A Bold Endeavor

I have decided to update one of my favorite D&D settings to Fifth Edition.

Warlocks in 5e Dungeons and Dragons

Warlocks, as a class, came about in 3.5 D&D in Complete Arcane. I found them to be a great class, utilizing both an effective ranged attack with their Eldritch Blast ability and filling a utility role with their Invocations. In 5e Dungeons & Dragons, they fill this role and more. Their utility and (somewhat) full casting keeps them from being solely a support role and their Pacts make them different enough that no two characters will be the same.
I feel that the Warlock really came into its own in 4e. When you ask most gamers the Tiefling and Warlock are one in the same to them. That's evidence enough for me that they were both very popular choices for PC's.
 But that can't be the only race that fits well with the class, and 5e shows this off quite well.

-The primary ability score for the 5e Warlock is Charisma and the recommended secondary ability is Constitution. This alone lends itself to many races, the half-elf, human (if you don't choose the variant ability package, or if you do and pick Chr and Con), and tiefling are just the ones who have the bonuses to the necessary abilities right out of the gate.

Many would say that Warlocks are all the same, like some players do about Fighters. This is another area where 5e Warlocks excel. I'll give just a few examples of how the class lends itself to a vast array of different characters.

-The main feature of the class: Pacts.
In the PHB we have the Blade Pact, the Chain Pact, and the Tome Pact (my personal favorite). I am hoping any future expansions will have more types of Pacts, but these three fill the bill nicely. There is enough variation once you decide who your pact is with to make your PC distinct from others.

-The Otherworldly Patrons are very different from each other as are the abilities and spells they grant:
The Archfey: the Lords and Ladies of Faerie

The Fiend: Demons lords, Archdevils, Yugoloths

The Great Old One: Cthulhu, Tharizdun
*Note: I plan to do a write-up of other Patrons, such as Vestiges and Dead Gods.

-The Pact Boon really sets each Warlock apart:
Pact of the Chain allows you to summon a familiar. The "Chain" is all about summoning and binding.

Pact of the Blade gives you an otherworldly weapon, similar to Stormbringer, but can take a form the Warlock or Patron desires, from a great sword of black hellish metal inscribed with devilish runes to a slender rapier covered in leaf motifs.

Pact of the Tome gives the Warlock a Book of Shadows. A mystical tome, a ironbound  book of hell-wrought design, or the scribbled journal of a raving lunatic.

That's just scratching the surface! The possibilities can be bottomless for Warlocks in 5e, and I didn't even go into feats, not to mention Spell choice and Invocation.
I hope to have a chance to play a Warlock in the 5e game I'm a part of now.
The possibilities are endless!

Custom 5e Backgrounds for the Forgotten Realms

Elf Friend

Raised among the trees of Cormanthor, the villages and towns of Deepingdale, the mist-shrouded hills of Evereska, or the lands of the Silver Marches, you've been recognized as a friend to the Tel-Quessir, the elves of Faerun.
You may be an apprentice mage, a novice member of the Harpers, or a initiate of one of many druidic circles who learned at the feet of the local elves and gained their friendship.
When you choose this background, work with your DM to determine how you came to be called a friend of the People. Perhaps you wandered the woodlands as a child and the elves saw a chance to teach a young person their values or maybe your interests in elven culture caused an elf to take you on as a student.

Skill Proficiencies: Nature or Arcana, Perception or Stealth

Tools: Choose one: Artisan Tools, Herbalism kit, or Musical Instrument

Languages: Elven

Equipment: A herbalism kit or musical instrument, a bracelet or ring that names you a friend of the Tel-Quessir, a set of common clothes of elven style, an elven dagger, and a pouch containing 15gp.

Feature: Elf Friend
You are known to the elves of your home region and are welcome among them. When in this region you may seek shelter or help from the elves. Your deeds can alter this perception of you and as long as you stay in good standing with the elves you are treated as an honored friend, but if your deeds paint you as no longer a friend of the elves, their retribution is swift. When among elves of a different region, you may have to prove yourself unless your reputation as an Elf Friend is known among them.

Suggested Characteristics:

Elf friends are almost always curious young people who have been raised on tales of great elven warriors, woodland kings, and fair elf maids. Their lives are shaped by the kindness and friendship the elves showed them and the care the elves took in teaching these young people their ways. Their flaw might be that they don't connect with their own kin or that some develop an elven manner or aloofness about them, an ideal or bond may be something not held by members of their own race.

d8 Personality Trait:

1. I've learned patience from the elves and it makes me seem more introspective.
2. I look for long term solutions and contingencies when dealing with problems rather than short term fixes.
3.My knowledge of history allows me to avoid the pitfalls of my predecessors.
4. Elven teachings and culture are the most civilized among all races.
5. The Elven way is the best way.
6. I am tolerant (or intolerant) of other races(even my own).
7. I've enjoyed fine food, drink, and high society among the Elven elite. Rough living grates on me.
8. Myth Drannor was a shining beacon for all races. We should strive for that greatness again.

d6 Ideals:

1. Tolerance. My desire to protect the Realms and its people, of all races, comes from my friendship and tutelage under the Moon Elves of Deepingdale . (Good)
2. Freedom. The constraints of tyranny are for the controlling of peoples and knowledge, these are to be fought against if a people are to remain free. (Chaotic)
3. Honor. All good people are worthy of respect. (Good)
4. People. I am loyal to my community and the beliefs they have instilled in me. (Neutral)
5. Might. Elven skill at arms and knowledge in the Art will lead me to power over the lesser races. (Evil)
6. Aspiration. I seek to prove myself worthy of the faith the elves placed in me. (Any)

d6 Bond:

1. Everything I do is to make Faerun a better place for all free peoples.
2. Elven ideals and teachings strive to bring peace to all free peoples.
3. The teachings I learned from the elves must be passed on so that others will be tolerant and open minded.
4. I owe the elves a great debt for making me the person I am today.
5. My bond with the elves gave me knowledge of a great evil only I can destroy.
6. I have an elven lover and half-elven child that I must protect.

d6 Flaw:

1. At times I seem aloof or distant to other races because of my closeness with elves.
2. I can be prejudiced against my own race or culture.
3. Non elves are not worthy of my respect.
4. I won't consider the teachings of other cultures when I am faced with a dilemma.
5. I'll do anything to make the elves think me worthy of their knowledge.
6. I am slow to trust those not held in the esteem of the elves, even my own kin.