Level Up (A5E) Cultures and the Difficulty of Third Party Development

[Steampunkette]

You made Cultures so all-encompassing that it's really hard to design a Culture that isn't just "Cosmopolitan but with a few different benefits" and I am mad about it!

... Well not really -mad-. Just ... Damn. This is gonna be hard to build onto without second-guessing design choices.

Kudos on making something so -diverse- that it covers most every trope and core concept.

Fortunately for me, while you did a lot of interesting environmental cultures (Shadow/Deep cultures, Forsaken, Forest, Etc) you didn't really do any Desert or Maritime Cultures.

So I'm gonna try and knock those out before you can get out the fully edited Adventurer's Guide which totally has those cultural types covered!

 

[Steampunkette]

Desert Dweller​

Desert Dwellers live in places where water is scarce, exposure is a constant danger, and plant and animal life are heavily adapted to life among dunes or upon barren stone. Whether they're goatherds tending to flocks of sheep as they migrate across a desert with the seasons, or holdouts in a small fort largely lost to the sands, these hardy people thrive in an inhospitable locale.

Often such places are rife with danger, however. Whether it's bandits seeking to avoid capture stumbling upon an easy mark, or hungry animals and monsters stalking the dunes, Desert Dwellers must remain vigilant against potential threats. A reality which can make them insular and xenophobic, particularly when they possess a source of water in a place that largely lacks the vital substance. But many desert cultures act counter to that assumption, actively engaging and welcoming outsiders to share in their humble bounties for the chance to learn of the world beyond their camps or canyon walls.

What leads people to such a life? For some it is fear of the crush of large cities and the inherent risk of losing yourself within them. For others it is simply the tradition they were raised in. Still others seek the sands and stones of deserts as a place of refuge from what they once knew, or a fraught past which cannot easily find it's way through a sandstorm.

Characters raised in a Desert Dwelling culture share a variety of traits in common with one another.

On Shifting Sands​

As one who spends their life in places prone to dune collapses, rockslides, and occasionally mudflats you're very adept at knowing where to put your feet, and ignore difficult terrain caused by earth or stone. In addition, you gain an expertise die when attempting to hide in an area where sand or unworked stone can be taken advantage of to hide.

Accustomed to the Desert​

Burning sands and blazing suns are constant companions to those who live among the dunes. Whenever you interact with an environmental challenge related to sand, heat, or canyons you gain an Expertise die on any ability or skill check to navigate or resist the elements.

Desert Survival​

You are proficient in the Perception and Survival skills, and gain Expertise to Survival checks to gather supplies in desert environments.

Languages​

You speak the dominant language of the area you live in, as well as any one primary language and one sublanguage of your choice.

 

[Faolyn]

I think most new cultures are going to be either centered around a specific thing (like the Dragoncult) or are going to be setting- or heritage-specific.

 

[Steampunkette]

I think most new cultures are going to be either centered around a specific thing (like the Dragoncult) or are going to be setting- or heritage-specific.

Agreed! So here's the Maritime Culture:

Maritime​

Whether you've spent your life diving from canoes to search the Shallow Sea for relics or upon a bireme on the Khufu traveling from port to port, Mariners live upon the sea and only spend time on the shore between voyages. Some such Mariners are fishermen or merchants plying their trade across the water, soldiers traveling to distant battlefields, or those seeking peace far from others, but there will always be Pirates and Raiders sailing from victim to victim, staying afloat by turning blue water red.

Seas may be a place to avoid warfare and the strife of cities, but even a ship is not proof against danger. The aforementioned pirates sail the Khufu to attack merchant ships and travelers, while below the waves come sea serpents and other horrors of the deep of whom endless stories are told by old salts.

Life on the sea does have it's simple pleasures, such as the camraderie of a crew who work together to keep the ship afloat and the music and games which pass the time so pleasantly when all beyond is water to the distant horizon.

Aquatica​

Living the aquatic life gives you significant advantages in the water over landlubbers, to be sure. You are able to hold your breath for 4 minutes plus your Constition modifier rather than 1. In addition you gain a swim speed of 20ft. If you have a swim speed from another source you instead increase that swim speed by 10ft.

Sailor's Life​

You gain proficiency in one musical instrument, one game, and water vehicles.

Old Salt​

You recognize who has and who hasn't lived the hard life on the sea. After you speak with a person for 1 minute you can use an action to make either an Insight check opposed by your target's Deception check. On a success you learn the following information about them:

• Whether they have a lower Constitution than yourself
• Whether they are a sailor: If so you also know what kind of sailing they did (Piracy, Mercantile, Fishing, Etc)
• Whether they are trained in Water Vehicles

Languages​

You speak the dominant language of the area you sailed in, as well as any three Primary languages, or one Primary and one Sublanguage, of your choice.

 

[Steampunkette]

How about an out and out Cultist culture that is separate from the Dragoncult?

Cultist​

In the cities and in the sands, hiding in dark forests or cavern systems, live cults to every imaginable creature and concept. Most are benign, irrelevant. A handful of people or families who spend their time performing nonsensical daily rituals while living in their little communities, farmers and gatherers outside of the occasional strange belief.

But there are darker, unspeakable, cults in the world. Those which follow dark powers and hide their true nature in public to live among the uninformed. Among potential victims. These cults tend to be violent and criminal and occasionally somewhat magical.

Whether you have escaped the cult's oppressive secrecy, are still a member, or are the last survivor after enemies or uncontrolled monsters killed your compatriots, you still learned quite a bit under their tutelage. Lessons most Cultists carry through the rest of their lives.

Secrets kept Safe​

You gain Expertise on both Deception and Stealth checks made to either appear innocent or hide in a crowd. In addition, you gain advantage on Stealth or Sleight of Hand checks to hide icons, tattoos, or other symbols of faith, as well as tiny objects or tattoos of similar size.

Care must be Taken​

Your insight into other people's feelings can be uncanny. If you roll an Insight check against a target and get a 17 or higher, total, you can almost peer into their mind, and are able to glean a single prevalent thought they are currently having, as if you had used the spell Detect Thoughts. This insight lasts for 3 rounds. Once you have used this ability you cannot do so, again, until you take a short or long rest.

Trappings of the Cult​

You learn 1 cantrip of your choice from the Warlock or Druid spell lists. In addition, a dagger in your hands deals 1d6 damage rather than 1d4, though other abilities can raise this value normally.

Languages​

You speak the dominant language of the area you live in, as well as one Sublanguage and one Esoteric Language of your choice.

 

[Faolyn]

Yeah, I don't get why they made Dragoncult into a culture but Cultist into a background. I'm guessing the writer has a game that has a lot of dragon cults. I made a "Floating Villager" (houseboat village) culture for the same reason--one of my games is built along a world-river.

For Secrets Kept Safe, I suggest that you specify that it allows you to hide Tiny things. I'd also limit Care Must Be Taken to rolls of nat 20 or give them the ability to cast detect thoughts at 3rd level.

 

[Ixal]

I don't see why dragoncult would be a culture.
"Religious" maybe for cultures dominated by clergy and their lives revolving around religious rituals, but that would not be dragon specific. "Dragoncult" would just be one variation of that.

 

[Steampunkette]

I think they picked Dragoncult because it gave them a way to influence the more magical aspects of Dragonborn (and ostensibly Kobolds) while playing with a core idea of a subculture hidden within a greater society. While Dragonbound is the more out in the open version of the same concept.

Meanwhile cultist characters -can- just choose the Godbound culture (Or Forsaken, depending on how they grew up) and slap the Cultist background on it. One of my players actually intended to do just that, and there's nothing wrong with it. I just felt a more generalized cult culture would be useful.

By the way, @Faolyn, I took your advice on the hiding things option. And made it a 1/short rest ability to read someone's mind. But I really do think it's important to play up the mindreading aspect of the Unspeakable Cultist, and I'd rather not make it into "Cast a spell once per day" since that would give it Vocal, Seen, and Material components.

It might work better on a natural roll of 17 or higher, too... I just wanted to make it particularly accessible as an option to play up the mystic nature of cultists in the SotSA Setting.