2009-12-14 Character Generation Shortcuts
Today I ran a Labyrinth Lord one-shot and used the following short-cuts for character generation.
First, roll 3d6 in order for your abilities.
Then, pick your class – you get to choose between Fighter, Wizard, or Cleric.
Your basic equipment depends on the class you picked:
| 1d4 | Fighter | Wizard | Cleric |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | you’re a bandit; you own leather armor and a club, a longbow, and twenty arrows | you’re a half-naked shaman; your chest and arms are covered in tatoos, you wear twenty amulets and charms, you have several bone fetishes, a lizard familiar, and your spellbook is inscribed on conserved leaves and dried bark | you’re a hermit; you own a thin blanket to wrap yourself into, a sling, and a staff with some bells on it acting as your holy symbol; your eyes glitter madly |
| 2 | you’re a runaway; you took your uncle’s militia equipment and ran away from home; you own leather armor, a shield, and a longsword | you’re a student of the arcane arts; you wear a pointy hat and a black cloak, carry a staff, a large spellbook with an ancient leather binding, and you have a raven familiar | you’re a priest; well dressed, fresh haircut, and you own a silver holy symbol, a shield and a mace, but no armor |
| 3 | you’re a guard; you own chain mail, an excellent helmet, a shield, and a longsword | you’re a babylonian mystic; you have black, curly hair and if you’re male, you have a huge braided beard and walk around with a bare chest; if you’re female, your eyes have the longest eyelashes and a mesmerizing gaze; your spells are inscribed on clay tablets; your familiar is a hawk | you’re an inquisitor; you wear chain mail, wield a crossbow in your left hand and a mace in your right hand, you have three bottles of holy water in your backpack and four wooden stakes in your shoulder belt, as well as garlic and a big silver holy symbol hanging around your neck |
| 4 | you’re a knight errant; you own a horse, a lance, a longsword, a battered shield, tarnished plate armor, and a dented helmet; your tabard and your shield bear your coat of arms | you’re a rune caster; you own a set of magically imbued runes, dice, fortune telling cards, and a crystal ball; your familiar is a ferret | you’re a paladin; you own a white horse, a longsword, a flail, a steel shield, shining armor, and a helmet with a fancy visor; you carry a holy banner of your church |
You also get to roll for useful dungeoneering equipment:
| 1d4 | Dungeoneering Equipment |
|---|---|
| 1 | rope, grappling hook, pole |
| 2 | hammer, spikes, extra blankets |
| 3 | six torches, chalk |
| 4 | a lantern and two oil flasks |
Other useful stuff:
| 1d4 | Useful Stuff |
|---|---|
| 1 | glutton, start with extra rations, apples, cooked eggs, and bacon |
| 2 | vain, start with a mirror, razor, soap, perfume, kohl, and lipstick |
| 3 | superstitious, start with an amulet or charm of dubious origin |
| 4 | drinker, start with two bottles of particularly strong booze |
Your background:
| 1d4 | Backstory |
|---|---|
| 1 | urban youth, you grew up in the streets of a big city |
| 2 | woodsman, you grew up in a remote forest hamlet |
| 3 | street urchin, you grew up on a graveyard and in the sewers |
| 4 | farmer, your parents worked the fields |
Your recent past:
| 1d4 | Event |
|---|---|
| 1 | an uncle just died and left you an inheritance; start with 100gp |
| 2 | you committed a shameful deed and had to leave town; start with 20gp |
| 3 | you just escaped a robbery; start with 0gp |
| 4 | you decided to be an explorer; start with a mule, a map, a shovel, and a 20gp debt |
I think my players liked it.
Update: A PDF with an expanded table and a table for demihumans is now available.
#RPG #Old School #Keep It Short
Comments
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Excellent! The tables are perfect :D
– greywulf 2009-12-15 11:11 UTC
Thanks. 😄
– Alex Schroeder 2009-12-15 12:47 UTC
Superb !
– Anonymous 2009-12-15 18:05 UTC
Another bit I found online regarding character creation: “3.5 characters take forever to make because of the number of choices, in 1st Edition it takes forever because nothing makes any sense. You just have to memorize it all. I knew I should have used Labyrinth Lord instead.” – rmckee78, Circle of Dar Janix, Expedition to Stonehell: Session 1
– Alex Schroeder 2010-02-06 10:14 UTC
Updated tables available as a PDF.
– Alex Schroeder 2010-06-28 00:30 UTC