You spent much of your youth following roving fairs and carnivals, performing odd jobs for musicians and acrobats in exchange for lessons. You may have learned how to walk a tightrope, how to play a lute in a distinct style, or how to recite poetry with impeccable diction. To this day, you thrive on applause and long for the stage.
- Ability Scores: Strength, Dexterity, Charisma
- Feat: Choose between Actor, Athlete, Chef, Musician or Poisoner.
- Skill Proficiencies: Acrobatics and Performance
- Tool Proficiencies: Disguise Kit, Choose one kind of Musical Instrument
- Equipment: Choose A or B: (A) Musical Instrument (same as above), 2 Costumes, Mirror, Perfume, Traveler’s Clothes, 11 GP; or (B) 50 GP
Choose an Admirer's Favour: A Lock of Hair, a Love Letter or a Trinket
A good entertainer is versatile, spicing up every performance with a variety of different routines. Choose one to three routines or roll on the table below to define your expertise as an entertainer. Alternately work with your DM for skills, bonuses and advantages your character could have or use based on their entertainer routine.
| d10 | Entertainer Routines |
|---|---|
| 1 | Actor: After 1 hour of watching a humanoid creature you have Advantage on Performance checks related to their mannerisms, but not their speech. One use per long rest, resets after long rest. |
| 2 | Dancer: Performance draws a crowd that pays 1.25 gold each (1 gold 2 silver 5 copper) . Roll a D20 to determine the size of the crowd from 4 (Nat 1) to 80 (Nat 20) people. Can only be done once per long rest. |
| 3 | Fire-Eater: Advantage on one Dexterity or Constitution saving throw against fire damage per long rest. Does not include other damage if present and saves will need to be made for other elements if present. |
| 4 | Jester: The nobility see you as a fool allowing you to say whatever offensive thing you wish to say. You are welcomed into the royal courts and can divulge information with townsfolk provided the royalty you joke about isn't hostile towards or frightened by your character. |
| 5 | Juggler: You get an extra item interaction as long as it isn't a weapon, something that restores hit points or functions like Thieves' Tools. E.g, you can give two climbing ropes to two allies within 5 feet during combat. |
| 6 | Instrumentalist: If you spend a short rest practicing, cleaning and tuning your instruments you get advantage on Performance checks used with that instrument until you take a long rest. |
| 7 | Poet: You can commit anything you've read to memory (such as a quote, sonnet, limerick, etc.) provided you spend 1 hour practicing. After a long rest you cannot recall what was said unless you make a successful Wisdom or Intelligence check and then spend the next hour recalling it. On a success the prose or prompt is fresh in your mind for 1 minute. Keen Mind gets rid of the disadvantage when recalling past lyrics. |
| 8 | Singer: You can spend 1 hour writing or copying a song. The written song can be sold if you have proficiency with Calligraphy Tools or can be performed for money, where the mechanics are the same as the Dancer above. A popular song will fetch a high price for others to perform it for much as 50 gold pieces. You can also buy songs to perform but copying these songs to sell to others is often disliked by the songwriter or singer. |
| 9 | Storyteller: You have advantage on Religion and History checks when a child asks you to tell them a story about a hero or great event, provided you both share the language the story is based from. |
| 10 | Tumbler: When you fall Prone you can still use the dodge action to turn enemy attacks with advantage to regular attacks without having to get up. You also only take a d4 fall damage at 10 feet but d6 fall damage for each additional 10 feet added. |
You can always find a place to perform, usually in an inn or tavern but possibly with a circus, at a theater, or even in a noble’s court. At such a place, you receive free lodging and food of a modest or comfortable standard (depending on the quality of the establishment), as long as you perform each night. In addition, your performance makes you something of a local figure. When strangers recognize you in a town where you have performed, they typically take a liking to you.
Suggested Characteristics
Successful entertainers have to be able to capture and hold an audience’s attention, so they tend to have flamboyant or forceful personalities. They’re inclined toward the romantic and often cling to high-minded ideals about the practice of art and the appreciation of beauty.
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | I know a story relevant to almost every situation. |
| 2 | Whenever I come to a new place, I collect local rumors and spread gossip. |
| 3 | I’m a hopeless romantic, always searching for that “special someone.” |
| 4 | Nobody stays angry at me or around me for long, since I can defuse any amount of tension. |
| 5 | I love a good insult, even one directed at me. |
| 6 | I get bitter if I’m not the center of attention. |
| 7 | I’ll settle for nothing less than perfection. |
| 8 | I change my mood or my mind as quickly as I change key in a song. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Beauty. When I perform, I make the world better than it was. |
| 2 | Tradition. The stories, legends, and songs of the past must never be forgotten, for they teach us who we are. |
| 3 | Creativity. The world is in need of new ideas and bold action. |
| 4 | Greed. I’m only in it for the money and fame. |
| 5 | People. I like seeing the smiles on people’s faces when I perform. That’s all that matters. |
| 6 | Honesty. Art should reflect the soul; it should come from within and reveal who we really are. |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | My instrument is my most treasured possession, and it reminds me of someone I love. |
| 2 | Someone stole my precious instrument, and someday I’ll get it back. |
| 3 | I want to be famous, whatever it takes. |
| 4 | I idolize a hero of the old tales and measure my deeds against that person’s. |
| 5 | I will do anything to prove myself superior to my hated rival. |
| 6 | I would do anything for the other members of my old troupe. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | I’ll do anything to win fame and renown. |
| 2 | I’m a sucker for a pretty face. |
| 3 | A scandal prevents me from ever going home again. That kind of trouble seems to follow me around. |
| 4 | I once satirized a noble who still wants my head. It was a mistake that I will likely repeat. |
| 5 | I have trouble keeping my true feelings hidden. My sharp tongue lands me in trouble. |
| 6 | Despite my best efforts, I am unreliable to my friends. |
A gladiator is as much an entertainer as any minstrel or circus performer, trained to make the arts of combat into a spectacle the crowd can enjoy. This kind of flashy combat is your entertainer routine, though you might also have some skills as a tumbler or actor. Using your By Popular Demand feature, you can find a place to perform in any place that features combat for entertainment — perhaps a gladiatorial arena or secret pit fighting club. You can replace the musical instrument in your equipment package with an inexpensive but unusual weapon, such as a trident or net.
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