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I wrote these campaign traits for a Japanese themed campaign I'm writing. Having looked at loads of campaign traits, I think these are pretty balanced, but I figured folks here might have some interesting ideas.
Please note that the traits are meant to tie in with major themes of the campaign, which include:
- Not everything or everyone is what they seem.
- Monsters and magic are the stuff of legends (at least when you start out)
- Most adventures will include navigating mountains, rivers or both to some degree.
- Player characters are intended to be human.
Born of Mountains: You were born and bred in the mountains. As a result, you are particularly adept at navigating mountainous terrain and climbing rocky surfaces. In mountainous areas you gain a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks made to prevent yourself from getting lost. Furthermore, you gain a +1 trait bonus on Climb checks when attempting to climb rock faces.
Born of Seas: You were born and raised near the ocean or on a sea faring vessel. As a result, you are particularly adept at navigating oceans and other bodies of water, as well as swimming. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Survival checks made to prevent yourself from getting lost while at sea or navigating rivers and lakes. Furthermore, you gain a +1 trait bonus on Swim checks when in the ocean or in rough waters.
Disciple of Truth: There is truth behind every façade, and you have endured much pain to realise that. Perhaps a parent or gardian lied to you as a child, or someone close betrayed you, or you believed in a falsehood and suffered because of it. Now you have become adept at seeing the hidden truth behind the lies. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Sense Motive checks and Sense Motive is always a class skill for you.
Disciple of Lies: Perhaps you trusted too liberally, leaving your heart unguarded, and were made to suffer for it. You have since learned that it is best to hide your true intentions. You gain a +1 on Bluff checks and Bluff is always a class skill for you.
Scars of the Tengu: During your life you’ve suffered much at the hands of a secretive society known as the Tengu’s Mask. As you grew older, your hatred for them, or your quest for revenge, led you to discover much about their evasion tactics. As a result, you gain a +1 trait bonus to attack rolls made against known Tengu’s Mask operatives.
Scars of the Youtei: You have seen things beyond explanation and discovered a world only ever hinted at in stories. Perhaps you or a loved one suffered at the hands of some monstrous creature or you had a brush with someone not of this world. As a result, you gain a +2 on Perception checks to see through disguises.
You can find out more about the campaign on my blog.
Scars of Youtei is rather weak since Disguise checks are pretty rare. And even then, it's not that much of a bonus at all.
Scars of Youtei is rather weak since Disguise checks are pretty rare. And even then, it's not that much of a bonus at all.
While it's OK for some traits to be a shade weaker compared to others, I agree that this one is signifantly weaker than the others.
I'd recommend either changing it to "+1 to Perception checks and Perception is a class skill," OR keeping it as is, but also granting a +2 trait bonus on Will saves vs. illusions.