Character Backgrounds

Your character’s background is a collection of characteristics that represent the place and occupation that were most formative before your character embarked on a life of adventure.

Spirited Away

Any creature from Outside World, also known as human world or modern world. It’s often a missing human, but sometimes, new youkai also appear, migrating from unfriendly cityscapes.

Ability Scores: Intelligence, Charisma, Dexterity

Feat: Technology Enthusiast or Occult Specialist

Skill Proficiencies: Choose any 3

Equipment: Modern City Clothes, Lighter, 3 Outside World Trinkets, 1000 Yen

Residence: Outside world

Villager

A normal resident of the only safe for humans place in Gensokyo, Human village. Most humans here are farmers, artisans, or merchants, and most Youkai are hiding their nature, apart from a few that nobody takes seriously.

Ability Scores: Strength, Wisdom, Constitution

Feat: Alert

Skill Proficiencies: History and Animal handling

Equipment: Eastern clothes, Youkai-warding amulet (trinket), 500 Mon

Residence: Human village

Youkai Colony Member

Someone living in one of organised Youkai societies, be that one of tightly interconnected Youkai Mountain societies, or hidden villages.

Ability Scores: Intelligence, Charisma, Wisdom

Feat: Skilled or Technology Enthusiast

Skill Proficiencies: Insight, Persuasion

Equipment: One set of clothes, 100 Yamawaro Funds or 1000 Mon/Yen

Residence: One of Youkai villages (Kappa’s Genbou Ravine, Yamawaro territories, Tengu Village, hidden Kitsune and Tanuki villages, etc.)

Solitary

Some people living alone or in a small group outside of settlements. Only ones strong enough to protect themselves can afford living comfortably like that.

Ability Scores: Wisdom, Intelligence, Strength

Feat: Magic Initiate (Any)

Skill Proficiencies: Nature, Survival

Equipment: Western clothes, Book, 500 Mon

Residence: Any place in Gensokyo wilderness

Acolyte

Someone training in one of religious places of Gensokyo, be that one of two Shinto Shrines, a secretly Youkai-friendly Buddhist Temple, or somewhere in Senkai as a Taoist Hermit.

You may also be a Youkai that is forced to serve or train as a punishment for causing an incident.

Ability Scores: Wisdom, Constitution, Dexterity

Feat: Magic Initiate (Cleric)

Skill Proficiencies: Performance and Religion

Equipment: Book (prayers), Holy Symbol, Miko or Eastern clothes, 500 Mon

Residence: Hakurei Shrine, Moriya Shrine, Myoren Temple, or Senkai

Deathworlder

Not many people visited here… In their life, that is. But some beings live here.

Beautiful Heaven, out of reach to anyone who didn’t achieve either Nirvanna or Taoist Immortality, Calm resting place of spirits - Hakugyokurou (Netherworld), overseen by a ghostly princess, Abandoned prison but a beautiful old capital in Old Hell, overseen by Earth Spirit Palace, or true Hell that is chaotic and unruly, apart from Ministry of Right and Wrong, or Animal Realm, semi-independent part of Hell controlled by four mafia-like animal spirit families.

You come from one of those places.

Ability Scores: Any 3

Feat: Pure Land Citizen (Netherworld, Heaven) or Savage Attacker (Hell, Old Hell)

Skill Proficiencies: Religion and History

Equipment: Any clothes, piece of wood with someone’s deeds written on it (trinket), 1000 Mon

Residence: World of Dead (Either Heaven, Netherworld, Old Hell, Hell, or Animal Realm)

Lunatic Rungate

Someone who ran away from Lunar Capital. Might be a spy sent to find other runaways, a bored Lunarian, or an ever mistreated Moon Rabbit.

Ability Scores: Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence; or Intelligence, Charisma, Wisdom

Feat: Pure Land Citizen

Skill Proficiencies: Magic and Religion

Equipment: Voile of anti-gravity (gives 30 feet flight speed when worn), Lunar corps clothes or Eastern Clothes, 400 Mon

Residence: Lunar Capital

Sealed in Makai

Makai is a sealed artificial world of Youkai. Some beings live here willingly, some were banished to the corner of Hokkai (remote area of Makai) for their crimes, but regardless, it’s a desolate place that is considered cursed and more scary than Hell by Gensokyo citizens.

At least, someone sells local speciality, Makai Crackers, here.

Ability Scores: Wisdom, Constitution, Charisma

Feat: Savage Attacker

Skill Proficiencies: Magic and Any 1

Equipment: Any clothes, Arcane focus, 1000 Mon

Residence: Makai (more desolate Hokkai, World of Ice and Snow, the castle of creator of Makai called Pandæmonium, or surreal fairytale-like Wonderland)