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D&D has always been about epic adventures, daring quests, and heroic deeds. But what happens when your party needs a place to rest, regroup, and call home? 

While setting up camp or stopping off at an inn has always been an option to get some much-needed rest (and to level up), the D&D system has never given much extra thought to the strategy of a home base. 

Enter the Bastion system – an exciting new feature available in the 2024 edition of the D&D Dungeon Master's Guide. This brand-new gameplay mechanic lets you create and manage your own strongholds, adding a new layer of depth and immersion to campaigns.

What is a Bastion?

A Bastion is just that – a home base for your character or party. Your bastion of choice can take many forms, and is often related to your character or story - a wizard's tower, a thieves' guild hideout, a cleric's shrine, or even a shared tavern. 

The beauty of the Bastion system lies in its flexibility and customization options, allowing players to create a space that truly reflects their character's personality and goals.

But Bastions are more than just a place to rest between adventures – they're a offer a new and interesting way to reflect your character’s story and personality, creating new ways to expand your backstory and build out campaigns.

Key Features of Bastions

  1. Scaling with Character Level: Characters gain access to their first Bastion at level 5, starting with two special facilities. As they level up, they can add more facilities, up to a maximum of six at level 17.
  2. Basic and Special Facilities: Bastions include both basic facilities (bedrooms, kitchens, storage) and special facilities that provide mechanical benefits (like arcane studies, smithies, or meditation chambers).
  3. Bastion Turns: Every 7 in-game days, players can take a "Bastion turn," issuing orders to their facilities and potentially triggering events.
  4. Hirelings: Each special facility comes with NPC hirelings who manage day-to-day operations, adding depth to the world and potential for roleplay.
  5. Customization: With 29 different special facilities to choose from, players have a wealth of options to make their Bastion unique.

If the basic facilities are the bones, the special facilities are the meat. These are the heart of the Bastion system, offering unique mechanical advantages. Here are a few of the different special facilities that players can opt for:

  • Arcane Study: Allows for spell research and magical item crafting.
  • Armory: Enhances weapon and armor maintenance.
  • Meditation Chamber: Grants bonuses to saving throws after extended meditation.
  • Pub: Serves as an information-gathering hub and offers magical beverages.

Characters start with two special facilities at the 5th level and can add more as they level up, reaching a maximum of six at the 17th level – so the chances to really build and expand a bastion grow as your character does.

What Do Bastions Bring To The Table?

The Bastion system adds several exciting elements to D&D campaigns:

  • Character Investment: Bastions give players a tangible stake in the game world, encouraging deeper engagement with the setting.
  • Downtime Activities: Managing a Bastion provides meaningful activities for characters between adventures.
  • Resource Management: Bastions offer a way for characters to invest their hard-earned gold, solving the age-old question of "What do I do with all this treasure?"
  • Story Hooks: Bastions can generate plot hooks, rivalries, and other narrative elements for DMs to incorporate into their campaigns.
  • Player Creativity: The system encourages players to flex their creative muscles, designing and describing their ideal home base.

Acquiring a Bastion

Characters typically gain access to their first Bastion upon reaching the 5th level. The Dungeon Master's Guide lays out a few different ways that players can acquire a Bastion:

  1. Reward: Given as a quest reward or gift from a powerful patron.
  2. Built: Constructed from the ground up, possibly starting before 5th level.
  3. Captured: Claimed after defeating its previous occupants.
  4. Rebuilt: Renovating an abandoned or run-down structure.

Tips or Making the Most of Your Bastion

If you aren’t sure how to get started with the Bastion system in your new D&D campaign, here are some ideas from our team at Roll20 to help you get started:

Integrate Your Bastion Into Your Character’s Background

Tie your Bastion choices to your character's backstory, class, and goals. A former soldier might prioritize a barracks, while a scholar-wizard would focus on an arcane study.

Collaborate with Your Party

Consider combining Bastions with other party members to create a shared stronghold. This can lead to interesting dynamics and shared storytelling opportunities.

Use Bastion Turns Strategically

Plan your Bastion orders to complement your adventuring goals. Need rare components for a spell? Use your alchemical laboratory to craft them during downtime.

Bring Bastions to Life

To really have fun with the system, why not bring it to life as it’s own character in the story? DMs can use Bastion events and hireling interactions to add flavor and depth to the campaign world.

Balance Adventure and Management

While Bastions are exciting, remember that D&D is primarily about adventure. Use the system to enhance, not overshadow, the core gameplay.

Bastions + Roll20 – The Perfect Match

While the Bastion system is designed for tabletop play, it can be easily adapted to virtual tabletops like Roll20:

  • Use Roll20's character sheets to track Bastion stats and facilities.
  • Create handouts for each special facility, detailing its benefits and available orders.
  • Design maps of player Bastions using Roll20's map tools, allowing for visual representation and exploration.
  • Utilize Roll20's dice-rolling features for Bastion event tables and order resolutions.
  • Incorporate Bastion management into your regular Roll20 sessions, perhaps dedicating the first 15-30 minutes of each session to Bastion turns.

Give The New Bastion System A Try

Whether you're fortifying a castle, tending a sacred grove, or running a bustling tavern, Bastions are a new and fun way to give your campaign a little extra flavor. And at Roll20, we’re excited to see what players do with this new feature. Prepare today by pre-ordering the 2024 Dungeon Master's Guide on Roll20.

A Bastion Example

Let's say your 5th-level rogue, Shadowstep, decides to establish a Bastion in an abandoned warehouse. You choose a Pub and a Workshop as your initial special facilities. During your first Bastion turn, you might:

  1. Issue a Research order to your Pub, tasking your bartender to gather information about a local crime lord.
  2. Use your Workshop to Craft some thieves' tools for your next heist.

Meanwhile, your DM rolls for a Bastion event and determines that a group of refugees seeks shelter in your warehouse. This presents an immediate roleplay opportunity and potential future plot hooks.

As you level up and add more facilities, your humble warehouse could grow into a sprawling thieves' guild, complete with secret passages, training grounds, and perhaps even a small army of loyal rogues at your command.