Pitch Your Idea
Before you write everything up it is a good practice to run your idea to the staff.
Paul has decided to create his first Adventurer character. He prefers fighters in the tabletop games he has played and loves halflings so pitches hearthlander fighter to the staff. They let him know that are already several hearthlander characters so he changes course and they agree that he will introduce a dwarven fighter instead.
Choose a Heroic Trait
This is the only time Heroic Traits are available. They may only be taken during character creation.
NOTE: You may take a Heroic Trait but you don't have to. When you take a Heroic Trait you also have to take a Disadvantage (see below) so not taking a Heroic Trait means you don't have to take a Disadvantage.
To play a character who begins play as a spellcaster you will need to take the Caster Heroic Trait.
Paul wants to play a dwarf so he needs to take the Nonhuman Trait. He has the option of taking a second one so he consults the Heroic Trait list to see if there is anything that would be worth having to take a second Disadvantage. Tireless seems to suit the concept that is taking shape so he takes it.
Choose a Race
To play a Nonhuman character you will need to have taken the Nonhuman Heroic Trait. The races most often seen at the Ram’s Head are described in the Adventurers Section on the "Races" page HERE
If you choose the Nonhuman Heroic Trait, you may also choose a second Heroic Trait, but if you do so, you will also have to take second Disadvantage (see below).
Be warned: The Nonhuman Disadvantage all Nonhuman characters must take makes it impossible to raise them from the dead.
Paul is playing a dwarf. He has made peace with the fact that this means it will be impossible to raise them from the dead.
Choose a Disadvantage
If you took a Heroic Trait, you must also take a Disadvantage. A listing of these can be found in the Adventurers Section on the "Disadvantages" page HERE
If you chose the Nonhuman Trait, you must also take the Nonhuman Disadvantage. If you took the Nonhuman Trait and elected to also take a second Heroic Trait, you must take a second Disadvantage.
Because Paul's character is a dwarf, he has to have the "Nonhuman" Disadvantage. Because he also took the Tireless Trait he needs to choose a second one and decides on Enemy. He pitches that the enemy is an Uruk whose brother he killed during a border skirmish who wants revenge.
Assign Skill Ranks
Skills are rated in terms of "Rank" - an numerical rating where a higher value means your character is better at using the Skill in question.
There is more about Skill Tests in the Mechanic section on the "Skill Tests" page HERE
The Gateway Skills are Athletics, Combat, Influence, Linguist, Lore, Pathfinder, Perception, Stealth and Tinker.
The three Saves - Agility, Endurance and Resolve are also considered Skills and can also be assigned Ranks.
There is more about Skills in the Adventurers Section on the "Skills" page HERE
If you took the Caster Heroic Trait you add the Magic Skill, which begins at Rank 1 (or Rank 3 if you also took the Prodigy Trait). You don't have to assign a Rank to Magic. It begins a Rank 1 (or 3). It can't be raised or changed.
Paul knows the Skill is most important to his dwarf fighter is Combat so he assigns Rank 3 to it. Looking over the list of skills and saves Athletics, Perception, Agility, Endurance and Resolve all seem to fit. He settles on Combat 3, Athletics 2, Resolve 2, Agility 1, Endurance 1, Perception 1.
Choose two Feats
Feats are special abilities that extend what your character can do.
During character creation you may give your character two Feats. There is no cost or trade off so there is no reason not to. At this point, you may only choose Feats from the Basic Feats list HERE
Make sure your character meets any prerequisites the Feat may have. A Feat that says "Open" has no prerequisites and can be taken by anyone.
During character creation you cannot be take Feats from the Heroic or Epic feats lists. Those are only accessible later by experienced characters.
Paul spend some time familiarizing himself with the Basic Feats. He settles on Brawling and Fighter, making note of several others he wants to add as soon as possible.
Finishing Touches
You will need a name for your character. For many players this is tough. Feel free to reach out to the community for ideas. There are also some excellent resources online for ttrpgs you may find useful, at least as a starting point.
You will also need to determine Motivations for your character. We use a standard list you can find HERE and ask that all characters are eventually assigned a Primary and Secondary Motivation but new characters only have to have one when you start playing them.
Lastly take a look at the available Factions listed HERE and see if there is anything you would like your character to be associated with.
Your badge will be prepared for you by the Staff and available at check in. It will have a summary of your character but make sure you know what your Heroic Traits, Disadvantages and Feats do. There is more about player badges HERE
Paul resorts to a Fantasy Name Generator online and dubs his new creation Altur Oakentank. Looking through the Motivations it is clear Altur is a Champion Scrapper. He decides Altur is a wandering adventurer bit that his loyalty lies with the Thane of Durgen. After submitting his dwarf Paul gets to work on a costume.
EDIT: I will add a character background worksheet at some point.
NOTE: No attempt has been made to balance this system. It is very abusable but don’t.
