We’ve had a few contests, here at Musings of the Chatty DM. For instance, we recently had the very successful 10 word Adventure and very useful Characterization ones.
Now it’s time for something bigger! I have teamed up with RPG e-Zine mogul Johnn Four (of roleplayingtips.comfame) to bring you the biggest independent RPG-themed contest to date!
How do you enter? Quite simple!
You need to write a One Sentence NPC, generally based on the tips provided in Johnn’s latest edition of the e-zine: Use 3 traits, include a contradiction, Make it generic but interesting.
See the tips reprinted at the end of this post.
You can submit them on the blog’s comments here or email them to Johnn (johnn@roleplayingtips.com). Please don’t submit the same entry at both places… 🙂
The goal is to have a short writeup that can be used by GMs to drop in their game and/or inspire them to create similar NPCs with their favorite RPG system.
Each NPC submitted grants you one chance to win a prize, determined by a random draw (yes you could win multiple prizes, so enter massively)!
What’s in it for you? How about a metric ton of prizes? Such as:
From Wolfgang Baur: http://wolfgangbaur.com/
- 3 x Kobold Quarterly #4 issues (print or PDF – your choice)
- 1 Standard Patron Open Design account (value $30)
- 1 Senior Patron Open Design account (value $100)
- Note that each patronage can be applied to either the OGL Blood of the Gorgon Horror adventure, the OGL Tales of Zobeck adventure anthology, or the 4E Wrath of the River King adventure.
From Hero Lab http://www.wolflair.com
- 4 x Hero Lab 2.0 licenses (character creation software for multiple game systems)
From Expeditious Retreat Press http://www.xrpshop.citymax.com/
1 print or PDF version (your choice) of the following:
- 1 on 1 Adventures #9: Legacy of Darkness
- 1 on 1 Adventures #10: Vengeance of Olindor
- 1 on 1 Adventures #11: Unbound Adventures
- Advanced Adventures #4: Prison of Meneptah
- Advanced Adventures #5: Flaming Footprints of Jilanth
From Goodman Games http://www.goodman-games.com/4371preview.html
- 3 x GM Gems book (print or PDF – your choice)
From Paizo http://paizo.com/
- Print copies of Pathfinder #7,8 and 9 (The 1st half of the Curse of the Crimson Throne path).
Entries will be edited and then given back to everyone in the e-zine and here on the Blog (as a PDF).
What GM couldn’t use a list of one sentence NPCs for instant game and planning use?
Here’s an example entry to get you started (See also Johnn’s Elmo below)
- Nervous, twitchy bodyguard with a drinking problem becomes intensely focused and displays nerves of steel when client is in danger.
So have fun! Tell all your friends about this contest and participate in droves, this will make an awesome gaming aid!
Thanks very much to the generous prize sponsors.
As usual, by submitting entries, you grant us non-exclusive use of your entries for free publishing on the e-zine and the PDF file and you permit us to derive ad revenues for the traffic generated by this contest.
We also reserve the right to invalidate any entry or disqualify a participant that does not comply with the contest’s intent (obsenity, repeated and/or automated/nonsensical bulk entires, etc).
Here’s the tips proposed by Johnn Four:
1. Create Three Traits
It’s important you give your one sentence NPCs three traits or characteristics. NPCs done well are the life of the game. They not only drive plots, but they fuel roleplaying and add
depth to the game world.You can create one or two trait NPCs, but during play I find those come off as cardboard, clownish, or cliche. It seems the third characteristic creates that extra dimension needed
to make NPCs alive. It provides you that extra spark to GM and roleplay them well, and to mine them for story roles and encounter ideas.A great technique is to pick one trait from three different categories (categories are outlined in later tips). Each category reveals a new aspect of the NPC, and this turns out to be the key if you desire three dimensional non-player characters in your games.
For example, if I only chose the Appearance category, and gave the NPC three appearance traits, there wouldn’t be much depth or material to work with when GMing that character. To make him interesting, you’d need to resort to extremes, giving him an odd or distinguishing appearance. That might get you by with a few NPCs, but if your whole campaign was filled with NPCs who looked remarkable, with no other traits, it would seem strange and become dull.
That brings us to another aspect of this tip. There are more than three possible trait categories. I’ve seen NPC formulas in the past, including in this e-zine, but cookie-cutter NPCs without variation will cause campaign and world development issues fast. The predictability and repetition will ruin sense of disbelief, mood, and atmosphere.
Fortunately, there are more than three categories to choose from, and by picking one trait from three different lists each time, your NPCs are sure to be varied, interesting, and unpredictable. Perfect!
2. Create A Contradiction
A key element to the one sentence NPC technique is to create one conflict or contradiction between the character’s three traits. This will generate friction in the NPC’s makeup, and is where his humanity (for lack of a better word where NPCs can be of any race), depth, and mileage will come from. This is a critical aspect of making NPCs, especially the one sentence variety.
For example, Elmo has three traits:
- Occupation: farmer
- Appearance: big and strong
- Stat: low intelligence
Here’s a one sentence description of Elmo:
Big and strong secret agent, posing as a farmer, who often gets into trouble because of his low intelligence.
At first, players will have fun poking the big, dumb, rural man. Soon, though, the roleplaying will dwindle and the group will look for a more interesting NPC to game with. Elmo might be good for a comic relief role, which is fine, but he’s become a one dimensional cliche. Worse, plots or encounters you might try to drive with this NPC will feel forced or lack depth.
What if we add conflict and change Elmo’s farmer occupation to secret agent? Elmo is only posing as a farmer so the villain’s minions won’t pay him any attention. We now have an interesting NPC with a bit of depth. As you roleplay him, his mission will drive his objectives and decisions. You can mine this for many gaming opportunities and cool encounter
moments.He’s much more fun to GM too, as I find gaming a secret that’s close to the PCs adds a lot to each session. You’ve also got a great surprise in store for your players when Elmo’s true identity gets revealed.
We’re not done with Elmo yet, though. The real conflict amongst his traits comes from his poor intelligence. You can play this in many ways, as intelligence has many definitions. However, this shortcoming is at direct odds with being a successful secret agent. What fun! This twist gives you lots of GMing material.
- If Elmo becomes an ally, perhaps the PCs need to rescue him a few times.
- Elmo might have enough guile to maintain his cover, but as you roleplay him he makes several unsavvy and odd actions and decisions that perplex the PCs, giving them a mystery to solve while the major story arc progresses.
- Once the PCs know Elmo’s secret, they might join forces, and he keeps getting them into predicaments, or forces the PCs to roleplay and get him out of trouble with his superiors on occasion.
Note: I advise not going for more than one strong contradiction. Feel free to experiment, but you don’t want to create a tossed salad NPC with so much conflict and weirdness that he becomes unbelievable or brittle (though Dennis Hopper fans might disagree).
3. Make One-Sentence NPCs Interesting But Generic Until Used
It might seem like a contradiction, but leave your one-sentence non-player characters as generic as possible until you bring them into play at the game table or in a design session.Do this to keep your options open until you’re ready to introduce the NPC. You want to minimize in-game, last minute changes or retrofitting, to make GMing easier. It also means you need to make fewer notes to track changes.
While GMing, it’s often simpler to bring in a generic element and customize it for your current need, than to bring in a fleshed out element and trim away on-the-fly to make things fit.
In practical terms, when creating a roster of one-sentence NPCs for later use, you can leave the following bits of information blank until the last minute:
- Name
- Gender
- Race
- Location
- General appearance
4. Use Traits That Affect Encounters
This tip was hard won by experience. 🙂 After more times than I care to count of creating NPC details that had no
effect on gameplay – ever – I finally learned that the details that matter most are ones that come into play during
encounters.I would spend an hour on an NPC’s history, for example, but during games that information would have no impact, or worse, become obsolete or contradictory due to shifting details.
Writing fiction for an hour is not a waste of time. In previous e-zine tips I’ve described how creative writing helps GMing. For pure NPC value though, stick to details and manage your time so you only create what will impact your
game directly. Use NPC traits that affect encounters.For example, our spy Elmo might have a fear of spiders. Fears have a spectrum of severity, so let’s say Elmo’s fear is debilitating when in the presence of large spiders.
Unless you plan for large spiders and Elmo to be in the same encounter, your creative effort has been largely wasted. Maybe a kinder term for it is deferred. 🙂 If spiders and Elmo have something going on, be sure to jam them together
in an encounter – hopefully, more than one encounter.It’s important to reveal each of the three characteristics you’ve defined for your one sentence NPCs, so that all their dimensions and conflict come into play.
Another trap is creating a trait that does come into play, but is too minor to have any impact. For example, we say Elmo dislikes cloudy days. Except in extreme circumstances, this fact will not affect the game at all when it comes up. Roleplaying, action, plot, clues, and other storytelling categories all seem unaffected with this trait. Best to replace it with something that does affect gameplay when it manifests.
indigo, a minoan bull-riding assassin, reborn into modern college life.
stephen m (ethesis)s last blog post..My Brother Daniel
Quite possibly the fastest comment ever! 12 minutes! Thanks Stephen!
So something like this?
A meticulous and charismatic illusionist devoted to Chaos.
A beautiful genius with a penchant for complex plots but never quite in control of her hair-trigger temper.
A shy, paranoid, home-bound scholar who holds the keys to undoing a wicked plot.
A rough and battered junkyard salvage tinkerer who can fix anything and collects Imperial Fabergé Easter eggs.
An obnoxious hedonist with a gift for seduction remains loyal to his family unto death.
Brians last blog post..Sham’s Take on Stats
That is exactly the spirit of it dear Trollsmyth!
This is going to be so cool!
I have to get a piece of this action.
Lord Klaxur the strong, fearless defender of the faith, athiest.
Trask, The Last Tyromancer
Trasks last blog post..Trask Will Be At the Origins Game Fair
A heroic paladin whose great intelligence makes him feel detached and distant from those he protects.
A remarkably large warrior is totally fearless in battle, but is terrified of stepping on other peoples’ feet.
An otherwise calm and capable spellcaster who studies ancient magical amulets lives atop a tall tower, but his fear of heights keeps him well away from his windows.
An honorable knight-captain loves his king like a brother, but is secretly indebted to the evil chancellor.
A kind and compassionate noblewoman runs an orphanage and homeless shelter, but is secretly the head of a dark cult.
A silver-tongued bard is quite a hit with the ladies, but to his shame is actually a eunuch.
Kavondes last blog post..Adventure Recap, 6/21/08
Don’t you just love it when blogpost synergy happens?
Here’s mine:
* Doubting Cleric convinced his God has died and is being impersonated by a force of evil
* Charming Ex-slaver forced to work the Dungeons with the party as punishment for his crimes
* Lightfingered Wizard’s apprentice exiled for stealing his master’s thoughts
* Bold //kothe// (fantasy coffee!) addicted priest of an illithid worshipping snake cult
* Beautiful Half-kobold princess searching for her natural father
* Mute monk sent by his monastry to find his true voice
More, later, I’m sure 🙂
Inspired by some of our groups most memorable PC’s…
* Former wrestling gladiator slave turned into religious and ascetic fighting monk by troubling prophetic visions
* Foul-mouthed old drunkard of a bard immensely popular among young female audience despite being ugly as sin
* Fat and timid merchant-wizard on a quest to destroy his half-demon daughter
* Radiantly beautiful young blonde bimbo paladin, whose steps are – fortunately – guided by God
Awesome!
@Greywulf: Now that is some scary synergies!
@Mak: Your last one is almost a word for word copy of a Paladin my buddy played a few years back.
All excellent Stuff so far!
Well, high time to start commenting, now that I might actually win stuff. 😀
He’s not a very funny clown, but when you consider that he worships the God of Knives and Murder, that’s to be expected.
A loser who’s lost it all was moments away from suicide, but that angel came down–and trading living on the streets for being a paladin was a heckuva deal.
Welcome on the blog Mike!
Interesting twists on the sentence structures. I like them a lot!
@ Mike Danger – from my clown-averse coworker:
… ALL clowns worship that god.
Ians last blog post..dndinsider launch
The brave, valiant heroic knight everyone loves…on the run for treason against the royal court.
The uptight, law-abiding and somewhat prudish cleric…of the goddess of illicit love affairs and the protector of shady brothels.
The carnivore protesting about animal rights to impress the men/ladies s/he’s never gotten to get a date with.
The vegan lycanthrope who can’t stand the sight of blood, looking for a way to not starve on nights of ‘change’.
The sass-talking barkeep who doesn’t touch alcohol outside church rituals.
Hot damn, you guys are taking to this like fish to water!
More, more!
A few more. This is entertainin’.
By day he’s a gregarious and well-regarded jewelry merchant, but by night he stocks his store with the duke’s treasures.
An inquisitive travelling scholar can’t handle a sword, but never backs down from a fight.
The stubborn lord of a frontier town fights valiantly to defend his people, but secretly believes they are doomed.
A boisterous barbarian queen welcomes travellers to her home, but kills them at the slightest offense.
An idealistic young wizard joins a cult of demon worshippers in hopes of using their power for the greater good.
Kavondes last blog post..The world sucks, humanity is a disease, and we all deserve to die. So long, George.
Glad to see another contest up…
Benevolent giant of a man has multiple personality disorder and becomes a creature of unrelenting fury once wounded.
Autistic blacksmith has an odd accent, but can identify anything and anyone from 50 yards by sense of smell alone.
Widely beloved countess is a serial killer that abates her bloodlust by slaughtering the homeless.
Doppleganger disguised as woman’s spouse fights inadequacy by trying to live up to his assumed identity’s greatness.
A highly-skilled warrior filled with self-doubt has a mental breakdown every five minutes.
Couple more
* Young swindler and charlatan who mixes her acting talent with some arcane powers to become a master of disguise
* A sharp information broker and artifact collector with a manic urge to scry on important people
Maybe none of these is quite right, but here goes:
A young, innocent street urchin, with an unknown and uncontrolled power to project dreams to others, is having nightmares.
A lone detective appears to town folk as a dark stranger with purpose unknown, and is frequently seen in areas where a murder has just been committed.
A proud bard with six fingers on their left hand who can play the lute better than any before them, and is using their talent to control a local tribe of goblins to wreak havoc on the village of their youth, seeking revenge on those whose tormented them.
A mind-flayer in control of a famous poet, using the poet’s fame to spread enchanted texts in an attempt to attract meals.
An apathetic, violent barbarian with a love for kittens.
I think that’s all I have in me right now… And don’t have access to the web from home because I’m moving soon. 🙁 Hopefully I’ll be able to come up with something better soon…
Stuttering strumpet speaks strikingly smoothe in sac (her tongue is really loose in bed bahahahahaha).
Brave, boy bodyguard bolts when battling beetles.
I’ll submit more later when I can get my head out of alliteration mode.
Heathers last blog post..Life: And All That That Implies
@Felonius: You got the gist of it! I hope to see more from you soon!
@Heather: Ah the joys of alliteration. I see that some English majors are starting to flex their creative writing muscles.
Barfight-loving monk
improvises his weapons,
speaks only haikus.
I enjoy these sorts of things, even if I’m not the best at them.
A belligerent, violent shopkeep sells exquisite glass crafts.
An amicable and friendly thief that distrusts anyone taller than she.
The otherwise wise and kindly king nonetheless leaves standing orders to slay every red-haired child born.
The iron-fisted and over-taxing robber-baron still owns dozens of homeless shelters and orphanages.
The wheedling, weak kobold still finds great courage in defending his pets.
A brawny and heavily scarred orc chieftain finds great value in the local druidic elves.
The stoic, holier-than-thou priest of Pelor still harbors a secret fetish for goblins.
The homeless vagrant still acts with mien of a lord, secretly an ousted noble.
A man who lives a completely solitary existence in a remote location, but traverses the world in one magical night delivering gifts to children who have been good all year round.
A man, a plan, a canal: water elemental.
OK, now that’s out of my brain:
Elvish superspy poses as simple Bard, must suppress his inner-badass to complete missions.
Jovial Paladin with giant sword refuses to believe that all beings are not inherently good.
Religious wizard who struggles to reconcile creation theory with magical transformations.
Halfling cleric of trickster god cursed to be a skeleton tries to invent new, undead practical jokes.
Mad scientist who happens to be one of the nicest graders in the entire University.
College student who refuses to grow up continually fails just enough classes to remain in school tutors younger students via the Power of Rock.
Comparative Religion professor who happens to possess the talking sword of Joan of Arc bestows it on the worthy.
Double agent infiltrates both the Empire and the Rebellion to try to free his home planet from overarching galaxy-spanning governments.
Gnomish sorcerer would rather talk to the animals then deal with any pesky adventurers.
Super-intelligent ape struggles to gain acceptance in the Galaxy Police Force.
Gelatinous Bob, the only known ooze who can communicate, might be able to help with your problem… if he decides you aren’t tasty first.
Hobgoblin Cleric of Vecna has trouble performing necromantic experiments and staying menacing when his dad insists on tagging along.
Halfling detective isn’t exactly a hero, but he’s the best at what he does.
Dave T. Games last blog post..YouTube of the Week: Andy vs. Everybody Edition
> Elvish superspy poses as simple Bard, must suppress his inner-badass to complete missions.
I like this one! Now I’ve got “My name is Bard….. James Bard.” running through my head. Darn you!
A few more from me:
Paladin of the succubus lust Goddess foils everyone’s expectations with her naked truths – literally!
Two words: Barbarian technomancer.
Anmesiac Doppelganger stuck in the form of a Gnomish Rogue but remembers being….. taller.
Catfolk ranger in search of the perfect warm windowsill.
Cruel King geased to live as a lowly commoner for 101 days without revealing his true nature.
greywulfs last blog post..TroubleInTallreedWaters: A review. ‘Tis good.
Round two for me.
The savage, bloodthirsty orc warrioress is also a cooing, loving mother of three.
The gleaming, holy paladin recklessly slaughters every orc he sees; regardless of their ability to defend.
A brutal and widely feared warlord nonetheless treats prisoners with kindness and care, having been a prisoner of war in his past.
An evil, sadistic druidic slaver will not abide the caging of animals.
The extravagantly wealthy, nearly foppish nobleman secretly works as a vigilante, attacking criminals in the dark of night. (Thanks Bob Kane)
The unmoving, stoic dwarven cleric of stubbornness is completely unable to refuse his wife’s requests.
A studious and orderly wizard becomes recklessly chaotic and violent after only a few drinks.
The slavering and demented drider queen still tends a flower garden hidden in a sunny area of her plane.
@Dave: Ouch! I’m happy you got that one out of your system.
This is very very good stuff, I love it!
I also see that some people have starting having fun with it. Alliteration, Haikus and pop culture references! Weee!
Ba dum BA DAAAAHHHH….
Dave T. Games last blog post..4th Edition: Class Acts
Surly golem that runs on alcohol instead of fuel takes on prohibition in 1920’s America.
Goblin with inferiority complex looking for love in all the wrong places.
Evil overlord fashionista who only got into the job for the great outfits, but must now play the part.
Bartoneuss last blog post..4th Edition: Class Acts
A herculean bugbear with a distaste for authority becomes a local hero when he drives off the corrupt Baron’s tax collectors, protecting his adopted parents.
A no-nonsense dwarven she-monk opens a small dojo in Leeside, teaching the commoners self-defense and instilling new-found courage against the local street thugs.
A renowned brothel’s famous stage-performer specializes in seductive sorcerous dances to extend her growing influence, making the crime organization she leads one of the most powerful in the land.
An outcast Gnoll with a broken voice who seeks enrollment at the most famous bardic college in the realm to escape the violence of his people and find the song of his soul in the world.
A well-known, yet deeply troubled priest develops multiple personalities, with both serving as powerful priests to conflicting gods who wish to make a battleground of the man’s tortured soul.
nw_meyers last blog post..Denton Game Wanted
@Bart: That last ones is awesome! Stolen!
@nw_meyer: Dude Nathan! You have got a gift for these things… I distinctly remember your entries from the 10 word adventure contest.
All right I need to start seeing some more craziness here… Don’t forget, more entries = more chances to win!
Third batch…
* Pallid and sickly young boy whose mother died at childbirth but who still constantly discusses with an unseen mommy – maybe that’s why the grass turns to ash in his footsteps
* Big friendly lummox of a barbarian who loves his weekly bar fights, too bad he usually ends up turning into a grizzly bear after getting a bloody nose
* A weary and scarred old bishop who’d like nothing better than to retire to his garden has to keep facing the Forces of Darkness because he doesn’t trust the younger generation to care enough
* A rigidly honorable knight who sometimes wakes up after a battle covered in blood amid a pile of corpses brutally hacked to pieces
A juvenile, bronze dragon who is convinced that he has contracted lycanthropy from a were-rabbit when he was younger, and whenever he is startled, scared, or anxious, he ‘polymorphs’ himself into a small, brown rabbit with glowing, red eyes and a habit of biting people, but he refuses to believe that he is responsible for his own transformations, and is otherwise completely healthy.
SeiferTims last blog post..Progress
SeiferTim –
I think you’re pushing the limits of “sentence”. 🙂
Graham – maybe the modern sentence…look at some classic literature and you’ll see one can go on for pages!
Heathers last blog post..Life: Our Neighbors Are Harboring An Elephant
I’ve been trying to come up with a pun on “sentence” the grammatical structure vs prison “sentence”, but I keep going back to that old stand-by of a pun being it’s own “PUNishment”, and it just doesn’t work as well with “sentence” (A long sentence will earn you the same? I don’t know, I give up).
I finally have internet at home again, for hopefully the rest of the week.
And…
A highly social, highly isolated Luddite whose only means of communication is technology.
A water elemental which is afraid of any body of water more than “waist” deep. (do water elementals even have waists?)
Ms. Radcliffe, a grey-haired librarian, demands exactitude and has a severe demeanor. But she does love to whisper secrets, and a little sweetness weans them out of her – if it’s fed to her just right.
James- Men with Penss last blog post..Putting Twitter on Notice
Obese chimney sweep is too stubborn to lose weight or change occupations and demands large quantities of lube…
Third pile. I do wish I had more talent for these things, but I’d like to think that some of mine might be useful to someone’s campaign somewhere.
The mystic, aged fortune teller and soothsayer in the wagon caravan at the edge of town is secretly casting Geas/Quest during her divining, forcing her customers to make the prediction come true.
The evil and conniving ghost that is haunting the local inn is actually a murder victim of the aged elf that contracted the party to exorcise it.
The vile and hated orc clan known for banditry and raids has the secondary effect of controlling the population of roving undead that would otherwise plague the area.
The well loved and axiomatic captain of the guard for a large capital is also secretly hiring bandits and mercenaries for his guardsmen to defeat, just to keep his popularity and job security high.
The notorious and ‘uncatchable’ thief is truly only stealing money in order to fund charities around the city.
The drunken, unassuming beggar in the tavern that continually leaks information about criminal activities in the area is actually a highly skilled guard, using the adventurers to take out problem criminals.
The despondent, condemned man in prison for dozens of serial murders is actually a rare human born with innate TrueSight, living in a society heavily infiltrated by doppelgangers.
The highly intelligent and masterful arcane researcher relies on his butlers and assistants, as he is still incapable of preparing his own meals or putting together an outfit that doesn’t make him look like a complete fool.
The mad, slave-driving mindflayer that has enslaved most of the village populace is actually using the people to construct a device that will prevent the denizens of the underdark from spilling out onto the surface world.
…
I think some of these border more on adventure hooks than NPCs, but hey, I have fun writing them.
It’s all good stuff. Writing makes one more confident about one’s skills.
And if you can pull off a NPC and an adventure hook in one sentence, that’s quite a service you are doing for ideas starved GMs.
A man turned into dangerous werebeast by foul sorcery, now seeking a place to live in.
A beautiful and caring elven princess whose loved one is slain in a war with humans grieves no more, spiteful of what the world has done to her and seeking revenge.
His people have been cursed by the elves so that they can no longer walk in daylight and are in a state of constant war with everyone, yet he is trying to honestly negotiate peace with the elves. (This may stretch the three traits-restriction too much to be eligible.)
The lady of the three cities is as meticulous a trader as any, always honest in her deals, yet her deals with the local bandits reveal a ruthless streak.
A grim and determined hunter of fey and other fell beasts has no tools to cope with the departure of the dryad he loved, something he would be killed for, were it known to his superiors.
Tommis last blog post..A mediocre session and some inn-fighting
@Tommi: It was assumed that the 3 traits were more of a guideline than an inflexible requirement. All your entries are good. Thanks!
The Cloak, a charismatic, dashing Robin Hood-esque figure providing hope for lower class citizens in a corrupt city with his rebellious pranks/actions against “The Man”…but he’s secretly employed by the city officials to keep the poor just optimistic enough to distract them from their horrible living conditions and squalor.
mikes last blog post..
The vagrant, pursued by shadows – but are they real, or imaginary?
Being a wererat gives the halfling exterminator an uncanny insight into his job.
Alcoholic dragonborn insists that a skinful of booze improves his breath weapon.
A wizard, physically trapped for aeons in a crystal prison, staves off madness by walking every night into the dreams of others.
A dwarf warrior, wielding the most powerful warhammer ever seen, seems undaunted by the fact that it’s sized for a giant and she can barely lift it.
A madman cursed with doppelganger form longs to be human again, killing and replacing individuals to get the human contact it desires, but not skilled enough to maintain a convincing disguise for long.
More as it breaks!
I’m including names and genders for presentation purposes. I understand that this reduces the utility of the characters for instant insertion:
1> Alander could never go unnoticed, with her bright red hair which could never be tamed, and the vanity which prevent her from cutting it off, so every time she picked a pocket, she would have to make a scene of it.
2> Although his years of training in the service of Darum had forbidden it, Dark-skinned Markus had eventually come to peace with being a prostitute for fat merchants in a city where he could not even speak the language and no one knew his God’s name.
3> Dani’s rejection of corporeality seems absolute to those who only interact digitally with its amorphous purple icon, but designing wholly organic bodies is its greatest pleasure, and pays for its processor cycles.
4> Short and stout, Greglan only truly comes to life when flying acrobatically about the engine room of the capital ship Samarkand, maintaining her fusion drive in a graceful zero-G dance.
5> Youngest of twelve identical clones, each of whom grew into the same slender physique knowing of eachothers’ existence, but never meeting them, Jame chose the violin in an attempt to stand apart, as did her eleven sisters before her.
6> Slave to the radiant beauty Linadal, High Priestess of Smarn, white-eyed Igny occasionally wished the uprising would be put down quickly, but would never admit it to his lieutenants.
Okay, I think all are over the top and… Perhaps some of them played a bit more for comedy than I meant, but I wanted to try the game.
Joseph
Those continue to be absolutely great!
Don’t hesitate to experiment with the format and stretch its parameters!
Ok, not to break the contest (which is very cool!) but for one-second half-decent character concepts you can try:
http://www.random-generator.com/index.php?title=Character_Concepts
@Smorgasboard: I’ll ask Tommi (or someone else able to) if he can do like last time and put all of those (I have 8 pages of entries so far, plus Johnn Four got a few) into a random generator on Abulafia.
Blooey Cadaverous, a social high class zombie innkeeper sporting a monocle and a cane welcomes turists/adventurers by day and eats their brains by night with a silver spoon while they are asleep and rates them as if they were wine.
A blood-thirsty chaotic barbarian that is doomed to be part of a pacifist party, behaving himself until he can take out the bomb on his back and kill everyone in the party as fast as possible.
Kimaris last blog post..Not so quick update
We have always very much enjoyed a former Goblin slave, now “free”, but unable to grasp this concept with its limited intelligence (after a life of slavery), with the nasty habit of trying to palm every unattended shiny object, and an aversion against clothes.
Even moreso, a Paladin of a highly honored order, yet also heir to the throne raised in seclusion and presented only with challenges he can handle. As such, he is naive, inexperienced, yet snobby and well-respected by virtue of his name and title alone.
And finally, an old, restless, and well-respected loremaster of age, traveling the world despite his age. Incapable of fighting, and with an interest in necromancy that borders on obsession. Only the guidance of a well-meaning friend can prevent this man from dabbling in the dark arts to lengthen his ending lifespan.
(such a character would also be a great means to dispense information to characters if they seek knowledge from him)
And to add, a cleric taverner running his inn on a busy road to a large magocratic city, banished from the church and city for breaking his vow of abstinence in a forbidden love with one of the city’s magocrats. Jaded and alone because his love chose not to abandon her city life of power and decadence and join him in his banishment.
Good Stuff Flying, Good stuff!
Brawny and charismatic dwarven cleric who gets nauseated at the sight of someone else’s blood and completely incapacitated at the sight of his own blood.
Bad-ass young pirate with a reputation of spilling the blood of all who dare cross him but who is really a woman with short hair and bound breasts who falls apart every time she sees a man who even vaguely resembles her long-missing father.
(Jet-lagged brain… ugh….)
Geek’s Dream Girls last blog post..Personal Ad Makeover Contest – June edition!
Round 2
We used this character in a campaign long ago.
An ancient noble of a forgotten kingdom, who was granted the wish of an immortal life, but was corrupted by the wish to be bound to his castle, longing for the release of death, and forced to watch all he loved slowly die around him.
A benevolent king of a kingdom long vanquished, bound by mighty arcane illusions to believe that his kingdom still stands, casuing him to roam through his cobweb-infested palace, giving orders and speaking with servants and friends long-dead and forgotten.
Matrixxy…
Stan is a sexy but mortal ladies man who woos and weds a succubus, only to be stuck with an overprotective Marilith for his mother in law.
Deborah was the wizard school’s wittiest and most apt pupil- until a bet with her friends and an icy flagpole cost her her tongue.
A beloved, aging knight-general, hero of the last war, is privately wracked with guilt over taking credit for the tactics that routed the enemy, which were actually the work of a young knight-initiate who perished during the battle.
An ancient red dragon, who has lost its interest in amassing power or treasure, has abducted the princess, renowned across the kingdoms for her beauty, charm, and intellect — for the pleasure of her conversation.
The high priest, a saintly old man revered by the masses, was in fact murdered years ago; an illiterate temple gardener was pressed into service as his impersonator in order to avoid civic unrest during those difficult times.
Adon, the Radiant Empress over all the lands between the mountains and the sea, is a blind eight-year-old girl of uncanny wisdom, who knows she can trust nobody in her court but the ancient, mute attendant who served her father and his father before him.
Daricia, called the Queen of Shadows, whose daring exploits as a swashbuckling thief and rebel against the tyrannical king have won the hearts of the populace, is a succubus who exploits hope as a powerful force for seduction; her plans carefully draw out the life of the rebellion, balancing success with failure so that the rebels are neither crushed nor victorious, but rather can struggle heroically on, drawing more to the cause.
Emil, a wizard of some renown, is a fidgety, stick-thin man who has little patience for adults and has been known to teleport unwanted guests halfway across the continent in a fit of pique, yet he is kind to and infinitely patient with the children of the city.
Ninetails last blog post..Monk-y Business
Amber, a shadow vampire transmogrified into an earth spirit and then adopted into a paladin’s family.
(I’m cheating, she is a character in a story at http://adrr.com/story/ )
Stephen M (Ethesis)s last blog post..I need to confess that I’m terribly week some times
I must admit its awkward writing one sentence when the same ideas could be expressed in three or four, but I’ve taken liberties with punctuation and arrived at the following (long) list of ideas. None of these are very combat-oriented:
Willis The Bruce is bent on helping a young boy haunted by ghosts- until Willis discovers that he himself has been dead the whole time.
Although her reputation as a stoic battlefield commander is legendary, Kyrie privately cries after every battle, and prays for the souls of the vanquished.
Flirtatious barmaid Lena’s decolletage and short skirt do nothing to dispel her reputation for promiscuity, though she is secretly saving herself for a Prince Charming
Keith was a Bandit famous for his muscular physique and rousing adventures… IN AMERICA.
A ruthless and wanton vampire has O-negative blood and must be very selective about his victims.
Rick, 16, seems attentive and wise beyond his years- that’s because he’s aging backwards and needs to find a cure before he’s too young.
The old elven hermit who lives out of town literally INVENTED the fireball spell, and now he must live out his long years wracked with guilt over his destructive invention.
The highly capable but voraciously voluptuary prince does not allow any female elves or gnomes to live in his kingdom unless they first spend the night in his bedchambers.
(Which leads me to…)
His loyal attendant ruefully tolerates the Prince’s promiscuity, although secretly she wishes to be his one true love.
Al-Pashim’s newfound ability to control water might be enough to save his tribe from dying of drought, if he can get past the tribe’s taboo against magic.
The illusionist could recreate any sight he saw, but his colorblindness made the results more entertaining than convincing.
When shy gnome Cassie lets her hair down from its trademark bun, look out- this rogue’s hairpin is actually a poisoned dagger.
@Zed: That first one is absolute mint if applied to a PC. DEFINITELY a “be careful what you wish for” scenario.
These are fun! And it’s a good exercise to try and sum up everything that’s critical to your campaign in one sentence…
A kind, old wizard is secretly a god who has been stripped of all his powers by the other deities, and is helping the PCs so that they can unwittingly help restore him to full power and bring the destruction of the world by his hands…
A notorious, wanted pirate captain is actually an ex-paladin, and while he still believes in law and justice, he must continue leading his pirate band on missions of pillaging and plunder or risk a deadly mutiny…
Abandoned as a baby, a young man has been raised by goblins in a ruined castle, which is now being explored by a team of adventurers looking for treasure, and among them is the young man’s twin brother…
SeiferTims last blog post..CSS Bubbles
Giving you a genuine smile the balding book shop owner replaces the overlarge crossbow back beneath the counter and beckons you to enter with his other hand.
You see the man take careful aim, his stance confident and relaxed, his accoutrement obviously fine even the light seams to conspire to make him almost iconic yet the profusion of arrows adorning the area surrounding the practice dummy give
Hmmm that was fun, heres some others.
You see the man take careful aim, stance confident and relaxed, accoutrement obviously fine so that even the light seams to conspire to make him almost iconic; yet the profusion of arrows adorning the area surrounding the practice dummy give some contrast to his skill.
Short, older by some dozen years and bored he was none the less in charge of his uniformly young, tall and well equipped companions.
Patience in the shadow of a chimney was a virtue he had perfected by pondering whether he had sneaked or if he had slunk?
Wizards wove magic like fisherman hauling a net before a storm; by comparison the man currently holding creation to ransom wove magic into a tapestry alive in aspect and fact, balanced in design by calculated flaws so as not to offend the gods.
Absorbed in the task of appraising the artworks and artifacts stacked and in bags she remained professional while presenting an image of youthful beauty.
Phil: I can make these entries into a random generator that throws out a couple of these when used. The generator Smorgasboard pointed out creates new characters and does so pretty well.
Tommis last blog post..A mediocre session and some inn-fighting
Things are picking up! Welcome and good luck to all new commenters!
The idea is to break our tendencies to write encyclopedias about NPCs. A lot of those submitted I could use directly “of the shelf” and have a meaningful impact on the game.
@Tommi: I’ll email you a Word document of the combined entries as soon as the contest ends. Thanks!
Who could take seriously a bald, peg-legged bandit with and acute lisp – until he pulls out his repeating crossbow.
Hmm… A Quentin-Tarantino Crossbow massacre scene is shaping up I feel!
Keep it up, I love them!
A hard-drinking, violent and hot-tempered bandit chief on the run from the law joins a monastery, but still in every inch remains the bandit he is trying not to be.
A half-orc scholar, the result of a consensual union between a human male and a female orc, is trying to find someone who will publish his work, but is constantly fighting racism, not only from the scientific community and his peers, but also from both his parents’ families.
Loud, flamboyant, and colorful gnome storyteller natters on about his collection of strange seashells as he stealthily unsheathes his poisoned dagger stowed in his lace sleeves.
Micahs last blog post..On Hiatus
A well respected, and wealthy ex-adventurer is trying to put his adventuring days behind him and live out the rest of his days in a luxurious mansion in the center of a peaceful town, but he is frequently visited by old enemies, or relatives of vanquished foes seeking vengeance and reparations from his actions a long, long time ago, putting the townsfolk in danger, and forcing him to repeatedly come out of retirement to defend himself.
A powerful iron golem awakens in an abandoned, ancient, underground chamber, with no memory or knowledge of his purpose, other than the massive assortment of weapons attached to his body and imprinted fighting techniques, although he personally believes that all life is sacred and violence is wrong.
“Don’t fly into a rage, you’ll damage your harp”, you hear the horned man say, “I merely wished to point out that ruminate is a poor choice of words as your a gnome not a cow.”
Instincts have you glancing up in time to see the ugly frontiersman smash his chair on a table before screaming at the dragonborn seated calmy before him “yu no say bad thing bout mai mammy”.
Id like to express my gratitude to yea all for your continued postings. Im having so much fun that ive had trouble leaving character and my workmates have looked at me funny on a number of occasions.
I took three traits, then tried to boil them down as much as possible, see if you can figure out which ones; hope you like the results!
1. “If a kobold can be a paladin of Bahamut, then so can I!”
2. “I’ll show you mild mannered,” said Fontelroy as he gently placed his teacup back in its saucer.
3. “Three things I can’t stand in this world: the avaricious, the greedy and … Ooh, shiny!”
4. “Sometimes, dead is better,” said the High Necromancer.
(h/t to S. King)
This is a cool idea. It’s both easy to participate yet complex enough to leave room for so, so many options.
A grizzled mercenary mage with a propensity for musical metaphors still yearns for his childhood dream of being a concert violinist.
A serene one-armed cleric who uses his wound to demonstrate to others their blessings but secretly harbors a tightly controlled rage against all who wage the wars that caused his loss.
Such a quiet and unassuming women that you’d never guess she’s the descendant of the wizard warlord or his equal in power.
A tactician and mathematician by equal measure and calculating by any measure, the old, gray-haired tutor bid his time while waiting for his noble master the Duke to show a moment of weakness.
A man possessing riches beyond imagination, everything he could want within the grasp of his (literally) iron hand, yet more miserable than the lowliest peasant.
That’s a good start.
Played this weekend:
Stoney “The Mammalian Stallion” Barbacoa floats like a Beholder and strings like a Stirge.
Dave T. Games last blog post..While I was gone…
Was that Typo intentional Dave?
@all: Keep them coming! This is shaping up better than expected!
Okay, I’ll give this a try ..
A confident, retired wizard of renown who opens a multidimensional Inn to rave reviews, now must disguise his inability to remember how to access the portals.
Big, stupid half-orc barbarian is an uncoordinated meat shield by day and an eloquent novelist by night.
The nimble and expert rogue who purposely sets off traps to feed his addiction for the poison within.
It is little known that the wizened old mage was once a burly warrior, his strength drained by a magical mishap, now unable to lift a blade and questing to restore his former might.
The cleric of the Goddess of Vengeance, full of wrath and justice, yet compelled to visit the grave of his murdered wife to consult with her spirit before any major undertaking.
Once wounded in battle, now unable to remove a cursed prosthetic eye that makes her see the souls of the dead, the rogue won’t go anywhere near temples, tombs or hospitals.
This warrior gave his left arm to be ambidextrous; he had it replaced with a golem-like construction of rune-scribed black iron – which would be an improvement, but for its disturbing tendency to act on its own…
They say that the Baron, genial and cordial in the face of public attention, has a room in his basement containing a throne built and carved from the skulls of his enemies.
The village potion-maker requests strange ingredients for her brews, but no other mage can fathom how she uses them to make her produce – unsurprising, since all her stock has actually been stolen from out of town.
Highly Superstitious about local fae, the blacksmith only takes payment in silver for fear of being duped with “faerie gold”.
There is a bard who only knows one tune, but is gifted with the ability to instantly compose new lyrics for every occasion; however, his lyrics are all in a language he calls “scat”, which he also appears to have invented himself.
Seeing a vow of silence as no challenge, the monk constantly chatters, pausing only to breathe, eat, drink or sleep – it wasn’t long after undertaking this vow that his monastery exiled him to life as a wandering friar.
There is a merchant who, due to a bad experience with ettercaps, is terrified of the number eight; he cannot bear to have eight of anything in stock, and will encourage customers to buy more, giving excess items away if this fails.
As composite Zombies went they were pretty smart, able to speak rudimentary common, though the disturbing habit of finishing one an others sentences suggested their brains were mixed up.
She interrupted with an upraised hand, just a hand, though it drew more attention than a more typical hand with fingers slightly spread you could see that light from behind had lined her fingers with gold.
Half-Orc, half master villain to judge by the pencil moustache and the stretching silence that was perhaps a jocular laugh made inappropriate by the bastard sword masquerading as a rapier.
Convoluted sentences came on like a swarm of rats from the man on his knees with hands raised in supplication and alternating eyes appraising his tormentor.
Hey Guys!
I found my way here via Johnn’s newsletter, this contest really is fun, let me add the ones I’ve come up with so far:
– The nervous and scarred beggar who always sleeps in the middle of the market place, in broad daylight, because he knows that if he falls asleep at night the shadows are going to get him.
– The surly old teacher who – although possessing no magical talent whatsoever – always collects some items of his students (hair, nails, discarded clothing, …) because he dreams of some day using those to gain control over all those ungrateful, argumentative nitwits.
– The charming youth who poisoned his own dog to blame the crazy old neighbor.
– The friendly old man who still travels the world looking for the girl he loved in his youth, almost having convinced himself that she is still alive – even though he killed her with his own hands.
– The herbologist and master healer who out of shame has locked up the only patient suffering from a dire disease he has not yet been able to cure.
– The formerly afflicted werewolf who has been cured of his lycanthropy but can’t get rid of the feeling how much he enjoyed tearing up children and devouring their flesh.
– The shy and elderly lady who has discovered she possesses minor magical powers and uses them to persuade her cheating husband he is haunted to ultimately drive him insane.
– The young maiden who arranges for herself to be kidnapped, hoping that the boy she secretly admires will come to save her.
@CorvusFelix: Welcome! Thanks for your entries!
Some more!
An old monk, who since long sacrificed his eternal soul to an evil outsider to ensure his people’s victory against a rampaging horde of Orcs, has seemingly outsmarted the outsider by prolonging his life through his monk abilities, never granting the outsider the claim to his immortal soul.
A burgher of considerable wealth, but a compulsive disorder to lie about his own capabilities, now bears an inescapable feeling of guilt after seeing a local coven of harpies ripping all the town’s young men to shreds, after HE convinced them that they could defeat the harpies.
A ruthless Orc slaver, feared and hated by many in his clan, hides his Elven and human heritage from his clansmen by wearing an iron skull as a mask, at night, he enters the slave quarters and gives his slaves extra food and blankets.
A young and overconfident paladin, wearing a ring that conceals his alignment, refuses to atone for killing a pickpocket, and tries to hide from the members of his order that his holy powers are lost to him, the grandmaster is on to him, and the day draws near that he will be confronted.
1. Aquarelles is a friendly, heroic and understands-both-sides-of-every-argument demigod (i.e. son of a god and a human woman) but frustratingly indecisive, leaving his allies and followers fractured and in chaos.
2. Prince Carik is fabulously wealthy, shrewd and always undertaking great municipal projects but secretly envious of military men and military successes; he wishes to add a great military general to his list of accomplishments.
3. Rath is a large, tall but quiet human mercenary who often uses smoking as an excuse to stand outside or away from the crowd.
4. Princess Naro of Ix is a beautiful, glassy-eyed and inscrutable girl from a royal family who is willing to go along with anybody and do anything while leaving everybody confused as to what she wants and who she really cares about.
5. O’thae Velfire is an elven actor, star of “The Willow Road” play, Tristan Zo
and Fordizo Frey opera; he is artistic, flamboyant and always the center-of-attention but, secretly, a good friend.
6. E’saril and E’locae, twin aquatic elves, who belong an order of sea-bourne knights are polite, reserved and valiant but their insular culture and private habits make it easy for all others to be suspicious of them.
a charismatic, master swordsman with an allergy to metal.
A silly, sincere, sorcerer serving a serpent god of secrecy. (yeay aliteration!)
now one in the form of a haiku (i’m having too much fun being different…)
A boisterous man
with very little tact or grace
paid silent killer.
(in other words a loud and clumsy guy thats an assassin)
one more for now.
a peaceful artist thats prefered medium is the blood and organs of
his victims.
1) Hyper, unnaturally short person has the curious hobby of building huge, intricate wooden models.
2) Rotund cleric of an evil deity spends his free time helping others.
3) Brutal, skilled soldier breaks into inconsolable sobbing when insulted.
4) Chatty fellow with an addiction to a local narcotic works as a mime.
5) Child who sneezes constantly is a high-ranking cleric in a well-known order.
6) Morbidly obese servant lectures his master constantly on good eating habits.
An undying amnesiac seeking to die a final death.
Oh, wait…
Feeling tormented Joseph?
Valentine d’Reynardine, an awakened fox polymorphed into human form, has a reputation as a dashing, rakish swordsman and a cunning trickster, but what he treasures most are the few days he can spend alone, indulging in the simple pleasure of baking.
Though few know of her, Odessa is the best assassin her secretive society has ever trained, responsible for the poisonings of hundreds of prominent men and women. She finds the job rather easy — after all, who would suspect a deaf, arthritic eighty-year-old?
Brother Cedric is a stout, cheerful man who has devoted his life to healing the ill; nobody knows that the bodies of those he’s failed to heal are sold to chirurgeons and necromancers, rather than respectfully interred.
Captain Krahl is an orcish pirate, whose fearsome reputation matches his towering bulk. He’ll slaughter most men, women, and children without blinking an eye, but his superstitious nature causes him to spare all animals, and their masters with them.
Ninetails last blog post..Class Design for 4th Edition
Okay, here we go…
Zephrani is a flirty scoundrel with low wisdom who travels through the galaxy by stowing away on ships, then using either her charms or her sharpshooting skills to persuade the ship’s crew to let her go, unless she feels like joining them…
Tommie Jenkins is a Webley-toting, Harley-riding Yorkish immigrant with a taste for gin and a weakness for women, who’ll risk his life to save a child.
Bryce Washington is a tall, broad, and extremely strong ex-slave cowhand who’s deadly with a Winchester and has a mean temper if you cross him.
“Estilus the Wayfarer has seen everywhere in his 90+ years, and loves telling stories to children in the local inn, but senility has robbed this epic hero of his mighty abilities, only lifting momentarily when children are endangered.”
I had this NPC who seemed a harmless old man, albeit one that gave good advice and stories about the next destination of PCs. One day they met him on the road with his grandson as they were attacked by a bandit group’s volley of arrows. Estilus used his cane to deflect every arrow that would have hit him or the boy. The PCs showed him greater deference after the fight, but the poor old man had already forgotten the battle.
Lariss is a dark-haired 10-year-old girl who likes to pretend to be an adventurer, even dressing like one, but why does she keep a collection of animal and small monster skulls hidden under her bed?
Churribusco is an amorous halfling consort who gets bored with her prince from time to time and tries to latch onto visiting adventurers, and her habit of pilfering minor magic items from the castle treasury could benefit the object of her affection…unless it was discovered.
Kildan is a boil-covered priest in a backwater town who retired from adventuring after contracting a horrible disease that should have killed him but didn’t; he suffers from the disease to this day, undergoing burning blotches and extreme fatigue while helping the townsfolk.
Propagandroids last blog post..Obligatory Blogroll Bandwagon
1. Jasmine – wealthy, shy, soft-spoken, friendly, merchant’s daughter (18) who secretly wants revenge on Dwarfs for the death of her brother and has recently come into possession of an ancient evil artifact.
2. Holt – hardworking, loyal dwarven blacksmith, who is in exile from the dwarven kingdoms for discovering corruption in his guild but is secretly keeping in touch with his family.
3. Jarvice – mid-level ranger who has fallen on hard times since taking up drinking over feelings of regret of the death of his best friend during an adventure, while secretely in love with his friend’s spouse.
A broken, weak little man, Martin the wheelswright fights on because he BELIEVES.
Dangit, didn’t edit in time.
Shawna, the curvaceous, caring mother, harbors the secret shame, and desire for forgiveness, of cannibalizing one of her children many winters ago.
A stupid, filthy man, Jacob the village idiot travels into the wood nightly to appease the local fey to prevent terrible retribution upon the town for a slight given so long ago.
A art collector(paintings, sculptures etc) who collects/buys them for destruction, believing art to be evil.
(A high Lv) Sorcerer who learns “book magic” to infiltrate different wizard’s inner sanctums (private or guild) inorder to bring them down and rid the world of non-natural magic!
A charismatic conman who’s family was bankrupted by another con(let say mom suicided, dad died of alcohol, etc), strives to find all such tricksters, and play their own game against them but with deadly results for the loser.
Brewery owner who sells alcoholic drinks made to be extra potent in making the drinker drunk (+2dc?) because he/she/it him/her/itself is oddly immune to the effects of alcohol and decides to get as many people drunk as possible. (hint, think of the effects of a mass drunken population)
Guard who secretly(from public AND victim) arranges himself to be bribed, and then occasionally tells on the person who bribed him, earning promotions and a positive reputation while getting rich.
A (mentally not right) cleric who, upon finding a soon to be dead person, always extends the person’s life as much as possible, even if the person is suffering or suffers more due to such extension of life, believing that his/her/it’s role as a cleric is never to kill, but to let someone live as long as possible no matter the circumstance.
-z/g
This contest is a great idea. I whipped up a one sentence NPC generator over the long weekend. Basically, it takes a few hundred, maybe a thousand or so character ideas and breaks them down into a few modules, then mixes and matches. If I did the math right, it should make around 100 billion unique combinations and should present each one in roughly 100 forms. It’s still a work in progress, in that the generator works but it’s taken a while to come up with all the modules. The variety APPEARS to be far less than the estimate because the shortest module list will end up repeating more often. Right now the shortest lists are of “character motivators,” where I could only come up with 73 (as opposed to over 300 possible “character occupations”). As requested, the descriptions are meant to be vague enough to create plot hooks without detail burden.
I’d like to post a select few if Chatty doesn’t mind (hope it doesn’t violate the bulk-post rule).
Are a representative ten:
A selfish, filthy soap maker, prejudiced against bathing.
An icey-eyed and conventional organist, who openly displays a great dislike for the opposite sex.
A massive yet thoughtful water seller, who is profoundly ignorant about the pursuit of power.
A choleric, skinny saddler, who has nightmares about traveling.
A comfortable but lanky sailor, in search of travel and adventure.
A dainty, permanently annoyed magician, driven by hatred of magic.
A pleasant and colorful mason, with a great dislike for change.
An adorable, reliable poulterer, who fights a predilection for an intoxicating weed.
A cautious but polished alchemist, who is known to have a loathing of the nobility.
A flirtatious, gorgeous con-artist, known for a knowledge of reptiles of all sorts.
Plus a potentially funny combo that came out in the same batch purely by chance:
A dangerous shingler, driven by hatred of the opposite sex.
A shady, wizened farmer, with a knowledge of the daughter of a local shingler.
@Kaeltik – Unfortunately, an auto-generator lacks one critical feature – two of the traits must be at odds with each other. It’s very hard for a computer program to figure out how two things are at odds, so that part of a generator will not work without a tremendous amount of semantic research and development.
—
A magnanimous farmer tries desperately to poison the local nobility.
An amoral, manipulative, and paranoid computer genius who is desperate for the PCs to rescue her kidnapped mate.
A lazy, funloving, and drug-popping starship captain who would do anything asked of her by one of her crewmembers.
A cowardly, intelligent, tortured herbivore who has befriended a carnivorous warrior.
@ Ben O:
This is an excellent point. Thank you.
I’ve run into many such problems while developing a fantasy language generator over the last couple of years. I’m only just starting to resolve it for that project, and it has required parsing giant corpora, hidden Markov models, and genetic algorithms, and still doesn’t work quite right.
I designed the seed lists for the NPC generator to maximize the probability of interesting contradictions, but only around 20% of the output characters bear characteristics that are distinctly at odds. However, this is plenty to cherry pick that subset if one is so inclined (note the soap maker and the magician in the above list, though the soap maker’s contradiction is admittedly light on story potential aside from comic relief).
I thought that the contradiction was optional, but if not I’ll include only those entries that fulfill the rule in a interesting way. Whatever Chatty wants.
Thanks again Ben.
I must downgrade my estimate of output characters bearing characteristics that are distinctly at odds. As I’ve added more ideas to the list, the proportion of direct contradictions has decreased to perhaps 5%.
BTW, in case anyone is afraid I’ll swamp the forum with entries, I hereby ask to be removed from the running for fabulous prises. I’m just in this for fun and to share ideas with folks.
Might I suggest that you post your generator (which is an awesome idea) on the Abulafia Generator wiki:
http://www.random-generator.com/index.php?title=Main_Page
(Damn I don’t get half of the email notifications of comments today)
I have the urge to enter a few into this contest but have been stymied. How about:
“Ignatius is a bugbear, large and ferocious looking but with one sentence can betray to everyone that he was raised as a nobleman’s manservant.”
“Zold is the perfect Innkeeper, friendly and attentive, despite the fact that he once ruled the kingdom as the most heinous despot in a thousand years.”
“Everyone understood laconic Clique the Ranger could skin a bear or hunt an Ogre but very few knew that he was responsible for the Queen’s prized needlework.”
Good stuff all!
Time is running out!
Morning folks.
Selection of five:
A zealous and burly ascetic, who advertises a prejudice against solitude.
A slave, fancy yet courageous, in search of fine clothes.
A healer, stubborn yet strong, who lives in dread of death.
A short, melancholy soldier, who fears silence.
A cutpurse, mature but gigantic, cursed with a great dislike for gluttony.
Thanks for the link Chatty. There are some compatibility issues to work out, but if I can resolve them, I’ll post the generator there when it’s done.
A world-weary master swordsman half-dragon with a obsessive fear of death.
A blind martial artist obsessed with training and a fear of weakness.
An ordinary college student majoring in medieval studies pulled into a fantasy world to destroy it.
A friendly human-sacrificing priest armed with a unicorn-horn knife who is dedicated to spreading his faith.
Oops, aesthetic was meant to be ascetic.
(Chatty, is there any way to edit posts, like on TwentySided?)
Aiden is a cheerfully malevolent, though somewhat promiscuous necromancer with a love of floral-pattern shirts.
@Kaeltik: Corrected…. usually you have 15 minutes to edit an entry.
The king’s manservant, while being a devil at pouring baths, polishing armour and serving wine, is also the mind behind the throne, and responsible for all the kings more clever desicions.
A young “confirmed bachelor” knight who is in a steady secret relationship with his squire, but also attempts to win the heart of every woman he meets to not give the game away.
A sleeper agent for a foreign power has settled into his cover’s life so well he has lost all memory of what he is really there for.
A traveling physical comedian who is desperately trying to cover up that he is dying from a brain injury sustained from getting hit over the head on stage once too many, and is trying to make the group enough money for his partner to retire on, unbeknownst to his partner.
A young bard with the ambition to become the greatest lute-player ever has been cursed with tone-deafness.
Morning,
Five more from the generator, and a twist I’d add to each:
1) A caustic and sparkling bellmaker, who hates the gods. [local temples are his best clients]
2) A paperer, both bewildered and dull, intrigued by both the pursuit of knowledge and by local gossip. [he gets confused, passing on false info and getting folks into trouble]
3) A homeless yet hearty potter, driven by fine clothes and by bathing. [he wastes any money he gets]
4) A glassblower, attractive but careless, who is an expert in the opposite sex. [his carelessness with dalliances has made him local enemies]
5) A warrior, both animated and towering, who is thought to have a great affection for a neighboring bounty hunter. [unfortunately he is a fugitive that she is pursuing]
a forgetfull singing shop keeper with bad debts & forgotten about deals
an ever preset slient watching child, who always whipsers to the people the PCs talk to during a conversation.
A Clumsy and over amorous Village cat with sharp claws and a jealous streak
A smelly Flea ridden dog which has taken a liking to your company while in town has a great nose for sniffing out buried treasure/clues
a intelligent barmaid whos alerigic to animals furs & scales who also has inherrited her farthers magic skills but unwilling to go to magic school for fear of all the familiars
Artistisc woodsman allways carving some wooden figurines has attracted the attention of a feycreature who allways trys grants his many whims and throw away comments.
a innocent groundskeeper who likes trap and keep and train dangeours animals in the basement, a local upstart noble knows and abuses this man secret zoo.
A vagabond, both carefree and colorful, who lives in dread of self defeat.
An unsightly and illiterate knight, who specializes in strangers.
An angry, distinct hayward, expert in foreign cities.
A clockmaker, both fat and brave, well versed in magic.
A funny and colorful innkeeper, with a great dislike for urban areas.
Hum!
-Arrogant white dragon that wants to be my friend and think of himself as funny.
-Who the hell farted, it must be that ogre that had elf for dinner again [discusting, we’re living in a tent]
-Clever dog cute with its ears in the air that will rule the world someday [well it already think it does]
Cruguer
Gotta get at least one entry into this before time runs out.
A recently lordless ninja turns to piracy, but refuses to kill any of his new prey.
shadow145s last blog post..Origins Report
A knight, both gentle and elderly, driven by the fear of crowded spaces.
A druid, both fair and attractive, who knows much about both the rich and about people of a higher class.
A cleric, both coy and corpulent, who conceals a financial interest in a neighboring poulterer.
An architect, both narrow-minded and storm-browed, prone to a predisposition for falling from great heights.
A jealous and stout hedge knight, expert in the nobility.
A fearless yet hardy mail-maker, who has nightmares about the local cutpurse.
A caustic and scarred herald, prejudiced against both solitude and against physical discomfort.
A naive and remarkably large thonger, who is an expert in both fine art and in the pursuit of power.
A shiny and wandering thiefcatcher, displaying a prejudice against the nobility.
A calm, filthy miner, evincing a penchant for the pursuit of wealth.
Drunken Dansel miles from home with mighty left hook cursed so that all she drinks turns to alchaol
merchant spy/sabotaur from a rival village unknown illigitamate son of merchent nobel same birth mark as family entitled to a fortune should he be descovered.
innocent farmer boy has an Evil skin spirt inhabbits body must keep taking certain drug/posion to keep skin beast subdude, keeps beast hidden, hunted by local good church and evil cult only way to remove is to kill both.
A druid robin hood, stealing from the lush pastures to feed the poor deserts.
Without reading the above ones beyond the first few
Modern:
Suzette, a Statuesque brunette with a taste for Turkish coffee, makes her living appraising “Very Warm” merchandise for her friends, at a small cost.
A undersized male bodyguard, decked in jeans and a leather jacket, enjoys juggling very large knives.
Computer hacker extraordinaire, blind since birth, takes her time surfing and scouting out the latest scam to fuel her love of cars she can never drive.
Peter, a stereotypical looking college jock, prefers to spend his time in the library pursuing a degree in comparative philosophies.
Underground homeless man, former cop on the lam, is a source of prime information on the local wharves and docks.
Fantasy:
Dwarvish female merchant, purveyor of rugs, is a secret agent for a hedonist cult bent on overthrowing the local monarchy.
A hirsute naked man, who is the size of a small giant, carrying a huge stone club, blocks the way down the pass, asking for papers and proof of belief in a higher deity, before he sends you to them.
Talking raccoon, standing as tall as a tall elf, dressed in leathers with a slender sword, bars the way into the forest demanding tribute.
A schizophrenic master swordsman is looking for gainful employment, unaware of being a madnan.
An emissary of the Mountain Ape tribes come down from the forests, waits to for his audience with the local king, dressed in the skins of large predators that fell to his prodigious strenght.
Horror:
Sticking of sour cottage cheese and milk left spilt in clothing too long, the long haired madman lurched out of the darkness muttering mathematical formulas.
The shy succubus defies tradition by dressing modestly, but is loyal to her sisters until death.
The foolish wanderer’s single stroke of genius altered the course of history.
The mild mannered warlord, with his brilliant tactics, conquered many peoples, but was very polite about it.
The clumsy old swordsman is still ambitious despite his lack of talent and advancing years.
The creepy, demented assassin is quite lonely, and talks to the bleeding corpses of his victims.
The outgoing and energetic dancer suddenly finds herself unable to speak to the handsome knight.