What Makes a Good Character?

So, you understand how to play. You've found a group, you've reviewed the rules, and the big piles of dice are looking pretty fun to roll. The only problem? You don't know what kind of character you want to play. Where do you begin?

Note that this is not an objective guide. Different characters are good for different players. This page is designed to help new players with no clue where to start, or to give inspiration to those with writer's block. Experienced tabletop role-players will likely find little of this advice useful.

Start Simple

Sometimes, a character can just be a street urchin. Or a character can just be a holy warrior. Or a character can just be a mage's apprentice. No backstory in sight!

Much of a character's interesting quirks come from the player. The way the character talks and fights fundamentally comes down to how the player wants to talk and fight. A simple character can be just as funny or heroic as a character with ten pages of typed-up backstory, so don't be afraid to play a generic character!

That is not to say that having a character with backstory is bad. It is certainly not saying that characters with nuance are bad. However, sometimes all of that backstory can go to waste, because...

Heavy Characters are Hard

Now, "heavy" in this context refers more to a philosophy of making characters than to any particular trait. It refers to the way that some players will try to create characters that have nonstandard motivations - specifically the kinds of motivations that may influence the decisions of the character in unpredictable ways.

This usually comes in two flavors: complexity and edge.

Complexity is when a character has several different elements that all try to take the driver's seat in making character choices. Maybe the character has a lot of backstory, or maybe the character is trying to be a few too many things. If the character could be split into two or more different characters that all feel complete, the character is heavy due to complexity.

Edge is when a character is, well, edgy. Edgy is a word that gets thrown around a lot, but here it refers to any character controlled by strong negative emotions, especially when these emotions are caused by trauma and/or are in conflict with each other. This is especially common in characters with severe scars such as missing limbs or blindness. Characters defined strongly by a tragic backstory are heavy due to edge.

The problem with these heavy characters should be clear from the name. Playing them can feel like swinging around a giant sledgehammer. The character may sometimes force you to react to a situation in a way that makes you choose between playing your character correctly and actually enjoying the game.

A player of a complex character may constantly have to refer back to character notes. A player of an edgy character may have to act in uncomfortable ways when backstory events are brought up in-game. If you, as a player, are not ready for this kind of role-playing, it is probably best to steer clear of these characters. You can still have serious and emotional moments with a less demanding character.

Again, there is nothing wrong with heavy characters. Heavy characters can be incredibly engaging, turning the gaming table into a thrilling epic. They have a heavy impact. However, they are not for the faint of heart. If you do not have a passion to play the character, you will become burned out very quickly.

Originality is Overrated

Finally, if you're really getting stuck, perhaps the most important thing to realize is that you're not writing a novel. Only a handful of people will ever interact with this character, and chances are good that not one of them is a copyright lawyer. True creativity is just the act of stealing from so many sources that nobody can figure out what you're stealing from.

Besides, your character will be defined by you, whatever your level of role-play experience. Two identical characters in the hands of two different players will feel worlds different.

So whether you take a bit of inspiration from a game character or just rename your favorite book's protagonist, you should not be afraid of a little copy and paste. Perhaps, in time, the character will slowly turn into someone totally new.