D&D 5E Hermits, tell me about your discovery!

[Delazar]

F e a t u r e : D i s c o v e r y

The quiet seclusion of your extended hermitage gave you access to a unique and powerful discovery. The exact nature of this revelation depends on the nature of your seclusion. It might be a great truth about the cosmos, the deities, the powerful beings of the outer planes, or the forces of nature. It could be a site that no one else has ever seen. You might have uncovered a fact that has long been forgotten, or unearthed some relic of the past that could rewrite history. It might be information that would be damaging to the people who or consigned you to exile, and hence the reason for your return to society. Work with your DM to determine the details of your discovery and its impact on the campaign.

 

[Plaguescarred]

My hermit discovered that he was a controlled avatar in a simulated matrix interface coming from the imaginary of more supreme beings.

 

[seebs]

So, some backstory. At one point, a friend of mine asked for a name for a fantasy creature, which he described, and I suggested "Hobson's False Chimera". This gradually led to a running joke about "Hobson's False X", and about Hobson himself, the World's Mightiest Naturalist. He went places no one else could survive, and he brought back bestiaries. Problem: Nearsighted, enthusiastic, and not especially lucid. So basically his bestiaries are impossible to make use of.

The hermit's discovery was that, hey hang on a second, I've been studying his work long enough to have some of the patterns figured out, and this isn't one of his made-up things, he actually SAW this thing, and that is awfully interesting looking I wonder what it is.

 

[pukunui]

I have a hippy druid hermit in my CoS game. I told the player that his PC had discovered that not everyone has a soul, and that those who do not are emotionally stunted people who tend to wear drab clothing and so forth. It shocked him a bit when he realized just how many people in Barovia lack a soul.

 

[KRussellB]

In a game I ran, the halfling hermit had been run out of town when his romance with the daughter of the Dwarven guild master was discovered. After years of isolation, he stumbled upon an illegal trade network between the Dwarven guild and Drow. He came back down the mountains for revenge!

 

[Mad_Jack]

My hermit discovered that he was a controlled avatar in a simulated matrix interface coming from the imaginary of more supreme beings.

My hermit more specifically discovered that not only was he an imaginary being in a game, but that he was an NPC.

The hermit in B2 Keep on the Borderlands, in fact.

Not wanting to be killed in short order by 1st level adventurers and already having a mountain lion as a pet, he decided to become a beastmaster ranger.

 

[flametitan]

I have a hippy druid hermit in my CoS game. I told the player that his PC had discovered that not everyone has a soul, and that those who do not are emotionally stunted people who tend to wear drab clothing and so forth. It shocked him a bit when he realized just how many people in Barovia lack a soul.

I remember this. I'm glad it worked out and had the desired effect.