Ruinbound Scholar

You are a student of collapse—whether of buildings, empires, relationships, or belief. You’ve seen structures fail and systems fracture, and you’ve made it your purpose to understand why. Some study history to preserve it. You study it to expose its fault lines. Whether you were once a restorationist, a saboteur, a betrayed heir, or a survivor of catastrophe, your life is shaped by the ruins you walk through—and the truths they reveal.

Ability Scores:

Intelligence +1, Charisma +2

Feat:

 

 

Echo of Collapse

You were forged in the aftermath of ruin—not just as a witness, but as a vessel. You carry echoes of collapse in your blood, your breath, and your silence. Whether through ritual, intuition, or infernal inheritance, you’ve learned to read the emotional residue left behind by destruction.

You gain the following benefits:

• Residual Reading.
  After spending 1 minute in a space where a significant event occurred (death, betrayal, destruction, consecration), you can sense lingering emotional energy. The DM may reveal one of the following:
• The dominant emotion left behind (e.g., grief, rage, hope)
• A vague impression of who or what caused the event
• Whether the space is magically or spiritually marked
• You may use this feature once per long rest.
• Memory Ritualist.
  You can perform a 10-minute ritual to bind a memory to an object (a sketch, a vial, a relic). Once bound, you may:
• Use the object as a spellcasting focus
• Gain advantage on one Wisdom (Insight) check related to the memory’s subject
• Whisper the memory aloud to cast Guidance on yourself (no concentration required)
• You may bind one memory at a time. Creating a new one replaces the previous.
• Infernal Poise.
  You gain proficiency in Charisma saving throws as well as advantage on saving throws against being frightened or charmed.

 

Skill Proficiencies:

• Investigation
• History

 

Tool Proficiencies:

• Calligrapher’s supplies or Mason’s tools

 

Languages:

• One of your choice

 

Equipment:

A journal filled with sketches, notes, and emotional annotations of ruins and betrayals

A small relic recovered from a collapsed structure (flavor item)

A set of travel-worn but meticulously maintained clothes

A pouch containing 15 gp

A set of calligrapher’s supplies or mason’s tools