Insight Character Creation Q&A

[The Narrator]

If you have questions about Character Creation or how to navigate a Character Sheet Template, please post them in this thread.​

 

[Ark]

Here are some little things I was wondering about while posting my character...

1. Is the 'Origin' sections meant to refer to one of the established locations in the world? Such as Khere, Tethis, The Infinite Wilds?
2. Can 'Role', 'Abilities', and 'Occupation' sometimes be merged into one? In my mind they basically refer to what the character normally does and what they are good at.
3. When the rules say that all characters need to have have a character sheet, where is the line between actual player characters and minor side characters? For example, does an army general who only has a few lines of dialogue before sending the main characters on their way need a character sheet?
4. How much work should we put into updating a character sheet as the story progresses? And does it need to be approved after each edit? For example, learning to wield a sword, or gaining a new significant item, or leaving home to become a sorceress, or making a new friend... does it require an update?

 

[The Narrator]

1. Is the 'Origin' sections meant to refer to one of the established locations in the world? Such as Khere, Tethis, The Infinite Wilds?

Yes, that's correct. Because of the nature of the setting, almost anything that isn't Khare or Tethis can be slotted into the Infinite Wilds.
Random Elf village? Infinite Wilds.
Cave-dwelling Morloks? Infinite Wilds.
And so on.

2. Can 'Role', 'Abilities', and 'Occupation' sometimes be merged into one? In my mind they basically refer to what the character normally does and what they are good at.

Yes. These are not necessarily "set in stone" so much as "open to interpretation". For example, a role could be their literal job, or it could be how they view themselves in the world.

3. When the rules say that all characters need to have have a character sheet, where is the line between actual player characters and minor side characters? For example, does an army general who only has a few lines of dialogue before sending the main characters on their way need a character sheet?

No. Secondary characters are largely considered to be "disposable". They can play a significant role in a character's development, backstory, or on-going story, but because they themselves are not actively participating in the world, they don't require character sheets. Only characters that you are actively roleplaying as require sheets (if you have two characters, you need two sheets, one for each).

4. How much work should we put into updating a character sheet as the story progresses? And does it need to be approved after each edit? For example, learning to wield a sword, or gaining a new significant item, or leaving home to become a sorceress, or making a new friend... does it require an update?

This we largely leave to your prerogative. We encourage you to update whenever you feel like it is necessary. There are certain elements where you might be rewarded by an NPC for example, and in these cases, keeping track of "Reward I got." with "Link to thread where I got it." is the best way for you to avoid "why do you have this" questions later on down the line. People are, after all, a little bit fallible when it comes to memory.

The Narrator

 

[Rimechapel]

What sorts of playable races exist within the scope of the Outer Sanctum? In looking at the Character Sheets (both blank and Dramatis Personae) I get some fairly strong D&D vibes.

 

[The Narrator]

What sorts of playable races exist within the scope of the Outer Sanctum? In looking at the Character Sheets (both blank and Dramatis Personae) I get some fairly strong D&D vibes.

The rules for playable races are slightly more lax than in the Inner Sanctum as there is a strict no sex/fade to black rule.
As such, you could conceivably play anything you wanted so long as it "makes sense" in the setting.

Having said that, there is always the possibility that a race might be vetoed if it becomes "setting breaking".

 

[Rimechapel]

I'm not sure if this is necessarily the right place to ask this but - after our character is approved, what is the best practice for our next step? Do we create a thread in Tethis/Khare/Infinite Wilds, and try to lure a partner? Should we approach each other OOC to check interest similar to how one might respond to a RT?

 

[The Narrator]

I'm not sure if this is necessarily the right place to ask this but - after our character is approved, what is the best practice for our next step? Do we create a thread in Tethis/Khare/Infinite Wilds, and try to lure a partner? Should we approach each other OOC to check interest similar to how one might respond to a RT?

This question would probably be a bit more related to the broader setting as opposed to character creation, but since we seem to have missed the Rules Q&A thread (which will be addressed momentarily), I'll answer the question here and then also include the information in that thread.

There are a few different answers to this question:

1. One option would be to reach out to someone you want to RP with and bring them over to the setting. Because the setting hasn't technically been released yet (though by the time many people read this it will be out), there aren't a ton of people who have made characters yet. Encourage your friends to come over to the setting (where they too can participate in stories and earn badges).

2. We expect that, at some point, people will start to update their request threads to reflect that they have characters in the Outer Sanctum. While we expect this to take time, it would be another way for people to know that you're open to RP in the setting.

3. While the beginning will be a bit slow (people still have to figure out what it is and what they want to do), there's no reason why you can't start to establish your character in the world by starting a thread, marking it as [Open] in the heading and seeing who shows up, you never know who will.

Such a thing might look like this:



Once you have a partner (or someone pops by, or you change your mind), you can then edit your thread to be [Closed] and reflect the participants that joined, as an example.



4. Finally, The Narrator is able to assist with some of this, though as with most things, if too many stories require The Narrator, then resources will be stretched thin.

 

[The Narrator]

Asked anonymously:

What are the rules for races and characters?

We, in theory, allow most races that fit within a fantasy setting, as long as they do not belong exclusively to another franchise (you can be an elf, you cannot be a Saiyan from Dragonball)

There are a few rules and guidelines we will follow for approval, in order to make lore that is consistent and fun for all involved:

1. No one starts immortal. Some species live a few centuries, living more than that requires immensely powerful magic or divine intervention. Living forever requires dabbling in things rarely worth the cost

2. Celestial beings do not breed. They can bless, they can possess and they can curse, but they do not reproduce with mortals

3. A character's experience is proportional to their age. A 22-year-old won't have mastered multiple skills

4. A character's skills follow from their backstory. A street thief doesn't know how to survive in the wilderness, a slave doesn't know advanced combat magic. Common sense should be used and characters should be written for narrative cohesion—this is about telling good stories, rather than maximizing combat effectiveness

What are the rules for curses/abilities? Shifters? Vampires? Undead? etc.

Though the origin of these things is often unknown, even to those afflicted with them, it can be observed that they follow certain rules.

1. That which grants power is never free. The disadvantages are many and pronounced

2. Disadvantages compile more readily than advantages. One curse cannot grant immunity from the effects of another

3. People fear that which they do not understand—those who cannot pass for human may find their journey hindered by those who allow ignorance to exceed compassion.

 

[Double Plus Ungood]

How will we know if our character has been accepted?

 

[ZAlcyoneus]

Narrator will post if it is accepted or message if there are issues that need fixed.

 

[CyanCheetah]

Can characters have any pets? If so can they be played as an NPC for the person owning that character?

 

[The Narrator]

Can characters have any pets? If so can they be played as an NPC for the person owning that character?

Yes, this is permitted on the condition that said "pet" does not break any of the rules, or damage the setting. A familiar that is a rat is not the same as a pet Balrog.

 

[CyanCheetah]

Hi!!

Of course I was not planning to make exactly the following but I have a handful of questions I thought would be useful:

So I was considering to make a dragon-human hybrid character. However since dragons tend to be somewhat seen as "overpowered" I was wondering to what length can we go with dragon hybrid characters? Like is a humanoid dragon character that can shift into dragon (or dragonborn) acceptable? Or should it just be allowed with a human that looks like a dragon person?

And about powers, would they be able to have some power like, be able to fly (if they have wings), or breath fire (or any other element), and if form shifting would be too overpowered?

I know dragons can be pretty powerful so I just want to make sure that we can know how to make a dragon based character!

 

[Double Plus Ungood]

Hi!!

Of course I was not planning to make exactly the following but I have a handful of questions I thought would be useful:

So I was considering to make a dragon-human hybrid character. However since dragons tend to be somewhat seen as "overpowered" I was wondering to what length can we go with dragon hybrid characters? Like is a humanoid dragon character that can shift into dragon (or dragonborn) acceptable? Or should it just be allowed with a human that looks like a dragon person?

And about powers, would they be able to have some power like, be able to fly (if they have wings), or breath fire (or any other element), and if form shifting would be too overpowered?

I know dragons can be pretty powerful so I just want to make sure that we can know how to make a dragon based character!

So, just for the sake of trying to avoid being called "Over-Powered", I've been custom designing my characters using the Steve Jackson Games GURPS method.. "Average" characters have a point total between 25 and 50 points, "competant". "exceptional", "heroic" and "super-heroic" are much higher. The "Hero System" custom character design method might also work for giving you a guideline for how powerful your beginning character is. The Narrator might still want to haggle with you, but I don't believe he will just look at it and laugh at you.

 

[The Narrator]

And about powers, would they be able to have some power like, be able to fly (if they have wings), or breath fire (or any other element), and if form shifting would be too overpowered?

All non-traditional races (so humans, elves, dwarves, etc.) are taken on a case by case basis.

Something like a dragonborn type creature would have no breath weapon, would be able to glide but not fly, and their skin would be "slightly more durable than that of a human". These would not be dragons. They would not be able to "shift" into a dragon under any circumstances.

We very strongly do not recommend using TTRPGs to try and build your character as they will always need significant changes to be playable.

 

[CyanCheetah]

Something like a dragonborn type creature would have no breath weapon, would be able to glide but not fly, and their skin would be "slightly more durable than that of a human". These would not be dragons. They would not be able to "shift" into a dragon under any circumstances.

So by that, we can only choose one race for a character? Like we can't have a human -who can transform into a dragonborn- and instead we would decide if we want the character to be a human or dragonborn? But not both?

Also are we exclusive to DnD species only? Or would be we able to make something that's not a traditional race in DnD? (Here's an example: a Human-Dragon hybrid who looks similar like a thiefling; horns, tails, but more draconic?) or would you say it's better to just make the character a thiefling instead?

 

[CyanCheetah]

Also how would a kitsune work? Would they be able to transform into a fox?

 

[The Narrator]

Also how would a kitsune work? Would they be able to transform into a fox?

Yes, assuming that the variant allowed them to do so.

 

[CyanCheetah]

Can we make a character who own a boat/sailboat/ship? Ex: if someone made a pirate what kind of boat would be the best as a starter ship?

 

[The Narrator]

Can we make a character who own a boat/sailboat/ship? Ex: if someone made a pirate what kind of boat would be the best as a starter ship?

Characters can be pirates, they cannot own ships. This would require a whole host of NPCs to be "under the command" of the character, which is not permitted. A starter character would have been part of a crew, but would have neither crew nor ship to start.