[Free] Forensics for Fifth Edition - Introduction (Feedback Welcome) (Patreon)

Hey all!

This is the start of my "Forensics for Fifth Edition" supplement that I'm working on that applies real world forensic investigation techniques to the world of Dungeons & Dragons, where magic is real. Before I go too deep, I wanted to show off the introduction and assumptions section so you get an idea of where my head's at when working on this material.

Read the section and assumptions below. Then, if you have any feedback or questions, let me know down in the comments. This potential book will take a bit research and forethought than my typical content output, therefore, I want to hear from all of you your opinion before I go too far.

Thanks!

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Introduction

A while back, I wrote an adventure for Fifth Edition called Speak with Dead. It featured a mystery involving the death of an aristocrat whose jaw had been removed post-humously. The reason behind this grisly maneuver was to ensure that the spell speak with dead (hence the title) could not be cast on the corpse, since the spell description for speak with dead states,
“The corpse must still have a mouth and can’t be undead.” Since writing Speak with Dead, I’ve often thought about what forensics would be like in a world where magic is possible, especially in a world of high magic like Fifth Edition’s default setting. This book is the result.

Writing a book about forensic science in a world where magic makes almost anything possible turned out to be quite the challenge. In developing these concepts, I had to consider a variety of factors beyond just magic. For example, in a world where mid-level spellcasters can revive the dead, how heinous of a crime is murder? And is death nearly as big a deal in a world where the top scholars know, as a matter of fact, what to expect in the afterlife?

There’s also the economic factor. Going by the tables in Xanathar’s Guide to Everything we know that the typical tier one (levels 1 to 4) adventuring party can reasonably expect to earn somewhere between 350 to 500 gold pieces per successful adventure. Compare that to the typical unskilled laborer, who earns 2 silver pieces per day, or 10 per week, assuming a five day workweek.

While the core rulebooks for Fifth Edition don’t explicitly state the cost for spellcasting services, the Tyranny of Dragons Player’s Guide gives us insight to the cost for magic:

“Any settlement the size of a town or larger can provide some spellcasting services. Characters need to be able to travel to the settlement to obtain these services. Alternatively, if the party finishes an adventure, they can be assumed to return to the settlement closest to the

adventure location.

Spell services generally available include healing and recovery spells, as well as information-gathering spells. Other spell services might be available as specified in

the adventure. The number of spells available to be cast as a service is limited to a maximum of three per day total, unless otherwise noted.

Spellcasting Services

Spell Cost

Cure wounds (1st level) 10 gp

Identify 20 gp

Lesser restoration 40 gp

Prayer of healing (2nd level) 40 gp

Remove curse 90 gp

Speak with dead 90 gp

Divination 210 gp

Greater restoration 450 gp

Raise dead 1,250 gp”

Sleuths on Reddit have determined the formula for spellcasting costs to use the following formula:

(Level) ^ 2 × 10 + (Consumed Materials×2) + (Non-consumed Materials × 0.1)

So, for example, the cost to have raise dead cast would be:

5^2 * 10 + (2 x 500) = 1,250 gp

For a wealthy adventuring party, even a low-level one, that would be only a few weeks worth of exploring to earn enough to bring a fallen ally back from the dead. But for an unskilled laborer earning the equivalent of 1 gold piece per week, it would over twenty-four years to earn enough to cast the spell.

Assumptions

Before I go further, I want to establish a few assumptions and ground rules for the content of this book.

Only Magical Effects Detailed in the System Reference Document

First, this book assumes that the only magic available in the world is the magic available in the Fifth Edition System Reference Document. This covers the majority of the spells from the Dungeons & Dragons Fifth Edition Player’s Handbook. Spells not included in the SRD, even those in other “official” works, are ignored. I also take into consideration other magical factors such as the magic items list as well as monster abilities. These, too, will only be pulled from the System Reference Document.

All Spells are Used According to RAW

Second, we will be only using those rules as written (RAW). We can use the spells any way we want so long as the usage doesn’t conflict with the spell’s description.

Prices and Costs are Determined Using the PHB and the Aforementioned Formula

Third, when we need to determine the price and cost for certain services, we will use the aforementioned formula. The appendix on page [x] shows the method for arriving at the prices for the individual spells used in this book.

We’re Using the “Default” Setting for Fifth Edition

Fourth, we will consider that all parties involved in forensic investigations live in the default, high-fantasy “kitchen sink” setting introduced in the Fifth Edition core books. In this setting, we know that Gods are real and exert influence over the world. They can grant divine magic to their followers and send signs and portents to guide them. And although the world is magical, practitioners of magic are relatively few in numbre, but leave evidence of their craft everywhere. Certain magical effects, like healing potions, are innocuous and commonplace, but other effects, such as levitating towers and stone golems are more rare.

Income Disparity is Significant

Fifth, we will assume there are vast canyons of inequality beyond the typical commoner and aristocrats, sovereigns, and adventurers. While the latter easily earns hundreds (if not thousands) of gold pieces per week, the typical field-tending commoner, merchant, or foot soldier earns far less. This means that the death of a wealthy noble or celebrity adventure causes much more concern than the death of say, a relatively unknown peasant or laborer.

Violent Crime Matters

Sixth, we will assume that violent crime is treated the same way that it is in our own world. Not only are such offenses punishable by most human laws, but the gods of man may punish the perpertrators in the afterlife, too. Thus, violent crime is rare and worth solving, particularly if it involves the death of an important person.

Real World Assumptions and Metrics for Everything Else

Seventh, when we can’t find an answer in one of the core rulebooks or System Reference Document, we’ll use real world parallels to fill in the blanks. This is most obvious in the chapters that detail the forensic investigation process, using real world techniques to find the cause of death.