D&D General Oh Please give me some Happy Backgrounds!!

[Piperken]

... but on the other hand I always think: Why would a happy character with an intact social network and support system and a loving family... why would they go on deadly adventures? If they are happy, would they not stay in their happy life with their family, farming and enjoying life?...

Conscription is/was a thing in many nation states/cultures.

"I was born the second son of an itinerant farmer." (welp...) (also very much a thing in many cultures.)

Fairly common to have a positive, stable upbringing, and still find yourself on the road... :3

 

[DrunkonDuty]

I had a girlfriend with BPD. Those were interesting times.

I've just binged Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and let's just say there were a lot of behaviour patterns I recognised.

 

[Retros_x]

Conscription is/was a thing in many nation states/cultures.

That could be an interesting backstory, but I wouldn't default to it. Someone fleeing from conscription would be a typical fish out of water character, being away from his homelands. (In their homeland they would do the opposite of adventuring, staying down and hide). Also as to my knowledge in pre modern times conscription was only in times of war as militia and the standing army was smaller or non existent (for example in medieval europe where many settings derive from).

I don't see how itinerant farmer makes you an adventurer in the D&D sense. Being on the road doesn't mean you dive in dragon lairs, you could just stay your happy life as farmer or merchant. On the road, but not putting yourself more in danger than you need to.

 

[Retros_x]

And of course there are backstories that aren’t exactly happy but also aren’t tragic. Grew up on the street and pickpocketed a knight who took a shine to the young thief and took them in, stuff like that.

These are my personal favorite backstories. I don't like the "happy farmer wants to go on adventure" because I don't like playing naive characters and also I often can't grasp how that happy farmer becomes a warlock just like that for example. Or a druid. There must be something more, some actual quest, some upbringing that led them on that way. A happy farmer doesn't get taken in by a knight, why would they.

But I also don't like the complete tragic and dark backstories, that are way too much. I like stuff like your example - there is nothing to gain in their old life, so they take on the adventurers life. But they are not necessarily traumatized - The traumas happen on the adventure!