Hi there!
Can any of you help me? I have 2 questions today.
The intro to the Tiefling race says the curse of the bloodline extends to their children and their children's children. What about hybrids? I am a human but wanted a Tiefling mother for my back story. Is this not possible?
How can I learn to use an Herbalist Tool Kit if I don't start with it? (I'm a Warlock/Urchin so I didn't get it).
Thank you!
Gerry Lee
1.) I don't see why not. The "tiefling gene" could skip generations, or your character could be adopted, or any other number of things. A good DM could even make it a plot point that you're the human son of a tiefling mother. Did she make some kind of deal on your behalf?
2.) Yep, you can have proficiency with a tool and not start out with it. Perhaps you lost your old Herbalist Kit before the game started somehow. Or you could just go with the lump sum of gold option and buy one.
Per 4E lore, Tieflings always breed true: A single Tiefling parent will always beget Tiefling children. That said, canon lore is mutable, and if your DM is fine with it, then go with a Tiefling mother of a Human child. No worries. 
Lord_Ventnor wrote:
You can customize your background so you can swap out one of your background proficiencies (thieves' tools or disguise kit) for an herbalism kit.
As for being a human child of a tiefling mother...Perhaps when your mother concieved, the child was split into twins, one pure human, one pure devil. If you are infernal pact, you could go pact of the chain and have an imp or familiar... and it turns out your familiar is your twin sibling... a physical manifestation of your diabolic heritage.
(this would work for quasits too... in my mind tieflings are devil-related but in 5e I think they can have demonic heritage instead).
I'd also say that the Tiefling, erm, "gene" for lack of a better term, is SUPER dominant. If one parent is a Tiefling, the offspring is always a Tiefling. So your mom could be human, sure, but she could feasibly have conceived you with a Tiefling. Or she was human and had some dark incident which started a Tiefling line to sprout, starting with you...
But! That's just my opinion. Anything else is entirely up to your DM! With your input, of course :-)
By canon lore, if either of your parents is a Tiefling, you are a Tiefling. I don't think the dominant gene analogy is accurate though; Tieflings aren't even a separate race, so much as a bloodline of Humans who have been cursed with a devilish visage. If you're part of the bloodline, you inherit the curse.
Of course, there's no reason you can't fiddle with the lore to make it work for your game. There are lots of options. Maybe she wasn't really your biological mom. Maybe she found a way to break the curse. Maybe your father was such a devout holy man that his influence spared you from inheriting the curse. Maybe the curse was for a thousand generations and you were the one thousand and first. Maybe you did inherit the curse, but it was for some reason diluted and you look more or less like a normal human. Maybe nobody (except the DM) knows why you didn't inherit the curse, but you thank the gods for it every day - though if you knew the true reason maybe you wouldn't be so thankful for it.
Gerard_Lee wrote:
Thank you all for great input and advice! I really appreciate the time and thought you all put into your replies, it's very helpful!