Tag: Black Flag

  • Cabbies and ferien – people moving backgrounds for 5e/5.5 D&D and Black Flag

    Cabbies and ferien – people moving backgrounds for 5e/5.5 D&D and Black Flag

    Paths and ways in a fantasy world are not just occupied with masses of people walking with a few nobles on horseback. They are also clogged with carriages and carts delivering goods. In my own world one NPC used two giant turkeys to pull his coffee delivery cart. The players enjoyed the presence of this NPC so much they kept bringing him back up.

    The cabbie or ferien are taxis for a world where there are dragons and very expensive teleport circles.

    Cabbie

    You help carry people and goods between neighborhoods and distances. Working in urban areas either on the land or water you know the paths between places and the peoples who inhabit them.

    The cabbie may pull their own cart, use a pony or even have experience with a two-horse carriage. Often they have a stool to help their clientele into their car. Also willing to talk, even when the occupant isn’t interested, the cabbie can learn the happenings of a region or distract that occupant in such a way that they are susceptible to crimes.

    Cabbie (5e / 2014)

    Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Deception or Persuasion
    Tool Proficiencies: Vehicles (pick one of land or water)
    Languages: One additional language, often from a culture that is nearby the home of the character
    Equipment: Cart, carriage, rowboat, gondola, sailboat (pick one), a lantern with 3 flasks of oil, traveler’s clothes, a trinket, 2 days rations, pouch with 25 silver

    Feature: Talk too much

    You are a skilled conversationalist that frequently goes on and on. These long talks are often consuming and distracting. Some cabbies and feriens may have allies who use that speech as a distraction to pick pockets or similar events.

    Additionally, you pick up the streets, rivers or flyways of a new city quickly almost never getting lost in natural urban areas.

    Personality

    Use the Folk Hero and Fisher for guidance.

    Alternate: Ferien

    First, let’s get this out of the way. There’s no simple gender neutral word for ferryman. Similar to Anagod on World Anvil, I appreciate the older English word ferien. As you expect the cabbie knows the streets of a city or the ways between villages, the ferien works the waterways of a land — rivers, canals, lakes and shores.

    Image from page 270 of Medieval and modern times; an introduction to the history of western Europe form the dissolution of the Roman empire to the present time (1919)
    A scene in Venice – public domain

    It’s pretty simple to make the Ferien version. Choose Vehicles (water) and then pick a rowboat, canoe, gondola or tiny sailboat for the vehicle. Nothing else needs to change.

    Cabbie (5.5e / 2024)

    Ability scores: Charisma, Strength, Wisdom
    Feat: Talk Too Much
    Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Deception or Persuasion
    Tool Proficiency: Navigator’s Tools (2024 depreciated Vehicles)
    Equipment: Cart, carriage, rowboat, gondola, sailboat (pick one), a lantern with 3 flasks of oil, traveler’s clothes, a trinket, 2 days rations, pouch with 25 silver or 20 gold.

    Origin Feat: Talk Too Much

    Shoulder talking. When talking to creature with which you share a language (or culture) you are able to distract a non-hostile creature. An ally attempting use Sleight of Hand, Stealth, or Deception against that creature has advantage in the current minute.

    Paths and landmarks. After spending an hour in a bar, market, restaurant or other third place in a new non-magical urban area you are unable to get lost.

    Cabbie (Black Flag)

    Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Deception or Persuasion
    Additional Proficiencies: Vehicle (land, water to be a ferrien)
    Equipment: Cart, carriage, rowboat, gondola, sailboat (pick one), a lantern with 3 flasks of oil, traveler’s clothes, a trinket, 2 days rations, pouch with 25 silver or 20 gold.

    Talent

    You are familiar with the conversations and flow of urban places, used to finding your way through new cities and old while talking to people across social class, faiths or ancestries. Pick one of the following;

    1. Polyglot
    2. Trade Skills
    3. Aware

    Design Goals

    Watching Shadow & Bone, or the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, you see that those who manage transportation are part of fantasy stories. Whether the carriage driver or the polemaster in a gondola, these characters deserve the opportunity to be heroes.

    Maybe because I’ve been focused on the bog-city of Sheljar for Dungeon 23 I thought it was time to share this background publicly. The bog-city, or an island city, must have peoples who are dedicated to navigating the waters.

    This post was originally written for 5e in January 2023 and updated for 5.5e and Black Flag in July 2026.

    Custom Backgrounds for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons

  • Inkling Dragon

    Inkling Dragon

    Inkling Dragons are thought to be related to pseudodragons, but where the pseudodragon is a wilderness lover the inkling dragon is generally an urban drake that enjoys being surrounded by books, scrolls and pamphlets.

    Generally the size of a large rat or small cat inkling dragons can be mistaken for an immature jaculus drake. As all dragonkin hoard something, an inkling dragon is consumed with the pursuit of knowledge and writing, similar to paper drakes.

    An inkling dragon without a companion can be found in libraries, universities, bardic colleges and wherever records are kept. Some are creatives writing fiction and song. Others are historians, tracking the world through the written word. At least one inkling dragon is known to only write in mathematics. This inkling dragon, Aymon, is a friend of transmuters, tax collectors and merchants often working as a clerk or calculator.

    The Inkling Dragon was created as part of a limited commission in the upcoming book Dragons of the Dwindling by Dragons of Wales (Andy Frazer).
    Follow Dragons of Wales on Instagram, Threads and Mastodon. Support Dragons of Wales on Patreon.

    Inkling Dragon companions

    Frequently inkling dragons and writers bond over their love of the written word. Sought after by many wizards and writers, an inkling dragon chooses their companion as much as their companion chooses them — the tiny dragon has to find the work engaging and relevant to their own writing.

    1. Wizard
    2. Bard
    3. Propagandist
    4. Novelist
    5. Poet
    6. Merchant
    7. Tax collector
    8. Cleric
    9. Clerk
    10. Noble

    This work includes material taken from the Black Flag Reference Document 1.0 (“BFRD 1.0”) by Kobold Press and available at Black Flag Roleplaying

    Pencil sketch of a tiny dragon resting on a book. The pointy tail arches over the back with drips of ichor coming out of a feathered tip. The arms seem to be vestigial wings with opposing fingers capable of handling obects
    Art by Dragons of Wales in the forthcoming book Dragons of the Dwindling

    Inkling Dragon stat block

    Inkling Dragon (CR 1/4)
    Tiny Dragon

    Armor Class 14 (natural armor, small size)
    Hit Points 8
    Speed 10 ft., fly 30 ft.
    Perception 11 Stealth 12
    Resistant none | charmed
    Senses darkvision 30 ft., keensense 10 ft.
    Languages Common and four other languages (or cultures)

    STRDEXCONINTWISCHA
    -3+2-1+4+1+1

    Heightened Senses. The inkling dragon’s Perception is 20 when perceiving by sight. Ability checks for Perception using sight use Intelligence.

    Magic Resistance. The inkling dragon has advantage on saves against spells and other magical effects.

    Limited Telepathy. The inkling dragon can magically communicate simple ideas, emotions, and images telepathically with any creature within 30 feet of it that can understand a language it knows.

    Copying a Spell into the Book. When an inkling dragon or its companion finds an Arcane spell of 1st circle* or higher, the inkling dragon can add it to a spellbook if it is of a spell circle the companion can prepare and if they can make time to decipher and copy it. For each circle of the spell, the process takes 1 hour with no gp costs. Once the inkling dragon spends this time, the companions can prepare the spell just like their other Arcane spells. Copying a spell from a scroll into a spellbook doesn’t consume or destroy the scroll. Non-magical writing is written four times as fast when compared to humans. The inkling dragon produces ink from its tail as long as it isn’t at level two exhaustion or higher.
    * Black Flag uses circle as D&D uses spell level.

    Ritualist. An inkling dragon with its own book can be a Ritualist, per the Black Flag Talent. The spell source is Arcane. Intelligence is their spellcasting ability. The inkling dragon knows one 1st circle ritual (typically Identify). If the inkling dragon is a companion to a spellcaster it can learn rituals at the same circle and source as their spellcasting companion.

    1st circle Arcane rituals

    • Alarm
    • Create Familiar (these can only be common beasts)
    • Identify
    • Illusory Script
    • Unseen Servant

    ACTIONS

    Sting. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one
    creature. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage and the target must succeed on a DC 11 DEX save or be poisoned for 10 minutes. If the creature fails the save by 5 or more, it is stained by ink per Ink Stain below. This staining does not count against the number of uses per day.

    Ink Stain (1/short rest). On a successful sting the inkling dragon can mystic mark (Ranger) one creature. While a creature is marked (including for the attack that triggered the mark), the inkling dragon and allies deal an extra 1d4 damage to it (of the same damage type as the weapon) each time you successfully hit it with a weapon attack. A marked creature can use an Action to remove the Ink Stain. An inkling dragon that is a familiar or companion to a character may use this ability proficiency bonus (of that character) times per day rather than once per short rest.

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  • Black Flag is in the Creative Commons, now what? Backgrounds!

    Black Flag is in the Creative Commons, now what? Backgrounds!

    Over the past decade the 5th edition of Dungeons & Dragons grew three main offshoots from its original 2014 release by Wizards of the Coast. These three trunks are all now in the Creative Commons thanks to Kobold Press’s announcement this week.

    A5e is the Systems Reference Document for LevelUp, from EN Publishing. This branch of 5e places much greater emphasis on social and exploration, while also being a more complex combat engine. It’s “advanced” 5e.

    2024 D&D by Wizards of the Coast (the 5.2.1 SRD) is an evolution of the most popular version of the game in history. It adds minor layers of complexity, and removes most bioessentialism.

    Now, Black Flag, the SRD for Tales of the Valiant is also in the Commons under the CC BY 4.0. The primary changes within Black Flag are replacing Inspiration with Luck, adding Dread and similar to A5e uses both nature and nurture to define an upbringing.

    All three modern offshoots add a unique element to every monster. Rather than have merely have bigger numbers, monsters do something different — a Commoner in Black Flag has Angry Mob, while in A5e Commoners have a Stone (they can also be a Group) and in 5.2.1 they have Training.

    What can a DM/GM/designer do with all four in the same license?

    1. I am not a lawyer. Nor am I your lawyer. Use an actual lawyer if you have questions and are publishing for money.
    2. Read all relevant SRDs as well as their related FAQs.
    3. Find the place you want fiddle with and become an expert at that before you try to be an expert at everything.
    4. At your home table, borrow liberally from every system. If you don’t find yourself handing out 2014 Inspiration and don’t like 2024 D&D’s mechanical implementation, use Luck from Black Flag. Use everyone’s monsters — they’re balanced enough for the elastic system that is 5e — your players will have fun interacting with different commoners doing different things.

    Maybe you’re thinking “that’s nice advice Dave, but what are you going to do?”

    Backgrounds!

    Full Moon Storytelling’s most popular types of stories are various Backgrounds. The ones on this site focus on empowering a wider variety of tales within our 5e games, while leaning into short-form personality, a spread of Feats/Talents for each and sometimes a cantrip.

    Each of the main trunks of 5e do something different from the 2014 version of the game. That’s good! Your table can use a Background from any of the modern versions and there will be no balance issues. That means dozens of more origin stories for your heroes.

    For myself it means my eternal project becomes a simple project. A few dozen new Backgrounds with methodology to fit in all four trunks of 5e.

    Custom Backgrounds for 5th edition Dungeons & Dragons

    Photo by Canan YAu015eAR on Pexels.com

    The Tinker

    This week the Tinker is my most popular Background. Tuning it for each version of 5e doesn’t take much.

    2014 5e by WotC

    It’s already released, but the key point is the feature “I Can Fix It.” The feature helps in exploration situations, mostly, as it means the Tinker will usually have a way to MacGyver there way through a problem even if they don’t have the proper supplies.

    2024 5e by WotC

    If you leave Ability Score Improvements within the Background rather than have them float the Tinker would choose between Dexterity, Intelligence and Charisma.

    Origin Feats

    Choose one;

    • Crafter
    • Magic Initiate (Wizard)
    • Skilled
    • Tavern Brawler
    • and from Tasha’s Artificer Initiate

    Black Flag from Kobold Press

    Choose a Talent

    • Far Traveler
    • Polyglot
    • Trade Skills
    • Scrutinous
    • Ritualist (Arcane)

    A5e from EN Publishing

    ASI – Tinkers typically grant a +1 in Dexterity

    Connections – Tinkers might know a caravanserai, an innkeeper, a ferien, a smith, a group of bandits, a sergeant from a warring nation, a local farmer, a maker of fine meed, a faerie that’s a cheesemonger.

    Memento – Tinker memento options could include a letter from home, a chapbook of poetry, a metal they’ve never been able to bend or smelt, a strap of leather from their first failed project, the stein from their favorite inn, or a book of cantrips though they don’t know any.

    Adventures and Advancement – A Tinker who repaired a notable authority’s broken item may be granted a writ of access granting the Tinker expertise on Persuasion rolls.

    Feature – same as the original on Full Moon Storytelling.

    Now, these examples are quick looks at a future project that will include the score of Backgrounds already on the site, plus the four Everflow specific Backgrounds that didn’t get their own entry. And more as my reading expands.

    With four versions of 5e available in the Creative Commons (CC BY 4.0) how will you create for your table?

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  • Lore Collage: Everyone has dragons, they’re all different

    Lore Collage: Everyone has dragons, they’re all different

    I have to blog. It’s a curse

    It’s also a space full of unpublished drafts. I wouldn’t want to see what drafts I lost when Sounder at Heart left SB Nation. I can still check what SaH has of mine in drafts, but I don’t dare check that. I recently checked my work drafts and even there I have unpublished drafts. Here there are unpublished drafts.

    Anyway, I have to blog.

    But also I let things get in the way of publishing. Which is frustrating.

    It does mean that I don’t need to shave the yak like my friend, but sometimes, maybe I need a bit of a reset. That’s a part of what Lore Collage is. It compels me to write more. Even if I don’t think my words are worthy — I press publish.

    Reading

    Dragons are funny things. Almost every culture has dragon-ish monsters in their stories. In my own world they horde things and emotions and knowledge. In others they are a warring faction of old gods. What are your dragons?

    Over on EN World SlyFlourish asked people to share their game prep. Since I’m not DMing right now I didn’t share, but seeing the variety of ways people prep for games is wonderful.

    While most of my role-play is centered around 5e and similar systems, I like the Ennies as a way to keep me aware of new systems, creators and aids. The 2025 nominee list includes two products I’ve already used (DungeonScrawl and Hero Forge Kitbashing).

    Post by @scottfgray@dice.camp
    View on Mastodon
    https://dice.camp/embed.js

    If you live in the Puget Sound and Columbia Basins you don’t need to worry about the tiny earthquake swarms under Tahoma. If you are creating a fantasy world, add earthquake swarms as a natural hazard, make them big. See how the characters react to things they cannot fight. Then make them fight an earthquake swarms.

    Making Enemies is the next book from The Monsters Know What They’re Doing creator Keith Amman. The way Keith approaches lore based in the short story of a stat block makes me excited to see what he does when he’s teaching me how to make the stat blocks.

    Creating an RPG is hard. It takes either an immense amount of talent or a network of people. It probably takes both. PJ Coffey gets into the details of all the tasks that go into publishing a work. I’ve worked with PJ on two of their projects.

    A few weeks ago I spoke at a risk intelligence conference about using role playing games as a teaching aid for non practitioners. My search algorithm is working. Both Rascal News and Military.com put out stories that will be part of my next work presentation on the same subject.

    Want help telling your world’s history of empires? Procedurally generate the ebb and flow of conquest (if you have a Windows machine and understand GitHub).

    Watching

    There’s always more to learn about sports, and I’m already trying to figure out how to insert tuj lub into my D&D games — I’m big about that too.

    Kobold Press has a deal on shipping right now. I’m looking at the Labyrinth Worldbook. It is full of ideas I can borrow into the World of the Everflow. Which would be funny since as a backer for Tales of the Valiant I pitched the World of the Everflow to be included.

    Handily, SlyFlourish has a review up.

    Creating

    Alignment is too simple. Personality traits, ideals, bonds and flaws is too complex. Use short form personality instead — 2-6 words that describe your character.

    Converting Full Moon Storytelling’s Herbalist Background to modern 5e

    5e24

    Pick one of the following Feats. They are listed in order of commonality;

    1. Healer
    2. Magic Initiate (Druid)
    3. Skilled
    4. Musician
    5. Magic Initiate (Cleric)

    Then assign ability score bonuses to Wisdom, Intelligence or Dexterity.

    Black Flag

    Pick one of the following Talents. They are listed in order of commonality;

    1. Field Medic
    2. Trade Skills
    3. Physical Fortitude
    4. Ritualist (Primordial)
    5. Psycanist
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  • Lore Collage: Bringing the blogosphere I wanted back

    Lore Collage: Bringing the blogosphere I wanted back

    Likely inspired by this interview over at Flipboard, I decided to bring back Lore Collage. This is a weekly look at things I read/watched/etc. The focus will be on building and playing in a mid to high fantasy world using 5th edition D&D and related rulesets.

    Reading

    Beyond the Gates: Where Dungeons & Dragons Meets Sacred Community(Roll 4 Joy) Once upon a time I was active in a church youth group and also actively played D&D. I wouldn’t have dared crossed those interests. I’m happy this group now feels comfortable to do so.

    Avoid Removing Player Agency (SlyFlourish) This is the money quote “Players want to do stuff. They want to use the tools their characters have to interact with the world.” The article is a good reminder that the lack of agency should be used intentionally and rarely.

    Kickstarter’s New Head Of Games Asher McClennahan Discusses His Vision (Forbes) 80% of tabletop games on Kickstarter deliver.

    Southern resident orcas pick up, use kelp in newly discovered behavior (Seattle Times) The real, natural world continues to find new ways to influence my world. Inspired by this story I want to work some weird play/symbology with the various beasts in the world.

    New Monster – Dreadful Tree (Sea of Stars RPG) My Sunday campaign, where I play the smog-goblin Xabal, keeps running into various blights. We can always use more blights. Recently Sea of Stars also wrote about adding weaknesses to monsters to add in their story.

    How Dungeons & Dragons: Dragon Delves is breaking all fantasy art rules (Creative Bloq) Now-released Dragon Delves artist Andre Kolb and writer Justice Arman talk to Creative Bloq about a new approach to official D&D art in an adventure book.

    Design Diary with Richard Green, one of the authors of Labyrinth Worldbook (Kobold Press) Green writes about the setting expansion — the Labyrinth Worldbook, which was cooperatively created for Tales of the Valiant. Even if you don’t play ToV/Black Flag, everything in the book can be used to create a new multiverse for your own world.

    Watching

    While the era of peak high fantasy may be fading away, you can still dip back into low to mid fantasy via shows like Merlin or Cursed. These lower magic shows do a great job of establishing a world where magic is special, powerful and intimidating. They also provide a slice of life for the zero-to-not-yet-hero portion of play.

    Creating

    For my upcoming Ferments-set nearly-zero prep game I put together an encounters table. The intent is to include things that aren’t only combat and that fit the tale of the setting.

    There’s everything from fire tornadoes to loose goats, from steam golems to calm skies after a storm.

    ‘Wine lets secrets out’ – the Vintner, a 5e D&D Background (Full Moon Storytelling) To update to 2024 D&D or Black Flag;

    5e24

    Pick one of the following Feats. They are listed in order of commonality;

    1. Skilled
    2. Musician
    3. Magic Initiate (Druid)
    4. Tavern Brawler
    5. Healer

    Then assign ability score bonuses to Wisdom, Charisma or Intelligence.

    Black Flag

    Pick one of the following Talents. They are listed in order of commonality;

    1. Polyglot
    2. Trade skills
    3. Scrutinous
    4. Ritualist (Primordial)
    5. Athletic

  • Reblogging: I’ll be adding NPC ritualists to my world

    In this post Jared talks about how rules support fiction with the examples being from Tales of the Valiant’s rituals system.

    What Do I Know About Diegetic Rules? Tales of the Valiant Rituals

    The magic of this is you don’t even have to use Tales of the Valiant as your base system to add this to your 5e world. The ritual system is essentially 5e D&D neutral.

    Take Divine Ritualists as described. They look like, and are mechanically supported like, miracle workers at a temple. The Primordial Ritualists are like less powerful Tom Bombadils.

    Thank you Jared Rascher for the inspiration.