Welcome to the Arbour Coast: Character Creation
Step 1: Generating Character Ability Scores
First, you will need a piece of paper to write down the character's statistics on. You may use a preprinted character sheet if one is available, or you may simply use a piece of notebook paper. You should use a pencil to write down all information, as any statistic may change during play.
Roll 3d6 for each ability score (Strength, Intelligence, Wisdom, Dexterity, Constitution, and Charisma), and write the results after the names of the abilities. Write down the scores in any order next to each ability. You are allowed one set or rerolls.
Write down the ability score bonus (or penalty) for each score beside the score itself, as seen below on the chart.
Point Swapping is also allowed, moving points from one Ability Score to another, at a rate of -2 to one score for each +1 added to the other. The maximum score is still 18 (or the racial maximum if lower), and the player is not allowed to lower any score below 9.
If your character has less than 9 in all of the first four scores, scrap it and roll again (i.e. rolling a 8, a 7, a 9, then a 8). If you feel like your character is "hopeless", sum up the Ability Score bonuses or penalties that apply to the character. If the total is negative, consider the character below average, and the player is allowed to scratch the entire set of scores and reroll. If the total is zero, the character is “average,” and the player should go ahead and play the character as rolled. Obviously, if the total is greater than zero, the character should be played as rolled.
Each character will have a score ranging from 3 to 18 in each of the following abilities. A bonus or penalty is associated with each score, as shown on the table below. Each class has a Prime Requisite ability score, which must be at least 9 in order for the character to become a member of that class; also, there are required minimum and maximum scores for each character race other than Humans.
| ABILITY SCORE | BONUS/PENALTY |
| 3 | -3 |
| 4-5 | -2 |
| 6-8 | -1 |
| 9-12 | 0 |
| 13-15 | +1 |
| 16-17 | +2 |
| 18 | +3 |
Step 2: Choosing a Race and Class
Next you will be selecting a race and class. Your character must meet the Prime Requisite minimum for a class in order to be a member of the class. There are minimum (and maximum) ability requirements for the various races which must be met as well. You can find the classes available to your race on the race page.
- If you have a minimum Constitution of 9 and your Charisma is lower than 17, you may play a Dwarf. Dwarves can be a Cleric, a Fighter, or a Thief
- If you have a minimum Intelligence of 9 and your Constitution is lower than 17, you may play an Elf. Elves can be a Cleric, a Druid, a Fighter, an Illusionist, a Magic-User, or a Thief. Elves are allowed to combine the classes of Fighter and Magic-User, and of Magic-User and Thief. See Elves for info on Combination Classes.
- If you have a minimum Dexterity of 9 and your Strength is lower than 17, you may play a Halfling. Halflings can be a Cleric, a Druid, a Fighter, or a Thief
- If you have a minimum Constitution of 9 and your Intelligence is lower than 17, you may play a Half-Orc. Half-Orcs can be any class.
- If you do not have the minimum scores for any of the above or do not want to play any of the previous races, you may play a Human. Humans can be any class.
For more variation on classes, see Quasi-Class Mechanics. A Quasi-Class is a set of class-like options that can be layered upon another base-class in order to create additional character archetypes or types of characters that cannot be easily achieved by use of the typical or core class offerings.
Step 3: Generating a Social Class and Prior History
Social Class In this setting, Social Class is an extremely important concept in human society. Player Characters should have their social class determined at random during character creation, unless the GM wishes to specifically have the PCs only be of a certain class or classes. Characters that do not come from the standard human background (most demihumans that live outside human societies) will NOT have a social class. They are ‘outsiders’, who do not fit into the defined class structure. Standard human characters, however, should roll on the following table: Roll 1d12; then, in the case of a 1 or 2, roll an additional 1d6.
| 1d12 | SOCIAL CLASS |
|---|---|
| 1-2 | Ex-slave (1) or serf (2-6) |
| 3-4 | Peasant |
| 5-9 | Villager |
| 10-11 | Knight |
| 12 | Lordly nobility |
Note that for Clerics, social class is only rolled to determine the PC’s origin. Regardless of whether they were born a serf or a prince, all Clerics are considered to be of the Knightly class, and are (theoretically) equal brothers and sisters among one another, differentiated not by birth, but by rank in the order and the level of miraculous abilities granted by their deity. Social class has very significant effects in the setting. The division in classes might mark important differences among the characters, and between characters and the world itself. The difference between serfs, peasants and villagers is largely a question of status, in as much as villagers will see themselves as superior to peasants, and peasants will hold themselves of much higher quality than mere serfs. But the more significant difference will be between these classes and the nobility. It is expected in this society that commoners must respect and obey their aristocratic superiors; talking back, disobeying, or insulting their social betters in most circumstances would be grounds for at least a beating. If the aristocrat in question has some form of legal authority over their inferior, disobedience or insubordination is even a legal matter: “petit treason”, where the commoner would be guilty of having disobeyed the authority of the King by virtue of having disobeyed one of his chosen representatives. Naturally, there will be some situations where a lower social class could be of use: the peasantry in the countryside will behave differently to the son of an Earl than they would to one of their own. The former would be treated with enormous reverence and respect, but may not be trusted with secrets or rumours in the same way that a fellow country-dweller would be. Likewise, in the underworld of a city, a city-born PC will be viewed with less suspicion, and will naturally stand out much less than either a serf (who would be treated as a country bumpkin) or a noble (who would be distrusted).
Prior History Each human player should roll once for their character on the following tables, to introduce some element of a backstory to the character’s history. These results can help to add flavor to the character and sometimes serve to incorporate the reason why the PC has taken up the adventuring life. Roll 1d6 to determine what table you will be rolling on:
| 1-3 | Roll 1d10 on Table A |
| 4-5 | Roll 1d10 on Table B |
| 6 | Roll 1d10 on Table C |
Step 4: Secondary Skills
Step 5: Finishing Touches
Hit Points and Hit Dice First level characters begin play with a single max hit die of the given type, plus the Constitution bonus or penalty, with a minimum of 1 hit point. Each time a character gains a level, the player should roll another hit die and add the character's Constitution bonus or penalty, with the result again being a minimum of 1 point. Add this amount to the character's maximum hit points figure. Note that, after 9th level, characters receive a fixed number of hit points each level, as shown in the advancement table for the class, and no longer add the Constitution bonus or penalty.
| CHARACTER CLASS | HIT DIE |
|---|---|
| CLERIC AND DRUID | 1D6 |
| FIGHTER | 1D8 |
| MAGIC-USER, ILLUSIONIST, AND NECROMANCER | 1D4 |
| THIEF AND ASSASSIN | 1D4 |
Languages All characters begin the game knowing their native language. In most campaign worlds, Humans all (or nearly all) speak the same language, often called “Common.” Each demi-human race has its own language, i.e. Elvish, Dwarvish, or Halfling, and members of the demi-human races begin play knowing both their own language and Common (or the local Human language if it isn't called Common). The languages permitted at the start of character creation are found below:
STANDARD LANGUAGES
- BARBBLER TONGUE (BARBARIAN ONLY) - Babbler tongue refers to the various dialect of barbarian tribes within the region. Each tribe has their own tongue.
- COMMON (ELNORN) - The common language of the land, predominantly spoken by humans.
- DWARVISH - The language of Dwarves.
- ELVISH - The language of Elves.
- GIANT - A sublanguage of Dwarves that many larger monsters speak, charatcerized by guttural grunts.
- GOBLIN - A group of languages and dialets that many hobs, bugbears, and goblins speak, characterized by sharp annunciations of phlegm of mucus
- HALFLING - The language of Halflings.
- ORCISH - A language primarily used in the land of Calendria by the inhabitants there.
EXOTIC LANGUAGES
- ABYSSAL - The language spoken by cultist, demons, and other creatures of Chaos.
- CELESTIAL - A holy written language that is believed to be linked directly to beings from the heavens. Fluency in this language is quite difficult and is uncommon even among clerical orders.
- DRACONIC - The tongue of many serpents and creatures that serve larger wyrms like elder drakes and dragons.
- DRUEIDAN (DRUID ONLY) - An ancient language passed down from druidic circle to a new druid.
- SYLVAN - A language spoken by the Fae and faelike creatures born from Chaos.
Characters with Intelligence of 13 or higher may choose to begin the game knowing one or more languages other than beginning languages; the number of additional languages that may be learned is equal to the Intelligence bonus (+1, +2, or +3). Characters may choose to learn other demi-human languages, as well as humanoid languages such as Orcish, Goblin, etc. The GM will decide which humanoid languages may be learned. The player may choose to leave one or more bonus language “slots” open, to be filled during play. You may also learn exotic languages such as Draconic; also, “dead” or otherwise archaic languages might be allowed to more scholarly characters.
Wealth and Equipment Initial wealth for characters will vary wildly depending on social class. It can be assumed that characters who are of the lower social classes have a starting wealth that represents the entirety of their life savings; characters of a higher social class can be assumed to have extended families that have their own resources, and if the characters have a good relationship to their families they may be able to appeal to them for financial assistance.
| SOCIAL CLASS | STARTING PURSE |
|---|---|
| Ex-slave/Serf | 1d6 x 30 sp |
| Peasant | 3d6 x 30 sp |
| Villager | 5d6 x 30 sp |
| Knight | 2d6 x 30 gp |
| Lordly nobility | 4d6 x 30 gp |
Starting Equipment is broken down into categories of Weapons, Armor and Shields, General Equipment, Clothing, and Animals. Additional categories can be found in the Adventurer's Handbook under Equipment.
Note: All Clerics, regardless of actual social class at birth, begin the game equipped as though they were of the knightly class (and also begin the game with a holy symbol), but usually without any coin at all (as any purse needed will usually be given to the cleric at the discretion of their superiors in the order). Any demihuman character will usually begin the game equipped as a villager. STARTING EQUIPMENT:
- ALL characters begin the game with a dagger.
- Any character of peasant or villager class will begin the game with a spear; if they so desire they may also begin the game with a staff or a club.
- Peasants begin the game with ‘padded or quilted’ armor, while villagers can choose either ‘hide’ or ‘studded leather’. Any peasant or villain who has at least 350 sp to their name will begin the game with brigandine or ‘scale mail’ armor instead, if they wish to.
- A villager with at least 600 sp to their name will also begin the game with their choice of a short or long bow and 25 arrows, if they wish it.
- Any character of the knight or nobility class will, if they are a fighter, cleric, or thief, already begin the campaign with either Brigandine or Chain Mail (with a shirt in their family colors), a shield, and a sword of basic quality; as well as a riding horse. They can choose to ‘trade up’ their armor to ‘plate mail’ if they can afford to do so, at a cost of 240 gp discounted from their purse. They can also sell off any of their starting items for one-half the listed market price in cash.
Carrying Capacity Normal Human, Elven and Dwarvish player characters are able to carry up to 60 pounds and still be considered lightly loaded, or up to 150 pounds and be considered heavily loaded. Halflings may carry up to 50 pounds and be considered lightly loaded, or up to 100 pounds and be heavily loaded. Note that armor for Halfling characters is about one-quarter as heavy as armor for the other races. These figures are affected by Strength; each +1 of Strength bonus adds 10% to the capacity of the character, while each -1 deducts 20%. Thus, carrying capacities for normal characters are as shown below (rounded to the nearest 5 pounds for convenience):
| STRENGTH | LIGHT LOAD (DWARF, ELF, HUMAN, HALF-ORC) | HEAVY LOAD (DWARF, ELF, HUMAN, HALF-ORC) | LIGHT LOAD (HALFLING) | HEAVY LOAD (HALFLING) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 25 | 60 | 20 | 40 |
| 4-5 | 35 | 90 | 30 | 60 |
| 6-8 | 50 | 120 | 40 | 80 |
| 9-12 | 60 | 150 | 50 | 100 |
| 13-15 | 65 | 165 | 55 | 110 |
| 16-17 | 70 | 180 | 60 | 120 |
| 18 | 80 | 195 | 65 | 130 |
Movement and Encumbrance The movement rate of a character or creature is expressed as the number of feet it can move per combat round. The normal player character races can all move 40' per round. When exploring a dungeon, time is expressed in turns, as explained above; normal movement per turn is 3 times the movement rate per round. This may seem slow, but this rate of movement includes such things as drawing maps, watching out for traps and monsters (though they may still surprise the party), etc. In a combat situation, on the other hand, everyone is moving around swiftly, and such things as drawing maps are not important. A character's movement rate is adjusted by his or her Encumbrance (the load he or she is carrying) as follows:
| ARMOR TYPE | LIGHTLY LOADED | HEAVILY LOADED |
|---|---|---|
| No Armor or Magical Leather | 40' | 30' |
| Leather Armor or Magic Metal | 30' | 20' |
| Metal Armor | 20' | 10' |
Count the weight of armor worn when calculating encumbrance, because armor counts both for bulk and restrictiveness as well as for weight. Magic armor counts for its full weight but is not as bulky and restrictive as normal armor, thus granting an improved movement rate.
Attack Bonus and Saving Throws Look up your character's attack bonus and note it on your character sheet. Don't add your ability bonuses (or penalties) to this figure, as you will add a different bonus (Strength or Dexterity) depending on the sort of weapon you use in combat (i.e. melee or missile weapon). Also look up your saving throws (from the tables near the end of the Encounter section) and note them on your character sheet. Adjust the saving throw figures based on your race, if your character is a demi-human. Please note that the saving throw bonuses for demi-humans are presented as "plus" values, to be added to the die roll; for convenience, you may simply subtract them from the saving throw numbers on the character sheet instead. In general, saving throw rolls are not adjusted by ability score bonus or penalty figures. There are a few exceptions:
- Poison saving throws are always adjusted by the character's Constitution modifier.
- Saving throws against illusions (such as phantasmal force) are always adjusted by the character's Intelligence modifier.
- Saving throws against charm spells (and other forms of mind control) are adjusted by the character's Wisdom modifier.
