Otherworlder, Variant (5e Background)
Otherworlder, Variant[edit]
You are someone who ended up in a world of swords and sorcery, though you hail from some other place. Perhaps your home is similar to this one, or perhaps it is vastly different. Why are you here? How are you here? Was it for some divine purpose or part of some unholy plot? Who can say? Certainly not you, you just got here…
Skill Proficiencies: Investigation and Perception. You're gonna need it.
Tool Proficiencies: None. This is a different world, and even if you recognize some things, it doesn't mean you know how to use them
Weapons Proficiencies: Baseball bat (quarterstaff), firearms.
Languages: You speak your mother tongue. If your Dungeon Master allows it, you are magically granted the ability to understand and speak Common, but you can't read or write it until someone takes the time to teach you.
Equipment: You have the clothes on your back and whatever you were carrying at the time of your departure from your home (unless you were soul swapped with someone who already lives in this world, and then you have whatever equipment they were carrying). If you're an Otherworlder who normally goes around with a bag of some kind, this could mean anything from books to make up to a flashlight taser. Work with your DM for a specific list of equipment, but you most likely have a half charged cell phone, a tube of chapstick, hand sanitizer, a pack of gum, a handful of change, a wallet, three pens (one of which is dry), and a half-empty thing of tissues.
The Purpose of This Visit[edit]
Why are you here? What alignment of cosmic events led to your arrival in such an unusual place as this? There could be many reasons, although they may not become apparent to you for quite some time...
| d6 | The Purpose of This Visit |
|---|---|
| 1 | You were summoned by a God/Deity for some unknown purpose |
| 2 | A secluded sect of sorcerers tried to summon a God into a mortal form, using one of their own as a vessel. They uh…they got you instead |
| 3 | You were summoned by an Infernal/Abyssal force as a pawn in their presumably evil scheme. Lucky, lucky you |
| 4 | Fell through a threadbare patch in the fabric of reality and landed here. Could've been worse… |
| 5 | A devout follower prayed to their God for help with a situation and at about that moment you appeared. They're assuming you're the answer, but are you? Are you, really? |
| 6 | Summoned by an evil cult as a sacrifice in the exploitation of a loophole in their sacrificial handbook. |
Feature: Renown[edit]
"I heard they slew a dragon with one arm off and half their guts out, with nothin' but a kitchen knife." "Well I heard they stared down a basilisk and the basilisk turned to stone." This ain't you. You know it. I know it. But these guys don't know it. Every time you manage to avoid dying in the ditches and potholes that accumulate on the path to your destiny (whether that be to find your way home or explore this brave 'new' world), someone goes off with the story and gossips to the neighbor, and every time it's told, the story changes and exaggerates bit by bit until it comes back to you. Your name strikes awe and terror into the hearts of the average citizen, but when you introduce yourself, they either don't make the connection, or they think your mother must have had relations with a fabled hero and you're their illegitimate lovechild. When you are recognized, you see shuttered disappointment, confusion, and in rare cases, deepening respect.
Alternate Feature: Friends Tell Tales[edit]
You don't belong here. You don't know how to live here. You are most likely still alive because someone took pity on you and taught you the ropes. And with your awkwardness fitting in, you probably aren't going to be the most appealing prospect for an adventuring party. So maybe this friend of yours did you a favor and punched up your resume. And maybe those stories they spread of your accomplishments were embellished. A little. Perhaps the time you heard a noise, freaked out, and accidentally killed a rat became a stirring tale of how you prevented an outbreak of plague. Maybe this leads people to believe your abilities are greater than even you know. And if someone congratulates you on outmaneuvering a roving Orc warband that you've never heard of, you know who to blame, don't you? Well, they were just trying to help, after all...
Suggested Characteristics[edit]
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | OMG. WHAT. WHY. HOW. NO |
| 2 | Primitive Technology Cringe. |
| 3 | Our languages evolved differently, and your idioms and turns of phrase make no logical sense to me, or: the figurative 'I don't speak your language' |
| 4 | This looks/feels extremely similar to my favorite RPG and I am excited. |
| 5 | I'm not 100% sure...but I think I might be dreaming. |
| 6 | I have no idea what's going on and I'm uncomfortable with that. Information, please. |
| 7 | Let's just fix what needs fixing, play this plot out, and figure out how to send me home |
| 8 | I need a shock blanket, a cup of cocoa, and a therapist. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Determination. Nothing is more important to me than finding a way home. (Chaotic) |
| 2 | Fate. I must be here for a reason and I want to find out what that is. (Neutral) |
| 3 | Acceptance. If I can't find a way home, then I will make a home here somehow (Lawful) |
| 4 | The Good of the Many. I'll only go home if getting there won't hurt anyone. (Good) |
| 5 | Making the Best. I guess there's no harm in making a few improvements while I'm here. (Chaotic) |
| 6 | Winging it. This world's way more interesting than where I'm from. What's this? What's that? (Chaotic) |
| d8 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | I was rescued from death-by-ignorance and feel beholden to the people who kept me alive. |
| 2 | An old man claiming to be a wizard claims he can send me home if I get him some things. He might be lying, but can I really afford to risk it? |
| 3 | Someone gave up their body to bring me here, but I don't know anything about them. I'm sure that won't come back to bite me... |
| 4 | When I first arrived, I was enslaved by an evil force and while I did escape, I owe some serious payback |
| 5 | I'm trying to live up to the holy purpose it's assumed I was brought here for |
| 6 | I was happy at home and I would like to severely inconvenience the one who brought me here |
| 7 | I'm fighting against the evil being that claims to have brought me here |
| 8 | I don't miss home and I never will |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | Nothing is more important to me than finding a way home |
| 2 | My lack of knowledge of the land, history, or culture makes me seem rude and/or stupid |
| 3 | You live here and I don't, so I will believe you about anything because I can't afford not to. |
| 4 | If it's interesting, I have to know more. Gotta touch it, pick it up, and ask way too many questions about it |
| 5 | I literally don't speak your language, but at least I'm not further handicapped by anything else |
| 6 | This body isn't mine, and I'm still figuring out how to use it. |
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