Roleplaying Tips Weekly E-Zine Issue #126

This is a cut from a document David sent me. About creating characters and such. I will paste it and hope you all will enjoy it, or maybe have some use of it.

BUILDING & PLAYING A MORE UNIQUE & MEMORABLE CHARACTER

Copyright 2002 – Dave N. ‘Brittanman’

In order to ensure a player is going to have a good time,
the most important issue on his/her mind during character creation is “What kind of character should I play?” or “What type of character would I enjoy playing?”

By answering the right questions and with a bit of planning
and forethought, you can put together a PC who will move through the game believably and almost instinctively. Here’s a bit of an outline on how to build from the bottom up, stepping into the shoes and following the footsteps of a PC character you’ll enjoy playing either long or short term.

I’ve used some improv techniques, and some theatre, writing, and storytelling tools to construct this outline. There is no specific order in which these should be used, but I have assembled them to make as much orderly sense as possible. Please feel free to pick and choose what you find usable…

Choices
———-
Before getting started, it’s important to mention that character construction is made up of choices and that these choices should be wielded with imagination in order to create a unique and interesting character.

Standard cliches or stereotypes can produce a tired, less interesting, and more predictable concept. So, make a few different or unusual choices.

On the other hand, making many choices that are off-beat or unusual can make the character too busy or give it a contrived feeling (i.e. doing something for a game reason or effect instead of it just being part of the PC’s personal history).

Also, a character who is too different will tend to alienate NPCs or other PCs due to the difficulty in relating with them. Just a few uncommon selections should be enough for flavoring.

1. Build A Wish List
====================
Define the qualities in a character that would currently interest you. These may include a brief physical description, personality, activities performed, skills, or capabilities.

Always try to avoid gamer or genre jargon. Words like magic, thief, bard, spell caster all will point you in a direction that may aim a bit too directly towards playing a specific character class.

Check out some of these examples:

* I dabble in some mystical art or arts. I can be
intimidating but use my attractive appearance and social
skills to solve problems and overcome difficulties. I
prefer to use intellect instead of muscle.

* I am mechanically inclined but like to flex my muscles
every once in a while. My plain appearance is used to an
advantage. I can fade into the woodwork or even a crowd. I
can be youthful and brash, sometimes causing me to make
impulsive mistakes.

* I take short cuts and look to gain advantage before
committing openly to action. I am an extrovert and am more
effective in achieving what I want with my mental and
people skills due to my smallish size.

It is important to be as general with your description as possible to avoid pigeon-holing yourself into a specific class. The definition should be in first person (I, me) so that your PC becomes more personalized.

The examples above would fit just about any known RPG
system. That’s the idea. Generalize. A good test for a wish list is to see if the PC type would make an effective multi- class character. It doesn’t have to be, but it will help keep your options open.

2. General Appearance
=====================
You should include some, but not necessarily all, of the
following:

* Height
* Build (light, medium, large, bulky, lanky)
* Race or skin color
* Hair (color, style length)
* Eyes (shape or color)

Don’t include just character weight and height when
describing build. In fact, try to avoid it. Use the body
type or build instead, as it will tend to be at least, if
not more, descriptive than numerical statistics.

Try some of these instead:

* Tall-Light Athletic
* Short and Heavy-Set
* Small-Frail or Petite
* Waif or Waif-ish.

These are all examples of PC physical build descriptors.
They tell you more about the character’s physical appearance than plain height and weight statistics do.

3. Armor & Weapons Make the (Wo)Man ===================================
The way a PC carries him/herself and the type of armor and weapons they choose will tell a little about the character (misdirecting is also effective). Not all fighter types wear chain or heavy metal armor (even if they aren’t rangers or barbarians). Not all spell casters use a staff.

Try some of the following ideas:

* Use understated weapons and armor (it will be less
offensive/defensive but give you more options).

* Avoid making the long sword/short sword choices or weapons
“straight off the rack”.

* Have a punching bell attached to the hilt of your blade
(or weapon).

* Choose a quick-draw feat, skill, or ability.

* Add carvings, ribbons and medallions to weaponry and
armor. Personalize.

* Choose an interesting range weapon.

* Wear weapons that are never/seldom used, to misinform.

By choosing less armor you will most certainly lower your defensive capabilities, but movement and stealth will become more effective. Or maybe you’d rather go the other way and play stealth but accept the penalties for bulking up.

By selecting ‘off the rack’ weapons and armor you are
showing that you are just like everyone else. Dressing up weapons so they are unique may get potential opponents to reconsider or re-evaluate if or how they approach you.

Maybe you are left-handed or a two-handed fighter with
weapons stowed not so visibly? A “quick draw” feat comes in handy here because you don’t need to have a weapon ready or in your hand.

Using ribbons, medallions, or “favors” on your armor or
weapons shows that others (ladies, nobles, and political
figures) hold you in regard. They might also serve well as a warning that your harm may cause some retribution.

Carvings or ‘runes’ can be added for decoration or design, though it could lead others to believe differently (possibly a powerful enchantment).

If all characters have ranged weapons, heavy hitters not
able to reach the melee can still contribute. Those not normally waging direct combat can still be helpful if they’re out of spells to cast or for other reasons.

4. Dress Purposefully
=====================
Ask yourself how you want others to visually perceive (or not perceive) your PC.

* Are you dressed in worn old clothes but well groomed?

* Do you wear bright and shiny expensive armor?

* Are you dressed like a rogue but are actually a wizard?

How you dress reveals potentially valuable information to
the public or to potential enemies that you’d rather keep secret. So, make use of your clothing to distract, confuse, and mislead.

* If you are wealthy, try dressing down.

* If you are poor, try dressing up.

* Dress like you are an amiable commoner rather than a
killing machine.

* Add accessories to enhance your image (jewelry, hats,
decorative daggers, buckles, scarves, etc).

Also, once you decide on your class, don’t necessarily dress
to the text book description or stereotype.

5. Personal History
===================
Does your PC’s family, customs and society influence him/her
to a small or large degree?

A personal history will give a basis for the PC’s existence.

* Is the family poor, rich or middle of the road?

* Does this affect the PC in anyway?

* Is the family large or small? How does this affect the PC?

* Injuries, training, relationships, a developed code of
conduct?

The more detail the better. Constantly build on your character’s history, both past and present. This is where the character becomes spontaneous and instinctive. The better you know him, the quicker his/her responses to situations will come to you.

* Poverty: embarrassed about humble family life.

* Wealthy: could be miserly or a big spender to show-off.

* Working Class: learned self-discipline and pride in
craftsmanship.

* Only child: spoiled with too much attention or suffered
from not enough.

* Small family: well balanced and close knit.

* Large family: self-sufficient from helping bring up
siblings, or resentful.

* Large family: worried about inheritance.++

* The PC is physically challenged.

++ If you were the oldest son during the middle ages and/or
the Renaissance times you got everything. The only thing
that a second or third son got from his father was his name
and possibly a decent education or maybe a trade or skill).

6. Avoid the “NO” Choices
=========================
When building and playing the PC, avoid making the “NO” choices. These are reasons or excuses for the PC not to act or participate in gaming activities or scenes. They are passive choices that make it difficult for everyone involved in game (including the GM) to keep things moving.

Passive choices are actually not the problem…it’s how
passive they are. Holding an action/initiative or hiding out are passive actions, but they can be constructive in some situations.

The following are some examples of passive “NO” choices:

* The PC is shy, easily embarrassed, and does not
communicate well with the party or gaming group.

* The PC does not like, is uncomfortable with, or is very
mistrusting of a particular PC or NPC in game.

* The PC has difficulty working with a team due to strong
differences (religion, alignment, code, etc.).

“NO” choices can be playable but make the game more
difficult. They can be measured by how many are caused difficulty by them:

* Personal effect only
* Affects one PC
* Affects all of the PCs
* Affects everyone within a hundred mile radius

There are solutions to these kinds of problems, but they
tend to be only temporary or short term. A talented GM can overcome them, but your best bet is to avoid them all together.

7. Identify the PC’s Personal Secrets =====================================
Dredge through the PC’s background and come up with some secrets that make sense.

* Married and has a family (secretive to protect them from
many enemies).

* Has other identities (to protect him, or for undercover
reasons).

* You have a twin who died.

* You work secretly for a benefactor (who unpopular
political stands).

* You have horrible scarring or injuries not readily apparent.

* You have a certain phobia(s) that you keep to yourself.

Your secrets can be simple and seemingly unimportant or very complex and as drastic as you wish. The key is to not share them with anyone in or out of game.

Secrets are great because your GM can make them into interesting plots or subplots, which could add to your enjoyment of the campaign.

Pose several of your ideas to the GM and if she/he is not
into it, or chooses not to know, then you still have a great subtext (see Tip 8 ) to play with.

8. Subtext – No Means No! Right? ================================ Subtext has to do with the PC’s reasoning. It’s not what is said or done but what is truly thought or intended. Subtext is “reading between the lines.” It’s what motivates the PC and the individuals encountered by him/her.

A lie is the simplest example of subtext.

A more complex example is a PC who gets angry and sullen
around children–the children feel the anger and fear the
PC, not understanding that the PC lost his twin brother at a young age and still grieves and is not actually mad at them personally. The PC’s actions are perceived one way while the truth is actually something completely different.

Roleplaying subtext is important when gathering information, bargaining, bluffing, issuing veiled threats, or any activity involved when being tactful or having an ulterior motive.

Here are some examples:

* A smuggler conceals how much he wants a ring he is
bargaining for to avoid the seller boosting the price.

* A local trader puts on a front and stands up to a tax
collector he greatly fears.

* An ambassador is polite and pleasant to a visiting noble
he knows to be a spy.

* A nobleman smiles cheerfully and accepts the Queen’s
request to continue staying at his manor house estate even
though there are 100 guests with her and it will cause him
to go broke.

* The relationship between Han Solo and Leia behaving as if
they don’t like each other while all along they both share a
mutual interest.

* A Vampire puts word out on the street that a feared Witch
Hunter is in town, but fails to mention that the man/woman
has been recently killed by him so that he may keep others
busy and out of his business.

* A Net Runner/Hacker agrees to a job he wouldn’t normally
accept due to threats of retribution.

A character rife with subtext is interesting because he/she
is not behaving in a way that the PC is actually thinking or feeling. They may behave contrary to their way of thinking, motivation, or ethics, due to outside forces.

A PC lacking subtext will often end up being a cardboard cut-out (having little substance) and seem mechanical or robotic with a flat personality.

9. Play a Goal
==============
Goal playing is important because it is at the center of
what the PC really wants, be it long term in life or only
for the moment.

The character’s personal history should give some clues to
long term goals, while his short term goals will change all
the time (in some instances, several times a minute).

The following are long term goals:

* Adventure until having enough money to build a keep.
* Travel to strange new lands, to open trade routes and make
clients for the import company you work for.
* Become a Knight of the Realm.
* Start and run a fencing and fighting salle (school).
* Establish trust with a prison guard so that it can be
taken advantage of as a means of escape.

Short Term Goals:

* Get a sword for a bargain price.
* Distract a mark so your partner can escape unnoticed.
* Chase down the fleeing bad guy on foot.
* Overpower the prison guard and make your escape.
* Hide or conceal oneself to avoid capture.

Short Term Goals are most frequently used in games. It’s a great tool to use when you are unsure what action to take. It will, at the least, give you a handle on the PC’s motivation.

10. Ask Why?
===========
This to me is one of the most important things in PC work. “Why?” is an open-ended question. For those of us who have or have had little brothers or sisters growing up, the number one question was WHY? And of course when that was answered, there was a follow up question: WHY? That’s why it’s open-ended. 🙂

Ask this question about as many issues and choices about the
PC you can come up with. It’s like the Internet — you’ll
never reach the end of it.

* The PC chose to be a competitive archer-WHY?
* The PC became a thief or a lock picker-WHY?
* Selfish – WHY?
* Thrifty – WHY?
* Won’t eat meat – WHY?
* Gambles non-stop – WHY?
* Always cracking jokes – WHY?

You’ve always heard of the Who, Where, Why, What & How.
Why? is the most effective. We can always ask why something
is the way it is. And that will, of course, lead to another why?

11. Choose Ability Scores That Make Sense =========================================
Last but not least…Roll the dice and post your numbers
where they make sense. Try to create a character who has
been defined by what you want to play and not by the die
roll.

* * *

Good luck and good gaming!

I’d like to thank Johnn for his time and the space on ‘Tips’ made available to me.

I run email games and receive info from all over the gaming universe so please feel free to contact me at either of the following addys:

brittanman@hotmail.com

theunderkeep@aol.com

— Dave