Editing D&D 5e: Borderlanders - Characters (section)

==CHARACTER BACKGROUNDS==
Instead of using the published backgrounds, please flavor your character's background to fit your specific vision of that character (within the scope of what is reasonable for the setting), using the steps below to flesh out the mechanical benefits of that background.
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===<u>Languages, Skills, Tools</u>===
Typical template is 1 bonus language, 2 bonus skills, and a bonus tool proficiency. But you can mix that up however you like within the following parameters. 
* No more than 4 of the above things in total.
* No more than one bonus language can be an exotic language. This is cumulative with any other 'bonus' languages that you might get (such as the half elf or human choice to select one bonus language), so your character should only end up with one exotic language total from player choice language options. Specifically named exotic languages that your character gets elsewhere (such as the dragonborn's ability to speak Draconic) do not count against this total.
* No more than 3 bonus skills from background. [Bonus skills from other sources do not count against this total].
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===<u>Background Feature</u>===
Pick a specific NPC or NPC group you are associated with, such as a mentor or a guild. This NPC or group should give you a specific benefit that you can use in specific situations. You don't have to come up with this specific benefit up front, but the benefit should match the relationship. A mentor might be expected to provide advice or guidance or a recommendation or somesuch. Guild membership on the other hand might provide referrals, supplies, or a place to work, study, or sleep.

[Note: If your class would already provide a group affiliation (such as a monk to a monastery), do not use that as your background feature, unless you are building on that base relationship in some fashion that would conceivably allow a higher level of benefit from the relationship].
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===<u>Heirloom Item</u>===
Finally, choose a single piece of gear that was passed down to you via family or a mentor or the fickle happenstance of fate. This item will function as a +1 enchanted item of its type and will function in a specific instance as an item with a bonus equal to your Proficiency Bonus. [eg - a +1 sword that is +PB vs Giants].
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===<u>Wealth and Gear</u>===
Players may choose mundane gear reasonable to their character with 50 gold remaining after all purchases.

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'''Ancillary Background Elements'''

Feel free to include more than just the mechanical bibs and bobs above to flesh out your character. I find different players have a different tolerance for premeditated character structure vs revealing a character as they play, so the steps below are totally optional.

* '''Traits, Ideals, Flaws, and Bonds:''' Examples of these can be found in the PHB and online if you want to use this formula to flesh out your character's quirks and motivations. 

* '''Alignment:''' Please ignore alignment suggestions included in the racial descriptions in the PHB. As a general thing, most races will land on some flavor of neutral with wide variation among individuals, so if you want to pick an alignment for your character, you are not directly or indirectly limited by the listed racial trend. 
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[Note: This is an aside from building your character's background, but if you are into studying up on the monsters you will be encountering, please also ignore their alignment suggestions included in the MM (or whatever source you are perusing). I typically don't follow them, instead choosing some flavor of neutral as a general rule for type with specific alignments varying widely between individual NPCs of that type].
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