Character Creation Thread

[drpete]

Newflesh,

There's a list of "next steps" in this post: viewtopic.php?f=875&t=9521#p462695

If you are feeling good about what you have so far, go ahead and have a look at those to get a bit mor fleshed out

[drpete]

Mik & newflesh,

You can also choose and develop how you are connected to *each other* and I'd invite you to flesh that out a bit

Here are a few choices... you do not need to be symmetric in this.

The character is an associate from work.

The character is a lover or a friend. Take +1 Relation with each other.

The character is connected to your Dark Secret.

The character has something you’re jealous of.

[thenewflesh]

I don't have a problem with you being cruel... I suspect that there will be reasons to be cruel, and reasons to regret being so. I'd say don't go too "stone cold psycho", but you could be like the guard captain in Shawshank Redemption. He would throw a guy off a roof for backtalk, but absolutely took the free tax help.

I mean you're a schizophrenic whose oozing wound makes him kill... you're already pretty "evil"...

Okay, no, quite right.

First pass at a character sheet up soon.

Relationships: I think I have a son, maybe (that's my vital relationship). For an acquaintance, I think I have had a liaison with one of the nurses on the island. And my close relationship is, I used to box with one of the guys incarcerated in Finn's block.

So I imagine there's a wing for those prisoners who've exhibited violent and erratic behavior, to sort of keep them away from the others. That's the one I run. I'm not exactly a natural-born guard captain - it's actually kind of a miracle I ended up on the right side of the bars - but I definitely have a force of personality which makes me well-suited for dealing with difficult-to-control prisoners.

[drpete]

Mik, good stuff!

Flesh,

I like what you're suggesting, sounds interesting!

Let's flesh out the son a bit. Is this a kid, or is he grown? Where would he be at? Somewhere on the island, or somewhere else. Broadly speaking, it's better if the connections are accessible rather that off screen, so checking to see what that looks like

I'm thinking that the guard captains have a place on the island where that live. Dunno if that's a barracks or little apartments. Maybe you guys have an idea?

[thenewflesh]

So I'm maybe like 35, the kid's let's say 8. The mom's no longer in the picture; she just disappeared like 6 years ago, no trace, no body, no clues, nothing. If she ran from home, she did so without packing any supplies at all.

So now the kid lives with me, and I don't know what everybody else's living situation is, but if it's barracks, then Anthony gave me an exception on account of the kid. So we definitely live in our own little apartment.

How far are we from civilization? If we're pretty far, then I'm guessing the kid boards offisland on weekdays and comes to live with me on weekends. What's our schedule like anyway, as prison captains? What sort of time off do we have?

[drpete]

The island is physically isolated but not physically far from the city proper. It's in the river between Manhattan (the main "city" part of NYC) and Queens (which is full of factories and such).

While it is possible to get on and off via boats, which is how most patients and inmates tend to travel, there is an elevator up to the Hospital roof, which leads to the giant suspension bridge which crosses the island. There is a streetcar stop there, which makes it possible to get on and off the island fairly easily. That said...

You get paid an hourly wage. You're supposed to work at least 6 10 hour shifts per week, but you're also in charge of your block of prisoners, so you often need to work beyond that here and there. Fortunately, you get paid for extra time you put in, but we are definitely before 40 hour work weeks.

It would be super helpful to have a woman at home to watch the boy. She could still be the "acquaintance"... maybe it's more a relationship of convenience than a closer emotional bond... mechanically, the number represents how much spending close, bonding time helps you to recover stability, and how much stability it's on the line if they are injured. A cold, loveless relationship could be like that...

[drpete]

mik,

Tell me about a few of your stats...

What does it say about Finn that he has such a high perception? What does that mean for him?

And on the flip side, he has a very low "soul"... I guess this is connected to his rationalist disadvantage? What does that mean for him?

It's interesting that you put an emphasis on physical things in the passive stats, and an emphasis on more mental/social ones in the active stats. There's nothing at all wrong with that, but what does that suggest about him?

[drpete]

Looks great

The warden may have just seen Bobby in action and decided to award him with a promotion... it seems like Bobby is someone who would go along with especially... brutal treatment of the prisoners. Maybe the warden saw you do something way out there (under the influence of your mark, or not) and decided he wanted someone willing to go that far (or carry out orders that extreme?)

Describe for me what that low reason score means for Bobby. Is he dumb, incurious, or...? Also, what does the high violence score mean? Is he violent, or just extremely capable of violence?

I see that both Finn and Bobby play cards. Do you play together? What does that look like?

[thenewflesh]

Yeah, there was this incident where three guys got out a while ago, one of them had somehow gotten a gun, was shooting everywhere. The other guard lunged for cover, but one of the bullets grazed Bobby and Bobby went - well, ballistic. Charged at the guy as he was shooting, not only knocked him out but kept beating the guy's face in till there wasn't a face left. The other two just raised their hands right then and there.

I think, okay, Bobby's definitely not the smartest guy on the block to begin with and he's received a few concussions. But that's not why I gave him that score. It's just that when the chips fly, he doesn't ever think to think. Everything's impulsive. That partially answers your question on violence, too. I've chilled out from making him be kind of psycho, although I think he does have a cruel streak still, but the rage isn't ever very far away.

Yeah, that's why I picked that. I figure cards are a big way the guards chill out. Maybe there's a bit of gambling under the table. Mik, thoughts?

[rossik]

i dont know rules wise, but i thought about this:

Peter's mom cheated on his dad, when he was 4-5 yo.
His dead suffocated her with a pillow to death, and as a cop, he gets his way to cover that. The young saw that in secret, as he was playing in her closet (he had indeed saw her with "friends" in her bedroom).

Once in prison, he strangle a prisoner with his bare hands. The prisoner was about to be released, as he was in fact a innocent accused of something he did not did.
The journal was all over Peter for a while, accusing him of abuse of power, violence and so on. But as the wheels keep moving, he became past news.

[drpete]

Hi rossik,

Based on what you described, you might want "bad reputation" and "broken" as disadvantages.

Bad reputation means that you will have trouble as people recognize you from the news coverage.

Broken means that you cannot fully recover from past mental trauma...

I would encourage you to look at the list, though, for inspiration. Maybe something else will catch your eye?

[mik]

What does it say about Finn that he has such a high perception?

I figured that Finn is not a big tough guy, but has got to where he is by having good people skills, being able to read a situation, and being able to figure things out.

What does that mean for him?

He tries to use his brains to keep out of trouble, and to gain advantages.

And on the flip side, he has a very low "soul"... I guess this is connected to his rationalist disadvantage?

Yes - Rationalist is definitely the driver for this.

What does that mean for him?

Finn is very wary of anything supernatural, and will actively try to avoid any sort of metaphysical or non-natural situation. Everything must have a rational explanation...

It's interesting that you put an emphasis on physical things in the passive stats, and an emphasis on more mental/social ones in the active stats. There's nothing at all wrong with that, but what does that suggest about him?

To be honest, I hadn’t noticed! But, I think it relates to how I imagined him physically, and where he has ended up. He’s not a tough guy, but to be a prison guard, he’d have to be able to quick enough to avoid getting hurt in a fight (reflexes), and he’d need to be able to take a few punches (fortitude). He doesn’t have a forceful personality though, and in confrontations he will often back down to avoid trouble (willpower). So, he gets his advantages from being cunning and winning people over, but he’s not violent, and can get a bit panicked under pressure.

[drpete]

Awesome.

Alright... so, I *think* that at the moment, I mostly need you guys to each articulate your view on the other pc...

are they just a work associate?
a friend (+1 relation)?
connected to your dark secret?
they have something you're jealous of?

Also, I need you each to think of 2 "dramatic hooks" to give us a sense of what kinds of things you want to see happen. I'll do some combination of facilitating that and putting up barriers to it as we start play, and nothing's permanently locked in.

Here's a little brainstorming on that.

Personally, I'm interested to see Finn's rationalist side get "poked" a bit... to see how he reacts to something supernatural. I also am interested to see Bobby "in action"... seeing how this very dangerous guy walks the line with violence.

Both have curious... woman issues, as well. I'm interested in seeing that get developed in some fashion.

What are you guys interested in seeing, given the pieces on the table?


Regarding the NPCs...
I'm thinking that the nurse Finn likes is somehow connected to Nancy... she could even *be* Nancy, if you want

I've definitely got some ideas for other ways to flesh out the prison world, but I'll build it up around the things you guys have proposed!

[thenewflesh]

Now that you mention it maybe Nancy out of the goodness of her heart (and because of a burgeoning quasi-romance with Bobby) is the one who takes care of Bobby's son. She must feel really overworked what with that and her actual job.

So that's probably a point of contact. (How would Finn feel about that?) Another one is, Finn definitely beats me at cards.

Mik, do you think either one of us has ever helped each other out or screwed the other one over?

[drpete]

Do you think Nancy still works, or does Bobby provide for her? Seems like taking care of Fred would benefit from at least living together, though if she was a neighbor, I suppose she could "take him" when you work late.

I'm thinking that Stanley could be a "trusty"... an inmate given special privileges and responsibilities. This would put him more "in play" than having him be a guy locked in a cell. Anything from a janitor to a more "hands on" guard.

You dont have a huge number of "guards"... so to keep order, you have deputized some inmates to keep others in line and administer punishments...? Those with good behavior can graduate to that power.

[thenewflesh]

Let's live together, why not? I bet Nancy thinks she's going to get a whole lot more out of the relationship than she's currently getting.

Oh, and yeah, for sure, let's give Stanley some more screentime. He's not a shit-disturber; I can totally see why they loosed his leash.

[mik]

Alright, lots to cover...

Comments from you guys are in italics (in no particular order):

Personally, I'm interested to see Finn's rationalist side get "poked" a bit... to see how he reacts to something supernatural.

Yep, me too! Lets do it.

Mik, do you think either one of us has ever helped each other out or screwed the other one over?

I'd say they're allies at work - its us against them - although the fact that Finn is a little too cosy with the Irish Mob might not sit well with Bobby. I'd say they help each other out on occasion.

I'm thinking that the nurse Finn likes is somehow connected to Nancy... she could even *be* Nancy, if you want

If it works, we can run with it, although it would be a bit strange for Finn to have a Level 2 relationship with her if she is Bobby's girlfriend. Actually, we can probably make that work, assuming that the Level 2 is somehow built on something that comes to light further down the track.

I see that both Finn and Bobby play cards. Do you play together? What does that look like?

Yeah, lets make Finn and Bobby casual work buddies (+1 relation). Maybe thats how Bobby met Nancy - through playing cards with her and Finn. Since Finn is not interested in her romantically, it then makes sense for her to take an interest in Bobby.

Okay, dramatic hooks:

1. As above - the supernatural stuff, definitely. It would be good to see how Finn reacts to something that doesn't fit with how he tries to view the world.

2. Seems like we could do something with the relationship between Finn and Mickey - it is already strained, so that could easily introduce some tension - maybe Finn has to decide whether to do something really objectionable for Mickey.

3. And obviously there is something weird going on with Nancy (assuming that is who he is obsessed with) - maybe she needs him to do something really strange to help her.

[thenewflesh]

Good with me!

Since it appears that we're starting just the two of us, I filled in the other-player-shaped hole in the Stanley section of my sheet (with Steve Meyer). Does this mean we're about ready to go?

[drpete]

Sounds good.

Lessee, just confirming... Stanley was going to be in the lower security wing, run by Finn, rather than the max security wing, right?

Nancy certainly doesn't "need" to be Finn's obsession. I just saw that it might make things a little more interesting. The three of you all play cards (Finn's interest plays cards, as do both Finn and Bobby) which gives me various ideas for how that could have gotten going.

Do I have an actual "plan" for your dark secrets? No, not in detail, but I have a couple of ideas... the question of what Finn's deal is with Nancy is definitely on the list

[mik]

I’m not worried if there is no plan yet for the Dark Secrets - “play to find out” applies to the GM too!