BiFrost Homebrew: Modern Backgrounds Pt. 1

To go along with the new modern skill and tool lists I came out with, I figured a modern setting also needed some modern backgrounds. Modern no longer sounds like a word anymore, modern, modern, thrust.

Alright, that joke is only for me, but if you haven't seen the incomparable show Miranda, you are doing yourself a disservice.
Onward.

Since there are so many backgrounds, and I so dearly want to pad out these homebrew Mondays, I'm only going to release a few at a time. Now, be warned, most of them are based on the occupations from modern d20, but in the 5e style. Remember, if you don't like my take on their skills and tools, feel free to come up with your own, because this is just my own take on it. You'll notice the the benefits of many of them are similar, and for that I'm sorry. I had a hard time coming up with new benefits for occupations especially when so many in the PHB feel so similar. And no, I didn't add the traits...I'm much too lazy for that and I feel like there is plenty out there on how to make your character an individual.

Academic
Librarians, archaeologists, scholars, professors, and teachers are all academics. Academics make their living from acquiring and spreading knowledge. They work to stay up to date in their field and keep close ties with other academic colleagues. Are you a researcher or a teacher? What is your field of study? Do you have an academic rival with whom you battle for relevance?
Skill Proficiencies: Pick any two from Humanities, Investigation, Science, and Mystery
Languages: Two of your choice
Equipment: A set of pens, a book, a set of professional clothes, $500
Feature: Researcher
If you fail a knowledge check, you know where you can go to learn that information.

Adventurer
Daredevils, big-game hunters, relic hunters, explorers, extreme sports enthusiasts, field scientists, thrill-seekers, and others called to face danger are adventurers. Adventurers aren’t content staying at home or working a regular 9-5 job. They need to be out in the field discovering new places, unearthing secrets, and taking on challenges. Do you work with a company or are you a freelancer? Do you have some companions or are do you work alone? Do you do it for the risk or the rewards?
Skill Proficiencies: Athletics, Survival
Tool Proficiencies: Vehicles (Land)
Languages: One language of your choice
Equipment: A small knife, a set of athletic clothes, a bungee cord, a lighter, a day of rations, and $250.
Feature: Wanderer
You cannot lose your way naturally; you have wandered all across the world and can quickly get a sense of the landscape.

Athlete
Professional athletes, personal trainers, and anyone else who directly relies on their fitness and fitness knowledge are all athletes. Athletes spend their time getting healthy, strong, and flexible and in general perfecting their bodies. Do you focus on your own fitness, or help others as well? What sport do you specialize in?
Skill Proficiencies: Athletics, Acrobatics
Tool Proficiencies: Vehicles (Land) and one gaming set
Equipment: A set of athletic clothes, a water bottle, a day of rations, and $500.
Feature: Gauge Fitness
You can tell the relative strength and dexterity scores of humanoid creatures in comparison to you by observing them for a minute. You can also tell the difficulty of completing an acrobatics or athletics check when you have a round to consider it.

Blue Collar Worker
Factory workers, waiters, construction workers, bussers, taxi drivers, postal workers, and other service industry jobs where you're away from a desk fall into this background. Blue collar workers are often down-to-earth and are what most people would call the common man. What is your job? Is it a career or a stop-gap while you work towards something else? Are you close to your coworkers?
Skill Proficiencies: Pick two from Persuasion, Intimidation, Deception, and Athletics
Tool Proficiencies: One set of artisan’s tools and one gaming set
Equipment: A set of comfortable clothes, a work uniform, a gaming set, a set of artisan’s tools, and $500.
Feature: Workers Unite
Other blue collar professionals can tell you are part of the same class and know the same struggles. They will help you find work or lodging for a while and will assist you in any small way.

Exceedingly Late Friday Fiction: Lisa and the Light Pt. 9

The first figure she was able to spot came at Lisa with inhuman speed. Its green face filled with sharp yellow teeth, a rusty cleaver between its misshapen paws, it lunged at her chest and tried to drive the metal into her heart.

Lisa would not have it.

Shoulder down, she deflected the blow off her armor. The creature didn't seem to have much weight and was easily deflected. Her arm guided the glowing hammer around tot he creatures ribs and it barely dodged out of the way. It stared her down as it found solid ground, the red eyes of it maniacal, lustful, passionate. It wanted her. The sharp teeth and the cleaver made it clear. It wanted to eat her. Lisa's gut twisted as she made the realization, as the adrenaline met with clarity of mind in a cocktail of offensive self-defense. Like knowing she had to end a relationship, the same gut crushing feeling, she knew she had to kill this creature, this monster.

Lisa didn't mind the thought.

Another arrow from something in the trees, a flash of more yellow teeth of bloody red eyes of malice and madness, Lisa thought she saw it all. The missile hit her shield and stuck out from it, laughter sounded from her adversaries, the unseen and the one before her and then the beast was on her again, its cleaver swiping low. Lisa dodged the attack, though she was growing tired, she had to end this soon before she made a mistake before she was stuck dead in this dream world. As the creature picked itself up off the ground she maneuvered the weight of the hammer into the air above the monster and let its weight crash over its head. It didn't move in time, she didn't know why it didn't, she didn't know if it was stunned from missing or lost in a rage, or if luck was on her side. But as the weight made contact Lisa heard a distinct crack the sounded through the surrounding trees and the creature fell to the ground.

BiFrost: Politics Pt. 3

Just a recap; I've now got these organizations (names to change) set up:

Institute for Dimensional Study - Scholars and scientists studying the bifrosts

Templars - Religious group that hates the bifrosts and all they stand for

Thaumaturges - Religious group that sees bifrosts as holy

Dungeoneering Inc. - Company that focuses on providing goods to delvers; focuses on tools

Haversack's Goods -  Rival company to Dungeoneering Inc.; focuses more on goods

Various Boutiques - Small local companies serving the community and specific classes

Next up are the political factions. Let's be honest here, as far as American politics goes, this would not change the two major parties: Republicans and Democrats. Assuming republicans stay conservative they'd definitely side with the Templars, but have some trouble because they would also allow the new businesses to thrive: everyone likes money especially gold. Democrats, once again assuming still liberal, would likely get some power from the Thaumaturges and might cozy up to one of the other companies, they'd be the Google and Apple, lets make it Haversacks, they seem more fun. 

As far as political pressure, there is also an Adventurer's Guild that has some weird amount of money and power. Partly because, damn, delvers can get rich, and there are obviously several who got very rich. There are probably factions within there too (getting a little Hogwarts here, you know some internal conflict with the Slytherins and Gryffindors...I might add a bit fo that in). 

The Adventurer's Guild also offers more than lobbying, they offer health insurance, life insurance, banking. Honestly, they are the AARP for delvers. I feel like they need another name too. I'll work on that. 

BiFrost Homebrew: Modern Tools

Going along with last weeks new modern skill list, I also came up with a modern list of tools. These are not comprehensive at all and many of the tools and kits from the old list could easily make their way on here.

Artisan’s Tools
    Brewer’s Supplies
    Carpenter’s Tools
    Surveyor’s Tools
    Cook’s Utensils
    Glassblower’s Tools
    Home Repair Tools*
    Jeweler’s Tools
    Sewing Kit
    Mechanic’s Tools
    Painter’s Supplies
    Potter’s Tools
    Smith’s Tools
    Tinker’s Tools
    Woodcarver’s Tools
    Welder’s Tools
Chemist’s Kit*
Computing Kit*
Disguise Kit
Forgery Kit
Gaming Set
    Dice Set
    Chess Set
    Checkers Set
    Playing Card Set
    Mahjong Set
    Dominoes Set
    Collectible Card Game Set
    Video Game System
Musical Instrument
    Woodwind
    Guitar
    Viol
    Brass
    Percussion
    Keyboard
Navigator’s Tools
Thieves’ Tools

Vehicles
    Air*

    Land

    Water

Home Repair Tools- A basic toolbox used for home and appliance repair

Computing Kit - A flash drive, a small laptop, random cables, cd’s, and hardware tools. Proficiency with this kit lets you add your proficiency bonus to create software, fix computers, create hardware, bypass firewalls, and other computing needs.
Chemist’s Kit - A set of vials with stoppers, a small bunsen burner, a mortar and pestle, small clippers, and compact measurement tools . Lets you add your proficiency bonus to
carefully gather and store materials and specimens as well as when crafting poisons and antidotes.
Vehicles (Air) - Helicopters, airplanes, parachutes, hang gliders, and other aerial transportation.

Belated Friday Fiction: Lisa and the Light Pt. 8

Oh man, I don't know why I skipped it. I was even on spring break. I think I'm sick of Lisa. I'm sick of her story. I got too used to writing novels and now I can't tell something quick and exciting. I'll have to work on that. However, it is good to know my skills at making a story last longer have improved. 

Lisa would've liked to imagine a world where she hadn't ever been shot at. It would be a much nicer home, a much nicer neighborhood, a much nicer life. In this world she is safe, she has plenty of food and friends, it is never too warm or humid, and everyone loves her. She left that home on accident and came to a new one, but even here she is shot at, even here she is in danger, perhaps far more pressing.

When she had been shot at before it was only a drive by, meant to scare, meant to frighten, terrorists in your backyard. She was walking to the store with her friends, barefoot again, in shorts again, skipping school and looking for trouble. The black car spun around the corner, the afternoon sun shining off its slick paint, a man leaned out the car, his face covered, and released a spray of bullets. She grabbed her friend's hand and pulled her down to the street instinctively. It was instinct, it was saving your best friend who held you when your mom beat you, who trash talked the other girls, who skipped school with you to get ice cream. They were safe and Lisa swore she was a hero, for a moment. Her friend never forgot it either, but that was a year ago and they had a fight since then. Saving you life doesn't save a friendship. Not always.

Yet Lisa remembered the rush of fear, of adrenaline coursing through her veins, the instinct. It was here again and part of her hated it. She accidentally finds a new world, maybe only a dream world, but a new world for now at least, only to have it turn into a nightmare the events and terrors echoing those she left behind.

She turned then, she spun around, she felt the weight of her hammer turn with her and the head of it burst into flame. A solid white flame the licked at the snow falling but didn't melt it. She would not run anymore.

BiFrost: Not More Politics

I was supposed to talk about more political groups this week. But I can't. I can't keep looking at this from the top down until I start with the small lives.

Small Lives
I'm talking about a single mother who desperately enters a bifrost to a dangerous world int he hopes she'll come out with treasures to pay for the next few months when she loses her job. She is afraid for her life, for her kids, but she has to do something to get cash quick and this is less illegal than her other options. She makes it out alive, but not unscarred, and sells her treasure to a pawn shop making her thousands, but not as much as she would've hoped. Enough for a few weeks. In the meantime she has gained amazing powers: she is tougher than she remembers and can heal the wounded and conjure lightning. She has trouble finding a new job, but she knows of another bifrost across town, she knows that some adventurers meet at a local bar, and she knows she loved crushing those skulls.

I'm talking an old man, a veteran, who hated war. But when a bifrost shows up in his backyard, he is curious and he walks into it. He fights and tricks his way around a tribe of murderous orcs, killing their leader and finding himself back in his backyard wonders what he could do now. He feels more alive than he has in decades and the way he moves can take him far. The old man plays tricks on his neighbors and relatives, he steals a few candy bars, a few beers and waits for the day he might go looking for another portal, another dungeon, another adventure.

I am talking young kids, drunk kids, high kids, and their often high parents. Poor and dealing with life the way they know best, who hear about the portals or see the lights in the distance. They go in out of boredom and come out, covered in the blood of malicious fairies, and with spells and powers they have only seen in cartoons. One summons fire, one turns into animals, another smiting those who piss him off. Get out of their way when they walk down the street and fear them when you cross them. Who will wrangle their power? A gang a criminal organization some sort of youth outreach from adventurers guilds?

This is still messy. This is still a mess. But these are the kinds of stories I want to tell in this world.
And there will be bigger mysteries too, mysteries of power, of corruption, and of where these damn portals came from. But I want human experience first.

BiFrost Homebrew: Skills

Now that Young Justice is down (for now at least) I can start putting up the rules for playing int he BiFrost setting.

One of the big difference in the BiFrost setting from that of a regular one is that ti takes place in modern times. Most skills people have are not going to match up to those from the PHB. Instead, I have made an alternate list, that has the same number of skills, but better fits a modern setting. A lot of this is taken as inspiration from the d20 Modern and 4e Gamma World sets. I figured I would adapt rather than start from scratch. I'm only including descriptions of skills for the ones I'm adding, all other can be found here. 

Skills
Acrobatics - Dexterity
Animal Handling - Wisdom

Athletics - Strength
Current Events - Intelligence - This skill covers knowledge recent of news, culture, and trends
Deception - Charisma
Humanities - Intelligence - Knowledge of human history and the human condition:
ex. art, social sciences, business, religion, and law
Insight - Wisdom
Intimidation - Charisma
Investigation - Intelligence
Medicine - Wisdom
Mystery - Intelligence - Knowledge of conspiracy theories, the occult, and other oddities
Perception - Wisdom
Performance - Charisma
Persuasion - Charisma
Science - Intelligence - Knowledge of the natural world and its workings
ex. mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, geology, engineering, and astronomy
Sleight of Hand - Dexterity
Stealth - Dexterity

Survival - Wisdom