Changes

=Background Abilities=

The master weapon smith. The prestigious planar sage. The renowned concert pianist. The most amazing chef. These are things that we want in the world in which we adventure, and possible even things that we wish for our characters to be or aspire to. In the SRD these aspects of a character were handled by skills, but they are conspicuously absent in the revised skill writeups on the previous pages.

But a more compelling reason than the mechanical concerns is the story one. If these background abilities are tied to level in the same way as the other skills are then they are also tied to combat ability (the alternative, where levels are not a measure of combat ability but of some other thing is not considered here, because so much of the rest of the game assumes combat is the function of level or CR). Tying them to level means that sages with incredibly specialized knowledge never need protection or bodyguards, master crafters can not be kidnapped and held against their will, and every exquisitely trained butler also knows kung fu because they all must possess sufficient levels to qualify for their level of skill in a background ability. It is a straightforward reduction in the amount of stories that can be told, and we don’t get any new stories in exchange. By breaking these background abilities away from character level or CR, you can have both helpless sage and powerful sage stories as you need them for your games.}}

Each background ability is grouped into a type with similar abilities. Each of the studies represents a collection of book knowledge, for example, while each artisanal background ability represents training in tools and the ability to create. Though they are grouped into types for conceptual and mechanical reasons, each background ability must be acquired separately. The individual background abilities follow the general rules presented here as well the any special rules associated with their type.

Each individual background ability possessed by a character has a grade associated with it that indicates how well the character can perform at it. This grade determines whether or not you need to make a check to complete a particular task, what your bonus on the check is, and how much more or less you can expect to earn should you work in the field during your downtime. The grade is generally advanced through the investment of downtime and an attribute check, though exceptions for higher leveled characters exist.

===Artisanal===

*Religion (Specialization: By pantheon or deity)

====Uninitiated====

Advancement to Grade IV requires 20x the listed time Grade I time. At the end of the time, you roll a d20 and add your relevant attribute modifier for the profession. If the result is 22 or better, you attain Grade IV. If it is not, you may put in another 10x the listed time and make the check again. If that check also fails, you may not acquire Grade IV in that background ability.

Background checks are made when attempting to complete a task associated with your background ability. The basic mechanic of the check is to roll 1d20 + your Grade bonus + your key attribute bonus, and compare that value to the task DC. Task DCs are determined by your DM, and are expected to follow the guidelines below.