Almost Lost My Spoons!
Character Creation: The Basics
I know I was supposed to upload a third part to character creation, but I drove home yesterday -- through snow, rain, sleet and hail I might add -- and got home so exhausted I couldn't conjure up the brain power to write part three of the basics of character creation.
So I apologize. However, I am feeling better, but I'd like to keep my schedule the same, so I'll post part three next Saturday.
Thank you for your understanding ( Colorado weather is not nice sometimes ).
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
Showing posts with label creation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label creation. Show all posts
10 May 2015
02 May 2015
Character Creation: The Basics - Part Two
Almost Lost My Spoons!
Character Creation: The Basics
The next step is choosing a race, class and gender.
If this is a fantastic world where you have created your own race or are using a template, use that for some of your other "stats."
There are all kinds of websites out there that help with different races and classes. I find that Pathfinder has a lot of choices when it comes to medieval-style stories. BESM and FATE are good for futuristic or fantastic-modern settings.
The Chaotic Good Ace from last time is a guy, so that might weigh in to a few things in upcoming stages, but not here.
His class is fighter and his race is human.
His class:"fighter" means a few things from last time. He has a high strength and constitution. His dexterity is not terribly "high" and because he's a tactician, he has a higher wisdom than intelligence and charisma.
His race: "human" has several 'archetypes' such as persistence, drives, endurance and ambition. Not all of these apply to our Chaotic Good Ace, but some do. He's ambitious and has drive but has little patience for diplomatic events.
We'll get to character strengths and flaws later.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part Three
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
Character Creation: The Basics
The next step is choosing a race, class and gender.
If this is a fantastic world where you have created your own race or are using a template, use that for some of your other "stats."
There are all kinds of websites out there that help with different races and classes. I find that Pathfinder has a lot of choices when it comes to medieval-style stories. BESM and FATE are good for futuristic or fantastic-modern settings.
The Chaotic Good Ace from last time is a guy, so that might weigh in to a few things in upcoming stages, but not here.
His class is fighter and his race is human.
His class:"fighter" means a few things from last time. He has a high strength and constitution. His dexterity is not terribly "high" and because he's a tactician, he has a higher wisdom than intelligence and charisma.
His race: "human" has several 'archetypes' such as persistence, drives, endurance and ambition. Not all of these apply to our Chaotic Good Ace, but some do. He's ambitious and has drive but has little patience for diplomatic events.
We'll get to character strengths and flaws later.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part Three
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
25 April 2015
Character Creation: The Basics - Part One
Almost Lost My Spoons!
Character Creation: The Basics
So, our Chaotic Good Ace needs some "stats." In a table top RPG, a player character has a set of statistics that determines what he/she can do. There are a variety of ways to break down the basic "stats" such as Pathfinder and D&Ds' six "ability scores:" Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
Other RPG's use different systems, but they all get the same point across: what are your characters' physical and mental attributes?
Age is also a stat, so keep an age range in mind while creating a character.
Our Chaotic Good Ace is probably in his mid-twenties and is good with close-combat. This means he probably has a high strength and constitution in order to push enemies back and be able to take hits. He's probably not very dexterous because he's not leaping over battlefields or climbing walls during combat.
Because he's a tactician and a strategist, he has a high wisdom, but a medium intelligence.
*The difference between Intelligence and Wisdom is ( as it was explained to me ) Intelligence is book-smart vs Wisdom which is street-smart. Intelligence is how fast your character learns and reasons whereas Wisdom describes a character's willpower, common sense, awareness and intuition.
Charisma is probably not high with this character -- at least in the beginning.
We could assign numerical values to each category, and you can if that's helpful to you. You can do 1 to 10 or 1 to 20 or 1 to 5, so on and so on; do what feels right for you. If putting a number to a word will help you remember what you were thinking about that character, do it!
However, it's nice to keep in mind an age range for characters. A 87-year-old will probably not have a high strength and dexterity "score" and a 6-year-old is probably not going to be as smart as a 36-year-old. And, with your numbers, be sure to prescribe what each number means and keep your scale the same and consistent.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part Two
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
Character Creation: The Basics
So, our Chaotic Good Ace needs some "stats." In a table top RPG, a player character has a set of statistics that determines what he/she can do. There are a variety of ways to break down the basic "stats" such as Pathfinder and D&Ds' six "ability scores:" Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma.
Other RPG's use different systems, but they all get the same point across: what are your characters' physical and mental attributes?
Age is also a stat, so keep an age range in mind while creating a character.
Our Chaotic Good Ace is probably in his mid-twenties and is good with close-combat. This means he probably has a high strength and constitution in order to push enemies back and be able to take hits. He's probably not very dexterous because he's not leaping over battlefields or climbing walls during combat.
Because he's a tactician and a strategist, he has a high wisdom, but a medium intelligence.
*The difference between Intelligence and Wisdom is ( as it was explained to me ) Intelligence is book-smart vs Wisdom which is street-smart. Intelligence is how fast your character learns and reasons whereas Wisdom describes a character's willpower, common sense, awareness and intuition.
Charisma is probably not high with this character -- at least in the beginning.
We could assign numerical values to each category, and you can if that's helpful to you. You can do 1 to 10 or 1 to 20 or 1 to 5, so on and so on; do what feels right for you. If putting a number to a word will help you remember what you were thinking about that character, do it!
However, it's nice to keep in mind an age range for characters. A 87-year-old will probably not have a high strength and dexterity "score" and a 6-year-old is probably not going to be as smart as a 36-year-old. And, with your numbers, be sure to prescribe what each number means and keep your scale the same and consistent.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part Two
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
18 April 2015
Character Creation: The Planning Stage
Almost Lost My Spoons!
Character Creation: The Planning
Over all my years of writing, I think that character creation and building has always been fun. I like to think of it as building a character for a table top RPG like Pathfinder or D&D.
But, we'll go about this in steps. This step is the Planning Stage -- before you get to the hard facts about your character, you need to figure out some things before hand.
When you're thinking of a character, it's good to a have an archetype in mind. By archetype I mean a universal theme that a character encompasses. For example, there's the Hero Archetype; usually a good character that fights evil with justice to maintain or restore harmony. Another archetype that is used frequently is the Mentor Archetype; through wise and insightful training and words, the mentor protects the Hero. And, one cannot forget the Villain Archetype; a character whose main function is to oppose the Hero and whom the Hero must fight and defeat to restore peace.
There are many sites online that depict the types of character archetypes and I recommend using them to figure out which kind of character you want to build:
01. TV Tropes Archetypal Characters
Thinking about your characters' archetype will help you figure out what that characters' function is in your story. Let me give an example: I have a story called Roses Bound In Blood and one of the main characters is a "The Ace" archetype. He's good at close- and hand-to-hand-combat as well as strategy and tactics and everyone knows it.
Okay. We have an archetype in mind. Naming your character can wait, as can descriptions of features and personality.
For me, I found that finding my characters' alignment is a faster and easier way to determine the characters' function in the story.
TV Tropes has an Alignment page that I always found helpful.
For the "Ace" Archetype, he would be a Chaotic Good alignment. This means he's a rebel and a free-spirit. He believes his own conscious is a better guide than laws, but doesn't consistently break laws for his own gain. He has a strict code of his own that few understand, and this sometimes hinders his ability to think beyond the upcoming battle.
Remember, your character doesn't have to be an archetype. It's just nice to have a frame for your character.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part One
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
Character Creation: The Planning
Over all my years of writing, I think that character creation and building has always been fun. I like to think of it as building a character for a table top RPG like Pathfinder or D&D.
But, we'll go about this in steps. This step is the Planning Stage -- before you get to the hard facts about your character, you need to figure out some things before hand.
When you're thinking of a character, it's good to a have an archetype in mind. By archetype I mean a universal theme that a character encompasses. For example, there's the Hero Archetype; usually a good character that fights evil with justice to maintain or restore harmony. Another archetype that is used frequently is the Mentor Archetype; through wise and insightful training and words, the mentor protects the Hero. And, one cannot forget the Villain Archetype; a character whose main function is to oppose the Hero and whom the Hero must fight and defeat to restore peace.
There are many sites online that depict the types of character archetypes and I recommend using them to figure out which kind of character you want to build:
01. TV Tropes Archetypal Characters
Thinking about your characters' archetype will help you figure out what that characters' function is in your story. Let me give an example: I have a story called Roses Bound In Blood and one of the main characters is a "The Ace" archetype. He's good at close- and hand-to-hand-combat as well as strategy and tactics and everyone knows it.
Okay. We have an archetype in mind. Naming your character can wait, as can descriptions of features and personality.
For me, I found that finding my characters' alignment is a faster and easier way to determine the characters' function in the story.
TV Tropes has an Alignment page that I always found helpful.
For the "Ace" Archetype, he would be a Chaotic Good alignment. This means he's a rebel and a free-spirit. He believes his own conscious is a better guide than laws, but doesn't consistently break laws for his own gain. He has a strict code of his own that few understand, and this sometimes hinders his ability to think beyond the upcoming battle.
Remember, your character doesn't have to be an archetype. It's just nice to have a frame for your character.
Upcoming: Character Creation: The Basics - Part One
Thanks and have a pleasant day!
Tay Alexiel
But I Found the Forks!
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