcraft, shape water, poison spray
1st level (4 slots): cure wounds, entangle, speak with animals, thunderwave
2nd level (3 slots): barkskin, darkness
Actions
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4+1) bludgeoning damage.
Poison Dart. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 3 (1d4+1) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage.
Bullywugs generally don't venerate the gods. Deities are too up-on-high for their presence to reach them, and they don't have much care for worshipping demons or devils. Bullywugs instead sing praises to the land itself, and to the swamp. Those who are most attuned to the swamp are the bullywug swampspeakers, who act as the spiritual leaders of a bullywug court and lead much of their development.
Swampspeakers are exempt from the normal material heirarchy of a bullywug court, and the most grievous offense a bullywug can commit is to harm a swampspeaker. They provide guidance and healing to the entire court, and keep the court in line with the swamp's delicate natural balance.
Bullywug Sovereign
Medium humanoid (bullywug), neutral evil
- Armor Class 17 (chain shirt, shield)
- Hit Points 65 (10d8+20)
- Speed 20 ft., swim 40 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 17 (+3) 14 (+2) 15 (+2) 9 (-1) 12 (+1) 7 (-2)
- Saving Throws Constitution +4, Wisdom +3
- Skills Athletics +5, Stealth +4
- Senses passive Perception 11
- Languages Bullywug
- Challenge 4 (1,1000 XP)
Amphibious. The sovereign can breathe air and water.
Brute. A melee weapon deals one extra die of its damage when the sovereign hits with it (included in the attack).
Speak with Frogs and Toads. The sovereign can communicate simple concepts to frogs and toads when it speaks in Bullywug.
Swamp Camouflage. The sovereign has advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks made to hide in swampy terrain.
Standing Leap. The sovereign's long jump is up to 20 feet and its high jump is up to 10 feet, with or without a running start.
Actions
Multiattack. The sovereign uses Sovereign's Mark, if it can. It then makes two melee attacks.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (2d4+3) bludgeoning damage.
Greatspear. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6+3) piercing damage, or 12 (2d8+3) piercing damage if used with two hands to make a melee attack, plus 4 (2d4) poison damage.
Sovereign's Mark (Recharge 5-6). The sovereign calls out a command, singling out one hostile creature that the sovereign can see. Until the end of the sovereign's next turn, bullywugs have advantage on attack rolls against that creature.
The bullywug sovereign is the true lord of the muck. As the strongest and richest bullywug in their court, the sovereign enjoys all of the privileges and riches the court can offer them, such as access to high-quality metal armour and the finest jewellery and shiny trinkets that they bedeck themselves in. Other bullywugs acquiesce to the sovereign in the chance that they will be rewarded for their service with parts of the sovereign's wealth, or be granted special privileges in the court, such as being allowed to train as a toad rider. Dealing with the sovereign is done through exaggerated titles and words of praise, bowing and kneeling before the sovereign, and giving the sovereign fine items from their personal hoards to curry favour and better material rewards down the line.
Being in charge of the court is a treacherous affair. Bullywugs constantly try to steal, lie, and schmooze with each other in order to acquire more treasure and to convince other bullywugs that the treasure they have is the most valuable in the court, or at least more valuable than their direct rivals'. Bullywugs spend a lot of free time analyzing and evaluating their personal treasure hoards to make sure that the other bullywugs know exactly how much treasure they have. The sovereign needs to do this even more than anyone else, as they are most vulnerable to sudden changes of value in the bullywug treasure economy.
The bullywug sovereign changes frequently as bullywugs constantly reevaluate the value of their hoards and compare them to other bullywugs. Loot flows freely between the bullywugs of the court, and in times of peace, any bullywug can call a group council to examine everyone's wealth and decide if the sovereign still has enough treasure to retain the title, or if it will be usurped by another.
The sovereign wields a unique weapon of bullywug craft called a greatspear, made of rare swamp woods and reinforced with metal to be far more durable than a regular spear and have an extended reach, as well as to ooze a bog poison from its tip. The greatspear is a sacred weapon to represent the connection between the bullywugs and the swamp, and each court has only one greatspear. When a sovereign dies or is usurped, the greatspear is passed on to the next sovereign in line, decided by a council. Outsiders are never willingly given the greatspear unless they are declared the next court sovereign, as can happen with powerful hoarders such as black dragons.