How can I make this backstory better I'm a ranger dragonborn

[Drakekonik]

Okay I have just started d&d and a made a dragonborn ranger and this is backstory but can you guys help me make it better:

Ferrum balosar was born in a small tribe of blue dragonborn he was born with a tail so he was a bit of an outcast among his tribe so he trained alone in the wilderness often he quickly became more fond of nature than of his family then while ferrum was exploring his tribe was attacked by a silver dragon when he came back his tribe was already dead but he managed to kill the beast

Sorry I'm new to d&d I'm not good at this whole thing

[Balthasaurus]

Hmmm... well, that backstory doesn't leave you with much to do when the story begins. If Ferrum has already killed the dragon, what else is there for him to do? Because dragons are immensely powerful creatures, I would suggest that maybe Ferrum did not kill the dragon, and is instead hunting it down as his quest.

Additionally, Silver dragons are good-aligned creatures. Unless your tribe did something horribly evil, the dragon would have little motive for destroying them. Think about what lead to the destruction of your clan, and why.

Also, consider the implications of you character having a tail. That doesn't really further your characters backstory much, maybe it indicates that there is something special about him that his clan didn't tell him, and he is trying to work out what that was.

I hope all of this helps! :smallbiggrin:

[Unoriginal]

Well, the story is not bad by itself, but you need to ask yourself a few questions:

-How did your character manage to kill the dragon? A dragon capable of destroying a village and kill everyone would not necessarily be the strongest, but they'd still need to be mighty. Especially since Dragonborns all have Breaths they can use to defend themselves.

-Why did a benevolent Silver Dragon attack those Dragonborns in the first place? Did they steal from the dragon's hoard?

-What effects did those events have on your character?

-What is your character's current goal?

[Wisefool]

First off, I would switch the offending Silver dragon to a Bronze dragon:


All bronze dragons share a deep and abiding hatred for blue dragons, and they are vigilant in protecting their homes from these interlopers.

So what made the Bronze attack the tribe? Bronze dragons are water dragons, so a strightforward scenario is if the tribe unwittingly settled to close to its lair (on the coast or near a lake). Or if you want to add layers, perhaps a rival dragonborn tribe pointed the Bronze dragon towards your tribe. As others have said, it is rather unlikely a lone dragonborn (and a Level 0 one at that) defeated a full fledged dragon (of any type), but having another dragonborn tribe masterminding the attack gives your character an outlet for his revenge that is within his capabilities.

[MarkVIIIMarc]

I think he needs another hook also. Perhaps a family member who may have escaped death as they were out trying to pay off the tribe's debt? A younger sibling who was fooling about in the woods just got lucky?

If u like it being a silver dragon who attacked I can see the dragon being lied to by an evil level 20 Bard or Rogue. Or maybe the leaders of your tribe were up to some capitalistic no good and forced the silver dragon's hand?

[Anymage]

What's the rest of the party playing?

First, there are a lot of fiddly details about the dragon that are probably better left open for now, so that both you and you DM can fill them in with something more appropriate later. Combined with the fact that I'm guessing this character will be low level, explaining why a dragon could wipe out the whole village but then be taken down by some lowbie will be jarring. (Not impossible, but very jarring.) Add in the way that a living dragon is giving your SM a plot hook on a silver platter, while a dead one can't really do anything, you're better off having just taken down some scavenging flunkies after the big bad left. (With kobolds being dragon fanboys, they fill this role ideally.) A good backstory doesn't just say where you've been, it also provides tools to propel you forwards.

Second, you're a skilled outdoorsman who lost his village. What keeps you from just retreating into the wilderness again to hang out with your animal friends? This is both part of the "propel you forwards" issue, and part of an important "give yourself a reason to be an adventurer, and to hang out with the other PCs" topic. Characters made in a vacuum can conflict thematically, personality-wise, and add an extra element of disjoint to the game that really needs to be there.

Third, following from the last, and most important overall. What ties do you have to the other PCs? Why do you trust them to have your back, and what gives you a reason to risk your hide for them? This is why most experienced groups want to have a "session zero" so that everybody can discuss their characters, say what themes and ideas they want to see, and encourage people to have connected backstories. It's just that much easier to get a game moving when the PCs have ties to each other and to the world.

[StoicLeaf]

Just going to use 5e fluff here to give you some ideas/filler



Ferrum balosar was born in a small tribe of blue dragonborn

Canonically, the Dragonborn of faerun are all in Tymanther. Furthermore, the scale coloring of a Dragonborn are largely irrelevant; they don't dictate alignment and most dragonborn have a "mix" of scale colorings. Why is there a tribe of monochromatic dragonborn?



tail

Why does this make him an outcast? What are your PC's feelings on the matter? Consider that Dragonborn are basically stereotypical anime samurai. Clan is important. Being dutiful and good at your job is important. Doing things for selfish reasons is bad (unless you're improving your skills at something, meta culture).



his tribe was attacked by a silver dragon when he came back his tribe was already dead but he managed to kill the beast

Why did the silver dragon attack your tribe. Silver dragons are, 99% of the time, good guys.
Also you killing the dragon would be a problem for me as a DM.
Dragons are the iconic apex predators of the world.
Jonny has-a-tail, who spends his days huffing tree bark doesn't just kill a dragon.
You're going to put some more thought into that part.

[Drakekonik]

Thanks guys I'm going to change the dragon to bronze and ferrum doesn't kill it he just draws blood (this fact is important because I'm going to multiclass sorcerer) four members besides ferrum survive