Some 5e "NOPE" spells

 Idle thought given too much time, but counterspells could be nicely handled by lower-level spells that cancel out their effects, and are only circumstantially useful the rest of the time. Here are some low-level ones.

Lead-Line

1st-level conjuration (ritual)
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Touch
Components: SM (a pinch of lead dust)
Duration: 24 hours

An item that fits in a 5' cube, or suit of human-sized armor, becomes lined in a thin layer of lead, enough to block many divination spells.

Armor gets +1 AC, and is considered heavy armor. It gets +2 to its Strength requirement, or acquires a Strength requirement of 13 if it didn't have one.

Tracer Missile

Evocation Cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 180 feet
Components: VS
Duration: Instantaneous

A glowing, pulsing dart of magical force streaks towards a creature within range. Make a ranged spell attack against the target. On a hit, the target takes 1d4+1 force damage, and the next magic missile spell that targets the target uses the tracer missile's range and ignores any effects of the shield spell.

This spell's range increases by 30' when you reach 5th level (210'), 11th level (240'), and 17th level (270').

Swallow Lie

Enchantment cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Touch
Components: VSM
Duration: 1 hour

You touch the mouth of a willing creature and speak a phrase of up to 10 words, which it then swallows. Until the spell ends, the target can reply to any question with the swallowed phrase - doing so doesn't count as a lie to magic which detects such, if it was spoken outside its effect.

A human-sized target can only swallow one lie at a time, and can't eat while it has one swallowed.

Perilous Path

1st-level divination
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: Self
Components: VS
Duration: 8 hours

You and any party you travel with suffer a significant penalty to random encounter rolls for the spell's duration.

If you are trying to follow the path of someone trying to evade you, they rise to the top of your random encounter roll.

Vigilance

1st-level abjuration
Casting Time: 1 action (ritual)
Range: 30 feet
Components: VSM (a burning feather)
Duration: 8 hours

Any number of creatures you choose within range (including yourself) gain advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks if standing watch for an hour or more. In addition, they have advantage on saving throws against spells or effects that would put them to sleep, and their HP counts as double when determining the effects of sleep spells.

Ghoul-Brained

1st-level necromancy
Casting Time: 1 action
Range: 30 feet
Components: VS
Duration: Concentration

You and up to two other creatures you can see within range become immune to paralysis. Affected creatures' natural attacks deal an extra d4 damage against living creatures.

Casting this spell at higher levels: Another target for each spell level.

Undead and constructs are not affected by this spell.

5th Edition Pit Fights

Some quick rules for a one-on-one pit fight tournament.

During a Bout

• One-on-one. No weapons. No armor. No magic.
• You lose if you leave the ring, submit, or fall to 0 HP.
• Unarmed strikes deal half your largest hit die as a damage die. (Barbarians deal d6; wizards, d3).
• Grappling is fine.
• Roll initiative each round.
• On the first turn, and the turn after neither fighter takes damage in a turn, each can do one of these actions. (Roll initiative normally during these turns.)
• Call to the crowd - Any Charisma check. DC 15 - the bout number. Succeed, get d6 temporary HP.  (Both you and your opponent can succeed. You "know" how many temp HP the other got.)
• Circle - Dexterity (Acrobatics), DC 10 + your opponent's HD. If you succeed, advantage on your next attack, or disadvantage on their next attack. If both succeed, cancel out.
• Rally - Spend a Hit Die (plus Con modifier).
• Rush - Attack anyway, and your opponent makes checks for these other actions with disadvantage. (Generally considered unsporting.)
  
• Size up - Wisdom (Insight), DC 10 + your opponent's HD. Succeed, get a d4 you can use add to or subtract from a roll (yours or theirs) after it is made (d20 or damage).

Between Bouts

• Entry stake is 50 GP. Basic brackets. (There are lots of bracket-making tools online.)
  
• Your pot doubles for every bout you win, and you lose it all if you lose. You can quit before you know your opponent to keep your current pot.
• There's opportunity for a short rest.
• If anyone forgoes a short rest to get drunk, in the next bout they have disadvantage on initiative checks, but start with d6 temporary HP.
• The DM rolls any NPC's HD at the start of each bout. Each that comes up lower than the bout number is expended.
  

Pit Fighters

Some opponents for the PCs (current players, spoilers if you click that):

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11n5a8wVdU28uvWuV_R7nf1PkOBsmtGHXKAjF4FPoTUM/edit?usp=sharing

Generating some ghost towns

This post on Elfmaids & Octopi was perfect for an upcoming Gothic game. I was able to quickly generate a couple of abandoned villages to add to the hex map. There was one bit of method that I added which might be useful, though.

After rolling up the number of buildings and any extra features, I grabbed that many d6s plus some other shapes for the features. Dropping them all onto a piece of paper, I then traced them, but didn't hold them down. As the pencil moved them a bit some nice organic/ruined shapes appeared, plus a door naturally suggested itself wherever the lines didn't match back up properly.

Recording the number on the die also notes the building's condition based on the second table.

I took some photos of the process the second time around. It made a perfectly serviceable creepy little hamlet with a single, well-telegraphed encounter (a screaming wight).

Five buildings and a graveyard (d12).

Traced and numbered.

Noting the other effects of the tables, and generated a name. 

The two houses flanking the graveyard were "Hidden crumbling ruins are overgrown with trees and creepers", so added some trees.

The cursed item is going to be a weirdly heavy and still-warm dead owl that drags down encounter table results.

Here's one more larger village that was generated the same way, but I didn't take photos. The generated name, Kilocthwaite, lined up really well with the existing features. Added the water, docks, and well afterwards just based on the position of the buildings.

This has a cannibal, Lucy Gaur, living in the distant southern house, probably aware of the dangers in the village proper. Some wild dogs have moved into the open smithy but are only there to sleep during the day, and hunt the woods around at night.

At night the toad-creature in the well emerges and creeps about town - this is the vengeance sent by the gods of the murdered woodwoses displaced by the village. What appears as draped spider webs everywhere is really its dried slime. (I'll probably just use a red slaad for stats.)

Anyway each of these took less than 10 minutes!

Settlement name and landmarks generator

This is a trimmed down and gamified version of the Wikipedia List of generic forms in place names in Ireland and the United Kingdom. It can generate names of towns and settlements while also suggesting their major landmarks. I'm using this to generate the names of the hamlets for a hexcrawl.

Roll d66 for prefix, root, and suffix. Many real names just use two of these, some even dropping the root and becoming just the prefix and suffix together. Munge as needed.

A couple examples!
41 + 13 + 31 = (king) + (axe, exe, usk, esk) + (field). Eskfield. A river flows through a forest clearing.
35 + 46 + 52 = (kil, Cil) + (knock, cnwc) + (stead). Kilnockstead. An old church perched on a rocky hill with an enclosed pasture nearby.

d66	Prefix	Meaning	Root	Meaning	Suffix	Meaning
11	aber	a meeting of waters	afon, avon	river	-hay, -hays, -hayes	enclosed by a hedge
12	auch(en)/(in)-, ach	field	ar, ard	high, height	ay, y, ey	island
13	auchter-	height, top of something	axe, exe, usk, esk	river	bost	farm
14	bal, balla, bally, ball	mouth, approach	beck, bach	stream	bury, borough, brough, burgh	fortified enclosure
15	brad	broad	berg, berry	hill (cf. 'iceberg')	by, bie	village
16	bre	hill	cheap, chipping	market	carden	thicket
21	caer, car	camp, fortification	coed	wood, forest	caster, chester, cester, ceter	camp, fortification
22	cul	narrow	combe, coombe	valley	cot, cott	cottage
23	cwm, cum	valley	Craig, crag, creag	a jutting rock	dale, dean, den, dene, don	valley
24	dal	low-lying area by river	ey, ea, eg, eig	island	thorp, thorpe	secondary settlement
25	din, dinas	fort	firth	fjord, inlet	don, den	hill, down
26	dol	meadow	ford, forth	ford, crossing, road	dubh, dow, dhu, duff	black
31	drum	ridge	foss, force	waterfall	field	open land, a forest clearing
32	dun, dum, don, doune	fort	gar(t)	enclosed field	firth, frith, fridd	refuge
33	fin	holy	gill, ghyll	ravine, narrow gully	ham	farm, homestead
34	inver, inner	a meeting of waters	glen, glyn	narrow valley, dale	gowt	Water outfall, sluice, drain
35	kil, Cil	old church	hithe, hythe	wharf	ing	small stream
36	kin	head	holm	holly, island	keth, cheth	wood
41	king	leader	hope	valley, enclosed area	lea, ley, leigh	woodland clearing
42	kyle, kyles	narrows	howe	mound, hill, knoll	mouth	bay
43	lan, lhan, llan	church	hurst, hirst	wooded hill	ness	promontory, headland
44	lang	long	inch	Island, dry area in marsh.	pool	harbour
45	lin, llyn, Lynn	lake	kirk	church	port	port, harbour
46	ling, lyng	heather	knock, cnwc	hill, rocky hillock	rigg, rig	ridge
51	mynydd	mountain	loch, lough	lake, a sea inlet	shaw	a thicket
52	nan, nans	valley	lyn, lynn, lin	lake, pond	stead	enclosed pasture
53	nant	ravine	magna	great	ster	farm
54	pen	far end of, end of	mere	lake, pool	thwaite, twatt	a forest clearing
55	pit	portion, share, farm	minster	large church, monastery	toft	homestead
56	pol, pwll	pool or lake	moss	swamp, bog	wick	bay
61	pont	bridge	stow	(holy) place (of assembly)	wick, wich, wych, wyke	settlement
62	porth	harbour	swin	pigs, swine	worth, worthy, wardine	enclosure
63	shep, ship	sheep	tarn	lake	law, low	rounded hill
64	stan	stone, stony	treath, traeth	beach	keld	spring
65	strath	wide valley, vale	weald, wold	high woodland	tun, ton	estate
66	tilly, tullie, tulloch	hillock	ynys	Island	gate	road

d66 Magic Item Features

11 - Command Jewel. The item has a corresponding piece of jewelry of similar make which must be worn for it to function.

12 - Crawling. At a command word, the item will sprout dozens of tiny legs and begin moving at speed 5 towards the speaker. It can climb walls easily

13 - Dormant. This item isn't sentient, but roll on the sentient magic items "special purpose" table. Its powers won't awaken until some action towards that purpose is taken.

14 - Dousing. Use an action to know the direction to the nearest source of drinkable water within 1,000 feet.

15 - Eye. A single milky eye glares prominently out of the item. It flicks about, focusing on subjects seemingly at random.

16 - Fading. The magic of this item was not sealed properly, and it will only last for another 2d12 months.

21 - Fire Starter. Use an action to produce a tiny flame suitable for lighting a torch or candle.

22 - Folding. Use an action to fold this item to a tenth of its normal size and weight, or to unfold it.

23 - Holy Symbol. The item is, or heavily incorporates imagery of, a holy symbol, and can be used as such an implement.

24 - Hovering. When released in midair, the item will hover in place, gently wobbling, for a minute before sinking slowly to the floor.

25 - Illustration. Appears to have been drawn rather than crafted.

26 - Insect-Repelling. Nonmagical, normal-sized insects will not approach the bearer.

31 - Instrument. Despite its appearance, this item can be played like a specific instrument. Strumming, blowing, or beating in the general shape is sufficient.

32 - Journal. The item can hold a page's worth a day of writing, and can flip back and forth between previous entries. Use your finger or a twig to write.

33 - Lascivious. The item enhances feelings of desire or lust in its bearer.

34 - Lens. Some portion of or gap in the item magnifies small details when peered through, granting advantage on any ability check made to appraise or inspect an item that is small or highly detailed.

35 - Liquid. Use an action to turn the item into a liquid of the same volume or back. The liquid is mercury-like and will not separate easily.

36 - Melancholy. Enhances the bearer's urges to brood, stare out the window, pose dramatically in the rain, and write bad poetry.

41 - Mirror. All or some part of this item is reflective enough to be used as a mirror.

42 - Mouldering. Always cold and slightly damp. Smells of niter and dirt. Any cloth or leather components are tattered; metal is varnished.

43 - Nip. One type of beast finds the object irresistible, and will seek to nuzzle, gnaw, or roll on it while not threatened.

44 - Photonic. The item requires light to work and will not function in darkness.

45 - Projector. Use an action to have the item create a specific, pre-established illusion effect in a 5-foot cube.

46 - Psychic Anchor. Cannot be moved via mage hand, telekinesis, or similar magic, and appears solid and fully colored in the ethereal plane.

51 - Purring. Empathically communicates its want to be cradled and stroked. Emits a comforting sound when it is.

52 - Shedding. Constantly dropping bits of fur, rust, scales, dust, or bark. Leaves a messy campsite.

53 - Smuggler's. A hidden interdimensional space the size of a belt pouch is accessible via a command word.

54 - Starry. Glints and glimmers. Its shadows and contours seem too deep, with hints of twinkling light within.

55 - Suspendable. Use an action to speak a command word which turns off all the item's abilities. This lasts for a minute, during which time the item does not radiate magic.

56 - Tattoo. Use an action to transform the item into a life-sized tattoo representing it, or back into a real item.

61 - Thieves' Tools. Various odd protrusions are quickly realized to be functional thieves' tools.

62 - Toothed. Rimmed with teeth of various species. Grates and grinds. If left alone with rations they always seem somewhat gnawed later.

63 - Trophy. Was crafted as a reward for a great competition. Bears the winner's name and the event's dates.

64 - Tuning. Use an action to strike the item and produce a single, specific note that can be heard clearly for 100 feet. The note continues for a minute or until another action is used to silence it.

65 - Twinned. Has a duplicate. Its bearer can use an action to learn the direction (but not the distance) to the twin.

66 - Verdant. Small living leaves sprout from the item, patches are woven of moss, or any wood is damp and sap-filled.