Character Creation Challenge 2022

Best Selling RPGs - Available Now @ DriveThruRPG.com
Day 8: Mercenaries, Spies, and Private Eyes, Flying Buffalo

Name: Tory St. Benedict
Age: 28
Level: 1

Strength: 11
Luck: 12
IQ: 14
Dexterity: 11
Constitution: 12
Speed: 10

Hand-to-Hand Combat Adds: 0
Missile Adds: 0

Physical Description: Female, 5'6"/130 lbs. Long brown hair, usually tied in a ponytail. Brown eyes.

Occupation: Helicopter Pilot

Languages: English

Education: B.A. Geography

Occupational Skills: None

Special Interest Skills: None

Recreational Skills: None

Environmental Skills: Desert 1, Forest 1, Jungle 1

Other Skills: Clip Pistol 1, Electronic Countermeasures 1, Electronics 1, Observation 1, Pilot (Helicopter) 2, Pugilism 1, Rifle 1, Tactical 1

Gear: Leather Flight Jacket, Crash Helmet, Walther PPK Pistol with 6 Magazines (in thigh holster), Browning BLR Rifle with 40 Rounds (usually stowed in helicopter), $44

Backstory: Tory is a modestly experienced bush chopper pilot who can also handle herself in a fight when necessary. After studying geography in college, she decided that she wanted to see the world up close and personal, and decided that enrolling in a helicopter flight training program was a good way to do it. Once she was licensed, she found work with various charter companies and the occasional special contract gig. Whether it's flying a research team to a remote worksite, or extracting a mercenary squad from a hot LZ, she's done it all in a rather short span of years. Her long-term goal is to save enough money to fund her own helicopter and ground crew, so she can work for herself, but for now, she flies for whovever pays her and provides her with a chopper.
 
Wow those rules look pretty functional. Were they?

About as well as any OSR set did in the day, I suppose. What the hell did I know in the Seventies, after all?

But I think the measure of the original EPT rules is how very many different rulesets have been created for Tekumel, certainly more than for any other setting. Classic example of love the setting, hate the rules.

Another factor is that the original EPT book has only nine pages of setting detail, an unfortunately tiny amount for one of the densest RPG settings ever created. A good many of those biographical details I referenced (name, lineage, clan, info about Sokatis, the importance of marriage to the Tsolyani) come from my knowledge of the setting as set forth in other works and websites.
 
Day 8

Here's a 1st edition AD&D character I recently ran in an online game. We're trying to explore Castle Greyhawk and so far our results have been fairly dismal. My first character made it for a while but died when he tried to recover the body of one of our party who went down amidst a throng of zombies. The guy I'm sharing here had some promise, but due to having a potion of giant strength or something like that, I thought he could take down an iron golem with a heavy door he'd ripped off its hinges. Unfortunately he failed his save vs poison when it released its vapors and down he went. Memorable death, but dead nonetheless...

Name: Malgrum
Race: Half-Orc (half-dork perhaps?)
Class: Thief
Level: 1
Alignment: NE

AC: 8
HP: 6

Str: 15
Int: 9
Wish: 9
Dex: 14
Con: 15
Cha: 9

Weapons:
3 daggers
Sling with bullets & stones

I didn't write up any background for him as I didn't think he'd get very far. We'll, I was correct, so yay me!
 
I read a few Lone Wolf books long ago but never systematically collected them. I didn't have the full rpg until last year and this is the first character I made. It's unusual as a game as it assumes every PC is a member of an order of fantasy Jedi. There are simple and complex rules - I went with complex which adds willpower, defense, traits, and skills, which moves it from rules light to rules medium.

#8 Lone Wolf rpg
Silent Spirit, Rank 5 (you start at rank 5)

Combat Skill 15, (also +2 from sword, +2 from shield), Endurance 23, Willpower 18, Defense 3

Disciplines: Camouflage, MIndshield, Mind Blast, Mind over Matter, Weapon skill in sword

Equipment: green tunic and cloak, a backpack, a belt and a leather pouch, map of the Lastlands, 1 meal, rope, chain mail, shield, 13 gc

Weapon: sword

Traits: Keen Senses, Higher Mind

Skills: Investigate +1, Occult +1

Kai’s Favor: 2
 
Day 9:

So in my seeking to switch things up and around, I was thinking, earlier today. We're creating characters from a blizzard of different systems, and much of what we're coming up with is tough (or impossible) to understand for those unfamiliar with those systems. And heck, if you aspire to use any of these characters in your own campaigns, you'll be converting them anyway to your preferred systems ... and if you aren't going to use them, it doesn't matter anyway, right? So I'm about to create a character without reference to a system. If you feel like using him, plug in whatever numbers/skills/stuff works with your system.

Daerion is a human, about 30, and he's charitably what one would call a rogue. He's up for hanging out with adventurers, he knows how to use a shortsword, he's good at throwing knives. But what he really is is a confidence man and stage magician. He feels that combat's messy, that killing's inelegant, and that scams and misdirections are much more fun ... nobody gets hurt that way! So he has the following traits:

* He's good looking (but not TOO pretty), with a smooth voice and an easy manner. Much more calm and soothing than commanding. He's a fine actor, thinks quickly on his feet, and works with three or four stock characterizations, the better to react smoothly and naturally.

* Persona One is as "Lord Daerion Blackheron," a fourth son of minor nobility, for which he has a fine tunic and matching half-cape, an embroidered coat of arms, a signet ring, a pint of the finest wine, and the slightly sheepish tale that he's a remittance man, and doesn't collect his next stipend for another month ... why, he's even had to sell the jewels in his scabbard because they failed to make the last payment! (Displays empty sockets in said scabbard.)

* Persona Two is as a minstrel. He has a good singing voice, he's a decent raconteur, and he plays a bombard, a double reed Breton instrument that basically is a recorder that sounds like a bagpipe, and makes the most appalling high pitched sounds when played well, never mind badly. (... for an example) He uses this small instrument for signaling, as well as just flailing away on it behind those rocks there, so he can then cry out in mock horror, "Ahhhhh!! It is the Unholy Piping! The Demon Gnizz is loose!! The Gods save us!" and such like.

* This is aided by Persona Three, an entirely colorless and obsequious herbalist who blends in to the background. Daerion actually does have some skill at herbalism/first aid (and perhaps a minimal Alchemy) level, but what this knowledge is mostly good for is parlor tricks. He'll palm an herbal soporific and put it in your drink. He'll rub ash on a fist-sized lump of sugar, set it on fire, and do nefarious things under the huge cloud of dense white smoke. He'll put some other herb in your drink, have a confederate run screaming from the tavern that he's pissing blue and has the Dreaded Blue Smoke Plague, wait for you to find out the same, and confess that only he knows the cure.

So sure, Daerion has some "thief" skills: he's reasonably stealthy, he's okay (but not great) with disguises, he's quite good at sleight of hand, and he's a good pickpocket (more along the likes of planting things ON you than taking things FROM you -- why, he can get arrested if he's caught doing that!!). But he can't pick a lock, disarm a trap, climb a sheer wall, backstab any better than anyone else trained to arms can, etc. Beyond that, he's not rich -- he likes to live well, and he'll adventure for the fun and challenge of it, not for any particular gain or goal. He's also pretty "disadvantage" free, although it'd be perfectly reasonable for him to have enemies. If your system has a trait for "doesn't own more than he can safely throw in his saddlebags for his inevitable late night escape from town ahead of the authorities," he has it.

There. How's that for twenty minutes of work?
 
(Didn't take me more than a couple minutes to come up with a TFT treatment for Daerion: ST 8/DX 12/IQ 12, with the Carousing, Sword, Bard, Charisma, Streetwise, Naturalist, Courtly Graces and Pickpocket talents. I could mirror him much better with GURPS, granted.)
 
Day #8
MERC by FGU

Name: Daniel 'Ghost' Silva
Age:31
Nationality: USA
Height:5'8"
Weight: 145 lbs
Hair Color: Blonde
Eye Color: Hazel
Complexion: Ruddy
Voice: Commanding +5 CC test
Handed: Left
Frame: Medium
Carrying Capacity: Average
Build: Average

Primary: Recon
Secondary: Camouflage Expert


Strength:33 ,Average
Agility: 61 +10 Test ,Assassin
Intelligence:41 +5 Test, Average
Knowledge:43 +5 Test ,General Knowledge
Intuition:63 +5 Test, Primordial
Prior Service:62 +20 test, Special Services

Stress Test:46
Dexterity Test:46
Command Control Test:61

Gear: Pack (with Rations, Water, and Survival Gear,), M16A1 Rifle with 10 Magazines, M1911 Pistol with 4 Magazines, 4 Fragmentation Grenades, Knife, Helmet, Med kit.

Backstory:
Daniel joined the Marines and quickly ended up in Recon. A born leader he always had a soft spot for the runt of the litter. He found that in Clive "Grunty" Randall. The man was not a born soldier but he did what he was told without pushback. Dan's done his best to keep him alive even when he advanced to more elite units. Now he's back with him again for another job
 
Day 8

Okay, so technically I'm late on this, but I think I can be excused for two reasons:

1) I'm late because I was gaming, and
2) I never went to bed, so it's still day 8 for me.

This is a character from The Superverse, a supplement that I self-published for five different games. However, this version of the character is for Elemental, a universal system that I just learned about and purchased today.


Freedom Star (59 XP)
Real Name: Douglass Wells (Veteran, Astronomer, Teacher, and Legendary Superhero)
Race: Human

Attributes
  • Agility: 4
  • Toughness: 4
  • Awareness: 4
  • Will: 6
Derived Stats
  • Move: 19
  • Health: 19
  • Initiative: 19
  • Spirit: 30

Skills (7)
  • Athletics (AGL) 1
  • Cover (AGL) 1
  • Missile Deflection (AGL) 1
  • Multistrike (AGL) 1
  • Unarmed Strike (AGL) 1
  • Second Wind (TOU) 1
  • Background: Astronomy (AWA) 1
  • Command (WIL) 1
Powers
  • Attack (AGL)
  • Damage (TOU)
  • Defense (WIL)
  • Force Field (WIL)
  • Immortality (AWA)
  • Ranged Attack (WIL)

Origin:
Douglass Wells was always fascinated by stars. Gazing at them blazing in the night’s sky inspired him with feelings of awe, humility, and wonder. Watching them flutter on the flag reminded him of the universal rights of humankind and renewed his hope that all would one day enjoy the blessings of liberty. The star on his grandfather Hosea Well’s Medal of Honor filled him with pride. It also reminded him that freedom and justice depend on action and sacrifice. Then there were Grandmother Hannah Wells’ stories - how she followed the North Star out of slavery, how she returned to the South as an Underground Railroad operative to bring others to freedom, and how a celestial force guided her throughout. More than anybody, Grandmother Hannah seemed to embody all that Douglass saw in stars.

From her deathbed on December 6, 1941, Hannah Wells explained to Douglass that her connection to the heavens was more direct than he’d ever imagined. A cosmic gemstone that fell from the skies had enabled her to escape slavery. She’d snatched it from where it landed, studied it for a time, and learned how to control its energies. She’d then enclosed the gem in a hand-held lantern and, at great personal danger, used its properties to light the way from the darkness of slavery and towards the light of freedom. In her final moments, Hannah passed the gemstone on to Douglass, charging him to use its power in the great struggle for freedom that was to come. The following week, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Douglass mounted his grandmother’s gemstone on a ring, donned a costume evocative of his grandfather’s Civil War uniform, and volunteered his services to the U.S. war effort as Freedom Star.

Subsequent History:
Freedom Star fought valiantly during World War II as one of the founding members of the Four Freedoms and stayed with the team when the government redubbed it the Freedom Corps during the 1960s. By decade’s end, however, Freedom Star found himself unable to reconcile his sense of ethics with the Vietnam War and the turbulent politics of the era. Consequently, he resigned from the Freedom Corps in 1968 and retired as Freedom Star later that year.

Douglass kept busy during retirement, marrying his longtime girlfriend, Emma Coleman, and settling down to raise a large family. Douglass also pursued a degree in astronomy, earning a doctorate in the 1980s and settling into a second career as a teacher and planetarium director. During these years, he occasionally did consulting work for agencies exploring extraterrestrial phenomena. For more than three decades, however, Douglass has kept Freedom Star out of commission.

Current Situation:
Douglass Wells is in a state of personal crisis when the player characters meet him in “Heart of Iron, Will of Gold.” He remains fit of mind and body as a consequence of the Freedom Ring’s properties, but his wife, Emma, is elderly, ill, and on her deathbed. Douglass has tried using the Freedom Ring to heal her but to no avail. Emma Wells will die sometime between “Heart of Iron, Will of Gold” and “Bad Things Come in Small Packages” (see pages 130-151 and 152-160). Her passing, combined with other family crises, will cause Douglass to think more deeply about the state of the world that his children and grandchildren stand to inherit. Unless the player characters intervene, he’ll grow increasingly disturbed by global inequalities, eroding democracies, and environmental degradation. Douglass will come to believe that freedom deserves new champions, or, perhaps, just old champions anew. These convictions will come to a head in “Operation Homecoming” when he realizes the degree to which dangerous forces have infiltrated corporate America and the U.S. Government (see pages 168-201). Freedom Star will found the Freedom Ring if he survives, drawing together heroes of like mind into a team dedicated to fighting for a new birth of equality and freedom.

Personality:
Douglass Wells has a deep and abiding love of freedom that stems from his understanding of the United States’ founding documents and from the conviction that they should benefit humanity as a whole. Although deeply saddened by his nation’s failure to live up to the promise of freedom, Douglass chooses to focus on those moments in history when people have stood up and done the right thing. Douglass is profoundly compassionate and tends to recognize the best in people, even while remaining aware of their faults. His awareness of humanity’s often contradictory nature puzzles him, but he remains hopeful that love and justice can banish hatred and oppression. Douglass marvels at the scope of the cosmos as much as he does at the nature of humanity. His sense of connection to something larger than himself is another factor that allows him to maintain a positive perspective on life.

Douglass is joyful when around family and friends. He is more reserved in serious moments and is prone to listening and observing before giving counsel. When he does offer advice, it is always to encourage others to listen to their higher angels rather than give way to the natural emotions of anger and despair. Douglass, however, is quick to respond to oppression and resolute in his defense of freedom and justice. When dialogue breaks down, and violence is being done to others, Freedom Star neutralizes the threat before brokering the peace.

Powers and Tactics:
Freedom Star’s powers come from the cosmic gemstone mounted on his Freedom Ring. The gem allows him to generate and manipulate celestial energy, allowing him to project blasts of light, create energy shields, and illuminate his surroundings. The ring’s powers seem to be most effective when used defensively. In addition to wielding the Freedom Ring, Freedom Star is a superb athlete and an expert hand-to-hand combatant.

Appearance:
Although nearly 100 years old, Douglass has the physique of a professional athlete less than half his age. He is tall with dark brown hair, brown eyes, and medium brown skin. As Freedom Star, he wears a costume evocative of his grandfather’s Civil War uniform. His jacket is dark blue, with gold buttons adorning its left side and a white star emblazoned on the right. A gold-buckled black leather belt cinches his powder blue pants, which have a yellow stripe along the seam and tuck into black leather boots. A dark blue mask covers the top of his face. He wears the Freedom Ring, which is a transparent gemstone mounted on a golden band, on his right index finger. He often molds the energy that he projects from the Freedom Ring into shapes evocative his grandfather’s Civil War-era Medal of Honor.


Freedom Ring Blocking.png
Art by Joe Singleton
 
Last edited:
Day 9 - Maelstrom (Beggar's Companion)

Name: Sir Lewis Roland (Hugo Picard)
Sex: Male
Age: 18

Distinguishing Feature: Technophile: Character receives a +10 to all saving throws involving “new” technology such as clocks, navigational equipment, firearms (bonus does not apply to attack rolls) etc

Attack Skill 39
Missile Skill: 30
Defence Skill 35
Endurance 34
Speed 30
Agility 30
Will 30
Persuasion 55
Knowledge 35
Perception 36


Special Abilties

Disguise - Dummerar
Bribery
Contacts – Brotherhood
Lip Reading

Equipment:
Lump of Tallow
clothes
knife
staff
2 Shillings wrapped in a rag
4 days food

Background

Hugo isn't the only dummerar (a beggar who pretends to be mute and possibly deaf in Bury St. Edmonds, but his peers accept he's one of the best. His "Sir Lewis Roland" is a piece of art, a tragic and noble knight, his tongue ripped out by the heathens in defence of King and England. Somewhat ironic, considering Hugo is actually French. (He's found that pretending to be mute is far less of an issue for your average pigheaded Englishman than letting it be known you're one of the 'old enemy'). Hugo generally plugs his ears with tallow when working, relying on his lipreading ability where necessary rather than risk having his cover blown by an unexpected loud noise. Besides, it's surprising what people will discuss in front of a deaf beggar. On several occasions a local merchant has boasted about their big import, only to find the warehouse mysteriously empty a few days later.
 
Last edited:
Day 9:

So in my seeking to switch things up and around, I was thinking, earlier today. We're creating characters from a blizzard of different systems, and much of what we're coming up with is tough (or impossible) to understand for those unfamiliar with those systems. And heck, if you aspire to use any of these characters in your own campaigns, you'll be converting them anyway to your preferred systems ... and if you aren't going to use them, it doesn't matter anyway, right? So I'm about to create a character without reference to a system.

I think that's just as valid as an approach as any other, and systemless/freeform characters are great.

FWIW, I think that for most of us, the purpose is just to go through a character creation exercise in a variety of systems (especially for those of us who own many that we haven't touched in a while, if ever). It's not necessarily about producing output that others can use or even understand (that said, I feel you can get a little bit of insight into a system from just looking at a character sheet).
 
He could be Loind's little brother. Sir Loind and his smarter, cuter little brother Mugri. With our AC, we could hold the line while the revolving door of magic users and thieves do their thing.

#3, Moldvay Basic D&D
Loind Dwarf 1 Lawful

S 14, I 7 , W 9 , D 11 , C 13 , Ch 10

HP 7 , AC 2

Plate mail, shield, sword, hand axe, back pack, 1 week std rations, waterskin, hammer & spikes, rope, 21 gp
Languages: common, dwarvish, gnome, kobold, and goblin.
Infravision, detect stone stuff 1-2/6, find traps 1-2/6

Loind is a bit slow and he’s not of heroic proportions, but a solid companion. He comes from a well-off family so could afford good armor. He wanted a bow but decided to stick to a strong defense so he can hold the front line. He's hoping to gain enough renown to become a knight.
Love it! I’ve taken the morning to read through this entire thread (2/3 of the way there), so I just saw Loind this morning.

It’s been fun! I’ve been enjoying everybody’s creativity, revisiting old systems that I played back in the day, and being exposed to systems I’ve heard of but never played (I’m looking at you TFT) as well as systems that are entirely new to me.

Anyway, let me get back to catching up!

All the best,

TGIDragonfly
 
I think that's just as valid as an approach as any other, and systemless/freeform characters are great.

FWIW, I think that for most of us, the purpose is just to go through a character creation exercise in a variety of systems (especially for those of us who own many that we haven't touched in a while, if ever). It's not necessarily about producing output that others can use or even understand (that said, I feel you can get a little bit of insight into a system from just looking at a character sheet).
For me I have a ton of games I've never played and this is an opportunity to crack them open and see how to get started.
 
That just might be the best and most evocative entry yet, TGIDragonfly. Superbly done.

Thank you, good sir! I feel like the background and description is a BIT of a cheat, since Freedom Star is a character that I’d already developed, but I wanted to work with a character that I’m familiar with when exploring a new (to me) system, like Elemental.

Cheers!

TGIDragonfly
 
Day 9: Cyberpunk 2020, R. Talsorian Games

Name: "Lucky" Luis Garza
Role: Fixer
Age: 22

Intelligence: 7
Reflexes: 4
Cool: 9
Technical Ability: 3
Luck: 10
Attractiveness: 4
Movement: 3 (Run 9m, Leap 2m)
Empathy: 8
Body: 6 (Carry 60kg,, Lift 240kg, Body Type Modifier -2)

Skills:
Streetdeal 4 (Role Ability)
Awareness/Notice 6
Forgery 4
Handgun 4
Intimidate 3
Know Language (English) 6
Know Language (Spanish) 10
Melee 4
Persuasion 5
Pick Lock 4
Pick Pocket 5
Shadow/Track 5

Cyberware: None

Appearance: Mohawk, Earrrings, Cheap but Stylish Camouflage-Pattern Clothing, Fatigue Jacket (Armored)

Gear: Light Armor Jacket, Kendachi Monoknife, Federated Arms X-9mm with Silencer and Holster, 50 9mm Rounds, Mini Cell Phone with 2 Months of Service, B & E Tools, Urban Flash Clothing, One Room Apartment (Moderate Zone, 1 Month of Rent with Utilities), 475 NuYen

Backstory (I used the Lifepath system for this): Luis never knew his parents, having grown up on the streets as part of an extended gang family in Mexico. Eventually, they wound on the losing end of a turf war about five years ago, and the survivors made their way north, with Luis making a new home in Night City. There, he made a living as a hustler, occasional burglar, sporadic thug, and the archetypical "guy you know, who knows a guy." Despite his rather sketchy line of work, most find him affable and pleasant to be around, and he rarely takes things personally -- it's all just business and the way of the street, to him. While somewhat slow and awkward when it comes to physical activity, he's managed to somehow stay alive all this time as if protected by some kind of supernatural force, thus earning him the nickname "Lucky".
 
Day #9
Blue Planet 1st Edition

Name: Moooaaah
Awareness 80 (+17)
Charisma 40 (-10)
Education -10? (Elementary School?)
Experience 30 (-16)
Initiative 30 (-16)
Intellect 36 (-10)
Will 70 (+15)
Agility 30 (-16)
Appearance 70 (+15)
Constitution 60 (+10)
Dexterity 50/0 -
Endurance 70/8 (+15)
Speed 30 -(16)
Strength 50/7 -

Abilities
Echolocation, Movement(no land), Aquatic(Aquatic 100, swim rate 14m/action), Jumping, Natural Defense, Bite(Damage 1/25 2/50 3/75 4/90 5/100),
Ram (Damage 1/10 2/25 3/40 4/60 5/80 6/100), Toughness, Senses(+10 Intuition)

Origin: Poseidon (Son of colonist)

Skills

Goal: Survival
Motivation: Curiosity
Attitude: Arrogant
Age: 20
Length 6.43m
Weight 5,643kg
Build average

Profession: GEO Peacekeeper
Skill Groups: Athletics 40, Command 20, Firearms 40, Military Weapons 40, Survival 40, Vehicle 20
Skills: Tactics 40, Computer Operations 20, Demolitions 20, Colonial Culture 60, GEO Culture 40
Military Culture 60, Electronics Operations 20, Firearm(Autofire) 60, Military HtH 70, First Aid 40, Stealth 40
Piloting 40,Foraging 60, Fast Talk 10, Persuasion 10, Physical Training 50

Standard of Living:1,000cs a month


*A game with roughly 250 pages of backstory before you get to the beginning of the game mechanics is an interesting choice. I can see the interesting idea of the game but man I understand why a second edition was necessary.
 
Day 9: Jaws of the Six Serpents

Name: Krun
People: Earth Tribes of Kalet
Great [+4] [] [] [] [] Warrior
Good [+2] [] [] [] Rambunctious
Good [+2] [] [] [] Wine, Women & Song
Good [+2] [] [] [] Tough
Good [+2] [] [] [] Survival
Good [+2] [] [] [] Athletics
Good [+2] [] [] [] Cunning
Poor [-2] Hot-blooded

I figure it's high time for a PDQ game. For our first PDQ game, I'll go for sword and sorcery via Jaws of the Six Serpents, probably my favorite game for the genre. For the unaware, characters in PDQ are built using a "guided" free-form methodology. You describe characters in terms of their "Qualities", which are equal part attributes, skills & talents. These Qualities are rated on a five point scale from Poor at -2 to Expert at +6, with each step in between providing a dice modifier in +2 increments. Typically, when you "buy" a quality, you take it at Good [+2] unless its a supernatural ability, in which case you take it at Average [+0] and denote it with an asterisks like this "Average [+0] Sorcerer*". But I'm going all-in on the barbarian tropes today and won't be taking any supernatural Qualities. Any qualities you don't take are assumed to be at Average [+0] rank, meaning you can try anything but won't get a bonus for it.

In Jaws of the Six Serpets, JotSS for short, you start by deciding who your "people" are. There are a handful of such peoples listed in the book, each with a set of Qualities common to that culture. Ordinarily, I'd use my own people and cultures but for the ongoing challenge, I figure I'll stick to the book. So I begin by choosing the "Earth Tribes of Kalet", which are your stereotypical sword and sorcery barbarian culture. I also take Warrior from the listed qualities for the Earth Tribes as Good [+2]. Next, I a personal faculty that describes this character's personality. I'm going with Rambunctious today. The last thing I "need' to take is a motivation, which the game calls a driver. We're going to go for "Wine, Women & Song".

Having taken the three "required" Qualities, I now have 5 ranks to spend, either increasing existing Qualities or buying new ones at Good [+2]. I choose to put 1 point into the Warrior Quality, taking it to Great [+4]. Then I go for Tough, Survival, Athletics and Cunning to round out his strengths. The last thing I need to do is take a single weakness at Poor [-2], which in my case it "Hot-blooded" to represent a temper and tendency to leap without looking when his blood is up.

And with that, Krun (a name made with fantasy name generator, as usual) is ready to play. The empty boxes, shown as [], I put next to each Quality aren't typical. In PDQ games, damage from combat or social situations or whatever comes off your Qualities directly. After spending years and years with this game, I've fallen into the habit of giving each Quality its own stress track. That's what those are. They allow me to see at a glance what the current rating for any given Quality is. It's just a little something that makes my life easier at the table.
 
Clown Commando/General Jester
Drive: Vengeance

Might: Spectacular Human
Agility: Spectacular Human
Toughness: Exceptional Human
Intellect: Spectacular Human
Knowledge: Spectacular Human
Resolve: Exceptional Human

Known Powers: Technology
Armor (Military): Spectacular Human
-Camouflage Spectacular Human
Squirt Gun: Can do Spectacular Human damage as simple impact, or as a cutting tool with high pressure.
Laughing Grenade: These make monacial laughter and either explode with Average Superhuman Damage to an area, release tear gas, or cause hallucinations

Clown Car (Military APC): See standard stats.

Also may have 10-20 minions with high level military training. Despite the clown make up they (like CC himself actually have little real humor)
Assortment of military weapons.



Clown Commando/General Jester

Calling: Vengeance

Prowess: 2 Hand Size: 4

Might: 9
Climbing, Garrotes, Knives, Wrestling

Agility: 10
Artillery, Demolitions, Quick Escape*, Gadgetry, Marksmanship, Martial Arts

Intellect: 8
Assessment, Mechanics

Resolve: 8
Intimidation, Military

Powers:
Armored Vest +2
-Blending 5
Squirt Gun: +3 (High Pressure)
Laughing Grenades: Hallucinations +7
“Clown Car” (Assault ATV) Armor: 9 Superspeed 3
*Quick Escape - Leaves behind a dummy, decoy, or other trick.

Chaos Commandos (Minions) 12

Clown Commando can get any modern military weapons up to +4 Value for himself or his minions without making a check. (He can test his Military Skill to obtain say a Bazooka +5)

*Note his use of quick escape usually relies on smoke, mirrors, and often him leaving behind a "dummy" of himself that in the kind of environments he likes are often not-identifiable as a decoy at first glance.


Cloud Commando, sometimes referred to in the game as "General Jester" is a highly trained formerly high ranked (and purple heart winning) ex-special forces operative, Jake Carter, was many things in services of his country. The last ended with him wounded, and missing in action. He managed to over the course of several months to arrive back at the operations base, both a bit unhinged and still injured. After a year and a half of care and rehab, he left the military. In that time however his wife had left him taking their son. When he was fully back in civilian live she refused to let him see his son so he dressed as a clown to invade his own sons fourth birthday party. He arrived and sensed something was not right and so secreted a few dangerous items about himself. Of course this was when her new husband was hit by the mafia, it is unclear why however. Despite saving his wife and child, the deaths of so many 'civilian' did not sit well with the public, though his service and purple heart kept him out of jail.

Unfortunatly, the very fact that his actions were ever in question left him with a strong new anti-government streak. At first he struck only targets with mild pranks, but over time he escalated, and has become a notable threat, he includes superheroes in his actions, probably because of the routine way they get away with vigilante actions, as well as the understood but not talked about approval of the U.S. government. Now he works as a particularly strange mercenary, and while he has accepted the moniker of "Clown Commando," for his pranks, it now has a darker tone. While his actions may at times seem absurd or silly, their is almost always a purpose. Despite his anti government angle, he is also pretty strongly opposed to criminals (other than himself) walking a tightrope only he can see.

Some forensic psychologists have suggested that the Clown Commando is acting out his PTSD and should be treated.

Despite his goals Clown Commando is not a traditional villain, casual murder is not at all fitting with what he see's himself as, and he only abducts individuals with heavy political or criminal ties. Even then he has so far a non-existent death toll after his rescue of his ex-wife and son. (Not the doesn't try and at least take down superheroes, down, not out.)
 

Attachments

  • 604f98718801f8a15c0f9581c7f4a1c0.jpg
    604f98718801f8a15c0f9581c7f4a1c0.jpg
    33.4 KB · Views: 1
#9, Mickey, for Warlock
Warlock has quite a bit of wfrpg in it. It's skill and career based, where you're expected to do a couple basic careers before getting an advanced career. It has more skills that I generally like but it's still pretty simple. Basic resolution rule skill + 1d20, success if 20+. Given that nothing starts above 12 and only 1-2 skills will be above 6, be prepared to generally suck at first. I rolled randomly and got wizard's apprentice. This reminded me of how harsh magic is, sucking up you stamina, needing to roll to succeed, and bad things 5% of the time. Long term, I think Mickey might become more or a con artist and archer with a few utility spells.

1641775507018.png
 
I think that's just as valid as an approach as any other, and systemless/freeform characters are great.

FWIW, I think that for most of us, the purpose is just to go through a character creation exercise in a variety of systems (especially for those of us who own many that we haven't touched in a while, if ever). It's not necessarily about producing output that others can use or even understand (that said, I feel you can get a little bit of insight into a system from just looking at a character sheet).
I'd agree. I frequently can get a decent handle on a game from a character sheet. Stats and skills are a good way of seeing what the game considers important enough to focus on. Stunts/Powers even more so.

I also find that games that describe their weapons as a "medium pistol" frequently play differently than those that go into minute detail about what type of weapon someone has.
 
I'd agree. I frequently can get a decent handle on a game from a character sheet. Stats and skills are a good way of seeing what the game considers important enough to focus on. Stunts/Powers even more so.

I also find that games that describe their weapons as a "medium pistol" frequently play differently than those that go into minute detail about what type of weapon someone has.
One thing I learn from going through the character creation process is how good is there editing and organization. It's shocking how many games I've tried to make a character and I'm not sure if I'm doing it correctly.
 
One thing I learn from going through the character creation process is how good is there editing and organization. It's shocking how many games I've tried to make a character and I'm not sure if I'm doing it correctly.
Despite the fact that I'm very familiar with JCoM, I still managed to forget calculating stress because, bizarrely, the game didn't include it in the character creation chapter.

Organization is everything in a game book.
 
Ok, so I missed Day 8, so I'll be doing days 8 and 9 together, as an adventuring pair.

Days 8 and 9: Dungeons & Dragons 5e, with material from official supplements as well as The Book of The Righteous and The Adventurer's Almanac

Ok, so we'll start with character one.

Sister of Beneficence Brija, a matriarch of the Healing Halls of Morwyn
Brija grew up a poor orphan on the streets of Sutcliff, a port town in the kingdom of Mirab. The only thing she had to remember her parents by was her mother's brass ring, given to her as she lay dying. Brija's life was hard, and she learned how to survive. She stole, she lied, she cheated, anything to get through another day. Then, in her mid-teens, something changed. The old Healing Hall of Morwyn, abandoned for a generation, was reopened by a new group of Morwynites. While everyone gives praise to the Queen of Heaven, few can actually handle living the life of, peace, harmony, charity and love for all required to serve the White Lady in a direct fashion. But now the Hall was open again, offering healing, comfort and guidance to all, things that had not been available to Brija's parents. At first when Brija went to work at the Hall, she saw it as just another grift, and a chance to get back at the Morwynites for not being there for her parents. But slowly, she went from merely mouthing the words to wholeheartedly believing them, and seeing in her service to the Goddess of Healing and Wisdom a way to save others from the pain she herself suffered in her youth. She went from cleaning the floors to joining the White Hands (the order of non-magical healers) to finally becoming a Matriarch, one of the all-female priesthood of Morwyn. Now, she stands ready to go out into the world and bring the love of Morwyn to wherever it is needed most.

Class/Level: Cleric of Morwyn (Life Domain), Level 1
Race: Human (Variant)
Sex: Female
Background: Urchin
Alignment: Neutral Good
Size: Medium
Height: 5'10''
Weight: 166 lbs
Age: 19

Abilities
Strength: 8 (-1)
Dexterity: 14 (+2)
Constitution: 14 (+2)
Intelligence: 10 (+0)
Wisdom: 16 (+3) [Proficient Save]
Charisma: 12 (+1) [Proficient Save]

Move: 30
Hit Points: 10
AC: 16/18 (Shield)

Proficiency Bonus + 2
Armor: Light Armor, Medium Armor, Heavy Armor, Shields
Weapons: Simple Weapons
Saves: Wisdom, Charisma
Tools: Disguise Kit, Thieves Tools,
Skills: Medicine, Religion, Insight, Sleight of Hand, Stealth
Languages: Vostalese, Pranish

Feats: Healer

Life Domain
Domain Spells: Bless, Cure Wounds
Disciple of Life (all healing spells heal an additional 2+spell level HP)
Spell Slots Level 1: 2
Cantrips: Guidance, Spare the Dying, Thaumaturgy
Prepared spells: Bless, Cure Wounds, Ceremony, Detect Poison and Disease, Healing Word, Sanctuary

Armor: Scale Mail (AC 14, +2 DEX mod), Shield (+2)
Weapons: Quarterstaff (1D4/1D6 Bludgeoning, +1 to hit)
Equipment: A small knife, a map of Sutcliffe, a pet mouse (Max), mother's old brass ring, a set of common clothes, Holy symbol of Morwyn (Crystal tear), Backpack, blanket, 10 candles, a tinderbox, an alms box, 2 blocks of incense, a censer, vestments (white and green), 2 days of rations, a waterskin, a small packet filled with pink dust, a pouch containing 15 Gold Crowns.

Personality Trait: I ask a lot of questions
Ideal: Respect - All people, rich or poor, deserve respect.
Bond: No one else should have to endure the hardships I've been through
Flaw: It's not stealing if I need it more than someone else

Process
Alright, so since I'm doing two characters today, I decided to do a connected pair. One idea for this is a cleric and a paladin of Morwyn, the Goddess of Healing and Wisdom (see The Book of the Righteous for more info on Morwyn). I started with deciding on class, doing the Cleric first. Next came race. Since I knew I wanted the Healing feat, variant human was the only choice. Gender was easy, Morwyn only has female Clerics. Then I did the abilities. I went with the array for the Cleric, distributing a 15, a 14, a 13, a 12, a 10 and an 8 among her stats. Wisdom was obviously going to be the number one stat, so I put the 15 there and added one of the human increases to make it 16, pushing the stat bonus to +3. Then I distributed the rest, adding in one more +1 to bring Con up to 14 and a +2 bonus. Putting STR as 8 for a Cleric might seem odd at first, but I have a plan. The Matriarch's of Morwyn are pretty much pacifists. Morwyn never uses violence, and I don't intend for it to be a big focus for Brija either. I picked the spells according to the same logic, there are no damage dealing spells in there. I also sold the Mace you get for being a Cleric and just kept a Quarterstaff, the weapon of the Matriarchs (and you might notice one of my house rules there, I lower the damage of the Quarterstaff to not make it the obviously best simple weapon). I then chose Brija's background, and went with her being a former street urchin. This will give her some unusual skills for a priestess of the most Lawful Good cult in the land. I also chose to make Brija Neutral Good (which is fine, you can be one step away on any axis and still be a Cleric of a cult, so Morwyn has Lawful Good, Neutral Good and Lawful Neutral clergy) in order to fit in with her views on property, stealing etc. Then I picked Brija's three remaining skills (two from being a Cleric, one from being a human) and her equipment (Priest's pack). And she's good to go adventuring. Except for one last thing.

Brother Endrok, Faithful Son of Morwyn
Endrok joined the Healing Halls of Morwyn in his young teens. He was the third son of a merchant, and his father thought a religious career would thus suit him best. Of course, he had hoped his son might have joined a temple with more chances for political and monetary advancement (maybe a House of Darmon or a Guildhall of Korak) but Endrok had always felt drawn to the Morwynites and their teachings of charity, mercy, gentleness and wisdom. As a male, he was inducted into the holy order of the Faitfhul Sons, tasked with the protection of the Matriarchs. He has trained for several years, and went with his Master in the order, Tajus, to Sutcliff when the Healing Hall there was reopened by Tajus' charge. Now stands ready to take up his first real task for the order: protecting Sister Brija on her travels.

Class/Level: Paladin of Morwyn (Oath of Redemption or Oath of Mercy)
Race: Human (Variant)
Sex: Male
Background: Acolyte
Alignment: Lawful Good
Size: Medium
Height: 5'11''
Weight: 170 lbs
Age: 20

Abilities
Strength:16 (+3)
Dexterity: 11 (+0)
Constitution: 14 (+2)
Intelligence: 12 (+1)
Wisdom: 14 (+2) [Proficient Save]
Charisma: 16 (+3) [Proficient Save]

Move: 30
Hit Points: 12
AC: 16/18 (with shield)

Proficiency Bonus + 2
Armor: Light Armor, Medium Armor, Heavy Armor, Shields
Weapons: Simple Weapons, Martial Weapons
Saves: Wisdom, Charisma
Tools: -
Skills: Animal Handling, Athletics, Insight, Persuasion, Religion
Languages: Vostalese, Sooril, Pranish, Goblin

Feats: Shield Master

Armor: Chain Mail (AC 16), Shield (+2)
Weapons: Warhammer (1D8/1D10 Bludgeoning, Versatile), Bundle of five Javelins (1D6 Piercing, range 30'/120')
Equipment: Holy symbol of Morwyn (Crystal Tear), Holy Symbol of Morwyn (Wreath of Cherry blossoms), a prayer book of Morwynite prayers, 5 sticks of incense, vestments (white and blue), a set of common clothes, a backpack, a bedroll, a mess kit, a tinder box, 10 torches, 10 days of rations, a waterskin, 50 feet of hemp rope strapped to pack, a pouch with 15 Gold Crowns.

Personality Trait: I can find common ground between the fiercest enemies, empathizing with them and always working toward peace.
Ideal: Charity - I always try to help those in need, no matter what the personal cost
Bond: My first priority is to protect my charge, Sister Brija
Flaw: I am inflexible in my thinking

Process
So, the matriarchs of Morwyn are almost always accompanied by one of the Faithful Sons, the all male order of Paladins in the Morwynite faith. The Sons are still focused on peace, mercy, charity and wisdom and do not use violence as their first resort, but unlike the matriarchs they are trained for combat, and willing to engage in it to protect their charges, or anyone else who needs protecting. So, while Brija does not really fight her self, in dire need, Endrok is her weapon. I decided to roll Endrok's ability scores. I ended up with 13, 11, 15, 16, 12 and 14. So a lot better than the array. I went with variant human for Endrok too, and decided to increase the 13 and the 15, leaving one 11. Strength and Charisma got the 16s, Constitution and Wisdom the 14s, Intelligence the 12 and Dexterity the 11. Then it was just picking weapons and armor for the Paladin class, the Cleric class is more front loaded with complexity. For background I picked Acolyte. Endrok is more familiar with the temple's traditions and hierarchy than Brija is, and also a lot less "flexible" when it comes to interpreting Morwyn's commands. There is some good room for conflict there, but not so much so as to derail anything.

So, two D&D characters who would prefer to avoid fighting and will try to redeem any mortal foes they encounter rather than killing them. And with their skills and abilities they should have a pretty good chance of handling many situations without violence. Of course demons, undead and other abominations are fair game.
 
Last edited:
Crap, I forgot their Star signs. Brija was born in the month of Drawblade (roughly April/May), under the sign of the Soldier in Tattered Armor. She can be domineering, but also loyal and dedicated. She didn’t roll a gameplay quirk.

Endrok was born in the month of Starfall (August/September) under the sign of Aegar the Shieldman. He’s patient and friendly, but can also be a bit obtuse. No gameplay quirks there either.
 
One thing I learn from going through the character creation process is how good is there editing and organization. It's shocking how many games I've tried to make a character and I'm not sure if I'm doing it correctly.
Sometimes, you also have to flip back and forth to hunt for basic info needed for character generation. I remember giving up on Mouseguard after reading through the book and making a character.
 
Sometimes, you also have to flip back and forth to hunt for basic info needed for character generation. I remember giving up on Mouseguard after reading through the book and making a character.
I like it when there’s a clear process laid out on a page or a spread. Preferably with concise versions of the necessary rules, but at least with all the steps needed and the page number for each rule step.
 
Sometimes, you also have to flip back and forth to hunt for basic info needed for character generation. I remember giving up on Mouseguard after reading through the book and making a character.
Mouseguard is on my list for this month so I'll see if I run into the same issue
 
Day #9
Blue Planet 1st Edition

Name: Moooaaah
Awareness 80 (+17)
Charisma 40 (-10)
Education -10? (Elementary School?)
Experience 30 (-16)
Initiative 30 (-16)
Intellect 36 (-10)
Will 70 (+15)
Agility 30 (-16)
Appearance 70 (+15)
Constitution 60 (+10)
Dexterity 50/0 -
Endurance 70/8 (+15)
Speed 30 -(16)
Strength 50/7 -

Abilities
Echolocation, Movement(no land), Aquatic(Aquatic 100, swim rate 14m/action), Jumping, Natural Defense, Bite(Damage 1/25 2/50 3/75 4/90 5/100),
Ram (Damage 1/10 2/25 3/40 4/60 5/80 6/100), Toughness, Senses(+10 Intuition)

Origin: Poseidon (Son of colonist)

Skills

Goal: Survival
Motivation: Curiosity
Attitude: Arrogant
Age: 20
Length 6.43m
Weight 5,643kg
Build average

Profession: GEO Peacekeeper
Skill Groups: Athletics 40, Command 20, Firearms 40, Military Weapons 40, Survival 40, Vehicle 20
Skills: Tactics 40, Computer Operations 20, Demolitions 20, Colonial Culture 60, GEO Culture 40
Military Culture 60, Electronics Operations 20, Firearm(Autofire) 60, Military HtH 70, First Aid 40, Stealth 40
Piloting 40,Foraging 60, Fast Talk 10, Persuasion 10, Physical Training 50

Standard of Living:1,000cs a month


*A game with roughly 250 pages of backstory before you get to the beginning of the game mechanics is an interesting choice. I can see the interesting idea of the game but man I understand why a second edition was necessary.
So this is one of those games where theres something I think missing. You don't roll for education, you pick it. I didn't see where the level you pick is associated with a number but whatever I picked I was supposed to subtract 10 from it. It does I think a bad job of incorporating dolphin/orca characters in chargen but it admits as much.
 
Day 9

Here's a 2nd edition Gamma World character. Quick, dirty and cheap because I can!

Name: Outkast
Type: Humanoid
Rank: 1

MS Score: 11 (5)
IN Score: 16
DX Score: 14
PS Score: 14
CH Score: 16
CN Score: 16

Hit Points: 46

Physical Mutations
I rolled a natural 100 so I got to pick two good mutations!​
Regeneration - recovers 1 point of damage for every 5 kilos of body weight (represented by Physical Strength times 7, in this case 98 kg for 19 points), once per 12 hours.​
Hands of Power - Electrical, throws lightning bolts for 5d6 damage up to three meters twice per day.​
Mental Mutations
Mental Defenseless - <<ugh>> rolled 2d6 and lowered my MS to 5. That sucks.​
Levitation​
The Gamma Eye - shoots a black ray from eyes at an opponent within 15 meters once per day. Knocks them unconscious for one minute.​
Okay, so this guy was born into a mostly Pure Strain Human community and was leading a fairly normal life until the village was raided by a rival group. Outkast ended up giving the leader of the raiders the Gamma Eye after he killed his parents, and then fried a couple of the others with his Hands of Power. Even though he basically saved the village, his people shunned him as a mutie and so he took on his new moniker and started roaming the wastes to hunt down the rest of the raiders to make them pay for his disrupted life.
 
Day 9

In reading through the whole thread today, I saw that a few folks have recreated old characters (sometimes their first). My first character EVER was pretty close to Mugri (the OSE dwarf that I posted a few days ago), so I can't do that. I am, however, inspired to recreate my first Champions character ever. I made him for the first edition of the rules (back in 1982). I didn't really know what I was doing, but I'm going to make him as close to what I remember him being as possible. Here goes ...

The Mole
Billy Burrows, Mild-Mannered Janitor

CHARACTERISTICS
(127 pts.)
  • STR: 30 (Punch 6d6)
  • DEX: 30 (DEX Roll 15-, OCV 10, DCV 10)
  • CON: 20
  • BODY: 10
  • INT: 10 (INT Roll 11-, Perception Roll 11-)
  • EGO: 10 (EGO Roll 11-, ECV 3)
  • PRE: 10 (PRE Attack 2d6)
  • COM: 12
  • PD: 15
  • ED: 13
  • SPD: 5 (Phases: 3, 5, 8, 10, 12)
  • REC: 10
  • END: 40
  • STUN: 40
POWERS (95 pts.)
  • 1d6 Killing Attack (2d6 w/STR, Armor Piercing, OIF Claws), 15 pts.
  • +6 Running (12" total), 12 pts.
  • 10" Tunneling (OIF Claws), 33 pts.
  • 4d6 Entangle, 40 pts.

DISADVANTAGES (100+125 pts.)
  • Dependent NPC (Little Sister, Incompetent, 11 or less), 25 pts.
  • Hunted (VIPER, 11 or less), 35 pts.
  • Hunted (Pulsar, 11 or less), 20 pts.
  • Psychological Limitation (Overconfident, Irrational), 20 pts.
  • Secret Identity, 15 pts.
  • Unlucky, 2d6, 10 pts.
Total Cost: 225

Background: Billy Burrows was a janitor working at a research facility when VIPER attacked. Although he managed to evade the VIPER agents as they made their way through the facility, he stumbled across Brick, who was about to kill a scientist that he'd been interrogating. Billy caused a distraction that enabled the scientist to escape, only to have Brick come after him. Running frantically from the stony strongman, Billy stumbled into a mutagenic substance that granted him the powers he needed to fight back. After chasing the villains off, he realized that he now had the power to be more than a mere janitor, so he took the name Mole and became a superhero.

Notes: This was the first superhero I ever made, and I was obviously still finding my way. I KNOW that he was heavily influenced by Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. I envisioned the running power as an earth version of Iceman's ice slides and the entangle as rock versions of the blocks of ice that Iceman used to encase enemies in. For some reason, I gave him claws to dig with (and had them double as weapons). I don't know why I didn't just make the tunneling a function of a sort of earth control power. The high DEX and SPEED are there for two reasons. Initially, it's because the numbers meant nothing to me. The friend who introduced me to Champions said that those were important stats, so I thought I should go high. I was pretty happy, though, when I realized how agile that DEX 30 made him because it reminded me of Spider-Man. I remember jumping around my room, pretending to be him while gliding on an earth slide and shooting rock entangles at people.

Anyway, I just had some nostalgia fun breaking out the vintage boxed set I bought a few years ago and recrafting this blast from the past!
 
Day #10 (Early but I think tomorrow will be busy)
Villains & Vigilantes Revised Edition

Name: Testi-Kill / Zheng He
Side: Evil?
Level: 1
Age: 651
Training:
Weight: 1lb
Basic Hits: 1 .6 1.4 1.3 3.4=4hps
Agility Mod: +8
Strength: 3
Endurance: 12
Agility: 24
Intelligence: 18
Charisma:16
Reactions from Good: -2 Evil:+2
Damage Mod: +1 +4 =+5
Healing Rate: .3=1.2
Accuracy: +6
Power:57
Carrying Capacity: 5lbs
Base HTH Damage 1 point
Movement Rates: 39"
Detect Hidden: 14%
Detect Danger: 18%


Powers:
Telekinesis - 30lbs
Mind Control
Adaption
Regeneration - heal per turn not per day
Flight - 36mph
Disintegration Ray - 3" 1d20 damage.
Mute - can't speak


Origin
Zheng He was the eunch admiral of China's Imperial navy. A close confident to the Emperor his testicles were kept in an urn in the Emperor's burial possessions. The Chinese government sent the Emperor's tomb contents on a international Goodwill tour. While in the New York Museum the urn was in earshot while an archeologist read the contents of an Egyptian resurrection scroll. The last remains of Zheng He we're the closest corpse when the spell went off. Hes' remains came back with new powers and an intense rage. It was bad enough spending his life without his balls he now is doomed to eternity as them. With his newfound powers he's back to restore the power and prestige of Imperial China as......

TESTI-KILL!!!
 
Day 10:

Dr. Midnight -
(systemless modern-day supers character)

Lewis Allen (born in January of 1930) is the son of a prominent New York historian. His father’s name and Harvard pedigree led him in turn to Cambridge, and he graduated from MIT with an electrical engineering degree. Allen went into the burgeoning field of computers, working for Control Data Corporation for many years before returning to New England to join DEC in the late Seventies for the VAX/VMS project. His last post was as project director of the VAX 9000 Aquarius before DEC’s downturn started in the early Nineties. Selling his DEC stock for a great deal of money before it was too late, he settled into comfortable, secluded retirement in a suburb of Boston and dropped out of the public eye.

That’s the official bio.

Lewis slowly became aware that he was superhuman in the Seventies, as he realized he wasn’t aging past 30; he hadn’t before thought his night vision and rapid healing were anything overwhelmingly out of the ordinary. As his biological age increased, he took to cosmetics and other tricks to “age” himself. Switching jobs to DEC (and homes from Michigan to Massachusetts) was a deliberate attempt to duck uncomfortable questions, and his “retirement” another one. He maintains a computer consultancy under an faked identity, which accords him reasonable access to electronics parts, sold his house to said identity, lives under it, and figures on killing off his nonagenarian birth persona pretty soon.

With several million dollars with which to play, Lewis has indulged his streak of liberal politics. A fellow traveler from the counterculture Sixties, he’s anti-war, anti-Republican, anti-whaling, a PETA supporter, a global warming activist, a BLM activist ... you name it, he’s probably dabbled in it. From an early age, he liked comic books, his favorite being Dr. Midnite, and decided to become a costumed adventurer to more directly fight for his causes. He took up hapkido to become a skilled fighter, and met his future wife Elizabeth at the dojang. (She’s a civilian biochemist for USAMRIID out of the Army’s Watertown biohazard facility, specifically on countermeasures for biological warfare. Beyond that, she’s expert in investigation, all manner of biological sciences, and like Lewis an expert hapkido practitioner. She’s around 30, and married Lewis a couple years ago.)

Among his activities is an ongoing pirate radio program, “Calling Dr. Midnight.” He sets up rogue transmitters playing burst tapes (sometimes piggybacking off of other equipment) that generally reach throughout metro Boston which push his environmental message as well as play a mix of eclectic tunes (two hours, looped) and identify his costumed activities. The transmissions last for up to several hours while the FCC tries to track them down and shut down the equipment. Elizabeth has wondered whether he’d get more traction with YouTube videos, but he’s convinced he’d be more easily tracked down over the computer.

Powers:

1) He’s unaging. He has no idea (and Elizabeth is researching) whether he’s genuinely undying or whether he’s just going to keel over in five years or so; the issue preys upon him a bit. As part and parcel, he regenerates, if quite slowly.

2) He sees far into the UV range and thus has near-perfect night vision.

3) Shadow Powers: He “melts into shadow,” becoming invisible as long as he’s completely in shadow. He can also project a “wave of shadow.” This has the appearance of spikes of darkness, and looks rather like he’s throwing several blades of shadow at once. The effect is chillingly cold (and chills the area, come to that) and does stunning damage to living beings. The wave is intangible and does no damage to inanimate or solid objects, though it passes through thin physical barriers; a riot shield or body armor won’t block it, for example. He needs to wave his hand or arm to do this, and can’t do it immobile.

Since he’s only discovered what he can do by trial and error, or through his wife’s researches, he may have other powers as yet undiscovered. (Cue XP.)

Abilities:

1) He is an expert in electronics, and a skilled programmer and hacker.

2) He is a 5th dan hapkido master and skilled with tonfa and other hand-to-hand low-tech weapons.

3) He is generally skilled in disguise and specializes in aging disguise. He’s also pretty knowledgeable in illegal documentation, and with it getting harder to manufacture such identities, has created a dozen for both himself and Elizabeth, over a wide stretch of birth dates.

Personality:
He’s fairly reserved in person. He deliberately eased off friendships in the 1980s, and Elizabeth is the only person he really trusts. In consequence, he’s a pretty lonely guy, and clings to Elizabeth as his life line. By contrast, he tends to swashbuckling in disguise, between his costumed adventures and his pirate radio antics. He’s also paranoid about being “discovered.” He believes that the government will wire him up like a lab rat if they find out about him, and has nightmares about being eviscerated on a lab table.
 
So day 9, and I realise I've been a bit hidebound (and behind), lots of musketeers and Cardinal's Guards. I've tried to vary it a bit, but a few games coming up expect those character types so I'm going to diversify to pirates for a bit.

I'm going to cheat a little and return to FU, or rather my own pirates hack, Pirates - Adventure on the High Seas. It desperately needs to be re-written/updated, which I'm part way through, but too many other things stop me from completing it.

Nathaniel Shosmyth
Concept - An ex-circus strongman turned pirate

Background - Circus strongman
Role - Carpenter
Role - Sailor
Flaw - Sneak
Gear - A pair of sturdy boarding axes
Gear - An intimidating blunderbuss

Subplots
Map of Mayan temple location - his pathway to wealth?

Quote
Gangway!

Nathaniel, or Nat to people who know him really well, is a mountain of a man. Sentenced to deporting to the colonies for killing a man in a fight, he soon escaped after the slaves overwhelmed the ship's crew. He quickly took to the sea and his rudimentary carpentry skills learned as part of the circus came to the fore. When boarding or repelling he wields two axes after firing his blunderbuss. He knows his time is limited as a pirate so is looking to make it rich some day, he even has a map with the location of a native temple, but doesn't know if it is real or not.
 
My next character is from Pirates! by Michael Janod is free from 1KM1KT and a humorous take on the genre.

Richard Hughes

Reputation 7

Pirate Tricks
Maraud 3
Kill 2
Tease 4
Devastate 1
Spring 0
Booze 5

Maraud is used to find something of value - that is left to the GM to decide, and can be anything. It cannot be something you are actually looking for though.
Kill is used to kill an individual, the method is unimportant.
Teasing to is to do anything with an NPC except Kill them.
Devastate is used to fire cannon and generally wreck a place.
Spring is for feats of derring-do.
Booze is for drinking copious amounts of alcohol and gaining Luck.

The system is roll equal/under the pirate trick's value.
 
10 - Five Parsecs from Home. More sneaky rebellion against the rules by sneaking in a squad list for this solo wargame. The backgrounds are inspired by the lifepath system but fleshed out (it gives you very barebones information).

Name: Captain Fenris Sladek
Type: Baseline Human


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
14'03212

Background: Being brought up on a tech guild taught Fenris a lot of useful skills, but he found the close knit atmosphere claustrophobic. As soon as he was sixteen he signed up as an ensign on one of the guild's starships, ready to see the universe. Four years later, he has the experience to run his own ship and has taken out a large loan to do so.

Equipment: Blast Rifle, 5 Credits

Name: Phix
Type: Precursor


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
17'02000

Background: Humans tend to have a utopian view of what being a member of an "ancient race" means in practice. For Phix, it merely meant that the overcrowded shithole he grew up in had been around for a long time. Still, he's found that playing the "elder wisdom" card is a great way to con humans out of their money. He claims to have joined the crew under the instructions of a previously unknown alien deity. Nobody is sure whether this is true or part of the grift.

Special Ability: Life Experience. May Reroll Character Events. After rerolls, may spend a luck point to cancel the event entirely.
Equipment: Blast Rifle


Name: Verona Gammon
Type: Baseline Human


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
25'13000

Background: A deserter from a military outpost, Verona is withdrawn, even grim. Apart from when it comes to combat, where she is extremely competent. She is unsure if the outpost is still hunting her which makes her jumpy.

Equipment: Marksman's Rifle, Machine pistol, 5 Credits

Name: Graham Castillon
Type: Baseline Human


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
14'03000

Background: An orphan, Graham was quickly put into a utility program that looked more like slave labour. This has left him with no love for the rich or authorities in general. He is a member of a fringe religious cult dedicated to improving the lot of the masses, whether through reform or forcible wealth distribution. His cyberhand is a left over from a machine accident and he added the gun himself.

Equipment: Cyberhand with built in handgun

Name: 847632/3
Type: Soulless


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
14'04+102

Special Ability: Cybernetic: 6+ Armour Saving Throw, Cannot use Consumables or Implants, Roll on Bot Injury table, May buy bot upgrades for 1.5 x the price.
Background: 84 to the rest of the crew, they have just one question. How can a being linked to millions of its peers in a cybernetic hive mind feel lonely? 84 has signed up to the ship to try and answer that question. They think they might like some romance, although they have no idea how that would work.And so they travel from planet to planet, hoping to find a kindred spirit. Of course, it's highly likely this is merely a programming glitch.

Equipment: Shotgun, Concealed Blade, Scanner Bot

Name: Bryana Arleth
Type: Baseline Human


ReactionsSpeedCombat SkillToughnessSavvyLuckExperience
14'03002

Background: Bry has never had much time for civilisation, choosing instead to drift from planet to planet moving on when she gets bored. She spends a lot of time on "wild" planets, away from humanity. Naturally, this necessitates her being heavily armed. Joining the ship is the biggest committment she's ever made; this is largely because of Captain Sladek who has impressed her with his instinctive love of freedom.

Equipment: Hunting Rifle, Boarding Sabre, Combat Armour

The Ship - Outrider

Debt: 24 Credits
Ship Store: 6 Credits
Special Abilities: Fuel Efficient. Travailing to a new planet costs 1 credit less.
Hull: 25

Outrider is a retired scout ship, making it one of the more efficient small ships on the market. After a chance meeting in a starport bar, Captain Sladek has assembled the crew and they are eager to make their fortune. They are already starting to make a name for themselves as lovable rogues, willing to get their hands dirty but with an empathy for the common man.
 
Day 10: Zaibatsu

Takai Kei, Samurai 98A975 Age 25 Rank 1 - Agent
Forgery 1, Gun Combat 1, Medical 1, Recon 1
Cat's Eyes, Regeneration, Parabolic Hearing
Y1,400
Auto pistol [2d6+1; 10m; 16 rounds], Combat knife[2d6+1], Concealable Kevlar Jacket[DR 4], head-set radio, M1 Smoke Grenade x2

Kei has an enemy - a former co-worker, who was seriously injured while the two of them were on a job. Kei was fired and as a result became a Street Samurai. Recently, he was recruited - off the books, of course - by Makita Genetics to handle the sort of work that a respectable corporation cannot admit to being a part of. He has a sister who still has her honor, whom he calls from time to time as the need arises.

Kei is a pretty slick-looking dude. He's almost too good-looking for a life on the streets. He wears all black suits and accessorizes with leather jackets, expensive shoes and dark sunglasses. He also sports a never-ending 5 o'clock shadow. Kei is what you'd call hyper vigilant. He's always looking for possible sources of danger and is always ready to spring into action should the need arise...


Zaibatsu is a Gibson-esque cyberpunk game built on streamlined Cepheus Engine rules. The game is absolutely brutal, and so character creation is meant to be quick. If you spend more than 90 seconds on a character, you're already overthinking it. So as usual I generated a Japanese name using a fantasy name generator, and rolled 2d6 six times in order for characteristics. Since endurance was highest at a value of 10, I decided he's the kind of person the corpos hire to stand between themselves and a stray bullet. The Samurai comes Recon 1 as their concept skill, and a Concealable Kevlar Jacket. All rank 1 agents also get an auto pistol, a radio headset and Y4,000 to spend on gear.

To flesh our Samurai out we get 3 skills for Kei's education level. I chose Forgery, Gun Combat and Medical - all skills that'll come in handy on the mean streets of Mega Tokyo. We also get 20 free points to spend on retrogenics. Cat's eyes allow our samurai to see in low light situations, regeneration allows for faster out of combat healing and parabolic hearing will allow him to hone in on certain sounds and conversations he thinks may be a threat. I left 1,400 Yen unspent because he's going to need that cash to buy better guns and armor after a mission or two. Gear ain't cheap when you're fresh meat.
 
Five Parsecs was a Christmas pressy, I've had 1st edition forever but want to get running with 3rd when I can.

I've just bought some stuff to help with this in a very low-tech way.
The core's very good. The supplement isn't tbh. (Best bit is the tutorial campaign but I'd assume anyone buying the supplement doesn't need that anyway).
 
Banner: The best cosmic horror & Cthulhu Mythos @ DriveThruRPG.com
Back
Top