Backgrounds

[TwoHeadsBarking]

This isn't a proposal. I'm not proposing anything. I just want a discussion, which may eventually lead to a proposal.

So, as an increasingly large number of you are aware, I've been on a character checking spree. Something I've noticed about is that a significant number of the new characters I've looked at (ok, three, but that's three out of four) have taken a PHB2 background instead of the Transitive Isles specific ones. I'm sure this is going to become increasingly common as time goes on, and I think something should be done about it.

Courses of Action that I think are decent ideas:

1. Ignore it. Just let things happen as they do. Older characters will just have different types of backgrounds.

Pros: No extra work required.
Cons: Creates a difference in power between characters. Generally, not a huge one. The older characters do get something of the short end of the stick, and may occasionally glare resentfully and these young upstarts with their choices. Also, the current backgrounds are hardly balanced as it stands. Compare Kingdom of Jade (+1 Insight, +2 Bluff in social settings) to Ea (+1 Insight, ability to potentially identify what kind of psychic monster is beating you up) if you disagree. Oh no, I can only lie to people? What a drawback*.

2. Abolish the current backgrounds. Everyone who currently has a background can replace it with a new one at their next level up. If you say you're from Bacarte, your word is good enough for me**.

Pros: Completely evens out the playing field.
Cons: A small amount of extra work. I suggest that the switch should be done while leveling because it's not a big enough deal to make the character go under review just for that. Also, we may lose a little flavor.

3. Abolish the current backgrounds, replace them with a limited selection of the new ones. Basically, the PHB2 has the Criminal background, which has a number of skills you can choose from to either get +2 to or have added to your class list. Well, right now we have backgrounds like Daunton and Kingdom of Jade. Currently, the Kingdom gives bonuses to Insight and Bluff. So under this suggested system, if you're from the Kingdom, you can have Insight or Bluff added to your class list or boosted (exclusive "or" in all cases). Or, you know, the extra language, I guess. I mean, if that's your thing.

Pros: A compromise between the above two suggestions. More balanced, but holds on to some flavor.
Cons: Still restricts choices. Will actually involve more work than #2, because we'd need to come up with each region's favored skills.


Anyway, those are my ideas. I like #2, myself. Thoughts?


*Yes, I'm aware that there are other uses of Bluff. I've never had one of them come up in game, and I would be surprised if you have found causing a distraction or feinting more useful overall than lying.

**Now, I know you're going to say, "But if he's from Bacarte he's a lying pirate! You can't trust his word!" Way ahead of you. You see, if he's not from Bacarte, then he's not a pirate, and therefore can be trusted when he says he's from Bacarte. If he is from Bacarte, then it doesn't matter if he's lying. I already know he's from Bacarte. So regardless of whether he is or is not from Bacarte, he must be from Bacarte. Pretty clever, don't you think?

 

[Lord Sessadore]

I like #3. It would probably be more work, because people rarely agree on the first try with these kinds of things. But I would like to hold onto our L4W regions, somehow.

 

[Moon_Goddess]

I like the 3rd option, with some sort of way or adding in the background I never took in the first place. I didn't know enough about the setting to have a guess, now I feel like I should have maid Larinza from the Imperium.

So I want to keep the sense of regions but leave a way for the background that I missed before

 

[JoeNotCharles]

I like the fact that our current backgrounds have two smaller bonuses - the regular ones are +2 for one skill, ours are +1 for one skill and some other bonus. Seems fair. (We could maybe take a look at them and make sure they're all balanced with each other.)

I do think for each of our backgrounds we should pick a skill to make a class skill as an option, the way the PHB2 backgrounds do it.

 

[stonegod]

A #3 type approach would seem to be best to me: Make PHB2 style backgrounds for the regions and allow choice from either the PHB2 or the region specific ones. The Eberron Player's Guide seems to follow this approach; its only the FRPG that uses the funky types of BGs.

 

[Oni]

Put me down for #1.

Magnus has one of the old backgrounds and it suits him well enough, the difference is so small I'm having a hard time caring if someone else gets to pick a new and shiny one.

The flip side of that, I'm not a fan of making the new backgrounds limited and tied to region. Because then you'll have some people selecting their point of origin just for a bonus, not because they particularly wanted to be from there. Others will be from the place they deem most appropriate for the background and thus may wind up with something that is basically useless, or even counter to their concept. I like them general, because people have all sorts of backgrounds no matter where they come form. Someone from the Kingdom of Jade could have been an apprentice, a criminal, a noble, a farmer, a soldier and on and on forever. I would venture to say that two criminals from different lands, or two soldier are more likely to have things in common that a woodcarver and a noble from the same city.

 

[Lord Sessadore]

Well, if we kept the PHB2 backgrounds as-is and revamped the L4W region bonuses to the same format, then we have the best of both worlds, right Oni? At least, that's what I'm sort of going for with #3.

I suppose that, whatever we do, we could also say that characters with the "old region bonuses" could just keep them if they want, or switch to the new ones (assuming we do something like #3). It will be a small enough difference that it's negligible; I'm not inclined to worry about it.

 

[CaBaNa]

I'm inclined to let anyone make up a background that gives them +2 whatever single skill, +1 to two skills, add said skill onto class skill list, or +1 to what not and an encounter reroll on what not.

So long as they eventually mesh into the Living World, for me that's things like; picking a region, connecting ties with existing characters and NPC's, creative backgrounds, hooks, or kickers that forward the setting.

That way, mechanics don't interfere with the setting. Where you're from can have more to do with where the character belongs than what benefit you can squeeze from the background.

[sblock=21 and over in the states]
been drinking, excuse poor grammar, and casual spelling errors.
[/sblock]

 

[Atanatotatos]

[sblock=Cabana]I'm sure yu've been drinking awesomely, too, considering your line of work, lol!
Did I mention that I love wine?[/sblock]

 

[fireinthedust]

PH2:
pro: everyone who owns it will have access to it, and why not use something in the DDI that you paid for?
Pro: more ability to make the character you want (like a sorcerer/mc Rogue with stealth rather than thievery)
con: it's not as setting-fun as regions here
Con: it's generic, so no emersion: you don't learn anything about L4W

L4W:
Pro: setting is fun, and you emmerse better
Pro: more community-built material
Con: you come, read them, and can't use the WOTC backgrounds that you paid money for, just for the sake of emersion *in a pre-determined way*
Con: it doesn't fit with the build you want (even if you're a sorcerer who snuck around his master's house like a thief, you can never learn stealth if you're from Daunton)


All in all, I think more variety is more fun when you get the hang of it. I think that, if PH2 is used, it would be a good idea to decide when racial feats actually work, and where. What events for example, are wide-spread enough that they could affect new PCs?

I'm almost willing to propose "Historical backgrounds". Like, if I run a high-level adventure and there's a flight of dragons mashing, say, Bacarte, we could say "you developed a hatred of dragons that made you want to adventure: +2 vs. dragonfear saves" or something, due specifically to my adventure happening on Barcarte.