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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 10:28AM
#1
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Date Joined:
Jul 24, 2007
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have you ever made up a long background for your character and then never gotten to use it?
like big significant events that were in your history never coming in to play or family secrets that dont get used.
i want to make big backgrounds and i like doing it. but it feels like a wast of effort and time when none of it comes into play.
it might just be the campaigns that i get put in. they are short and often full of powergamers that just want to do the most damage and only use one character (for the most part) so the background is always the same.
what do you think about this? and how long are your character backgrounds? how in-depth do you go?
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 10:32AM
#2
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have you ever made up a long background for your character and then never gotten to use it?
like big significant events that were in your history never coming in to play or family secrets that dont get used.
I think that's happened to most experienced gamers.
i want to make big backgrounds and i like doing it. but it feels like a wast of effort and time when none of it comes into play.
it might just be the campaigns that i get put in. they are short and often full of powergamers that just want to do the most damage and only use one character (for the most part) so the background is always the same.
what do you think about this? and how long are your character backgrounds? how in-depth do you go?
There's definitely middle ground between basic stats with a few descriptive sentences and a background that's 10 pages long.
You could focus on fleshing out maybe two to three paragraphs of substantial background. Add a few good hooks in that the DM could potentially use. Then, enjoy playing the character--the character will develop as you play the game, and there's more to them than their background.
That's just my suggestion though, your mileage may vary.
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 10:35AM
#3
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Date Joined:
Aug 22, 2007
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The coolest backgrounds I have had for my characters have emerged in play through a team effort between the players and the GM. I don't know if this is universally true or not, but when it happens it makes the characters feel all the more real when their backgrounds come to affect the current gaming experience. Given, this tends to take time. This method will not work for 1-shots or even short-term campaigns. Basically, you have to be fairly confident that your game will last before you can hope to have a background related story like this that does not make other players feel like the DM is playing favorites with your character.
This is my experience anyway, take it as you will.
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 10:52AM
#4
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if thats what you want out of your game, talk to your DM about it. the DM cant change the way he runs if you dont tell him what more you want out of the game.
and if the DM says "lulz no we ganna keep runnin for dem munchkinz" then, well... it might be time to find a new game.
Just thought you should know.
the countdown continues...
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 11:06AM
#5
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Date Joined:
Sep 10, 2005
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I use the Quest Card concept that has been previewed only in reverse.
I set out blank index cards on the game table and whenever someone wants to pursue something in game, they fill out a quest card and hand it in. Helps so much as a DM and lets me take the story where the players want it to go. I'm no constrained to give them exactly what they want all the time and I retain veto power ... but it does make fore more engaged story driven players.
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 11:41AM
#6
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Date Joined:
Feb 17, 2007
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Talk to your DM is the best option.
When I DM I like to know what my players want the goals etc and knowing the background gives plothooks but sometimes backgrounds are long and well I have other stuff to do other backgrounds, college and my own plothooks.
But if my player works and ivest time in a character I like to reward him/her/hir
Buena suerte y digo adios en español n_n
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 11:44AM
#7
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ElectricBee ftw. I do the same thing, let's the other players know that something somewhere will possibly change the course of the game...and they know who to blame too! (Dude? Why are we chasing this hideous thing across a danger infested moor? ...Uhm, my fault?.... >.> o.O <.< -.- )
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 2:42PM
#8
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Date Joined:
Jul 24, 2007
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cool thanks everyone. big help 
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5 years ago ::
May 23, 2008 - 9:48PM
#9
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Date Joined:
Jun 10, 2001
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One of my friends said he was going to try his hand at DMing and i wrote a 5 page background with much room for expansion before my character was the age he'd be in the game... well the game never happened and i ended up writing 30 pages more just out of boredom and introducing other characters and it was a decent start to a book... Unfortunatly i always seem to start writing epic tales get to 30-50 pages and move on to the next idea.
Can't finish anything LOL
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5 years ago ::
May 25, 2008 - 12:02PM
#10
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Date Joined:
Jun 10, 2004
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Jah, I've come up with long detailed background that never get touched, as well as jumping head first into a game with a character that didn't have any background.
Both ways work, but one requires more improv then the other.
But yeah, if you want your character's backstory to be relevant and be a hook for the DM to use, you need to talk to them about it.
For example, right now I have a neat character concept, but I refuse to try and play it in a game that *isn't* character driven.
So it's one part suiting a character to the campaign, and one part suiting the campaign to the character.
A wild EscherEnigma appears!
He looks on with disapproval.
ITS SUPER EFFECTIVE!
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