D&D Adventurers League

Background Feats, Old Backgrounds, Human, and Custom Lineage

With the newer books and the 2024 rules, AL now allows you to include an Origin Feat with your character’s background.

But how does this background feat work with old backgrounds or Human and Custom Lineage species which also grants you a feat?

Backgrounds

With the 2024 rules, backgrounds now offer you an Origin Feat. You can take the feat that comes with the background you choose, or you can use the “Creating a Background” rules in the Dungeon Masters Guide to create a custom background (ALPG page 1).

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Some older books include feats, such as Strike of the Giants in Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants. These feats are not usable as background feats because they are considered “uncategorized”, not Origin Feats. If you want one of these feats, you must either:

  1. Choose an old background that includes it,
  2. Choose it as part of the Custom Lineage species, or
  3. Wait until you’re given a chance to gain a feat at a later level.

Older Backgrounds

Some older backgrounds are still available to choose from. However:

  1. Any old background that has been reprinted in the 2024 rule books must use the 2024 version (eg. Noble)
  2. Any old background that is a variant of a background that has been reprinted in the 2024 rule books is no longer an option (eg. Pirate, which is a variant of Sailor).
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The “Customizing a Background” option from the 2014 Players Handbook is not an available option.

If you choose an old background:

  1. If the background already comes with a feat, you must take that feat, you cannot swap it out.
  2. If the background does not come with a feat, you may choose any Origin Feat.

Human

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The Human species now follows the 2024 rules. This means that Variant Human from the 2014 Players Handbook is no longer an available choice.

According to the 2024 Players Handbook, the Human species allows you to choose an Origin Feat. This does not interfere/interact/negate the Origin Feat you get with your Background. So you do indeed get both.

Custom Lineage

The Custom Lineage “species” from Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything says you’re allowed to choose a feat. AL allows you to choose any of the following:

  1. Any Origin Feat,
  2. Any “uncategorized” feat that has not been reprinted that you meet the requirements for (ALPG page 1).

The feat you get as part of Custom Lineage is in addition to the feat you receive as part of your background. So you do indeed get both.

Custom Backgrounds

The Dungeon Masters Guide describes how you can create your own custom background. These rules are allowed in AL play and you can choose any Origin Feat for your background feat.