Homebrew:Ghostlight Passenger: Difference between revisions

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{{ooc note|This is an implementation of the {{PAGENAME}} background from [[The Crooked Moon]]}}
{{ooc note|This is an implementation of the {{PAGENAME}} background from [[The Crooked Moon]]}}
__NOTOC__
__NOTOC__
Some portion of your past has been swallowed by nothingness. The missing time could be a short interval—mere days or weeks gone from your memory— or you might have only vague hints at best of who you are and where you are from. Flashes of déjà vu are common, taunting you with recollection, but they almost always slip away, as ungraspable as the mists of Druskenvald. An injury, some traumatic experience, or the magical workings of a spell or curse could be the culprit behind your amnesia.
Once, even before your most recent travel to Druskenvald, you rode the deathly train known as the ''Ghostlight Express''. Your memories of that journey might be hazy and dreamlike, or they could be sharp and jarring in their clarity. You learned some of the workings of the ghostly engine and formed a connection with the conductor and fellow travelers that has stayed with you. At times, you are even more comfortable with the dead than the living.


; <nowiki>Feat:</nowiki> : [[homebrew:Memory Starved|Memory Starved]]
; <nowiki>Feat:</nowiki> : [[homebrew:Ghostlist Medium|Ghostlist Medium]]
; <nowiki>Skill Proficiencies:</nowiki> : Choose two (see below)
; <nowiki>Skill Proficiencies:</nowiki> : {{insight}}, {{persuasion}}
; <nowiki>Tool Proficiencies:</nowiki> : Choose one (see below)
; <nowiki>Tool Proficiencies:</nowiki> : [[equipment:smiths-tools|smith's tools]]
; <nowiki>Languages:</nowiki> : See below
; <nowiki>Equipment:</nowiki> : Choose A or B: (A) smith's tools, bullseye lantern, fine clothes, oil (3 flasks), 5 gp; or (B) 50 gp
; <nowiki>Equipment:</nowiki> : Choose A or B: (A) book (personal notes), ink, ink pen, traveler's clothes, 11 gp; or (B) 50 gp


== Scattered Memories ==
== Building a {{PAGENAME}} ==
You don't choose skill proficiencies or a tool proficiency when you select this background, and you don't choose any languages other than Common during character creation—these are parts of your past that you are missing. Instead, you can pick one of those proficiencies or languages during play at any time. The knowledge might return in a spontaneous flash, even as you make a roll that relies on the proficiency, or slowly emerge as you struggle to solve a problem. Once you choose one of these features, you can't choose another one until you gain a level.
Every person in Druskenvald travels the ''Ghostlight Express'' at least once, but very few form the deep and lasting connection that you have. Your first trip on the train might have been a near death experience from which you were saved, or perhaps you did die in earnest but were resurrected later.


The GM might rule that you can choose a new recalled feature early if something reminds you of your past, such as finding a piece of evidence from your missing memories or experiencing an event similar to one you have forgotten. Of particular value is an event relating to one of the story threads or trinkets presented below.
Characters attuned to spirits or the lands of the dead, such as clerics, paladins, or those who had brushes with death, are the most common to exhibit this deep connection.
 
== Building an {{PAGENAME}} ==
Any character can face misfortune or a choice that steals their memory. Consider how your character came to lose their memory. Was it lost through injury or illness, or did something more sinister steal it with a toxin or curse? You might decide to leave this choice up to the GM, letting you as a player discover the cause alongside your character.


=== Suggested Story Threads ===
=== Suggested Story Threads ===
This background presents a paradox when considering threads to weave through a campaign, since the character may not remember them. Work with the GM to create some leading events or people that can serve as constants to trace a path through the void of the character's past, especially if the GM can insert existing nonplayer characters into the thread to strengthen these connections. The Amnesiac Story Threads table suggests events and people who can be the start of these threads.
The Ghostlight Passenger Story Threads table suggests events and people who can be the start of story threads for your character that weave through the campaign.


{| class="wikitable"
{| class="wikitable"
Line 24: Line 20:
! 1d6 !! Thread
! 1d6 !! Thread
|-
|-
| 1 || You have recurring dreams of someone you might recognize on your adventures.
| 1 || Sometimes when you dream, you find yourself back on the ''Ghostlight Express'' in more than just a dream image.
|-
|-
| 2 || You absent-mindedly doodle the same design or symbol over and over.
| 2 || Your first journey to the lands of the dead was confusing, but you realized you now may be able to find the departed spirit of a loved one once thought lost forever.
|-
|-
| 3 || A friend has been traveling the provinces of Druskenvald with a caravan, searching for any hint of your past as they do.
| 3 || A specific spirit returns to speak to and through you repeatedly.
|-
|-
| 4 || A rhyme or song you've never heard before comes to mind when your thoughts wander.
| 4 || People sometimes speak to you as if they know you but later have no recollection of the conversation. During those moments of recognition, they know details from your visits on the ''Ghostlight Express''.
|-
|-
| 5 || Rainbow colors, such as those on a soap bubble or oil slick, fill you with unexplained terror.
| 5 || You sometimes see people in your travels who you recognize from your time on the ''Ghostlight Express''.
|-
|-
| 6 || You have a fragmented recollection of traveling to a remote place in the mountains.
| 6 || Someone greeted you with knowledge of your first journey on the ''Ghostlight Express'', but you don't remember them.
|}
|}


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! 1d6 !! Trinket
! 1d6 !! Trinket
|-
|-
| 1 || Half of a tarnished silver ring with a partial inscription in a language you don't understand
| 1 || A slate board smeared with erased chalk, where you sometimes find words scratched
|-
|-
| 2 || A music box that plays a sad tune you recognize but can't identify
| 2 || A lump of coal that never burns away and gives off wispy smoke
|-
|-
| 3 || A short note addressed to you signed with a name you don't recognize
| 3 || A torn ticket stub that is slightly translucent
|-
|-
| 4 || A thin silk scarf with a fading scent that stirs familiarity
| 4 || A dented train conductor's whistle that only the dead can hear
|-
|-
| 5 || A toy horse with unfamiliar initials inked on it
| 5 || A pocket watch that runs backwards
|-
|-
| 6 || A locket whose portrait is burnt and unrecognizable
| 6 || A battered train conductor's hat
|}
|}


[[category:homebrew backgrounds]]
[[category:homebrew backgrounds]]

Latest revision as of 23:16, 27 July 2025

(OOC: This is an implementation of the Ghostlight Passenger background from The Crooked Moon)

Once, even before your most recent travel to Druskenvald, you rode the deathly train known as the Ghostlight Express. Your memories of that journey might be hazy and dreamlike, or they could be sharp and jarring in their clarity. You learned some of the workings of the ghostly engine and formed a connection with the conductor and fellow travelers that has stayed with you. At times, you are even more comfortable with the dead than the living.

Feat:
Ghostlist Medium
Skill Proficiencies:
InsightWisdom (Insight)skillYour Wisdom (Insight) check decides whether you can determine the true intentions of a creature, such as when searching out a lie or predicting someone’s next move. Doing so involves gleaning clues from body language, speech habits, and changes in mannerisms., PersuasionCharisma (Persuasion)skillWhen you attempt to influence someone or a group of people with tact, social graces, or good nature, the DM might ask you to make a Charisma (Persuasion) check. Typically, you use persuasion when acting in good faith, to foster friendships, make cordial requests, or exhibit proper etiquette. Examples of persuading others include convincing a chamberlain to let your party see the king, negotiating peace between warring tribes, or inspiring a crowd of townsfolk.
Tool Proficiencies:
smith's tools
Equipment:
Choose A or B: (A) smith's tools, bullseye lantern, fine clothes, oil (3 flasks), 5 gp; or (B) 50 gp

Building a Ghostlight Passenger

Every person in Druskenvald travels the Ghostlight Express at least once, but very few form the deep and lasting connection that you have. Your first trip on the train might have been a near death experience from which you were saved, or perhaps you did die in earnest but were resurrected later.

Characters attuned to spirits or the lands of the dead, such as clerics, paladins, or those who had brushes with death, are the most common to exhibit this deep connection.

Suggested Story Threads

The Ghostlight Passenger Story Threads table suggests events and people who can be the start of story threads for your character that weave through the campaign.

Ghostlight Passenger Story Threads
1d6 Thread
1 Sometimes when you dream, you find yourself back on the Ghostlight Express in more than just a dream image.
2 Your first journey to the lands of the dead was confusing, but you realized you now may be able to find the departed spirit of a loved one once thought lost forever.
3 A specific spirit returns to speak to and through you repeatedly.
4 People sometimes speak to you as if they know you but later have no recollection of the conversation. During those moments of recognition, they know details from your visits on the Ghostlight Express.
5 You sometimes see people in your travels who you recognize from your time on the Ghostlight Express.
6 Someone greeted you with knowledge of your first journey on the Ghostlight Express, but you don't remember them.

Ghostlight Passenger Trinkets

When you make your character, you can roll once on the Ghostlight Passenger Trinkets table instead of on the normal starting Trinkets table.

Ghostlight Passenger Trinkets
1d6 Trinket
1 A slate board smeared with erased chalk, where you sometimes find words scratched
2 A lump of coal that never burns away and gives off wispy smoke
3 A torn ticket stub that is slightly translucent
4 A dented train conductor's whistle that only the dead can hear
5 A pocket watch that runs backwards
6 A battered train conductor's hat
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