Crossroads MVP

- Character

Making a Character

The following Character Creations will be presented as a conversation to be an example of how the situation might go for players unfamiliar with the game.

Some of the Characters made in these Examples will be used in other Examples.

The examples below use the Average start from .

Making a Character

Choosing a Character Concept

Before making a character, players should think about what character they want to play.

This should be done in terms of the character and not in terms of game mechanics. This is intended to be a Narrative-first game and so we hope that players will focus on developing the Characters before simply advancing them mechanically. This means that characters should start with a concept of who they are now and who they want to be or what they want to achieve.

Example:
Bors is a former soldier with a chequered past. During his service, he went through numerous hardships and events which eventually these led to him leaving the Military. While he still gets along well with other soldiers, he is unwilling to talk about much of that past and prefers to focus on the present. He is mostly dour and serious, but he can warm up to people and might share some stories around a campfire or tavern table. He believes strongly in honour and duty, which makes him a solid friend and reliable ally. While he can usually hold his own in a fight, his real strength is in protecting others. Some say that he used to be part of the bodyguard for some important people, but his lips are sealed.

Character Concept, Race, and Background

When making a character, it is best to start with the concept: Personality, Beliefs, Motivations. This might be related to their Race and Background.

— Example "Thief" - Celly

She's a thief. She's sneaky and criminl but she doesn't see herself as a bad person. She thinks she's stealing from people who don't need it, and some of them are probably the bad kind of rich so it's okay. That's good. Try to pick one or two good personality traits, and maybe a bad one. She's generous, because she grew up poor. Also, she's friendly, because she knows what it's like to be judged. What about a bad trait? She's paranoid. She's a thief so she's always afraid people are trying to steal her things. Beliefs? She believes that nobody should go hungry. That anyone in need should be helped. What about her motivations? She's adventuring to get money. She met an adventurer. Or stole from one... and she saw how much money he had, so she wants to make money so she can bring her old friends out of poverty. Or at least that's what she tells herself for now... Background Criminal Race Halfling. An orphan from a destroyed caravan. That's good, we can use that later. Who destroyed the caravan? A dragon? Can you remember the dragon? They had golden horns. That's good. We'll weave that into the world.
GM: Tell me about your character.

— Example "Sorcerer" - Kei

D: I want to be a Sorcerer.
GM: What does that mean?

Paths and Statistics

Characters progress using their Goals. When a character completes a Short Term Goal, they receive Character Points. When they complete Long Term Goals, they might receive even more. If a character completes a Character Goal, that character might be retired, and a new character can be made.

— Example "Thief" - Celly

C: I want to be a thief.
GM: Tell me what you want to be able to do
C: I want to pick locks and climb and stuff.
GM: Okay. A Criminal Background will help with that.
C: Are there any skills for sneaking or picking locks?
GM: No, you'd just improve your Knowledge. You use your Background and your Knowledge to make Skill Checks.
C: Is that it?
GM: Well you guys will be fighting. What weapon do you want to use?
C: I guess a dagger or two makes sense.
GM: Do you want to fight in melee or throw it?
C: Both?
GM: Path of Throwing and Path of One-Handed Fighting. Maybe even Path of the Duellist.

— Example "Sorcerer" - Kei

D: I want to be a Sorcerer.
GM: What does that mean?
D: He can throw fire and other spells.
GM: Sounds like Path of Fire. That's Primal Magic, so you can pick a Primal Background.
D: So I can shoot fireballs? What else?
GM: You can pick another style, such as Augmentation or Barriers, or boost your Statistics.
D: Augmentation? What is that?
GM: You can imbue weapons with fire or buff your allies.
D: That sounds good. What statistics should I boost?
GM: You need Power for spellcasting, but the rest is up to you.
D: I want to be good with people but also really focused.
GM: That's probably Social and Willpower.

Character Goals

Characters progress using their Goals. When a character completes a Short Term Goal, they receive Character Points. When they complete Long Term Goals, they might receive even more. If a character completes a Character Goal, that character might be retired, and a new character can be made.

— Example "Thief" - Celly

C: I want to be a thief.
GM: Tell me what you want to be able to do

— Example "Sorcerer" - Kei

D: I want to be a Sorcerer.
GM: What does that mean?

Building a Specific Character

— Example A - "Paladin"

A: I want to build a Paladin.
GM: Okay. What do you like about paladins?
A: They can heal, cast magic, and still fight.
GM: Sure. Path of Mending is like healing but you need a magic type.
A: Paladins are holy so I want something like that.
GM: Path of the Light seems ideal. What weapon do you want to use?
A: Can I use a big sword?
GM: Sure, so you have Path of the Light, Path of Mending, and path of Two-handed Fighting. Cool?
A: So I put all my points in there?
GM: You should probably put a few in Brawn and Power if you want to fight and cast magic.
A: Okay. I'll put them in Brawn and Power.
GM: Before we do that we need a background. Where is your character from?
A: He probably grew up in a monastery or something religious. Can I do that?
GM: The "Priest" Background might suit you. Does that sound right?
A: Okay. What next?
GM: Let's work on your character. What are their beliefs and goals?
A: Well they care about Justice, I guess. They want to protect people.
GM: From who?
A: Monsters?
GM: Okay. So your goal is to protect people from monsters. How?
A: I could find and kill the local monsters.
GM: Perfect. So your long-term goal is to kill all the monsters in the area?
A: That sounds good.
GM: What is your short term goal?
A: I guess I want to kill one of them.
GM: Who? Make somebody up.
A: The local necromancer?
GM: Perfect. You're almost finished.

— Example B - "Ranger"

B: I want to build a Ranger.
GM: Okay. What does a ranger do?
B: They shoot bows and are really good at hunting people. They also get a pet.
GM: Sounds doable. We usually start at their background. Where do they come from?
B: As a Ranger, they'd probably come from the forest.
GM: Wilderness Background probably suits that. Does that seem alright?
B: Okay. That sounds good.
GM: Next we pick their Beliefs and Goals. We can change these later but they help make the character feel more like a person.
B: Okay. I want them to be trying to kill something big. Like a super hunter.
GM: That's a good long-term goal. What about something short-term?
B: Do I have a pet?
GM: No. Not yet.
B: I want a pet
GM: Okay. That's a good short-term goal. What about beliefs?
B: If I'm a hunter I probably think that hunting is good.
GM: Try and put it into a sentence, something like "Might makes right".
B: How about "I want to be the very best"
GM: That's good! You can also make that a Character Goal: "Be the Best". So now we'll spend Character Points.
B: I want a bow.
GM: Path of Shooting. Easy. Do you want magic or anything?
B: Can I be really good at sneaking?
GM: That's covered by your statistics. You can put points in Agility or Knowledge to improve your sneaking skills.
B: How do I improve my Shooting Skills?
GM: Path of Shooting is one way and Cognisance is another.
B: Okay. I want to focus on that.

Character Progression

Characters progress using their Goals. When a character completes a Short Term Goal, they receive Character Points. When they complete Long Term Goals, they might receive even more. If a character completes a Character Goal, that character might be retired, and a new character can be made.

Building a Party

Choosing a Concept

We're a group of Treasure Hunters trying seeking a mighty artefact. Former Military trying to survive after being abandoned. The remains of a Noble house and its staff.

Linking Character Concepts

My Elf is a soldier and your Human is a Sailor. Maybe they worked together in the past? Like a Marine on a boat?

Reasons to Cooperate

So why cooperate? I'm a paladin, I'm probably sent by the church. My Elf is a Ranger so maybe they were hired to help find them. If we're all with the Paladin, my Dwarf might have been sent with him. Like a helper. Is your Dwarf with the church or hired? They're friends. They've worked together before. Okay. What about the Orc? Another hire maybe? My character is pretty smart so they could be like an advisor or expert on the area. That makes sense. Your character can be local while some of the others are not. That means we can say that the local area is mostly Orcs. Alex, do you want Aiyri to be a local? No. She has another reason to be here. Okay, that's everyone except the Gnome Thief. Why are they here? Maybe they were also sent by the church? Like as penance? They were caught and this is their community service. Help the Paladin or rot in jail. Are you okay with this? That seems fair. I'm very helpful, after all.

Adding to the Party

Character Progression

Achieving Goals

Gaining Equipment

Titles and Land?

Other Rewards

Options
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