Need some help making a first character for a LARP . . .

Samekichi

Newbie
Hello, Thanks for checking out my thread. I've been sort of unsure how character sheets are built correctly for a LARP like this one, an example of my problems is in the rule book (from a first quick glance over) it doesn't specify how Human's are given stats (i may have missed that, if so I'm sorry in advance) plus some of the sections are drawn out so long it can be sort of frustrating/overwhelming to skim. If someone would be willing to help me out on character creation I'd really appreciate it! I plan on trying to play a Human Adept by the way.

I won't be able to respond to messages until tomorrow since it's getting a bit late so if I don't respond right away to a message that is the reason, thank you for listening to my little complications. Have a wonderful day!:)
 
Hello hello! For starters, note that we'll be switching to the 2.0 rules around June/July this year, so make sure you take a look at not only the 1.3 rulebook, but also check the 2.0 packet for changes that are coming. I'll try to keep in mind that you're likely only familiar with the 1.3 rules right now, and make note of 2.0 changes if I think they'll impact your character.

There isn't really a set of stats listed for Humans because they're the only race that doesn't really 'get anything'; they have no particular costuming requirements, but they also don't get any Racial benefits like Resists or skill cost reductions. As a Human, you'll have the standard 10 Body, and 25 BP (XP in 2.0) to spend on your starting skills; anything else (backstory, behaviour, etc.) is all up to you, but check with your chapter in case they have particular restrictions you should be aware of.

So, first tip: If you know your end goal is to go for an Adept, start either Rogue or Scholar. You can change class at any point in future so long as you have enough XP to cover the costs of all your current skills; since skills are cheaper for the 3 'pure' classes (Fighter, Rogue, and Scholar) than for the 'hybrid' classes (Adept, Scout, and Spellsword), you'll get more bang for your buck by starting as a Rogue or Scholar and switching to Adept later down the road. My personal recommendation is to go Rogue first, get your Rogue skills to a point you're happy with, and then start learning magic; Rogue skills (Stealth skills in 2.0) tend to be more expensive per purchase than spell slots, and you gain XP fast enough early on that you can get a decent base or Rogue skills before your XP gains per game slow down significantly (around level 10-12).

Second tip: Pick one school of magic (Earth or Celestial) and stick with it, especially when first learning magic. Your primary school is fairly cheap to gain spell slots in, but your secondary school is double the cost of your primary school. Because of how spell pyramids work, you'll tend to get more spells overall by focusing on one rather than trying to divide your XP between both.

Third tip: Don't try to be a Jack of All Trades; specializing in a few things is generally better overall than trying to be average at everything. You already know you want to go Adept, so focus slightly more heavily on either the Rogue side or the Scholar side of that, rather than trying to keep them even; especially while you're building up your skills (pre-level 20), you'll probably find you prefer one side to the other, so sink XP there to support a fun game for yourself before heavily investing in the other.

As far as starting builds go, there are a couple of different ways to go...

A weapon skill of some kind is the best place to start, so for a Rogue I recommend starting either One-Handed Edge or Archery: Archery requires you to spend in-game coin on Arrows or Bolts, but you can attack from range which can be a life saver when you're just starting out, and also gets +1 damage from any angle with Back Attacks and Backstabs, plus if you use a Bow instead of a Crossbow you can use the Bow to block; One-Handed Edge doesn't require any ammunition, but you'll be in the middle of combat, and only get bonus Back Attack or Backstab damage while behind your target.

Once you've got your weapon skill tackled, look at purchasing a Backstab; in 2.0 your first will cost you 9 XP as a Rogue, so you'll have about 10 XP left. That's not enough to buy another Backstab, but you could buy the 3 Back Attacks required for the second with maybe 1 or 2 XP left over, or you could look into getting a bit of a head start on the magic side of things and get Educated (replaces Read and Write in 2.0), which will leave you with about 4 XP.

If you go for Back Attacks and have 2 XP left, consider taking a rank of Craftsman for 2 XP, as it gives you a silver per logistics period per rank, and it can help flesh out your character; if you went the Educated route, take First Aid if you want to go into Earth magic, or a Back Attack if you want to go for Celestial. If you don't know which school you want to go for, you can't really go wrong with a Back Attack; if you want to go into Alchemy, take Herbal Lore.

This is probably a bit overwhelming to just read, but it'll be a little easier to understand if you play around with the builder here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ltd5NAB6qpoSNs68gXF6hydwpBdpKmF17vQy2QylExg/edit?usp=sharing (Credit to Cedric!)

Note that this builder is for 2.0; if you're having trouble with it, either reply here or you can message me directly and I'll do what I can to help. If you'd prefer some in-person help with it, contact your local chapter and try to meet up with either their new player rep or someone on the logistics team, and they should be able to help you out. :) Hope this helped!
 
Earth Adept.

Work towards United Blow.

Heal/support/stab things...and then when you get United Blow...murder everything forever.

United Blow lets you use the Healing spells you memorized to do strong damage to enemies, and even bypass their armor. That gives you some flexibility. If you’re hurt, you heal yourself. If you aren’t hurt, you bring the pain.
 
Thank you both so much, I think I've gotten a better idea on what i'm doing now! I plan to participate in my first LARP if possible this summer in the local area.

Also thank you @Sage of Legaia I may PM you once i get a sheet figured out so I can get the second opinion of someone more experienced than I am if that's alright with you lol
 
Yeah, not a problem; if I minded, I wouldn't have invited you to. ;)
 
@Samekichi

What area you in? We can probably also help out you in contact with your local players, so that you can also get an idea of what to expect there. :) Also, having local contacts is always useful.
 
Hello hello! For starters, note that we'll be switching to the 2.0 rules around June/July this year, so make sure you take a look at not only the 1.3 rulebook, but also check the 2.0 packet for changes that are coming. I'll try to keep in mind that you're likely only familiar with the 1.3 rules right now, and make note of 2.0 changes if I think they'll impact your character.

There isn't really a set of stats listed for Humans because they're the only race that doesn't really 'get anything'; they have no particular costuming requirements, but they also don't get any Racial benefits like Resists or skill cost reductions. As a Human, you'll have the standard 10 Body, and 25 BP (XP in 2.0) to spend on your starting skills; anything else (backstory, behaviour, etc.) is all up to you, but check with your chapter in case they have particular restrictions you should be aware of.

So, first tip: If you know your end goal is to go for an Adept, start either Rogue or Scholar. You can change class at any point in future so long as you have enough XP to cover the costs of all your current skills; since skills are cheaper for the 3 'pure' classes (Fighter, Rogue, and Scholar) than for the 'hybrid' classes (Adept, Scout, and Spellsword), you'll get more bang for your buck by starting as a Rogue or Scholar and switching to Adept later down the road. My personal recommendation is to go Rogue first, get your Rogue skills to a point you're happy with, and then start learning magic; Rogue skills (Stealth skills in 2.0) tend to be more expensive per purchase than spell slots, and you gain XP fast enough early on that you can get a decent base or Rogue skills before your XP gains per game slow down significantly (around level 10-12).

Second tip: Pick one school of magic (Earth or Celestial) and stick with it, especially when first learning magic. Your primary school is fairly cheap to gain spell slots in, but your secondary school is double the cost of your primary school. Because of how spell pyramids work, you'll tend to get more spells overall by focusing on one rather than trying to divide your XP between both.

Third tip: Don't try to be a Jack of All Trades; specializing in a few things is generally better overall than trying to be average at everything. You already know you want to go Adept, so focus slightly more heavily on either the Rogue side or the Scholar side of that, rather than trying to keep them even; especially while you're building up your skills (pre-level 20), you'll probably find you prefer one side to the other, so sink XP there to support a fun game for yourself before heavily investing in the other.

As far as starting builds go, there are a couple of different ways to go...

A weapon skill of some kind is the best place to start, so for a Rogue I recommend starting either One-Handed Edge or Archery: Archery requires you to spend in-game coin on Arrows or Bolts, but you can attack from range which can be a life saver when you're just starting out, and also gets +1 damage from any angle with Back Attacks and Backstabs, plus if you use a Bow instead of a Crossbow you can use the Bow to block; One-Handed Edge doesn't require any ammunition, but you'll be in the middle of combat, and only get bonus Back Attack or Backstab damage while behind your target.

Once you've got your weapon skill tackled, look at purchasing a Backstab; in 2.0 your first will cost you 9 XP as a Rogue, so you'll have about 10 XP left. That's not enough to buy another Backstab, but you could buy the 3 Back Attacks required for the second with maybe 1 or 2 XP left over, or you could look into getting a bit of a head start on the magic side of things and get Educated (replaces Read and Write in 2.0), which will leave you with about 4 XP.

If you go for Back Attacks and have 2 XP left, consider taking a rank of Craftsman for 2 XP, as it gives you a silver per logistics period per rank, and it can help flesh out your character; if you went the Educated route, take First Aid if you want to go into Earth magic, or a Back Attack if you want to go for Celestial. If you don't know which school you want to go for, you can't really go wrong with a Back Attack; if you want to go into Alchemy, take Herbal Lore.

This is probably a bit overwhelming to just read, but it'll be a little easier to understand if you play around with the builder here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ltd5NAB6qpoSNs68gXF6hydwpBdpKmF17vQy2QylExg/edit?usp=sharing (Credit to Cedric!)

Note that this builder is for 2.0; if you're having trouble with it, either reply here or you can message me directly and I'll do what I can to help. If you'd prefer some in-person help with it, contact your local chapter and try to meet up with either their new player rep or someone on the logistics team, and they should be able to help you out. :) Hope this helped!

@Samekichi
As some one that's playing this game with over 20 years experience I have to say I agree so much with @Sage of Legaia (well minus the craftsman, but I understand as it will give him some silver to buy those arrows/bolts).
 
One piece of advice I think is very important is that you first assess what you want to get out of the game. For example, Sage says not to try to create a jack-of-all-trades character, and that is good general advice. However, if you enjoy being able to do a little bit of everything without excelling in anything, than in this instance, the advice is bad.

Most advice you will see here is how to optimize your character, usually within the framework of combat efficiency. But that is only really meaningful if you are looking for a good combat experience, or if being less than optimal in combat would ruin your experience. That isn't true for all players, and the players that understand that and embrace the experience they are seeking, tend to enjoy the game the most.

Adepts, just based on xp costs for skills, tend to shine in some of the following archetypes:
Alchemists
Magical Assassins
Survivors (characters that are really hard to kill)
Skirmishers
Combat Support (a version of a healer)
Jack of All Trades (yeah, I know Sage said not to do this, but it is the best class for this)

Archetypes aren't mechanically a thing. It is a just a shortcut for describing a skill loadout. If I were building a character for each of those, it would have a different loadout. So, giving general advice is hard. One thing to keep in mind is that no matter what you intend to do, you won't really feel like you have fully embraced your plan until approximately level 5 at the lowest (maybe higher depending on your intent). Unfortunately, this does mean it is a bit tough to determine if you enjoy what you are playing until about a year (or more) has passed. Only solution I know to that is to NPC and ask staff to play roughly the stats you are looking to PC with at some point during the weekend, just to get a feel for them.

-MS
 
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thank you, I'm over in Washington State! :) @Draven

@Gilwing True! I've been debating recently between a few classes since I began to look over a few classes and i think i may just play a scholar and invest some points into the one handed weapon skill so I can have some basic defense in case targets get too close

thanks for the advice @mikestrauss That's very helpful! thank you! I'll keep that in mind while building my character/playing! :)
 
thank you, I'm over in Washington State! :) @Draven

@Gilwing True! I've been debating recently between a few classes since I began to look over a few classes and i think i may just play a scholar and invest some points into the one handed weapon skill so I can have some basic defense in case targets get too close

thanks for the advice @mikestrauss That's very helpful! thank you! I'll keep that in mind while building my character/playing! :)

Oh man! You’re in my area! I’m the new player representative for Seattle!

You should hit up our Facebook group, Alliance LARP Seattle. You can also reach out to me at newplayer@alliance-seattle.com.

We’ll take good care of you!
 
If you're in southern Washington like Vancouver, there is also Alliance Oregon which primarily plays off of the coast in Warrenton, Oregon. Lots of crossover between Seattle and Oregon.
 
@Draven Thank you! I plan to show up to my first LARP event (granted if possible) this summer after i move after graduation! I'll email you if I have any issues with character creation if you don't mind that is lol

@Durnic Thank you! :)
 
@Draven Thank you! I plan to show up to my first LARP event (granted if possible) this summer after i move after graduation! I'll email you if I have any issues with character creation if you don't mind that is lol

I am happy to assist with whatever degree of help you need. Our community absolutely loves to give input and suggestions, and I definitely want to make sure you come to our game as excited and prepared as you can reasonably be.

We can help give you ideas for character builds, garb suggestions, costuming input, weapon/armor prop suggestions, whatever you need.

We gotchu, and we look forward to having you come play with us!
 
Hi @Samekichi ,

I look forward to either playing alongside you in SEA or telling a great story for you in OR. If there is anything I can do to help, feel free to message me.
 
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