In pursuit of victory, you lead troops to or did yourself horrible crimes in the course of a war or battle you ultimately lost. Now you are on the run, searching for a way to turn back the tide. Whether it was dangerous alchemical reactions you unleashed upon soldiers, unnatural torture, sacrificial contracts with otherworldly entities, horrifying war constructs, or more mundane evils, you put your skills to work making war into a hellscape.
- Skill Proficiencies: Intimidation and one of the following:
Arcana, Medicine, Religion, Sleight of Hand
- Tool Proficiencies: Alchemist’s Tools, Healer’s Kit, Painter’s Supplies, or Thieves Tools (respectively) and one martial weapon.
- Languages: N/A
- Equipment: A [Tooltip Not Found], bedroll, mess kit, the above tool kit, and a pouch containing 5 gp.
Feature: Bounty
You've committedtreason against your country and you are on the run. Your country is not so willing to let you off the hook, and has placed a sizable bounty on your head. Work with your DM to decide how large your bounty should be in correlation to the gravity of your crime. Regardless, this bounty forces you to stay on guard and your character should hold a level of caution unless a component of their personality tells them otherwise. Likewise, you can ask more self aware questions than a D&D character should normally be able to because a War Criminal often carries a level of paranoia. If you are confident in your abilities or calm and collected in nature, this perhaps holds less true but you would instead likely be a better lier. Your character might have a second life, a persona that they use to stay in hiding. Unlike a Charlatan, however, the second life should be the only one you use typically, as you don't want your past to catch up with you. It should be the name on your character sheet, with your former name being listed as an additional feature or trait. If you want, you and your party can choose to turn you in, collect the bounty, and then break you out if they want to collect the reward for themselves. Depending on how that works out and how they roll in that time, they might accumulate bounties themselves or maybe the people who broke you out remain unknown.
Suggested Characteristics
War criminals are often strong personalities, passionate for either their original cause or for their new cause of overcoming their past. Many are haunted, constrained, or defined by their crimes.
| d8 |
Personality Trait |
|
1
|
I will do whatever it takes to win, except for one line I won’t cross.
|
|
2
|
It is my duty to carry on so that the past can be restored.
|
|
3
|
I pursue doing the greatest good for the greatest number of people.
|
|
4
|
My past mistakes are a debt I must pay back with my deeds today.
|
|
5
|
Wars and battles do not matter, they are all just swinging pendulums of fate.
|
|
6
|
I will destroy the monsters of the this world, even if I must become one myself.
|
|
7
|
My only failing was defeat and my only virtue will be victory.
|
|
8
|
I am on the run from my past and have lost faith in the cause I once supported.
|
| d6 |
Ideal |
|
1
|
I must bring victory to my former side. (Truimph)
|
|
2
|
I must make amends to the victims of my crime. (Redemption)
|
|
3
|
By becoming stronger, I will never suffer another defeat. (Power)
|
|
4
|
I must hold to the last scraps of morality I still have. (Willpower)
|
|
5
|
Evils like me must be cleansed from the world, even at great cost. (Eradication)
|
|
6
|
I will rise again, stronger and more powerful than before. (Rebuild)
|
| d6 |
Bond |
|
1
|
One of my closest friends was in my unit with me, but they were captured or imprisoned.
|
|
2
|
I distanced myself from my well-connected family to spare them from retribution.
|
|
3
|
Surviving members of my military unit still look to me as a leader.
|
|
4
|
I alone discovered a great and terrible secret of military importance.
|
|
5
|
I still have a supporter in the military that approves of my methods.
|
|
6
|
A new friend of my doesn’t know that I was the one who committed the war crimes against them or their family member.
|
| d6 |
Flaw |
|
1
|
A rival of mine knows about my past and will use it as leverage against me.
|
|
2
|
An enemy that escaped my crimes is hunting me to get revenge.
|
|
3
|
I find it hard to stop myself from doing evil if I can rationalize an excuse.
|
|
4
|
I do not put my all into fighting, scared about becoming a monster again if I do.
|
|
5
|
I am addicted to fighting, battle, and war.
|
|
6
|
Now I am hesitant to take initiative anymore. Following orders is safer for my soul.
|
Comments