You were what most common folk are–a farmer. You worked on a lord's estate, their land, or you worked for a company and you produced resources from the land in return for food, shelter, clothing, protection, and other benefits. Farmers focus on raising living things and harvesting various useful goods–mostly food–from the land. Farmers make up the vast majority of the peasantry, alongside other raw resource producers, such as miners and fishermen. Farmers are a hearty, enduring folk, they work long hours under the sun often doing dirty and exhausting or even disgusting work. How did you become a farmer, and for how long were you one? What did you do on your farm? Were you the landlord of the farm, or were you just a farmhand? And what caused you to leave that life behind? Was your home destroyed by war? Were you cast out for some crime? Did you flee taxes you could not pay? Were you called to join the Lord's army? Was your home stolen by an unscrupulous rival? How did you learn your current profession?
- Tool Proficiencies: One type of farmhand tools, vehicles (land)
- Equipment: A set of farmhand's tools (one of your choice), a shovel, an iron pot, a set of common clothes, and a pouch containing 10 gp
Not every farm is alike; there are a vast range of goods produced by farmers of different sorts, and nearly all farms focus on just one product or a limited group of products.
| d6 | Farm |
|---|---|
| 1 | Rancher. You raised animals for slaughter most likely for food, but also for leather, furs, and other useful materials. |
| 2 | Grazier. You harvested goods produced by animals such as milk, eggs, feathers, or wool. |
| 3 | Stockman. You bred animals to sell for work or as pets such as guard dogs, racing horses, and griffons. |
| 4 | Peasant. You harvested edible or useful plants such as wheat, corn crops, or apples at an orchard. |
| 5 | Forester. You grew trees for ornament or construction such as trees grown for bow staves, boat masts, or buildings. |
| 6 | Silk. You raised silk worms or another exotic animal, and harvested their silk. |
When you are not adventuring you are able to provide a modest lifestyle for yourself by working on another's farm. You might sleep in the hayloft or in a spare room. By working this way, you also ingratiate yourself to the farm owner, who gives you free food for your adventures. Local farmers value your work ethic, and as such will easily share with you all the latest news and rumors of the surrounding areas.
Alternate Feature: Of the Land
You lack the formal education of the higher classes, but for how little you may know there is a great deal that you understand. You have a practical, working knowledge of astrology and meteorology, and can easily track the time and date as well as predict the weather within a few hours, or days if you're lucky. You understand the "secrets of life"; the needs of life (water, light, air, salt, etc.), the patterns of physical inheritance, and the connections between different plants and animals. At the DM's discretion, this can be represented by allowing a farmer to cast commune with nature once per long rest, except that the range is limited to environments common to you within 10 feet and you can only choose one of the first two choices.
Suggested Characteristics
When creating a Farmer, it is important to remember that is it not a class typically seen as the brave heroes out to save the world. You are usually the typical peasant or commoner that stays to the background while more flamboyant members of society move about the world and make an impact in it.
As such, some important questions to ask would be: Why is your Farmer adventuring? Did they accidentally get roped into traveling with other adventurers and it’s too hard to get out of it now? Did you want a life outside of working in the field all day? Or were you fed up with the everyday troubles your fellow peasants faced and decided to go out on your own to solve them?
You can further expand on this depending on the campaign’s background: Are there many troubles that you commoners face? Is the ruling body of where you live corrupt? Did you start out as a commoner? Or did you escape some other life and decide to settle down, only to somehow be pulled into drama once more?
| d20 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | I judge people by their actions, not their words. |
| 2 | I'm always early to bed and early to rise. |
| 3 | When I set my mind to something, I follow through no matter what gets in my way. |
| 4 | I have a strong sense of fair play and always try to find the most equitable solution to arguments. |
| 5 | I’m confident in my own abilities and do what I can to instill confidence in others. |
| 6 | Thinking is for other people. I prefer action. |
| 7 | I misuse long words in an attempt to sound smarter. |
| 8 | I have a rural catch phrase I use whenever I am surprised. |
| 9 | I look forward to eating and enjoy every bite of every meal. |
| 10 | I stare openly at that which I have never seen before. |
| 11 | I laugh very loud and clap my hands when amused. |
| 12 | I am overly curious and concerned with the private lives of others. |
| 13 | I really enjoy talking about and spending time with domesticated animals. |
| 14 | I often lose the point of the story I'm telling. |
| 15 | I would kill to acquire a noble title. |
| 16 | I speak with a distinctive drawl or accent common to my class. |
| 17 | I always save up as much as I can, spending and consuming only what I must. |
| 18 | When work needs doing, I do the work. |
| 19 | I keep constant track of the sun, moon, stars, seasons, and weather. |
| 20 | I'm always chewing on a sprig of grass, a toothpick, tobacco, seeds, or preserved meat. |
| d10 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Faith: I have left the farm to bring my religion to others or to follow my God's command. (Any) |
| 2 | Duty: Society relies on everyone who has a job to do, to do it. (Lawful) |
| 3 | Freedom. I want to experience everything I can. (Chaotic) |
| 4 | Knowledge: I have learned all I can about the world on the farm. It is time to leave and find out more. (Any) |
| 5 | Generosity: Nature's bounty is meant to be shared with all, not used for my own benefit. (Good) |
| 6 | Destiny: I was meant for more than the simple life. (Neutral) |
| 7 | Change: Life is like the seasons, in constant change. We must change with it. (Chaotic) |
| 8 | Manners: I conduct myself in public with the utmost respect for all people around me. (Lawful) |
| 9 | Sincerity: There’s no good in pretending to be something I’m not. (Neutral) |
| 10 | Open: I have much to learn from the kindly folk I meet along my way. (Good) |
| d8 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | A family member was sent to war and never returned. I must find them. |
| 2 | I worked the land, I love the land, and I will protect the land. |
| 3 | I was separated from my family long ago. Now I am finally free to find what happened to them. |
| 4 | My tools are symbols of my past life, and I carry them so that I will never forget my roots. |
| 5 | I protect those who cannot protect themselves. |
| 6 | I want to find that special someone and raise a home full of children. |
| 7 | Some day, I'll be the lord of my own land. |
| 8 | The farm has fallen on hard times, and I have vowed to help it prosper once again. |
| d10 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | The tyrant who rules my land will stop at nothing to see me killed. |
| 2 | I’m convinced of the significance of my destiny, and blind to my shortcomings and the risk of failure. |
| 3 | The people who knew me when I was young know my shameful secret, so I can never go home again. |
| 4 | I have a weakness for the vices of the city, especially hard drink. |
| 5 | Secretly, I believe that things would be better if I were a tyrant lording over the land. |
| 6 | I have trouble trusting allies that don't seem capable of a hard day's work. |
| 7 | Im self-conscious about my social flaws and breaches of etiquette. |
| 8 | I'm afraid of cities and big buildings. When I'm in such places, I tend to behave skittish or paranoid. |
| 9 | I have a tick I can't control when I am scared or excited. |
| 10 | I am easily fooled and believe whatever I am told. |
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