City Watch

You have served the community where you grew up, standing as its first line of defense against crime. You aren’t a soldier, directing your gaze to enemies outside the walls. Instead, your service to your hometown was to help police its populace, protecting the citizenry from lawbreakers and malefactors of every stripe.

Even if you’re not city-born or city-bred, this background can describe your early years as a member of law enforcement. Most settlements of any size have their own constables and police forces, and even smaller communities have sheriffs and bailiffs who stand ready to protect their community.

Skill Proficiencies
Perception, Insight, Intimidation

Equipment
A uniform in the style of your unit and indicative of your rank, a horn with which to summon help, a set of manacles, and a pouch containing 10 gp

Watcher’s Eye
Your experience in enforcing the law, and dealing with lawbreakers, gives you a feel for local laws and criminals. You can easily find the local outpost of the watch or a similar organization, and just as easily pick out the dens of criminal activity in a community, although you’re more likely to be welcome in the former locations rather than the latter.

Investigator
Rather than watch or patrol members on the look out for criminal activity, you are responsible for solving crimes that have already happened. Though such folk are seldom found in rural areas, nearly every settlement of decent size has at least one or two watch members who have the skill to investigate crime scenes and track down criminals. If your prior experience is as an investigator, you have proficiency in Investigation rather than Perception.

Suggested Characteristics
City Watch can tend towards two extremes, those who foster peace and safety among the less fortunate people in the community you are a part of, and those that like to be a position of authority and power. Was your guard positioned in a city of high crime or peace? Did you warrant peace through amicable means or were you militant enforcers? Or were you bribed to look the other way?