After I heared about the 1st Level Feats some DMs grant the PCs, I have used Feats as the Background Features before Strixhaven. In my experience those standard features usually don't come up that often and the feats give the charakters something special early on. To balance it, I ban Variant Human and Custom Lineage.
My group is really on the minority here, but we allow them in regular games, same as Ravnica backgrounds and Dragonmarked races. We just need to have a good enough reason that fits to have them. For example, in our Dragon Heist campaign, my Lawful Evil Eloquence Bard is part of the Zhentarim. That last part being represented by the Orzhov Representative background. Or, someone who may have been a magical experiment or a Witcher type mutant, may have a Dragon Marked race. Or someone who comes from a port town and may have magic because of it, but also doesn't want to be a Storm Sorcerer, we use the Mark of Storm half elf. If everyone is allowed to take them into account for character creation, with all 3 iterations of the expanded list race/background, then it balances out. Specially the Strixhaven ones, since a martial class may get cantrips and free spell castings with no need for multiclassing or magical subclasses.
I probably wouldn't use the backgrounds as is in a non-Strixhaven campaign. I feel like it's just a bit too much better than any of the standard background by giving the feat as well, and especially benefits spellcasters. I wouldn't mind considering something like them though, which gives some sort of expanded spell list as a background feature, but that too might be a little much to balance.
As a counterpoint, *as it stands right now,* about the only ways to make the pre-5e type of necromancer (as in, instead of "MY SUBCLASS IS PITA EDGELORD," being a specialist whose entire thing is manipulating Positive and Negative energy and dealing with -- either controlling or destroying -- the undead), are this and theurgy wizards. Who... Didn't even make it to print, properly.
@@Recoil1808 Exactly. There's nothing in these backgrounds that unbalances the game more than just playing a full caster already does. These simply give a few mechanical ways to reflavor the default classes and their spell lists. If you're building towards a theme and playing a class that already gets a bonus spell list from its subclass or lets you swipe spells from other lists you've probably already gotten half the spells listed in these backgrounds. If you're playing a wizard you get a few extra spell options that don't really change the fact that you already had one of the best spell lists in the game and you get the most spells of any spells known caster. And if you're playing a sorcerer you're in luck. These backgrounds and the ones in Ravnica all give you the freedom to pick any subclass aside from divine soul, clockwork soul, and aberrant mind and maintain or at least approach mechanical viability.
I would allow these outside of a Strixhaven setting, as I am DEFINITELY doing a magic school setting for my HS students for next year's campaign.
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I allow this for characters to run in my Eberron Version, as it is not that more potent than the DragonMarked options. Regards from Tabasco, México [Land of The Olmecs]!
This book opens up an idea 💡 The thing is there are times when you may want to have a character to have certain traits that the PC system does not let you fit in a build. As long as everyone gets similar stuff and it does not get more powerful then this I could see it as okay as a background. But that is three very serous requirements. (This is based on my memory so YMMV) If you have seen the Dungeon Dudes campaign they are effectively were doing this in the first campaign of Drakeheim. But instead of doing it as a background, with the first ASI if they took attribute boost they could then take a feat at the same time. In that case the group is small (3 players) and again everyone gets the same benefit.
I have nothing planned BUT I'd like to play a halfling divination wizard with silverquill student and access to both mind spike and silvery barbs spell, maybe even the lucky feat later on and just watch the world burn...
If you're able to incorporate Strixhaven into whichever 🌎 you're in (Faérun, Eberron, Ravenloft, Ravnica, or your own homebrew), I don't see why I wouldn't allow it. Maybe there are portals or some other means of the interdimensional travel to travel between the Strixhaven College & where your main campaign takes place. ▶I have 3 ideas regarding the Variant Human w/ Strixhaven Backgrounds: 🔹If you allow V. Human w/ a Strixhaven background, the Strix Initiate IS your 1 free feat for the V. Human. You DON'T get to pick a 2nd one. 🔹If a V. Human gets both Strix Initiate & another feat of choice, all other races also get 2 feats of choice for party balance. 🔹Forbid V. Human race from taking Strix backgrounds.
In the Strixhaven campaign I'm in I am playing a tiefling warlock Witherbloom student. Or at least she's preparing to join that college since you officially choose your college at 2nd year. Went with fiend patron and later taking pact of the chain plus the Strixhaven mascot feat.
These backgrounds and the Ravnica ones confuse me. Okay, so let's say you're playing a paladin/warlock multiclass and you go to level 6: Do you auto-know these spells like any other paladin spells that you just need to prep? But they're also your Warlock spells, so instead of specifically taking them, paladin just gave them to you for free: do you now know them but not need prep them? Now let's say you stop taking paladin levels, when you get to the higher tier spells, will you learn those automatically or will you have to pick and choose which ones to learn again?
I have a dm who has agreed to let me use silverquill background. I'm kind of worried he doesn't know the full breadth of what that means. Gonna have to talk more with him about it. He does know about the feat, and the familiar, but I'll need to make sure he knows it all.
I'm fine with strixhaven backgrounds for most warlock and sorcerer classes , I wouldn't allow it for the new Tasha's sorcerer subclasses since they already get an extended spell list, I would however have to make something for marshall classes that would be comparable
Sorcerers still only get so many spells known, so the distinction is kinda pointless. And if two small bonus spell lists that stop at 5th level spells is too much then what is the divine soul sorcerer? Really though these backgrounds are fine for the setting and any classes your players might pick. If you want the give the non caster classes more use of these backgrounds either let them cast a number of spells from the list equal to their proficiency bonus in between each long rest. Or make every non caster a 1/4th or 1/5th caster. Hell, just letting them pick the right subclass and dip into the right caster class and you can reflavor any class as a "caster." An echo knight fighter with two levels of war wizard is close to being the best "summoner" in the game.
Probably would not allow if not playing a Strixhaven campaign. Just like I do not allow the options of Theros (e.g., piety, divine gifts, etc) and Critical Role classes in my Faerun campaign.
Yeah, but the feat in question is magic initiate with different limits and the spells are only usable if you're a caster. Not all feats are created equal. To say that two cantrips and one casting of one 1st level spell is equal to something like sharpshooter, crossbow expert, great weapon master, savage attacker, skill expert, or any of the racial feats is being disingenuous at best.
@@CitanulsPumpkin that is true but for a spell caster to get spells from a background is better than thieves can't or ill reputation imho. Do any feats give spell casting?
@@Ulfhednir9 Ritual caster, fey touched, shadow touched, eldritch adept if you pick one of the invocations that gives you a spell, a couple of the racial feats, and Magic Initiate give you spells without needing to be a caster first. Spell Sniper gives you one cantrip and half the stuff in sharpshooter, but you need to be a caster to take that feat. You could theoretically take the feat that gives you a fighting style and pick the paladin or ranger exclusive styles that give you two cantrips from either cleric or druid, but why bother? Magic initiate is a good enough feat if you just want cantrips and one spell. I never take it. There's much better feats on and off the list I gave. If I absolutly need more cantrips for a character concept I almost always take a single level of sorcerer. Including magic initiate with setting specific flavor tweaks in the backgrounds is probably the best way to give every non caster character in the campaign a little bit of magic. Giving magic initiate 2.0 to everyone at first level isn't an actual problem. Hell, you could go back and give the acolyte, sage, scholar, and hermit backgrounds all magic initiate and it wouldn't significantly change the power levels of the PHB backgrounds.
@@CitanulsPumpkin fair, but my point is that you get the spells from a background without taking an ASI. So they are still more useful than any other background for casters at least.
@@Ulfhednir9 They're pretty much the same as the Ravnica background spell lists. The wording is very deliberate. The spells are added to the class spell lists for any classes you have with a spell list. Not your personal spells known or prepared. Rules as written only clerics druids, paladins, and artificers get all the bonus spells. The spells known casters have to pick them up with their limited number of spells known gained at different levels. I house rule it so if you get a bonus spell list added to your potential spell list you have those spells automatically, but not everyone will do that. And these backgrounds, like the ones from Ravnica, are tied to a faction in the game world. You go through a life altering event and your background can change. You break the rules of the school or act against your guild and they can kick you out. In general the MtG backgrounds are what the faction agent background in scag should have been. They give extra bonuses at the cost of introducing a new set of NPCs looking over your shoulder and telling you all the things they need you to do for them.
Realistically, there's nothing broken or overpowered about the Strixhaven backgrounds. The people claiming they're overpowered are idiots. If you allow players to make variant humans and learn feats then you've already unbalanced the game beyond any ability to salvage the myth that D&D is "balanced." There's nothing in these backgrounds more game breaking than just allowing players to take levels in full caster classes. As for the actual feat in question, it's good but not great. Your choice of two cantrips from a curated list of three, and one first level spell from two curated class spell lists. It's no great weapon master. Hell, it's not even better than savage attacker or war caster depending on your class. In terms of non Strixhaven campaigns these backgrounds are fine. Just reflavor them for one of five reclusive magic schools that exist on the periphery of your setting. The Ravnica backgrounds give more and require more book keeping on the DM's part if you're using the full Renown progression. These are simpler plug and play options.
@@DaDunge Being able to pick any feat in the game at level one is infinitely more powerful than being able to pick one version of magic initiate 2.0. There is no comparison. Two cantrips and a level 1 spell vs great weapon master, or fey touched, or crossbow expert, or eldritch adept, or skill expert, or elven accuracy, or whatever best in slot pick the munchkins are gushing over at the moment. It doesn't matter if that feat is from a race pick or a background pick. At the end of the day it's a feat at level one. The limit on what feats you can pick is all that matters. If you're arguing that this lets you get multiple feats at level one, good luck convincing any DM to let you stack these features.
@@DaDunge What do you mean instead of some skill proficiencies? The Strixhaven backgrounds give the same two skills plus one or two languages and tools like every other background. Literally the only thing these backgrounds give that no other background gives is two cantrips and a once a day 1st level spell to non casters. It's a nice trick, but it's not a great weapon master, great weapon fighting, greatsword weilding fighter at level 1.
@@DaDunge Except when the DM bans all feats. You min max munchkins keep making these idiotic zero sum arguments based on white room theory crafting and you never take into account the fact that none of your parameters for over powered exist in real games. You're basing your entire argument on some player taking the backgrounds and only the backgrounds from this book and using them in every campaign forever. That's not going to work in actual play groups. It didn't happen with the Ravnica backgrounds. It didn't happen with the Eberron sub races. To think that it will happen with Strixhaven backgrounds is fucking idiotic.
@@DaDunge I find it astounding that magic initiate with more limitations than usual is "the step too far" hill the munchkins are willing to die on. There's two dozen feats better than it. Hell, I personally never take the feat because taking a single level dip in sorcerer offers double what the feat gives and works in just about every situation where I want more cantrips for a character concept. At the end of the day what these backgrounds give to non casters is two cantrips and one daily use of one 1st level spell. Hell, these versions of magic initiate don't even include top pick cantrips like fire bolt, eldritch blast, or minor illusion. The best damage cantrips on the list are sacred flame, chill touch, and vicious mockery. The only school that gives access to mage hand and guidance as options doesn't even have a damage dealing cantrip on its list. Strixhaven Initiate is a half feat at best and it doesn't even give you +1 to a stat like a half feat should. The only reason the munchkins and fuckbois are even complaining is that someone on the dev team decided it'd be easier if they just packaged that bonus as a feat. When you argue that any feat is too much and breaks the game without reading the feat in question or accounting for content or context your argument is worthless.
After I heared about the 1st Level Feats some DMs grant the PCs, I have used Feats as the Background Features before Strixhaven. In my experience those standard features usually don't come up that often and the feats give the charakters something special early on. To balance it, I ban Variant Human and Custom Lineage.
My group is really on the minority here, but we allow them in regular games, same as Ravnica backgrounds and Dragonmarked races. We just need to have a good enough reason that fits to have them.
For example, in our Dragon Heist campaign, my Lawful Evil Eloquence Bard is part of the Zhentarim. That last part being represented by the Orzhov Representative background.
Or, someone who may have been a magical experiment or a Witcher type mutant, may have a Dragon Marked race. Or someone who comes from a port town and may have magic because of it, but also doesn't want to be a Storm Sorcerer, we use the Mark of Storm half elf.
If everyone is allowed to take them into account for character creation, with all 3 iterations of the expanded list race/background, then it balances out. Specially the Strixhaven ones, since a martial class may get cantrips and free spell castings with no need for multiclassing or magical subclasses.
I probably wouldn't use the backgrounds as is in a non-Strixhaven campaign. I feel like it's just a bit too much better than any of the standard background by giving the feat as well, and especially benefits spellcasters.
I wouldn't mind considering something like them though, which gives some sort of expanded spell list as a background feature, but that too might be a little much to balance.
As a counterpoint, *as it stands right now,* about the only ways to make the pre-5e type of necromancer (as in, instead of "MY SUBCLASS IS PITA EDGELORD," being a specialist whose entire thing is manipulating Positive and Negative energy and dealing with -- either controlling or destroying -- the undead), are this and theurgy wizards. Who... Didn't even make it to print, properly.
@@Recoil1808 Exactly. There's nothing in these backgrounds that unbalances the game more than just playing a full caster already does. These simply give a few mechanical ways to reflavor the default classes and their spell lists.
If you're building towards a theme and playing a class that already gets a bonus spell list from its subclass or lets you swipe spells from other lists you've probably already gotten half the spells listed in these backgrounds.
If you're playing a wizard you get a few extra spell options that don't really change the fact that you already had one of the best spell lists in the game and you get the most spells of any spells known caster.
And if you're playing a sorcerer you're in luck. These backgrounds and the ones in Ravnica all give you the freedom to pick any subclass aside from divine soul, clockwork soul, and aberrant mind and maintain or at least approach mechanical viability.
Honestly Eberron Dragonmarks and Ravnica Backgrounds>Strixhaven Backgrounds. And Piety sistem is good too.
I would allow these outside of a Strixhaven setting, as I am DEFINITELY doing a magic school setting for my HS students for next year's campaign.
I allow this for characters to run in my Eberron Version, as it is not that more potent than the DragonMarked options.
Regards from Tabasco, México [Land of The Olmecs]!
This book opens up an idea 💡
The thing is there are times when you may want to have a character to have certain traits that the PC system does not let you fit in a build. As long as everyone gets similar stuff and it does not get more powerful then this I could see it as okay as a background. But that is three very serous requirements.
(This is based on my memory so YMMV) If you have seen the Dungeon Dudes campaign they are effectively were doing this in the first campaign of Drakeheim. But instead of doing it as a background, with the first ASI if they took attribute boost they could then take a feat at the same time. In that case the group is small (3 players) and again everyone gets the same benefit.
I have nothing planned BUT I'd like to play a halfling divination wizard with silverquill student and access to both mind spike and silvery barbs spell, maybe even the lucky feat later on and just watch the world burn...
You need to go to dnd jail
Happy Holidays, Ted. Thanks for your videos!
It’s fine by me. I would allow if for a campaign featuring a current or previous magic academy student.
If you're able to incorporate Strixhaven into whichever 🌎 you're in (Faérun, Eberron, Ravenloft, Ravnica, or your own homebrew), I don't see why I wouldn't allow it. Maybe there are portals or some other means of the interdimensional travel to travel between the Strixhaven College & where your main campaign takes place.
▶I have 3 ideas regarding the Variant Human w/ Strixhaven Backgrounds:
🔹If you allow V. Human w/ a Strixhaven background, the Strix Initiate IS your 1 free feat for the V. Human. You DON'T get to pick a 2nd one.
🔹If a V. Human gets both Strix Initiate & another feat of choice, all other races also get 2 feats of choice for party balance.
🔹Forbid V. Human race from taking Strix backgrounds.
In the Strixhaven campaign I'm in I am playing a tiefling warlock Witherbloom student. Or at least she's preparing to join that college since you officially choose your college at 2nd year. Went with fiend patron and later taking pact of the chain plus the Strixhaven mascot feat.
Spore druid + witherbloom = Nurgle cultist
These backgrounds and the Ravnica ones confuse me.
Okay, so let's say you're playing a paladin/warlock multiclass and you go to level 6: Do you auto-know these spells like any other paladin spells that you just need to prep?
But they're also your Warlock spells, so instead of specifically taking them, paladin just gave them to you for free: do you now know them but not need prep them?
Now let's say you stop taking paladin levels, when you get to the higher tier spells, will you learn those automatically or will you have to pick and choose which ones to learn again?
If I do join a Strixhaven campaign I'll have my character be a Lorehaven Tabaxi Warlock.
I’d certainly allow people to take the feat and just change the flavour, separate it from the background
Just started perusing through this book, the magic school campaign lured me in
100k lets gooo
I have a dm who has agreed to let me use silverquill background. I'm kind of worried he doesn't know the full breadth of what that means. Gonna have to talk more with him about it. He does know about the feat, and the familiar, but I'll need to make sure he knows it all.
I'd allow it. Just rename it for whatever the school is.
Her love your content that is all
Like a Boss
I'm fine with strixhaven backgrounds for most warlock and sorcerer classes , I wouldn't allow it for the new Tasha's sorcerer subclasses since they already get an extended spell list, I would however have to make something for marshall classes that would be comparable
Sorcerers still only get so many spells known, so the distinction is kinda pointless. And if two small bonus spell lists that stop at 5th level spells is too much then what is the divine soul sorcerer?
Really though these backgrounds are fine for the setting and any classes your players might pick. If you want the give the non caster classes more use of these backgrounds either let them cast a number of spells from the list equal to their proficiency bonus in between each long rest. Or make every non caster a 1/4th or 1/5th caster. Hell, just letting them pick the right subclass and dip into the right caster class and you can reflavor any class as a "caster." An echo knight fighter with two levels of war wizard is close to being the best "summoner" in the game.
Probably would not allow if not playing a Strixhaven campaign. Just like I do not allow the options of Theros (e.g., piety, divine gifts, etc) and Critical Role classes in my Faerun campaign.
A Background that gives spells and a feat seems better than what the other backgrounds give
Yeah, but the feat in question is magic initiate with different limits and the spells are only usable if you're a caster. Not all feats are created equal. To say that two cantrips and one casting of one 1st level spell is equal to something like sharpshooter, crossbow expert, great weapon master, savage attacker, skill expert, or any of the racial feats is being disingenuous at best.
@@CitanulsPumpkin that is true but for a spell caster to get spells from a background is better than thieves can't or ill reputation imho. Do any feats give spell casting?
@@Ulfhednir9 Ritual caster, fey touched, shadow touched, eldritch adept if you pick one of the invocations that gives you a spell, a couple of the racial feats, and Magic Initiate give you spells without needing to be a caster first.
Spell Sniper gives you one cantrip and half the stuff in sharpshooter, but you need to be a caster to take that feat.
You could theoretically take the feat that gives you a fighting style and pick the paladin or ranger exclusive styles that give you two cantrips from either cleric or druid, but why bother?
Magic initiate is a good enough feat if you just want cantrips and one spell. I never take it. There's much better feats on and off the list I gave. If I absolutly need more cantrips for a character concept I almost always take a single level of sorcerer. Including magic initiate with setting specific flavor tweaks in the backgrounds is probably the best way to give every non caster character in the campaign a little bit of magic. Giving magic initiate 2.0 to everyone at first level isn't an actual problem.
Hell, you could go back and give the acolyte, sage, scholar, and hermit backgrounds all magic initiate and it wouldn't significantly change the power levels of the PHB backgrounds.
@@CitanulsPumpkin fair, but my point is that you get the spells from a background without taking an ASI. So they are still more useful than any other background for casters at least.
@@Ulfhednir9 They're pretty much the same as the Ravnica background spell lists. The wording is very deliberate. The spells are added to the class spell lists for any classes you have with a spell list. Not your personal spells known or prepared. Rules as written only clerics druids, paladins, and artificers get all the bonus spells. The spells known casters have to pick them up with their limited number of spells known gained at different levels.
I house rule it so if you get a bonus spell list added to your potential spell list you have those spells automatically, but not everyone will do that.
And these backgrounds, like the ones from Ravnica, are tied to a faction in the game world. You go through a life altering event and your background can change. You break the rules of the school or act against your guild and they can kick you out. In general the MtG backgrounds are what the faction agent background in scag should have been. They give extra bonuses at the cost of introducing a new set of NPCs looking over your shoulder and telling you all the things they need you to do for them.
I would only allow this if I gave every other player a free feat.
I got this book and the spine was entirely unbound. The spines of these books are pathetic
Realistically, there's nothing broken or overpowered about the Strixhaven backgrounds. The people claiming they're overpowered are idiots.
If you allow players to make variant humans and learn feats then you've already unbalanced the game beyond any ability to salvage the myth that D&D is "balanced." There's nothing in these backgrounds more game breaking than just allowing players to take levels in full caster classes.
As for the actual feat in question, it's good but not great. Your choice of two cantrips from a curated list of three, and one first level spell from two curated class spell lists. It's no great weapon master. Hell, it's not even better than savage attacker or war caster depending on your class.
In terms of non Strixhaven campaigns these backgrounds are fine. Just reflavor them for one of five reclusive magic schools that exist on the periphery of your setting. The Ravnica backgrounds give more and require more book keeping on the DM's part if you're using the full Renown progression. These are simpler plug and play options.
@@DaDunge actually the custom lineage is stronger then Vumans
@@DaDunge Being able to pick any feat in the game at level one is infinitely more powerful than being able to pick one version of magic initiate 2.0. There is no comparison. Two cantrips and a level 1 spell vs great weapon master, or fey touched, or crossbow expert, or eldritch adept, or skill expert, or elven accuracy, or whatever best in slot pick the munchkins are gushing over at the moment.
It doesn't matter if that feat is from a race pick or a background pick. At the end of the day it's a feat at level one. The limit on what feats you can pick is all that matters. If you're arguing that this lets you get multiple feats at level one, good luck convincing any DM to let you stack these features.
@@DaDunge What do you mean instead of some skill proficiencies? The Strixhaven backgrounds give the same two skills plus one or two languages and tools like every other background.
Literally the only thing these backgrounds give that no other background gives is two cantrips and a once a day 1st level spell to non casters. It's a nice trick, but it's not a great weapon master, great weapon fighting, greatsword weilding fighter at level 1.
@@DaDunge Except when the DM bans all feats. You min max munchkins keep making these idiotic zero sum arguments based on white room theory crafting and you never take into account the fact that none of your parameters for over powered exist in real games.
You're basing your entire argument on some player taking the backgrounds and only the backgrounds from this book and using them in every campaign forever.
That's not going to work in actual play groups. It didn't happen with the Ravnica backgrounds. It didn't happen with the Eberron sub races. To think that it will happen with Strixhaven backgrounds is fucking idiotic.
@@DaDunge I find it astounding that magic initiate with more limitations than usual is "the step too far" hill the munchkins are willing to die on. There's two dozen feats better than it. Hell, I personally never take the feat because taking a single level dip in sorcerer offers double what the feat gives and works in just about every situation where I want more cantrips for a character concept.
At the end of the day what these backgrounds give to non casters is two cantrips and one daily use of one 1st level spell. Hell, these versions of magic initiate don't even include top pick cantrips like fire bolt, eldritch blast, or minor illusion. The best damage cantrips on the list are sacred flame, chill touch, and vicious mockery. The only school that gives access to mage hand and guidance as options doesn't even have a damage dealing cantrip on its list. Strixhaven Initiate is a half feat at best and it doesn't even give you +1 to a stat like a half feat should.
The only reason the munchkins and fuckbois are even complaining is that someone on the dev team decided it'd be easier if they just packaged that bonus as a feat. When you argue that any feat is too much and breaks the game without reading the feat in question or accounting for content or context your argument is worthless.