Selecting the ideal background is a pivotal step in crafting a narrative that resonates with your Goliath adventurer’s rugged and mighty nature.
Join us as we traverse the realms of D&D, discovering backgrounds that will shape your Goliath into an indomitable force, both in the heat of battle and the unfolding drama of their personal quest.
Contents
What Are Backgrounds in D&D 5e?
Backgrounds are more than simple stat boosts in Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition. They reveal where your character came from, why you became an adventurer, and your place in the world.
Before choosing your Background, ask yourself a few questions:
- What was I before I became an adventurer?
- Why did I stop doing what my Background explains and become an adventurer?
- Where did I get the money to buy my starting equipment?
- Where did I learn the skills used in my class?
- What’s different about me compared to others with the same Background?
Best Backgrounds for Goliaths
5. Hermit
Skill Proficiencies – Religion, Medicine
Tool Proficiencies – Herbalism kit
Languages – Choose one
Equipment – A set of common clothes, a winter blanket, a scroll case stuffed full of notes from your studies or prayers, a Herbalism kit, and 5 GP.
Why the Hermit?
A Hermit lives a Life of Seclusion, but this seclusion resulted in a campaign-changing discovery.
Whether you picked up a cursed artifact, discovered a secret of the universe, or befriended a god, anything is possible when you’re a Hermit Goliath.
Note: Goliaths are quite rare and seldom wander away from their tribes. It would be wise to link a Hermit Goliath’s action to some sort of clan mission or self-induced fate.
4. Gladiator
Skill Proficiencies – Performance, Acrobatics
Tool Proficiencies – Single type of musical instrument (or an inexpensive, unusual weapon like a net or trident), Disguise kit
Languages – None
Equipment – One musical instrument you choose (or unusual weapon), a costume, the favor of an admirer (trinket, love letter, or lock of hair), and a pouch with 15GP.
Why the Gladiator?
Gladiators can obtain free lodging and food by using their fighting skills to challenge and take on other fighters in taverns, arenas, or pit fighting clubs.
Goliaths are hulking creatures of pure mass, and even if they might not often be the most vocal, their sheer size can be a blast to see in an entertaining fight.
3. Folk Hero
Skill Proficiencies – Animal Handling, Survival
Tool Proficiencies – Vehicles (land), One type of Artisan’s tools
Languages – None
Equipment – One set of Artisan’s tools (you may choose), an iron pot, a set of common clothes, a shovel, and a pouch with 10GP.
Why the Folk Hero?
Folk Heroes have the Rustic Hospitality feature, making them fit in with the common folk. This allows them to find a place to rest, recuperate, or hide among commoners unless you are a danger to them.
These commoners will shield you from the law or others looking for you, but they will not lie down their lives for you.
Goliaths have tight-knit communities, often reciprocating commoner status with other races, making them more friendly to folks living like their tribespeople.
2. Giant Foundling
Skill Proficiencies – Survival, Intimidation
Languages – Giant and one other you choose
Equipment – A set of traveler’s clothes, a backpack, a small stone or sprig that reminds you of home, and a pouch with 10GP.
Why the Giant Foundling?
Along with gaining the Strike of the Giants feat, Giant Foundling Goliaths also get to come up with an interesting story revealing why they were raised by giants.
Goliaths and Giants are very similar creatures, so you can easily tie your Goliath heritage to a distant Giant relative.
1. Outlander
Skill Proficiencies – Survival, Athletics
Tool Proficiencies – One type of musical instrument
Languages – One you choose
Equipment – A trophy from an animal you killed, a set of traveler’s clothes, a hunting trap, a staff, and a pouch with 10GP.
Why the Outlander?
Outlanders have the Wanderer feature, giving them an excellent memory for geography and maps. Allowing them to always recall the general layout of settlements, terrain, and features around them.
They can also find fresh water and food for themselves and up to five others every day if the land offers water, small game, berries, and other things.
Goliaths seldom live anywhere besides the mountains, making them expert trackers and easily survive even the harshest conditions.
Final Thoughts
Whether you were raised by Giants as a Giant Foundling, embracing the primal connection of the Outlander, or delving into mysteries of the universe as a Hermit, your chosen background acts as the paper upon which your character’s tale is drawn.
Choose thoughtfully, delve into the shades of your selected background, and let it breathe life into your Goliath’s journey through the expansive realms of D&D.