Creating Backgrounds

Introduction

In Cairn, a PC’s Background is the most important element of their character, representing their past as well as their present. Backgrounds can influence a character’s knowledge, expertise, their connection with the setting, and much more. Backgrounds are also a filter for interpreting the results of a dice roll, or a reason to not roll at all. A Greenwise doesn’t need to save DEX when cutting leaves from a poisonous plant, just as a Scrivener knows how to read the older form of a local tongue. Most importantly, Backgrounds tell a story through the character’s starting gear and unique history, connecting the PC to a setting and its themes.

Principles

  • Players should be excited about rolling on the Background tables.
  • Backgrounds can be archetypal and familiar, but leave room for alternative interpretations!
  • Backgrounds should tell the player something about the implied setting.
  • Each table result should be unique, so that characters with the same Background are still distinct from one another.

Anatomy of a Background

Theme

Prepare a list of common adjectives that describe your new Background. If designing a profession, ask yourself what would lead someone to take on such a career. If writing something more unique (such as the Half-Witch, for example), consider how such a person’s strangeness would alienate them from others or bring them closer. And as you write the Background’s starting gear and tables, keep in mind how the game world’s implied setting, inspirational materials (books, film, etc.), and existing tropes might influence the results.

Starting Gear

Characters in Cairn are largely defined by their inventory, so starting gear should be the first place to start painting a Background’s unique canvas. Each Background has:

  • Gold, food, and some kind of light source. These should still be unique; a Background might start with unusual Rations, a candle helmet, and so on.
  • Up to four unique items that reinforce the overarching theme. At least one of these items should be a weapon of some kind.
  • Starting items should occupy no more than seven slots in total, so as to not overburden a character’s inventory.

Tables

Tables are where a character’s unique story really starts to come together. They also provide a level of diversity so that no two characters are alike. Each Background has a defining question, followed by six rows of answers. The first table question should be tailored around the character’s distant or recent past and what experiences led to their present circumstances. The first table should offer the character a unique item, ability, or combination of the two. The second table question focuses on who the character is today, and the answers are typically related to a specific item or skill that broadly defines the character.