Dungeons and Dragons is the ultimate role-playing game. Armed with nothing but pen and paper, players are transported into worlds of endless possibilities. Venturing into wild and dangerous lands. Facing ancient evils and tricky puzzles. Exploring treacherous dungeons and finding exotic magical treasures.
But before you can dive into your Dungeon Master’s latest campaign, you need a character. During a game of DnD, you become your character in a very literal sense. You define how they think, feel, and act. They are more than just a tool for fighting or exploring with. They are the very vessel by which the fantasy world becomes real.
Creating a DnD character isn’t all that difficult. But creating a compelling character is another matter altogether. The fun in DnD comes from how your characters engage with the world, and the other player characters. This guide will help you create a more complete and compelling character for your next adventure.
Crafting A Backstory
Every DnD character needs a good backstory. Filling in the gaps in their life before they find themselves in the midst of your current adventure. And it is from this backstory you will derive the very essence of your character.
A lot of people like to pick a class and a race first and then create a backstory for the character. But I believe a truly compelling character finds their class based on their story. Maybe they became a ranger after they were abandoned in the woods, left to fend for themselves. Maybe they became a wizard because they saw their village ruined by a magical storm.
When creating a backstory, try to avoid going into too much detail at first. Fill in the broad strokes and let your character develop during the course of your campaign. But you should try to include a lot of plot hooks that could feature in your current campaign as well. These could be various villains from your past. Or a long-lost lover. Giving your DM something to work with will make the whole game better for everyone involved.
Create A Visual Theme
DnD might be played within the realms of your mind, but that doesn’t mean it won’t feature a lot of visual stimulus. The physical design of your character is just as important as their backstory. And a compelling character will have a distinct theme. Something that makes them stand out.
Perhaps you are a warlock who dresses in Victorian style clothing. Or a ranger who opts for wearing billowing robes rather than traditional leather armor. And you can add elements of your own style into your character too. A lot of people like to get themed mystery dice from the mystery dice goblin DnD site and then design their character’s color scheme around their dice. This adds a fun element of immersion to every level of your gameplay.
Hone Their Alignment
The alignment system is the cornerstone of character creation in DnD. In a basic sense the alignment chart determines if a character is good or evil. But it also determines how they manifest their heroic actions or their evil deeds. They might be lawful, which means they operate within the confines of reason, order, and the general rules of civilization. Or they could be chaotic, which means they will do whatever it takes to achieve their goal, consequences be damned.
A truly compelling character will be one that faces a lot of turmoil within the bounds of their alignment. You should pick where they sit on the alignment chart, and then consider exactly what positions they hold that toe the line between alignments. In this way you can end up in situations where their very beliefs will be tested, and this will give you plenty of good role playing opportunities.
Get Into Character
Your character is only ever as compelling as you make them. Because, at the end of the day, you are the one who has to become them. A good backstory and cool theme means nothing if you can’t role play. So spend some time getting to know your character.
How do they talk? Do they take time to think about their replies? Do you stutter? What accent do they have? Do they put an inflection on certain words? Really spend time breathing life into your character. We advise looking up some acting lessons on YouTube to get a better understanding of what it means to become your character.
Next, you will want to think about how they interact with other characters within the world. Are they biased towards specific races or genders? Do they favor characters of a specific class? And if so, how do these biases manifest in their words and actions? If you can figure all this out, you will have the makings of a compelling character.
