sidebar_label: Foundation
Foundation is everything that contributed to your character before they started adventuring. It includes a broad array of things, such as:
- Genetic heritage from birth
- Cultural and professional skill development
- Disposition of supernatural entities (i.e. blessed/cursed by the gods)
- Mystical destinies and prophecies
- Literal inheritance of a magic item or special power
While every character is a unique expression of all of these traits and more, for game purposes, you start with three traits in Foundation. You can gain more, or improve the ones you have, as you gain levels.
List of Foundational Traits
Ancestry
Aberration
- Psychic Symbiote: Your mind is host to an alien being, one made of pure thought and energy. You can have conversations with it; it shares your perceptions, but does not control your actions; it has alien knowledge that may be of use to you, but could also be horrifying or maddening to comprehend. Once per day, it can negate a failed mental save, taking the effect instead of you. Once per short rest, it can hold concentration on a mental action (such as maintaining a spell) in your stead, allowing you to use your concentration for something else.
Dragon
- Rage of the Dragon: You have a fiery core of draconic power within you.
- Rage: when subject to a situation that causes rage, gain 1 Rage. Rage can be used for draconic abilities; otherwise, it slowly subsides toward 0.
- Breath Weapon: tbd
- Transformation: tbd
- Wings
- etc
Elemental
Sylvan
- Aquatic Nature: Your true form is a water creature, although you can take humanoid form at will. In your true form, you gain water breathing, a swim speed of 40 ft, etc.
- Glamour: At-will, you can assume an enchantment that enhances your appearance in both visual and magical ways, rendering you unusually attractive and captivating. You gain advantage to any Charisma check for which this would apply (e.g. it is useful for most Persuasion checks, but not so much for Intimidate).
- Siren Song: Your voice is enchanting beyond mortal constraints. You gain advantage to any Perform checks involving your voice. Also, choose one Bardic Music feat, such as Fascinate, Inspiring Song, etc. You can do that too.
- Furry: You are a hybrid of human and animal, in a stable (non-shifting) form. Not compatible with Werefolk.
- Plantoid: You have green skin. You gain energy from sunlight, rather than from eating. You still need water, and occasional vitamins and minerals (about as often as a normal human would). You need at least 8 hours of sun exposure per day to feel "fed". Penalties include...whatever the fuck penalties exist for not eating enough, as if anyone even thought of that. TBI
- Werefolk: You have an animal form and a human form. Your animal form choice gives you certain abilities all the time, and (generally) more powerful abilities when shifted. You suffer an ability called Call of the Wild, which can compel you to transform and act in an animal manner in certain circumstances (e.g. predators are aroused to hunt by the scent of blood or fear). The full moon triggers your Call powerfully. Example subtypes: wolf, tiger, bear, etc.
- Underwater Native: You have a swim speed of 6, and you can breathe underwater. You can also breathe above water (because otherwise this ability would be terrible). However, you cannot stay out of the water indefinitely. You need at least 8 hours of "water time" per day. Outside of natural bodies of water, a bath or pool is ideal, but there are also conceivable magical or technological items to recirculate water over you, or even to provide a water-tight suit (sort of a reverse scuba gear) that keeps you hydrated 24/7.
- Fey: You have iron vulnerability, can be warded by effects that work on outsiders, and you can be bound by your words or by receiving gifts.
Tiefling
- Born in Flames: Gain resist 50% fire.
- Firestarter: You can shed flames at will. Add your proficiency bonus as bonus fire damage to unarmed attacks. Enemies who strike you with natural weapons suffer that amount of fire damage.
- Infernal Chains: You can sprout spiked chains. You can wield them as a weapon (reach, 2h, heavy slashing, can grapple). You can use them as an offhand weapon (reach, 1h, medium damage).
Rank 2
- Demon Wings: Gain the ability to slowfall and glide at will. While in use, batlike wings appear.
Rank 3
- Blood Like Fire: Gain Immunity to Fire. Requires and replaces Born in Flames.
- Wings of the Fallen: Gain a fly speed equal to walking speed. Requires and replaces Demon Wings.
Shadow
- Cloaked in Shadow: When an attacker suffers any level of concealment against you due to low light levels, you gain your proficiency bonus as a bonus to AC (against attacks) or saves against such attacks.
- Withering Touch: Your touch drains life. Simply touching a plant or insignificant animal (such as an insect) withers and kills it. You may suppress this ability when not desired. As a melee touch attack, you can inflict medium necrotic damage plus 1d4 Con damage.
Rank 2
- Devilsight: Gain Darkvision.
Netherkin
- Kiss of Death: At-will, Dex vs touch AC; light necrotic damage. 1/day/prof bonus, heal the dmg dealt, or gain the dmg dealt as a bonus to one check/save/attack.
- Improved Kiss of Death: Kiss of Death inflicts heavy damage plus 1d4 Cha damage.
Background
Talents
- Acting: Gain your Charisma bonus to untrained skill checks. Gain advantage to use Deception to play a role.
- Musical Talent: Gain proficiency in Perform, can use the Bardic Inspiration power.
Culture
- Orcish Battle-rage: Once per encounter, gain your proficiency bonus again to melee damage, and the same amount of Damage Reduction. Lasts 3 rds.
- Gift of the Eldar: Encounter, swift; you call upon nature for a minor favor, such as changing the direction of the wind, aiding or hindering natural concealment, a small temperature change, etc.
- Cast-Iron Stomach: The Earthen races, such as Dwarves, are known for their impressive fortitude. You gain resistance to disease and poison damage, or advantage to saves against disease and poison when non-damaging.
- Elf Step: When moving over natural terrain, you don't leave tracks, nor make sounds with footsteps, nor are you slowed by natural difficult terrain.
- Northern Born: Resist cold 50%, ignore natural cold environmental penalties.
- Shadowmeld: In any area of natural foliage that grants partial concealment, you can become invisible while immobile. etc...