Sanctified Crusader

The sanctified crusader is someone who is pure of heart and was taught from an early age to abhor evil in all its forms. You are equally determined to vanquish those who have turned to evil throughout the course of your life as you are fiends who bring misery to the world and corrupt the hearts of men.

Skill Proficiencies: Religion, Persuasion

Tool Proficiencies: One type of artisan tools

Languages: Celestial or Abyssal

Equipment: One non-magical suit of armor (of your choice appropriate for your class), one non-magical weapon of your choice, a holy symbol matching whichever deity or deities you worship, a bedroll, 5 days worth of rations, and 2d10 gold pieces.

Abhor Evil

At the core of your belief system is the certainty that evil must be destroyed. You do not feel the world must remain in some sort of balance, or that the world is inherently evil and it must simply be endured. When you see a person or even a system in society, you make it your duty to either destroy it or reform it, whichever seems the most probable.

This zealotry you possess does not earn you many friends. Many consider you an idealist who will one day be disappointed and become a cynic, while others simply dismiss you as being too rigid and inflexible, which doesn’t work well within the real world.

d8	Abhor Evil
1	My parent’s or guardians raised me in a sheltered environment where I heard about the evils of the world but never witnessed it firsthand.
2	I was attacked at an early age and learned to hate evil in all its forms because of it.
3	I lost a good friend at a young age because of the evil of another.
4	My village or homeland was destroyed because of an evil individual and their followers.
5	I was raised by an order that taught me how and why to fight evil.
6	After witnessing a senseless attack on the street, I decided I would be the one to make a difference against it.
7	I was raised by an authority figure who dealt out justice and they taught me to stand for what I believe in.
8	My religion seeks to eradicate evil, and I am but a vessel for our lord.

Feature: Authority Figure

Your commitment to doing good as well as your background have put you in a position where your peers trust your judgment, particularly where it pertains to dealing with people who have wronged others. As a youth, people would come to you with disputes. When you grew older, people would turn to you when someone was unjustly harmed.

You suspect that by the time you are venerable, you will likely pass through the ranks enforcing the laws of a just king and then become a magister where you will sit in judgment over criminals. Because of this trust people put in you, you receive advantage on Charisma (persuasion) checks, particularly as they pertain to dealing with those who have wronged you or your party (it is up to the GM to determine whether this applies to the exact circumstances you might find yourself in).

Suggested Characteristics

Some sanctified crusaders wake up in the morning with the determination that they are going to go out and set the world right on that, and every other day.

Other Sanctified Crusaders

The Sanctified Crusader background is great for a character who wants to be focused solely on fighting evil and also doesn’t wish to be a paladin. This is not to say that a paladin cannot be a sanctified crusader, but their focus is already implied by their character class. Rogues are practically disqualified from being sanctified crusaders due to the fact that they normally operate in a morally gray area. Fighters, barbarians, rangers, and wizards are prime candidates, however, due to the fact that those classes allow a person to follow whatever motivation they might have. If you generally support good but don’t want to be singularly focused on it, you may wish to consider a background that is less extreme.

d8	Personality Trait
1	When I see something wrong, I must put it right.
2	Evil is a cancer that invades healthy things and ruins them.
3	Why should evil be tolerated when its only purpose is to harm others?
4	I seek out those with infernal origins and destroy them
5	My convictions about destroying evil are unwavering.
6	I could never tolerate a companion with evil tendencies.
7	If we show mercy to the wicked and unjust, they will simply continue victimizing others.
8	The only way to be a beacon of light is to destroy the dark.

d6	Ideal
1	Faith. I trust my god will guide my hand in fighting evil.
2	Honor. I have a code of honor that tells me very clearly when I must fight evil.
3	Aspiration. I see the fight against evil as a way to make a name for myself.
4	People. I am motivated to protect the good and the innocent people I know.
5	Honesty. I believe the most fundamental way to be a good person is to be honest in all my dealings.
6	Freedom. The ultimate goal of evil is to eliminate freedom. By fighting evil, I am preserving freedom.

d6	Bond
1	My hatred of evil is something I learned from my family.
2	I may seem like a loner, but I have a powerful ally in a nearby city.
3	A celestial power has personally sanctified my cause.
4	A local lord has enlisted my services so he can make his realm more wholesome.
5	The person I love inspires me to fight evil.
6	I challenge evil to keep my people safe. So long as they are in danger, I will do what I can to protect them.

d6	Flaw
1	I am singularly focused in my quest to destroy evil.
2	I cannot approve of someone using evil methods, even if their actions result in the overall good.
3	I often lose my temper when people I know challenge my beliefs.
4	I see good and evil in absolutes, not nuance.
5	I am unable to walk away from a fight against an evildoer.
6	I have no care for what happens to people after their evil is stopped.