Great Character Backstories 101 - Playing RPGs

[@SSkorkowsky]

Want more Character Backstory Tips? Check out my Backstories 201 video. kzbin.info/www/bejne/nHXYdXewbdV-nc0

[@zterrans]

I played with a guy who had a super-experienced level 1 character. His story was he used to be a hero while younger, but then got caught up in his own fame, got used to decadence and simply grew older, fatter, and drunker until he was back to being an out-of-shape, out-of-training nothing working his way back up.

[@Lobsterwithinternet]

I once played a character who pretended to be a hero. He lasted surprisingly long before a random barkeep rolled a natural 20 and recognized I was a fraud.

[@MrBeenReadyy]

That’s a great way to get around that problem he mentioned, I had a player who was a war hero and champion pit fighter but he was blown up in an assassination attempt so it injured him back down a level 1 character, then as I leveled up I steadily healed and got less injured restoring him to his former glory

[@danacoleman4007]

These are REALLY COOL ideas! I've been playing forever and have never heard of anything like these!

[@shadiafifi54]

In one current game I'm playing using the Savage Worlds system, I'm playing an Army Ranger from WW2. And yet, he started the campaign at only 30xp (Seasoned w/ 2 advances, not exactly a rookie but still far from being a badass veteran). Basically, he had been KIA and mysteriously resurrected on some strange new world, and dying and coming back weakened him greatly and reduced his skills, so he needed to work to regain them.

[@TentenchiAMVs]

I'm getting a lot of interesting ideas! I've got this 300+ year old tiger guy who has eternal youth. He started at level 1 in the campaign because he would go out and level up for a while, then he would come back home where he didn't use those higher skills and leveled back down. The campaign started while he was at a low time.

[@Pile_of_carbon]

The argument that 95 % of backstory integration is the players' responsibility is really good. The GM keeps track of: ... 500+ pages of rules. ... a dozen or so potential opponents. ... what has happened. ... what is happening. ... what happens later as a result. ... traps in the area and the ways to circumvent them. Player: "I can't believe he forgot about my sick sister..." Yea, he's only human, supposedly.

[@nemooh]

And 3000 pages of rules. I don't care about your backstory. You don't care about anyone else's backstory. Let's attack those goblins or bandits.

[@--enyo--]

Supposedly

[@ChrisMoneymakerDHRG]

The Star Bar did a great job of driving your point home

[@BTsMusicChannel]

It works in D&D where the cliche "you are in a tavern" starts many games.

[@ChrisMoneymakerDHRG]

you know i’ve been DMing for 26 years and have never started a group out that way. I will admit, from what I have seen on Facebook and here on KZbin it dose seem to be a common trope though.

[@BTsMusicChannel]

@@ChrisMoneymakerDHRG I have never started that way either, but I have seen it done. That said, a DM should introduce new players to all the cliches, and put a twist on them for experienced players. I once started with a "kill the rats in my basement" cliche when they met up in a tavern after exploring the town to buy gear. The rats escaped and led to an unknown tunnel system under the city, to a room with locked jail cells. In one of them was a hole in the wall where more rats came out every round. It took them a while to figure out that they needed to plug the hole to stop them (because these players were conditioned that killing was the only way to solve problems). Furthermore, in the tunnels they found a note in a desk with a message that appeared to be related to an old form of thieves' cant. It led them to a hermit translator in the woods who became another quest giver, and while they did his missions he would translate it for them. Two weeks later, they found out there was a whole network of tunnels and an old (now gone) thieves' guild used them (before they split and became the two existing rival gangs that I had initially placed in the city). So the little cliches can unfurl into a real world with a history.

[@crazyeyes8962]

We did it exactly once, but it was a pretty roleplay-light AD&D style dungeon crawl.

[@inomad1313]

BTsMusicChannel It’s been years now sense this happened, but we thought our GM was going to start us out in a tavern because none of the characters knew any other from their backstories. After much planning and plotting with character creation, buying all the great gear, weapons and armor appropriate for a third lvl character, the GM started our story with variations of the following for each PC. You wake up in a cell with a thread bare shirt, tattered breeches and no shoes. The last thing you remember is being in a tavern when the town you were in was attacked. During the fight someone knocked you out from behind. As everyone was in separate cells, each PC was introduced this way in a private meeting with the GM at the beginning of the first session, so no one knew what was going on until it was their turn. No one spilled the beans after their turn. They just came back in with a smile, a frown or just shaking their heads. Good times.

[@Treblaine]

"how did your character get here" Well it all started about 50 years ago when 2 Jedi Knights headed to a planet called Naboo for trade negotiations over a blockade...

[@shadiafifi54]

"No Luke, I mean, 'how did he get to this planet in particular'..." :p

[@Treblaine]

@@shadiafifi54 "I will leave that explanation for the sequel in the safe hands of Rian Johnson"

[@viniciussardenberg706]

@@Treblaine oh no

[@hadeseye2297]

@@Treblaine Misa do a great sequel.

[@numbersmczap]

Boooo... That's a terrible back story.

[@fukyomammason]

Backstory should be an open door, not a hallway.

[@edatthegovernance]

That's... beautiful, CactusSok.

[@gggg-hq4td]

@@edatthegovernance Cucus Socks

[@SuperFunkmachine]

There nothing like being give multiple pages and a genealogy to make you ignore it.

[@HoundofOdin]

Currently working on a "water world" campaign and a player wants to make a desert nomad character. I had to go back and listen to you give that example three times before I believed what I heard.

[@Dorian_sapiens]

Wow, what are the odds? 😆

[@adakahless]

If the desert is a sprawling area of ocean...Nerdarchy talked about this with backstory and poor character choices for the world but it was turned about with a land that is all desert and no water. That sort of character could be worked in with a sandsea like in FF12. A sea of liquid sand. Remember that the definition of a desert doesn't have to include sand. The Mariana trench is considered a desert.

[@HoundofOdin]

@@adakahless Fair enough, but my player wants to have a character from the sandy dunes in a world with no dry land left.

[@gossamera4665]

@@HoundofOdin Kick them out now and save yourself the grief. If their first instinct is to be contrarian then they're likely a shit roleplayer with no imagination who will likely be disruptive in other ways.

[@adakahless]

@@HoundofOdin Maybe he was ported there from a desert realm? Plane shifting could have caused a fluke and now he's stuck in a world completely opposite to what he was raised in. If roleplayed well it could be interesting for the character to discover things like oceans and lakes. xD You could also use that plane shifting as a catastrophe down the road when they think they've beaten the bad guy, only to find their bbeg was but a pawn in a demon's scheme to shift the plane of hell and fire and desert to this water world.

[@AlluMan96]

When it comes to writing characters for a tabletop game, I think a really important part of backstories is to not fret over the specific details and that it's actually better if you don't write any more backstory than the DM asks of you.. Alot of times when people think about "writing a backstory", they think about diligently laying out every detail of a character's life complete with a cast of characters and setting to go with it. However, I have personally always felt that those specific details are better to fill in later. When you are making your character, the most important is to figure out "What *kind* of life did they have?" and "How does this lifestyle show in their personality". When writing a noble, who has escaped his troubled home life, instead of writing a thousand pages worth of political intrigue of every noble in the area, their vendettas with one another and the copious methods by which that character has been attempted to be murdered, kidnapped or compromised, brushing past that with a simple "Being a noble, there were many families among both the low-lives and the highborn that wanted me dead and the attempted poisoning of my food at parties or the need to look out for political assassins very quickly became the norm for me". From my experiences, the latter tends to work out better. It sets a simple baseline to figure out how my character acts and given the player's blessings, the DM can have an easier time weaving their that backstory or elements of it into his story and world. What's even better? It's never too late to go back and add some layers and details to the backstory after the fact. Some of the most pivotal and important moments of the backstory of one of the best characters I ever played weren't established until 3 to 4 sessions into the campaign. It worked, because instead of pulling my hair out trying to have the full picture complete by the first session and letting all the baggage of a backstory I threw together pretty much in a panic get in the way of writing his personality, I first had the character's most important part, how he acts, down, letting any developments and details come to me more naturally. That's not to say there shouldn't be any details about the backstory. After all, it's moments that make a person. Just that when writing a piece of backstory to a character, it is always good to evaluate how important that detail is to how the person acts. If it's just kinda there and it doesn't actually mean much to the character, it's better not in there, because that piece of fluff is now taking the space of a moment of detail that could be adding something substantial to his identity, just that you haven't quite figured it out.

[@NimhLabs]

If all else fails, your characters back story can easily be, "I woke up in a field somewhere--and cannot really remember much. What I know I've gotten from the clothing I was wearing at the time. Luckily I appear to not have tendencies towards nudity." Expand from there.

[@AlluMan96]

@@NimhLabs That can most certainly work. Usually, I'd say the "minimum" amount of backstory that is healthy is an amount that will inform the character's behavior. Stuff like "X has caused me to be like Y" or "I don't like X, because of Y". These can be really simple. A fear of rats, because you once got stuck in a dark basement with rats or a hatred for orcs, because you lived during times of war between orcs. Going completely blank can sometimes end up with a problem of having just nothing to work off of.

[@NimhLabs]

@@AlluMan96 true... the "woke up in a field" is an "otherwise" guard case, for if you do not know the world well enough to realise a fear of rats in a RedWall RPG is not the same as a fear of rats in an Exalt campaign... and other areas where your backstory might interfere with the setting.

[@AlluMan96]

@@NimhLabs True that. It's why for the big campaign I am preparing for my players, I have alot of documents going into deep lore as well as a light "Getting started" document that will act as a compliment to character creation, explaining where the characters will begin, what kind of setting they are in, what societal influence choosing one race over another will have on the players and sets them with the parameters of "By the end of character creation, your backstory must answer these" type of deals.

[@NimhLabs]

@@AlluMan96 Ah, give them choice paralysis and sensory overload! At the end of the day--there are no right answers.

[@Konpekikaminari]

here's a little pro tip I have for those who want to up their writing choose a theme song for the character- not as in theme to play when character has a moment, but one to play as you write e.g "How To Save a Life" upgraded a character I once had from "Monster hunter from Yarnham-inspired town" to a tale about losing someone, overcoming that loss, and a search of purpose

[@elgatochurro]

Link?

[@momolight3406]

Party member: “Hey dude where are you from?” Me, the distrustful rogue: “Oh me? I’m from the land of Somewhereoranother.”

[@olilea3474]

I'm a novelist who recently got into D&D. I think the fact that you're a writer is the reason I find your roleplaying advice really relatable. Thanks for this!

[@Anacronian]

The best character I ever played had a backstory like this "I was a farmer but lost the farm due to a random kobold attack" (I joined a game I didn't expect to join so pretty much everything about my character was just thrown together) I played that guy for 8 years and had a blast. What I'm saying is that backstories are great and can really widen your experience as a player, But at the end of the day it really is how you play him/her that matters.

[@agsilverradio2225]

I never *expect* GMs to incorperate backstorys, (unless the said they would,) but I do enjoy placing tidbit in my backstory, that the GM *can* use, if they so chouse to. If left unspecified by the GM I try to give an 1 - 3 page backstory story, with a TLDR bulletpoint version at the end.

[@marcosfernandesdesousajuni9576]

I used to write pretty rich backstories for my characters, and then i took an arrow to the knee...

[@RVR121]

Well i did go on the adventure to fight the dragon and save the princess of Soanso where we fought goblins, evil wizards and navigated the labyinth maze of alter doom but i left out the detail where i was just the bag boy for the knight and his party of badasses...so technically i did. - Level 1 adventurer with cool backstory.

[@b3h8t1n]

Lol makes sense 😆

[@NoActuallyGo-KCUF-Yourself]

@S billings What if he means like a grocer's assistant who bags and delivers food?

[@NoActuallyGo-KCUF-Yourself]

I then recommend playing a bard: picked up a mix of skills from the badasses and spends all day singing songs about how badass they all were.

[@Loehengrin]

Reading background material for a Norse campaign I noticed that Norse sagas generally begin several generations before the protagonist, so I started the backstory with the tale of why my grandfather left the dwarfen realm for Midgard. Dwarfs in the sagas are usually smiths so it occurred to me that I might be able to narrate a masterwork dwarfen waraxe into my equipment, so I included a scene where my father handed me my great-grandfather's axe: "my father replaced the head, I replaced the handle: it is the very axe your great-grandfather made."

[@oz_jones]

Dope

[@bosshogg8447]

Thanks Seth! I appreciate you giving my hometown of Sum’ware’er’anuther a shout out!

[@BlackBirdGameChannel]

A good backstory is so important! It makes the character interesting and new even months after he/she was introduced.

[@Incrediblefatslug]

Quality as usual. Thanks again for the great content. Can't wait to incorporate what i learned

[@tcironbear21]

I LOVE that advice on players bring up their background themselves. And you hit the nail on the head regarding working in character backgrounds. Sometimes a challenge in background is clearly level inappropriate or distracting/inappropriate from your introductory plot. I don't know about other GMs, but I am definitely an enthusiasm whore. What ever makes you enthusiastic about my game is likely what I am going write story for. If you turn in a background and then never mention it again except to chastise me for not bringing it up, that doesn't exactly inspire me.

[@NicholasGM78]

I love being able to pick out the AD&D-2E Monster Manual, Player's Handbook, and Dungeon Master's Guide instantly on the shelf behind you, and also seeing how feathered and frayed the cover is on the Player's Handbook.... a familiar sight, and evidence of how much time you've spent helping other players make characters, as a GM. Good on you, sir.

[@iainmaclean1205]

Thank you for another intelligent and well presented video on an issue that too often attracts shrieks and clickbait, you stand as a pillar of calm in this sea of chaos. The illustrative example is excellent - too often folk seem to forget that they are active participants in the game, and are responsible for bringing their characters to life.

[@veselinnedkov643]

I see you touching up on the players knowing each others' backstories, and boy, did I cheer when you mentioned it. There was a time in my gaming community when backstories were kept secret, because knowing them was *gasp* metagaming. Yeah, I suppose it is, but so what? One very important thing about RPGs is that players absolutely do love talking about it - about the campaign, about the adventure, about the characters. Not everything comes up during play, but discussing motivations and stories OOC is one of the joys for me.

[@OptimusOmega6]

What did the Omacrons do to that guy? That is the real question.

[@TheAstoundingPandry]

OptimusOmega stiffed him on a plumbing job?

[@metallkopf988]

In my imagination, they're clueless space hillbillies.

[@oz_jones]

_They know what they did_

[@luckyowl1681]

In the latest DnD campaign I am part of, my character idea was last-minute, spur of the moment stuff. Like... day before we played. So I used Xanathar's Guide to Everything's roll-chart for background, just to help myself out, and made choices depending on what I thought made sense when there was a roll I thought was too... narrow-scope. Character ended up with the motivation of adventure because he was in search of a mysteriously-missing lover. My DM liked it, as well as the random roll that somewhere out in the world, my character has a Paladin buddy that for some reason is a wanted man. Of course, I'm not saying "just use that book for DnD backstories". Just that in that case, for a relatively last minute choice, it worked. To think, I was originally going to try out a Kenku Bard whom used the jeers thrown at his performances for Vicious Mockery. But I went with a classic Elven Ranger and he's already a beloved character for me.

[@Mandalorian2814]

My Ex-Wife always wrote these super colorful and indepth backgrounds covering everything that could happen. Which was fine because they were really good stories and she was an aspiring writer. However left very little meat on the bone to explore in a game. I always asked her to keep it to a page and just several highlights and some plot threads. Maybe it was my short falls as a DM. It just pissed her off and I still got the 10 page story novella. Lol

[@lostsanityreturned]

What a perfectly timed video. I find that the more open ended or freeform an adventure is the more important it is that a player knows their character's motivations and personality.

[@redsnake188]

Personally one of the funnest things I've done was for a campaign I took each character and did a one on one session of there backstory in order to explain why theyed come to the main town . it made the characters feel more personal as they went back years one was a childhood memory another a festival and the last one was right before they set off for adventure leaving home (she was from the main city so she was coming home in campaign)

[@zaneaguilar5274]

"I have a hard time remembering what I ate yesterday..." I felt that deeply.

[@raynercoslop]

13:25 thank you so much for this. This completely shifted the way i do backstories. My characters now feel a lot more "alive" and i'm having a lot more fun

[@TheCaniblcat]

One of the things I like to do when creating a backstory for my characters is leave some unanswered questions about the character that s/he has about him/herself and let the GM's imagination fill in the blanks. For example, my current character has amnesia. Her memory starts about a year ago and the first thing she remembered was waking up in an old basement lab. A man in a labcoat was there and told her that she needs to get away as fast as possible. He knows someone in Boston who can give her work. Was the man legitimately trying to help her? If so why? Does he know about her past? Is he responsible for her loss of memory? Is he playing her and she's a pawn in his or someone else's game? Is someone looking for her? She has no idea. Let the GM go to town to decide HOW she lost her memory (intentional? voluntary? accident/injury?). She had just enough info to explain why she was in Boston and why she was at that place at that time and The GM is free to use the open ended backstory--or not--as he pleases.

[@scottknudsen6611]

What is this ongoing beef with the Omichron system? I feel like there's a "war story" we're missing there. :)

[@NathanielWinkelmann]

I never noticed that before, but you are right.

[@AGrumpyPanda]

Possibly Futurama?

[@Lowaver]

in pop culture, omichron is also a super well known system. Probably due to Futurama, but none-the-less, still super popular.

[@metallkopf988]

Stars or multiple star systems in the observable sky that belong to classic stellar constellations are designated belonging to the constellation in latin and ranked by Greek letters, I think according to brightness. Alpha Centauri is the brightest object (trinary star) in the Centaur constellation, Epsilon Eridani is the fifth brightest star in the Eridanus constellation. Stars that carry actual names also carry a designation. Altair, the brightest star in the Eagle constellation is also Alpha Aquilae, Vega in the Lyre is Alpha Lyrae and Deneb in the Swan is Alpha Cygni. Omicron is the 15th letter in the greek alphabet. So the "Omicron system" is probably the epitome of an uninviting backwater planet that no one cares for...

[@konberner170]

Current campaign was at first planned to level 5. Only after hearing the backstories did I select one to base the other 15 levels on. The lucky player also had the most nuanced concept fully rooted in the lore and history of the world, so deserved the main arc being based on his character. There is permadeath though, so if that character dies the arc remains without him.

[@dashiellgillingham4579]

Sirius Mann, Monk 4 (Way of the Drunken Master) Backstory: An unserious man walked out of his home and stubbed his toe. An unserious man fell into a deep melancholy, and became, A Depressed Man. A Depressed Man found an ancient monastery, and trained relentlessly to forget, the shame and embarrassment of, stubbing his toe. A disciplined man told a Depressed Man that he needed discipline, and focus, if he ever hoped to become, a serious man. In that moment, a depressed man, chose to become, a serious man. A Serious Man, has since, always been a, serious man. A serious man has wandered the world, seeking to become, a heroic man. When a serious man, has become, a heroic man, a heroic man will return to his village, where a heroic man, will have the will and strength to endure, the shame and embarrassment of, stubbing his toe.

[@alexboggs6416]

Barakas Ambitious Tiefling Rouge 3, Bard 1 (Archane Trickster) Barakas ran away from home or maybe he was left...he doesn't really remember,but he knows he grew up on the streets of Neverwinter until he befriended a half-elf in their young teens and was semi-adopted by the family. The two were trained as militia scouts when they were old enough to join to earn money, but shortly left to be adventures with their dragonborn militia trainer when there ceased to be a reason to stay.

[@krispalermo8133]

My group did six Drunken Masters in the Japan/ Rakugan campaign setting. Each had a very different reasons why they became a social dishonorable "Drunk ."

[@TentenchiAMVs]

You reminded me of one of my brother's characters. He is a gnome bard in a constant state of drunkenness. That's basically his backstory. A gnome so drunk that he can't remember his past. =/

[@kingbyrd.1512]

@@krispalermo8133 what were those reasons?

[@krispalermo8133]

@@kingbyrd.1512 The " Drunken Masters " campaign was around 12 years ago but here is some of the basic ideals of their personal reasons. 1.) One just really like to drink. 2.) Stander " PTSD " caused by hearing hundreds of men screaming to death around you. 3.) After 15 years of political warfare, life just became a boring grime joke. 4.) A common laborer that is hard working, hard drinking, and loved a rowdy tavern fist fight or a mud wrestle. 5.) food cart vendor is a ninja spy. My former game shops started campaigns or single shot game stories with multi-class characters at 10th-level.

[@night_fiend6]

This is going to be useful in crafting a Cyberpunk Red character. I never played tabletop RPGs so your channel is really helpful and interesting.

[@CarrowMind]

As a DM, I can tell with certainty that the part about it being 95% the players responsibility is spot on, as a DM we are juggling so much to keep the game interesting, with NPC's, plot hooks, location descriptions, plans for possible fights and intrigues that it's extremely easy to forget little details about a player's backstory. We aren't perfect, and it's easy for players to forget that they aren't the only ones at the table, and while their backstory might be "epic" or "crucial to their character", which could possibly be true! Hell I've had plenty of amazing player backstories presented to me over the years that I was 100% on board with, even offering advice or additional details to really flesh it out... But when it comes to playing the game proper, all those little details get washed away by all the other stuff that's going on, we're not slighting your character on purpose, so it's up to you as the player to remind us of them when appropriate! That being said, when planning a session as a DM, see if you can incorporate a players backstory into the details, like a bounty hunter showing up at the end of a harrowing chase scene as a surprise, or one of the henchmen of the villain being the mind controllled sister of the player who he's been looking for the entire time since the campaign started. Not only is it a great moment, it also shows your players that you actually care about their characters, and that you pay attention to the little details. That's where the remaining 5% comes in!

[@ryanaaron4545]

I go Babylon 5.(with addition) ‘Who are you?’ ‘What do you want?’, ‘Why are you here?’, ‘Where are you going?’, “What is worth dying for?”, ‘Whom do you serve? , Whom do you trust?’

[@nickbutterworth6001]

I was in a long term campaign back in the 90's and I created a background for my character. Basic premise was he a fighter who was exiled from his original country. Then I went to college and only could play in the holidays. The DM then created a mini side adventure with my character and one other character to go and resolve the exile. It was supposed to only last about a year. But ended up being a major ongoing campaign which lasted about 4/5 years and really expanded the campaign world.

[@NimhLabs]

I just tend to lean heavily on Noodle Incidents greatly. Makes things much easier to weave in... if we never have to speak of that day... that horrible horrible day.

[@MegaDeathRay10]

1. Always be a chosen one, with a prophesy. Have the character make a big deal out of it, to the point if it being something they almost exclusively talk about. 2. BE EDGY! Always take annoyance with your allies, such as by going “Tch” or “feh” when they say something, even if it’s smart and/or correct. Be arrogant, and always be dark and brooding. 3. Stab first, ask questions later. 4. Always be ready to take the least popular option. You need to make sure that every group decision is not unanimous. This is important if your team agrees to only act if everyone agrees. Never budge and be stubborn until you get your way.

[@MegaDeathRay10]

JoeRingo118 your ruining my groove

[@dubuyajay9964]

@@MegaDeathRay10 HAH!

[@Tony-dh7mz]

No no no, Amnesias all the way, everytime,

[@THAC0Factor]

Thanks for another nugget to request my players to view. This will definitely help them understand player mechanics.

[@sollaicartwright5262]

I asked my players in a recnet game to keep their back stories as a few dot points. We have 3 players. When one cant make it, we do flash back one shots with home brewed super low level characters and fill in the blanks of one of the pc's. It helps me set up the law of our own world by visiting places the main story hasn't gone and allows me to bring in interesting npc's too. The players love it because we take turns developing one characters back story at a time, while the other player gets to try something different. I recomend it!

[@techorix]

thanks a lot for the video. one can certainly feel your years of training as a DM, switching POV so easily, navigating through what you want to express

[@shawngifford]

Way more useful to me than the “just don’t do x” videos. Thanks!

[@jamesrizza2640]

What I do before I start a campaign, I have the players give me a hometown, a kingdom name and so forth. Then I just add it to my campaign. I love this method because the players are giving me information to add to the campaign that I can use. This also allows them some influence in the design of the campaign.

[@randyman410]

The timing of this one couldn't be better, I've got a few friends in to D&D with the starter set adventure to bolster my party's ranks and this video will help a bunch with their characters.

[@wickedAberration]

I generally make backstories about one page in word, generally devoting two paragraphs to a life story in brief, one to a defining event, one to personality, and one to important relationships. Of course, you could boil it down to one paragraph, but it's enough room to give some details with a lot of possibility space, and I'd say the format can work well for basically any character regardless of grandeur.

[@johnanvik6537]

As for the making secrets in character but public out of character: Played with someone whose character, Lefty, had two peg legs, two hook hands, and an eye patch. At some point, they wanted to roll a perception check, so when no characters were looking they lifted their eye patch to reveal they had two eyes We all found it hilarious though our characters didn't find out

[@oz_jones]

Amazing

[@dragonmaster613]

I just use Backstory to justify any mechanical choices I made crafting my PCs. Especially when I join late in the campaign or they start higher than LV1.

[@NotMerlin5252]

Regarding having a decorated or experienced low level adventurer, me and my groups are fans of saying that the war vet/old assassin is typically retired for several years and is out of practice. Great content as always Seth.

[@VestedUTuber]

When I wrote my Kobold Warlock's backstory, I mainly wrote an origin story. I didn't specify a particular place of origin or any specific events at specific locations, I just mainly wrote about the character's upbringing, why she entered a pact with an Archfey, and that she willingly decided to become an adventurer. That way it's easy to work her into pretty much any campaign setting that doesn't explicitly ban monstrous adventurers.

[@jneff39]

Just wanna say thanks, as I was working on a character backstory and this video helped me rework it. I'd like to also add that if you get the time, maybe also have a summarized version of your backstory for your DM and yourself. Especially for people who can write pages of backstory, a quick paragraph or two for you and your DM can help you both remember characters, motivations, and other character essentials that don't require skimming over several pages.

[@brianrutherford6820]

This is the second video I've watched on your channel. (The first was 10 tips for better combat) Making this one more video than I needed to convince me to subscribe. I've been gaming since 1980 (Mostly 2e AD&D) and your knowledge, experience and presentation are stellar. Excellent videos. Thank you sir, well done. Looking forward to watching more.

[@NikolasCarneiro18]

Great work man. My favorite RPG channel on KZbin.

[@LeeAllanSpades]

I played a first level fighter with the gladiator background. She was an arena favorite and a champion of the arena. When I found out we were starting out at level 1 I was a little upset because I had crafted the tale of a level 5 or 6 character at least and I wanted to keep it. So she became a retired gladiator after taking a brutal injury in the arena that essentially wrecked her ankle. So she was at level 1 because she had to re-train herself to fight. So honestly, if you want a smidgen of an epic backstory but need to start at a low level, come up with why the juxtaposing concepts were true. The guy that led a charge? Maybe he stole the credit from another dead commander and now he has to keep up this elaborate lie or lose everything.

[@mr.pavone9719]

I had a game running that took a note from Traveller. The player characters were all kids in a town where the adults were becoming zombies. All the kids started off pretty weak, like kids are compared to adults. They didn't roll for stats. Instead they rolled for a backstory. What part of town are they from? How many parents did they have? Were they divorced or still married? Gaym Professionals in their field? Blue collar? Their basic skills would reflect what their parents would have actually taught them, so a parent who was a cop would have instilled some situational awareness and knowledge of what part of town and whom to stay away from. And outdoorsy family wwould teach the kids how to camp. What school did they attend and what rivalries did that automatically put in place? Were they from the trailer park on the end of town? How old are they? Do they have a dog? It worked well and set up a bunch of managable conflicts and alliances for me to work with.

[@FirstLast-le2rf]

Nice omicron call back to Five GM Secrets.

[@lafortya]

THANK YOU for this one especially Seth. Well said.

[@feralart]

When I play, I tend to use the backstory to shape who the character comes in as. My focus beyond that is incorporating the things my character experiences into shaping who they become.

[@eggmcmuffin6067]

Your videos are the perfect blend of information and entertainment, and as someone who is interested in DnD but hasn’t played a game all of your videos still find a way to engage me and help understand the game/view it from angles I haven’t considered.

[@jonathanwells223]

6:07 I resonate with that picture on a spiritual level

[@davidwright7193]

This is one of the reasons the Traveller character generation system is good. It gives both the GM and the player a scaffold to start with. My ex-scout with a high pilot skill, a handgun skill that could win many planet wide target shooting competition, a scattering of criminal skills and a distrust of dogs was a courier for the Geological survey on the fringes of Aslan space... Nah nobody else fell for it either but they also kind of knew they weren’t going to get an honest answer...

[@crazyeyes8962]

"Average people that have the potential to become adventurers" is something that the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay system does exceedingly well. It's a stark contrast from Warhammer 40k games where you play as the superhuman and elite. "Dung collector" is a possible starting career in WHFRP. It's also very good at helping you create your backstory as you create your character mechanically. Strangely enough this all pans out quite well because most of the threats you face in Warhammer are so existential that they impact everyone.

[@RichtorLazlo]

I think back story’s are a collaborative effort, mostly between GM and PC, but sometimes even between GM and PC and other PC. I ran a great mech warrior game playing the fall of the star league and all the characters had great and awesome back stories, two characters were connected by ones family being politically connected and supported Armis, and the other family being Business connected and being star league supporters creating a great background for the two to interact . Had another great back story in a firefly game that two of the characters were brothers one the pilot and one the engineer and their father had kicked them out to get some experience and bring back Business to the family business, the ship was a co-op owner ship, with each character bringing there back story to this new ship.

[@ken.droid-the-unique]

Seth, thank you so much for this in-depth look at how players are responsible for providing the game master and assist!

[@timbuktu8069]

I've found that backstories are better when they grow in the telling. Consider people you know in the real world . Nobody shows up and spill there guts about their entire life. Well most don't. But if a character mustered out of the army and has met up with some other ner-do-wells I can keep the adventures loose. Later when they leave the land of Far Far Away and get to Faraway Heights I can point out that the characters Aunt Zelda lives there. A great place for rest and recuperation. This is now added to the backstory.

[@cameronsims4108]

I one time ran a game with friends and told them they will be 5th level because they have served their time in the army. This was a way to avoid the "One day at the Red Dragon inn" kind of a start and I told my players to talk about their military service. One of them brought up an orc chief named Iron Gut and his tribe of orcs. The whole table began fueling this little flame to a point I decided to use it. After a couple game sessions in we were down a few players because life got in the way so I decided to bring in Iron Gut and attacked a near by village. Iron Gut got away and my players had so much fun to take on an enemy they created.

[@ICHBinCOOLERalsJeman]

I can't thank you enough Seth, your videos are really helping me improve.

[@GG-si7fw]

Just started playing again after not playing for years with young kids. I created theirs for them as their background story is that their father had an exterminator business of taking care of stirges, giant bats, rats, other large size pests so them fighting creatures is all they know. They saved enough money to buy their kit for adventuring. With newbies, I like them to be fighter style so as to learn the combat mechanics instead of soellcasting. I run the NPC spellcasters and am using Basic Fantasy rules as I needed a simple ruleset for them as they are 3, 6, and 10. The 3 year doesn't want to be left out and enjoys rolling the dice, moving miniatures, and doodling on the battlemat.

[@skyguy713]

This video came at a perfect time, and I am excited to take in all the advice when we get the ball rolling on this.

[@billdozer66]

Am currently running a warforged fighter. And my background was that he and his unit were constructed to fight in a war. And on the way there the war ended, and his unit was shut down leaving them standing as statues. And over time the other members of the unit got reactivated some how and walked off or were taken away. But my character was still there being used as a scarecrow. And as far as weaving it in I basically have been on my own searching for the other members of my unit or learning what happened at the end of the war. But also learning how I fit in this current world. Since the world O was made into happened long before the other characters and the world has changed

[@shaneminer4526]

My favorite backstory I didn't get to use was a halfling warlock that became a warlock to find her parents were wealthy merchants kidnapped by pirates when looking for new suppliers. The DM told me he was going to play it where her parents were not actually kidnapped but were servants of the demon my character sought out, and as part of their deal with it was it wouldn't seek her servitude. Of course its work around she sought it out, so it didn't break the deal. They had to move as part of their service, and staged a "kidnapping" so she wouldn't know. It was a great plan, but I had to move before the campaign could happen.

[@lockwoan01]

One trick that might help is to, quite literally, carry one of those 5.5inx4in Jumbo Little Book notebooks - you can use 2-3 pages (front and back) giving a brief synopsis about the character - name, race, alignment, brief background, which might include goals and the like - show it to the DM and the other players, and they could give out tips on how to improve the character, explain why something wouldn't work, and so on. This way, if say you get an idea to make a character who is, (and this is one idea I jotted down myself) a farmer who moonlights as an underground pit fighter (a safe one) in order to make money to pay any emergency expenses, often using a trident and other improvised weapons - you've explained where they learned to fight (from other pit fighters, who mainly work to put on a show for the audience, so he's not going to have the level of training a soldier would have, but he can at least turn a clumsy lunge into what looks like a clever trick to slip under the other guy's legs), why they use the weapons they use (as a farmer, the guy uses a pitchfork a lot, so a trident is something he feels comfortable with), their motive (needs money to pay for bills - sick kids/animals), and so on. Because of this, you've now shown how the DM could have the other members of the group meet them - either during a fight in the ring/arena, or they heard that he was decent in a fight and met him on his farm, which might start with one of the others in a fight with him, or perhaps their inexperience with cattle causes one of them to step in something smelly.

[@olschoolgamer1869]

Excellent video Seth. What I appreciate most about your videos are the examples. They are easy to follow and easy to understand and make the point you are trying to convey. Please keep up the good work.

[@TheSalem777]

Great Video and Tips, Thanks

[@Axiom_Link]

This is such a solid backstory explanation video, thank you Seth! I have a game where the players want more backstory involvement but they wait for me as the GM to force their backstories to come to life. Also, I tried to explain to them that fallible characters are cooler and more realistic than their backstory being “oh I was a king and then I got exiled. At level 1. Lol.”

[@lynxfirenze4994]

Backstory is a funny one. I find it quite useful even if it's not particularly used. You didn't step out of nothing after all. Except for the old amnesia trope. I find that backstories are like edge. Done properly they make an excellent spice for a character. Done poorly it becomes overwhelming.

[@lynxfirenze4994]

On the super hero backstory trope it's entirely relative. My Paladin for instance was a champion gladiator despite being level 1, trained knights would have kicked his sorry ass up and down the arena but he wasn't really fighting trained knights. He was just an ubermensch monster (Tiefling Gnoll with no stat under 16 thanks to an amazing roll) in a situation where it matters less that he's an unbeatable badass and more that he can keep the crowd entertained. The matches weren't fatal outside of specific circumstances so he generally knew his opponents and they'd play around a lot to make it more entertaining. Have to say I agree about the player responsibility to involve their backstory though.

[@Thundarr100]

Incorporating backstories into the campaign is a joint effort between the players and the DM. For example, years ago I was playing a new character who was a farmer who took up the role of a traveling warrior because his family was slaughtered by bandits. His father, a retired adventurer, had put up a decent fight and slain a number of the bandits, but his advanced age and their greater numbers got the better of him. My character took his father's sword and the insignia from one of the slain bandits and went out to seek revenge. The plan was that the DM should drop clues as to the location of the bandits throughout the campaign. One clue is a red herring that leads to a dead end. Another is an old clue that leads to a former hide out, but there I find more clues. A clever DM could milk this for ages. This DM? The very first encounter that he gives me is the Bandit King, who is way above my abilities and surrounded by his troops. I attacked. I died. Campaign ended. Even if I could have somehow won while only first level, that was my whole reason for adventuring. Either way the campaign would have ended for my character after that encounter. Compare that to how a different DM handled my characters backstory. One of my most recent characters was a two weapon warrior for a Pathfinder campaign named Slash. He started out as a mysterious lone wolf type. To be honest I just made him all mysterious because I didn't know what backstory to give him, so I had him keep it to himself. Then the DM needed to know my characters true name for a side adventure that he had planned. Some of the players had to bail that session, so he came up with a side adventure that the rest of us could do without them but we had to be magically whisked away (hence the need for a real name). So we sat and brainstormed together and came up with the name Edward Byrick III of House Byrick, a minor noble from the former kingdom of Gaddry which is currently the occupied territory of the Quimeshari Empire who had conquered them over 100 years ago. We decided that the Byrick family were high ranking members of a secret underground movement to oust the Quimeshari from Gaddry and restore the Royal Family to the throne. Edward was on a mission to develop his martial skills to a high level of excellence, as well as to find allies for the upcoming war. He was also to gather enough wealth to pay mercenaries to create a diversion for the Quimeshari military forces for when it becomes time for the rebels to strike. The DM was very keen on the idea and was willing to incorporate the story into future adventures. Sadly, Slash died in battle before we could really get started on using any of his backstory. Then shortly after that the DM decided to move across the country for personal reasons. So I wasn't even able to play my new character (his cousin, Rupert Byrick II a cleric of the God of Self Sacrifice and Rebellion and a member of The Knights of the Last Stand, who I was gonna use to resurrect Slash once he had the gold to pay for it). But I knew that the DM would have worked my character backstory into the campaign as he had done so with other characters in the group. And he was very excited when we wrote my backstory together, so it was as much his story as it was mine. It was just my bad luck that he should choose that very month to quit DMing and move across the country.

[@goldtoothslair3052]

That Cantina idea is a really good one only because it I did do something similar to that. When I made my character his backstory is pretty long and expensive but I tried the only put in pieces here and there. One of the things that everybody did know about my character is that he did have a lover back in his homeland so every time we had some downtime once in awhile I would tell my DM that I'm going to be right in the letter and mailing it out. The DM will allow it and give me some creative way to mail out the letter one time I hired a guy on a horse bring the letter to her. Another time I had an owl bring the letter. And it was with those little details that my DM Master wanted to know a little bit more about my character's background so I told him. Now he was surprised about something to my character's backstory on why am I not using it. For example my character was a miner that was working at a mountain that was under the control of a brass dragon digging up oars and minerals to sell off to local lizard-folk dragonborns and kobolds. Even other dragons were coming by and buying this ore. The DM found that sort of creative a group a huge group of kobolds I truly made a mining business because of the brass dragon that told them liberal and culture we're able to pull this off. After a little while he then started to ask me what was my lover like. Then I told him well she is a brass Dragon herself that disguised herself as a kobold all the time so she can go down into the mines or down into the tavern the talk with all of the kobolds there about all their Adventures that they've been through and yes that brass Dragon was also the daughter of the one that was controlling the group of kobolds. Then he asked how did you to fall in love I told him that we just started talking one day when we were sitting down in the tavern and lo and behold she started seeing him more and more often and then a competition came up to wear if someone can beat the master himself in a game of chest they can be granted a wish. He wanted to marry this Kobold but didn't have the money or a place where she can live so he entered the competition. And when my DM Master said did he win I did tell him yes he won but when he asked for the request the dragon realized that this was his daughter he was talking about and got extremely angry with the both of them but instead of killing him on the spot or doing something else terrible he decided to test this kobolds courage. And that's the reason why he is out in the world to get stronger in the prove that he can be capable of protecting his daughter while also finding wealth. And because of all these little bits of information I gave him he was able to bring in my back story any very creative way though he did had to change a few things that I told him it was okay that he did. Now technically gold tooth has everything that he wants but now because of some of the things I allow my DM change he now has a new goal. The go back to his homeland and free his people from a barbarian that killed his master in almost enslave his wife and tried to sell her off. Now he's not going there immediately I'm allowing my DM to take his time to work all that out because I did put it to where I was at a distant land that does exist in the D&D lore. And he's told me he's got an idea on how we'll be able to pull this off and I told them take your time and do what you need to do and if we do succeed on getting my people free and me pretty much becoming the clan chief of these people I'll still be out doing adventures with all my friends because at that point my friends would have helped me do this means I would be in a life debt servitude to them and that will be my last goal is to protect my friends while they go on adventures not as a servant or a Slave but as a very close friend. So me and the DM already have a lot planned out but I told him make sure the other people get their stories in as well I don't want to be the only one that Hogs the spotlight.

[@DarkMorningFilms]

Always enjoy seeing and hearing your insight and own experiences~ Great vid, thanks for uploading my dude!

[@kevinsullivan3448]

If a player provides a backstory that is outside the setting, they will be asked to rewrite it. Especially if the character is an obvious Mary Sue/Marty Stew. I always provide a campaign primer which provides plenty of options for character backgrounds. A couple of years ago I ran a Fantasy Trip game for several new players and one semi-experienced player. I gave them the "How did you go from your previous life to doing this thing." but I provided them with a character background sheet that has a number of questions like who are your parents and siblings? Are they still alive> What do you do for fun? What is your character's favorite color? About 32 questions that can be answered in a single sentence or an entire page if you really want to drill down on it. At the very beginning, the players didn't really show any interest in the background material, but as the campaign went on they filled in this or that bit if information when they were presented with similar information about NPCs.

[@SunfireGTX25]

I am totally making my new players watch this before they write their backstories for my new campaign!!! I LOVE Your videos like this!!

[@TheDreamSmith]

I agree with players taking charge, my group does exactly this! When I was gming I found it incredibly useful as it inspired me a lot to make side plots for them all. It also gave me a much better feel for their expectations as well.

[@ChrisBryer]

One way of doing crazy shit in your back story compared to your level one character is time. If your character can live for a long time, i think simply saying they have not done it in so long that they are rusty if not outright have to relearn things can be a good way to explain it.

[@hawkthetraveler6344]

Seth you should pin this or add the example of good backstory use by the PCs in some sort of "Seth's Highlights" video. This is a great segment and an example really drives the value home :)

[@marcusaustralius2416]

My favourite backstory was as a trapper and hunter who was hired by the groundsman at the imperial palace Noting my skill with a crossbow, I was "volunteered" for a job, and promised remuneration far better than my usual profits Seeking to provide for his wife and daughters, he accepted the job, lest he lose his existing privileges of hunting on royal land to sell them their meat, and went off with a group of adventurers He was a great character, he was illiterate and usually needed to get a priest to write down his letters, and would send money and small carved figured of animals back with his letters to his family

[@Loehengrin]

I joined an ongoing campaign taking over an NPC Paladin who was elf-shot, that is had had his memory wiped, so not only were elements of his backstory a revelation to the other players but they were also to me!

[@DaveButtons]

Beautifully explained. I’m hyped up on playing and incorporating these and hours of other information you’ve shared. Big thank you

[@72hawkj]

I am in a campaign currently, where we were pulled from one place to another. In the very beginning. My backstory works perfectly into this for how they would respond. The other characters are lost. My character has no ties to the new place. At all. However, they spent years as a slave to a race of giants. The only reason they survived, unlike everyone else ever captured, is because one of the giants children really enjoyed hearing her sing. Every other person ever captured went into the cook pot. I had no idea this would work out so well till after our first session started.

[@trollunderbridge2292]

One exception for not giving the gm the over-long backstory is if you're trying to pull an Old Man Henderson.

[@Lobsterwithinternet]

Seth, it’s not weird to be afraid of Australia. It’s common sense.

[@metallkopf988]

In a world... where everything alive might kill you...

[@darcyw156]

Easily one of the most consice videos on back stories I've watched. Good job as usual. I loved the examples of players working their own backstories. Thank you for your efforts!

[@ToonamiT0M]

When making my character's backstory, I often leave a couple blank spots regarding specific elements of my history. That way the GM can apply some of his story to my background without it conflicting with what I've already established.

[@Thundarr100]

I do that as well. Maybe not with every character, but at least with some of them. One of my most recent characters is a Rogue/Sorceress. She was orphaned as a child when her parents were murdered. She escaped, and was taken in by a wealthy man who seemed kind at first. It turned out that he was a pimp who supplied girls to wealthy men who like them VERY young. After years of being forced into prostitution she ran away to live on the streets, where she would steal to survive (this is where she gets her level of rogue from). One day while trying to pick the pocket of a wealthy looking lady, the lady catches her in the act. Instead of taking her to the authorities, she takes her home and cleans her up. She then gives her a choice, be taken to the authorities or stay and become the woman's apprentice. She chose the apprenticeship. It turned out that the woman was a highly respected Sacred Prostitute (think Inara Serra on Firefly). She taught my character the difference between being a whore and being a courtesan. When my character began developing magical abilities, she taught her how to better use them. But as much as my character admired and respected her mistress, she felt a need to learn who killed her parents and why. So she went out to find those answers. I had specifically left that part of her backstory a mystery so that the DM could come up with something that might fit in with whatever stories he had planned for that campaign. Or come up with something else so that an entire miniseries could be dedicated to my character and finding the answers that she seeks. The pimp who raped her as a child could be a good side villain. Perhaps he knew more about who her parents were and why someone would want them dead. The courtesan who took her in could be a good ally to offer her aid if things get rough. But the really important part of the backstory, who killed her parents and why, is still a mystery. Sadly the group I was gaming with broke up and I haven't been able to play since. Especially since it was a home brew campaign setting and only a couple of DMs have the information to run it. One of them doesn't play anymore, the other has moved away. So I still haven't resolved this characters life quest.

[@archonfett]

yes I know this is a 4 year old video but I watched it to get me past writers block for a pulp Cthulhu character I'm working on (it helped thanks btw) 2 backstorys from the same player (different campaigns) 1 - it was like 20 pages (at least) and was in her words the "short version" her bestie read it for me and gave me the short short version which was about 2 paragraphs, which I wasn't able to work in much because of her being from "way-off-over-there-land" 2 - complete and total amnesia (she had based the character off one from a manga I had never even heard of but didn't even tell me that again her friend was more useful in helping me than she was.) but I was left to fill in all the friggin' blanks

[@Trashloot]

I think the superhero backstory can work. You just have to do it like video games do when they let you play with a powerfull character in the beginning only to strip your abilities away after the tutorial. Maybe you survived a murder attempt which left you crippled or you where in prison for a long time which is the reason why you are now weak. You could loose your equipment, a might artefact or patreon. It is possible that you encountered a monster which drained your strength, deleveled you send you back in time. You could play someone with amnesia who has lost most of his former experience due to some accident. Maybe you are brainwashed and dont forget reincarnation or a botched revive spell. The possibilities are endless :D.

[@mitty6920]

I think the biggest problem with backstories that I personally see is players prioritizing them over the story being told with the group. I have a player who constantly wants to involve their backstory, who wants to visit NPC's that the other characters have never heard of, visit places off of the path the party is on, and is more focused on solving their own personal quest than contributing to the party's. It's important to remember that backstories should complement the campaign, not be the campaign. The places, characters, and events in your backstory should provide fuel and flavor to the interactions and events experienced by the entire party, not replace the story that you are experiencing together.

[@abignothing]

i swear to god every time you say "game master" i hear "gay master" and as a gay it is absolutely throwing me for a loop

[@DoubleThinkTwice]

Now I can't unhear it

[@YourCrazyDolphin]

So, you are the master gay?

[@elbruces]

I hear it in a lot of his videos and have just learned to accept it.

[@cheez-itman2784]

I heard it too lmao

[@goolabbolshevish1t651]

Mr slave shenanigans rattles to mind.

[@Taikina]

interesting and very helpful! really makes me see how the narrative in roleplaying really is a group effort. everyone needs to put something in, but everyone needs their space to work the threads

[@nickwilliams8302]

@6:50 This. Too much backstory can be just as bad as no backstory at all. A good rule of thumb is to condense it down to three punchy paragraphs: where you're from, how you learned to do what you can do and why you are in the party. That's not to say that you can't write more for your own benefit, but you want to give the GM a _really clear_ idea of who your PC is and what you want to do with them. Being unable to condense your backstory in this way is usually a pretty good indication that your character concept is vague and undefined, so it's a good exercise for a player anyway.

[@NoActuallyGo-KCUF-Yourself]

The 3 paragraphs are a good exercise for the player, but that can then be condensed down to two sentences - or two words - or those two lines can be where the paragraphs come from. Share one sentence with the GM; keep the rest for your own roleplaying notes.

[@caderoster8333]

The Montoya example was brilliant!