Possible fix: Instead of more Ancestry Feats, Background Feats?


Ancestries & Backgrounds


Ancestry Feats seem to have met with two general responses in the discourse since the playtest launched:

1) Elves aren't Pokemon. Having racial abilities pop up as you level feels like you're evolving and doesn't feel reasonable.

2) It's nice to customize my character and see how their experiences on their adventures shape them.

Thinking this over I wondered if there wasn't a way to make both groups happy: what if instead of getting an ancestry feat every few levels you instead got a background feat? In other words, mark the growth of your character by noting something they've done or become in the levels since they started adventuring. Been crafting a lot in your downtime? Pick the Blacksmith or Merchant background. Been travelling all over? Get Nomad. Does your character feel the pull toward a certain religion? Acolyte.

That way you're changing and evolving as the game goes on, but in an organic way that matches your in character experiences. I would like to float this as a possible change to the system we have but regardless I think it's a change I'll probably houserule in when I run future P2 games after the playtest is done.


Don't your skills already reflect that?
If anything I think the best solution is getting biology based Ancestry Feats for free as Special Abilities, of the remaining cultural-based feats you get 3 free to start, then an advanced one at level 5.
The rest of your adventuring growth should be reflected in your general feats.
The only thing I found wierd was that you don't start getting general feats until level 3, but almost all the general feats are level 1 feats and include Adopted Ancestry which seems like it should be one of those sorts of feats that can only be taken at level 1.


It would be better if you weren't forced to take ancestry feats. I feel like they are fine as options, but they really should go back to a general feat every other level.

1: Ancestry feats
1: general feat
2: skill feat
3: general feat
4: skill feat
5: general feat
6: skill feat
...


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The ancestry feats seem to fall in three categories. The first are inborn abilities, which have the Heritage trait. The second are the ones that result from growing up in the race's culture, such as the racial weapon familiarity. The third are things that depend on inborn traits but are acquired in noticeable form later in life, such as the elves' Otherworldly Magic.

Dwarf
Heritage: Ancient's Blood, Hardy
Cultural: Ancestral Hatred, Stonecunning, Weapon Cunning (Dwarf)[5th], Weapon Familiarity(Dwarf)
Acquired: Boulder Roll [5th], Giant Bane, Mountain Roots, Rock Runner

Elf
Heritage: Keen Hearing
Cultural: Ageless Patience, Ancestral Longevity, Weapon Elegance (Elf)[5th], Weapon Familiarity (Elf)
Acquired: Demon Skirmisher, Forlorn, Nimble, Otherworldly Magic, Unwavering Mien

Gnome
Heritage: Discerning Smell
Cultural: Animal Speaker, Animal Whisperer [5th], Fey Fellowship, Illusion Sense, Weapon Familiarity (Gnome), Weapon Innovator (Gnome)[5th]
Acquired: Animal Accomplice, First World Magic, Obsessive

Goblin
Heritage: Flame Heart, Razor Teeth
Cultural: Burn It, City Scavenger, Eat Anything, Junk Tinker, Weapon Familiarity (Goblin), Weapon Frenzy (Goblin)[5th]
Aquired: Rough Rider, Very Sneaky

Halfling
Heritage: Keen Eyes
Cultural: Titan Slinger, Unfettered, Weapon Familiarity (Halfling), Weapon Trickster (Halfling)[5th]
Fortune: Lucky Halfling
Acquired: Attentive, Distracting Shadows, Plucky, Sure-Footed

Human
Heritage: Half-Elf, Half-Orc
Cultural: Unconventional Weaponry
Acquired: Adapted Spell, Clever Improviser, Cooperative Nature, General Training, Haughty Obstinacy, Natural Ambition, Skilled

Half-Elf
Acquired: Inspire Imitation [5th], Supernatural Charm [5th]

Half-Orc
Ought to be Heritage: Orc Sight [5th]
Cultural: Orc Ferocity, Orc Weapon Carnage[5th], Orc Weapon Carnage [5th], Orc Weapon Familiarity, Superstition

The cultural group could easily be background feats. All we need are backgrounds that relate to the main culture of the ancestry. Those backgrounds would have an ancestry prerequisite and give one of the cultural ancestry feats instead of a skill feat.

Example Ancestry Backgrounds
Dwarven Giantslayer: Requires Dwarf ancestry. Gain ability boost in Strength or Constitution and one free. Gain Ancestral Hatred or Mountain Roots feat and Mountain Lore.

Dwarven Smith: Requires Dwarf ancestry. Gain ability boost in Intelligence or Wisdom and one free. Gain Weapon Familiarity (Dwarf) feat and Smithing Lore.

Elven Elder: Requires Elf ancestry. Gain ability boost in Intelligence or Wisdom and one free. Gain Ageless Patience or Ancestral Longevity feat and Academia Lore.

Elven Forestdweller: Requires Elf ancestry. Gain ability boost in Dexterity or Constitution and one free. Gain Weapon Familiarity (Elf) feat and Forest Lore.

Gnomish Animal Speaker: Requires Gnome ancestry. Gain ability boost in Wisdom or Charisma and one free. Gain Animal Speaker feat and Animal Lore.

Gnomish Experimentalist: Requires Gnome ancestry. Gain ability boost in Constitution or Intelligence and one free. Gain Weapon Familiarity (Gnome) feat and Warfare Lore.

Goblin Scavenger: Requires Goblin ancestry. Gain ability boost in Dexterity or Constitution and one free. Gain Eat Anything feat and Scavenger Lore.

Goblin Tribesman: Requires Goblin ancestry. Gain ability boost in Strength or Constitution and one free. Gain Weapon Familiarity (Goblin) feat and Hunting Lore.

Halfling Cottager: Requires Halfling ancestry. Gain ability boost in Strength or Wisdom and one free. Gain Weapon Familiarity (Halfling) feat and Farming Lore.

Halfling Freed Slave: Requires Halfling ancestry. Gain ability boost in Dexterity or Constitution and one free. Gain Unfettered feat and Labor Lore.

Human Guild Member: Requires Human ancestry. Gain ability boost in Strength or Intelligence and one free. Gain Natural Ambition or Skilled feat and Urban Lore.

Hm, imagining a second major human cultural background is difficult.

The Heritage ancestry feats would become heritages, a part of the ancestry that offer choises. But we can mix them with backgrounds, too:

Dwarven Heritage: This background can be taken only at 1st level with Dwarf ancestry. Gain ability boosts in Constitution and Wisdom. Take two Dwarf hertiages, Ancient's Blood and Hardy, rather than one. Gain Torag Lore.

Goblin Heritage: This background can be taken only at 1st level with Goblin ancestry. Gain ability boosts in Dexterity and Charisma. Take two Goblin hertiages, Flame Heart and Razor Teeth, rather than one. Gain Lamashtu Lore.

The acquired ancestry feats can become skill feats or general feats with an ancestry requirement.

I don't know whether the two ability boosts should happen only with 1st-level backgrounds, or whether we should merge new backgrounds with the ability boost that occur at 5th, 10th, and 15th levels. The ancestry feats happen at 5th, 9th, 13th, and 17th levels, which are close enough to those levels. The players won't mind the boosts happening early and 4 times instead of 3.

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