So, the easy version is you switch out your chosen background’s equipment with another one. This is the weirdest part of customizing your background. Changing Background Equipment You can’t give yourself armor or weapons with a custom backgrounds, but you still have a lot of options to better fit your character So, you can easily take the woodworking or smithing tool proficieny in place of one of the languages. You want your character to have a history of craftsmanship or working in a shop. Say you want to play an Acolyte but you don’t really want or need two more languages. Look at the tools and languages available to you (because your DM might not allow certain languages) and pick two total.Īgain, this helps flesh out your character. Choose a Total of Two Tool Proficiencies or Languages So, it’s an easy change to ensure your character covers as many skills as possible. Sometimes you choose a race and class combination that gives you skills your desired background has. I use this one a lot when making characters. You get to choose any two skills to become proficient in with this background. Just be sure to check and work with your DM before making any changes. Especially if none of the features strike your fancy. And honestly, this is one of the stickier parts of customizing a background in 5e (second only to the equipment). This lets you take one background option and replace its corresponding feature with another. If you can’t find a feature that matches your desired background, work with your DM to create one." (If you spend coin, you can’t also take the equipment package suggested for your class.) Finally, choose two personality traits, one ideal, one bond, and one flaw. You can either use the equipment package from your background or spend coin on gear as described in the Equipment section. "To customize a background, you can replace one feature with any other one, choose any two skills, and choose a total of two tool proficiencies or languages from the sample backgrounds. So, to get started, let’s look back at the rest of the rules from the PHB. So, how do you do that, exactly? Customizing Backgrounds for 5e Follow these easy steps to customize or create your character’s background from scratch These are the five parts to creating your own or customizing your background in 5e. You can choose your personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from any list or come up with your own.You can either replace your background’s equipment package with another or choose to use the starting wealth optional rule for your class.You can choose up to two tool proficienies or languages.You can choose up to two skill proficiencies.You can replace a feature or make a new one by working with your Dungeon Master.
Now, you do still have a few rules you need to follow. You don’t need to use any of the listed choices verbatim. It means, rules as written, you can customize your background in 5e. "You might want to tweak some of the features of a background so it better fits your character or the campaign setting." Source: DnD Beyond Basic Rules: Personality & Background You get what you get and that’s it.Ĭlass and subclass features, feats, and even your race (at least until Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything came out) had little customization options.īut, the Player’s Handbook explicitly states you can customize or create your own backgrounds to fit your character. So many other elements of the game feel solid. It may come as a surprise but custom backgrounds are a part of the core rules of D&D 5e. Rules for Custom Backgrounds in 5e The rules to creating your own custom background in 5e are actually pretty straightforward & they’re in the PHB Let’s get into it starting with the rule for 5e custom backgrounds.
#GENERAL DND 5E CHARACTER BUILDER HOW TO#
In this post, I’ll clear up some of the rules about custom backgrounds, guide you on how to make your own, and answer some common questions about them. If you can’t find one that you like, you might want to create a custom one. While I’d recommend you stick with the pre-made backgrounds in 5e for your first game. If you’re new to Dungeons & Dragons 5e you might be curious about making your own custom background.