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Snig
2018-06-12, 11:24 PM
Hey guys. I just wanted to share the story of my new character "Zazie Fatrabbit". I just created her for my next campaign, and i'm really excited to play her. I would like to know what you guys think of the custom background as well. I don't think it's broken or anything and just looking for opinions.

https://i.imgur.com/1HeCbof.jpg
CHARACTER NAME: Zazie Fatrabbit
RACE: Halfling (Lightfoot)
CLASS: Rogue

AGE: 17
HEIGHT: 2' 11"
WEIGHT: 39 lb

EYES: Amber
SKIN: Caramel
HAIR: Honey Brown

ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Good
DEITY: Yondalla

PERSONALITY TRAITS
I can often be seen stroking my rabbit's foot when I'm anxious or in need of a bit of luck.
When entering the unknown, I don’t feel fear as much as I do wonderment.

IDEALS
Optimism. I’ve seen worse & it all worked out. Everything will befine. You’ll see.

BONDS
I want to live the life of adventure. Like in the stories my Grampy used to tell.

FLAWS
My superstitions rule me. Bad luck is the only thing's I fear, and I preform rituals to keep it at bay.


BACKGROUND: Born Lucky
All halflings are lucky, but even among them you are a extraordinary. You never plan your travel routes. You never get lost; you accidentally find shortcuts anyway. If you fall in the mud, you find a diamond ring in the muck. If you tumble off a cliff, your britches will snag on a root. You just can’t lose.
For whatever reason, Yondalla has truly blessed you with good fortune. Perhaps you are destine for great things? Will you let this gift go to waste or venture out into the world, seeking your destiny, guided by this seemingly divine luck?

SKILL PROFICIENCY: Acrobatics, Perception
TOOL PROFICIENCY: One type of gaming set, one type of musical instrument
EQUIPMENT: A set of traveler's cloth's, a walking staff, a gaming set (one of your choice), a lucky charm such as a rabbit foot or a small stone with a hole in the center (or you may roll for a random trinket on the Trinkets table in chapter 5 of the PHB), a belt pouch containing 15g.

FEATURE: Serendipity
Things have a way of working out for you. If you get lost in the woods, odds are you will find a shortcut out. If you’re hungry, a pie might accidentally fall off a baker’s cart. If an Orc warband is about to discover your camp, the Kings men might just arrive in time to run them off. When you’re in a situation where the outcome is uncertain, but will not be resolved with dice rolls, the DM may be inclined to rule in your favor. Keep in mind that this feature won’t prevent you from facing the consequences of any bad decisions you make, but it will help you avoid the worst of the worst.

CHARACTER BACKSTORY As she set off through the pumpkin patch, heading toward the treeline, Zazie's thoughts drifted back once again to the stories Grampy Fatrabbit used to tell. As a child she would cuddle up next to the wood stove, and listen to him recite the adventures of Charmaline, the brave heroine who stole treasure from the chamber of the mighty dragon Tiamat! or the one in which she solved the Chamber of a Thousand Traps! Stories about Brandobaris the dashing trickster, and master of stealth with his many narrow escapes and brushes with danger!

Enchanted by these stories, Zazie spent much of her childhood lost in imagination. Every rabbit hole became a delve into a dragon's lair! Every pool held hidden treasure beneath it's surface, guarded by an evil wizard; disguising himself as that toad over there on the rock! Each day she'd wander further and further from the village in search of adventure and later return home with fresh scrapes and bruises and a head full of the days escapades. The elders would only shrug and say "the youngster has fancy feet is all, she'll grow out of it". Zazie's mother however worried and would scold her and try to dissuade her from leaving the village.

Finally the call of adventure had become unbearable. During the night, Zazie loaded up her backpack, stuffed as many muffin's as she could fit into her satchel and slipped out through the back door, leaving a note on the windowsill for her mother which read...

"Dear Mum,
I've left to see the world! Don't worry about me, we both knew this day would come. I've seen to it that i'm well prepared and have everything I need to keep me safe on the road. I'll write as soon as I can, and i'll be back before too long. I love you very much. xoxo

Love: Zazie

p.s. Please look after the bunnies for me."

On her way out of the village she stopped by her Grandfather's home. He was expecting her, as Zazie had told him all about her plans. She knew she could trust him with her secret and that he'd understand. He had always nurtured her lust for adventure as he too in his younger days had a case of "Fancy Feet" and had ventured off into the wider world seeking adventures of his own.

As she hugged and said her good-byes to Grampy Fatrabbit, he said he had something for her. He hurried across the room and bent down, lifting up a floor board. Reaching down, he then came up holding something wrapped in a dusty old cloth. He handed it to Zazie, and as she removed the cloth she revealed a shortsword sheathed into a leather scabbard, a rabbits foot dangling from a small chain attached to its pommel. "If you find yourself in trouble, ask yourself "what would Charmaline do"?" said her grandfather. "Remember the stories sweet child, and may Yondalla's luck be with you."

With that he kissed her on the forehead, and watched as she disappeared among the pumpkin patch, heading off toward the treeline.

Quoxis
2018-06-13, 01:07 AM
GMs might find the „you‘re always lucky, never get lost and always avoid the worst by chance“ thing a bit intrusive (especially since not getting lost is a ranger class feature that even specifies a certain terrain, making your feature better in that one point), but on the other hand: how often is it a critical plot point for a character to get lost in a non-magical way? As a compromise, maybe make the feature even more like „if [X] happens, the GM might rule in your favor and have [Y] happen“ instead of the confident „yeah, you’re never hungry or lost or in danger or sad again“, maybe by putting the crunch in front of the examples.

Contrast
2018-06-13, 02:35 AM
I too worry that the background feature is a bit too broad in its scope and will likely be too powerful if used frequently or ignored by the DM completely (and either way is an unnecessary source of hassle/friction).

I'd try to hammer it down to something more concrete. Try to keep in mind the 'level' of some of the other backgrounds. A lot of them tend to either relate to improved access to something very specific (guild artisan, soldier, criminal) or be weaker but more generally applicable (sailor, urchin).

I'd suggest just refluffing the folk hero benefit along the lines of 'You always seem capable of landing on your feet and finding a sympathetic ear to your plight, even among strangers.'

Unoriginal
2018-06-13, 02:56 AM
I don't think any background feature should contains the words "you just can't lose".

Snig
2018-06-13, 05:45 AM
Solid advice guys. I'm going to look into refluffing an official background feature.

Vogie
2018-06-13, 08:53 AM
You can certainly do something similar mechanically without being irrevocably broken. A Halfling with the Lucky feat and 1 level in Divine Soul Sorcerer, for example, will give you Bless or Bane (giving your allies good luck or your enemies bad luck), Favored by the gods 1x/rest, 3 luck points/long rest, and the lucky Halfling critical fail avoidance.

I was thinking on using Variant Human with a single dip in Divine Soul Sorc to make Domino, the luck-based mutant from Deadpool 2.

Unoriginal
2018-06-13, 09:22 AM
Personally, to do something like that, I would homebrew a background with a "Fancy Feet" (as in the concept from the Mordenkainen's) ability that allows you to instinctualy feel of two paths is the most dangerous, when unsure which to take.

Snig
2018-06-13, 10:26 AM
You can certainly do something similar mechanically without being irrevocably broken. A Halfling with the Lucky feat and 1 level in Divine Soul Sorcerer, for example, will give you Bless or Bane (giving your allies good luck or your enemies bad luck), Favored by the gods 1x/rest, 3 luck points/long rest, and the lucky Halfling critical fail avoidance.

I was thinking on using Variant Human with a single dip in Divine Soul Sorc to make Domino, the luck-based mutant from Deadpool 2.

That's funny. Domino was actually my inspiration for this character. I plan on taking the lucky feat at level four and possibly a halfling racial feat Bountiful luck maybe. I'll look into the Divine Soul sorcerer