BookTenTiger
He / Him
I was really inspired by one of the links in the 100 Cool D&D Links thread by @M.T. Black called Pointcrawling Character Creation
It's worth a read!
The short version of it is that you can replace character creation with a short pointcrawl. The players decide where they traveled on the campaign map, and each location gives them a bonus or an item. For example, starting in Baranar Kalan (the deepest delving of the dwarves) gives you +2 to Attacks since there's so much fighting against the trollspawn. Then, if you travel to Corsair's Cove, you get an enchanted wallet. By the time everyone reaches Aben Garan (the starting location for the campaign), they have five different bonuses, abilities, or items.
I was inspired by that, and started coming up with an idea of how to do this in 5e (or 5.5) D&D. One idea I had was that you could do a Pointcrawl to replace Backgrounds. Here's how I've worked it out:
The Pointcrawl Adventure
As part of Session 0 or Session 1, the players would go through five seasons of travel before ending up in the starting location. Each "season" could represent a few months, a few years, or a few decades for long-lived folks. The campaign map is populated by a number of locations, such as Havens, Wonders, and Threats. Each location has a number of skill proficiencies and tool or language proficiencies, along with boons (representing the Features of backgrounds).
The players all choose a starting location, and choose one benefit (skill proficiency, tool or language proficiency, or boon) from that location. Then, they take turns traveling around the map, gaining benefits and telling little stories of each location. If they choose to stay in a location for more than one season, they gain a second benefit from that location.
By the time the four seasons are over, each character can gain:
2 skill proficiencies
2 tool, language, musical instrument, or gaming set proficiencies
1 boon
Example: Iron Tom
As an example, let's say I have a halfling fighter named Iron Tom.
Starting Location: I start in Castle Oldrock, a fortified castle town. I gain a Tool proficiency, and choose Cook's Utensils.
Season 1: I travel to the Wolfriders, and face off against a clan of bandits who hunt on wolf-back. I gain proficiency in Animal Handling.
Season 2: I travel to the Marsh of Titans, a broad swamp stalked by greedy giants. I gain the boon Sojourner (a feature that allows me to remember where I've traveled without maps, and provide food for myself and companions while journeying).
Season 3: I travel to the Citadel of Green, the seat of the Spring and Summer Throne for the forest elves. I gain proficiency in the Elven Language.
Season 4: I stay in the Citadel of Green, and gain proficiency in the History skill, learning from the elven scholars gathered beneath the boughs of the living temples.
Season 5: I finish my journey to Crow River, the frontier town where the first adventure will take place.
By the time the first adventure begins, Iron Tom has a background that includes the following:
Proficiency in Animal Handling and History
Proficiency in Cook's Utensils and the Elven Language
The Sojourner feature
I decide to call Iron Tom's background Wanderlust Warrior, with the idea that he starts to get itchy feet and a thirst for violence when he has been settled too long in one location.
Locations
In the Custom Background Rules, you can choose two skills, two tool proficiencies (or languages), and a feature. In the Pointcrawl Background, each location would have two skills, a tool or language proficiency, and a feature associated with it. These proficiencies and features would focus on the experiences characters had in each location. One location might look like this:
Castle Oldrock
A fortified city surrounding a huge, ancient castle. Castle Oldrock is home to many orders of knights, as well as the largest prison of the realm, the Oldrock Depths. Choose one of the following benefits:
Skills:
You gain proficiency in Athletics if you served with an order of Oldrock Knights.
You gain proficiency in Deception if you spent time in the Oldrock Depths.
Proficiency:
You gain proficiency in a set of Tools if you learned a trade serving the knights or criminals.
Boon:
You gain the feature Recruit if you joined one of the Oldrock Knights, or a criminal gang in the Oldrock Depths.
You gain the feature Companion if you earned the trust of a squire or a young pickpocket.
Another location might look like this:
Barons of the Rotwood
A vampire council rules over a smattering of poor farming villages, where the superstitious folk are treated like livestock.
Choose one of the following benefits:
Skills:
You gain proficiency in Intimidation if you fought back against the corrupt governor of a Rotwood village.
You gain proficiency in Religion if you joined the efforts of the ailing churches to protect the townsfolk.
Proficiency:
You gain proficiency in an Instrument or Gaming Set if you helped lift the spirits of the poor peasants through music or games.
Boon:
You gain the Title feature if you discovered a family heirloom linking you to the ruling class of the Rotwood.
You gain the Reputation feature if you helped protect villagers against the hunger of the vampire council.
Background Features Translated to Boons
I want players to be able to choose features of different backgrounds, so I combined different background features into a few boons:
Recruit: You belong to an order, and gain safe passage, shelter, or benefits. For example, you might be a guild merchant, a knight, or a cultist.
Reputation: You have a reputation for heroics, violence, or cunning that precedes you. Folks know who you are, and will give you aide or assistance. This reputation may also be for a false identity.
Reliable Work: You have a trade that you practice, and can find paying work in almost any inhabited location. This could be a legitimate business, such as smithing, a criminal enterprise, or something in-between, such as gladiatorial combat.
Uncovered Secret: You discovered an earth-shaking secret about an important NPC, influential family, or the world itself. This may include a treasure map, an ancient document, or even a restless spirit.
Title: Through nobility, a great deed, or wealth, you have been granted a title. You are treated with honors as according to the title, and may have further connections or obligations due to it.
I then added these three boons:
Magic Item: You gain a unique magic item.
Companion: You gain a faithful companion (humanoid or beast) who stays out of combat, but is skilled in setting up camp, repairing objects, or other tasks.
Property: You gain a home, business, or other property.
Conclusion
In the end, I think this would be a fun way to replace backgrounds in a campaign. As a DM, you could create the locations in order to build in factions, enemies, and lore that's important to your campaign. Or, as part of Session 0, you could have the players brainstorm the kinds of organizations, campaign truths, and baddies they want to encounter. As the campaign progresses, characters would be able to return to places that were important to them, and reunite with NPC's, or face off against monsters they only heard about before. And most importantly, everyone's backgrounds would be deeply tied into the lore and feel of the campaign world.
Anyways, those are just my thoughts. What are yours?
It's worth a read!
The short version of it is that you can replace character creation with a short pointcrawl. The players decide where they traveled on the campaign map, and each location gives them a bonus or an item. For example, starting in Baranar Kalan (the deepest delving of the dwarves) gives you +2 to Attacks since there's so much fighting against the trollspawn. Then, if you travel to Corsair's Cove, you get an enchanted wallet. By the time everyone reaches Aben Garan (the starting location for the campaign), they have five different bonuses, abilities, or items.
I was inspired by that, and started coming up with an idea of how to do this in 5e (or 5.5) D&D. One idea I had was that you could do a Pointcrawl to replace Backgrounds. Here's how I've worked it out:
The Pointcrawl Adventure
As part of Session 0 or Session 1, the players would go through five seasons of travel before ending up in the starting location. Each "season" could represent a few months, a few years, or a few decades for long-lived folks. The campaign map is populated by a number of locations, such as Havens, Wonders, and Threats. Each location has a number of skill proficiencies and tool or language proficiencies, along with boons (representing the Features of backgrounds).
The players all choose a starting location, and choose one benefit (skill proficiency, tool or language proficiency, or boon) from that location. Then, they take turns traveling around the map, gaining benefits and telling little stories of each location. If they choose to stay in a location for more than one season, they gain a second benefit from that location.
By the time the four seasons are over, each character can gain:
2 skill proficiencies
2 tool, language, musical instrument, or gaming set proficiencies
1 boon
Example: Iron Tom
As an example, let's say I have a halfling fighter named Iron Tom.
Starting Location: I start in Castle Oldrock, a fortified castle town. I gain a Tool proficiency, and choose Cook's Utensils.
Season 1: I travel to the Wolfriders, and face off against a clan of bandits who hunt on wolf-back. I gain proficiency in Animal Handling.
Season 2: I travel to the Marsh of Titans, a broad swamp stalked by greedy giants. I gain the boon Sojourner (a feature that allows me to remember where I've traveled without maps, and provide food for myself and companions while journeying).
Season 3: I travel to the Citadel of Green, the seat of the Spring and Summer Throne for the forest elves. I gain proficiency in the Elven Language.
Season 4: I stay in the Citadel of Green, and gain proficiency in the History skill, learning from the elven scholars gathered beneath the boughs of the living temples.
Season 5: I finish my journey to Crow River, the frontier town where the first adventure will take place.
By the time the first adventure begins, Iron Tom has a background that includes the following:
Proficiency in Animal Handling and History
Proficiency in Cook's Utensils and the Elven Language
The Sojourner feature
I decide to call Iron Tom's background Wanderlust Warrior, with the idea that he starts to get itchy feet and a thirst for violence when he has been settled too long in one location.
Locations
In the Custom Background Rules, you can choose two skills, two tool proficiencies (or languages), and a feature. In the Pointcrawl Background, each location would have two skills, a tool or language proficiency, and a feature associated with it. These proficiencies and features would focus on the experiences characters had in each location. One location might look like this:
Castle Oldrock
A fortified city surrounding a huge, ancient castle. Castle Oldrock is home to many orders of knights, as well as the largest prison of the realm, the Oldrock Depths. Choose one of the following benefits:
Skills:
You gain proficiency in Athletics if you served with an order of Oldrock Knights.
You gain proficiency in Deception if you spent time in the Oldrock Depths.
Proficiency:
You gain proficiency in a set of Tools if you learned a trade serving the knights or criminals.
Boon:
You gain the feature Recruit if you joined one of the Oldrock Knights, or a criminal gang in the Oldrock Depths.
You gain the feature Companion if you earned the trust of a squire or a young pickpocket.
Another location might look like this:
Barons of the Rotwood
A vampire council rules over a smattering of poor farming villages, where the superstitious folk are treated like livestock.
Choose one of the following benefits:
Skills:
You gain proficiency in Intimidation if you fought back against the corrupt governor of a Rotwood village.
You gain proficiency in Religion if you joined the efforts of the ailing churches to protect the townsfolk.
Proficiency:
You gain proficiency in an Instrument or Gaming Set if you helped lift the spirits of the poor peasants through music or games.
Boon:
You gain the Title feature if you discovered a family heirloom linking you to the ruling class of the Rotwood.
You gain the Reputation feature if you helped protect villagers against the hunger of the vampire council.
Background Features Translated to Boons
I want players to be able to choose features of different backgrounds, so I combined different background features into a few boons:
Recruit: You belong to an order, and gain safe passage, shelter, or benefits. For example, you might be a guild merchant, a knight, or a cultist.
Reputation: You have a reputation for heroics, violence, or cunning that precedes you. Folks know who you are, and will give you aide or assistance. This reputation may also be for a false identity.
Reliable Work: You have a trade that you practice, and can find paying work in almost any inhabited location. This could be a legitimate business, such as smithing, a criminal enterprise, or something in-between, such as gladiatorial combat.
Uncovered Secret: You discovered an earth-shaking secret about an important NPC, influential family, or the world itself. This may include a treasure map, an ancient document, or even a restless spirit.
Title: Through nobility, a great deed, or wealth, you have been granted a title. You are treated with honors as according to the title, and may have further connections or obligations due to it.
I then added these three boons:
Magic Item: You gain a unique magic item.
Companion: You gain a faithful companion (humanoid or beast) who stays out of combat, but is skilled in setting up camp, repairing objects, or other tasks.
Property: You gain a home, business, or other property.
Conclusion
In the end, I think this would be a fun way to replace backgrounds in a campaign. As a DM, you could create the locations in order to build in factions, enemies, and lore that's important to your campaign. Or, as part of Session 0, you could have the players brainstorm the kinds of organizations, campaign truths, and baddies they want to encounter. As the campaign progresses, characters would be able to return to places that were important to them, and reunite with NPC's, or face off against monsters they only heard about before. And most importantly, everyone's backgrounds would be deeply tied into the lore and feel of the campaign world.
Anyways, those are just my thoughts. What are yours?
