You or someone close to you has committed a crime for which there are dire consequences - dire enough to make you flee for your life. You are now on the wrong side of the law, and spend your time either in the wild, or under the fragile disguise of a false identity.
Work with your DM to determine the crime and your involvement in it, as well as the groups that hunt you and what they would do to you should you be caught. Was the crime robbery or murder? Are you fully guilty, or wrongly accused? Are you due a prison sentence, or a trip straight to the gallows? Are you seen by people as a dangerous criminal, or a bold hero? Are you alone on the run, or are you in a band of outlaws? These questions should ideally be answered.
- Skill Proficiencies: Stealth + pick one from Survival, Deception, or Intimidation
- Languages: Two of your choice
- Equipment: A small pouch containing 15 gp, a set of tattered clothes
As an outlaw, you must do your best to avoid those who seek your capture, whether they be guards, bounty hunters, or simple village people. Those who seek you will attempt to arrest you the instant they find you out. You do, however, command the sympathy of other outlaws who understand how tough it is to survive when the local, regional or perhaps even global bureaucracy is bent on hunting you down.
If the general population likes you, however, and see you as a hero, you can expect to be warmly, if secretively, accepted among those who look up to you. They will provide you with disguise or resources if they can.
If you happen to be an outlaw in a state that is at odds or conflict with another, you can probably be welcomed in that other state, and if that's the case, you can easily expect food, weapons, and other resources, perhaps even training, in exchange for continuing your campaign against your home state.
Suggested Characteristics
People are remade when they are outlawed. The seemingly endless hunt for their heads can make them either perseverant and deceptive, or it can make them feel hopeless and exhausted. Fleeing into nature does grant one extensive knowledge of the wild, but doing so alone runs the risk of becoming further alienated from society, making convincing disguises harder to pull off. Maybe being on the wrong side f the law makes them go off the deep end and become cruel and sadistic, or they learn to have a greater appreciation for one's present fortunes, lest they be whisked away before one has the time to truly value them.
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| 1 | Regardless of my beliefs, I am an extrovert and do feel at ease in a group. |
| 2 | Regardless of my beliefs, I am an introvert and feel at ease alone. |
| 3 | I strive to do the impossible; the world is only changed by people who dream big. |
| 4 | I am a realist; reaching for the stars gives you a long way to fall. |
| 5 | I have a giant reserve of empathy for other criminals and outlaws - they have their trials and travails too. |
| 6 | Prior to being outlawed, I was really poor and I know the ways of living on little. |
| 7 | I have no empathy for those that are high in society and have not slept rough a single night of their life. |
| 8 | I’ve spent so long on the run I can't handle being in a society that doesn't want my head. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| 1 | Freedom. If I'm on the wrong side of the law as it is, what is it going to do to limit me? I can do what I want! (Chaotic) |
| 2 | Heroism. Whether they realise it or not, I do what I do for the good of the people! (Good) |
| 3 | Crime. If I'm a criminal, so be it. I won't hold back from robbery, murder, theft and arson to get what I want. (Evil) |
| 4 | Efficiency. Random sadism and torture waste time; one should always get straight to the point. (Lawful) |
| 5 | Company. "Teamwork makes the dream work" applies to both sides of the law. (Lawful) |
| 6 | Individuality. Others could betray or hinder me, and I travel more efficiently alone. (Any) |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| 1 | The person who sentenced me to this life of hiding and fleeing better sleep with one eye open. |
| 2 | I have a specific hiding place I always fall back to that I am incredibly attached to. |
| 3 | I left a loved one behind when I fled. I will return and save them someday! |
| 4 | I have a stark rivalry with another outlaw. |
| 5 | My former home is sacred ground. It must not be touched! |
| 6 | There is one specific individual who has become obsessed with capturing me, but I always evade them. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| 1 | I am very mistrusting. I could be betrayed by anyone at anytime! |
| 2 | The endless flight has given me a hopeless outlook on life, to the detriment of others and myself. |
| 3 | Some part of me relishes in bringing unnecessary pain to the world that has doomed me to a life of hiding. |
| 4 | The thought of my punishment has turned me paranoid. |
| 5 | My potential punishment has forced me into cowardice; I will flee at the first sign of danger. |
| 6 | I often feel the need to suppress my troubles with drink or drug. |
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