Whatever your early years held for you, whether it was anything from fascination with books to a love of mischief and adventure, some event had you placed in a school or monastery in order to study. No matter if it was willing or not, you spent much of your life behind closed doors, focusing on education and other forms of training. There was little else to do besides entertaining yourself with the lines of books reaching to the ceilings. Perhaps your teachers were strict, or perhaps you were left largely to your own devices, but either way all that was left to do was learn. Even if it isn't purposeful, your mind contains a library of facts and information and has a special knack for absorbing more.
Now you are venturing beyond the walls that have held your entire world for so long. Maybe to find information not contained on pages, or to contribute something new to the expansive stacks you know like that back of your hand, or to escape what, for you, has felt too much like a prison.
Then again, perhaps someone has come seeking a traveling companion with special knowledge and skills and you have been volunteered. Or simply taken the chance to experience more of the world you've been secluded from for so long.
- Skill Proficiencies: History, plus your choice of one from among Arcana, Nature, and Religion
- Languages: Two of your choice
- Equipment: The scholar’s robes of your cloister, a writing kit (small pouch with a quill, ink, folded parchment, and a small penknife), a borrowed book on the subject of your current study, and a pouch containing 10 gp
Though others must often endure extensive interviews and significant fees to gain access to even the most common archives in your library, you have free and easy access to the majority of the library, though it might also have repositories of lore that are too valuable, magical, or secret to permit anyone immediate access.
You have a working knowledge of your cloister’s personnel and bureaucracy, and you know how to navigate those connections with some ease.
Additionally, you are likely to gain preferential treatment at other libraries across the Realms, as professional courtesy shown to a fellow scholar.
Suggested Characteristics
Use the tables for the sage background below as the basis for your traits and motivations, modifying the entries when appropriate to suit your identity as a cloistered scholar.
Your bond is almost certainly associated either with the place where you grew up or with the knowledge you hope to acquire through adventuring. Your ideal is no doubt related to how you view the quest for knowledge and truth—perhaps as a worthy goal in itself, or maybe as a means to a desirable end.
| d11 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | I use polysyllabic words that convey the impression of great erudition. |
| 2 | I’ve read every book in the world’s greatest libraries—or I like to boast that I have. |
| 3 | I’m used to helping out those who aren’t as smart as I am, and I patiently explain anything and everything to others. |
| 4 | There’s nothing I like more than a good mystery. |
| 5 | I’m willing to listen to every side of an argument before I make my own judgment. |
| 6 | I . . . speak . . . slowly . . . when talking . . . to idiots, . . . which . . . almost . . . everyone . . . is . . . compared . . .to me. |
| 7 | I am horribly, horribly awkward in social situations. |
| 8 | I’m convinced that people are always trying to steal my secrets. |
| 9 | I am unused to the outside world and enjoy it recklessly. |
| 10 | So much is stored in my brain that facts will just make their way out unbidden. Often unrelated to anything around me. |
| 11 | I'm good at focusing on one thing intently, but otherwise I struggle to focus at all. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Knowledge. The path to power and self-improvement is through knowledge. (Neutral) |
| 2 | Beauty. What is beautiful points us beyond itself toward what is true. (Good) |
| 3 | Logic. Emotions must not cloud our logical thinking. (Lawful) |
| 4 | No Limits. Nothing should fetter the infinite possibility inherent in all existence. (Chaotic) |
| 5 | Power. Knowledge is the path to power and domination. (Evil) |
| 6 | Self-Improvement. The goal of a life of study is the betterment of oneself. (Any) |
| d7 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | It is my duty to protect my students. |
| 2 | I have an ancient text that holds terrible secrets that must not fall into the wrong hands. |
| 3 | I work to preserve a library, university, scriptorium, or monastery. |
| 4 | My life’s work is a series of tomes related to a specific field of lore. |
| 5 | I’ve been searching my whole life for the answer to a certain question. |
| 6 | I sold my soul for knowledge. I hope to do great deeds and win it back. |
| 7 | There is someone or something outside of the cloister that I still feel a connection to. |
| d7 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | I am easily distracted by the promise of information. |
| 2 | Most people scream and run when they see a demon. I stop and take notes on its anatomy. |
| 3 | Unlocking an ancient mystery is worth the price of a civilization. |
| 4 | I overlook obvious solutions in favor of complicated ones. |
| 5 | I speak without really thinking through my words, invariably insulting others. |
| 6 | I can’t keep a secret to save my life, or anyone else’s. |
| 7 | I am only willing to learn what I'm personally interested in. |
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