Post by The Keeper on May 16, 2016 13:50:18 GMT 12
Characters in SotK are easy and quick to roll up!
Before doing this however, read the game guide which explains all the concepts in detail and has excellent ways to convert ideas into statted characters. These are simple and intuitive but you do need to be familiar with the terms before you create your persona.
CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATE: tinyurl.com/SotK-Character-Template
GAME GUIDE: tinyurl.com/SotK-Game-Guide
Step 1: Choose your Role
Your Role states briefly your position in the city, and provides an easy way for everyone to get a general idea of where you stand. Your Role can be anything, and depending on the character, you may have two different Roles. Choose whichever Role fits your character best, and write it under the Role section on your character sheet.
Examples:
• IPO Hero
• Vigilante
• Redcoat
• Criminal
• Kingsman
• Anchor
• Blacklung
• 41ster
• Police Officer
• Corrupt Police Officer
• Investigative Journalist
• Politician
• Businessman
Step 2: Choose your Desire
Every character has a Desire, representing the one thing that is their motivation, the emotional goal that drives them through dramatic scenes. Your Desire should be broadly stated and emotional, not practical. It can either be a short sentence, or a single word, but the simpler the Desire, the better. While a character should have practical goals, your desire should represent the emotional aspect that underpins this.
Examples:
• Approval
• Acceptance
• Community
• Family
• Forgiveness
• Respect
• Love
• Reassurance
• Survival
• Power
• To defend
• To punish
• To be punished
Step 3: Choose your Dramatic Poles
Your Dramatic Poles are the most important part of your character. They represent the internal contradiction that makes your character interesting. Your poles should be as clear, and as contradictory as possible. Your Dramatic Poles, as the backbone for your character, makes it easier for you and others to build entertaining and dramatic scenes, and therefore makes it easier to win Bennies, granting you additional power over the narrative. Your Dramatic Poles may redefine themselves during play, as your character develops away from your original conception, or as you deliberately steer your character on a new course after exhausting the possibilities of the old. If you ever want to change your Dramatic Poles, talk to the GMs.
Examples from fictional characters:
• Batman (Batman): justice or vengeance?
• Jessica Jones (Jessica Jones): isolated safety or hurtful healing?
• Spiderman (Spiderman): normal life or heroic responsibilities?
• Tony Soprano (The Sopranos): family man or Family man?
• Two-Face (Batman): law or anarchy?
• Walter White (Breaking Bad): virtuous weakness or anti-social power?
• Wilson Fisk (Daredevil): moral man or immoral monster?
Step 4: Define your Character Relations
These are an important part of your character, but many of your character relationships cannot be written up until you have played with other characters. However, if you have discussed your character’s relationship with another player’s character before games, add them now.
For all characters you have a relationship with, you must write down five things. The character’s name, the Player’s name, your relationship to them, what you want from them, and their Dramatic Poles
Examples of Relationships:
• Brother/Sister
• Husband/Wife
• Boyfriend/Girlfriend
• Friend
• Teammates
• Rival
• Leader
• Boss
• Ally
• Enemy
• Partner
• Sidekick
• Customer
• Client
• Competition
• Sexual Tension
• Unrequited Love
Step Five: Choose your Action Types
Next, you must choose your Action Types. Action Types are used whenever a Procedural Action occurs. Action Types are ranked at Weak, Middling, Strong and Extreme:
• At Extreme, a character is so good at the Action Type that challenge becomes meaningless. No character is allowed to be ranked at Extreme.
• Strong characters, whether through natural ability, superpowers or other enhancements, are at or just beyond the peak of human ability.
• Middling characters, despite the name, are highly competent at the respective Action Type, skilled but not at the peak of human ability
• Weak at an Action Type simply means that a character has the ability of an average person, or worse.
All characters begin with two Strong Action Types, three Middling Action Types and two Weak Action Types (unless you are using the optional Custom Action Type rule, in which you have three Weak Action Types). No characters begin with or will ever have an Action Type at Extreme. For each of your Strong Action Types, you must choose a Specialty. Whenever you use that Action Type in a Procedural Action related to your Specialty, you gain an additional Advantage in that scene.
The Action Types that exist are:
(See the Game Guide for an in depth explanation of these action types along with fictional examples)
Enduring: Enduring reflects a character’s ability to resist physical hardship, and to keep going despite adversity.
Fighting: Fighting measures your ability to defeat an opponent in open combat.
Knowing: Knowing reflects a characters broad knowledge base, whether it is complex science, strategy and tactics or the ins and outs of a city.
Moving: Through superpowers, skill or just sheer speed, Moving is used to get to places fast, or to get somewhere difficult.
Making: Many heroes are experts at Making, use their talents to create weapons, gadgets and costumes, or to deceive people with fakes and copy someone’s handwriting. Nearly every act of creativity is under Making.
Talking: For speeches to crowds, the writing of articles for a newspaper or negotiations, Talking is used as the Action Skill for all challenges based on conversation and communication. (Note: Most conversations are Dramatic Conversations, and do not use Action Types. Dramatic Conversations require the trading of drama tokens, and cannot use the Talking Action Type to help. Talking is useful only for conversation challenges that are not Dramatic Conversations.)
Sneaking: Sneaking represents the ability to achieve things through stealth and skulduggery, whether hiding from a gang, pick pocketing a villain or breaking into a safe.
Custom Action Types: For certain characters, you may feel that your character is best expressed with an Action Type that isn’t featured here. For example, someone playing a character like John Constantine may feel that their character requires a Magic Action Type. If you feel this is the case, you may take a Custom Action Type. A Custom Action Type can represent anything. However, it needs to be approved by the GMs, who will make decisions on a case by case basis and work with the player to make sure that the Custom Action Type is necessary, and that the character’s ability that the Custom Action Type reflects isn’t ranked at Extreme. In addition, you are only allowed one Custom Action Type.
Step Six: Submit character for approval
Submit the character through your IC forum set up for you when you registered. A link to the google doc is all that is needed. Please note, ONLY google docs will be accepted. We will not accept a PDF, word .doc or any other sheet type. This is so we have a standardized and easily manageable system to work with.
Before doing this however, read the game guide which explains all the concepts in detail and has excellent ways to convert ideas into statted characters. These are simple and intuitive but you do need to be familiar with the terms before you create your persona.
CHARACTER SHEET TEMPLATE: tinyurl.com/SotK-Character-Template
GAME GUIDE: tinyurl.com/SotK-Game-Guide
Step 1: Choose your Role
Your Role states briefly your position in the city, and provides an easy way for everyone to get a general idea of where you stand. Your Role can be anything, and depending on the character, you may have two different Roles. Choose whichever Role fits your character best, and write it under the Role section on your character sheet.
Examples:
• IPO Hero
• Vigilante
• Redcoat
• Criminal
• Kingsman
• Anchor
• Blacklung
• 41ster
• Police Officer
• Corrupt Police Officer
• Investigative Journalist
• Politician
• Businessman
Step 2: Choose your Desire
Every character has a Desire, representing the one thing that is their motivation, the emotional goal that drives them through dramatic scenes. Your Desire should be broadly stated and emotional, not practical. It can either be a short sentence, or a single word, but the simpler the Desire, the better. While a character should have practical goals, your desire should represent the emotional aspect that underpins this.
Examples:
• Approval
• Acceptance
• Community
• Family
• Forgiveness
• Respect
• Love
• Reassurance
• Survival
• Power
• To defend
• To punish
• To be punished
Step 3: Choose your Dramatic Poles
Your Dramatic Poles are the most important part of your character. They represent the internal contradiction that makes your character interesting. Your poles should be as clear, and as contradictory as possible. Your Dramatic Poles, as the backbone for your character, makes it easier for you and others to build entertaining and dramatic scenes, and therefore makes it easier to win Bennies, granting you additional power over the narrative. Your Dramatic Poles may redefine themselves during play, as your character develops away from your original conception, or as you deliberately steer your character on a new course after exhausting the possibilities of the old. If you ever want to change your Dramatic Poles, talk to the GMs.
Examples from fictional characters:
• Batman (Batman): justice or vengeance?
• Jessica Jones (Jessica Jones): isolated safety or hurtful healing?
• Spiderman (Spiderman): normal life or heroic responsibilities?
• Tony Soprano (The Sopranos): family man or Family man?
• Two-Face (Batman): law or anarchy?
• Walter White (Breaking Bad): virtuous weakness or anti-social power?
• Wilson Fisk (Daredevil): moral man or immoral monster?
Step 4: Define your Character Relations
These are an important part of your character, but many of your character relationships cannot be written up until you have played with other characters. However, if you have discussed your character’s relationship with another player’s character before games, add them now.
For all characters you have a relationship with, you must write down five things. The character’s name, the Player’s name, your relationship to them, what you want from them, and their Dramatic Poles
Examples of Relationships:
• Brother/Sister
• Husband/Wife
• Boyfriend/Girlfriend
• Friend
• Teammates
• Rival
• Leader
• Boss
• Ally
• Enemy
• Partner
• Sidekick
• Customer
• Client
• Competition
• Sexual Tension
• Unrequited Love
Step Five: Choose your Action Types
Next, you must choose your Action Types. Action Types are used whenever a Procedural Action occurs. Action Types are ranked at Weak, Middling, Strong and Extreme:
• At Extreme, a character is so good at the Action Type that challenge becomes meaningless. No character is allowed to be ranked at Extreme.
• Strong characters, whether through natural ability, superpowers or other enhancements, are at or just beyond the peak of human ability.
• Middling characters, despite the name, are highly competent at the respective Action Type, skilled but not at the peak of human ability
• Weak at an Action Type simply means that a character has the ability of an average person, or worse.
All characters begin with two Strong Action Types, three Middling Action Types and two Weak Action Types (unless you are using the optional Custom Action Type rule, in which you have three Weak Action Types). No characters begin with or will ever have an Action Type at Extreme. For each of your Strong Action Types, you must choose a Specialty. Whenever you use that Action Type in a Procedural Action related to your Specialty, you gain an additional Advantage in that scene.
The Action Types that exist are:
(See the Game Guide for an in depth explanation of these action types along with fictional examples)
Enduring: Enduring reflects a character’s ability to resist physical hardship, and to keep going despite adversity.
Fighting: Fighting measures your ability to defeat an opponent in open combat.
Knowing: Knowing reflects a characters broad knowledge base, whether it is complex science, strategy and tactics or the ins and outs of a city.
Moving: Through superpowers, skill or just sheer speed, Moving is used to get to places fast, or to get somewhere difficult.
Making: Many heroes are experts at Making, use their talents to create weapons, gadgets and costumes, or to deceive people with fakes and copy someone’s handwriting. Nearly every act of creativity is under Making.
Talking: For speeches to crowds, the writing of articles for a newspaper or negotiations, Talking is used as the Action Skill for all challenges based on conversation and communication. (Note: Most conversations are Dramatic Conversations, and do not use Action Types. Dramatic Conversations require the trading of drama tokens, and cannot use the Talking Action Type to help. Talking is useful only for conversation challenges that are not Dramatic Conversations.)
Sneaking: Sneaking represents the ability to achieve things through stealth and skulduggery, whether hiding from a gang, pick pocketing a villain or breaking into a safe.
Custom Action Types: For certain characters, you may feel that your character is best expressed with an Action Type that isn’t featured here. For example, someone playing a character like John Constantine may feel that their character requires a Magic Action Type. If you feel this is the case, you may take a Custom Action Type. A Custom Action Type can represent anything. However, it needs to be approved by the GMs, who will make decisions on a case by case basis and work with the player to make sure that the Custom Action Type is necessary, and that the character’s ability that the Custom Action Type reflects isn’t ranked at Extreme. In addition, you are only allowed one Custom Action Type.
Step Six: Submit character for approval
Submit the character through your IC forum set up for you when you registered. A link to the google doc is all that is needed. Please note, ONLY google docs will be accepted. We will not accept a PDF, word .doc or any other sheet type. This is so we have a standardized and easily manageable system to work with.