summary
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The trenches can act as a backdrop for adventure hooks and create potential campaign arcs to give players an engaging experience.
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Use Bastions as rewards for completing specific adventures, adding depth to the game and allowing players to customize their spaces.
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Incorporate Bastions into one-off missions and create unique opportunities for players to explore new settings.
Bastions are one of the most compelling rewards you can give a player in Dungeons & Dragons. From majestic bastions to sacred temples, Bastions are special locations gifted to the player (usually at level five). In these unique structures, players can perform various tasks from gathering resources to building special facilities.

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Let your party look less like tramps and more like… well, tramps with sweet pads.
But, the fortress is much more than a place that the characters call home. They can also serve as wonderful backdrops for adventure hooks. You might even want to use promising the player or players a stronghold as a catalyst for a potential campaign.
10
An abandoned temple
Respect the gods
During an adventure, a divine mage in your party stumbles upon an ancient structure. This temple is the kind that is covered with moss and abandoned and abandoned. On the altar, the player notices the voice of his god, without care.
For clerics or paladins, gifting the player an abandoned temple to redeem and rebuild from the ground up can be a great Bastion adventure. From there, they may have to hire followers and sages to help take care of the temple grounds. You could even consider having non-believers besiege the temple at some point down the line.
9
A noble gift
I am glad to have friends in high places
An unconventional nobleman wants to make it big in the world, but doesn't have the funds to live the lifestyle he wants. Enter a wealthy Waterdevi noble, who promises to gift the player a Bastion to call his own. However, they must first complete a dangerous mission.
Consider using Bastions as a reward for doing certain adventures. If a noble has the authority to grant estates to the personage, it may be necessary to employ the party first before bequeathing any land. You can even think of Najib betraying the party, forcing you to decide between lying or revenge on the sleeping dogs.
8
Take back your birthright
Take back what is yours
The family of a party member was once the governing body of a large independent country. However, years ago, they were deposed in favor of the cruel tyrant. Now is the time to take back what is rightfully theirs.

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If you have a member of your party who is ex-royalty, consider campaigning to reclaim your ancestral home. This could set the stage for a war-themed arc. After completing the arc, the player can use his family's house as a bunker.
7
Tournament of Champions
Only one gets off
A major city hosts a tournament in its world-renowned fighting pits. The reward for overcoming a series of challenges and emerging victorious is a bastion of the player's choice that is built at the city gates. However, players may soon realize that the fights are fake unless they intervene.
For the beefier fighters in the party, using a tournament-style bow with Bastion as a bonus is a great way to get stronger players into Bastions. This also allows for some freedom on the part of the player. The city can build whatever it wants (within reason), meaning the player has more control over the overall design of the Bastion.
6
Secret rooms
What is behind door number one?
While walking through the Bastion Gardens, a player notices a group of loose paving stones. Upon further investigation, it was revealed that the stones were actually a trap door leading to a secret underground deep within the trench. What blessing or horror could be hidden underground?
Dungeons can be living, breathing spaces into which you can inject random events. You might accidentally reveal that a player has built their stronghold on top of a large dungeon. If the dungeon hosts a variety of monsters, then you have a great setup for a great dungeon crawl.
5
Castle under siege
Man your battle stations!
While traveling through the desert, the party comes across a small town with a castle commanding its farmland. However, the castle is currently under attack from neighboring forces. If the party decides to intervene, citizens may offer them a large reward.

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After rescuing the small town, the party may discover that the ruler has died in the attack, meaning the castle is up for grabs. This hook can even be used as a one-off game idea instead of a larger arc.
4
Strange visitors
Guess who's coming to dinner
One night, while a player is burning midnight oil in his Bastion, there is a knock at the door. Three mysterious witches have arrived, seeking shelter from the winter storm outside. They look good at first, but could they be hiding something more sinister?
If players spend time in their Bastions between adventures, consider random events that may derail their progress. Whether or not these strange visitors are actually badmouthed is up to you as a DM. But, it can be fun for players to choose between the safety of their Bastion and their need to help others.
3
A mysterious portal
Do you dare to enter?
In between arcs, a mercenary in the player's bunker approaches the character. A mysterious portal has erupted in the center of the player's bunker. But, where does this portal go?
Consider using Bastions as jumping off points for other adventures. If a portal to an elemental plane appears in the center of the player's Bastion, it can destroy the structural integrity of the hold. It's up to the player and other adventurers to travel there and find a way to shut it down for good before it's too late.
2
an inheritance
But, there is always a catch
The party has just finished a major battle for the fate of an independent kingdom. In the process, a character coach for one of the players tragically lost his life. But, all is not lost.

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After the battle, the player learns that their mentor has left their wizard's tower to them, and everything inside has been given to them. Players may have to travel a long distance to reach the tower, which is located next to a dangerous cliff full of bandit camps. Players must clear these camps in order to claim Bastion for themselves.
1
floating castle
Lift the colors
While searching for treasure in coastal caves, the party discovers a ship moored along the coastline. It seems that the crew died of a mysterious illness while boarding the plane. The ship can be turned into a moving bastion, that is, if the party can take down the dead pirates that come alive around them.
Bastions are always fun to use as rewards for one-off missions. But, you can then use the bastion as a means of transportation and a springboard for further adventures on the island. Be creative with the types of structures your campaign considers Bastion.

Dungeons and dragons
- Original publication date
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1974
- designer
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E. Gary Giggs, Dave Arneson
- Number of players
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2+