
Lord Fyre RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32 |
1 person marked this as a favorite. |

All of the following backgrounds revolve around one of two current events in the city of Riddleport. The first is the manifestation of the Blot, a strange and ominous shadow in the sky that looks like nothing so much as a cloud of darkness. The Blot captured the interest of Riddleport’s citizens when it first manifested, but that was months ago—now, after the strange cloud hasn’t done anything particularly dramatic for so long, most folk have grown accustomed to it. Most—but not all; some, such as the Order of Cyphers, remain concerned by the strange cloud, and worry that it may be the harbinger of something worse.
The other event is a gambling tournament called “Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold.” Held at the recently reopened Gold Goblin Gambling Hall, talk of the tourney has spread throughout the town of Riddleport and has even reached some taverns in cities as far as Magnimar or even Korvosa. Excitement for the tournament has been building for a month, and now that the day is finally here, people from all over are flocking to take part. The somewhat restrictive entrance fee ironically makes it not possible for many of Riddleport’s own citizens to attend, but in the case of each PC who takes a Second Darkness Campaign Background, that 1 gold entrance fee has been paid, either by an interested party or by yourself (this expense does not come from your starting cash).
Note: The following backgrounds do make occasional use of General feats in an effort to avoid needless repetition of previous backgrounds in other sources.
Fools for Friends
The shadow in the sky is visible from all around Riddleport, not just in town. It’s certainly come to the attention of several druids, rangers, and other rural folk who dwell in the nearby mountains, forests, and swamps—among them, yourself. You’ve consulted with several seers and Harrowers, and may even have performed some simple auguries yourself, and all the signs point the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. You’ve avoided the sleazy, dirty town for most of your life, traveling there only when absolutely necessary, and although you don’t relish the prospect of going there now, you see little other choice (especially if one of your superiors is ordering you to go investigate). Fortunately, an eccentric friend of yours (pick another PC) is in town, and you’ve heard this friend will be taking part in some gambling thing at a place called the Gold Goblin. Your friend’s always had better luck interacting with the cityfolk, so you’ve decided to accompany your friend to this gambling tournament and plan on letting him find a safe place for you to stay while you’re in town. Your long life of self-sustenance has toughened you and made you more resistant to hardship.
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You gain your choice of the Deception skill and the Lie To Me feat or the Society skill and the Streetwise feat. You grew up here and so gain the Riddleport Lore skill.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Elven and Varisian languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.
Into Enemy Territory
The shadow in the sky is visible from all around Riddleport, not just in town. It’s certainly come to the attention of several druids, rangers, and other rural folk who dwell in the nearby mountains, forests, and swamps—among them, yourself. You’ve consulted with several seers and Harrowers, and may even have performed some simple auguries yourself, and all the signs point the same way—something or someone in Riddleport is connected to the blot, and it means bad news for the region. You’ve avoided the sleazy, dirty town for most of your life, traveling there only when absolutely necessary, and although you don’t relish the prospect of going there now, you see little other choice (especially if one of your superiors is ordering you to go investigate). Fortunately, an eccentric friend of yours (pick another PC) is in town, and you’ve heard this friend will be taking part in some gambling thing at a place called the Gold Goblin. Your friend’s always had better luck interacting with the cityfolk, so you’ve decided to accompany your friend to this gambling tournament and plan on letting him find a safe place for you to stay while you’re in town. Your long life of self-sustenance has toughened you and made you more resistant to hardship.
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Constitution or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You are trained in the Forest lore. You also gain your choice of the Nature or the Survival skill. In either case, you gain the Toughness general feat.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Elven and Sylvan languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.
Looking for Work
Although out of work, you aren’t particularly keen on the prospect of gambling away your last remaining coins simply for a chance at riches. That said, if the Gold Goblin’s fortunes reverse after this big gambling tournament, you’re relatively certain its owner, Saul Vancaskerkin, will be needing to hire on some new staff members. You’ve secured payment for the tournament, and intend on attending mostly to check the place out, to decide if it’s a place you’d want to work at, and hopefully get a chance to catch Saul’s eye and make an impression. You’ve long worked at honing your skills, and are quite accomplished and certain that you have something to offer.
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Strength or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You are trained in the Innkeeper lore. You also gain your choice of the Diplomacy skill and the Hobnobber feat or the Intimidation skill and the Quick Coercion feat.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Elven and Varisian languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.
Optimistic Gambler
You’ve always seemed to have trouble keeping money. Worse, you always seem to have debts looming over your head. When you heard about the “Cheat the Devil and Take His Gold” gambling tournament, you felt in your gut that your luck was about to change. You’ve always been optimistic, in fact, and even though right now is one of those rare times where you don’t owe anyone any money (you just paid off a recent loan from local moneylender Lymas Smeed), you know that’ll change soon enough. Better to start amassing money now when you’re at one of those rare windfall times! You’ve set aside a gold coin for the entrance fee, and look forward to making it big—you can feel it in your bones! This time’s gonna be the big one!
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You are trained in the Games lore. You also gain your choice of the Deception skill and the Charming Liar feat or the Thievery skill and the Pickpocket feat.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Elven and Varisian languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.
Researching the Blot
You may or may not be seeking membership into Riddleport’s most prestigious magical guild, the Order of Cyphers, but you certainly have heard their call for aid in determining the nature of the strange shadow in the sky above Riddleport. You arrived in town several days ago and had some issues with security and safety at several inns before you finally settled on the Gold Goblin; you’ve been staying there as a guest for several days now, and the owner, Saul Vancaskerkin, seems like a nice guy. He’s even given you a pass to attend the gambling tournament he’s about to throw—you’re not sure how into gambling you’ll be, but perhaps there’ll be some visitors from out of town you can talk to about the strange shadow in the sky. At the very least, you’re hoping someone at the tourney will be into magic—there’s not really enough folk in this town who seem all that interested in magic, you’ve found. Your interest in magic dates back quite far, and as a result, you’ve developed a knack for identifying magical phenomena.
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Intelligence or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You’re trained in either the Arcane or Occult skill. You gain the Quick Identification skill feat. You are also trained in the Scribing Lore skill.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Elven and Thassilonian languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.
Scouting for Fiends
You belong to an organization (most likely a religion) that has definite views on the menace posed by the lower planes. The willfulness with which the city of Korvosa (they even allow a temple of Asmodeus to operate in broad daylight!) tolerates infernal influences is, to you and your organization, the greatest symbol of what’s wrong with civilization today. And now, in Riddleport, there’s news that a gambling tournament is using devils and Hell as an idle decoration. It’s likely that this is just an example of poor taste, but there’s a chance that something sinister may be lurking beneath the goings-on at the Gold Goblin. You have been contacted by your organization (or may have decided on your own) to travel to Riddleport (if you don’t already live there) and attend this tournament under the guise of a patron. Keep an eye on things there, even after the tournament is over; if you can, get a job working for the owner. Demons and devils can be subtle, and it could take weeks or even months to find proof of their involvement.
Benefits
* - Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Strength or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
* - You’re trained either in the Religion or Nature skill; and the Fiend Lore skill. You gain the Incredible Initiative general feat.
* - In addition to whatever remains of your starting funds, you enter the Gold Goblin with a pouch of 10 silver that you have saved for the tournament.
Note: This background gives you access to both the Abyssal and Infernal languages, but you don’t get either of them automatically.

Kelseus |
3 people marked this as a favorite. |

Funny enough, I have also been working on this. Some of our choices were similar, others different.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Constitution or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Society skill and the Politics Lore skill. You gain the Courtly Graces skill feat.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Constitution or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Survival skill and the Elven Lore skill. You gain the Forager skill feat.
bartender, croupier, server, entertainer, spotter, or cook), and hopefully get a chance to catch Saul’s eye and make an impression. You’ve long worked at honing your skills, and are quite accomplished and certain that you have something to offer.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Strength or Intelligence, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Diplomacy skill and any one Lore skill (up to GM approval). You gain the Experienced Professional skill feat.
change soon enough. Better to start amassing money now when you’re at one of those rare windfall times! You’ve set aside a gold coin for the entrance fee, and look forward to making it big—you can feel it in your bones! This time’s gonna be the big one! Your boundless optimism, even in the face of crushing situations, has always bolstered your spirit.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Deception skill and the Gambling Lore skill. You gain the Charming Liar skill feat.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Intelligence or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Occultism skill and the Darklands Lore skill. You gain the Oddity Identification skill feat.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Dexterity or Charisma, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Thievery skill and the Underworld Lore skill. You gain the Pickpocket skill feat.
working for the owner. Demons and devils can be subtle, and it could take weeks or even months to find proof of their involvement.
Choose two ability boosts. One must be to Strength or Wisdom, and one is a free ability boost.
You're trained in the Religion skill and the Demon Lore skill. You gain the Student of the Canon skill feat.

Lord Fyre RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32 |

Funny enough, I have also been working on this. Some of our choices were similar, others different.
** spoiler omitted **
** spoiler omitted **...
Props for copy and pasting the "Fools for Fiends text correct. It appears that I could not manage that. :(
One thing I was looking to do is provide two paths for each background, so that the player would have different options based on the trait's background.

Kelseus |

I used the Age of Ashes backgrounds as a template, and they seemed very unshy about being somewhat heavy handed with their options. I did add the custom one for two reasons. First, I wanted to give access to underworld lore and second because it helped to balance the Ability bonus options, now each ability has at least two options available.

![]() |

Regarding the custom background, its the same as Street Urchin, just with Underworld Lore instead of the city lore. Wouldn't Riddleport Lore be a better choice than underworld? I would expect that most of what you would know with underworld would be revealed with Riddleport Lore given the nature of the city and the specificity of the Lore skill. Or did you deem it necessary to replace the ability boost from Constitution to Charisma to be important?

Lord Fyre RPG Superstar 2009 Top 32 |

Regarding the custom background, its the same as Street Urchin, just with Underworld Lore instead of the city lore. Wouldn't Riddleport Lore be a better choice than underworld? I would expect that most of what you would know with underworld would be revealed with Riddleport Lore given the nature of the city and the specificity of the Lore skill. Or did you deem it necessary to replace the ability boost from Constitution to Charisma to be important?
Riddleport Lore would have been better.

Kelseus |

Regarding the custom background, its the same as Street Urchin, just with Underworld Lore instead of the city lore. Wouldn't Riddleport Lore be a better choice than underworld? I would expect that most of what you would know with underworld would be revealed with Riddleport Lore given the nature of the city and the specificity of the Lore skill. Or did you deem it necessary to replace the ability boost from Constitution to Charisma to be important?
Agreed on Riddleport lore.