Bourgeois
Description
You hail from a life of relative comfort, nestled between the laboring lower classes and the untouchable aristocracy. Your family is part of the growing merchant or professional class, trading in goods or skills rather than noble titles or ancestral lands. While you've never known the extreme hardships of serfdom or the weight of a crown, you've felt the pressure to maintain or improve your family's social standing.
Suggested Characteristics
Individuals of bourgeois upbringing often possess a strong sense of ambition and a practical mindset. Their ideals may lean towards pragmatism, favoring hard work and shrewd negotiation over relying on birthright or destiny. However, their more comfortable background may have also fostered a certain detachment or sense of entitlement, leading to a range of moral and ethical outlooks.
Well-Connected
Your life among the emerging middle class provides you with connections in both high and low places. You can procure an audience with local merchants, guild leaders, or even minor nobility if need be. You also have access to the financial markets, enabling you to easily buy and sell goods at fair market value. You can leverage these connections to gain information, favors, or even temporary use of resources like horses or wagons, as long as such requests remain within reason and legality.
Equipment
A set of fine clothes, a signet ring or a brooch representing your family’s business, a purse containing 25 gp, and a letter of introduction from a family member or business associate.
You start with 25 gp OR the following:
- clothes, fine
- (a) signet ring or (b) brooch
- 0 gp
Personality Tables
| d8 | Personality Trait |
|---|---|
| d1 | I am always polite and respectful. |
| d2 | I can't help but pocket trinkets that catch my eye. |
| d3 | I'm incredibly skeptical of those who don't work to earn their keep. |
| d4 | I always have a plan and hate unforeseen surprises. |
| d5 | I'm exceedingly frugal and hate unnecessary expenditures. |
| d6 | I am always reading, calculating, and planning my next business venture. |
| d7 | I have a knack for making people feel at home. |
| d8 | I look down on those who don't appreciate the finer things in life. |
| d6 | Ideal |
|---|---|
| d1 | Ambition: I will bring my family name to new heights. (Any) |
| d2 | Fair Trade: A deal is only good if it benefits everyone. (Lawful) |
| d3 | Wealth: Accumulating riches is the most important thing. (Neutral) |
| d4 | Status: I must prove myself worthy of my social standing. (Any) |
| d5 | Skepticism: Trust must be earned. (Chaotic) |
| d6 | Legacy: I will create something that will last generations. (Neutral) |
| d6 | Bond |
|---|---|
| d1 | I owe a debt of gratitude to the mentor who showed me the ropes of the trade. |
| d2 | My family’s reputation is my reputation. |
| d3 | A business competitor humiliated my family, and I aim to settle the score. |
| d4 | I engage in philanthropy because I believe it’s my societal duty. |
| d5 | I have a twin sibling, and everything is a competition between us. |
| d6 | My loyalty is first and foremost to my business partners. |
| d6 | Flaw |
|---|---|
| d1 | I am snobbish and look down on those who seem "beneath" me. |
| d2 | I have a hard time trusting people. |
| d3 | I am a perfectionist and can get caught up in minor details, missing the bigger picture. |
| d4 | I am easily swayed by beauty or wealth. |
| d5 | I am overly cautious and find it hard to take necessary risks. |
| d6 | I'm obsessed with social status and can be manipulative to climb the social ladder. |
Notes
Credits: Squire 5 (5.1)