Fleshing Out The Character
Answer each of the following questions as fully as possible.What is the character’s sex?
The choice is simple: male or female, but the choice may make a difference. Biological, sociological, and, some say, psychological perspectives and needs are different in men and women.What is the character’s physical size?
Is the character tall and skinny? Or a short and stout? Or just average?What is the color of the character’s hair, eyes and skin?
There’s a natural color, and then there’s mutation, and then there’s cosmetics. What color or colors is the character’s hair? How is it worn? Why? What about eye color? What is the character’s skin color?What is the character’s general appearance?
Does the character stand erect or stooped? Dress anachronistically, stylishly, or inconspicuously? Look intimidating or casual? Is the character attractive? Is there something distinctive in the shape of its head, face or limbs? What might someone seeing your character for the first time think?Where was the character born?
Decide what country, city and poverty level the character was born into. Many psychologists argue that what we are as adults is influenced by who we were as children. Think about the character’s childhood, neighborhood, friends and family.What is the character’s age?
An older character will have a much different view about the world to the same character with a younger age, and your age will also affect the events that you remember.Describe the character’s family.
What did the character’s parents do? What was the family’s means of support? Were the parents married, separated, divorced? What was family life like? Does the character have any siblings? Where are they now? What do they do? Does the character keep in contact with them? Did the character even know his birth family? If not, describe his surrogate family.Has the character begun a family?
Is the character married? Does she have children, or want them?Where or how was the character educated?
For each of your skills, describe how you learnt them. Did you have an apprenticeship, were you a member of the military, or are you an autodidact? Whichever one it was, describe the training. Who was your mentor? What experiences did you find enthralling? What drove you to pursue that knowledge?What does the character do for a living?
What about before? Does he enjoy it? Why did she pick this job?What are your character’s political and religious beliefs?
Every character sees the society they live in, and are affected by the church and the law, for better or worse. What does your character think of the government, laws, spiritual leaders, and spirituality?What is the character’s moral code?
Under what circumstances would the character kill? Has the character killed before? How did they feel about it? Where does the character stand on issues such as capital punishment, abortion or euthanasia? Does the character need to re-evaluate their philosophy of drug-use when it relates to mystical endeavor? To coin a cliché, is your character a maiden or a whore? Why?Does the character have any goals?
Is magic all the character ever wants to do? Does she have any ambitions beyond the present time and place? Is he satisfied with his current situation, and the current situation of the world? If not, how do you plan to change things, and how determined are you to follow those plans through?How did the character Awaken?
What path led him here? What does she think about being a mage? Is it an adrenalin rush? A treasure? For a higher cause? Would your character choose to be mundane if they could?What is the character’s personality?
Are you a pessimist? A cynic? An idealist or a radical? Conservative? Easy-going? Aggressive? Aloof? Intense? Superstitious? Extroverted or introverted? Rational or passionate or nostalgic? Curious, creative, or cautious?What are the character’s special qualities?
This refers less to skills, feats and attributes and more to “knacks” that you plan on role-playing. Do you get along with people? Are you a skilled organizer? Do you have any kind of common sense? Do you have the gift of the gab?Are there certain things the character just can’t do?
Get close to people? Have realistic self-perceptions or expectations? Work well in a team? Think under stress? Handle money well (or at all)?What does the character’s hate?
Politicians? Institutions? Another race? The opposite sex? Personal questions? A certain song? A name people called you? Going on adventures? Sentimentality? A certain organization or person? Does the character have any phobias? Why?What does the character love?
The seashore? Heights? Peace and quiet? Partying hard? Overcoming challenges? Art? Knowledge? A specific person? An ideal? What does your character seek to do during “down-time,” and what sort of skills would they go out of their way to learn “just because?”What is the character’s name?
What was his or her birth name? What name does she use now? Did the character choose this name, or was it a nickname or joke?Fleshing out the Character: Part 2.