5.2 - Background Catalog

This book intentionally does not duplicate a background catalog.

Hiraeth Backgrounds

Use the existing live chapter:

Hiraeth's Heritages and Feats — Backgrounds

That chapter already contains general and setting-specific backgrounds. Examples include ordinary professions and stations alongside Hiraeth-specific choices such as Auroran Refugee, Mooncrest Acolyte, Northern Minstrel, Port Native, Reindeer Herder, Rune Carver, Ship's Surgeon, and Winter Druid of Frostmaple Grove.

The examples above are not a replacement list. Consult the live chapter for the current complete catalog and exact mechanics.

Official D&D Backgrounds

Official backgrounds remain available when the campaign permits their source. Use the version matching the campaign's rules. Do not silently combine a similarly named 2014 and 2024 background.

Connecting Heritage and Background

Heritage describes the regional people and community that raised you. Background describes what you did. They can reinforce each other or contrast deliberately:

• A Casgate Domefolk Courtier understands northern climate boundaries and formal politics.
• A Blū Factory-District Acolyte was raised around industry but served a religious institution.
• A Ravine Chasmfolk Sailor may have worked aboard flying gondolas rather than sea vessels.
• An Ossurian Old Guard Criminal may know ancestral forms while living outside their law.

When a background feature mentions an organization, settlement, vessel, or profession, reskin its presentation for Hiraeth without expanding its mechanical scope.