The two backgrounds that start with an offhand item (barbarian and soldier) will start the game with that offhand item equipped. This even occurs with the white mage and black mage classes that start with a two-handed primary weapon.
The four backgrounds that start with a non-light primary weapon (hunter, arcanist, slum rat, acolyte) have two oddities: First, you get two copies of your background weapon in your inventory. Second, if you select [Go Back] at the appearance screen just after entering your name, you will get another copy of your background weapon. This can be repeated.
The four backgrounds that start with a non-light primary weapon (hunter, arcanist, slum rat, acolyte) have two oddities: First, you get two copies of your background weapon in your inventory. Second, if you select [Go Back] at the appearance screen just after entering your name, you will get another copy of your background weapon. This can be repeated.