Languages in Daggerheart
by irondrake
Languages in Daggerheart(TM)
Language rules for the Daggerheart(TM) rule system by Darrington Press.
Languages in fiction often present a barrier to be overcome or a puzzle to be solved. These optional rules include a starting foundation for a Language system in your Daggerheart games. Below you will find the rules for using languages in your game as well as new spells to help overcome the puzzles and barriers that they present.
Known Languages
When your character knows and understands a language, they can speak, read, and write that language. Your character innately knows the Common or Basic language that is shared across ancestries in their world. This Common tongue also includes basic Sign language. Your character also knows a language derived from their Ancestry for free. As an option, your character may know a language based on their Community, rather than their ancestry. You may choose only one option from a Community OR an Ancestry. See below for a list of Ancestries and Communities language options.
Two classes have a special, secret, language known only by others of the same class. Druids know the Druidic secret language and Rogues know the Thieves’ Cant language. These languages can only be learned by members of these particular classes and are granted at first level or when a multiclass option of Druid of Rogue is initially chosen.
Additional Languages
Your character knows a number of additional languages equal to their Knowledge score (if it is positive) OR a language experience such as Linguist. Each time the Knowledge score or a language-based experience goes up, an additional language may be chosen.
Using Knowledge or Language-based Experiences
You may make a Knowledge Action Roll (typical DC is 15) modified by an experience (spending Hope as usual) to try to understand the meaning behind an unknown written language’s text. To try to understand a spoken language that is not known by your character, the typical Knowledge DC is 20.
Ancestral Languages
Ancestry | Language Choices |
|---|---|
Clank | None |
Drakona | Draconic |
Dwarf | Dwarvish or Undercommon |
Elf | Elvish or Fae |
Feyrie | Fae |
Faun | Fae |
Firbolg | Jotun or Fae |
Fungril | Undercommon |
Galapa | Hin |
Giant | Jotun |
Goblin | Goblin |
Halfling | Hin |
Human | None |
Infernis | Infernal |
Katari | Hin |
Orc | Orcish |
Ribbet | Hin |
Simiah | Hin |
Community Languages
Community | Language Choices |
Ridgeborne | Dwarvish, Jotun |
Loreborne | Draconic, Primordial |
Orderborne | Celestial |
Underborne | Dwarvish, Undercommon |
Wildborne | Fae |
Language List
Language Name | Speakers |
Celestial | A sing-song language spoken by creatures from the Upper Planes |
Chthonic (Cthuvian) | The deep speech or dark speech of creatures from the Far Realms |
Common | A language spoken by everyone, includes basic Sign Language |
Draconic | The ancient tongue of Dragons, the language of Magic in some worlds |
Druidic | The secret language of druids |
Dwarvish | A gutteral language typically spoken by Dwarves, Gnomes, and many Underborne |
Elvish | The flowing language of Elves and many fae-creatures |
Fae | A flowery language akin to a dance of words, spoken by Faerie, Faun, Firbolg, and other sylvan creatures |
Goblin | A rough and gutteral tongue spoken by Goblinoid races (Goblins, Hobgoblins, Bugbears) |
Hin | A light tongue spoken by halflings and various primal humanoid races (Halflings, Simiah, Ribbet, Katari, Galapa) |
Infernal | A hissing language spoken by creatures from the Lower Planes (Demons, Devils) and Infernis |
Jotun | The runic language of the Giants |
Orcish | The language spoken by orcs |
Primordial | The language spoken by elementals and ancient beings on the material plane |
Thieves’ Cant | A strange iteration of the Common tongue typically spoken by street thugs and thieves. |
Undercommon | The language spoken by those from the underworld (underdark), a sort of trade tongue. |
New Spells (Optional)
The following are new spells in the Arcana and Grace domains which will allow your character to understand either written languages or those that are spoken and heard.
Attribution
This product includes materials from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0, © Critical Role, LLC, under the terms of the Darrington Press Community Gaming License. More information at www.daggerheart.com.