Laughing Leviathan

Here's the first draft of the first phase of D&D backgrounds I'm making for a home Troika game. I've had players mention wanting to try something a little more vanilla and more in line with what they were used to after trying out Troika for the first time, so here's my attempt to bridge the gap. Some things I wanted to keep in mind when making these conversions: Making the items as flavorful and evocative as Troika backgrounds Blending skills from both games Only use Spells from Troika Taking a page from GLOG, and giving a template choice for Special Abilities to the player, with carry over from 5e abilities but translated into Troika rules Let me know what you think, if you have any suggestions or recommendations, and how you feel I should continue on. First Draft of D&D x Troika! Backgrounds   Preview:  Note: Art and flavor text is directly from the D&D PHB. I plan on replacing both in the future, this is just for my reference.

Chaos Domain Clerics that choose Chaos as their domain worship gods of different walks. Some worship Mystra, but believe that a mortal understanding of magic is incomplete. Some worship gods of trickery and deceit, believing that fully trusting in the divine can be a mistake. Regardless of who they worship, they share a belief that magic is all-powerful, and to handle it carelessly comes with many repercussions. Chaos Domain Spells Cleric Level Spells 1st Chromatic Orb, Color Spray 3rd Alter Self, Enlarge/Reduce 5th Gaseous Form, Blink 7th Confusion, Polymorph 9th Animate Objects, Reincarnate Bonus Cantrip When you choose this domain at 1st level, you gain the prestidigitation cantrip if you don't already know it. Channel Divinity: Fate's Gambit Beginning at 2nd level, you can use your Channel Divinity to alter fate itself. Whenever any creature within 30 feet of you makes an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check, roll a D2...

College of the Firebird Bards who follow the College of the Phoenix all share similar qualities: courageous, chivalrous, and determination. They travel the world telling tales of the Phoenix, and patterning their lives after their namesake. Always the first to fight, and the last to give up, College of the Phoenix bards will never let their allies down, and are always a welcome addition on the battlefield. Fire Dancer When you join the College of the Phoenix at 3rd level, while not wearing armor or wielding a shield you gain the following benefits: You gain proficiency with martial weapons Your movement speed is increased by 10 feet. Your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifer + your Charisma modifier. Ignite the Soul Also at 3rd level, your bardic inspiration has a chance to inspire and spark the imagination of your comrades. Whenever a friendly creature uses a Bardic Inspiration die granted by you, they add your Charisma modifier to the number rolled on the die. Blaze of...

College of Hymns Bards who follow the College of Divinity usually head the choirs of their universities and churches, or take up the power of hymnals to help inspire their fellow man down a path of righteousness. Mysteries of Faith When you join the College of Divinity at 3rd level, your healing spells and abilities are infused with divine power. Whenever you would roll a 1 or a 2 for a spell or ability to restore hit points, you reroll the die and must use the new roll, even if the new roll is a 1 or a 2. Hymn of Soothing Also at 3rd level, your bardic inspiration begins to soothe the soul. Whenever you or a friendly creature uses your bardic inspiration die, they gain temporary hit points equal to the number rolled on the die + your Charisma modifier. Psalm of Renewal Beginning at 6th level, whenever you use your Song of Rest feature, you can end either one disease or one condition afflicting you or a single friendly creature who can hear your performance. Conviction of ...

Path of the Warboss The half-orc that chooses the Path of the Warboss is the strongest, and the meanest of his tribe. More than just an exceedingly powerful warrior fueled by a thirst for battle, the Warboss exudes control over the battlefield through sheer might. A Warboss will usually rise to power in his tribe through sheer brute force. Once in position as the leader of a tribe, he holds dominion over all he surveys, and will use a heavy hand against anyone who says or thinks different. Restriction: Half-Orcs Only Only half-orcs can follow the Path of the Warboss. The warboss is a rare title among a unique few orc clans. Your DM can lift this restriction to better suit the campaign. Biggest and Baddest Starting when you choose this path at 3rd level, your rage surges through your muscles causing you to grow to an immensely terrifying sight. While you are raging, you begin to grow in size and gain the following benefits: Double in all dimensions, and weight ...

The Spirit of Primal Fury Some barbarians are able to be so overcome with rage, that connection to magic beyond the physical world is made. This is the way of the Primalist. Through raw emotion and rage, these barbarians are able to call forth powerful magic to aid them and bolster their abilities in battle.   These barbarians learn very few spells, but are able to cast them at full power. Spellcasting When you reach 3rd level, you can channel your emotions to cast spells. See chapter 10 for general rules of spellcasting. Cantrips You know two cantrips of your choice from the druid spell list. When you reach 10th level, you learn an additional cantrip of your choice. Spell Slots The Path of the Primalist table shows how many spell slots you have. The table also shows that the level of those slots is; all of your spell slots are the same level. To cast one of your barbarian spells of 1st level or higher, you must expend a spell slot. Spells Know...

Man of Miracles by Lee Rosenblatt There is a raw, formless source of magic that mortals both arcane and divine can both access. Ok, I'll bite. The Weave helps protect the world from the dangers of unrefined magic. Sure . It's ever-present, flowing freely throughout the Planes and their worlds, touching every corner of existence. Cool . It's static and stale and everyone who casts the same spells regardless of time and day and year and location but end up with the same results and spell effects. Nah, I don't buy it.  Picture an ocean as it flows endlessly into the horizon, forever blue. Sometimes it has an overwhelming tranquility, and other times it crashes with a pure and unbridled sense of violence. But if it flows, it also ebbs. Just as the tide rises and falls, and the seasons come and go. As a fundamental feature that ties together and connects all the continents, so too does the Weave as it acts as a cornerstone of all Planes of Existence.   Tha...

This is part 4 of my series where I explore magic in Dungeons & Dragons 5e that manages to be everything but magical. You can read the other posts here: Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 .  This might be my preachiest, nitpickiest, crotchetiest post in this series. It's also probably the last one in this series, so strap in. As I type this up I'm reminded of a quote from a wise and fictional warlord, "Do not, my friends, become addicted to water. It will take hold of you, and you will resent its absence." This is more or less applicable here, too, except we scratch out the word water, and we replace it with another equally important and massively essential factor in survival: shelter .  Immortan Joe by Christopher Flork That's right, I am now picking on those pesky magic spells that provide shelter and safety with no repercussions to millions of adventuring parties around the world. Specifically, the spells  Rope Trick,  Leomund's Tiny Hut, and Morden...

This is part 2 of my series where I explore magic in Dungeons & Dragons 5e that manages to be everything but magical. You can read the first post here . Today's entry is going to be focused on magic food and drink, and how to make what's mundane into something fun. Whining and Dining For the purpose of this series, I'm going to ignore the Outlander background and half of the Ranger traits, even though my primary complaint about these spells could probably apply to those things too. My main issue with these spells, is that they can completely trivialize a part of the game that can be oh so fun for some groups: survival. Finding food and drink while in the wilderness, or a mile underground, or even on another Plane of Mild Existence can lead to some amazingly fun situations, or even prop up an entire adventure on its own, assuming you actually use and enforce inventory slots, scarcity, and food / water requirements in your game, that is. I'm not even sure that...

This is the beginning of a series of posts that addresses what I like to call, "No-Fun Magic". To me, "No-Fun Magic" are spells and abilities that don't necessarily add anything to the game, interact in any meaningful way, and whose purpose is solely to skip a part of the game or act as a specific answer to another magic spell. Although this can be applied to any game where these spells exists, this series is a direct response to my time spent playing Dungeons & Dragons 5e, so take that as you will. First up on the chopping block is the 3rd level Abjuration spell Dispel Magic. I like it because it's a classic, both in D&D and fantasy fiction in general. Wizards cast spells and sometimes those are bad spells. Other wizards then casts spells to undo those bad things. Or vice versa, good and bad are just words. Whatever. What I don't like about it (at least, in D&D 5e) is how boring it is. If there's a magical barrier or trap, then as lon...