If you want to alter the world in some manner, try one of these D&D homebrew rules. Some popular alterations are rules for encumberment or rules for travel and exploration. There are plenty of general homebrew rules that are fairly easy to implement. That’s because they are usually separate rules.
When the homebrew affects core systems, be careful before implementing. The balance can be severely altered. If you have very little experience as a DM, I would advise to stay away from big design changes. You should focus on learning the core rules and applying them well. And being a good DM in general. Here are some rules that I’ve made, and some rules that I’ve found elsewhere and tested.
HBC: D&D Homebrew Rules
Here are some ‘general’ rules, mini-games, and things of that nature that I’ve created myself. I always try to apply existing mechanics to make my homebrew rules feel connected to the official D&D 5e rules. It also helps players to understand the mechanics more easily.
Usually I create homebrew because my players lack a specific way to express themselves. They want to do something special that fits their character and the regular rules don’t suffice. A regular skill check isn’t as exciting as a minigame with several steps that involve more player engagement.
Witcher-like Monster Hunting Rules (tested)
Do you like Monster Hunter World and The Witcher 3? Well, so do I. And one of my players wanted to be a gritty, monster huntin’ Witcher-like cowboy-type. Weird as it may sound, it’s quite a fitting combination in my gritty ‘low- to medium-fantasy’ setting. That’s why I’ve created monster hunting/monster tracking rules, so that this player could mechanically track a monster. I’ve tried to keep it simple, yet engaging for the players who love to poke and investigate. Click here to read more about these rules.
Curated D&D Homebrew Rules
Here are some D&D homebrew rules that I’ve encountered online. I’ve either extensively used and tested them, or I’ve seen them and they have inspired me to make something else. At any rate, some homebrew I’ll heavily recommend, some homebrew I’ll provide feedback on.
Matt Colville’s Action Oriented Monsters (tested)
I you’ve never heard of Matt Colville’s Action Oriented Monsters-homebrew, you should watch it. For every boss, I apply most of his concepts laid out in this video. It helps create a narrative around each important encounter, which really helps selling it to the players. If you prefer reading about the rules to watching the video, or if you want to know how I apply the rules, click here to read more.
Zee Bashew’s Rules for Making Monsters Witchery (tested)
I love The Witcher 3, it’s one of my favorite games to this date. To a certain extent, Zee Bashew agrees and thus he decided to create homebrew rules for making monsters more ‘witchery’. The main idea is to make the monsters more like an interactive puzzle, with elements that the players have to figure out. To me this is an amazing concept, because it can be applied and varying degrees. If you want to read about these rules and want to know how to implement them, click here to read more.