Character Creation: D&D5e

The world's most popular role-playing game! (insert sound of eyes rolling)

The Game: Dungeons & Dragons, 5th Edition
The Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Degree of Familiarity: More than I thought; Pugmire basically runs on this system
Books Required: For this, just the Player's Handbook

You know, I've badmouthed D&D a lot over the years, often more in jest than anything, but it's never been my favorite RPG. Credit where credit's due, though, 5e is a huge improvement over previous editions in terms of how clearly and accessibly the information is presented, to the say nothing of how the game is mechanically slimmed down. Also, there's finally a stated focus: exploration, social interaction, combat. And yeah, it's still D&D. There's still no actual setting (rather, there are so many and none of them are described in the PHB), it's still mostly combat focused, but I have to admit that the game has managed to incorporate some of the design sensibilities of the last 20 years rather than resting on its laurels.

Now, does that mean I'm in a particular hurry to play or run it? No, but that's only because there are a lot of games I would prefer to play that actually do have interesting settings, and if we're doing a generic system I prefer Fate or SWADE or Cypher. I think it's largely down to taste, though. 

(With that said, I want to read the DMG, too, before I really decide on how much I like this game.)

For now, however, I'm gonna make a character, and my buddy Toasty has helpfully given me a theme song:

So this song is pretty obviously about someone with a cause and a righteousness behind them, so I'm gonna lean into that an make a paladin. The lyrics also suggest someone with a more chaotic than lawful bent, but I'll get to that. Let's figure out race. 

My primary abilities, according to the chart, are Strength and Charisma, so do any of the races get bonuses there? A bunch of them, actually, but y'know, I think I'll make a human paladin. 

The section on paladins tells me that the most important aspect of the class is the oath and the quest for justice, so it's worthwhile thinking about the particulars even if mechanically they don't matter as much at level 1. I think my character's larger ambition is "no kings at all," but his ambition to start out is "fuck this king in particular." (Since I'm not familiar with any of the established D&D worlds I'll just make some shit up.) Let's assume that the monarch in my character's area is, while not a brutal or violent ruler, prone to squeezing the peasantry until they bleed. His lieutenants are brutal and violent, and so I think that's where my paladin would start. 

So anyway, Step One was Choose a Race (human), Step Two is Choose a Class (Paladin), but Step Two also includes noting my Hit Die (1d10). So I'll have 10HP plus whatever my Constitution mod winds up being. Oh, wait. These steps include some other stuff too. Ahem.

OK, so as a human my base walking speed is 30, and I speak two languages, Common and one extra. Now, if this were a setting I were writing, languages would be cultural, not racial, but let's assume my dude speaks Dwarvish. 

As for paladin stuff, I don't get spells at 1st level, but I do get Divine Sense and Lay on Hands. I get two skill proficiencies, so I'll take Insight and Medicine. 

For equipment, I get chain mail, a holy symbol, and then a bunch of weapon sorts of choices. I get a martial weapon and a shield. I'll take a short sword (military issue) for that weapon. I get either five javelins or a simple melee weapon. I'll take the javelins, I think. I get either a priest's pack or an explorer's pack. Let's have a look. Oh, definitely explorer's pack. That gives me a backpack, a bedroll, a mess kit, a tinderbox, 10 torches, 10 days of rations, a waterskin, and 50 feet of rope.

Step Three is Ability Scores, and since I have a concept I'll use the array rather than rolling (15, 14, 13, 12, 10, 8). I get a +1 to all my stats for being human, so I'll arrange them thusly:

Strength 16
Dexterity 14
Constitution 15
Intelligence 9
Wisdom 11
Charisma 13

Step Four is to Describe My Character! This isn't just physical description; I get to pick a Background which actually matters in this edition. Let's see. 

So, I'm gonna say my paladin was a royal guard (and thus take the Soldier background). He was never, like, a king's bodyguard or anything like that, more the sort of guard that would get knocked out so the heroes could get uniforms. But somewhere along the way, he filled in for another guard who was going out on tax collection duty, and there he was asked to stab a dude when he refused to pay what the sheriff said he was due. To his eternal shame, my guy did it, but he never returned to the palace. He burned his uniform in his victim's funeral pyre, but he kept his sword. He's planning to cut the sheriff's stupid face with it someday. 

As a solider I'm proficient in Athletics and Intimidation. I get proficiency in land vehicles and one type of gaming set (let's say dice; my guy's not smart enough for cards or chess). I get an insignia of rank, a trophy from a fallen enemy...ooh, OK. Let's say that particular sheriff's face has been cut. I took his signifier of office (a ring), and I wear it on a chain. I have a set of bone dice, a set of common clothes, and 10 gp. 

Now, as a soldier normally I could pull rank and get access to military installations. With character's particular backstory I don't know that that works, but maybe I could use the sheriff's ring? That's a little dishonest, but like, I ain't lawful good. (Chaotic good, I think.)

Personality trait: No violence to the poor except in self-defense (even then, only self-defense). Ideal: Equality (no kings or masters). Bond: I honor the memory of Horace, the farmer I murdered, and hope to live down that shame. Flaw: I killed a King's Sheriff and took his ring as a trophy. 

I think all I need is a name and a description (for reals this time!) now. My guy's name is Lanos. Lanos is buff, but not tall - he's pretty average for a soldier. Brown hair, brown eyes, nondescript but friendly and affable. Since deserting and killing the sheriff, he's been lying low in the countryside, praying to the Gods of Freedom and Justice, and building his skill as a warrior. He had grandiose plans of going back to throw down the king, but then he hooked up with a group of adventurers and joined them on a monster-slaying kind of quest, and realized that he is in no way ready to mount a revolution.

Plus...look. Lanos isn't very bright. He's got a pretty childish view of revolution, formed out of stories he's heard of folk heroes besting stupid kings at archery contests or whatever, and he's got a very simplistic attitude (you kill the king, and then you...win, right?). I think Lanos' arc would get really interesting around third level when he picks an oath, because Oath of Vengeance is a kind of "shit gets real" point.