Wizard’s Assistant

Every good wizard needs an assistant: someone to clean the equipment, take notes on experiments, organize spellbooks, prepare, feed, and care for test subjects, fetch components, and just generally handle the mundane tasks which come along with being a practicing wizard. That assistant is you.

Or at least it was. Either way, you have experience with the business of being a wizard, though you may or may not have actual magical talent yourself. You’ve certainly been around it, you know at least generally what it takes to be a wizard, and you’re familiar with the daily activities of wizard studies.

Skill Proficiencies: Animal Handling, Arcana

Tool Proficiencies: Herbalism Kit or Alchemist’s Supplies

Languages: One of your choice

Equipment: An ink pen, a notebook, a tinderbox, a set of common clothes, and a pouch containing 10 gp.

Feature: Familiar with Wizardry

As a wizard’s assistant, you have a working knowledge of the daily activities and chores associated with wizardly pursuits. As such, you have no trouble finding such work or otherwise assisting wizards with their arcane studies. This could open opportunities for you as you travel and encounter other wizards who might find value in a temporary assistant, especially if they find themselves short-handed.

Additionally, many of your responsibilities often involve research. When you need a piece of lore or information regarding wizards, their practices, or the principles which their schools are based upon, if you don’t already know the information, you probably know who to talk to or where to look for it in order to uncover that information. It is up to the GM’s discretion how easily (or possible) it may be to locate a source to provide the information, not to mention the difficulty involved with actually getting the information out of the source. Seeking such information could be the basis for at least some of your adventure.

Fleshing Things Out

Some questions to consider when determining how this background applies to your character: How many masters have you had? Who were they and how did they treat you?

Do you enjoy your job? How long have you been doing this?

What caused you to take this job in the first place? Why have you stayed? What do you like about the job? What do you hate about the job? How do you feel about wizards and the work they do?

You should also consider what caused you to take up the role of an adventurer. Did you set out on a quest at the behest of your master? Or did you take up adventuring to leave the life of thankless labor behind? Or maybe your life of adventure delivered you to the doorstep of a wizard who took you in and employed you as his assistant.

d8 Personality Trait
1 Curiosity killed the cat, but it only singed me.
2 Magic is beautiful and fascinating.
3 Hard work is its own reward.
4 Hands on is better than just watching.
5 I consider this kind of work beneath me.
6 I’ve named all of the lab rats.
7 I always volunteer for the hardest jobs.
8 I just want to be left alone so I can read the books.
d6 Ideal
1 Indifference. It’s a dirty job, but it pays well. (Neutral)
2 Service. I just want to help. (Good)
3 Ambition. I will watch and learn until I can take the power for my own. (Evil)
4 Rigor. With proper methods and an orderly approach, one can learn much. (Lawful)
5 Innovation. Discovery requires inspiration from unexpected places. (Chaotic)
6 Knowledge. I will learn all I can by watching. (Any)
d6 Bond
1 Someday soon, the student will become the master.
2 My master is my hero and mentor.
3 I am not my master’s only apprentice.
4 I am secretly here to spy on my master for someone else.
5 I made a catastrophic error and got away with it.
6 I’m hoping to discover a powerful secret.
d6 Flaw
1 I don’t believe I’m worthy of greatness.
2 I constantly scheme and plot to get ahead.
3 I’m terrified I’ll make a mistake.
4 I believe I can do things that are truly beyond my ken.
5 I volunteer for activities without thinking them through.
6 If I make a mistake, I go out of my way to hide it or blame someone else.
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