Berusian Origins

The following are specific sub-origins that a character from Berusia can take, this alters the base Berusia origin.

Child of the New Dawn

You have spent much of your life as a member of or within the Church of the New Dawn. You have been taught as the other faithful how to resist the powers of Napalis’ enemies.  

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Wisdom increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Religion
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, Church of the New Dawn, Berusian [Settlement of Choice], Napalis Lore, Burial Rites of Berusia
• Equipment: A holy symbol of Napalis, a backpack, a bedroll, a mess kit, a tinderbox, 10 candles, 2 blocks of incense, a censer, 10 days of rations, a waterskin, common clothes, an abacus, 10 feet of chain, a flask of holy water, and a coin pouch containing 7 gold pieces and 5 silver pieces.

Feature (Soulguard)

• You receive Advantage on saving throws caused by magical spells or effects caused by vampires, creatures of vampiric origin, or the undead.
• You gain the ability to use the Channel Divinity cleric class feature from your choice of Light, Life or Order domains. When calculating bonuses, you count your cleric level for half your total level (rounding down) unless you are a cleric, in which case it is calculated normally. You can use this feature once. If you were to later gain the Channel Divinity class feature, you can use this channel divinity slot interchangeably with your class feature. Your Spellcasting Ability score for this feature is the same ability score boosted by your Origin.
• Your Hit Point maximum is increased by 1 for every HD that you've achieved and the DC for your death saving throws is decreased to 9 and you recover on a 19 or 20. This stacks with other similar effects..

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.

d8 Personality Trait

 

d6 Ideal

 

1. Faith. I trust that my Napalis will guide my actions. I have faith that if I work hard, things will go well (Lawful).
2. Hope. I know even if I need to do evil acts, history will be my redemption (Chaotic).
3. Piety. Devotion to Napalis and the rites of the church is all that keeps the world from destruction (Good).
4. Humanity. All life is to be cherished and preserved against the horrors of the undead (Good).
5. Punishment. It is better for the innocent to suffer than for the guilty to escape their due (Evil).
6. Aspiration. I seek to prove myself worthy of my god’s favor by matching my actions against their teachings (Any).

 

d6 Bond

 

1. I carry a memento of my time as an acolyte, and I treasure it above all other things.
2. One day I will take vengeance against the monster that took my family from me.
3. I owe my life to the priest who saved me from vampiric monsters.
4. Everything I do for the common people.
5. I would like to spread the faith of Napalis to the wider world.
6. I will do anything to protect the temple where I served.

 

d6 Flaw

 

1. I am inflexible in my thinking.
2. My piety sometimes leads me to blindly trust those who profess faith in Napalis.
3. I put too much trust in those who wield power within my church’s hierarchy.
4. I have a lasting grudge against one of my disciples, and each of us wants to see the other fall.
5. I always over exaggerate my abilities.
6. I take pleasure in the misery I inflict upon the enemies of Napalis.

 

Vanari

The people of Berusia gave up their nomadic nature millennia ago but the urge to travel and move about still resides in many. You were born into or joined in with a group of nomads that travel the various roads, forests and swamps of Berusia.  

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Strength OR Dexterity increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Athletics or Stealth
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, Berusian Survival Techniques, Beasts of Berusia, Swamps of Berusia, Forests of Berusia
• Equipment: A backpack, a bedroll, a mess kit, a tinderbox, 10 torches, 10 days of Rations, a Waterskin, 50 feet of hempen rope, a two-person tent, tribal clothes, a shovel, 2 hunting traps, a hammer and a pouch containing 22 gold pieces and 9 silver pieces.

 

Feature (Wildwalker)

• You ignore naturally occurring difficult terrain. Should you later gain the ability to ignore natural difficult terrain, you instead ignore magical difficult terrain while in that terrain.
• You can craft a root talisman once per long rest and provide them to a willing humanoid creature (including yourself). The creature can choose to expend this talisman when it receives healing or is forced to make a saving throw, adding your Proficiency bonus to the roll’s result as an Insight bonus. Root talismans crafted from this feature expire after 8 hours and you can only possess a single item of this type.
• You gain access to an Average-quality library.
• You are more acclimated to the harsh weathers and environments present in Berusia. Choose between Plains, Forest, Mountains or Swamps. While in the chosen terrain type you gain resistance to environmental damage from that environment and advantage on saving throws generated by that environment. Additionally, you treat weather effects as one step less severe (eg. Extreme Cold or Heat is instead Severe).

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.  

d8 Personality Trait

 

1. Friends and family perished, tragically, before my eyes. I hope never to undergo that again.
2. Time is a precious resource that I must spend wisely.
3. I brag about my clan every chance I get.
4. Society doesn’t suit me. I’d rather be out in the wilderness any day.
5. I eagerly dive into the unknown and unexplored.
6. My word is my bond. I will see a promise to completion, even if it conflicts with my own beliefs.
7. I feel more comfortable sleeping under the open sky.
8. I will impress upon those around me until I get my way.

 

d6 Ideal

 

1. All creatures have a place in the world, so I strive to help others find theirs (Good).
2. Change. Life is like the seasons, in constant change, and we must change with it (Chaotic).
3. Isolation. My clan and its ways must be protected and shielded from outside influence (Neutral).
4. Kinship. Family is most important in life. Though I may be far from my own, the bonds of family must be protected in others’ lives as well (Good).
5. Protection. Threats to Berusia and to the people must be dealt with at any and all costs (Law).
6. Cunning. Though I may be accustomed to their ways, neither do they truly know mine, which can be to my advantage (Evil).

 

d6 Bond

 

1. So long as I have this token from my clan, I can face any adversity in the civilised world.
2. I hold no greater cause than my service to my clan.
3. I’m fascinated by the wonder of the civilization I have just discovered.
4. I ache to return to my clan and the family I left, but cannot until my obligations are fulfilled.
5. The Elderians have stolen a relic of the Berusian Vanari. I will not rest until I’ve found it.
6. A friend and I parted ways when we left our clan. I will find them again.

 

d6 Flaw

 

1. I pretend to not understand the locals in order to avoid interactions I would rather not have.
2. I am convinced that Berusia needs to return to the old ways and for all the people to live as nomads, like my clan.
3. The adherents to the new gods of Berusia are deluded fools.
4. I am overly protective of nature, sometimes to the detriment of my companions and myself.
5. I throw myself and my friends into situations, rarely considering the consequences.
6. My desire to experience new things causes me to make unsafe choices.

 

Blood Cursed

At some point in your family history, your family was made subject to the vampire lords of the initial imperial founding. While you are not tethered to such undead, the lingering curse remains in your veins.

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Charisma increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Arcana
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, Lesser Vampires, Vampire Thralldom, Berusian [Settlement of Choice], Blood Curses
• Equipment: A set of traveller’s clothes, 10 days of rations, a mess kit, a tinderbox, a bedroll, a hooded lantern, 10 flasks of oil, a backpack, a waterskin, 50 feet of hempen rope, a dagger and a pouch containing 25 gold pieces and 1 silver piece.

 

Feature (Bloodcurse)

• You take 2 less damage from non-silvered Physical damage and Necrotic damage. This stacks with other forms of DR.
• You possess an unnatural endurance as a lingering effect of the vampiric corruption in your veins. When you would gain any of the following conditions, you can choose to ignore it: Fear, Exhaustion, Fatigued, Nauseated, Poisoned, Sickened or Wounded. You can do this once, regaining its use after successfully completing a long rest.
• Your pool of Stamina is increased by your Strength and Dexterity modifier.

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.    

d8 Personality Trait

 

1. I fear no evil.
2. I spend money freely and live life to the fullest.
3. I can’t bring myself to trust others.
4. Like a nomad, I cannot settle down in one place for long.
5. I judge people by their actions, not their words.
6. I don’t make friends easily. They are a liability I cannot afford.
7. I think flattery is the best way to deflect attention from myself.
8. The vampire lords knew better. I hope for their return.

 

d6 Ideal

 

1. Greater Good. I kill monsters to make the world a safer place, and to exorcise my own demons (Good).
2. Empathy. No creature should be made to suffer (Good).
3. Obsession. I won't let go of a grudge (Evil).
4. Sincerity. There’s no good in pretending to be something I’m not (Neutral).
5. Fairness. No one would get preferential treatment, and no one is above any other.
6. Aspiration. I’m going to prove I’m more than what is in my blood (Any).

 

d6 Bond

1. I find magic in all its forms to be compelling. The more magical a place, the more I am drawn to it.
2. I can’t bring myself to harm a shape-changer, either because I consider myself to hold a similar affliction or for another reason of my own.
3. A trusted friend is the most important thing in the world to me.
4. I seek to build a better life for myself to the best of my ability.
5. I have been searching my whole life for a remedy for my cursed blood.
6. I would do anything for those afflicted by the same curse I have.

d6 Flaw

 

1. I feel no compassion for the dead, they are the lucky ones.
2. I think the whole world is out to get me.
3. When something goes wrong, it’s never my fault.
4. I despise myself and the bloodline I was born into.
5. Despite my best efforts, I am unreliable to my friends.I’m incapable of lying.

   

Orazem Guard

You’ve spent the majority of your adult years as a member of one of Berusia’s night sentinels. Your job has been to repel the myriad beats and monstrosities born of the vampire lords back to the wild from whence they came.

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Strength increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Athletics or Perception
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, Berusian [Settlement of Choice], Forests of Berusia, Beasts of Berusia, Folklore of Berusia
• Equipment: A uniform in the style of your unit and indicative of your rank, a horn with which to summon help, a bedroll, a mess kit, a tinderbox, a hooded lantern, 10 flasks of oil, a two-person tent, a spear, a backpack and a pouch containing 19 gold pieces and 3 silver pieces.
• Language: Berusian Sign Language

 

Feature (Night Sentinel)

• Whenever you would deal damage to a creature of the Monstrosity, Aberration or Undead type, you deal +2 additional damage when determining the damage of your attack.This can only occur for the first instance of a spell or attack.
• As a reaction at the start of combat as long as you are not surprised, you can let out a call to arms. You can grant one creature of your choice, including yourself, advantage on their Initiative check. If the target creature already has advantage on this check, they receive a +2 Insight bonus to the roll instead.
• When taking watch during any kind of rest, you receive advantage on any Wisdom (Perception) checks to spot approaching creatures.

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.  

d8 Personality Trait

 

d6 Ideal

 

d6 Bond

 

d6 Flaw

     

Outcast

Whatever life you had before is not yours to claim any longer, be it noble or common. You have been cast out from traditional Berusian society for offenses done by your own hand or simply being cursed by something out of your control.  

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Wisdom increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Deception or Insight
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, Berusian [Settlement of Choice], Berusian Underworld, Berusian Wilderness, Roads of Berusia
• Equipment: A set of common clothes, a family brooch, a disguise or forgery kit, a blanket, 10 torches, 10 days of rations, a mess kit, a tinderbox, a crowbar, 50 feet of hempen rope and a pouch containing 14 gold pieces and 3 silver pieces.

 

Feature (Vagabond)

• You can capitalise on your enemies missteps. Whenever a creature attacks you within your reach and they miss, you can use your reaction and spend 2 Stamina to make an attack of opportunity at the triggering creature. If the attack hits (or fails the saving throw based on a spell cast from War Caster), the next attack against the triggering creature gains the benefits of flanking regardless of their own position or allied positions.
• You gain expertise in the use of the Disguise Kit or Forgery Kit.
• You can make Feint checks as a bonus action. If you already have a feature that enables this (such as Cunning Action), your Feint checks also prevent the creature from providing or benefiting from Flanking.

Reason for Exile

Prior to becoming an adventurer, your path in life was defined by perhaps one or many dark moments, fateful decisions or tragedies. Now you have to live with the consequences of those actions with little hope of escape. Choose a Reason for Exile that caused your ejection from proper society, or roll one on the Exile table.

d6 Exile

1. Your study and practice of the necromantic arts, even in service of others, has branded you an apostate by the Church of the New Dawn.
2. You have killed a member of your own family for personal gain, only for it to have come collapsing all around you.
3. You once served as an enforcer of the church in Berusia but have since forsaken the oath you once took.
4. A lingering spirit has attached itself to you and the fear of the undead has caused your peers to force you from your home.
5. You have committed an act most heinous against your homeland, guilty of treason and being branded a traitor.
6. You have been framed for a deed you did not commit, but no one will hear anything of it and have instead banished you from your home.

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.  

d8 Personality Trait

 

d6 Ideal

 

d6 Bond

 

d6 Flaw

     

Student of the Dragons

Born under the occupation of the multitude of Elderian inquisitors, the religion of Elderia is prevalent in the border regions. You are one who has found their faith outside of your homeland and instead seek guidance from the great dragons.  

• ASI: You can replace your +1 Constitution increase with a +1 Charisma increase instead.
• Skill Proficiency: Religion or History
• Lore: The Realm of Berusia, The Realm of Elderia, Elderian Religion, Dragons, Berusian Settlement [Karstein or Dancya]
• Equipment: A set of fine clothes, a backpack, a mess kit, a 1 ounce bottle of ink, a ink pen, 10 sheets of parchment, 10 candles, a blanket, a tinderbox and a pouch containing 20 pieces of gold and 6 pieces of silver.

 

Feature (Dragon-Touched)

• Choose one element between Fire, Cold or Lightning; when dealing damage with unarmed strikes or natural weapons you can change the damage type of that attack to that element. Alternatively, you can deal an additional 1d4 points of damage of the selected type for that attack. You can do this a number of times equal to your Proficiency bonus, regaining all uses upon finishing a long rest.
• You gain one cantrip from the Sorcerer spell list; additionally, choose two spells of 1st level from the sorcerer spell list. You gain a single 1st level Spell Slot, with which you can cast either of these two spells, should you later gain the Spellcasting feature, this spell slot can be used to cast spells from that feature. Your Spellcasting Ability score for spells cast using this feature are cast using either your Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma, chosen when you take this origin.
• You gain access to an Average-quality library.

  Below are a number of options that can help flesh out your characters. These are optional, and you may choose your own if they don't fit your character. Typically pick 2 Personality Traits, and 1 from each of the other lists.

d8 Personality Trait

 

d6 Ideal

 

d6 Bond

 

d6 Flaw