Walking along cobble-stone streets crowded with hawkers, a sea elf traces their hand past lanterns, illuminating them as dusk falls on the city. Meanwhile, a dwarf woman begins to prepare food for the evening's dinner rush as she commands a spectral hand to chop vegetables beside her. Stepping out of an ornamented carriage bearing the insignia of the local magic university, a gnome gentleman brushes off his coat magicking away any dirt that has collected. In the shadows a cloaked human slinks by searching for their next mark.
The traits you gain from growing up in an urban environment are:
- You know one cantrip from the wizard spell list. Intelligence is your spellcasting ability for it.
- You can read, speak, and write Common plus two other languages you think would be spoken in your community.
- Your Charisma, Dexterity, or Intelligence increases by two.
Urban environments in Taifar are steeped in magic and culture. Basic magic is taught to nearly everyone, whether by a family member or through magical schooling. Cantrips are used by everyone to aid in household tasks, and as such, you know one wizard cantrip.
Given that cities are a mix of various races and cultures, you have not only picked up the Common tongue, but also an additional two languages. Your closest friend may speak Elvish frequently so you've learned to understand it, and you may have picked up Draconic in your pursuit to study old magic. Or perhaps you come from mixed heritage and one of your parents speaks Dwarfish while the other speaks Infernal, so you and your siblings have absorbed both languages.
Having grown up in a city, your Charisma, Dexterity, or Intelligence increases. Those who have been schooled in the arcane arts through classes and reading or have spent time studying history may increase their Intelligence score. Charming merchants, bewitching magicians, or suave politicians would have a high Charisma. Nimble performers or sneaky thieves that make their living off the populous streets have an impressive Dexterity.
Note: if you choose an urban environment as your character's place of origin, you can choose a city from any that are listed under the "Places" folder. There is at least one city located in each of the landscapes (sea-side, mountain, jungle, rain-fed hills). Right now each city only has a little bit of information. We can work together to flesh the details of the city you decide your character is from. This way we can build on any ideas you have and create a culture/setting that makes sense for your character (as long as it's in within the framework of what I've already laid out for that city).
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