This is the one of the games I'm suggesting to my group, and it's the only one of the ones I'm suggesting that I haven't made a character for the project yet, so here we go.
The Game: Aricebo
The Publisher: Evil Hat Publishing
Degree of Familiarity: Never played this particular game, but it's Fate Core and I know that pretty well
Books Required: Aricebo and Fate Core, coincidentally
So, this mostly follows the chargen rules in Fate Core, with a few twists. But as usual, I need a High Concept Aspect to get started. Characters in Aricebo are kids in Puerto Rico, living in the titular city. I've worked with a lot of Puerto Rican kids in my career as an SLP, actually, so I kind of want to play one similar to some of the kiddos I've known (I actually did this once before, for Little Fears). I'll say my character is 13 years old, just got out of 8th grade in the US, and came back to Puerto Rico to visit family just before all the shit went down (power's out, etc.) and now he doesn't know if he and his mom can get back. He was born in Puerto Rico, but he's lived in the US for the past five years and kind of thinks of that as home. His name is Marco Fernandez.
Marco got straight As back in the US, and he was super interested in science and math. A lot of the other kids from Puerto Rico didn't like him and called him and nerd, but no one knows him here (he had friends before he moved, but they've all kind drifted away), so he's trying not to be nerdy. My High Concept is Closet Nerd.
Trouble, hmm. I don't want to make this about hiding his nerdery, because I think he's going to be generally bad at hiding it and it's gonna be more funny than anything. I think that the stress this is putting on his mother might be better. I'll say his Trouble is We Can't Get Home (that he thinks of the States as "home" is perhaps a secondary trouble).
And now I've two Aspects specific to this game: Parent/Guardian and Aspiration. For Parent, I'll take I Know Mama is Scared. That nicely encapsulates the notion that Marco's relationship with his mother is strong, but that their situation isn't ideal. For Aspiration, the Aspect is what Marco wants to be or could be. I'll call this one Prodigal Son. Being Puerto Rican is important to him, he just doesn't know why or how yet.
And now we do Skills, just like in the core book, in the pyramid. Well, what would I like for my Great Skill? Sounds like Lore might be the best for him, since it encompasses nerdy stuff.
For Good, I'll take Notice and Investigate. For Fair, I'll take Empathy, Athletics, and Rapport. And then for Average, Stealth, Physique, Will, and Provoke.
I get two free stunts and four refresh. I actually don't have a good idea what kind of stunts I want for Marco, so let's look in the core (there are a few in Aricebo, but none of them really seem appropriate for this character). Ooh, Eavesdropper is good for a kid. Oh, and then I've Read About That! is perfect for Marco.
I could spend refresh for a third stunt. Do I wish to do that? I do not think I do. I get an extra stress box for physical and mental for my Will and Physique Skills, though.
I'll say that Marco usually wears blue pants and white shirts (a lot of his clothes were school uniform), glasses, and has black hair and brown eyes. His hair is getting shaggy because his mom hasn't taken him for a haircut and he doesn't much care; he's also got a little peach fuzz on his lip and cheeks. He blushes easily when he's embarrassed or scared, and he tries to avoid sounding too nerdy, but he can't help talking about the books he's read.
And that's it! Man, Fate is easy.
