Gifted with uncanny knowledge on a specific subject matter, you were trained from a young age on the procurement, cataloging, and preservation of cultural heritage. Curators are content experts in their area of expertise and are sought out by academics, researchers, and the occasional adventurer requiring your expertise. You are often employed by institutions of historical preservation and learning such as galleries, museums, archives, and libraries.
When choosing this background, work with your DM to determine the details surrounding your field of expertise and employer. What sort of items is your character charged with collecting and maintaining? Does their collection belong in a public space or are they employed by a noble with a penchant for rarities? Are you preserving the history of a long forgotten people or telling the story of the evolution of a modern society? Were you a pupil at a large university or were you self-taught?
- Skill Proficiencies: Choose either Investigation or History, plus your choice of one from among Arcana, Nature, and Religion
- Tool Proficiencies: One type of tools that support your craft
- Languages: One of your choice
- Equipment: The seal of your employer, 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
To determine your area of expertise, choose from the table below, roll a d12, or consult your DM with custom options.
| d12 | Field of Expertise |
|---|---|
| 1 | Artwork |
| 2 | Archaeology |
| 3 | Cultural History |
| 4 | Linguistics |
| 5 | Botany |
| 6 | Librarian |
| 7 | Astrology |
| 8 | Faith and Religion |
| 9 | Zoology |
| 10 | Architecture and Engineering |
| 11 | Alchemy |
| 12 | Arcane Magic |
You have garnered recognition as a content expert in your field of study and are well known to academics across the world. You can easily gain access to libraries, archives, and academies while traveling although some of the restricted, secret, or valuable collections may require local chaperones. You are also occasionally welcomed in foreign high society when those circles appreciate your particular area of expertise.
Other academics, such as but not limited to archaeologists, anthropologists, sages, or scholars, are likely to seek your council, professional opinion, or assistance in procurement or care of collectibles. Upon granting your assistance to other academics, these people are more likely to give assistance or guidance to your requests and may even go out of their way to aid you in your pursuits (grant access to court, special authorization to restricted material, aid in locating local object). You additionally gain advantage on persuasion checks with other academics you help.
Suggested Characteristics
Use the tables below as the basis for your traits and motivations, modifying the entries when appropriate to suit your identity as a curator.
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.
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | My vocabulary is extensive and I highlight that when I speak to new people. |
| 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 | I have personally found many prized pieces in my collection and love to retell stories of my adventures to anyone that will listen. |
| 5 | I am a professor at an academy or university near my collection and take pride in teaching about my specialty. |
| 6 | My mentor gifted me a broken pocket watch that no jeweler has been able to repair, I am determined to find someone who can. |
| 7 | I am horribly, horribly awkward in social situations. |
| 8 | I constantly travel in search of interesting subjects for new exhibits, I haven't been back home in years! |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Knowledge. The path to power and self-improvement is through knowledge. (Neutral) |
| 2 | Importance. Preservation of knowledge is the foundation for civilization advancement. (Good) |
| 3 | Order. Painstaking detail and technique is essential in my professional process. (Lawful) |
| 4 | Thrill of Discovery. Nothing is better than that feeling when you are the first to discover something. (Chaotic) |
| 5 | Greed. My knowledge gains me power and influence that I use for personal gain. (Evil) |
| 6 | Self-Improvement. The goal of a life of study is to learn discipline and pursue the betterment of oneself. (Any) |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | It is my duty to protect my collection. |
| 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 | I am dedicated to advancement in my field of expertise and constantly work to contribute to its study. |
| 5 | I serve the people and patrons of my collection and the memories of those who's stories I tell. |
| 6 | I am constantly in search of an apprentice that can live up to my expectation and takeover my position one day. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | I am easily distracted by the promise of information. |
| 2 | I am obsessed with cataloging every detail about an artifact in my possession and will sacrifice personal well-being to do the job right. |
| 3 | Unlocking an ancient mystery is worth the price of a civilization. |
| 4 | I once lost a fortune of my patron in pursuit of a priceless item that ended up being counterfeit and I am slow to trust because of this. |
| 5 | I speak without really thinking through my words, invariably insulting others. |
| 6 | My collection must be the most renowned of its sort, I'm not above sabotaging or speaking ill of my colleagues to attain this. |
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