Backgrounds

All characters must have some sort of a background. When designing a character the player must try to bring the character to life as much as possible. Begin by creating a background for the character. Where did the character come from? Did he live in a city, town, village, or farm? What did he do before becoming an adventurer? Why did he become an adventurer? Does he have family and friends? Does he have hobbies and special interests? What kind of childhood did he have?

All of these questions need not be written out, but work out a rough idea of his background when he is created and keep these ideas in your head. As the character is played slowly fill in the details of his background. Have him develop a personality, have likes and dislikes, be talkative or quiet, and have little personality traits and quirks. This will add color to the game and make the play more enjoyable for everyone. It will also help you keep your characters distinct when playing more than one on a single adventure. Whether the character is a rightful prince in exile or a wild-man raised by werewolves, a good player character needs to have a background.

The player must spend at least 5 skill points on skills associated with his character’ background during character creation. If there are any benefits or drawbacks of the particular background the character choose, then these must be incorporated into the character as well. The assumption is that the character must have learned something growing up, be it life on the streets, farming, or serving an apprenticeship in some trade. These are to be reflected by these skills. If you desire to create a character who is anything beyond an apprentice in some skill, then the character must be created at higher level to reflect the additional levels of skill he has in those skills. Characters are encouraged to develop their own backgrounds, although other sources may be used for reference.

Quirks

Some quirks might  give a +1 bonus to a certain action or skill, and a -1 penalty to another action or skill. The character might behave in a certain way under certain circumstances.  There is an enormous range of possibilities for character quirks, affinities, and penalties.  There is no net gain for the character, but these add to his background or personality. Quirks have a base cost of 0 skill points.  Quirks are always subject to the approval of the gamemaster.