Here are the basic things you'll need to ponder as you create your character. There are six races to choose from. Humans dominate the Forgotten Realms. They're the most tolerant of the races. Dwarves tend to be short, stocky and bearded, and dour expressions are their mood of choice.
Elves are lithe and beautiful, mysterious and aloof.
They have delicate features and speak in sing-song voices. Gnomes are similar to dwarves, but they're shorter and slimmer. Halflings are more like short humans with broad faces than like gnomes or dwarves. Hobbits are the same as halflings. Half-elves are, as the name implies, half elf and half human.