Sea Nomad (5e Background)

Sea Nomad

You lived your life in a itinerary seafaring community whose life based on fishing, trading, exploring and sometimes plundering. You lived on floating cities or an autonomous fleet, with or without a small Island as base or capital, always settling near coastal cities, beautiful islands and bountiful shores. Your community may be a traditional seafaring tribe, a nation living in exodus after a catastrophe that assolate their homeland, or a Pirate Nation which are at war with the World. In your society, which can or not have a rigid hierarchy, people may pursue any path their desire, from fighting to teaching, fishing and entertainment, but every member knows since childhood how to sail and how to survive. And as the Sea does accept everyone, your community also is open to help and accept those who are in need or trully want to join.

Skill Proficiencies: Choose 2: Athletics, Survival, Perception, Acrobatics, Nature.

Tool Proficiencies: Navigators Tools, vehicles(water)

Languages: none.

Equipment: A fishing trident (it's a tool, it will break if used in combat) or a knife, 50 feet of silk rope, 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), a set of common clothes, and a pouch containing 10g

Types of Communities (Specialization)

d6	Specialization
1	Nomadic Tribe Your people are a proud nomadic tribe with ancestral heritage of seafaring and exploration.
2	Leviathan Hunters Your people are hunters, and their lives turn around looking for gargantuan creatures to hunt them. Although agressive, the Hunters have a deep respect with the Hunt and the Nature, and every part of the creature is used to the benefit of the community.
3	Exodus Your people used to live on the land, but a catastrophe pushed them to the Sea, as it was the only place they would survive. Now they keep sailing from island to island, departing whenever is needed, and still mourning for their lost home.
4	Merchant Enclave Your people lives in a floating city, being governed by a cunning Merchant Enclave. Your city follows the most prosperous trade routes, and is a haven for both honest traders and smugglers.
5	Sea Worshipers Your people are devout of Sea Deities. Those Deities could be good or evil, but the community will follow they and their Clerics or Cultists.
6	Pirate Nation Your people live in an Armada with numerous pirate ships wich sail away plundering other ships and looking for treasures, to them come back to the Nation. Usually, all the burden and the Bounty are shared among the members of the community. Almost every Pirate Nation are considered criminal, but kingdoms still look for them asking for help.

Feature: Sea Shanties

Storytelling was a pillar of your people's culture. You know by mind many Sea Shanties and tales of bravery, adventure, dread and romance in the Sea, being able to use it to draw the attention (or distract) a crowd or a NPC. As some of those tales may be true, you receive a proficience bonus to Wisdom rolls in any check related to the Sea.

Variant Feature: Experienced crewmate

Some people may have chosen to live and work in ships. But not you. You were born on it, molded by it. So, you do have a proficience bonus on Dexterity rolls when using ropes or when moving trough a ship or any other water vehicle (if the DM thinks it fits to the action and to the character).

Suggested Characteristics

d8	Personality Trait
1	Everything that reminds me of the Sea brings me peace and joy.
2	I love to share stories, food and music.
3	I'm used to have a lot of work and responsabilities.
4	I'm very supertiscious and deep religious.
5	I like to share my happiness with people by giving gifts.
6	I feel like my life isn't over yet, there are things out of the Sea for me to live.
7	Only the Sea knows my secrets and true feelings.
8	I tend to party hard with my friends, and have great reputation for being drunk.

d6	Ideal
1	Discipline The Sea knows how to be harsh, and only with discipline and everyone following their responsabilities we can survive and share the prosperity! (Lawful)
2	Fraternity In the Sea, people understand that we need each other to live, and only trough union, kindness and fraternity we can prosper and always have someone to help us when we need. (Good)
3	Fairness The Sea treats everyone in the same way, giving calm waters or storms without distinction. And so should us. (Neutral)
4	Adventure Life is short, and the world is vast and full of adventures for us to join and to bring stories and trophies to home! (Any)
5	Freedom The Sea is a teacher: it can't be contained neither put under any law or government. We should do everything we desire and need! (Chaotic)
6	Greed The Sea and the Land does have vast riches, and all of them belongs to me. I must take what is mine, whatever the cost.(Evil)

d6	Bond
1	I feel a great responsability in keeping my allies and friends safe.
2	I will always do anything my people needs.
3	I will always share with those who need, even if it demands for me to take from those who have too much.
4	The Deities I follow will not abandon me, so I won't abandom them.
5	Tyrants destroyed my people, and so I must avenge them fighting against those tyrants!
6	I pledged vengeance to a attrocious beast of the Sea. All my efforts will be in order to find a way to hunt it down and kill it.

d6	Flaw
1	My curiosity often gets the better of me.
2	I may be more anxious and even act irrationaly when I know I'm too far from the Sea.
3	I have acrophobia (fear of heights).
4	Once I start drinking, I will not stop until I fall unconscious.
5	I will follow the orders of the ones I pledge loyalty, no matter wich order.
6	I have no respect to authority or hierachy outside my people, crew or friends.

4.00

(one vote)

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