Psycho (5e Background)
Psychopath[edit]
You are a psychopath, who as a child, was mentally broken and shattered, being left with a mind that cannot comprehend reality in the same way as others. Because of your shattered mind, you behave, speak, and act differently than any other sane person, switching personalities on the dime, and taking on completely different personas in an instant, with no forewarning to it. What broke your psyche as a child?
Skill Proficiencies: Deception, Intimidation
Tool Proficiencies: Choose one between thieves' tools or poisoner's kit.
Languages: Two language based upon your Breaking Point.
Equipment: A set of Bloodstained Common Clothes, an eerie mask made for you by your mother, a small blade of your choice (i.e. a hatchet, sickle, knife, etc.), a wind up music box that plays an eerie tune from your childhood, and a bloody coin purse with 15 gold.
"There is something wrong about this, oh so very wrong, yet it feels so right. Are you crazy? No, I can't be crazy, I'm perfect. No, you're a monster. I'm not a monster. You are a monster, and a being of evil. No, I'm perfect, everyone else is crazy. Wait, what was that sound? It was nothing. But that is where you are wrong, it was everything, if only you could see that."
Breaking Point[edit]
Something during your childhood caused your mind to break, leaving you in this unstable state. Was it a traumatic event, a life of darkness, an encounter with a creature only believed to be in nightmares, or with that of a demon?
| d8 | Breaking Point |
|---|---|
| 1 | As a child, you watched your family/tribe be butchered and slaughtered. You were the only survivor. (One of your choice from Dwarvish, Elvish, Giant, Gnomish, Goblin, Halfling, or Orc.) |
| 2 | As a child, you were possessed by a devil, who forever broke your sanity in an attempt to take over the entirety of your body. (Infernal.) |
| 3 | As a child, a creature made completely of nightmares woke you in your bed, and told you unspeakable things, forever breaking your sanity. (Abyssal.) |
| 4 | As a child, you were abducted by Mind Flayers, who conducted terrible experiments on you and your mind, leaving your sanity forever shattered. (Deep Speech.) |
| 5 | As a child, you were touched by a deity of some sort, showing you the secrets and truths of the universe. The knowledge was so much to take in, your sanity broke, as you try to comprehend the knowledge you were given. (Celestial.) |
| 6 | As a child, you were taken from a massacre as an addition to a dragons treasure horde. The conditions left your sanity broken and even further deteriorating. (Draconic.) |
| 7 | As a child, you were abducted by a creature of the Fey out of curiosity. The both mystical and nightmarish Feywilds have permanently left their mark upon your sanity and mind. (Sylvan.) |
| 8 | As a child, you were raised in the Underdark, where everyday was a fight for survival against what can only be described as living nightmares. The things you had to do to survive have forever branded your psyche and sanity. (Undercommon.) |
Feature: Broken Mind[edit]
You can't escape from everything, and this includes yourself. Your mind was broken and has left your psyche clinging for any bit of sanity that remains. This tends to have your psyche in a constant conflict, with both your sanity and insanity fighting for control. A conversation can begin with one, but end with the other. You are not one person, but two within one vessel. Your personality can change on a dime, leaving many to be unnerved by your presence as you converse with them, or are even near them. This tends to leave people avoiding you as often as possible.
Alternate Feature: Collapsing Reality[edit]
When your mind broke, so did your perception of reality. You see the world in a different way than what most would perceive. You believe that there are things where there is nothing, or nothing where there is something, like a door that won't open where there is no actual door, or a little girl where a night hag stands. You cannot tell the difference between an illusion created by your insanity and the realities of the world around you.
Suggested Characteristics[edit]
While the standard background only has one point in each, your insanity has broken you to the point where you have two separate personas, Sane and Insane. You will pick one from both the Sane and Insane categories. To make a good psychopath, you want to be flexible, able to adapt to your changes in persona and behaviors.
| d8 | Personality Trait (Sane) |
|---|---|
| 1 | Not everyone is bad, only those who hide it. |
| 2 | Everyone has a battle they are fighting, remember that. |
| 3 | I tend to find shiny things attractive... even if they aren't mine... |
| 4 | I tend to stare off into the distance sometimes, lost in thought... |
| 5 | I try to help others who are worse off than me. |
| 6 | Sometimes I get frustrated when I can't comprehend something. |
| 7 | When you really want something, you have to work for it. |
| 8 | Sometimes, doing something insane is what the world needs. |
| d8 | Personality Trait (Insane) |
|---|---|
| 1 | I can't trust you, or anyone! I can't trust me! |
| 2 | I get twitchy when around people I don't know. |
| 3 | I could care less if we all die, as long as it's fun. |
| 4 | What was that? Did you hear something? I heard something? |
| 5 | I always end up cackling during times of seriousness. |
| 6 | When I am left to myself, I must be occupied or others will become my occupation, and they will be beautiful... |
| 7 | I am beautiful, I am beautiful, I am beautiful, I am beautiful... |
| 8 | For all you know, I'm the sane one here! |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Rules. I can not allow my other self to break the rules. It is the only way I can keep us safe from myself. (Lawful) |
| 2 | Self Control. I must resist the urges my other self wishes to have done. (Good) |
| 3 | Empath. I know the trauma and pain some have been through, and I must help them through it so they don't fall victim to themselves. (Good) |
| 4 | Spontaneous. Any thing can happen. I die, you die, we all die, or nothing happens. Magic in the mystery. (Chaotic) |
| 5 | Paranoia. They're out to get me, I know it, I can see it in their eyes. They hate me, they want to kill me. Kill or be killed! (Evil) |
| 6 | Ticking Time-Bomb. It's only a matter of time... It's only a matter of time... It's only a matter of time... (Chaotic) |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | I don't want to be like this forever, I'll do anything to rid myself of this torment. |
| 2 | I can't lose my other self! It's a part of me, and who I am! |
| 3 | I blame everyone else for what happened to me. I will get my revenge. |
| 4 | I must show everyone the torment I live in everyday. I can't be alone in this. |
| 5 | I wish to show everyone their other self, so they may truly discover who they are. |
| 6 | I want to control my other self so I may be two minds in one. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | The voices... The voices... never... stop... |
| 2 | It is so tempting to act upon my lust and desire... and sometimes... I do... |
| 3 | It doesn't matter what people say to me. I'm not crazy, I'm not a monster, I'm perfect... |
| 4 | I... Am... A... God... |
| 5 | Sometimes, I freeze up in tense moments, planning when I should be acting. |
| 6 | I... can't... stop... killing... must... finish... what... I... started... |
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