C.W.Holeman III

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There are only 10 kinds of people in the world: Those who know binary, and those who don't.

Backstories

What's a Backstory?

A backstory is very simple: what happened to you in the past.

What to Include

Your backstory should have:

Length

You don't want to write a novel, and even if you did, ain't nobody got time for that. That's fine. A backstory can be very shot, just a few sentences, or it can ramble on for a few pages. In general, no less than a paragraph, and no more than a page.

Remember, this story is what happened to your character before they began their adventures. If you are starting a campaign with level 1 characters, it doesn't make much sense that your character would be an experienced warrior, or a bard renowned throughout the realm.

Examples

Sam grew up very poor in the mountains. He was part of a small village and apprenticed with his father, the local cobbler. However, due to a plauge that swept through the area he decided that the tiny remnant of a village that he grew up in was no longer sustainable, so he left seeking adventure and fortune.

Anara knew the highlife from the moment she was born. Turns out she didn't like the flavor of silver, so she spit out the spoon. At the age of 10 she insisted that her parents let her work for the world-famous cheese factory in the glittering city of Mumani where they lived. It wasn't long before she saw the evil of the Cheese Moguls. Anara was 25 years old and a manager for a whole section shift at the cheese factory when The Cheese Rebellion began. The moguls who ran the cheese factory were overthrown, and drowned in a vat of their own cheese. Anara helped push.

Bud