So, it's time to start thinking about making up a character for the game. I know we don't have any books or rules yet. "So, what," says I. Let's make up characters, not character sheets. Everything is subject to change when the rules come out, but let's go ahead and think about who your character is and how s/he will fit into the adventuring party, the home base (Berador) and the world.
Where Are You From?
This question should be very easy for everyone: you're from Berador. At least you're from Berador now. If you want to be from elsewhere in the distant past we can talk about it and work something out, but most likely you were born and raised somewhere in the near vicinity of Berador. I'm trying to get everyone settled into a "home" that can be a familiar, safe place from which you start your adventures and to which you return when it's time to rest and recover.
If you really want to be from somewhere else then think about being from one of the nearby towns or villages. Possibly you have come from the large city of Roth far to the southwest, but you better come up with a good reason that you left the hustle and bustle of a large city to come to this near wilderness village a couple of hundred miles away. Regardless of where you come from you will have been in or around Berador for at least the last five years.
What Do You Do?
We'll worry about character class later. It's possible that race/class will play a role in your profession, but not necessarily. Feel free to incorporate what you think you want to play into your profession, but don't think it's necessary.
So, what can you do? Well, most people around here farm, fish or forest. The farming consists of various roots and vegetables with some grains and some cattle. Nearly every farm has some chickens and a few boast a handful of pigs. Fishing is very straightforward: you fish the trout and salmon out of the Blue Wash and Lake Callie. Finally, forestry is a minor industry. People in these parts build their homes and other buildings out of wood. The Fireaxe mill in town handles both grain and lumber. There are a few foresters around town, and the Traveling Carnivals occasionally buy excess lumber.
Other professions include various handicrafts, general labor, farmhand, and tending the stores. There are a handful of people that act as paid security or law enforcement. These people are generally hired by one of the wealthier families to tend to the family needs. A rare few people don't have a particular profession: there are some beggars that wander the village and from farmstead to farmstead, and some of the very wealthy families have a few younger adults who have taken to a life of leisure in preference to work. None of these people is much appreciated by the local townsfolk, but the independently wealthy are at least respected for the cash they can sling around.
Pick a profession that will fit into the makeup of a small farming town and is of interest to you. This is what you will be doing when not adventuring . . . at least to start.
Who Are Your Family and Friends?
Every character that is spotlighted in the 'blog is someone that you know. You may know some of them quite well or even be related to him/her. It is a certainty that all of the PCs will know each other passing well and hopefully you will be good friends from the start of the story. We'll see how it works out. If you want to incorporate any of the NPCs from this 'blog into your background, feel free to do so. In fact, I encourage you to do so.
I would also like for everyone to detail as much as you feel is necessary of your family background. Family members do not have to be fully fleshed-out characters, but at least a name, age and one or two word description will be useful. Berador is your home and is populated by your family and friends. Tell me who they are.
General Ideas
None of the following is set in stone, but it does describe the typical lifestyle for the race in question in and around Berador.
Dragonborn PCs are somewhat limited in their choices regarding family. If born locally you live with one of your parents who raised you from birth (hatching) alone. Your parents came here just before you were born, and the one who is not with you left shortly after you hatched as is customary among Dragonborn. Alternatively, you are full grown and the parent who raised you has also left, and you now live alone in Berador. You may also be a wandering Dragonborn from one of the other villages or towns in the area (or maybe even farther afield) who has taken up residence in Berador some time ago. Regardless, you should have been in Berador for at least five years.
Dwarfs live mostly in town among the Fireaxe clan. Not all of the dwarfs within the compound are of the clan, but most are. There are a few Dwarf farmsteads and a handful of independent Dwarf families in the town as well.
Eladrins are a special case. All Eladrins must live among a single enclave that has taken up residence near the Elf hold to the northwest. The Eladrins arrived in the area en masse ten years ago fleeing a horror in the ancient forest called Silverine far to the north. The Eladrins do not mingle much with the village directly. Most of their commerce and communication is through the Elves of Graywatch Hold. The Eladrins have great magic and crafts at their disposal. They trade their magic and crafted goods to the Elves to supplement their own hunting and gathering as needed. It is rumored that the Eladrin live double lives in both the World and the Feywild and that much of their magic comes from dealings with faeries. If you are an Eladrin you will need to come up with a good reason that you have left the Eladrin hold in the forest and are mingling with the PC adventuring party.
The vast majority of Elves live in one of the three enclaves in the forests around Berador. Graywatch Hold, Elm Grove and Pebbledown are the names of their holdings. All of the Elves live similar hunter/gather lives in the forests. Some few Elves travel beyond the immediate environs on occasion, and a few claim to have ventured into the Feywild. There are some Elves in town proper and even a couple of Elf farmsteads.
Halflings are the most likely to travel regularly. The Halflings of Berador include a hardy bunch that provide escort and guide services on both the Wash and the Road. They do not travel far, usually no more than one week in any direction, but they do travel often.
Half Elves live almost entirely in the town proper. A few have taken up residence among the Elves and there is rumor of a couple that live among the Eladrins. There are a few Half Elf farmsteads as well. Most Half Elves live solitary lives or live with very small families.
Humans run the gamut from farmers, fishers and foresters to crafters and merchants. If you're human you can pretty much fit in any lifestyle that suits the area. It is very likely that you are from one of the many families in the area and you have quite a few relations about. You may even be from one of the few "noble" families. They are not really noble, but they are wealthy and hold large farmlands which makes them pretty close to noble in these parts.
Most Tieflings in the area are of the Branloth line. There are a few dozen Tieflings living in the Branloth manor and on the outbuildings among their hold. There is certainly room for other Tieflings in the area, and you can feel free to be one from some other family. Most Tieflings live in large families that rarely split off into independent farmsteads as they outgrow the current home as is custom among humans. Tieflings simply build another house on the same land and expand the borders of their farm to accommodate their needs. There may be a couple of more independent Tieflings living in town proper that work at some craft or own a store or such.
Anyone could potentially be someone who came to town with the Traveling Carnival and decided to stay. While it's not common, people do occasionally decide to stick around in one place after months or years on the road with the Carnival. Humans and Halflings make up the majority of the Carnival's people, but any race will do.
Some Specific Ideas
Feel free to take these ideas and run with them. You can also combine some of these ideas. They're just "getting started" points:
The Dragonborn child of Jadestar Kaldoran; you accompany Jade on her patrols from time to time, but mainly you work as a common laborer wherever someone will have you.
A Dwarf laborer in the Fireaxe clan compound; you may or may not actually be of the Fireaxe clan and you may or may not live there as you desire. You work at the mill or the smith or at some other labor among the dwarfs who provide so much to the Berador community.
An Eladrin forester who has joined the Greywood Wardens; you live a double life among your relations in the Greywood and traveling at need with the Wardens. You have been to most of the nearby villages and holdfasts in your travels and faced many dangers in the Wild with the Wardens.
An Elf forester and hunter; you live among the trees to the northwest of Berador along with a couple of dozen of your kin. You hunt wild boar in the fall and winter and chop lumber in the spring and summer.
A Halfling fisherman; you ply the Blue Wash and Lake Callie on a fishing barge with your mates pulling in great hauls of fish to help feed the village.
A Half elf cobbler; you live in town and craft fine shoes for everyone from the common laborers to the wealthiest of families.
A Human beggar; you don't have a proper home, but you sometimes manage to scrounge enough coin up to get a room at the Maple House. You often end up sleeping outside or under a hedge. You do whatever work is available and not too demanding. Sometimes your "work" includes acquiring other people's possessions without their knowledge or consent.
A Tiefling scion of the Branloth family; you don't have a profession exactly. You kind of do whatever is necessary to keep you in Lady Caer's good graces. Sometimes that includes looking in on the farmhands and seeing that they do their work. Other times you may need to travel to a nearby village to deliver some message for Lady Caer.
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