Character Creation

This page will help you create a character for the campaign. We are starting at Level 3.

## Ability Scores

For generating your 6 ability scores (Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma), we use the point buy method. This ensures every character starts out at an equal power level. You have 27 points to spend. Consult the following table to select 6 scores that have a total cost of 27 points (for example [15, 15, 15, 8, 8, 8] or [15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8]). Then, put each of these scores into one of your stats. This calculator may help (but does not have the 6 for -1 option).

**Example:** Joe is creating his character Lug the Fighter, who is an elite physical specimen, but dumb and oblivious. Joe generates the scores [15, 15, 14, 10, 8, 8], then puts 15 in Strength and Constitution, 14 in Dexterity, 10 in Charisma, and 8 in Intelligence and Wisdom.

## Race

The Kingdom of Amberhaven has almost exclusively humanoid races. Below are the available races; two of them (elf and dwarf) also pick a subrace that grants additional features. Although these have some suggested attitudes or social standing, they are not binding on your character, but rather a reflection of the society in general. An elvish farmer or the only orc wizard's apprentice in the city could both be compelling characters.

* **Human:** Making up a majority (though not overwhelming, about 60-70%) of the citizens, humans are found everywhere from agricultural fields and criminal underworlds to the Strix academy and the high court of the capital. They generally get along with all races, especially the ones that tend towards their profession or social circle. Use the Variant Human (Common and 1 other language, +1 skill, +1 feat, and +1 to 2 different ability scores).
* **Elf:** Elves shy away from manual farming labor; some tends towards higher pursuits (bards, merchants, scholars, and wizards), while others try to live in better harmony with nature (hunters, gatherers, and homemakers). Some look down on Dwarves and Orcs, seeing them as unsophisticated beings who fail to recognize beauty.
	+ Subraces: High Elf, Wood Elf, and Sea Elf (replace Aquan with Water Vehicles proficiency).
* **Half-Elf:** Human+Elf is the most common heterogeneous parent pairing. Unlike other pairings, whose offspring are halfway between the two parent races, half-elves have some unique traits.
* **Orc/Half-Orc:** Orcs were on the continent before the arrival of King Dyre. Centuries of civilization have domesticated them, though they still are mostly found among manual laborers, soldiers and mercenaries, and criminals. Wild tribes of orcs still live south of Amberhaven's borders, beyond the control of the king. Civilized orcs rarely outright hate elves or dwarves, but have little in common culturally with them, and so typically stay apart. Use the half-orc rules.
* **Dwarf:** Unlike the typical underground dwellers, dwarves in Amberhaven live on the surface. Many take on physical but skilled jobs (blacksmith, mason, artisans, and civil engineers), though some are unskilled labor. They tend towards rural areas, though skilled ones may set up shop in a city. They believe in good drink, hospitality, aiding others, and karma. Some distrust the abstract intellectual nature of elves; some others see orcs as little more than beasts of burden.
	+ Subraces: Hill Dwarf and Mountain Dwarf

Ignore the recommended alignment; good and bad people are found among every race. For aging, dwarves and elves live about twice as long as humans (up to two centuries), humans and halflings live as long as humans do in the real world, and orcs about half as long (though orcs rarely die of natural causes!). For a character with mixed ancestry, average the parent races' lifespans.

**Example:** Joe keeps it simple, deciding Lug will be a human. He puts the +1s in Strength and Constitution (giving Lug a 16 in both). He gives Lug the Tough feat, the Survival skill, and the Orcish language with his other Variant Human bonuses.

## Backstory

A backstory explains who your character is, what they've done before the campaign, and what they hope to do in the future. It can be as short as a paragraph or long as a novella, but should contain the following (please also explicitly write these out, above or below your backstory, like "Small Goal: Get Magic Armor"):

* **Big Goal:** Something your character wishes to accomplish that would be a major accomplishment in their life. It doesn't have to take an entire campaign, but it shouldn't be something doable with one conversation or a bit of gold. Examples: "Prove I am the rightful heir to the barony", "Resurrect my dead lover and kill her murderer", "Learn how to create Ioun Stones"
* **Small Goal:** Something smaller. It could be part of the big goal ("find a cleric who can cast Resurrection"), or just about improving your character ("find +1 plate armor")
* **Bond:** Everyone has something they want to protect. It could be a person ("my sister"), a location ("my home forest"), an idea ("my reputation of bravery" or "those who offer hospitality")
* **Flaw:** No one's perfect. Does your character overindulge in some vice, have a dark secret they want to keep buried, or just not trust anyone until they've known them for years- preferably decades?

**Example:** Joe decides that Lug worked in a mercenary company, until one day when Lug found a map leading to an undead dragon's lair deep in the Otherlands that promised a great treasure horde. Lug's big goal is to go there, kill the dragon, and loot its lair; his small goal is to find someone who has been deep into the Otherlands and learn what it's like. Lug's bond is his friend One-Eyed Pete, the bartender of Joe's favorite bar, who fell on the wrong side of a local crime lord a couple years back. Lug's flaw is that he faked his death to get out of his mercenary contract, and he'll be hanged if the company catches him.

## Background

Backgrounds are how you translate your backstory into mechanical effects (like a skill proficiency). Instead of making your fit into one of 5e's set backstories, you get a lot of customization to make your character reflect your story. To create a background, select the following:

* Two skill proficiencies
* Two proficiencies from the following categories: Any language, any tool (like Thieves' Tools), any gaming set (like dice, dragonchess, or cards), any musical instrument, any kit (like Disguise kit or Herbalism kit), or any category of weapon (like swords or bows)

These should be related to your backstory; a scholar, for example, might take the Elvish and Dwarvish languages, plus the Arcana and History skills. There's no advantage in "double-dipping" (taking a proficiency here that you already get with your class), so everyone should have at least 4 skill proficiencies.

**Example:** Lug's mercenary company was shady at best, downright criminal at worst, so Joe picks the Deception and Intimidation skills. Fighter has already given him all weapon skills, and Lug's backstory doesn't readily suggest any tool or kit proficiencies, so Joe decides that Lug played dice and the lyre in his downtime with the mercenaries, adding those proficiencies.

## Equipment

In general, I don't intend to make you do bookkeeping on small stuff. We're here to make a great adventure, not make you take 2 cold damage because you forgot to buy a blanket before leaving town. Don't worry about keeping track of rations, water supplies, or arrows. You start with the following equipment:

* Anything your class gives you
* Related to your backstory: One common magic item OR 50 gp worth of items+cash
* Any "worthless" items you included in your backstory (a bear tooth necklace, your father's will, a loaded die)
* 25 gp worth of items+cash

You may spend some of the 75 gp (or 25 if you took a magic item) allowance to upgrade your gear; for example, someone who starts with leather armor (10 gp) from their class may use 35 gp to upgrade it to Studded Leather (45 gp), leaving them with 40 gp to spend on items or keep as cash.

Every class should give you some type of pack (like Explorer's pack). Instead of keeping track of bunch of junk that rarely matters, your pack starts at 4 charges. You may expend a charge to "produce" an minor item that would be appropriate for your backstory/pack type. After expending this charge, you now permanently have one fewer charge and whatever item you produced. These items should be small and inexpensive- not weapons, armor, tool kits, or magical items.

**Example:** As a fighter, Lug gets chain mail, a martial weapon (he selects a longsword), a shield, two handaxes, and an explorer's pack. Joe decides that Lug got a moon-touched sword (a common magic item) from his mercenary career, then adds adds a set of dice and deck of cards (1 gp) and 2 crystal lenses (2 gp), leaving Lug with 22 gp in cash. After his first adventure, Lug has pulled out 3 items from his pack: 50 feet of rope, a set of torches, and maps describing the area his mercenary company once campaigned in, leaving him with 1 charge to use in the future.