I use a system I call cue card construction.

I decide on an inspiration, normally a solid character or characters to basis my depiction on. It could be pro-wrestlers. And then...

I have a set of cue cards in my head, these are 3 word tropes basically. Of various character archetypes. In various catagories.

I draw five and discard all but one.

And the repeat the process.

Normally my initial character sketch ends up looking something like this.


Inspiration: Graverobbing Batman/Indiana Jones

Motivation: For the money... Nah.

Nature: Thrill seeking daredevil

Oddity: Uses a whip. Corollary: Doesn't know how.

Appearance: Generic Mister Biz.

Family Life: Less than Tragic

From there I expand on each of these cue cards. And work each of these things into a background and try to strive to characterize them in a way that refines them beyond their initial concept.

Does being in the tavern clan forbid you from being in other clans at the same time?
Obviously not clans with schedules like the bynn or militia, I'm thinking more craft related things, like house employees/hunters or aides, or heck, even celf tribes.

I have a noble app that is no longer relevant and can't be used anymore (its probably for the best). I liked the character description but it can't be used for anything but a noble, but I don't have much interest in the listed houses because I don't know much about them.

I have another spec-app I submitted and cancelled just before shutdown, but there are things I want to see first before using it.

There's a clan I've wanted to play since starting and I've been too chicken since I want it to go well. I've flirted with it on two characters but didnt commit. Inevitably I'll die the first day.

I am hoping the rolecalls inspire me. I was really hoping for a rinthi elf clan.

I typically come up with a major flaw to start. Usually these end up being some type of overzealousness toward something-or-other, even if its not something anyone else would care about. Playing some kind of extreme even as a character than is conservative or "normal" is fun. I also like to pick up quirks that specifically engage with pieces of the lore (true or false beliefs about the templars, magic, kruth) and just weird humanizing things (always cold hands, food preferences, tressy tresses). I dont always think of these right away, but usually pretty quick (in the first week or so). As the others have said, I define an overarching drive (the desire for belonging, status, success, or even just subsisting) and develop a web of motivations, some conflicting, over time. Inner turmoil is helpful for character development. Maybe your character won't ever admit to their turmoil, but they may act according to it. And you can always think strange thoughts in a crowded bar... heh. Good luck ♡

The Displacement of the Bashurit

In the 30th year of the 23rd age, the Mesa Gith, led by their Skoto, invaded the Thryzn's valley at night. Using a dark ritual, the Skoto found a weak spot between the Known and the Plane of Elkros, unleashing a devastating storm. Despite Thasik Grudash's quick response, the valley was destroyed.

Most Thryzn escaped, but the storm raged for years more leaving them nowhere to return to. A scouting party found the valley lifeless and the Bashurit village utterly ruined. The Bashurit mourned their loss.

In year 48, the Bashurit resettled at the eastern edges of Mantis Valley, near the obelisk. They avoided conflict with the mantis and maintained a tentative peace for twenty-five years. Though their numbers remain noticeably diminished.

In year 65, the Bashurit formed an agreement with the Mul Outpost, bringing it under their protection and establishing it as their primary link to the outside world.

The Rise of the Mesa Gith

Led by the Skoto Diakiaa, The Empty, the Mesa Gith were driven by dark magicks and empowered by their victory over the Bashurit. After failing to assault the Mul Outpost, they pushed further north, turning a Sun Runner ambush into a brutal massacre. The Elan Pah was formed to defend the elven and human tribes but couldn't stop the Mesa Gith, leaving the Tablelands heavily defiled and scarred.

Fortifying the oasis 'The Gem' with sheer numbers and Diakiaa's magicks, the Mesa Gith withstood relentless assaults from the Sun Runners, Dune Stalkers, Soh Lanah Kah, Blackwing, and human tribes Al'Seik and Arabet. Diakiaa's grip tightened, destroying the tribes' main water source and igniting a greater crisis. Amid this chaos, the Mesa Gith decimated the Gem, advancing toward Blackwing Outpost.

Avoiding the Soh Lanah Kah's canyons, the Mesa Gith attacked the Blackwing Outpost. With a renewed, inexplicable power, Diakiaa's forces breached the ancient walls, collapsing roofs and leaving the outpost open to a frenzied assault. Nearly half of the Blackwing Tribe were slaughtered, a thousand lives lost, and the pride of the Tablelands, Blackwing Outpost, was reduced to rubble in a single day. This demonstrated the terrible might and growing power of the Mesa Gith, casting a dark shadow over the land.

The Death of Diakiaa

The Tablelands crumbled as the Elan Pah dissolved, leaving the Mesa Gith as rulers. Diakiaa struggled with the weakness of the Mesa Gith, who could only destroy, not build. The land was scarred, the Gem oasis unusable, the vegetation withered. Shadows of fallen beings were burned into the landscape.

During this turmoil, the Dune Stalkers successfully thinned the Mesa Gith ranks. Diakiaa, making frequent appearances in battles, sustained grave injuries but continued fighting, even replacing a severed arm with a magickal skeletal one.

In the year 34, the Elan Pah launched a desperate assault. Sorka Hallah, leader of the Soh, dueled and killed one of Diakiaa's lieutenants. The Blackwing and Sun Runners stormed the Mesa Gith, forcing Diakiaa to intervene. Olsindrin, a daring Dune Stalker, ambushed and killed Diakiaa but was immediately slain by bodyguards. The sudden loss of Diakiaa caused chaos among the Mesa Gith, leading to unsustainable losses and a retreat to the southern Tablelands.

Under the fog of war, the Sun Runners suffered a devastating blow. The Red Fang, thought to be eradicated, conspired with the Dune Stalkers. During a fierce battle led by Diakiaa, Red Fang assassins, disguised as Dune Stalkers, attacked the exhausted Bahak, including their leader, Sauran. The Sun Runners later discovered the bodies, defiled and desecrated, preventing their death rites. This crisis led to no new Bahak being born, prompting the Sun Runners, under their Bahrain leader, to seek out revenge. The Red Fang were never found, and the Dune Stalkers were fully blamed for harboring them. The Sun Runners, indifferent to actual affiliations, focused on the assassins' markings and tattoos. They exacted the brutal annihilation of the Dune Stalkers, ambushing their camps and leaving no survivors.  They then left Sunspire for an ancient pilgrimage beyond Zalanthas, seeking to solve the Riddle of Flame.

The Mesa Gith eventually lost ground near the Mul Outpost as the Bashurit pushed them back to the Western Tablelands. They remain strong near the Mesa and hold much of the Southern and Eastern Tablelands, though without dark sorcery. They are still a significant menace.

Immediate Impact

As a result of losses at the Outpost, the Blackwing have pulled back further to the west, away from the Tablelands and no longer seem capable of leading the Elan Pah. They dissolve the position of Heru, much to their own shame and discomfort, reverting to their origins of nomadic life and living off the land out of necessity.

The Oasis, the Gem, has been destroyed, though perhaps not irrevocably.

The Arabet and the Seik have lost their traditional homelands, and have been forced to move to the climes near Cenyr.

The Soh Lanah Kah, forced to move their camp with the destruction of the Blackwing Outpost, control the canyons of the Pah and are sometimes found at the Mul Outpost.

The Sun Runners faced existential threats of their own, revenge enacted by the Red Fang, the death of their Aht'Bahak, and no new Bahak being born. This led to a massive and unprecedented pilgrimage to their Waterless Lands Beyond The Earth and Sky, to a realm unknown to them, abandoning the Sun Spire perhaps forever...(A Story For Another Time)

The Dune Stalkers are no more, entirely wiped out by the revenge of the Sun Runners. Rumors suggest the Two Moons possess Red Fang trophies and know their whereabouts, while it is whispered the Red Fang continue on, impersonating other tribes for short-term gains before vanishing once more.

The Mesa Gith Skoto are far fewer in number than ever before; so many were killed during the ongoing conflict that even the rumor of one would be an anomaly. With the death of Diakiaa, it seems the end of a bloodline has occurred.

The 'Pride of the Tablelands', the Blackwing Outpost, has been overrun and destroyed beyond recognition.  Abandoned by all, the elves and the gith alike.  Despite being seemingly abandoned, scouting parties sent to investigate within seem never to return and strange rumors circulate.

In conclusion

The many tribes of the Tablelands will undoubtedly return. The Elan Pah will surely be called again. But for now, the Tablelands lay in quiet, defiled and dark. The Dune Stalkers are but a memory, and a bitter reminder that any may fall.

May you always find shade and the wind at your back,

The Armageddon Team

For a first character I'd keep it VERY simple. You don't want to sink dozens of hours into the prep-work of a character, and then play for a day and get killed by a scrab.

Things to prep on, when you want to keep it simple:

Parents names, if known.
If not known, names of whoever raised you, and conditions surrounding the fact that your parents weren't those people.
Known siblings - are any still alive? Are you in touch with them (off-camera, usually - they'd be virtual for a first character).
What has your character's life consisted of, from earliest memory until "today" (today being - the first moment you log into the game with your character).
What one-line description would express your character's general goals?

Example of all the above so you can see how to fit it all into a short paragraph:

Amos was brought up by a band of desert traders after losing his parents to gith. He was positioned in Allanak, always with one of the traders, to learn the art of negotiations with the city folks. He has no other family that he knows of but considers the trade band to be his aunts, uncles, and cousins. Most now dead from dangerous travels and raids, he now sets out to make his way in the world without relying on the ragged remnants of his old crew.

Quote from: Halaster on Today at 08:14:15 AMMy only real contribution, I'm not good at this:

ArmageddonMUD:  Survival in a Corrupt World

This is very much like mine. I like this.

Everything suggested here is great so far!

My approach has always been to flesh out a basic personality:
  some general likes and dislikes
  what motivates them or inspires them
  what drags them down or de-motivates them
  what was their upbringing and how did it shape their personality
  maybe a few phrases or manners of speech they might use

From there I kinda wing it.  I develop their personality as I go.  For example, maybe I'm in a situation where someone offers my character a certain type of food.  I make a quick, split decision "have they tried this before?  If not, do they like or dislike it?", and then go with something in the spur of the moment.  Then I write it down in a file for the character:  "finds raptor meat disgusting"

Do that for just a little while and the next thing you know you have a character that is believable.

My only real contribution, I'm not good at this:

ArmageddonMUD:  Survival in a Corrupt World

This is my recipe for creating a new character:

• Decide on what race, class and subclass I want to play,
• What profession my PC will pursue: like hunter, mercenary, soldier, merchant, crafter etc.
• Where his/her family hails from and where he/she is currently residing. For example, his/her family is from Allanak and he/she lives in the Labyrinth, or from a farming village of Allanak and lives in Allanak.
• His/her personality, beliefs, ideals, thoughts and general attitude towards other races/city states/magickers etc.
• Create a background. Start with the family: Father, Mother, siblings. What did they do in my PC's early years, where are they now, what are they doing now etc.
• Read the racial, class and clan documentation to add crucial elements as well. If you want to play and elven pickpocket that lives in the Labyrinth, I suggest you to read: Labyrinth, Labyrinth Details, Labyrinth Clans, City Elf, City Elf Roleplay, Pickpocket and Thieve's Bible helpfiles.

Once you create your PC and start playing, the events you live through will solidify the personality of your PC.