The first time I played Dungeons & Dragons I was probably 11 or 12.
The enemy wasn’t a dragon, a demon, or a death knight.
It was a handful of desperate men with rusted swords, blocking the road and demanding we hand over our gold. They weren’t the strongest foes. They weren’t the smartest. But they were the first to teach us what mattered at the table: risk, choice, tension, and story.
The Bandit Grimoire is the ultimate expansion for Dungeons & Dragons 5e, delivering 91 new NPCs, 23 outlaw-themed magic items, and a full set of DM tools designed to turn every roadside encounter into a rebellion. From raccoon-folk trash thieves to paramilitary raiders, this book transforms bandits from early-level fodder into fully realized threats, rivals, and folk heroes.
Whether your campaign walks the lawless roads of the frontier, delves into seedy criminal underworlds, or follows the trail of gold-stained rebellion through forest and flame, this Grimoire arms you with everything needed to build your own legacy of larceny.
What’s Inside The Bandit Grimoire?
A full exploration of what bandits really are in a fantasy world: soldiers turned sell-sword, outlaws with grudges, rebels with charm, and thieves who steal the spotlight as easily as coin.
Explore five full factions of banditry, each with its own tactics, tone, and place in the world:
Extended Bandits. Veterans and deserters turned professional raiders. These aren’t thugs; they’re a paramilitary underclass with strategy, formation, and fire in their blood.
Outlaws. Fantasy’s answer to the gunslinger. Duelists, bounty-skippers, and dust-slick drifters fighting for justice, vengeance, or something worse.
Organized Criminals. The city’s real rulers. Fixers, enforcers, and accountants of blood. They steal with contracts as much as they do with daggers.
Merry Men. Noble thieves and rebellious charmers who rob tyrants and turn every ambush into folklore.
Trash Bandits. Raccoon-folk kleptomaniacs who worship shiny things, fight dirty, and treat garbage as treasure.
Each faction is detailed with lore, encounter flavor, and design notes to help you bring them alive at your table.
This is not a reskin. Every bandit in this Grimoire is handcrafted with unique abilities, flavorful tactics, and mid-combat personality. From alley scavs and dustcut drifters to oath brokers and woodsmen, they scale with your campaign, and your ambition.
CR 1/2–CR 2: Scouts, skirmishers, and pickpockets with dirty tricks and mean survival instincts.
CR 3–CR 5: Squad captains, grizzled duelists, and demolitionists who hold the line or break it wide open.
CR 6–CR 10: Tacticians, gang lieutenants, and alley-born kings.
CR 11–CR 14: Boss-tier threats like the Dust Tactician, the Baron of Refuse, and Robin Wode... designed to anchor entire arcs.
Each entry includes a full 5e stat block, a vivid written description, detailed combat tactics, and token / character art.
What a bandit without their loot? From cursed coin purses and legendary smuggler tools to enchanted cloaks woven from debt and daring, these items reflect the lifestyles of rogues, rebels, and opportunists:
- Bracers that help you act first in combat
- Picks that make lockpicking just too easy.
- Boots that silence every footstep on any surface.
- Amulets that let you see through the bulldreck.
- Cloaks that let you temporarily phase through solid walls.
Every item is playable, flavorful, and built for the campaign lives of those who live outside the law.
This Grimoire isn’t just a bestiary. It’s a toolkit for turning random bandits into story catalysts.
Bandit Adventure Seeds. Ready-to-run hooks, heists, and outlaw arcs.
Bandit Encounter Tables. Region-based tools for seeding conflict, ambush, or surprise alliances.
Chase Scene Generator. Tools to run gritty rooftop sprints, wild desert pursuits, or muddy alley escapes.
Environmental Effects. Combat complications for forests, ruins, rooftops, sewers, and more.
Negotiation and Intimidation Guide. Social tools for talking your way out of (or into) trouble.
Bandit Roleplay Guide. Tips for portraying everything from gutter thieves to gilded crime lords.
Why The Bandit Grimoire?
Because bandits should stick around past level two. They were the first villains who spoke to you in a campaign. The first enemies with names. The first moral fork in the road.
This addon restores that weight. Every bandit here is written to be memorable, dangerous, and alive.
- 91 uniquely built bandits with rich lore, mechanics, and art prompts.
- 23 magic items crafted for the criminal, the charismatic, and the cunning.
- A suite of DM tools to create dynamic, morally gray, and faction-rich campaigns.
- Factions that scale from street thugs to underworld monarchs.
Steal the scene.
Rob the nobles.
Burn the tax ledgers.
The road is lawless again.
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