How to Harvest
The act of removing useful body parts from a creature is referred to as harvesting. Anything that can be harvested from a creature is referred to as a harvesting material or simply material. In general, only creatures that have died may be harvested, but there may be some exceptions based on context.
This section details the steps associated with actually performing a harvest, and any factors that may influence it.
Appraising
Before a player begins hacking and butchering their hunt, they may instead choose to take a moment first and appraise the creature to be harvested. To do this, they must spend 1 minute examining the creature to be harvested and then roll an Intelligence check, adding their proficiency bonus if they are proficient in the skill corresponding to that creature (see table below). For example, appraising a Beholder (which is an aberrant), the check would be an Intelligence (Arcana) check, while appraising an Ogre (which is a giant) would require an Intelligence (Medicine) check.
Appraisal DC = 8 + the Harvested Creature's CR (treating any CR less than 1 as 0)
The DC of the check is equal to 8 + the Harvested Creature's CR (treating any CR less than 1 as 0). Success on this check grants the player full knowledge of any useful harvesting materials on the creature, the DC requirement to harvest those materials, any special requirements to harvest them, and any potential risks in doing so. In addition, any harvesting check made on that creature by that player is rolled at advantage. A character may only attempt one appraisal check per creature.
Monster Type/Skill Check
| Creature Type
| Skill
|
| Abberration
| Arcana
|
| Beast
| Nature
|
| Celestial
| Arcana
|
| Construct
| Investigation
|
| Dragon
| Nature
|
| Elemental
| Arcana
|
| Fey
| Arcana
|
| Fiend
| Arcana
|
| Giant
| Medicine
|
| Humanoid
| Medicine
|
| Monstrosity
| Nature
|
| Ooze
| Investigation
|
| Plant
| Nature
|
| Undead
| Arcana
|
Splitting up the responsibilities
Some party members may prefer to let one character handle the appraisal of materials, while another more dextrous character handles the actual harvesting. In this scenario, all benefits of appraising a creature are conferred to the player doing the harvesting, so long as the player that performed the appraising assists the harvesting player through the whole duration of the harvest.
Harvesting
In order to harvest a creature, a character must make a Dexterity ability check using the same skill proficiency as listed in the above appraising table. For example, a character attempting a harvest check on an Aberrant would receive a bonus equal to their Dexterity modifier and their proficiency in Arcana (if they have any).
This check reflects a character's ability to not only properly remove the intended item without damaging it, it also involves any ancillary requirements of the harvest such as proper preservation and storage techniques.
Using other proficiencies
If a player is harvesting a certain creature, or harvesting a creature of a certain type of material, the DM may allow them to use a relevant tool proficiency rather than a skill proficiency.
For example, the DM may allow a player to add their proficiency with Tinker's Tools to their attempt to harvest a mechanical golem or use their proficiency with leatherworker's tools when attempting to harvest a creature for its hide. Alternatively, all creature type proficiencies may be replaced by proficiency with the harvesting kit
Each individual item in a creature's harvesting table is listed with a DC next to it. Any roll that a player makes that equals or exceeds this DC grants that player that item. Rewards are cumulative, and a player receives every item with a DC equal to or below their ability check result. For example, rolling a total of 15 on a check to harvest an azer will reward the player with both "azer ash", and "azer bronze skin", but not a "spark of creation". If they so wish, players may opt to not harvest a material even if they have met the DC threshold to harvest it.
Only one harvesting attempt may be made on a creature. Failure to meet a certain item's DC threshold assumes that the item was made un-salvageable due to the harvester's incompetence.
For most creatures, the time it takes to harvest a material is counted in minutes and is equal to the DC of that material divided by 5. For huge creatures however, it is equal in DC of that material, while for gargantuan creatures, it is equal to the DC of that material multiplied by 2.
Harvesting Time
| Creature Size
| Harvesting Time (minutes)
|
| Large or smaller
| Material DC / 5
|
| Huge
| Material DC
|
| Gargantuan
| Material DC × 2
|
Particularly violent deaths
This guide assumes that most creatures you attempt to harvest died in direct combat and thus already accounts for the idea that you are harvesting creatures that are not in pristine condition. However, some deaths are more violent than others and can make harvesting useful materials either extremely difficult or downright impossible. Such examples include burning by fire, dissolving from acid, or being completely crushed under a pillar of stone. In these cases, raise the DC for harvesting any of that creature's materials by 5. Alternatively, the DM may decide that well-orchestrated hunts result in a carcass that is prime for harvesting, such as creatures killed mostly through psychic damage, or those killed in one clean attack. In these cases, the DM should lower the DC for harvesting any of that creature's materials by 5.
Furthermore, the DM may adjudicate whether or not some of a creature's individual materials have been made useless due to effects imposed by them in the course of their death. Examples may include blood being tainted from poisoning, or their pelt being worthless due to excessive slashing/piercing damage.
Optional Rule: Carcass Degradation
This guide mostly assumes that harvesting takes place on a freshly killed corpse and that little to no decomposition has yet occurred. However, in some cases, a player may desire to harvest a creature that has been dead for quite a while. In these cases, the DM may declare that certain body parts have already withered away and become un-harvestable or may decide to increase the DCs of all harvestable materials as if the creature had died a particularly violent death. If corpse decomposition is too advanced, it is entirely within the DM's right to deny harvesting the creature altogether.
As a quick guide, the following timeline may be observed to decide on decomposition levels:
1 hour after death: The carcass' hide has ruptured from bloating and has become useless.
1 day after death: The carcass' blood has become too tainted to be useful, and soft tissues like the eyes have putrefied.
3 days after death: The carcass' internal organs have decomposed.
7 days after death: The carcass has undergone extensive purification and none of its soft tissue remains harvestable.
Note: Harder materials like bones, teeth, claws, and hair do not generally undergo decomposition and will remain usable indefinitely.
The Harvest Tables
Understanding the Tables
Every unique monster from the Monster Manual has been listed in this book with an associated harvest table. When your players attempt a harvest, simply look up the relevant monster in this guide, and read out the results (monsters are listed in the same order as in the Monster Manual). The following is an explanation of how to read the table.
DC
This is the DC required to harvest this item. Any harvesting check that equals or exceeds this threshold allows the player that made that check to successfully harvest that item.
Item
The name of the item received. While for most items, the player only receives one of the listed item, some item names have parentheses next to them. These indicate the amount that a player receives upon a successful harvest e.g.: Aarakocra Feather (small pouch) or Aboleth Mucus (3 vials). At the DM's discretion however, they may adjudicate that a player receives less or more than the stipulated quantity. Such reasons may include extremely high success on a roll, or certain methods in which the creature was killed.
Optional Rule: Harvesting Dangerous Materials
Harvesting some creatures are more dangerous than others. While most creatures are harmless once killed, others possess poisons, acids, and breath sacks that remain active even after the creature's death. Even worse is that a simple misplaced knife stroke or errant twitch of the hand can lead to these materials accidentally harming the harvester.
Under this optional rule, whenever a harvester rolls below the DC of a harvestable material that has a "Use" section that deals damage, the material is not just lost, it also expends its ability on the harvester. For example, a character that fails to properly harvest a poison would suffer the effect of that poison on themselves, or a character that fails to harvest a breath sack would release the effect of that breath sack in their direction. The exact adjudication of the failure result may change depending on the DM.
Description
A brief description of the item to be harvested, written by Hamund. While this is usually just for flavour, some items also have a "Use" section. These items may be used immediately after being harvested and require no further adjustments or crafting. Their function is described here in the description box.
Additionally, some materials have harvesting requirements beyond just steady hands and a sharp knife. Any extra requirements or criteria for harvesting a material will be listed here.
Value
All materials are listed with their base resell value. This is how much money an average shopkeeper would be willing to pay for the materials in good conditions. DM discretion is advised when varying this value, dependant on shopkeeper mood, rarity within the setting, condition of the material, etc. A material with a value listed as "varies" indicates that its usage is too specific for it to be sold to an average shopkeeper, and the value of the material would depend heavily on context.
When items are harvested in discrete quantities, the value listed refers to each individual item. For example, Aboleth Mucus is harvested as a set of 3 vials, and so the value listed (20 gp) refers to each individual vial (so successfully harvesting Aboleth Mucus would be worth 3 × 20 gp = 60 gp). When items are listed as indiscrete quantities however, the value listed refers to the entire quantity. For example, Aarakocra Feathers are harvested in the indiscrete quantity of a: "small pouch." Thus the 8 sp value listed refers to the value of a "small pouch of Aarakocra Feathers", not 8 sp for each individual feather.
Value Factors
The values listed here are based on a myriad of factors including: CR of the monster, average treasure horde values, use in crafting, whether the monster tends to be found alone, whether the item is consumable, probability of successfully harvesting the item, balance around existing prices, and sometimes just for flavour. These prices are intended as a baseline only, and the DM is free to adjust these values as they see fit for their campaign. The DM is also to keep in mind that, although certain items may have high values, not all vendors may want to buy them. For example, although a Death Knight Heart may be worth the high price of 4,000 gp, it may be difficult to sell it to the village grocer. Sometimes, finding the right buyer for an esoteric item can be an entertaining side quest in and of itself, or simply used as a good downtime activity.
Weight
The weight of the item listed in pounds. The weight listed here follows the same rules as values do; the listed number refers to the weight of individual items, unless that item is harvested in indistinct quantities, in which case the weight refers to the whole indistinct quantity.
Crafting
Some items, although valuable, require a skilled artisan to craft them into a usable item. The material's description details which item they can be crafted into. If this section is blank, the item has no craftable item associated with it.
The section of crafted items at the end of this book details the usage of crafted items, as well as details on their crafting requirements. Some craftable items originate from published source books from WotC. These receive special tags in brackets that denote which book they come from.
