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Tropes in TTRPGs: D&D Translations of Magical Nannies, Part I

This is the first in a series of posts on adapting tropes using TTRPG character creation systems, documenting my process and thoughts with an endgoal of producing two or three prime player characters, along with complementary party members if applicable. Obviously, making homebrew characters is a very real option for anyone who has the extra time to make original shit or sift through the search engine. That being said, if you don't, this is meant to be an alternative.

➤ Idea Germs: The Focal Characters of the Trope

My main goal is to create two player characters that fit the Magical Nanny trope in a way that is mechanically coherent but still engaging to roleplay. The defining page linked in the post title lists two distinct flavors of the trope, each of which will serve as a base reference for a respective design, if hopefully distinct to my own interpretation.

The first type of Magical Nanny is empathetic and warm, an artistic or beautiful free spirit who relies on personal connections to enrich their charge's lives. We'll call our own version of this character Madeline Medley, or Miss Madeline to the children.

The uber-example of this trope is Maria Von Trapp, but Fran Drescher is another well-known, if less traditional, version. Looking at their shared qualities, Madeline will have a romantic side, but she also needs to be a fish-out-of-water. Honestly, I'm already imagining her as a Bard, not just because of the classic musical Maria hales from, but because this archetype is essentially a guardian who inspires and empowers their kids as much as guiding and protecting them, but I won't commit to that yet. The most important aspect is ultimately a talent for forming earnest relationships with those around them, and that isn't a Bard-exclusive trait. She'll probably at least multi-class in Bard, though, tbh.

The second type is a taskmaster with a no-nonsense attitude who takes on an almost trickster element to outwit her charges and our version of the firm but fair-minded nanny will be Dorothea Dougal, but we'll give her the snappy pseudonym of the Good Governess to give her a nursery rhyme-ish edge.

Call to mind Mary Poppins, Nanny McPhee, or even Eglantine Price. Actual magic or at least unsettling and uncanny fortuity is a staple of my favorite versions of this type. It's not enough, in my book, to just be a wise nanny that smacks some sense into the heads of children. Even if magic isn't a mechanical factor, there should be some kind of a mechanical capacity for manifesting coincidences, even if it just ends up the Lucky feat. Also, the Governess will be of a higher level than Madeline, for sure. I'm tempted to just make her Level 20 out of commitment to the bit, but that's something to consider much later.

(Obviously you don't have to adhere to this when you make your own characters; I just thought it would be fun to try to find a way to draw on two distinct characterizations the whole way through.)

➤ Idea Germs: Extended Characters of the Trope

On the off chance that you want to create a family for your Magical Nanny, I'm also making six bonus characters: one young charge, one teen charge, and one parent for each of our nannies.

The children in stories like fun-loving Miss Madeline's are often neurotic and misguided because their parents, often single fathers, don't know how to listen their kids, or just have fun. The family is, more than anything, unhappy, and each member, including parents, is equally in need of intervention for this reason.

The father in need of kind Madeline's aid, and in statistical likelihood, hand in marriage, will be stick-in-the-mud Major Marcus MacBride. As for his children, he could always have more, but we'll spotlight baby Graham, and eldest Salem.

The children that require the intervention of Mrs. Dudley or forces of nature like her are typically spoiled or mischievous due to parental failure to correct bad behavior and set healthy boundaries. The family may not necessarily be unhappy, but it's certainly, in the grand scheme of things, dysfunctional.

And the mother in need of the Governess's intervention will be the overindulgent and absent-minded Mrs. Helen Hawkins. We'll also make profiles for Grendel, her youngest, and Shannon, her oldest.

The Magical Nanny as a trope is a personal favorite that I consider underutilized, so I'm excited to start. Now that our inciting characters and their potential party members have been vaguely sketched out, I can get into the creation process.

➤ Determining Race

There's no correct order in which to determine race, class, abilities, background, etc. I switch up the order I deal with them in every time and often go back and make changes later on before they're finalized. This time I decided to start with race first.

While you could create a Magical Nanny of any race, there are a few that more easily adapt mechanically. That said, I'd encourage players to reskin these however they see fit, flavor-wise. Needless to say, you are also free to adjust, replace, or eliminate whatever racial features you wish. I just like the challenge of finding an angel that works.

Skimming through for possible options, the Kalashtar race's feature descriptions made me laugh, and it's also mechanically fitting for the role. It makes an excellent choice in particular for Miss Madeline:

The overall concept fits well, as it is often we equate childhood with dreaming, and which makes our Magical Nanny comparable to a bridge between humans and spirits of dreams, or youth. The base ability score increase also gives a +2 to Wisdom and +1 to Charisma. Fitting for a nanny or caretaker who relies on a personal rapport with and understanding of their wards to do their job. Dual Mind gives advantage on all Wisdom saving throws, while Mental Discipline gives resistance to psychic damage - and hell knows either of those help would help working with children! This is a nanny with clear eyes and a thick skin. Mind Link gives you telepathic abilities to those within a certain range, which is a fun mechanical metaphor for Teacher Face™, silently reprimanding or rewarding behaviors based on approval. It also fits considering studies that show those who are adept with children are more generally intuitive in communication. Severed from Dreams works really well in a few different ways. The character exists as a manifestation of "the union between humanity and renegade spirits from the plane of dreams" and thus retains a need to sleep and rest, but is incapable of dreaming themselves. Finally, they get one language, which depending on the setting for our character may be a throwaway, at least in this system. I chose Minotaur in this case. I think poor Asterion could've used a nice nanny who understood him.

With this selection, we already give ourselves solid foundations for character motive. What does it say about Madeline that she's trying to teach children to embrace imagination, reflect on their emotions, and build confidence as someone who can't even dream herself?

Returning and continuing through the list, I found Warforged to be another mechanically reasonable, if otherwise unexpected, choice. But it is especially amusing considering the Governess:

The concept of the Warforged is a conscious being that was "built as [a] weapon[... that] must now find a purpose beyond war". Quite fun for a more militant nanny that almost comes across as engineered for success. Warforged get a base +2 to Constitution and +1 to an ability of the player's choice. Constitution works as one definitely needs focus and stamina to keep up with kids, and the extra +1 can go wherever it's best suited. I'll set it to Intelligence for now, but will make a note to return and adjust later if need be. They have multiple bodily advantages: resistance to poison and advantage on saving throws against poison, immunity to disease, and having no need to eat, drink, or breathe. This matches the unsettling condition of characters like Nanny McPhee and Mary Poppins. I can't imagine either with a cough. They're also immune to sleep-inducing magic, as instead of sleeping, they rest for "at least six hours in an inactive, motionless state" that mimics sleep but leaves them perfectly cognizant of their surroundings. Rendering any potential tricks in the dead of night played by children, or enemies, most ineffective. They have a +1 to their AC, but can only wear armor they have proficiency in, which takes an hour to either put on or remove. We can frame our nanny's dress ode as comparable to their armor, in this case. It may give them an advantage, but adjusting it further takes time to integrate according to uniform. They get one skill and one tool proficiency each. I tentatively selected Perception and Herbalism, but I did eye Vehicles (Air), considering all the classic Magical Nanny umbrella shenanigans. And finally, they also get the extra and potentially irrelevant language. In this case, I chose Ogre, considering it often takes a nanny of this type to get through the more brutish side characters in these stories. (No offense meant to ogres.)

This choice also gives our nanny in-built depth. Perhaps Darby is a woman using expertise on child-rearing, social graces, and domestic work to retain economic and social independence rather than find and support a partner - designated to perform an assigned role, but using associated skills to fulfill a purpose she determines for herself.

Other races that translate particularly well for a Magical Nanny are Eladrin, Githzerai, Githyanki, Mark of Detection Half Elf, Mark of Hospitality Halfling, Mark of Sentinel Human, and Loxodon. Some that are slightly less intuitive but can work well with narrative effort are Scourge Aasimar, Astral Elf, Aereni High Elf or Wood Elf, Firbolg, Forest Gnome, Goliath, Hadozee, Half Elf, Half Orc, Variant Human, Kobold, Orc, Owlin, Shadar-Kai, Tabaxi, and Vedalken. The Hexblood and Reborn Lineages may also pose interesting possibilities if incorporated narratively. Again, any could be used, so these are just the ones I can imagine mechanically adapting smoothly.

As for the family, there's a case for selecting the same race for all its members, but practically speaking, it's more advantageous and, I'd argue, more interesting to forgo neat optics in favor of finding complementary builds, then reskinning, so that's what I'll do.

I do think almost any race could be more or less justified for the parents and kids seeing as they don't have to, and arguably shouldn't, be optimized for parenting or facilitating familial communication. Arguably, the archetypes are a factor, especially in the case of this post, but those focuses can be changed.

Reviewing the options, I'm sorely tempted to make Major MacBride another Warforged, as it would work quite well, but I think I'll opt for variety... Ultimately, I landed on the TCoE Hobgoblin.

Hobgoblins are tied to the fey and to war. This immediately supplements existing interesting characterization. He has an element of mystique and distance, but also of ferocity and discipline. Maybe, as if often the case in such stories, The War™ has affected his noble household and he's left to pick up the pieces. TCoE Hobgoblins have a nerfed version of Legacy's Saving Face feat, renamed Fortune from the Many, allowing them to add a bonus to failed rolls based on allies within 30 feet of them, with a maximum +3 (formerly +5). This rewards our distant but supportive father when he's physically present with his kids. However, most notably, the Legacy feat Martial Training is replaced with one called Fey Gift, which lets them take the Help action as a bonus action, and provides some cool bonuses to choose from for the character that they help. Again, this rewards the character mechanically with increased options for working closely with his family, and also for directly guiding and supporting them. Other suitable races I found for a parent that needs to learn to have fun include the Fallen Aasimar, Bugbear, Dragonborn, Earth Genasi, Eladrin, Wood Elf, Dark Elf, Valenar Wood Elf, Githzerai, Goblin, Goliath, Mark of Storm Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Mark of Sentinel Human, Leonin, Minotaur, Orc, Shadar-kai, Variant Tiefling, Vedalken, Warforged, and Yuan-Ti. The Reborn Lineage also has potential.

For Mrs. Hawkins, I considered a fair many and went back and forth for awhile, but in the interest of making a contrasting choice to our Governess, I decided to make her a Mark of Sentinel Human.

The 'Mark of' races are tied to noble houses, status, and mystically specialized abilities, which works fairly enough for our fussy, high-status father. The ability score increases are +2 to Constitution and +1 to Wisdom, which is fine. Wisdom isn't my first choice but on second thought, it could make for an observant mother with no idea how to actually act on her observations. The same applies to Sentinel's Intuition, which allows her to add a d4 to Perception and Insight checks. Guardian's Shield allows her to cast Shield once per long rest using Wisdom. She can use Vigilant Guardian to swap places with a successfully attacked creature within 5 feet of herself as a reaction, causing her to be attacked instead, once per long rest. If she ever gains the Spellcasting or Pact Magic class feature, the list of spells will expand to include a number of others related to protection, such as Compelled Duel, Zone of Truth, and Guardian of Faith, due to the Spells of the Mark feat. All great additions for a mother whose most successful bag is providing for and protecting her kids, but needs help with... the rest. I think other good race options for a parent that lets their kids get away with too much are Protector Aasimar, Astral Elf, Bugbear, Changeling, Eladrin, Mark of Shadow Elf, Genasi, Half-Elf, any type of Halfling (but especially Mark of Hospitality), Hobgoblin, Variant or Mark of Passage Human, Kender, Kobold, Orc, Satyr, Swiftstride Shifter, Tabaxi, and Verdan.

Not having settled on archetypes for the kids, I decided to randomize their races from a list I narrowed down to be appropriate for their age range and general potential, to come up with some ideas for their future characterization and party roles.

Using this process, little Graham MacBride ended up a TCoE Changeling, and Salem MacBride was made a TCoE Satyr.

For the Changeling Instincts feat, I gave Graham proficiency in Performance and Insight. The most important aspect of this race is the ability to change aspects of their appearance at will. A chameleon who can blend in! Maybe little Graham has a tendency to imitate whoever has most recently won their favor? Obviously there will be plenty of hijinks played on our poor nanny involving this trait. Salem gets access to the Ram feat, which lets them use their head and horn in unarmed strikes for a d6 + their Strength modifier. A headstrong kid, then. They have magic resistance to spells - so, a bit of a nonbeliever. Mirthful Leaps gives them the ability to add a d8 to a Long or High Jump, so they are dexterous but make huge leaps, maybe? For the Reveler feat, I gave Salem proficiency in Viol, which I'm (barely) reskinning as a fiddle. They can play songs with their nanny!

With the same process, Shannon Hawkins is a PH Half Elf, and Grendel Hawkins, a MotM Deep Gnome.

Fey Ancestry is the first feat, which involves advantage on saving throws from being charmed and immunity to sleep magic. Fitting for the older kid who is less susceptible to getting told to behave or go to bed. For Shannon's Skill Versatility, I gave them proficiency in Perception and History. I'm seeing an intelligent and skeptical kid whose engagements with the world have left them disenchanted? No actual choices were required for Grendel! They have Gift of the Svirfneblin, which grants them one use of the Disguise Self and Nondetection spells per long rest at their respective levels. Gnomish Magic Resistance gives advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws against spells, so we have a bit of a free thinker in the building. Finally, Svirfnefblin Camouflage give our young Grendel advantage on Stealth checks a number of times equal to their proficiency bonus per long rest. Very trickster friendly traits.

I was happy enough with how this turned out, but if I hadn't been, there are plenty of races I could have gone through instead.

Other races that work especially well for kids skewing younger are Autognome, Firbolg, Goblin, any Halfling subrace (but particularly Lightfoot), Harengon, Kender, Kobold, Swiftstride Shifter, Tabaxi, and Variant Tiefling. Bugbear, Mark of Shadow Elf, Mark of Scribing Gnome, Mark of Handling Human, Kender, Kenku, Longtooth or Wildhunt Shifter, Tortle, and Verdan are other races I might consider if you are planning to feature (pre-)teen charges.

➤ Rolling Abilities

Before I get started on any further character customization, I'll get my ability scores generated first, so I can know what I'll be working with. Personally, I prefer rolling, but it's a matter of discretion. Normally, I'd do it manually, but my dice are in another state, unfortunately, so I'll use DNDBeyond.

I'll roll the nannies with the families they serve, to start thinking about how they mesh. First, Madeline and the MacBride brood:

Miss Madeline's starting scores are 14, 14, 14, 9, 18, and 11. Her entire premise is her ability to form relationships with people, so it's likely Wisdom and Charisma will have to be higher stats, but the rest can be shuffled around as necessary.Major MacBride's starting scores are 14, 11, 15, 11, 12, and 16. As a stuffy but impressive type, this range works well, because he'll have a believable variety of skills and abilities. Nonetheless, I like that our nanny's top stat will be higher than his, at least by their base scores. It gives her an edge over him which maybe suggests that Captain-Maria, Fran-Mr. Sheffield dynamic we all love.Salem's starting scores are 12, 16, 15, 17, 10, and 8. I haven't nailed down the kid archetypes yet, but I like that we have a high and low contrast for Salem. The disparity sort of lands between Madeline's and their father's, which already adds a narrative level if I want it to.Baby Graham's starting scores are 16, 15, 14, 9, 15, and 6. The two very low scores are great because they can align with a vulnerability for the child with canonical reason to need a lot of development. The higher scores give them a fun, savant edge common to 'weird little kids' in this genre, too. The stars are aligning lol!

Then, the Good Governess, and the Hawkins household:

The Good Governess's starting scores are 17, 11, 15, 18, 11, and 13. I like that we have pretty high scores and nothing below 11 here. I'd have to dump Strength or Charisma otherwise, but this type of nanny should seem impossibly capable, and it's nice this reflects that.Mrs. Hawkins's starting scores are 12, 13, 13, 11, 15, and 15. Like the Major, Mrs. Hawkins is meant to be impressive but not particularly extraordinary, as that leaves room for our nannies to make waves. This is a very nice and respectable range, perfectly suiting a well-meaning mother who just needs guidance in how and when to apply her existing skills.Shannon's starting scores are 16, 12, 10, 13, 13, and 12. I'd have liked to see a lower score or two, but we do have a series of more average numbers and one a bit higher, which could suggest a generally capable older sibling who uses a particular gift for mischief? We'll workshop as we go.Grendel's starting scores are 13, 15, 13, 12, 10, and 14. Again, I'd have liked a low score or even multiple for them, seeing as they're a kid, but maybe it's silly to complain. A more even spread suggests a less specialized character, so there's potential to develop them toward something with later discovery, I guess.

Honestly, some of these score sets are so serendipitous with initial intentions for the characters, it's weird. It'd be possible to make it work if it wasn't the case; it just so happens they mostly have score ranges that suit their archetypes, other than the Hawkins kids.

End of Part I

Next post, I'll get into the rest of the process. On the final post, whether that's the next one or the one after that, I'll show the profiles for each characters, probably, maybe sketches. Thanks for reading!