Character Creation Guide

[Akren Garkos]

Welcome to the Character Creation Guide (C.C.G.)!

This guide is designed to give you, the Player, a better understanding & basic working knowledge of how the process of character creation & maintainence works here at STARGATE : The RPG.

Please take the time to review the posts which follow, as this thread is designed to help members old & new - regardless of whether they are seasoned RPG-er's or not - through the process of character creation & maintainence; &to help make this process as fun, interesting & hassle-free as possible.

Regards;

[Akren Garkos]

This post deals with the creation of your character & how to interact with other characters within the RPG environment; & is broken up into two sections: the Character Creation process itself, & IC interaction with other Player's Characters (PCs) & non-Player Characters (NPCs); both 'official' & those created by other members.

Character Creation:

Here at STARGATE : The RPG, as well as having played various other games both on & offline ourselves, we have often found that the process of 'character creation' (or making up your own character) can be as simple, or as complex, as you would like to make it - although we have found most people tend ot fall somewhere in-between - & therein lies both the hard work, & the fun.

Most people already have a favourite character (such as Dr. Daniel Jackson), stero-type (such the stoic Warrior-types, like Teal'c) or race (such as the Asgard) they enjoy watching from the STARGATE movie(s), the T.V. shows or the novels/comics & know whether or not they wish to play a guy (male) character, a girl (female) character or a character with no distinct gender (like the Goa'uuld/Tok'Ra symbiotes or a Crystaline Entity) & may want to play in the RPG - & this often a good starting point for fleshing out your own, unique character.

How old is your character? What do they look like (e.g.: tall, skinny, short, muscly, etc)? What race is it (e.g.: Human, Jaffa, Tok'Ra, Asgard, Unas, etc)? Where does she/he/it hail from (e.g.: Earth, New Tollan, Chimmera, Athos, etc)? What kind of society do they live (e.g.: Norse, Celtic, etc)? What is like where they come from (e.g.: A paradise world full of high-technology, a primitve world dominated by the Goa'uuld, etc); & how they have become to involved with the SGC & the people they're with & the situations they find themselves in now (e.g.: They defected from their homeworld & joined the SGC to fight a common enemy, such as the Goa'uuld, etc)?

All these questions & more are ones you can ask yourself when fleshing out your character during the creation process. Also equally is your characters STATS, or actual game data on your character; like numbered scores for Strength, Dexterity, their skills (what they can & can't do, languages they have learnt, equipment they might possess, etc) & the like : these all combine with your character's other attributes to form a complete picture, sort of like a dossier, or report card, of what your character is like & how they fit into the wider galaxy at large within the RPG as a whole.

Other nice touches like a brief background on your character, what they are like as a perons, how they handle social interactions & how they think - even a picture, drawing, or hand-painted motif of your character standing still or doing various things - all help give greater detail & insight into your character & bring it to life; making it that much more fun to role-play, & that much more uniquely yours : a fictious portrayal of the kind of indvidual you could see yourself as, or would love to portray!

Don't forget to read through the rest of the GETTING SARTED section & the rest of THE RPG SYSTEM to learn more about how to create your own unique character - remembering to obtain GM permission & follow all the rules! - & bring your creative vision, your passion, to life!

We also recommend you keep a copy of your character & all their STATS, pictures, etc - both here on the message boards as well as on paper (we recommend using the official STARGATE SG-1 RPG Interactive Character Sheet) to ensure you don't 'loose' your character accidently.

Character Interaction:

When interacting with other characters, whether they be other people's characters (Player Characters, or PC's), non-Player Characters (NPC's) you yourself or other have created; we ask that adhere to the rules set out here in the GETTING STARTED section of the board, using common sense, as well as giving people some time to reply to the messages you are posting.

Character interaction is lots of fun & very important - it is a vital part of what participating in an RPG is all about! - but we also needot be careful to go about it such a ways that enhences everyone else's enjoyment of the RPG & helps it run smoothly (it's more fun & a hell of a lot easier that way! ;D).

[Akren Garkos]

We recommend updating your profile (both here on the webboard & your own copies of your character(s) profile(s)) here regualrly - both your own profile & that of your character(s)/NPC's you may have created! - on a regular basis (say once a week or once a fortnight, min. once a month). This includes, but is not neccessarily limited, to:

• Character STATS
  
• Background & History
  
• Most recent devleopments IC (the storyline or any sigificant events which has happend to your character(s) recently; especially major sotry arcs effectiong all characters/the entire board, like the on-going war with the Wraith/Orii).
  
• Any new equipment you have gained or firends/foes IC you have made.
  
• Other info. as you see fit.
  

Bearing this in mind, please be aware that we DO[/i] check profiles on a regular basis & make sure any major devleopments/changes for your character(s) are approved by the Staff & are in line with the rules of the RPG (refer the various posts here in THE RPG SYSTEM for further info.).

[Akren Garkos]

Whilst we encourage players ot create secondary characters & NPC's for story-telling & interaction purposes; we do recommend you don't make too many 'secondary' characters/NPC's; as this is normally reserved for those poeple whom have played in this, or other, RPGs for a whiles &/or veteran members whom are used ot playing more than one character at a time.

The reaosns for this are obvious : the more characters/NPC's you create & role-play, the more tme, effort, energy & thought is required to protray & develop those characters within the context of the RPG; & we don't want people having their primaryu, or major character, suffer to the determent of devleoping or role-playing your secondary one(s) - you must give equal consideration & time ot devleop & role-play your 1st/major character & to growing & evovling ALL your characters/NPC's; not just one or two.

This helps balance things out & makes it more interesting for both you & others (better to have one really good character than a bunch of crappy ones; we say!). Whislt we are not saying that poepl cannot, or would not, be able ot handle playing more than one chaarcter at a time; it is preferred, & you must stil lstick to all the rules of the group/RPG whislt doing so.

If you think you can't handle it propely, or having difficultly, you can also side-line one of your characters (say, they have an accident which puts them out of commission for ages, like a major attack on the Atlantis base, etc) or speak to a veteran/Staff memeber for help.

As always , the FAQ section, staff, moderators & Vet's & other members are here ot help you; so feel free to aks away if you feel you need help : it's what we're here for!

[Akren Garkos]

Non-Player Characters, or NPcC's as they are also called, are characters which are not directly controlled by a Player (member) &/or which are not featured every day in the RPG.

Just like re-occuring characters or one-off cameo appearences on the T.V. shows or in the books/comics, these characters occassionally crop up; helping to enhance & add depth to the current story being told or the overall story arc, then drop back into the background until needed again, or are killed off/retired.

Member NPC's[/i] are those that are created by Players/members, often to help enhance their own character or add depth to their own storyline - like a family member of their character, a close friend, or a once-off ally/enemy or associate.

Official NPC's[/i] are those created by the Staff & RPG SYS OP, & are often based on major characters in the shows/movies/comics/books - like the Wraith, the Asurans, & other prominant bad guys or allies of Earth - which most Players will not get a chance to play: either becuase they are the current 'big bads' or one-off/reoccuring characters that play a significant role in the overall story arc.

Creating an NPc can be a great way to enhance your own character, give an insight into their life, loves, dislikes or as an added bonus to help further your characters own story arc & personal journey within the RPG.

As with all characters, NPC's you make yourselves must be approved by a member of Staff before you can use them in the RPG; & you always gain permission before using another person's NPC in a post featuring your own character.

For more on NPC's, read throug hthe rest of the GETTING STARTED section of THE RPG SYSTEM, or visit the NPC section of the Character Profiles part of the board to see what kind of NPC's others are creating; then try your hand at it yourself!

[Akren Garkos]

There comes a time in everyone's life when they ask themselves Do I want to do this anymore?, & your Characters are no exception.

Some get promoted & move on to other assignments, as is the case with Johnathan 'Jack' O'Neill, others willing retire & only work part time, as is the case with General George Hammond, still others are forced into tirement through unforeseen curcumstances (such as personal injury which prevents them from carrying on their jobs, etc); & sometimes, your character just gets so powerful & of such a high level that it might be time to considering putting an end to their illusterious career - no matter how much you love them!

The reasons for this should be obvious : let face it, it's not much fun when you character can easily solve every riddle, beat every bad guy, save the world, win the guy/girl & learn how to Ascend & then come back to kick big bad butt all before lunch!

That is why, once characters reach to a certain level or state of progression, it might be time to consider retiring them. If this is something which you feel should be discussed, or something which the RPG SYS OP feels should be discussed with you; feel free to approach us (or we'll approach you) with some options & we can discuss the matter further, if that is what you wish.

Just because your character is retiring doesn't mean they have to leave the Stargate universe forever - Jack O'Neill & George Hammod, although they don't appear on the T.V. show(s) much anymore, are still alive & well & are intergile parts of the Stargate Program - others like Daniel Jackson have Ascended, only to descend & come back to start again anew. Some characters have died &/or passed on (like Thor, Colonel Chekov, etc), whilst still others have gone on to live long, forefilling lives outside the SGC or doing other thigns which they enjoy (like Ry'ac, Cassandra & the like).

And just like the transitions between Stargate SG-1 Seasons 8 & 9, the departure of one character can lead to the introduction of a new one that you could try your hand at role-playing (they say that sometimes a change is as good as a holiday); helping to expand your own role-playing skills & explore creative outlets or characters you may have not thought about tring your hand.

All in all, retirement does not have to be a bad thing - in fact it can be, & often is, a positive thing - unto each generation must yeild itself to the next, the world continues to turn & life goes on : just as it always has, & just as it always will. . . .

[Akren Garkos]

If you're looking for more info on Character Creation, or would just like to know more about it; refer to THE RPG SYSTEM & GETTING STARTED sections of this webboard, ask a friend/moderator &/or Veteran Member & take a look around at other on-line RPG to get a feel about what Character Creation & participating in an on-line RPG is all about!

If that doesn't wet your appetite, or you would like to know even more; we've provided some handy-dandy links for you to look over below:

• Stargate SG-1 Interactive Character Sheet (requires Abode Acrobat Reader)
  
• Demo Characters (requires Abode Abcrobat Reader)
  
• The Official Stargate SG-1 Role-Playing Game Website