Crafting a Character

To start playing a RISE game, you will need to make a character. This is the person you will be roleplaying as you navigate exciting challenges and heroic adventures. Crafting a character you will enjoy playing is essential, since all your actions revolve around them.

Creating your character is about both the narrative details as well as the mechanical gameplay. How much you want to lean into either of those details is up to you, but the following character creation process will walk you through a bit of both.

Before going forward, make sure you have access to a RISE character sheet, or at least something to jot down your choices so you can transfer the information to a character sheet later.

Character Creation Steps

Below is an outline of the character creation steps. The rest of this section will cover each in detail.

1. Brainstorm a character concept. This is a rough idea of the type of character you want to play as.
2. Choose a species. This will also define your starting abilities and stats.
3. Allocate starting Attribute scores.
4. Gain starting equipment.
5. Pick a name and describe your character.
6. Spend 5 LP. This will complete your Level 1 character!

Example Character/Sheet

Below is an example of a completed Level 1 character sheet, containing the key character information as follows.
INSERT EXAMPLE LVL 1 CHARACTER SHEET HERE.
Review the locations of each item:

1. Stats: HP, MP, Speed, Armor, Evasion, Encumbrance
2. Attributes and Skills
3. Actions
4. Feats
5. Weapons, Armor, and Equipment
6. Name and Species
7. Level & Credits
8. Character Image
9. Recovery Notes
10. Status Conditions & Notes
11. Passive Abilities and Restrictions Notes
12. Spells
13. Inventory

Step 1: Brainstorm a Character Concept

You are probably really excited to jump in and create a character in RISE, but before you do, we recommend thinking about your character concept! This is an idea you have for the kind of character you want to play, which will inform what options you choose in the character creation process. Your character concept may be as simple as: “I want to play as a tough warrior who uses a sword,” or complex as “playing as a sneaky, mysterious wizard who likes using magic to help their allies and likes cooking.”

Think through the following questions to start generating ideas as for the kind of character you want to play. This will narrow down your choices in the following steps to create that one-of-a-kind character that RISE is known for. Additionally, you can also talk with your GM and fellow players to help you brainstorm.

1. When faced with a conflict, what kind of response do you want your character to have? A diplomatic discussion, rash physical altercation, persuasive arguments, sneaky avoidance, heroic bravery, etc.
2. Every hero has their weaknesses—what part of adventuring does your character gladly pass off to someone else?? Are they shy and don’t want to talk to others to get information or solve problems? Maybe they are fearful of the dark, or have a horrible sense of direction and need someone else to take the lead!
3. Are there any physical traits that you want your character to have? Look up some character art portraits online to get inspired.
4. How will your character be shaped by the world they are in? The RISE game can be crafted to fit in a variety of Fantasy, Sci-Fi, or Sci-Fantasy settings, but it’s “home” world is set in Elara. Players should talk to their GM regarding the setting they will be playing in, since this should inform your character concept. More details on locations, history, and daily life in Elara can be found in Section 5: Game Setting and Lore.

Step 2: Choose a Species

RISE is inhabited by several sapient species which can be played by PCs. Each species is characterized by some general physical traits, as well as characteristics that tie into Stats, Attributes, Skills, and Feats.

When choosing a character, you will want to consider how that species’ characteristics and history within the game world might affect your roleplay. For example, the Halflings are characterized by being infertile, so choosing this species for your PC may affect your character’s long and short term relationships. Perhaps they feel lonely, outcasted, and seek to find family in a tight-knit group of friends.

Below is a list of the standard species in RISE, set in the world of Elara. You can read more about each species in Chapter X: SPECIES, including the bonuses you will gain for each one.

• Humans
• Orions
• Vasari
• Infernals
• Starforged
• Karnathids
• Garguns
• Draugyr
• Ravkha
• Ferali
• Halflings

You may also consider whether the species’ bonuses are compatible with your desired play style from your character concept. Even so, the Stats, Attributes, Skills and Feats that come from choosing a species have options that still allow a degree of flexibility to align to a range of character concepts.

After selecting a species for your character, refer to it’s Species table and add the listed items to your character sheet.

Step 3: Allocate Starting Attribute Scores

Attributes are the nine numbers used to quantify a character’s aptitude. These Attributes consist of: Endurance, Strength, Accuracy, Dexterity, Perception, Charisma, Heart, Intelligence, and Wisdom. An Attribute’s score typically ranges from -1 to 5+, describing a character’s relative incompetence or prowess.

During gameplay, your Attribute score will be added to dice rolls to help determine the level of success your character reaches. A higher number means you are more likely to succeed in challenges when using that Attribute.

Based on your character concept, you will now assign your character’s starting Attributes with higher numbers towards the skills you want to be more proficient in.

• Endurance (END) — Physical resilience. Affects encumbrance and recovery.
• Strength (STR) — Physical power. Affects physical attack damage.
• Accuracy (ACC) — Physical attack precision. Affects ability to hit and target.
• Dexterity (DEX) — Physical agility and finesse. Affects evasion.
• Perception (PER) — Physical and mental awareness. Affects speed of initiative.
• Charisma (CHA) — Social influence and presence. Affects social encounters.
• Heart (HRT) — Spiritual conviction. Affects arcane recovery and capacity for feats.
• Intelligence (INT) — Mental acuity and breadth of knowledge. Affects arcane attack damage.
• Wisdom (WIS) — Experiential understanding. Affects arcane armor.

Option 1 - Allocate Custom Attribute Scores

This option provides the most flexibility and control over your character’s starting Attribute points by using a system of spending Level Points (LP) to increase individual scores.

Set all Attributes to a starting value of negative 1 (-1). Apply your chosen Species’ Attribute bonus (+1) to increase one score to 0. Spend 20 LP to increase Attributes per the cost table below. (To track in the character sheet, add 20 “bonus” LP.)

The cost to increase an Attribute by +1 depends on its current value:

Option 2 - Allocate Preset Attribute Scores

This option provides a balanced spread of starting attributes without needing to calculate LP costs.

Assign the following set of values to your Attributes in any order: 3, 2, 2, 2, 1, 1, 1, 0, 0.

After you have assigned these scores, then apply your Species’ Attribute bonus (+1) on top of the allocated values.

Step 4: Choose Starting Equipment and Gear

• Currency & Starting Money
  • Alternative option: default gear
• Weapons, Armor, & Their Properties
• Consumables (Potions, Elixirs, Ammunition)
• Special & Rare Items

Step 5: Describe Your Character

• Name
• Physical description
• Personality Traits
• Relationships/Connections
  • To the world
  • To the other players
• History/Backstory
  • Define past experiences that shape their present behaviors
• Dreams
• Flaws