TLDR The sailor and pirate backgrounds in DnD 5E offer exciting and adventurous options for characters, with unique skills and features that can enhance seafaring adventures.
Key insights
🌊The sailor and pirate backgrounds in DnD 5E are considered two separate backgrounds by almost every metric, despite having the same mechanic and description.
🌊Sailing on a sea-going vessel for years, facing mighty storms and monsters of the deep, makes for an exciting and adventurous background for a character in DnD 5E.
🧭Navigators tools can be quite useful, especially if the party is traveling without guides or ferryman.
🏋️♂️Athletics and perception are incredible skills to have in DnD 5E.
⚓”Ship’s passage feature can be a game-changer for seafaring adventures, but its usefulness depends on the style of the campaign you’re running.”
🌊The end goal of purchasing your own ship and sailing the seas provides a tangible and engaging objective for the character, without completely removing them from the world.
Timestamped
📜00:00 Sailor and pirate are two separate backgrounds with similar mechanics and descriptions, but different features.
🌊01:10 Sailor background involves sailing on a sea vessel, facing storms and monsters, and now seeking new opportunities.
🌊02:08 Gain useful skills and tools as a sailor, but usefulness may vary depending on the campaign.
👍03:03 Having high athletics and perception skills is important, and the equipment is nothing special, so let’s move on to the next feature.
🌊03:20 Sailor feature “Ship’s Passage” allows for free passage on a sailing ship in exchange for assistance, useful for seafaring adventures but usefulness varies based on campaign style.
🌊04:17 Discuss with your DM before choosing the sailor background to ensure it’s relevant, and consider the suggested characteristics for personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws.
💰05:13 A sailor character in DnD motivated by money can make the game more fun and provide a clear end goal.
🌊05:49 The sailor background in DnD 5E is useful depending on the campaign, so discuss with your DM and share your thoughts in the comments.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
What are the key features and characteristics of the Sailor background in DND 5th Edition?
The Sailor background in DND 5th Edition involves being under the influence of a pirate in your youth, learning survival skills [1].
It includes skills like Athletics and Perception, and proficiency with navigators’ tools [8].
The background emphasizes characteristics like loyalty, courage, and flexibility [9].
The feature allows the character to find safe passage on a ship whenever needed [6].
It can involve being captured by slavers and sold in a slave market [7].