D&D 5E 101 Hermit Backgrounds

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

Originally posted by [MENTION=25773]EN[/MENTION]dollisis

55. The hermit was abducted by aliens. After the incident, the Hermit was approached by men in black cloaks and dark tinted blacksmith's goggles who insisted that what she experienced was "the result of wild magic interacting with swamp gas from the nearby river basin". The Hermit now is aware of a vast conspiracy that may go all the way up to the Monarchy.

Originally posted by [MENTION=6812267]Ganymede81[/MENTION]

56: The hermit has discovered the secret language of the insect world. He may communicate simple ideas with insects, spiders, and other types of vermin.

Originally posted by [MENTION=6801228]Chaosmancer[/MENTION]

First off, dang I love some of these, especially 43-45.

57: In your solitude you studied the shape of the universe. During this study you discovered the history of an ancient Genie War, and that the aftereffects are a physical place in the planes which is responsible for the 1/3 failure rate of the Wish spell.

58: You found an ancient love letter, written by a Faerie Queen to her mortal lover, admitting the existence of their bastard love child.

59: In your study of the stars and light, you discovered the existence of a previous universe, you also learned they sent a message as their world died, and it is arriving in 10 years time to an island in the middle of the oceans.

60: You discovered the presence of a newborn god/goddess in the world.

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

#61: Only a few true birds remain. You have not seen an animal for days. The humans? Well, you're still human. There may be others in the outlying villages on the border of the woodland. The rest have all been consumed...and replaced. You discovered the Legion Tree in the heart of the forest. The trail of your beloved led right to it. He entered the tree through a gap between two roots as big as a barn door. Later, he emerged and waited. Then he emerged again, and again, and again; they all wore the face of your loved one, and you wondered if he was ever truly yours. The yelling and screaming broke your reverie. They moved towards a fresh victim--a ranger, by the looks of her--and with her captors they pushed her to the ground where tree roots like tentacles overtook her and dragged her into the earth. You have seen two women with her likeness emerge from acorns the size of wagons that cracked open after falling to the earth from somewhere high up in the Tree. You have resolved to find adventuring companions that are flesh and blood creatures--when they bleed you will look to see red blood and not yellow sap oozing from their wounds. When the time is right you will reveal your secret. Then will come the time to march into the forest and chop the Legion Tree down once and for all.

#62: You know the Huntsmen have been a part of the Forest Kingdom for as long as anyone can remember. Before the lands of Cormyr, Orva and Esparin were joined under one banner and the strife in the Wolf Woods was ended, Huntsmen served the rulers of all three rival lands ably. You have seen the men and women in leather armor, each accompanied by a faithful hound or wolf, as they returned from a hunt for criminals and outlaws, and they never failed to catch their prey. During your hermitage you stayed still as a rock whenever you thought a huntsman was nearby--you were no criminal, but you'd angered enough people back home to be banished to the deep heart of the wood, and better safe than sorry. When you saw several huntsmen and their hounds moving through the woods with a captive bound not by ropes, but by chains, your curiosity was piqued. That night, under the full moon, you saw their captive freed in a glade. You didn't expect her to transform into a werewolf, nor did you expect priests of the moon goddess Selûne to be present. The roar of the werewolf was answered by the priests, who let forth a great howl made louder by the Huntsmen and their hounds, and as the howl died away the werewolf fell apart, becoming woman and wolf under the light of the moon. You learned the secret of the Huntsmen that night, and count yourself lucky to have departed before anyone noticed you.

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

Originally posted by [MENTION=6801228]Chaosmancer[/MENTION]

#63: As you wandered deep in the mountains and thru the deserts, your eyes followed the flow of the land. The curves, the edges, the strong lines. You came to realize that all these lines flowed in human shapes, the long curve of the plains was an arm, or a leg, the mountains eyelashes. Great Titans of astounding size slumbered just beneath the surface of the world in plain sight.

#64: You sequestered yourself upon a small isle, deep out at sea. The Sea, the love of your life, the most majestic and beautiful of all nature. You studied her, dove into her depths as deep as you could, and measured every breaking wave. You learned the songs of the deep, her rhythms... then you discovered how the rhythms slowed year after year. How waves which crashed upon the edges of the cliffs, no longer left the spray of salt water upon the land, unable to reach the great heights any more. Your love is dying, and you will chart a course to discover why, and if you can save her

 

[Chaosmancer]

Oh crap, I never even thought that this would have been deleted. Thank you so much for rescuing it

 

[Jeremy E Grenemyer]

Oh crap, I never even thought that this would have been deleted. Thank you so much for rescuing it

You're welcome.

 

[dmnqwk]

#65 You have discovered the true name of an Abyssal creature, but no way to tell which creature it belongs to.
#66 You have discovered a way to identify any magical item by permanently removing one of your fingers.

 

[Eltab]

#67 You discovered a process which allows you to graft parts of plants together and maintain a healthy living whole. You know that the Druids know the combination that allows the hybrid plant to bear fruit which can act like a Heal potion (or similar conveniences). You also know that they consider this information a disruptor of the natural balance - as in Frankenstein - and keep their secret fiercely.

 

[Chaosmancer]

#68 When your master deemed you ready, he sent you on a spirit quest, to meet the founder of the Ninefold path, a bone white being whose name is "The Way of the King". He spoke of an ancient war, where armies of gods fought over the split body of the Cosmic Serpent. While they raged bloody battle, the secret goddess Dallah Thaun used a knife to carve a sliver of flesh to sustain her dual form. That knife is "The Broken Night" which she buried in the Mountain of the King, for the blood that stains it grants immortal power.

 

[Chaosmancer]

#69 You saw the dark process by which an Ogre is reborn as an Oni. As such, you asked the universe for insight and learned that Ogres were once powerful Dark Fey. Their king broke the law of hospitality, giving evil and violence to those who did not earn it, and they were cursed by the breaking of the three laws, reduced to ravenous, gluttonous beasts. This curse, you found, can only be lifted if a Summer Lord invites an ogre into his home, under the laws of hospitality, and then the Dark Oni shall be reborn in full splendor, instead as pale and and flickering shades.

 

[Eltab]

#70 The location of the Holy Grail, or Excalibur - some artifact, long lost and thought to be only legend, with religious and/or political and/or cultural significance. What you do not know is how to get there from here.

#71 You found a book written by an aboleth (or servant thereof) describing human 'office politics'. (Think: Machiavelli's 'The Prince') As a result, you can detect the subtle signs of influence and string-pulling. Sometimes you can even detect the hidden strings being pulled. Were you to 'try this at home', you would certainly give yourself away to the aboleth master(s) of the book's author. Dare you put this knowledge to use; and if so, to what purpose?