In the 2014 rules your species set your ability scores. A dwarf got +2 Constitution, an elf +2 Dexterity, and a halfling wizard started a point behind a gnome wizard forever. Your background handed you two skills, a feature and some gear. Feats were an optional rule you might see at level 4.
The 2024 rules move all of that. Your background now sets your ability score increases and hands you a feat at level 1, called an Origin feat. It's in the free System Reference Document 5.2.1 [1], with four backgrounds and four Origin feats.
James wants to know which one to pick. Tia wants to know why "where did you come from?" matters to the person holding the dice. This post gives both: the rule, what changed from 2014, the maths on every SRD Origin feat, how to build your own background, and what psychology says about the life story behind the sheet.
What a 2024 background gives you
From SRD 5.2.1, "Character Origins", Parts of a Background [1]. Every background has five parts:
- Ability Scores. Three abilities are listed. "Increase one by 2 and another one by 1, or increase all three by 1. None of these increases can raise a score above 20."
- Feat. One named Origin feat.
- Skill Proficiencies. Two skills.
- Tool Proficiency. One tool.
- Equipment. A package, or 50 GP instead.
The four SRD backgrounds [1]:
| Background | Abilities | Origin feat | Skills | Tool |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acolyte | Int, Wis, Cha | Magic Initiate (Cleric) | Insight, Religion | Calligrapher's Supplies |
| Criminal | Dex, Con, Int | Alert | Sleight of Hand, Stealth | Thieves' Tools |
| Sage | Con, Int, Wis | Magic Initiate (Wizard) | Arcana, History | Calligrapher's Supplies |
| Soldier | Str, Dex, Con | Savage Attacker | Athletics, Intimidation | Gaming Set (your choice) |
One more source of Origin feats: a Human's Versatile trait gives "an Origin feat of your choice", with Skilled recommended [1]. A human starts with two Origin feats, one from the background and one from the species.
What changed from 2014
From SRD 5.1, "Races", "Backgrounds" and "Feats" [2]:
| 2014 (SRD 5.1) | 2024 (SRD 5.2.1) | |
|---|---|---|
| Ability increases | From your race: Dwarf +2 Con, Elf +2 Dex, Human +1 to every score | From your background: +2/+1 or +1/+1/+1 to three listed abilities |
| Feat at level 1 | None. Feats were an optional rule, taken instead of an Ability Score Improvement | Every character gets an Origin feat from the background |
| Background extras | Two skills, languages, a feature (the Acolyte's Shelter of the Faithful: free healing at your temple), gear | Two skills, one tool, gear or 50 GP |
| Personality | Tables of traits, ideals, bonds and flaws | Not part of the background |
The practical result: any species now fits any class without a stat penalty. The dwarf wizard and the halfling barbarian start on the same numbers as everyone else, because the numbers come from what they did before, not how they were born.
Behind every great adventurer is a background. Behind every great background is four pages of backstory the DM will read eventually.
The four Origin feats, with the odds
All four are in SRD 5.2.1, "Feats", Origin Feats [1]. Every number below is an exact count over all the faces [3].
Alert (the Criminal's feat)
"When you roll Initiative, you can add your Proficiency Bonus to the roll." And straight after rolling, you can swap your Initiative with a willing ally's [1].
Initiative is a Dexterity check, and a tie between a monster and a character goes whichever way the GM decides [1]. We count ties as losses. Test: a character with Dexterity +2 against a pack of Goblin Warriors (Initiative +2, one roll for the group) [1]:
| Character | Acts before the goblins | Acts before two separate groups |
|---|---|---|
| No Alert | 47.5% | 30.9% |
| Alert, level 1 (+2) | 57.2% | 40.9% |
| Alert, level 5 (+3) | 61.8% | 45.8% |
About ten points at level 1, growing as your Proficiency Bonus grows. The swap is the quiet half. Roll high and hand your place to the cleric so the healing lands before the goblins do. Roll low and take the wizard's slot when the wizard wants to wait.
Savage Attacker (the Soldier's feat)
"Once per turn when you hit a target with a weapon, you can roll the weapon's damage dice twice and use either roll" [1]. Only the dice. Your Strength modifier stays the same.
| Weapon | Average dice | With Savage Attacker | Gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dagger (1d4) | 2.50 | 3.12 | +0.62 |
| Shortsword (1d6) | 3.50 | 4.47 | +0.97 |
| Longsword (1d8) | 4.50 | 5.81 | +1.31 |
| Greatsword (2d6) | 7.00 | 8.37 | +1.37 |
| Heavy Crossbow (1d10) | 5.50 | 7.15 | +1.65 |
| Greataxe (1d12) | 6.50 | 8.49 | +1.99 |
The surprise: the greataxe gains more than the greatsword. One big die swings further than two small ones, so there's more to gain from a second roll. It works once per turn, so the gain doesn't grow with extra attacks. Pair it with the biggest single die you can carry. (Rolling two d12s and keeping the good one is the closest thing to therapy most barbarians get.)
Skilled (the Human's recommended pick)
"You gain proficiency in any combination of three skills or tools of your choice," and you can take it more than once [1]. At level 1 proficiency adds +2. A character with a +2 modifier passes a DC 15 check 40% of the time untrained and 50% trained [3]. Ten points on three things, for the whole campaign. It's the least exciting feat on paper and the one you'll use every session.
Magic Initiate (the Acolyte's and the Sage's feat)
Two cantrips and one level 1 spell from the Cleric, Druid or Wizard list. You "always have that spell prepared", can cast it once free per Long Rest, and can also cast it with any spell slots you have. Intelligence, Wisdom or Charisma powers it; you choose [1].
The pick most tables thank you for: Healing Word, a Bonus Action that heals 2d4 plus your modifier from 60 feet [1]. With a +3 modifier that's 8 Hit Points on average, 5 at worst [3], and it gets a downed friend back up. A fighter who took Magic Initiate (Cleric) is the party's backup healer from session one.
The ability score trap
The Standard Array is 15, 14, 13, 12, 10 and 8 [1]. Say your background lists your top three abilities. Three ways to spend the increase [3]:
| Split | Scores | Modifiers |
|---|---|---|
| +2 on the 15, +1 on the 14 | 17, 15, 13 | +3, +2, +1 |
| +2 on the 15, +1 on the 13 | 17, 14, 14 | +3, +2, +2 |
| +1 on each | 16, 15, 14 | +3, +2, +2 |
A modifier only moves on an even score, so a point added to an even number buys nothing today. The obvious split wastes one. Put your increases on odd scores. For rolling your scores instead, see our guide to rolling ability scores.
Build your own background
SRD 5.2.1 gives the GM five steps, in "Gameplay Toolbox", Creating a Background [1]:
- Choose three abilities. Strength or Dexterity for physical work, Constitution for endurance or long hours, Intelligence or Wisdom for cerebral or spiritual work, Charisma for performance or social work.
- Choose one Origin feat.
- Choose two skills. "There needn't be a relationship" between the skills and the abilities.
- Choose one tool used in that line of work.
- Choose 50 GP of equipment, with no Martial weapons or armour, because the class supplies those.
A lighthouse keeper: Constitution, Wisdom, Intelligence; Alert (you wake at a creak on the stairs); Perception and Survival; Navigator's Tools; a lantern, oil and warm clothes. Five minutes, and the player has a past that does something at the table.
Why the backstory matters to the player
Your character's past is a life story, and life stories do work. Psychologists call the story a person tells about their own past and future their narrative identity. McAdams and McLean reviewed the research and found that people whose life stories feature "themes of personal agency and exploration" tend to enjoy "higher levels of mental health, well-being, and maturity" [4]. A background that asks what you did before, and why you stopped, invites that kind of story. The 2014 SRD said it outright: "The most important question to ask about your background is what changed?" [2]
Choice and competence are what make games satisfying. Ryan, Rigby and Przybylski ran four studies of people playing video games and found that feeling free to choose (autonomy) and feeling capable (competence) went with enjoyment, preference and a lift in well-being after play [5]. The 2024 origin rules hand out both: pick any species for any class without a penalty, and walk into session one already good at something no one else at the table is.
Table Talk
James: Savage Attacker on a greataxe. Two dice, keep the big one. Easiest decision I've made all year.
Tia: It's two extra damage a turn. Alert decides whether the cleric gets to act before the goblins do.
James: Two damage every turn adds up. Alert works once a fight.
Tia: And a background is a person, not a feat. What did your barbarian do before?
James: Soldier. Obviously.
Tia: Then why did they leave? That answer gives your DM three sessions of story.
James: My tip: put your increases on odd scores. 17, 14, 14 beats 17, 15, 13, and it costs nothing.
Tia: Mine: write one sentence on "what changed?" before you pick a feat. Then pick the feat the sentence explains.
References
- Wizards of the Coast. System Reference Document 5.2.1. 2025. CC-BY-4.0. Sections: "Character Origins" (Parts of a Background, Background Descriptions, Human); "Feats" (Alert, Magic Initiate, Savage Attacker, Skilled); "Playing the Game" (Initiative, Ties); "Character Creation" (Standard Array); "Gameplay Toolbox" (Creating a Background); "Spells" (Healing Word; Cleric spell list); "Monsters" (Goblin Warrior). https://media.dndbeyond.com/compendium-images/srd/5.2/SRD_CC_v5.2.1.pdf
- Wizards of the Coast. System Reference Document 5.1. 2016. CC-BY-4.0. Sections: "Races" (Ability Score Increase for Dwarf, Elf, Human); "Backgrounds" (Acolyte, Shelter of the Faithful); "Feats". https://media.wizards.com/2023/downloads/dnd/SRD_CC_v5.1.pdf
- DnD Dice Roller. Origin feats odds script: exact counts over every face; Initiative ties counted as losses; Savage Attacker as the better of two damage rolls; Skilled at +2 vs DC 15 with no natural 20 rule on checks; Standard Array splits. 2026.
- McAdams, D. P., & McLean, K. C. (2013). Narrative identity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(3), 233–238. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413475622
- Ryan, R. M., Rigby, C. S., & Przybylski, A. (2006). The motivational pull of video games: A self-determination theory approach. Motivation and Emotion, 30(4), 344–360. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-006-9051-8
