Izmir Stinger
2009-03-10, 07:49 PM
I don't know the official rules for backgrounds in PHB2, but examples are presented in a few Dragon Magazine articles, so I think I know what is intended. EDIT: Twin Multiclass Feats Added PEACH
Background: Identical Twins
Twin births are somewhat common among Humans and Halflings, among whom approximately 1 in 35 pregnancies result in two or more births. This number would likely be higher, but the tragedy of twins is that a woman pregnant with more than one baby is more likely to miscarry, have stillborn children and/or die in childbirth. Twin births are less common among other races, and extremely rare among the Eladrin and their sister races, the Elves and the Drow. Dragonborn twins are called nest-mates, and are unique from the twins of other races in that they do not necessarily have the same birthday; their eggs were laid at the same time, but might hatch weeks apart. Even some pairs of Warforged have claimed to be twin siblings, though it is not entirely clear what they mean by this as Warforged are not born. Twins can be of opposite gender (in fact, this is the most common combination for twins), look as different as any other pair of siblings and can have very dissimilar personalities. They tend to be closer than other siblings, and will share many childhood experiences, but are otherwise not particularly exceptional.
Identical twins, on the other hand, are much more rare and much more special. Different races and cultures have different explanations for why some twins are identical copies of each other. Some say that identical twins are a "blessing" of Sehanine - often saying it with irony, as identical twins are often much more difficult to raise than normal children. Others think that identical twins share a soul that was split into two bodies because the pregnant mother came into contact with some stray magical phenomenon or (in more superstitions communities) some sort of demonic influence. Some sages that have studied the internal workings of the body theorize that a single baby in the earliest stages of growing in the mother's womb can, for some unknown reason, split into two babies (or "embryos," as they call babies in this stage of growth) without killing it. This causes two people with an identical set of "inherited traits" to grow into infants and be born. Most appearance and personality traits are in fact inherited from your ancestry, they claim, though odd combination of traits can cause some people to be more dissimilar from from their relatives than others. Normal twins, they say, start as two separate "embryos" and are otherwise no different than normal brothers and sisters.
Whatever the cause, identical twins of all races have some unique shared characteristics. They don't just look alike, they think alike - sometimes to a degree rivaling telepathy - allowing unparalleled efficiency at teamwork. As children, many develop a language that only they can understand. This happens with many normal twins, too, but most forget this language as they grow up. The secret language of identical twins is more expressive and sophisticated, and some can continue to use it into adulthood. There are also a large number of pranks, cons, and socially advantageous activities that can only be accomplished by being in two places at once - an ability that is the sole purview of magic and identical twins - and twins don't set off any magic detecting wards.
Playing Identical Twins
If you choose "Identical Twins" as your background, you have an identical twin. Your twin is another player in the party, who must also take this as her background. This player's character must be the same race and gender as your character. Your characters must have the same height and physical description (with variations for hair style, body art/jewelry, and birthmarks allowed) and should generally weigh about the same +/- approximately 10%. Any other personality traits such as quirks and habits should be very similar. If your campaign setting has regional languages/dialects or other characteristics based on where you come from or the circumstances of your birth, you must also have these traits in common. EDIT: Dragonborn twins have the same damage type for their breath weapon. Gensai twins manifest the same element. Ability scores used for racial attack powers may differ, as this is a characteristic of practice or training rather than genetics.
For your background benefit, choose one of the following (you must both choose the same one):
Osmotic Learning: Both you and your twin select your starting trained skills based on the normal rules for your race and respective classes. Once you have both made these selections, you may choose to be trained in one skill that your twin is trained in, and she may choose to be trained in one skill that you are trained in. You may not retrain the skill you learned from your twin, nor can she retrain the skill you learned from her (and vice versa).
Shared ability: You and your twin gain a +2 to all skill checks with a single skill that both of you started with training in.
Secret Language: You and your twin can communicate in a secret language that no one else can understand. It is not possible for another person to learn this language, no matter how much time they spend listening to you use it. It is not possible to teach this language and you wouldn't want to anyway; this is something special you share with your sibling. Magical translation of the language will be imprecise (similar to software translation) as twins don't have to express every idea or nuance fully; they will instinctively understand things that they have not explicitly communicated. This language technically has no written form, though phonetic spelling of the words in this language can be used to communicate simple messages. This language is very efficient; an idea can be communicated with this language in one half as many words and one quarter as much time as it would take to communicate the same idea in common.
Background: Identical Twins
Twin births are somewhat common among Humans and Halflings, among whom approximately 1 in 35 pregnancies result in two or more births. This number would likely be higher, but the tragedy of twins is that a woman pregnant with more than one baby is more likely to miscarry, have stillborn children and/or die in childbirth. Twin births are less common among other races, and extremely rare among the Eladrin and their sister races, the Elves and the Drow. Dragonborn twins are called nest-mates, and are unique from the twins of other races in that they do not necessarily have the same birthday; their eggs were laid at the same time, but might hatch weeks apart. Even some pairs of Warforged have claimed to be twin siblings, though it is not entirely clear what they mean by this as Warforged are not born. Twins can be of opposite gender (in fact, this is the most common combination for twins), look as different as any other pair of siblings and can have very dissimilar personalities. They tend to be closer than other siblings, and will share many childhood experiences, but are otherwise not particularly exceptional.
Identical twins, on the other hand, are much more rare and much more special. Different races and cultures have different explanations for why some twins are identical copies of each other. Some say that identical twins are a "blessing" of Sehanine - often saying it with irony, as identical twins are often much more difficult to raise than normal children. Others think that identical twins share a soul that was split into two bodies because the pregnant mother came into contact with some stray magical phenomenon or (in more superstitions communities) some sort of demonic influence. Some sages that have studied the internal workings of the body theorize that a single baby in the earliest stages of growing in the mother's womb can, for some unknown reason, split into two babies (or "embryos," as they call babies in this stage of growth) without killing it. This causes two people with an identical set of "inherited traits" to grow into infants and be born. Most appearance and personality traits are in fact inherited from your ancestry, they claim, though odd combination of traits can cause some people to be more dissimilar from from their relatives than others. Normal twins, they say, start as two separate "embryos" and are otherwise no different than normal brothers and sisters.
Whatever the cause, identical twins of all races have some unique shared characteristics. They don't just look alike, they think alike - sometimes to a degree rivaling telepathy - allowing unparalleled efficiency at teamwork. As children, many develop a language that only they can understand. This happens with many normal twins, too, but most forget this language as they grow up. The secret language of identical twins is more expressive and sophisticated, and some can continue to use it into adulthood. There are also a large number of pranks, cons, and socially advantageous activities that can only be accomplished by being in two places at once - an ability that is the sole purview of magic and identical twins - and twins don't set off any magic detecting wards.
Playing Identical Twins
If you choose "Identical Twins" as your background, you have an identical twin. Your twin is another player in the party, who must also take this as her background. This player's character must be the same race and gender as your character. Your characters must have the same height and physical description (with variations for hair style, body art/jewelry, and birthmarks allowed) and should generally weigh about the same +/- approximately 10%. Any other personality traits such as quirks and habits should be very similar. If your campaign setting has regional languages/dialects or other characteristics based on where you come from or the circumstances of your birth, you must also have these traits in common. EDIT: Dragonborn twins have the same damage type for their breath weapon. Gensai twins manifest the same element. Ability scores used for racial attack powers may differ, as this is a characteristic of practice or training rather than genetics.
For your background benefit, choose one of the following (you must both choose the same one):
Osmotic Learning: Both you and your twin select your starting trained skills based on the normal rules for your race and respective classes. Once you have both made these selections, you may choose to be trained in one skill that your twin is trained in, and she may choose to be trained in one skill that you are trained in. You may not retrain the skill you learned from your twin, nor can she retrain the skill you learned from her (and vice versa).
Shared ability: You and your twin gain a +2 to all skill checks with a single skill that both of you started with training in.
Secret Language: You and your twin can communicate in a secret language that no one else can understand. It is not possible for another person to learn this language, no matter how much time they spend listening to you use it. It is not possible to teach this language and you wouldn't want to anyway; this is something special you share with your sibling. Magical translation of the language will be imprecise (similar to software translation) as twins don't have to express every idea or nuance fully; they will instinctively understand things that they have not explicitly communicated. This language technically has no written form, though phonetic spelling of the words in this language can be used to communicate simple messages. This language is very efficient; an idea can be communicated with this language in one half as many words and one quarter as much time as it would take to communicate the same idea in common.