How to create a Character ...

Part 2 - Character Outline

A character outline is a broad concept that provides you with a frame on which to build your character. It is not fully detailed; there is no need for you to concern yourself with the character’s specific Skills, Abilities, or background details at this stage. Use the game boundaries established in your discussion with the GM as the starting point for your character and build your outline on that foundation. Discuss your character ideas with the GM to ensure your character will work with those of the other players and with the overall themes and focus of the campaign. Here are some issues to consider.

In Westeros, issues of blood, family, and legitimacy are very important. In many games, the answer to this question will help determine the social hierarchy of the characters. In others, especially games set in the borderlands and eastern countries, such distinctions are less significant, and what a character does is more important than his or her name.

You should decide on the character’s lineage, age, gender, and legitimacy; you should also determine a broad archetype for his or her personality, and develop a rough outline of the character’s regional and social background. Conversely, it is equally important that a character have room to grow beyond your initial concept. A character that you have spent hours perfecting and detailing may quickly become stagnant and uninteresting once play begins. A good character outline usually focuses on one or two main personality traits and leaves plenty of room for you to explore and develop the character into a fully rounded personality over time.

Although the starting archetype should be an integral part of the character, it should not rule all of his or her actions. At some point during the game, your pacifistic septon may be driven to an act of vengeance, or your angst-ridden exiled knight may finally discover a cause in which to believe. As long as these developments proceed naturally from events in the game, they should be a welcome part of the role-playing experience.

Don’t Forget the Character
Generating a character forces players to think about numbers, making choices about how to select Feats, assign Skills, and so on. These define the character in relation to others, and provide quantified information about a character’s capabilities. George R. R. Martin didn’t define his characters by their character sheets, however, and neither should players. A character should be more than a list of values and abilities. Players should try to imbue their characters with a personality, and let the numbers be secondary to the role-playing. Tyrion, for example, is all personality. None of the numbers on his character sheet can evoke his combination of resourcefulness, sly cunning, and boundless sarcasm ... yet he is one of the story’s most popular characters.

Consider three other main characters from the novels: Bran, Arya, and Sansa Stark. All are children, and in terms of game mechanics they aren’t that different. In the story, though, are they the same? Each is defined by his or her unique personality, a factor which isn’t a part of the character sheet. A reader would never mistake Arya for Sansa, nor should a player in a game be confused by whom he or she is dealing with — even if their game values were identical.

For another example, Eddard Stark is a courageous fighter (defeating Ser Arthur Dayne in single combat), and an excellent tactician (helping Robert Baratheon put down Balon Greyjoy’s rebellion). Yet these are lesser components of the man. Eddard is known for: his coldness to outsiders, his forthrightness, his love of his family, his inflexible honour, and his rigid code of fairness (which dooms him in the end). That is real role-playing, making decisions because they’re what the character would do, regardless of whether they’re right or wrong. Personality should guide the character, not the numbers.

Ultimately, the “role-playing” is more important than the “game” in a role-playing game, and paying greater attention to the personality than to the game values can create evocative, enjoyable characters, as rich as those from the novels.

What Next?
Once you have your character concept, contact the GM, and you'll be guided through the rest of the process with the help of notes and explanations.

Go to Part 1: Summary of Character Creation