Creating a character (Story Engine)
From Ardesia
Characters in Story Engine are defined by their description, so character-creation in this system is part of the creative process.
Certain features of characters have special significance for how the mechanics of Story Engine work. Whether you haven't even the faintest clue about who you'll be playing or you've already crafted an entire well-rounded and meticulously-historied character, the following steps will help focus on and formalise the things that need to be written down for a Story Engine character.
This is not meant to be a complete guide to character creation, but rather to sketch the important steps of the process conceptually and creatively. This page isn't a replacement for the rulebook or for the input of the Narrator.
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[edit] Role
Start by describing the character in broad strokes. A character might be initially described as a grim wanderer of iron will, a carefree youth with a flair for adventure and the luck of the devil, a frail academic plumbing dark mysteries, and so on. This description doesn't have to capture everything about the character, but it should reflect the most important ways in which they are different from the next traveller on the road. This is the role of the character, as in a play.
[edit] Descriptors
Once you have a broad outline for the character, start filling in the most prominent details. (Don't worry about practical skills for now: those come later.) Think of facets of their personality that make them unique. Are they tall? Cowardly? The fleetest of foot in town? Strong? Patient as a tortoise? Try to capture the features that make up the broad description you came up with and say something about each one for starters, and then add more from there. The carefree youth mentioned above might have "a winning smile", "enough luck for two", "a quick hand", and "a quicker wit". The first two are already implied in the broad strokes while the last two fit the overall style of the character and flesh her out a bit.
Aim for three or four of these descriptors. Don't worry if you have too many to begin with. Pick the few that are most suitable and save the rest for later. They can be added to the character in the course of the story, either revealed as a facet of their personality that was there "all along" or added as a bit of character development as the character learns more about themself.
[edit] Aspect
For each descriptor you've created, decide whether it fits best under Mind, Matter, Spirit, or Chaos. These Aspects represent the sphere that each descriptor is a part of.
- Mind descriptors have to do with mundane but non-physical features, such as being charming, persuasive, quick-witted, plain-speaking, quick on the draw, sharp as a tack, calm under pressure, flirty, mercurial, or hopelessly idealistic.
- Matter descriptors have to do with physical features, such as being strong, willowy, beautiful, tough as a nail, quick on the draw, dexterous, or having an iron constitution.
- Spirit descriptors have to do with inner or hidden strength, power, or belief. Features such as deep-souled, inner tranquillity, strong of faith, indomitable, walks the Way, iron-willed, tenacious, or patience of a saint fit under Spirit.
- Chaos descriptors are about luck and chance, such as wild, goes with the flow, lives each day as if it was her last, senses the underlying truths, thrill-seeker, takes life as it comes, gives up to chance, flighty, perceives the pattern in chaos, tempts fate, unpredictable, or loves trouble.
When a descriptor could belong to two or more Aspects, choose which one it refers to. For example, "strong-willed" could mean resistant to persuasion (Mind) for one character, and could mean possessed of great inner strength (Spirit) for another. Which Aspect you choose will make it clear what each descriptor means. A descriptor can belong to only one Aspect, and once assigned it won't change.
[edit] Quirks
At least one facet of the character should be something that most would consider a negative, like "quick tempered", "crass", "clumsy as a drunken pig", or "weak eyes". Since Story Engine is narrative, such "negatives" add colour and depth to the story that would otherwise be missing. To reflect this, such quirks will sometimes be worth as much toward achieving the players' goals as the more typically positive descriptors. In this spirit, think of something that adds depth and personality to the character that suits them. A soldier of "great faith" might also be "stubborn as a mule"; an "irresistibly charming" superspy might be "afraid of spiders".
Unlike normal descriptors, quirks don't have an Aspect.
[edit] Trait Affinities
With an idea of what sort of person the character is, you've probably started to think about what sort of life they lead. Come up with a few talents they have, practical skills they've leart, and aptitudes they've shown. These are trait affinities and represent what the character is particularly good at doing. A sailor might have swordplay and climbing as trait affinities.
Traits are assigned a degree of affinity: weak, mild, or strong. Weak trait affinities are better than the average person, but not much to write home about yet. Mild trait affinities represent a decent level of ability but still with room for improvement. Strong trait affinities are those that are practised enough to be nearly second nature.
Some examples of trait affinities: Long Distance Running, Cooking, Engineering, Seduction, Throwing Knives, Knowledge of Rare Cat Breeds, Swimming, Horseback Archery, Caving, Shepherding, Argravian Ale Brewing, Staying Upright While Drunk, Astronomy, Gastronomy, Desert Survival, Sailmaking, Sailing, Knucklebones, Herbalism.
[edit] Trait breadth
A trait affinity can be broad or narrow, depending on what is suitable for the character. For example, someone might have the very general Swords, which would include knowing how to swing one, as well as how to identify the swordsmith and sword valuation. Someone else might have the more specific skill Swordplay, giving them the ability to know and fight with different swords and the appropriate style; know how to repair a range of blades; and identify the culture a sword came from. Another character might have the even narrower skill Rapier Fencing, giving them knowledge of specific feints, gambits, and other handling tactics; the duelling laws (written and unwritten) of their home territory; and identify who an opponent learnt from.
The advantage of a broad skill is broad application during the story, which is traded off of greater difficulty when trying to use it for something specific. The advantage of a narrow skill is greater advantage when it is used, traded against fewer circumstances where it is applicable. Essentially, choose a broad or narrow trait as appropriate for the character and it is more likely to be useful in that character's story.
[edit] Prime Affinities
Every character has at least one thing that has indelibly shaped them. A dwarf from the freeholds will reflect their origin in every aspect of their life and interaction with others; a daring mage has made a life of exploring magic; the pirate's life leaves an indelible mark. These influences are prime affinities and represent the context that is so much a part of the character that they often forget it could have been different, like water to a fish.
Prime affinities can be Cultural or Gifts.
[edit] Cultural affinities
A culture can be a country or a subculture: a Minoman monk could have Tayelan Culture or the Minoman Temple as his prime affinity, depending on which one shaped his outlook more. Prime affinities represent the context in which a character is most comfortable. In scenes unrelated to this context you would expect them to be at somewhat of a disadvantage, just as a guileless monk will be (perhaps comically) out of place her first time outside the Temple and in the wider world. A character can have more than one prime affinity and new ones can be picked up in the course of the story.
[edit] Gifts
Powers beyond mere skills and aptitudes are Gifts. A dragon's ability to shapechange, a witch's immersion in the craft, the agelessness of a Queen, or a wizard's grasp of the fundamentals of magic is a Gift. Gifts can be anything that make sense in the context of the story and the character. Due to their scope and flexibility, Gifts should be developed in tandem with the Narrator.
Magic is a Gift that is treated specially.
[edit] Magic
All characters, not just "wizards", may have magic abilities of some kind. Magic has two parts in Story Engine characters: magic trait affinities (i.e., skills or spells), and magic prime affinities.
[edit] Magic traits
Magic trait affinities represent specific talents, abilities, or spells that the character can use. Magic trait afinities are not restricted to only those who have a magic affinity Gift, though those who have abilities without such formal learning are very unlikely to have more than one. Those who do have a Gift have the advantage of knowing what they do, and so working magic is a familiar context in which they have an advantage.
A magical skill could be Find Lost (weak), Imbue Durability (mild), Speak with Animals (weak), Sense Mood (strong), Weather Sense (mild), or Fire (weak). What a particular skill means is up to you and the Narrator. Note too that it may sometimes be appropriate for the character to have a skill that is fairly broad (like Speak with Animals) but not realise the extent of their skill at the beginning of the story (such as if they only ever talked to their pet dog). When choosing skills, note that a single skill can have several degrees of effect (reflected by a difficulty factor, in game terms) and can provide for a variety of creative effects.
When choosing a magic trait affinity you must also choose if it is arcane or essence magic. Note that a character that has a Gift affinity for arcane magic could have essence-based magic skills, for example. In a story sense such a skill would be an example of an innate skill that they learnt apart from their formal training; in game terms they would use it just as if they did not have a magic Gift. (Note that during the character's development over the course of the story, you can opt to have them lose skills through disuse or by being "overwritten" with a conflicting skill. The Story Points of skills so lost can be used for new skills.)
When giving a character a magic trait affinity, it should be marked as such if it's not obvious that it is a magical effect from the desccription (such as "Speak with Animals"). As well, whether it is an arcane or essence magic trait should be noted. For example, on the character sheet of an old amaranth farmer with an uncanny knack for sensing when bad weather is approaching you would write "Magic Trait: Weather Sense (mild) [essence]".
[edit] Magic affinity
Magic is a special sort of Gift that represents more than just the ability to invoke supernatural effects. Somewhat like a cultural affinity, a magic Gift gives a character a context in which they operate comfortably and a lens through which they see the world. While any character might have a talent that is beyond the ordinary, a Gift for magic represents the difference between "I dunno, I just do it" and knowing what magic is. Having a prime affinity for magic is the difference between a budding young mage furtively seeking overlooked secrets of magic in the Guild Library and a young child who assumes that animals can speak to everyone if only they'd bother to listen. (For comparison, consider a mathematical savant who can do long division in his head versus someone with a formal education in abstract mathematical theory.)
When choosing Magic as a Gift for a character, you must decide if it is an affinity for Arcane Magic or Essence Magic. Note that in Tayel, there is a long tradition of arcane magic while essence magic is nearly unknown (at least as a formal discipline). The choice will effect when the context of the Gift will apply. A character can have both arcane and essence magic affinities, but this is an unusual arrangement and would be appropriate only for certain characters (or for certain character developments).
Though a magic affinity alone would have an influence in scenes with a magic context, it is not enough on its own to do magic.
