D&D (2024) The New Custom Backgrounds Details

[Arilyn]

I must have missed the custom background question in the UA surveys. I seem to recall being asked to rate the overall background rules in the playtest on a sliding scale, but that's about it.

I might be wrong, but I remember Crawford stating the background playtest rated very high and would not need tinkering. I'm thinking the loss of customizable backgrounds as a player option is a later decision that came without playtest feedback.

 

[Demetrios1453]

I prefer the UA playtest where the backgrounds were examples but players were free to create their own. Yes, I know this can be easily done at tables that prefer it. WotC should be encouraging player creativity, however.

The current backgrounds are all mundane and will mostly be chosen for mechanical benefits, and frankly should be. Some of the logical backgrounds are very poor choices. Why take the musician background for a bard? It'll just double up on what a player already has. Same with acolyte for cleric or guide for druid. This seems like easy traps for new players to fall into, yet we are told a curated list is good for newbies. Not this list in particular.

Why are those "traps"? Getting extra spells, even though it's just a few, is still good, especially at low levels. I'm looking forward to playing a high elf sage wizard or wood elf guide ranger or druid just for all the useful extra spells the characters will be getting.

 

[Tales and Chronicles]

Oooh, I have an idea building on the idea of "racial backgrounds"

DnD once had race-as-class, now, for a basic experience, we can have background-as-race and remove the ancestries!

Background:
Dwarven Adventurer

• ASI; Con, Str or Wis
• Skills; Athletic, Survival
• Tool; Smithing tools
• Feat; Dwarven Endurance

Dwarven Runecarver;

• ASI: Int, Wis or Con
• Skills; Arcana, Religion
• Tools: Scribing Tools
• Feat: Medium armored

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

I've said this before, and I will mention this again.

The 2014 PHB had the custom background in it. And yet, IME, almost no one used it.

The people who comment here are not the typical D&D players. Most players like to pick from a selection- and the listed backgrounds in the PHB provide that. For people that like to customize, for either RP or Optimization reasons (not that I am saying that they mutually exclusive, because I certainly don't want to kick off that debate), we have the option.

And it looks pretty cool!

I am also quite sure that we will see more backgrounds and origin feats with the release of additional books. This is just the beginning; I have little doubt that when 5e: I Still Know What You Did Last Summer is ten years old, we will be drowning in backgrounds and origin feats.

 

[DEFCON 1]

It doesn't matter which rule is in which book... people are going to be able to make their own Backgrounds all they want, so long as they don't play with an asswipe of a DM. I fail to see where the problem is.

Unless you all play with asswipe DMs of course. But if that's the case... your character's Background is the least of your worries.

 

[Arilyn]

Why are those "traps"? Getting extra spells, even though it's just a few, is still good, especially at low level. I'm looking forward to playing a high elf sage wizard or wood elf guide ranger or druid just for all the useful extra spells the characters will be getting.

I can easily see a new player not wanting even more spells. A bard may not want even more ways to inspire and even more instrument proficiencies. Yes, they might, but lots of players won't want their background features being more of what they already do.

And the way the book is organized, players pick a background without necessarily reading the details first.

 

[DEFCON 1]

I can easily see a new player not wanting even more spells. A bard may not want even more ways to inspire and even more instrument proficiencies. Yes, they might, but lots of players won't want their background features being more of what they already do.

And the way the book is organized, players pick a background without necessarily reading the details first.

Then they work with their DM to select something different, change some bits of an existing one, or they create a new Background altogether. It's not that big of a deal.

The only thing this stops is the player who creates their PC in a vacuum and then shows up to a random table saying "Here's my character! I'm using this one!" without the DM getting a chance to work through it with them first.

 

[Arilyn]

It doesn't matter which rule is in which book... people are going to be able to make their own Backgrounds all they want, so long as they don't play with an asswipe of a DM. I fail to see where the problem is.

Unless you all play with asswipe DMs of course. But if that's the case... your character's Background is the least of your worries.

Because new players and GMs might not realize that players creating their own background features are an option at all. Since D&D is most people's first game, I want the book to encourage as much player creativity as possible.

Customizing in 2014 was often ignored because the option was buried in the text. I encouraged my players to customize their backgrounds and once it was shown as an option, my players had great fun doing it.

 

[Demetrios1453]

I can easily see a new player not wanting even more spells. A bard may not want even more ways to inspire and even more instrument proficiencies. Yes, they might, but lots of players won't want their background features being more of what they already do.

But, conversely, a lot will want that. I would bet that the majority, if not a sizeable majority, of players will be just fine with the backgrounds in the PHB. And if the PHB choices don't suit them, well, it says right there in the text to talk to the DM about customizing. It's not like it's hidden or a secret. There's not going to be some insurmountable wall blocking off players from customizing like some here are making it out to be...

 

[DEFCON 1]

I encouraged my players to customize their backgrounds and once it was shown as an option, my players had great fun doing it.

Exactly! You as the DM encouraged your players to create backgrounds. And you're going to be doing the exact same thing again. You are going to be helping these new players figure out what they want... help figure out what ability scores they should bump... help figure out what skills and feats would work best. You are going to do your job as a DM of new players by helping them work out what they should have for their PCs. As it should be. Rather than the PHB handing new players a bunch of random parts and telling them "Go customize your Background!" on their own.