| From: | erobyn2@*****.net (Robyn Edwards) |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Average starting characters? |
| Date: | Mon, 29 Aug 2005 17:33:26 -0700 |
numbers and stats, and skills. Better(tighter) the story, better the
stats.
This took awhile but both the gm and I had a firm fix on the guy.
Robyn
-----Original Message-----
From: Keith Johnson [mailto:keith@***********.com]
Sent: Monday, August 29, 2005 2:57 PM
To: 'Shadowrun Discussion'
Subject: RE: Average starting characters?
>I write the story first, and assign stats second.
>It makes those marginal decisions a lot easier.
For me it makes it a lot more difficult.
>"Hmmm, another contact or dump the rest into
>starting nuyen?" "Let's see, another point of
>Willpower, or should I raise Biotech and
>Stealth by 1?" And so on...
My imagination is almost always more experienced,
advanced, potent... than the rules.
The reason that going 'story first' is painful
for me is that I'll develop an amazing idea for
a character, full of strengths, weaknesses, and
idiosyncracies... a gorgeous character... then
recreating that guy within the framework of the
game is impossible for a 'starting character.'
>Detailing the mechanics before you write the
>story means that a lot of your point allocation
>decisions happen in a vacuum.
Which is why I start out with a skeletal concept,
then build a the character using the game mechanics,
and as I'm doing that, I do the 'another contact,
or dump the rest into starting nuyen' thing.
All the while that I'm throwing numbers around,
making a character mechanically efficient, I
develop the background... which evolves as I
juggle points. As the points settle out, I
solidify the background options as to why and
how the character got the stats he's got.
>I have lost track of the number of times someone
>assigned points first and then could not fit
>the story adequately to the numbers.
This explains why you and I end up at the same
place from bitterly opposite directions.
>They end up with a character whose motivations
>and mood do not fit the dice they pick up and
>roll.
And this happens to me when I write the background
first.
>I guess it is all a matter of style and
>personal taste.
Yup.
-k
