D&D 5E [Mini-Let's Read] Everyday Heroes, Character Creation & Game Design Elements
Sparky McDibben
Adventurer
Oh JFC, I am even slower on the uptake than usual. Thanks!
Libertad
Hero
I have 2-3 more write-ups in mind, so just you wait!
You're welcome, and thank you back at you for making this book. This review did take a lot of work to write, but it was very fun to do as well. I look forward to seeing the other adventures and sourcebooks you put out for Everyday Heroes.
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Libertad
Hero
Marcus Holloway
8th Level Smart Hero; Archetype Hacker
Background Poor Family (+1 Intelligence); Profession Information Technology (+1 Intelligence)
Wealth Level 4 (6 when using Cha-Ching)
Speed 30 Feet
Hit Points 50 (8d6+8); Defense 15 (10 + 1 + Intelligence modifier) or 18 (Expect the Unexpected); Genius 7 (Plan DC 15, use Engineer plans as 5th level Smart Hero)
Strength 10 (+0) Dexterity 14 (+2) Constitution 14 (+2) Intelligence 18 (+4) Wisdom 10 (+0) Charisma 10 (+0)
Saving Throws Intelligence +7, Wisdom +3
Skills Acrobatics +5, Computers +10, Deception +3, Investigation +7, Mechanics +10, Security +5, Stealth +5, Streetwise +3
Languages English
Equipment Proficiencies Basic Equipment, Advanced Equipment
Passive Perception 10
Proficiency Bonus +3
Special Feature, Making Do: Ignore disadvantage from not having the correct professional tools on hand when performing an ability check.
Special Feature, Tech Support: Advantage on Computer checks to fix a broken computer system or to understand how to operate a computer system correctly.
Talents
Digital Ghost: real name, address, and other vital data is impossible for any person or organization to discover.
Advanced Engineer Training/Electronic Expertise: Double proficiency in Computers and Mechanics.
It’s For You: bonus action to make someone’s cell phone ring at max volume, making them Distracted until the end of their next turn on a failed Wisdom save.
Mental Refresh: Once per long rest regain 1 Genius point when finishing a short rest.
Feats
Ability Score Training (2nd level, Minor): +1 Intelligence
Free Running (2nd level, Minor): ignore movement requirement for jumps, climbing is not difficult movement, can jump down up to 15 feet without taking damage, advantage on Acrobatics checks made during a foot chase.
Engineer Training (4th level, Major): proficiency in Acrobatics (already proficient in Mechanics), gain Flying Drone Mechanical Companion, gain 1 plan from Engineer Plan list.
Ability Score Training (6th level, Minor): +1 Constitution.
Equipment Training (6th level, Minor): Gain Advanced Equipment proficiency.
Advanced Engineer Training (8th level, Major): Expertise in Mechanics, +1 Genius point, 2 additional Engineer plans
Equipment: bag stuff, pocket stuff, car stuff, old photograph of where you grew up, laptop computer, mobile hotspot, hacking kit, energy drink, protein bar, common car, Thunder Ball (treat as small metal club but with finesse property), TASER.
Attacks
Thunder Ball +5: 1d6+2 bludgeoning damage. RTFM changes attack and damage bonuses to +7/1d6+4.
TASER +5: 1d4+2 electrical, Range 15 feet, 2 rounds, 0 PV, Properties Light, Stunning. RTFM changes attack and damage bonuses to +7/1d4+4.
Plans
Brick It: use an action to affect computer-controlled devices within 100 feet for a variety of effects.
Cha-Ching: Treat Wealth Level as 6 for 24 hours.
Cut the Power (Engineer): spend bonus action to cut power to three individual machines you can see or an entire building. Lasts until repaired, held or operated machines have the owner make an Intelligence save against the Plan DC to ignore the effect, outages can be fixed by you spending a bonus action or someone making a Mechanics check against your Plan DC. Robots are Paralyzed until the end of your next turn on a failed save.
Dirty Little Secrets: Advantage on Charisma checks made against a person for the next week.
Expect the Unexpected: spend an action to gain Defense bonus of +4 for the next hour. Can use this bonus in place of Strength or Dexterity saving throw.
I’m In: take control of a single computer system, save with disadvantage against plan DC if it’s a robot or being actively operated by someone, access cannot be traced back to you and others have disadvantage on Computers checks to detect and kick you out.
My Robot Can Do That (Engineer): spend an action to grant up to 3 perks to mechanical companion for the next hour: make opportunity attacks and add proficiency bonus to damage, gain 10 temporary hit points, plan lasts for 4 hours or 8 if taken twice as a perk, mechanical companion can use your Computers bonus instead of its own bonus when using one skill, or double movement speed.
Overload (Engineer): spend an action to cause an electronic device you can see within 120 feet or you have access to via a network to short out, dealing 6d6 electricity damage (PV 4) to combatants within 10 feet, can save for half damage and they cannot dive for cover.
RTFM: spend reaction before making an ability check or skill, as a bonus action, or any time outside combat. Gain proficiency and expertise in a skill or an equipment proficiency until the next short or long rest, also use Intelligence modifier for weapon attack and damage rolls in which you are proficient.
Sucks To Be You: spend an action to choose up to four ways to inconvenience someone (scramble their passwords, stop their credit and debit cards from working, put on a no-fly list or arrest warrant, fill hard drives with embarrassing and salacious media files), takes at least 24 hours and Persuasion against Plan DC to sort out.
We Interrupt This Program: spend an action to broadcast an audio/video message up to 3 minutes long in real time to all media devices nationwide. Can limit the number and/or types of devices to which it’s sent.
Mechanical Companion, Flying Drone
Tiny robot (autonomous)
Defense 15
Hit Points 27
Speed fly 60 feet
Str 5 (-3) Dex 14 (+2) Con 12 (+1) Int 5 (-3) Wis 11 (0) Cha 1 (-5)
Hover: doesn’t fall prone when diving for cover as long as it’s flying.
Mechanical Nature: immune to frightened, paralyzed, sickened, stunned, exhaustion, intoxication, poison damage.
Multiattack: attack twice.
Nudge +7: 1 bludgeoning damage, PV 0.
Firearm +7: 1d6+2 ballistic damage, range 50/100 feet, PV 2. Doesn’t need to track ammo or reload.
Conversion Details: The Smart Hero Hacker fits the Watch Dogs franchise to a T, to the point that a huge amount of hacking skills you can do in the games can be replicated by existing Plans in Everyday Heroes. For this build I chose the hero of the game regarded by fans as the best in the series.
In addition to being a superb computer whiz, Marcus is also an agile parkour expert, which I emulated with the Free Running feat and choosing Acrobatics when taking Engineer Training on account I already chose Mechanics as a class skill. While Marcus has a variety of remote-controlled gadgets in the game, for the Engineer mechanical companion I chose the flying drone given that his quadcopter can enter almost anywhere. With My Robot Can Do That, he can have it do skill checks on his behalf. Which, like in the video game, is a tactic you can use to infiltrate buildings and beat entire levels without having to set foot into personal danger yourself.
While not exactly canon, the mood and feel of Watch Dogs 2 doesn’t lend itself to the idea of Marcus being a killer, so I gave him non-lethal weapons. For those who want to give him a more lethal arsenal, he can use pretty much any non-military firearm, and even then RTFM can give him temporary proficiency if the need arises. The Thunder Ball was a subversion in the rules, being an eight ball attached to an elastic rope that Marcus uses as his primary melee weapon. While I could count it as an improvised Tiny Ouchie Thing, I was a bit feat-starved and unlike Agent 47 he didn’t strike me as being “best in the world” on power scale to try and make up for it with a 10th level feat.
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Tonguez
A suffusion of yellow
Now that makes me far more interested in this game, these conversions are an awesome showcase thank you
Marcus Holloway
8th Level Smart Hero; Archetype Hacker
Background Poor Family (+1 Intelligence); Profession Information Technology (+1 Intelligence)
Wealth Level 4 (6 when using Cha-Ching)
Speed 30 Feet
Hit Points 50 (8d6+8); Defense 15 (10 + 1 + Intelligence modifier) or 18 (Expect the Unexpected); Genius 7 (Plan DC 15, use Engineer plans as 5th level Smart Hero)
Strength 10 (+0) Dexterity 14 (+2) Constitution 14 (+2) Intelligence 18 (+4) Wisdom 10 (+0) Charisma 10 (+0)
Saving Throws Intelligence +7, Wisdom +3
Skills Acrobatics +5, Computers +10, Deception +3, Investigation +7, Mechanics +10, Security +5, Stealth +5, Streetwise +3
Languages English
Equipment Proficiencies Basic Equipment, Advanced Equipment
Passive Perception 10
Proficiency Bonus +3
Special Feature, Making Do: Ignore disadvantage from not having the correct professional tools on hand when performing an ability check.
Special Feature, Tech Support: Advantage on Computer checks to fix a broken computer system or to understand how to operate a computer system correctly.
Talents
Digital Ghost: real name, address, and other vital data is impossible for any person or organization to discover.
Advanced Engineer Training/Electronic Expertise: Double proficiency in Computers and Mechanics.
It’s For You: bonus action to make someone’s cell phone ring at max volume, making them Distracted until the end of their next turn on a failed Wisdom save.
Mental Refresh: Once per long rest regain 1 Genius point when finishing a short rest.
Feats
Ability Score Training (2nd level, Minor): +1 Intelligence
Free Running (2nd level, Minor): ignore movement requirement for jumps, climbing is not difficult movement, can jump down up to 15 feet without taking damage, advantage on Acrobatics checks made during a foot chase.
Engineer Training (4th level, Major): proficiency in Acrobatics (already proficient in Mechanics), gain Flying Drone Mechanical Companion, gain 1 plan from Engineer Plan list.
Ability Score Training (6th level, Minor): +1 Constitution.
Equipment Training (6th level, Minor): Gain Advanced Equipment proficiency.
Advanced Engineer Training (8th level, Major): Expertise in Mechanics, +1 Genius point, 2 additional Engineer plans
Equipment: bag stuff, pocket stuff, car stuff, old photograph of where you grew up, laptop computer, mobile hotspot, hacking kit, energy drink, protein bar, common car, Thunder Ball (treat as small metal club but with finesse property), TASER.
Attacks
Thunder Ball +5: 1d6+2 bludgeoning damage. RTFM changes attack and damage bonuses to +7/1d6+4.
TASER +5: 1d4+2 electrical, Range 15 feet, 2 rounds, 0 PV, Properties Light, Stunning. RTFM changes attack and damage bonuses to +7/1d4+4.
Plans
Brick It: use an action to affect computer-controlled devices within 100 feet for a variety of effects.
Cha-Ching: Treat Wealth Level as 6 for 24 hours.
Cut the Power (Engineer): spend bonus action to cut power to three individual machines you can see or an entire building. Lasts until repaired, held or operated machines have the owner make an Intelligence save against the Plan DC to ignore the effect, outages can be fixed by you spending a bonus action or someone making a Mechanics check against your Plan DC. Robots are Paralyzed until the end of your next turn on a failed save.
Dirty Little Secrets: Advantage on Charisma checks made against a person for the next week.
Expect the Unexpected: spend an action to gain Defense bonus of +4 for the next hour. Can use this bonus in place of Strength or Dexterity saving throw.
I’m In: take control of a single computer system, save with disadvantage against plan DC if it’s a robot or being actively operated by someone, access cannot be traced back to you and others have disadvantage on Computers checks to detect and kick you out.
My Robot Can Do That (Engineer): spend an action to grant up to 3 perks to mechanical companion for the next hour: make opportunity attacks and add proficiency bonus to damage, gain 10 temporary hit points, plan lasts for 4 hours or 8 if taken twice as a perk, mechanical companion can use your Computers bonus instead of its own bonus when using one skill, or double movement speed.
Overload (Engineer): spend an action to cause an electronic device you can see within 120 feet or you have access to via a network to short out, dealing 6d6 electricity damage (PV 4) to combatants within 10 feet, can save for half damage and they cannot dive for cover.
RTFM: spend reaction before making an ability check or skill, as a bonus action, or any time outside combat. Gain proficiency and expertise in a skill or an equipment proficiency until the next short or long rest, also use Intelligence modifier for weapon attack and damage rolls in which you are proficient.
Sucks To Be You: spend an action to choose up to four ways to inconvenience someone (scramble their passwords, stop their credit and debit cards from working, put on a no-fly list or arrest warrant, fill hard drives with embarrassing and salacious media files), takes at least 24 hours and Persuasion against Plan DC to sort out.
We Interrupt This Program: spend an action to broadcast an audio/video message up to 3 minutes long in real time to all media devices nationwide. Can limit the number and/or types of devices to which it’s sent.
Mechanical Companion, Flying Drone
Tiny robot (autonomous)
Defense 15
Hit Points 27
Speed fly 60 feet
Str 5 (-3) Dex 14 (+2) Con 12 (+1) Int 5 (-3) Wis 11 (0) Cha 1 (-5)
Hover: doesn’t fall prone when diving for cover as long as it’s flying.
Mechanical Nature: immune to frightened, paralyzed, sickened, stunned, exhaustion, intoxication, poison damage.
Multiattack: attack twice.
Nudge +7: 1 bludgeoning damage, PV 0.
Firearm +7: 1d6+2 ballistic damage, range 50/100 feet, PV 2. Doesn’t need to track ammo or reload.
Conversion Details: The Smart Hero Hacker fits the Watch Dogs franchise to a T, to the point that a huge amount of hacking skills you can do in the games can be replicated by existing Plans in Everyday Heroes. For this build I chose the hero of the game regarded by fans as the best in the series.
In addition to being a superb computer whiz, Marcus is also an agile parkour expert, which I emulated with the Free Running feat and choosing Acrobatics when taking Engineer Training on account I already chose Mechanics as a class skill. While Marcus has a variety of remote-controlled gadgets in the game, for the Engineer mechanical companion I chose the flying drone given that his quadcopter can enter almost anywhere. With My Robot Can Do That, he can have it do skill checks on his behalf. Which, like in the video game, is a tactic you can use to infiltrate buildings and beat entire levels without having to set foot into personal danger yourself.
While not exactly canon, the mood and feel of Watch Dogs 2 doesn’t lend itself to the idea of Marcus being a killer, so I gave him non-lethal weapons. For those who want to give him a more lethal arsenal, he can use pretty much any non-military firearm, and even then RTFM can give him temporary proficiency if the need arises. The Thunder Ball was a subversion in the rules, being an eight ball attached to an elastic rope that Marcus uses as his primary melee weapon. While I could count it as an improvised Tiny Ouchie Thing, I was a bit feat-starved and unlike Agent 47 he didn’t strike me as being “best in the world” on power scale to try and make up for it with a 10th level feat.
Libertad
Hero
Kazuma Kiryu
8th Level Strong Hero; Archetype MMA Fighter
Background Orphan (+1 Constitution); Profession Crime (+1 Strength, +1 Dexterity, +1 Constitution)
Wealth Level 2 (6 if you do well enough in Real Estate Royale)
Speed 30 Feet
Hit Points 68 (8d10+16); Defense 16 (10 + PB + Strength modifier)
Strength 16 (+3) Dexterity 14 (+2) Constitution 14 (+2) Intelligence 10 (+0) Wisdom 10 (+0) Charisma 14 (+2)
Saving Throws Dexterity +5, Strength +6
Skills Acrobatics +5, Athletics +9, Deception +5, Intimidation +5, Perception +3, Performance +5, Persuasion +5, Security +5, Stealth +5, Streetwise +3
Languages Japanese
Equipment Proficiencies Basic, Advanced, Historical, Improvised
Passive Perception 13
Proficiency Bonus +3
Special Feature, Survivor: Can reroll one failed saving throw once per long rest.
Special Feature, Criminal Record: Advantage on Charisma checks when interacting with criminal underworld, disadvantage on Charisma checks with law enforcement or private security who know of Kazuma’s reputation.
Talents
Advanced Combat Training: Can make two attacks as part of Attack action once during your turn.
Athletic Expertise: double proficiency in Athletics
Improved Heavy Hands: unarmed strike damage increases by 2 steps, can use Power Attack with off-hand unarmed attacks.
Jab: Once during your turn can declare an unarmed strike to be a jab. If jab hits gain advantage on your next melee attack roll against opponent before end of your next turn.
Master Grappler: advantage on Athletics checks made to initiate or escape a grapple.
Pin: Can automatically pin as a special attack an opponent you have grappled. You and opponent are Restrained until grapple is broken.
Power Attack: Can take -5 penalty on attack with melee or thrown weapon to gain +10 damage if it hits. Cannot be used with Power Attack (unless it’s unarmed), bonus action attack, explosive, or if attack doesn’t require an attack roll.
Reckless Attack: At start of turn can gain advantage on melee attacks until the end of your turn, opponents gain advantage on attacks against you until the start of your next turn.
Submission Move: Automatically deal unarmed strike damage to opponent you have grappled, cannot use Power Attack with it.
Takedown: Once during your turn can declare an unarmed strike to be a takedown. If it hits you deal damage and then can perform a disarm, grapple, shove, or trip attempt against the opponent.
Feats
Ability Score Training (2nd, Minor): +1 Charisma.
Skill Training (2nd, Minor): proficiency in Performance and Perception.
Brawler Training (4th level, Major): gain proficiency in Improvised Equipment, advantage on Strength checks to break objects, melee weapons have +1 PV, can move speed up to an opponent or a dangerous situation as a bonus action.
Agile Hero Training (6th level, Major): proficiency in Stealth, can Dash or Disengage as a bonus action, advantage on Athletics made to Gain Ground during foot chases.
Martial Artist Training (8th level, Major): gain proficiency in Historical Equipment, unarmed strike damage improves one die step, can make unarmed attack as a bonus action, climbing and swimming are not considered difficult movement.
Equipment: Cool suit, luxury car with clean plates, various energy drinks, concealed carry pistol, knife, sword, stun gun
Attacks
Unarmed Strike +6: 1d10+3 bludgeoning damage (1d10 as bonus action), PV 2: Properties Finesse, Light, Special
Concealed Carry Pistol +5: 1d8+2 ballistic damage, bonus action reload, PV 2, range 100/200, 8 rounds; Properties Light, Loud, Semi-Auto, Versatile 1d10
Knife +6: 1d4+3 slashing damage, PV 2; Properties Finesse, Light, Thrown (30/60)
Stun Gun +6: 1d4+3 electrical damage, PV 1; Properties Finesse, Stunning
Sword +6: 1d8+3 slashing damage, PV 2: Properties Versatile 1d10
Kazuma can use Power Attack to hit with +1 total with his melee attacks but adds +10 damage.
Heeeeere’s Kazuma! I admit that I only played Yakuza 0, so this is my estimation of his capabilities from that game. As the famed Dragon of Dojima, he rose from meager beginnings in a mob-run orphanage to a leg-breaking debt collector to the fourth chairman of the Tojo clan. He is first and foremost a melee fighter, swinging with his bare fists and a variety of close-range weapons on hand, from knives and swords to trash cans and bicycles. I found taking MMA Fighter with multiclass feats in Brawler and Martial Artist to be reflective of the various fighting styles he can use in the game. Brawler style (the video game, not the ED archetype) is closest to MMA, Rush is closest to the agility of Martial Artist, and Beast the Brawler archetype.
Kazuma’s also a surprisingly thoughtful and persuasive individual, who in between his underworld politics has found time to become a disco sensation, help individuals pursue their dreams, and instill important life lessons for the various interesting characters of Tokyo’s back alleys. Giving him a high Charisma is reflective of this aspect of his character.
