Character Creation Background Cards for D&D 5e
Inspired by the Fiasco roleplaying game, I decided to try my hand at building a background connection deck for Session 0 in D&G 5th edition. They’re meant to encourage intra-party connections in backgrounds and encourage roleplaying call-backs among characters. They can also be leveraged by the DM to connect characters to NPCs in their worlds. Special thanks to Lee and Ryan for helping some of the rough edges off these.
Character/Party Creation: How to Use
- Going around the table, each player can read the “hook” text on the top of the card but not the mechanics on the back.
- The player may ask for or accept integrating it with another character. The two players coordinated to provide the basic details of the hook. That hook is then removed.
- Go around the table a minimum of two times, each player choosing a different hook to a different character.
- Any player may choose to “pass” at any time, if they do not feel any remaining hooks are applicable to their concept.
- Ideally, all players should have at least two hooks. Any cards left over, the DM may choose from and offer as a hook to one of her NPC antagonists or protagonists.
- Benefits of shared Backgrounds hooks may only be invoked a total of once per session (by either character, not both) unless stated otherwise.
Alternatively, both players agree to waive the Background benefit when an appropriate situation arises to use it, and instead assign a single Inspiration to one of them.
Download PDF (Work in Progress)
