A good place to start
is with the character's origin, background and personality. The background
of your character has a great deal to do with how this person will
be in the game. Just as your background has a lot to do with what
you are like, let it be equally true with your character. Starting
with a background
lets you flow easily into figuring out what kind of personality and
objectives you will wind up with. To start with background, pick an
origin of the character. Here's a few examples of places you can be
from:
Point NOCA, a trade station
concerned primarily with feeding the glut of transportation, is filled
with scurrying beings with pressing business elsewhere, tired traders
and a rich smuggling legacy...
Vaeirmor, a corporate-owned
city-planet brimming with more
excitement and individuals than one could hope to deal with in a lifetime,
where the rich play hard, the working class work harder and the criminals
are the hardest...
Nostalg, an old settlement
resting at the south pole of a forgotten planet in an all but lost
system, where the weather is unforgiving and frigid, as are the general
populace...
Swistern, an industrial
planet filled with dark cities and even darker individuals, where
many abandoned souls have parked their lot amongst the rest of those
seeking a hiding place or ill-gotten gains...
For additional possible places of
origin, consult a terrific list found in Platt's
Smugglers Guide on
pages 5 and 6.
Another way to decide the origin of your character is
to pick a race that is not human. In Alien Encounters
and the Alien Races Galaxy Guides, you
can find many races that are great for this type of character. I will
refrain from making suggestions, but look for good mechanical and technical
attribute dice and
check the backgrounds for races that lean toward smuggling, trading
or related occupations. Also, in the back of Alien
Encounters, there is a list on pages 183 & 184 that is a
space-farers index, which can point you in a lot of good directions.
Once you have that picked out, you should be able to get a background
and personality figured out pretty easily. Here's some important tips
to keep in mind during development:
Avoid making a character that is too stereotypical
Though a blockade runner should be someone who is generally
of a less-than-savory type, you don't want to create a character that
won't allow you to grow in the game. Make them shifty, but not too
dastardly. If you can't
figure out a good balance, just leave some room...
Develop some traits that only you will have
Maybe your character always smokes a cigar after or before a run is
made. Or maybe they scream out a certain saying just before entering
combat. Perhaps they have some strange ritual, like a drink, prayer
or poem they recite before
taking on a run. Whatever you pick, this is what will become your
trademark of sorts in the game...
Give them a role you'll have fun playing
In other words, give them a personality that you can really get into.
A lot of people find that funny, corny characters are a ball to play.
They are characters with no social inhibitions, and you can really
cut loose with them. Others enjoy serious and pondering types, characters
that analyze and examine their actions. These characters can help
let out the intellectual and authoritative skills in you and often
wind up being very interesting to play. Whatever you choose, keep
in mind that what you do here is how you'll be later, so pick something
you can really sink your teeth into, and don't forget to balance it
out to keep it even...
Mix it up with some advantages and disadvantages
Find the supplement of the same name here,
and follow the rules. Be sure and check with your GM for approval,
and make sure you pick things that don't clash too hard with your
character's personality or background. And don't forget to pick stuff
that you can deal with both easily and in a fun way...
Additional help with creating a character
can be found in many of the game books, which you already know of. Take
advantage of these resources. Most important, don't be afraid to try
out a character type that you've never done before. With some thought
and detailed preparation, playing a character you usually would have
not created can be easy and exciting, so take a chance! Wrap up this
portion of the creation process by picking a height, weight, age, sex
and physical description.
At this time, you should be able to tackle your character's objectives
and their connection with other players.
Make realistic objectives, but don't hold back
Don't let this part be too simple. Objectives like "To make money
and keep my ship well maintained" or "To fight the Empire"
are not really objectives, they're almost a given. Defining your character
objectives is a great opportunity to define how that character is
going to make decisions, and it is also the part where you decide
what your character cares about. Spend some thought on this, and reward
yourself with objectives that will guide you through the game with
depth. Chasing after money is most people's bottom line, but maybe
you need the money to help your mom out? Or send your cousin to school?
Many want to fight the Empire, but maybe you want
to fight them because your son once wished his dad was a "hero."
This opens up a new ballfield to play in. Give yourself motivations
you can live with, but that serve as a driving force in your character's
life.
Connect or disconnect? Most people connect
their new character with other characters in the group in simple ways:
"Got hired on" and "A ride to Epsilon 7 turned into
an extended stay" are two connections I've seen a lot. Connecting
with your group doesn't have to be easy and simple though. Think a
little about bonding yourself to another character or the whole group
through some common goal, and don't make this simple either. Talk
to the other players about it. Maybe you wind up all changing your
objectives to intertwine each other in different ways. When I say
disconnect, I don't mean connect yourself to the others in a rough
or difficult manner. I'm talking about NOT connecting yourself with
them. Think about starting out alone for a session or two, and talk
to your GM about running alone for a bit then role-play your joining
the group. Let the GM decide how you all meet up, and let him surprise
you all. This way, a part of your character's background can literally
be part of the story.
A note on crews Though it is possible
to run blockades alone, it is easier and more likely for you to run
with a crew. Running with a crew has pros and cons to it. The pros
are that you can divide up chores and develop a team effort. The con
is that you will have to come up with a system of dividing the profits
and figuring out the way the decisions are made. A good way is to
keep the ship as a priority and dump credits into the ship. Take twenty
percent of the earnings out of every job and divide that equally among
crew members as personal share, with the rest going to making the
ship better. In terms of decisions, flip a coin or discuss it out;
try to avoid making an actual leadership hierarchy. Unless you all
think it would work perfectly, it usually causes trouble down the
road. Doing things by vote is a good way, but can easily
turn into a hierarchy itself if there is an odd number of people.
Play with different ways and come up with what works for you.
Now that you've rounded out the psychological and emotional side of
the character, it's time to tackle the game stats. Even if you've done
this many times before, read the following for some helpful reminders...
Balance it or it will fall to one side or the
other Don't forget to not put too much starting dice in one
area. Though a blockade runner needs good piloting and gunnery skills,
and probably some pretty decent technical skills, don't overdo it.
This can be something metered out to others in the group. In other
words, if the other players already have established characters, check
their strengths and weaknesses. Use that to your advantage. If everyone
is making a new character, then maybe everyone can
talk about which stats they'll try to concentrate on. One person can
tackle mechanical skills, another technical, and so on. But always
remember to keep it balanced; if it's not, then your character will
"tip" from too much weight in one place.
Don't fret, it will come in time When
one makes a new character, it seems like they don't start with enough
dice to even feed themselves sometimes! But remember, that's why they
call it role-playing. Especially for players with a lot of experience,
a new character with low dice levels increases the need to role-play
situations, which in turn makes a role-player a practiced role-player.
And practice always
helps and never hinders.
Put it where it counts Keep in mind
that the range of skill that a blockade runner will use are almost
identical to those that are used by smugglers. Peruse other books
that talk about making smugglers, and borrow from this time-honored
profession. Also don't forget to place dice that is commensurate with
whatever specializations or special abilities you have chosen for
yourself (if any).
Once the stats are done with, pick some equipment
and weapons for your character. Almost no two GMs have the same
philosophy governing starting equipment and weapons (and money), so
we'll leave that to be handled between you and your GM. Also make sure
the character is approved by your GM, and
check over everything one last time before you start to make sure you've
got everything the way you want it. And remember: this is step one in
character creation. The second step is playing, so have at it! If you
need ideas or help, take a look at the "Notable Blockade Runners"
section for examples, but remember that this is my concept of
what a blockade runner is. You will be your own unique and interesting
character!
For sample blockade runner
characters, see the "Notable Blockade Runner's" section