serendipity
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Post by serendipity on Sept 8, 2007 6:24:28 GMT -6
I find that I have to write a backstory each time I create a new character. It's kind of a compulsion. (It is possibly connected to my being group chronicler; I do like to write.) I don't mind playing pre-gen characters, but I'll still go home that night composing something which would fit. It's not a timeline or a history I'm writing, but scenes of character development that show how she came to be the way she is and perhaps also how she came to join this particular adventure. By the time I'm done writing up my backstories and our gaming transcripts, I have a fairly complete story written. I can't tell you how many backstories I have for games which never materialized... ![::)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/eyesroll.png) Does anyone else do this? --Sere
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2007 7:46:46 GMT -6
Yeah, I do the same thing, but I don't go as in depth as you probably do, though. I personally like to have a feel for what brought this individual to the place he is in his life: what makes him an adventurer. I do a brief write-up on his earlier years (parents, special incidents that occured that had an influence on why he has chosen such a, well, bizarre career), & that pretty much makes up the bulk of it. As an aside, does anybody but myself find it odd that the base starting age for characters in most R.P.G.'s is so young? I mean, in 2e, the base age for a human was 15! Ridiculous. When the grizzled old veteran captain of the town guard, who has "lived through countless battles as one of the King's trusted soldiers", is a level 3 fighter & well into middle age, that's gotta say something. As a result of this, I start out characters at the very least, somewhere equivalent to a human in their mid-twenties, if not early thirties. Seems to make more sense to me, IMO. ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png)
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Post by calithena on Sept 8, 2007 8:16:29 GMT -6
Young starting characters fit well with the 'level' system and starting at 1st.
For me, nobody who is not an individual hero of some sort is ever over 3rd level. The elite elven knights, the bodyguard corps of the world-emperor...3rd level is it. 4th or higher means you're an elite hero, a special individual.
Most people spend their whole lives never getting to 1st level IMO, or if they get there never getting beyond it.
More on backstories next time...
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Post by Falconer on Sept 8, 2007 11:23:28 GMT -6
As an aside, does anybody but myself find it odd that the base starting age for characters in most R.P.G.'s is so young? I mean, in 2e, the base age for a human was 15! Ridiculous. When the grizzled old veteran captain of the town guard, who has "lived through countless battles as one of the King's trusted soldiers", is a level 3 fighter & well into middle age, that's gotta say something. As a result of this, I start out characters at the very least, somewhere equivalent to a human in their mid-twenties, if not early thirtees. Seems to make more sense to me, IMO. :) It's 15 + 1d4, so the absolute minimum starting age is 16, and the average is 17.5 (for all Humans in 2e; for Human Fighters in 1e). I agree that seems young, especially in OD&D context, for a "Veteran." But might it be historically accurate? I think even the World Wars had plenty of 13 and 14 year old combatants. Not a stretch to be a veteran of many combats at 16, then, and to show the promise of breaking out from amongst the general 0-level soldiery. Er, do we have 0-level in OD&D? Regards.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 8, 2007 11:49:36 GMT -6
Both calithena & yourself, Falconer have correct, solid, & valid points. Still, I stick by my opinion: 15, 16 or 17 (even 18 & into young adulthood, for that matter) seems too young to me. It's hard for myself to imagine an acne-riddled adventurer & his pal's (crackling voices & the whole 9 yards) strong-arming an ogre & his lackey's into returning the captured villagers. ;D serendipity, I didn't mean to skew off the topic of your thread here; it just seemed to fit with the backstories theme...my apoligies to you, in advance, for any offense taken. ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png)
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Stonegiant
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Post by Stonegiant on Sept 8, 2007 16:16:08 GMT -6
Remember in history it was not uncommon for people to marry, have kids and join the army at 16. Colonial rosters and medieval rosters all show kids joining the military at ages such as 10 or 11 (Drummers, fifers, standard bearers, powder monkies [during the age of gunpowder] etc.) and by the time they are 16 they are veterans and have seen numerous combats
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serendipity
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Post by serendipity on Sept 8, 2007 18:56:44 GMT -6
serendipity, I didn't mean to skew off the topic of your thread here; it just seemed to fit with the backstories theme...my apoligies to you, in advance, for any offense taken. ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png) lol! No offense taken, oltekos, but I am amused to find that when I did start a thread to discuss character development (as something that might appeal to fellow women posters), it ended up morphing into a discussion of levels and stats. I guess Fin's right about women and their interest in roles over rules. ;D Never mind; there have been some good points offered. I especially appreciated your remarks regarding teenagers who save the world--or at least the village. (Wesley, did you save the Enterprise again? Good boy!)
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Post by calithena on Sept 8, 2007 20:18:22 GMT -6
Oltekos -
To be fair, while 15-17 seems fine to me for firsties, 16-18 seems really wrong for 2nd-4th, and it gets worse from there.
I think mandating at least 1 year of game time between adventures might be a fun rule that could sort of let you have it both ways. Not many groups play with that kind of background assumption though.
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korgoth
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Post by korgoth on Sept 9, 2007 0:36:47 GMT -6
I don't come up with complicated backstories; I'm usually content with a sentence or two. "A laconic warrior from the northlands, he is the son of a prosperous freeholder." If an image jumps out at me, I may add an embellishment or two. "He has several brothers and many sisters." Nothing fancy.
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Post by coffee on Sept 9, 2007 2:43:56 GMT -6
I have occasionally come up with great (in my own opinion) backstories for my characters; but whether the subsequent play of that character matched up has been pretty hit or miss.
On the whole, I like to start a character off with no preconceptions and find out as I play what he's like.
And as far as the starting age thing goes, you have to remember that the concept of the 'teenager' started after WWII. In the medieval world, people went directly from children to adults -- there was no intermediate stage.
Just look at your Jewish friends. The boys have their bar mitzvah (and the girls their bat mitzvah) at age 13. And what are they told? "Today you are a man (woman)."
I think that HAS to mean something; the tradition goes way back.
(Anyway, that's as coherent as I can be; I've been experimenting with the mighty Daiquiri tonight...)
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Post by thorswulf on Sept 9, 2007 21:26:12 GMT -6
The age thing. Hmmm, well English and Welsh Archers started pulling a (weak) longbow at 8. In many traditional martial arts they started a few years younger than that. 15-16 works for me. Remember people lived to be around 45 if they were lucky, very lucky at that in the Dark and Middle Ages.
I never really bothered to write up backstories for a couple of reasons. First I never played with anybody who did this, or required it. Secondly, most people who are part time players and not grognards aren't that attached to the creative process in my experience. Third and finally, well, I get a bit lazy like most folks. I do write up some stuff, but it is mostly atmosphere pieces for during a game, even if it is a wargame.
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Post by philotomy on Sept 10, 2007 0:23:01 GMT -6
I haven't played in a campaign in a long time (I usually run the games, rather than play in them), so I don't bother with backstory. Most of my players don't bother with backstory, either, until they reach 3rd or 4th level, and by that time the backstory has probably started to "naturally" seep in, anyway. Heck, some players don't bother naming their PCs until they've got a level or two under their belts. ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png)
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Post by calithena on Sept 10, 2007 7:53:18 GMT -6
I think that backstories are OK and not having backstories is OK. The danger of backstories is that you make this huge situation before play that winds up having little or nothing to do with what's going on at the table; the fantasy in your head and the fantasy at the table get disconnected. The danger of no backstories is characters that feel a little flat or unconvincing, or who break verisimilitude, though that's not a problem in all games.
I guess I think that either approach should be viable in an OD&D game but if a player's going to invest in a substantial backstory her DM should be open to it and the two should maybe collaborate on it a little bit so that the DM gets usable material and the player gets some stuff from the backstory actually coming up in play.
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Post by ffilz on Sept 10, 2007 10:53:30 GMT -6
Calithena,
You point out the problem I have with backstories - the disconnect between the backstory and the game. There are two basic problems that can arise.
The first is a backstory that creates an illogical situation. Why is this character involved in the campaign? This may also encompass contradictions with the GM's world.
The other problem is when the backstory contradicts the game mechanics, when the backstory creates the expectation of a character more capable than the rules, or with abilities outside the scope of the rules.
A third, but closely related, problem is when the backstory creates a "done" character. The player creates an image of the character that they don't want to change. This image may include issues in the first two problem areas, and actually almost always fits into them. In a sense, the third problem is the ultimate example of a combination of the first two problems.
Frank
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Post by Finarvyn on Sept 10, 2007 15:50:17 GMT -6
I would think that a good backstory would provide some sort of motivation for the character, or help define that person's goals.
Perhaps there is a need for the family to get some loot, and this brings the character into the wilderness in search of treasure. Maybe some sort of revenge against a tribe of orcs, which can give the DM a nudge in generating some plotlines in the campaign.
What I don't want to see is some reason why the character should have a special edge in the game -- contacts or resources, special skills not availible to other characters, and so on. If the story is designed just to allow a min/max style character, then the story is bothersome. ("After I made my first millions, I devoted myself to mastery of the rapier and shortbow...")
Done well, a good backstory can be a real bonus for the character, the DM, and the campaign in general.
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Post by Rhuvein on Sept 10, 2007 16:11:55 GMT -6
I definitely like to create backgrounds for my characters when I'm a player, which may or may not contain a back story. It depends on the campaign and how much the DM is looking for. In my own group, my players are newer to game and some new and young, so only a couple of them have created much of a background for their characters. But if get a chance to start a new game with them, it'll be interesting to see how much more they may put into their character. ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/smiley.png)
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