Knightfall
World of Kulan DM
I like details. Lots and lots of details. 
Character Creation - Simplified or Detailed?
- Thread starter Herremann the Wise
- Start date
Jan van Leyden
Adventurer
I'm missing the "Depends" option.
In most cases, streamlined is the way to go. Things which make a PC a "character" will be added while she is played. Only seldom does a player want to really create a character as a believable person in the game world (IME).
A very involved character creation process like, e.g., in Harnmaster with a pre-game which is actually played out between playerr and game master, only works if the player already knows a good deal about the world. But in this situation, some marvelous results may be obtained.
So it really depends...
In most cases, streamlined is the way to go. Things which make a PC a "character" will be added while she is played. Only seldom does a player want to really create a character as a believable person in the game world (IME).
A very involved character creation process like, e.g., in Harnmaster with a pre-game which is actually played out between playerr and game master, only works if the player already knows a good deal about the world. But in this situation, some marvelous results may be obtained.
So it really depends...
Engilbrand
First Post
I would also like a "Depends" option. It depends on the type of game, the group, and the awesomeness of the system.
I love D&D. 4e character creation is nifty. I love looking through everything and plotting my stuff as I go.
White Wolf stuff is always interesting. That's fairly complex. I like it.
Unisystem is just cool. My only problem with it is that there aren't enough things to pull in. Most of the books reprint the exact same stuff.
I've heard the tiniest bit of information about the character creation in FATAL. It makes me weep. When a game wants you to roll on a chart to find out the character's "Anal Circumference".... something's wrong.
I love D&D. 4e character creation is nifty. I love looking through everything and plotting my stuff as I go.
White Wolf stuff is always interesting. That's fairly complex. I like it.
Unisystem is just cool. My only problem with it is that there aren't enough things to pull in. Most of the books reprint the exact same stuff.
I've heard the tiniest bit of information about the character creation in FATAL. It makes me weep. When a game wants you to roll on a chart to find out the character's "Anal Circumference".... something's wrong.
Irda Ranger
First Post
I voted "Simple", because I think you mean the rules section.
I think the rules for making a character (Stats, Level, Race, Class, etc.) should be fast, streamlined and simple. D&D 4E is much more to my taste in this regard than D&D 3E (or similar games, like Arcana Unearthed or Iron Heroes) ever was. If I have to spend more than 2 minutes comparing a feat choice it's a waste of my time. This "problem" is why I never really jumped on the 3.x bandwagon.
That said, I can spend a lot of time creating the roleplaying aspects of the character - backgrounds, motivations, personality, etc. But the nice thing about that is that you don't need to know everything up front before play; it can grow and develop organically during the campaign.
I really like 4E's balance here. Using the CB I can have a new, fairly unique character of any level up and running inside 5 minutes (depending on how quickly I can settle on equipment choices). Perfect.
I think the rules for making a character (Stats, Level, Race, Class, etc.) should be fast, streamlined and simple. D&D 4E is much more to my taste in this regard than D&D 3E (or similar games, like Arcana Unearthed or Iron Heroes) ever was. If I have to spend more than 2 minutes comparing a feat choice it's a waste of my time. This "problem" is why I never really jumped on the 3.x bandwagon.
That said, I can spend a lot of time creating the roleplaying aspects of the character - backgrounds, motivations, personality, etc. But the nice thing about that is that you don't need to know everything up front before play; it can grow and develop organically during the campaign.
I really like 4E's balance here. Using the CB I can have a new, fairly unique character of any level up and running inside 5 minutes (depending on how quickly I can settle on equipment choices). Perfect.
I really hate mechanically complex character creation. I prefer my efforts to go into characterisation, not number crunching. Anything beyond roll the stats, arrange as desired, choose race & class is a bit much for me. 3e is a too much at higher level, but ok at 1st level for the simpler classes where feat & skill selection is easy. 4e feels way, way to much and I've repeatedly started to create a 4e PC and given up in frustration.
ExploderWizard
Hero
My preference is usually for simpler methods. It depends more on the type of game the character is for than anything else. If I am generating something for a meatgrinding dungeon crawl, I don't want to waste playtime making fiddly choices that might not even matter. Whats the point of selecting feats and skills if there is a high chance of being a monster's lunch within an hour of play. 
I went with detailed (Note: my vote was unregistered as I was at work and forgot that I wasn't logged in when I voted). One of my major dislikes about 4e (as a DM and player) is the removal of skill points, the overconsolidation of skills, and removal of several other skills.
A lot of this is based on my playstyle. I don't play one-shots except to test a game for campaign play and I don't play in dungeoncrawl/butt kicking based games. I also don't build to power game or plan out twenty level builds. I simply create a character idea based on what I know of the DMs setting. and work with the DM to tweak it so that it fits his or her setting and its cultures. After that is done. I buy attributes, take only the skills and feats that fit the vision and last assign the skill ranks to reflect how much training the character has had (if any).
A lot of this is based on my playstyle. I don't play one-shots except to test a game for campaign play and I don't play in dungeoncrawl/butt kicking based games. I also don't build to power game or plan out twenty level builds. I simply create a character idea based on what I know of the DMs setting. and work with the DM to tweak it so that it fits his or her setting and its cultures. After that is done. I buy attributes, take only the skills and feats that fit the vision and last assign the skill ranks to reflect how much training the character has had (if any).
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