Character Building

## Basics

This campaign will take more a pulp focus (think Conan or
Indiana Jones). This means you are encouraged to write a character that will take that call to action. A pacifist that wants to help the poor, while an interesting character, might not see a lot to enjoy about this campaign. You are adventurers with the urge to delve into such a dangerous world, the commoners believe you to be suicidal. Exploration, risk and reward are big influences for those who brave the West Marches.

Basic character creation is the same but you do it solo instead of with others, so you can do a phase trio by yourself or just fill in the blanks. Don’t get too attached to your characters though, death comes easy in the West Marches.

Once your character is approved by the GMs, please make a page for them and link it to the Player Characters page.

## Skill List

Explorer of Celania adds in a Survival skill to represent your survival know-how out in the wilds of the West Marches.

The full skill list is as follows:

* Athletics
* Burglary
* Contacts
* Crafts
* Deceive
* Drive
* Empathy
* Fight
* Investigate
* Lore
* Notice
* Physique
* Provoke
* Rapport
* Resources
* Shoot
* Stealth
* ***Survival***
* Will

### **Survival**

**Overcome**: Survival allows you to apply your character's knowledge and understanding of the wilderness to achieve a goal. Some examples include following tracks or finding a safe route through the forest.

**Create an Advantage**: Survival is a very flexible skill for creating advantages, especially out in the wilderness. You can set traps, create makeshift weapons from the surroundings, conceal yourself and allies in the brush etc.

**Defend**: Survival isn't usually used to Defend unless a Stunt allows it.

**Attack**: Same with Attack.

## Basic Format

* **Milestone XP**: You character gains Milestone XP at the end of every session.
* **Name**: Your name.
* **High Concept**: What you are in a few words.
* **Trouble**: Something your character struggles to deal with and gets them into problems.
* **Free Aspec**t: Something to round out your character and make them *yours*. It could be a trinket they always carry around or a character tic or something else entirely.
* **Skills**: These represent what your character is good at. You get:
	+ 1 Good (+3) Skill,
	+ 2 Fair (+2) Skills,
	+ 3 Average (+1) Skills.
* **1 Free Stun**t: This represents something cool/unique/awesome your character can do. Follow the guidelines in the SRD to design your own stunts, but make sure the GM approves them first.
* **Physical Stress**: Your physical stress boxes. You get additional boxes as per regular Fate Core.
* **Mental Stress**: Your mental stress boxes. You get additional boxes as per regular Fate Core.
* **Consequence**: Mild, Moderate, Severe.
* **3 Refresh**: You start with this many fate points at the start of each session.

## Races of Fidem

The following races are prevalent on Fidem: Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Orcs, Halflings, and Dragonborn, though the list of all races is much bigger. If you can find it somewhere in D&D, you can probably play it here. Just remember that a rare or unusual race might garner… unwanted attention.

The races listed above are common enough that most won’t bat an eye, but a kobold or a bugbear walking around Fidem or the West Marches might raise a few eyebrows, though most will still gladly do business with you.

## Aspects

While aspects in regular Fate Core tie you to the setting and world at large, that isn’t as necessary in this game since you’re essentially a vagrant headed out into the unknown. What’s more important are personality traits and flaws of your character. Are you a ***Hopeless Romantic***? Maybe you always ***Hit First, Think Later.***

You *can* tie your character to another outside force, but it may not come up all that often out in the West Marches. Again, check with the GM whether your character makes sense and has enough space for interesting situations.

## Stress & Consequences

Stress is handled differently in this setting. **Each stress box only absorbs 1 stress, but you can check off multiple stress boxes at a time**.

Consequences also absorb less stress on a whole:

* Mild consequences absorb 2 stress,
* Moderate consequences absorb 3 stress,
* Severe consequences absorb 4 stress.

Out in the West Marches**, you can only fully heal from Mild consequences**; these go away at the end of the next scene if appropriate care has been administered.

Moderate and Severe consequences can be temporarily fixed, but actual healing doesn’t happen until you get back to Fidem and get to rest in the tavern. After that, they heal when certain conditions are met.

* Moderate consequences go away when you start your next session.
* Severe consequences go away when you get a Significant Milestone.

To administer Aid, make an Overcome roll using a relevant skill against the amount of stress said consequence can absorb. You can only do this in a relatively safe place like a camp.

## Example Characters

### **Morrash Enxir**

Description: A tall battle-scarred Dragonborn, his red scales have dulled over years of combat and he has a massive scar across his chest. He's crude and boorish, often resorting to violence as his first (and last) means of solving problems, but he usually means well. He wields a large two-handed Greatsword that was his father's, passed down through generations of his clan.

Milestone XP: 0

High Concept: ***Red*** ***Dragonborn Swordsman***

Trouble: ***Hit First, Think Later***

Free Aspect: ***My Father's Heirloom Sword***

* Good (+3): Fight
* Fair (+2): Notice, Physique
* Average (+1): Rapport, Athletics, Will

Stunts

* **Breath Attack**: Once per scene, I can exhale a blast of destructive flames from my mouth. Can be used to attack everyone in my zone using Physique and they must defend using Athletics to jump out of the way in time.

Stress

* Physical: [] [] [] []
* Mental: [] []

Consequences

Refresh: 3

- - - - -

### **Gail Brightwind**

Milestone XP: 0

Description: A slender elf with shimmering green eyes, Gail has a penchant for poking her nose where she shouldn't, a manner rather unbecoming of an elven lady. She's not very familiar with the outside world, but her skills with a rifle are second-to-none and her upbringing has instilled within her a deep understanding of the woods.

High Concept: ***Plucky Elven Sharpshooter***

Trouble: ***Where's The Fun In That?***

Free Aspect: ***Innocently Insensitive***

* Good (+3): Shoot
* Fair (+2): Athletics, Notice
* Average (+1) Survival, Resources, Empathy

Stunts

* **Bullseye**: When I make a ranged attack and invoke an aspect representing careful aim, my attack gets Weapon:2.

- - - - -

### **Markus Oathbearer**

Milestone XP: 0

Description: A scrawny man with a million-credit smile, Markus comes from a family of politicians and nobles, he turned to the adventuring life because he wanted to get away from an arranged marriage. Now, he roams the world looking for adventure. He's not the greatest fighter, but he makes up for it by always having a compliment or insult for every situation.

High Concept: ***Fast-Talking Human Noble***

Trouble: ***Not The Face!***

Free Aspect: ***Just Laugh It Off!***

* Good (+3): Empathy
* Fair (+2): Rapport, Resources
* Average (+1): Deceive, Shoot, Provoke

Stunts

* **Inspiring Words**: Once per session, I can inspire an ally with my powerful words, allowing them to reroll their dice once.