D&D and Other Tabletop RPGs

[pwny]

Building off of the discussion in WAYTA, I figured I would branch this out into its own thread.

 

There's been some discussion of doing a FFD&D game, so we can begin planning for that as well.

 

Those of you that play, tell us about your characters, their adventures, and anything else you want to share.

[ET80]

10 minutes ago, iPwn said:

Those of you that play, tell us about your characters, their adventures, and anything else you want to share.

Can you give me a quick primer on characters, or a good link to read up on that?

[Glen]

6 minutes ago, EliteTexan80 said:

Can you give me a quick primer on characters, or a good link to read up on that?

Link

 

[pwny]

7 minutes ago, EliteTexan80 said:

Can you give me a quick primer on characters, or a good link to read up on that?

That's the free basic rules for 5E. There's more in the paid versions, but that's more than enough to get a jump start and build the majority of characters 

 

If I end up hosting, I'll be doing 5E. But other hosts may choose to do different rule sets. 

[ET80]

Just now, Gmen4ev said:

Link

 

You're really trying to get that mod badge, aintcha?

[Glen]

Just now, EliteTexan80 said:

You're really trying to get that mod badge, aintcha?

Already confirmed that I am the next admin. No need to try.

[fretgod99]

I'd suggest maybe adding something like "Table Top RPGs" or whatever to the title.

[fretgod99]

Didn't notice this thread when I responded in WAYTA, we can pull those over here if that's better.

[fretgod99]

42 minutes ago, EliteTexan80 said:

I've never created a character so will need some help. I basically want to be David Carradine from "Kung Fu" with a bow staff.

I think I have a backstory, but not sure. What are some basic elements of a backstory?

What is this person hoping to accomplish? What drove them to the monastic lifestyle - was it an orphan on the doorstep sort of thing, did some tragedy drive them to seek personal reflection and inner solitude or something else entirely? Are they seeking something out within themself or trying to control some drive?

[fretgod99]

1 hour ago, iPwn said:

9 hours ago, fretgod99 said:

What type of role do you want your bard to fill? Do you have a race in mind?

Probably looking for the jack of all trades route

Jack of All Trades. Male or female? Have they had to fend for themself for most of their life, kind of figuring out everything as they went along or was there some influence in their past that pushed them into the life of adventure? Do you know if they play an instrument or is there some other talent that they've discovered gives them influence over how people see them?

[The Gnat]

42 minutes ago, iPwn said:

That's the free basic rules for 5E. There's more in the paid versions, but that's more than enough to get a jump start and build the majority of characters 

 

If I end up hosting, I'll be doing 5E. But other hosts may choose to do different rule sets. 

I'm trying to remember if there is a specific podcast episode that would work well, but The RPG Academy probably has something that would work well. I'll check  with them.

[The Gnat]

What I'd recommend when thinking about creating a character:

1. What hooks can you give your DM? Leave stuff in your background open so that your DM has something to work with, did your parents die? Okay, have your character not know how. Don't know where you are from, or something like that, give a hook.

2. Come up with a reason you're going to go adventuring. If you have a family, a solid job, and lots of friends, you aren't going to go adventuring, or you will, but only after the goblins raid your town and kill everyone you just came up with.

3. Pick what you are going to be good at, and that will only be some things, you are not Batman, never be Batman. Find your niche in your group, are you the tank, ranged, magic, but beyond that, are you going to be the character who can research stuff very well, if so, don't be the face as well, or don't be the person who can pick locks. Specialize so that everyone has time to shine.

4. Know if you should min/max or not. This ties into the previous one, some groups want you to be optimized for combat and then beyond that who cares as much. If you are in a group that plays with min/max characters, do it to, so you don't fall behind. However, if the group doesn't, give yourself weaknesses and flaws. Weaknesses and flaws are great, because it gives you something to allow your character to grow, or it'll be a flaw that they never want to fix.

5. Know what type of game you are playing. In epic fantasy, some characters aren't going to work as well, though most of them will. However, if you are playing a investigation game and you have a raging barbarian, you're not going to have as much fun. So work with your DM to know what they are planning and also so that they can see what you'd prefer.

[fretgod99]

The min/max - optimization level conversation is really important. Really the people who need to be most cognizant of it are the GM and the more experienced players. If your PC is an optimized powerhouse who crushes everything, other players don't ever get to shine so they don't have as much. Or the GM tries to challenge that one OP character and nobody else can hang. So knowing roughly where the party is experience/ability-wise can really help everybody have fun. It's a group social game; everybody should be having fun.

Also, don't feel like you have to fill a specific role. "We don't have a healer, so you have to play one." Nah. If they really want a healer, they should figure out how to get one. If you want to play one, awesome! If not, there's no obligation for you to make a character that fits someone else's goals. Part of the fun of the party dynamic is figuring out how to overcome those gaps in your group.

[ET80]

48 minutes ago, fretgod99 said:

 

Glad you asked. 

My character comes from a very well-to-do family. Very rich, very good to the community. Despite his family being very good people, my character is a bit of a rebel, and a spoiled brat. Self serving, not really interested in helping, a bit resentful of his parents serving as "the teet of the community," as he thinks.

At a young age, it's identified my character has the traits of an elite warrior, and his family spares no expense to grow the talent. He is trained by the finest scholars, generals and warriors to become a well rounded practitioner of the Art of War. This comes easy to him, so - much like everything else - he doesn't take it seriously, and is viewed as an underachiever, but still immensely talented in his own right.

Following his parents death (completely natural from all initial views) he spirals out of control. He spends days drinking and gambling, he spends weeks at a time in the opium dens, weeks at a time in brothels and the money starts to vanish. In a final move, he sells his ancestral lands to some unsavory characters, who use it in the typical unsavory ways - sweat shops, detention camps, slave fields, mass gravesites. The community that his family grew is now ruined, and the money from the sale is quickly gone. My character is clearly at rock bottom.

During this time, guilt engulfs him. Every opportunity wasted, every dollar spent, eats away at him when he has nothing. His wild lifestyle cost him and made life difficult for all. He knows he needs to right every wrong - somehow.

 

TL;DR - Spoiled rich kid gets addicted to drugs, ruins world, determined to get things done right, skilled with weapons of war, but still has deep seeded demons to conquer.

[fretgod99]

@EliteTexan80, so someone who was born into the lap of luxury and wanted for nothing. But he had to learn the hard way that physical, worldly possessions are not the answer to personal fulfillment. Personal tragedy, brought on by his own hubris and immaturity. But he has now started to realize that he needs to understand himself before he can seek to change the world around him.

The solitude and self reflection of being a Monk (or is he a more traditional Fighter-type who just happens to be influenced by Monk fighting styles?) called to him in his time of despair (is this where he trained when he was younger or was it more traditional military training). While he hasn't necessarily forsaken personal belongings and worldy possessions (or has he?), he now understands true happiness comes from within. He now seeks to better understand his place in this world, since the role he was born into was uncomfortable from the start.

The background of (possibly) mysterious family deaths can give a GM something to play with. Also perhaps he might eventually realize that he feels obligated to save and/or restore his home town since he at least played a part in its fall. Perhaps there was a more sinister aspect that caused the town to spiral downward? Is it related to something larger? That is something that remains to be seen.