Unofficial 5E Conversion

[orangefruitbat]

While I would love an official 5E conversion, I'm not willing to wait for WOTC. So I've started to make my own, and have begun working on some (very lazy) Character Creation notes.

Races: Eladrin are covered in the DMG so there's nothing to add there. For Devas, I'm just using the aasimar option in the DMG with a little bit of reskinning. If anyone wants to play a gnoll or minotaur from Ber, we can just use the Half-orc (maybe swap out orcish ferocity for a weakened version of Rampage, or a gore attack).

Themes: I don't want to add another level of rules to my game, so I'm creating new backgrounds for dockers, skyseers, etc. Most of these will be based on existing 5E backgrounds (Soldier for Yerasol Veteran, Sage for Skyseer, etc.), and will have their own little Feature. They won't get the special powers that Themes provided, but I think 5E provides enough options for this not to be necessary.

Firearms: in the DMG

Prestige Classes: Nope - not in my 5E game. I am, however, thinking about creating 5E feats that distill the best aspects of the prestige classes (i.e., a "Notorious Celebrity" feat). For those who have read or played all the adventures (I'm only reading adventure 2 right now), do the various PCs have a big impact on the campaign, or can they be safely skipped altogether?

Anyways, I'm going to start working on encounter conversions this week, and will post anything I come up with. If anyone has ideas or suggestions, feel free to share.

 

[Elfshire]

I would say the Player Themes do add to the campaign; I'm not sure I would necessarily *recommend* skipping out on them, but it's certainly doable. Since there's more themes than there could reasonably be PCs in the party, none of them have plot-critical roles; the closest that any of them come to that would be the Skyseer, but I just really like how the adventures have been doing a good job of throwing them a mysterious portent that comes true many sessions later.

Other stuff (which IS plot critical) will tend to happen to certain-themed characters, like

[sblock]
A Vekeshi Mystic will probably be the PC chosen to be part of the Unseen Court, and a Yerasol Veteran will probably become Risur's King
[/sblock]

But choices like that can also be made through simple observation of your party, and determining who best would fit there.

For my money, though, I think playing this game without a Skyseer, Spirit Medium, and Technologist is really missing out. The little freebies they get each adventure are really cool, and an easy way to make a PC feel like the spotlight is on them. On the other hand, Yerasol Veterans get almost nothing. I'm really struggling to make my YV Warden feel important/needed in the game, but I'd be surprised if he didn't make a new character at the end of this chapter.

 

[Morrus]

Themes are certainly the same as backgrounds in concept, but they are more powerful. It's a hard call to make. It would be weird having themes *and* backgrounds in the same game.

 

[orangefruitbat]

Here is a sample background for a Skyseer. I think this version covers the same concepts in the book, but is admittedly less powerful, and doesn't have the in-combat effects.

Skill Proficiencies: Arcana, Religion,
Tool Proficiencies: Navigators tools
Languages: 1 of your choice
Equipment: bottle of black ink, a quiz, a star map, navigators tools
Feature: Immediately prior to a period of extended rest (8 hours minimum) during
which the night sky is visible, you may focus your mind on the future and receive a prophetic dream regarding one question. Upon completion of your rest you awaken with insights into the future. It is up to the DM as to whether the reply is meaningful or useful.

 

[orangefruitbat]

Here's the next background I wrote up for Dockers:

*Skill Proficiencies:* Performance, Athletics
*Tool Proficiencies:* One musical instrument or artisan tools, vehicle (land)
*Equipment:* A musical instrument or painting tools, revolutionary pamphlets, set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 10 gp
*Feature: Worker Solidarity* You can always find people willing to listen to your protests of injustice. Whether it comes through radical leaflets distributed to oppressed workers, or graphitti on the factory walls, your voice will be listened to. If you decide to stage a public protest, you can always find mates willing to stand shoulder to shoulder with you.

 

[orangefruitbat]

2 more:

Eschatologists

Skill Proficiencies: Religion, History
Languages: Dwarven, plus one more (If you already speak Dwarves, choose another language).
Equipment: A well-worn copy of “The Proper Ending of Things” , a bottle of ink, a quill, blank parchment, a set of common clothes, and a belt pouch containing 15 gp.
Feature: Researcher. See PHB, p. 138.

Gunsmiths

Skill Proficiencies: Perception, Intimidation
Proficiencies: One type of artisan tools plus Firearms proficiency. (If you already have firearms proficiency, then select two types of artisan tools).
Equipment: One set of artisans tools, a set of schematics for a design of your own creation, a set of travellers clothes, and a belt pouch containing 15 gp.
Feature: Inventor. Given time and materials, you can customize a firearm with modification of your own design (subject to the DM’s approval). Example improvements include wrist slides, concealment of a pistol in another item, a holster in an unusual place, a double barrel version, a range scope, etc.


Note: Firearms will be handled using the standard rules in the DMG. Firearms will be martial weapons, with all martial characters starting as proficient. Other PCs will be able to train and learn the firearm proficiency using the downtime rules. At 250 gp for a pistol, I'm torn on whether gunsmiths should actually start with a firearm or not. I don't think it's overpowering per se, but seems unfair to everyone else.

 

[RangerWickett]

I'd consider having Themes be in addition to backgrounds, because a Criminal Skyseer or an Hermit Martial Scientist intrigues me, and lets players have flexibility in character backgrounds.

If you're keeping theme-based powers, Spirit Medium is kinda the strongest one, and so you'd want to balance the others relative to that. You can tone down the damage of the Vekeshi Mystic's ability, but 'being able to talk to the dead' is pretty phenomenal unless you put so many restrictions on it that it becomes useless.

I feel that some of the paragon paths/prestige classes offer some fun character schticks that just aren't in the current rules. I feel like it'd be hard to balance "I have a suit of steam-powered armor" into a single feat, but "I've invented a gun that shoots magic" might be doable. "I can kill you with my war flashbacks" and "I can talk to buildings" are also probably fine.

 

[orangefruitbat]

Thanks for the feedback re. prestige classes, which I'm still mulling over. As for themes/backgrounds, I'm still leaning towards the simplicity of just using backgrounds. If someone wants to be a hermit martial scientist, they can simply swap out one skill for survival. My group doesn't really lean towards super-complicated backstories, so I'm sure it will suffice for us. Speaking of backgrounds here are the next two:


Martial Scientist

Skill Proficiencies: Athletics, Insight
Proficiencies: One type of gaming set
Languages: One language of your choice
Equipment: A set of fine clothes, a set of bone dice or a deck of cards, a manual of fighting techniques, a belt pouch containing 10 gp
Feature: Worldly Warrior . After watching a combatant for one round, you can immediately tell where that person had trained (i.e., nation, fighting school, etc.). In addition, in non-hostile circumstances, you can gain access to rival fighting academies and training camps.

Mechanical Note: The actual combat abilities of martial scientists are provided through class abilities such as fighting styles and maneuvers. In 5E, most martial scientists are battle masters.

Spirit Medium

Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Religion
Languages: Two languages of your choice
Equipment: A set of fine clothes, candles and incense, a belt pouch containing 15 gp
Feature: Sensitive. By concentrating in an area, you can sense if someone was recently murdered there. Furthermore, if an area is actually haunted, you have the ability to communicate with the ghost (though it may still be hostile). If you are a spell caster, the spell Speak with Dead is automatically added to your list of known spells. You must still be of the correct level to cast 3rd level spells.

 

[born2streak]

The World Builder Blog has an interesting 5e conversion for the deva: http://worldbuilderblog.me/2014/07/29/what-a-deva/

 

[orangefruitbat]

And to finish up our 5E backgrounds...


Technologist

Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Persuasion
Tool Proficiencies: Two proficiencies of your choice
Equipment: A set of artisan’s tools (of your choice), a set of travellers clothes, a small bag of loose parts, and a bag containing 15 gp
Feature: Tinker. You gain the ability to create small contraptions akin to the gnome’s tinker ability (PHB p. 37). However, you do not gain the gnome’s tool proficiency. If for some strange reason, you decided to play a gnome, replace this redundant ability with two additional tool proficiencies.

Vekeshk Mystic

Skill Proficiencies: Athletics, Religion
Languages: Two languages of your choice
Equipment: A set of fine clothes, an elaborate mask, a book of Vekishi proverbs, a belt pouch containing 25 gp
Feature: Know the Guilty. You have a network of fellow mystics in positions of power in law enforcement, government, army and criminal underworld. You can use this network to pick up rumours and hints of foul deeds among prominent members of society. If you want proof of their guilt, you will probably have to do some additional digging.

Yerasol Veteran: just use the existing soldier background.

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Since we are just starting out, I've decided not to worry about prestige classes/paragon paths or feats for a while and instead focus on the actual adventure conversions. So the next update will begin with encounter conversion for the Axis of the World.