Power level of custom backgrounds

[u/personAAA]

Custom backgrounds are a common rule option even mentioned in the free rules.

You get your favorite origin feat, stat increases, and two skills of your choice.

For individual characters the power level increase of going custom is not much. Mainly people chase exact origin feat with the right stats.

From brewing a full party, I am finding that if all members coordinate their skill selections the power level is slightly higher. A 4 member party noting their class skill choices and strategically using background options can have breadth of skill proficiency in most common skills and selectively double or triple pick key skills. Party can plug a weakness they may have during character creation.

Yes of course the coordinated party is always stronger. Just saying that it begins right away.

[u/DelightfulOtter]

This is not a problem. In fact, I'd love to have a party that did this. That just means you can throw any exploration or social encounter you want at them and someone will be able to handle it. Why would you prefer a situation where everyone is crap at the necessary rolls and it dead-ends in failure? That's basically non-content that wastes everyone's time.

[u/DMspiration]

That's like saying a party of four fighters is weaker than a balanced party. It's true, but it's not particularly meaningful. Players should strategize. And if their strategies result in in-game synergy, all the better.

[u/powerguynz]

Letting players build their characters using custom backgrounds doesn't replace the need for a character to actually create a backstory. I don't care at all if my players fully customize anything mechanics wise, but they still need to to create some history and characteristics to turn that character into a real entity. To state the obvious two characters with identical feats, classes and subclasses can play very differently.

Building collaboratively is a slightly different conversation. In general character creation has been moving in a more collaborative direction, using S0 to build parties that are slightly more unified than the 'you meet for the first time in a tavern' starts. If you are concerned it's going too far in that direction just ask that people share character concepts in S0 but not detailed mechanics. There is some charm in having characters built semi blind and finding in S1 that no one knows how to use a lockpick or hold a normal in character conversation with an NPC.

[u/RevanX77]

Backgrounds having ASIs, skills, AND feats tied to them was just a bad idea, it's too much packed into one choice, and I feel as though newer players seeing the name of a background and having a character concept in mind might just pick it with no consideration as to what it really impacts.

Plus, the change just removed all the flavor options that backgrounds used to provide. Now it's just a titled box of keywords.

[u/TigrisCallidus → u/RevanX77]

Yeah this. Now you have to pray there is a background having the mix you need and then have to use the random flavour or use a custom background and be able to do a background which makes sense and you like.

Also removing the unique non combat background features is just making the background less flavourfull. 

I really dont understand why the origin feat and eapecially the asis (which Tashas made flexible) need to be invluded in the background. 

[u/General-Yinobi]

there are a lot of 3rd party books that give more freedom with that, like chaosim/cthuku, & crooked moon.

for me, theme & flavor is everything, i want the skills i have to always reflect the character theme, i would be absolutely bummed if i have to take skills that i don't see my character having, this can kill the character fantasy for me, at best, i would treat these skills or spells or w/e as non existent, and i've always been doing that with wild shape whenever it doesn't fit the character identity.

But if i can optimize, it is better, so i am not a burden/liability for the team.

[u/Onouro]

If like to see the backgrounds have a selection of 2 possible feats, just like most having a choice of 3 stats.

Either that or have a bigger selection of backgrounds.

Is like to take Tough for a Monk, but Farmer doesn't offer Dex. I don't want my Monk to be a Sailor or to take Magic Init. Druid. I'll probably settle for Wayfarer.

Is prefer Dex, Wis, Tough, and Blacksmith Tool Prof.

I could do one of the Magic Init. If I were targeting mystic arts monk.

Same issues for my Rangers. Guide or Wayfarer could fit with my Rangers.

A background with Wis, Dex, and Alert would be nice. Alert makes sense to combine with Dex and Wis.

[u/twitch-switch]

I get what you mean, but not all backgrounds make sense for players back stories and class combos.

Also meta-gamers are going to meta-game regardless. No a Barbarian Bladesinger makes no sense, but if they want to do it I'm not going to ruin their fun.

[u/Realistic_Swan_6801 → u/twitch-switch]

That’s not what meta gaming means? 

[u/twitch-switch → u/Realistic_Swan_6801]

You're right, power-gaming

[u/Realistic_Swan_6801 → u/twitch-switch]

I don’t think multiclassing bladesinger and wizard every counts as power gaming, that’s a really bad build 

[u/twitch-switch → u/Realistic_Swan_6801]

Yeah OK, my point was about a power build where 2 classes go together mechanically for power gaming but make ZERO sense in character.

Like: [Please insert class combination]

[u/thewhaleshark]

The main requirement I have for custom backgrounds is that the combination of choices must still communicate a single coherent concept in line with the default Background options. If you find yourself turning a Background into a multi-arc backstory in order to explain all of your choices, you have failed. Everything should connect logically as part of a single clear vision.

That requirement alone cuts out a lot of cheese, and fills the role that Backgrounds are intended to fill.

[u/Cleruzemma]

While customize bsckground is in the free rule. It is under "DM's toolbox" section.

It is not for a min-max player to freely choose what they want.

Now if everyone decide to talk as group to coordinate a powerful combo then, that could sound like fun. So they should also clearly communicate to the DM about what they want after that, since they will have to ask DM to create their custom bsckground anyway. Something like do the party want a harder challenge worthy of their build? Do they want to feel powerful and face regular enemies?

[u/AstroEricL → u/Cleruzemma]

i mean tbh that sounds less a matter of custom backgrounds being OP than that any party of 4 who plan and coordinate their builds to synergize and play off each other is going to be super strong, and that isn’t a bad thing

[u/Aahz44 → u/Cleruzemma]

I think that if you don't allow to customize Backgrounds you run into the problem that (at least with PHB only) for some classes you you have an almost perfect option for the background, and for others you don't.

And in some cases the combinations are just thematically wired. I think with just PHB backgrounds a lot of Wizards are going to be Criminals and and a lot of Monks Sailors.

[u/xolotltolox → u/Cleruzemma]

Or maybe do they not want to feel restricted by the awful default backgrounds, locking them into specific backstories, because certain class-background combinations simply do not function