D&D General help! i'm stuck with a premise and need a game mechanic or creative solution to solve this unique "reverse-character creation" situation...

[jefrix]

My PC's are very high level, but they don't know it! I'm opening the next campaign at lvl 14, but at the start the PC's find themselves in the lair of a just-defeated foe, and they have triggered a trap on the treasure which blanked their minds, making them forget who they are. The players each get a blank character sheet to start the show, and the point of the campaign is basically to find out who you are, and to fill out the sheet. But I'm kinda stuck as to whether to use "already-made" characters I made, or have them create them randomly, since I know that half the fun is making your character. But as a one-shot, I think it would be fun to change it up and have the character be "hidden" in that their capabilities are slowly revealed to them as they have to find a way to regain their memories. Spellcasters will have forgotten their spells, and will have even forgotten that they are spellcasters! I'm trying to figure out how THEY can figure it out lol. Do you think martial skills would be affected? Or is that mostly muscle memory? Gimme a hand please!

 

[GMMichael]

Oh, you mean advice? The Bourne Identity might be a good model; reflex-type stuff is top-notch, while stuff that requires concentration will need coaxing. Like a scroll of fireball in one's pocket. Or a journal kept somewhere else.

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

This seems like quite a bit of work you’ve given yourself. Maybe at minimum you consider having players roll their stats in order as a way of determining what they were. Maybe give them a boost with something like 3d6+6 in order.

 

[jgsugden]

If it is a one shot, use pregens and build them to give them cluses as to their abilities that you've prepared for revealing. If this premise is to work well, you need to feed them the clues in the right way.

I built a game using a take on 4E mechanics. It is run over 10 sessions. Each PC (of the 5 in the game) has entirely different mechanics laid over a common base set of mechanics that are essentially ripped right out of 4E. They discover how those meachnics work during the game via trial and error. For example, one player starts the game with 8 cards with geometrical shapes, 16 colored stone, and a large hexagon enscribed into a circle. When they open the envelope, there is a picture with certain stones and shapes laid out on the hexagon/circle. I've run it twice, and people have only figured out a small fraction of the possibilities for that PC. However, there are hundreds of signposts within the campaign they can find that unlock almost everything possible.

 

[Charlaquin]

Neat concept! I would go with pre-made characters for this. Yes, character creation is a big part of the fun of D&D for most players, but any way you slice this, the players aren’t going to be making their own characters. Unless they choose the features as they ”remember” them, which I feel like defeats the purpose. I don’t think you’d have too much trouble getting players to sign up for a one-shot where they play mystery pre-made characters and discover their characters’ capabilities as they go. Just be clear up-front about how it’s going to work. Maybe let the players suggest what sort of character they would like to play and tailor the pregens around their requests if they really want some say, but I think the concept is much more fun if you have no idea what you’re going to get.

 

[aco175]

Do you have a copy of the PCs from another campaign. You level them up to what you want and then you may have an idea of how they play as well.

 

[MarkB]

I'd be tempted to not pre-empt anything, and have the characters grow organically. Initially, they only get to make checks using their proficiency bonus, but whenever they succeed at something, that locks in that thing as a core part of their character - either an ability score, a class feature or a racial trait.

Let that run for a session or two, then see what each of them has, and build their characters accordingly.

I do feel like D&D may not be the right system for this whole concept, though.

 

[Shiroiken]

Cool concept. There's a BIG difference if this is for a one shot or campaign, and I couldn't quite tell from the OP. For a one shot, I'd just use some pre-made characters. Give them physical descriptions, and let the players pick what sounds best. If you feel generous, you could make extras so no one feels "obligated" to take one they don't want.

If you want to do this as an actual campaign, don't figure out what they are; you'll discover it as they do! This will be fairly simple for ability checks to determine ability scores and skills, but pretty tricky for class abilities. For simplicity I'd not use the Feats and Multi-class optional rules, and have the actual ability scores standard across every character. Tell the players that they need to be as descriptive as possible for their actions, since that will help determine what mechanics they're trying to do.

When a character attempts to do something basic (i.e. not a spell or other class ability), you make a secret d20 check against a DC of 7-13. If they succeed, add a +1 to that ability and skill, adding this modifier to future rolls of the same ability or skill. If they fail, add -1 instead (cancelling out as needed). If a skill gets a modifier equal to their proficiency (+5 IIRC) they realize they know the skill. If somehow they get to a negative proficiency value, they learn they've never been good at it (unskilled). The same works for ability scores, with the first to reach +5 getting the highest ability score, the next to reach +4 getting the next highest, etc.

Abilities should probably use a DC: 15 or 20 instead, with only a single success needed. Once a single ability succeeds, immediately eliminate what classes couldn't perform it (unless you allow multi-classing). One the player figures out what class(es) they are, they should be able to attempt other abilities they know the character should be able to do. Spellcasting is even more tricky, since they need to know what spells even exist and how they're cast (v,s,m) to even attempt it, so I'd require an Arcana check to even attempt it. To actually cast a spell would require a spellcasting check, but I'd use the highest ability that has a class with the spell on the list. If later it turns out they're a different type of caster, then chalk it up to random luck on the character's part.

 

[pming]

Hiya!

My PC's are very high level, but they don't know it! I'm opening the next campaign at lvl 14, but at the start the PC's find themselves in the lair of a just-defeated foe, and they have triggered a trap on the treasure which blanked their minds, making them forget who they are. The players each get a blank character sheet to start the show, and the point of the campaign is basically to find out who you are, and to fill out the sheet. But I'm kinda stuck as to whether to use "already-made" characters I made, or have them create them randomly, since I know that half the fun is making your character. But as a one-shot, I think it would be fun to change it up and have the character be "hidden" in that their capabilities are slowly revealed to them as they have to find a way to regain their memories. Spellcasters will have forgotten their spells, and will have even forgotten that they are spellcasters! I'm trying to figure out how THEY can figure it out lol. Do you think martial skills would be affected? Or is that mostly muscle memory? Gimme a hand please!

YEARS ago I did a Harn/HarnMaster mini-campaign. Because none of them knew the system and I didn't want to make them "read a bunch of history books" (face it, a lot of Harn seems like doing homework until you start to get into the whole setting/system...), I just sat them down, told them to get out some dice and I started with one Player...

"You wake up. Pain shoots through your head, neck and eyes. You groggily try and sit up...more pain from your ribs and left shoulder. Slowly opening your eyes as the harsh white light stabs them. You are sitting on the cold ground. It's snowing. You're cold. You reach up to feel your head and find your hair matted with... blood. Blood all over your tunic as well. You've been in a battle! Looking around you see this is true...it's a small battlefeild. Dozens of bodies of men and some women lay, covered in a thin blanket of snow.. As the large snowflakes slowly drift down, you stand up and look around. ... ... What do you do?"

That was it. I had the Players just start roleplaying. Right then and there. I'd ask a question, and write the answer (or my interpretation of it) down onto their character sheet (which I had behind my GM screen; the Players only had dice...not even paper/pencil).

"Uh...I look around a bit more. Do I see any movement or hear any sounds of life?" ...so I would reply... "I don't know...do you have really good hearing or eyesight?". Then the player would just think about it and reply "Not my eyes...I'm kind of nearsighted. But I make up for it with my keen ears. Yeah!" (I'd then pick a 'good' stat for their Hearing and ask them to make a roll). ... ... "You don't hear anything other then some ravens and scavenging birds fighting over choice meat..." ... "Can I tell how long I was out?" ... ... "I don't know. Can you?" ... ... "Uh, yeah. Sure..." ... ... "Oh, HOW do you know?". The Player and I would then go back and forth, with me just asking them questions to flesh out their PC.

You know how I managed to do this with the Harn system.... and how I think you can manage it best with the D&D system? ... Don't use the rules. Really, just don't use them. Pretend there aren't really any "rules" for creating a PC. Just ask the Player a question, then interpret that result into game mechanics and write it down. You will be "breaking rules"....unless you start saying "No" alot. I didn't. I said "Yes" to everything the Player said, but I always followed it up with "...but how/why?". So when someone starts going down the path of being a Druid, but they are saying they are wearing chainmail armour...just go with it. Worry about the "how" later. It's fantasy...you can make stuff up.

So that's my suggestion: Just ask questions, say "Yes...but how/why"? Then interpret that into game mechanics...but if you must ignore some "rule" of the game, then ignore that rule of the game. This isn't an adventure centered around "normal expectations of play"...so why conform it to "normal expectations of PC creation"?

^_^

Paul L. Ming

 

[Shadowdweller00]

You could put them through one of those classic video game questionnaires where you ask them some vague questions about outlook on life and then build characters based on that. Or possibly ask them to come up with say 5 rough character concepts (each) that they wouldn't mind playing and then develop those into pre-made characters. Would give them a bit of choice on the matter but wouldn't necessarily spoil the fact of them being high level nor what specific skillsets they have.

Could also give them the option to "rehabilitate" or retrain their abilities later on if they feel like playing something different from what they end up being given.

 

[aco175]

You could put them through one of those classic video game questionnaires where you ask them some vague questions about outlook on life and then build characters based on that.

If you were an animal, what kind would you be?

If you came to a locked door, how would you try to get inside?

Do you love your mother?

Why are you an orphan from a village destroyed by orcs and have no backstory?

 

[Shadowdweller00]

Human, by the handle, yes, and isn't that a self-contradictory statement?

 

[akr71]

How about have them create their characters as they go?

This is just off the top of my head mind you, so I haven't quite thought about all the problems this would cause. They are level 14 so you know their proficiency bonus is +5. As they explore the area around them and need to make skill checks and saving throws, have them determine their relevant stat at that time. Standard array might be the easiest to implement, but other methods wouldn't be impossible. Again level 14 would indicate at least 3 ASIs/feats

For example, one of the party wants to search an area for secret doors and you call for an Investigation check. What score do they want to assign to their Intelligence? Choose from the array and write it in (plus any racial modifier). How many of those ASIs did they invest in Intelligence? How about a feat that might factor into it? Are they proficient in Investigation?

The decisions that they make gradually pigeon-hole what class & background they could be, until they have a filled out character sheet.

Perhaps a sorcerer picks up their old arcane focus and they are filled with a surge of arcane power. Perhaps a martial character picks up a weapon and it just feels right in their hand. They strap on armor like they've done it a thousand times.

 

[MatthewJHanson]

I did something like this with FATE. Whenever the characters tried to use a skill, I'd ask them how good their character was at that skill, but it was limited so they could only have one +4, two +3, etc, so if they chose their +4 skill right away nothing else could be a +4.

I could see something similar with 5e, using default array for abilities, and having a list of skills available. (X class skills plus two background skills). I'm not sure what I'd do about spells, since there are so many options. If characters aren't familiar their might be a lot of game time pouring through the books.

Also not sure what I'd do about class features, since so many are locked to class or subclass. Maybe decide those two things in advance?

 

[niklinna]

My PC's are very high level, but they don't know it! I'm opening the next campaign at lvl 14, but at the start the PC's find themselves in the lair of a just-defeated foe, and they have triggered a trap on the treasure which blanked their minds, making them forget who they are. The players each get a blank character sheet to start the show, and the point of the campaign is basically to find out who you are, and to fill out the sheet. But I'm kinda stuck as to whether to use "already-made" characters I made, or have them create them randomly, since I know that half the fun is making your character. But as a one-shot, I think it would be fun to change it up and have the character be "hidden" in that their capabilities are slowly revealed to them as they have to find a way to regain their memories. Spellcasters will have forgotten their spells, and will have even forgotten that they are spellcasters! I'm trying to figure out how THEY can figure it out lol. Do you think martial skills would be affected? Or is that mostly muscle memory? Gimme a hand please!

I have played this sort of setup for one-shots several times in other RPG systems and it can be a lot of fun, particularly if what gets revealed is key to the goings-on in the adventure.

One approach I've played that's different from what you listed, is not having any already-made characters. The GM put the players on the spot at key moments and asked us what our characters could (or couldn't) do, or gave us a choice from a small set of options, or asked who in the party had been involved in backstory element X. If you take that approach, you might want to prepare your players a bit by making clear that the usual stat distributions apply, so they can't have 18s in everything—but perhaps initial choices can be raised once or twice, as they realize their true capabilities. You can also offer out particularly relevant class & subclass features at those key moments, possibly without naming them, and who chooses what will narrow or pin down their specific builds.

 

[soviet]

Another idea: if your players know each other quite well, and can keep a secret, have them create each other's characters to 'discover' during play. Like a secret santa kind of vibe.

 

[Mercurius]

One shot, definitely pre-gens. But I think you're going to want more than a single session to adequately explore this idea (or do you mean singular adventure, by "one-shot," thus multiple sessions?).

It also depends on the players: how open they are to try something new.

I really like the idea of them not knowing anything about their capabilities until they try things out. So they don't know their STR until they test it, or how good they are with a sword. Could have some comic potential.

If you really want to go wild with the idea, you could make their actions dictate what they are. So if they try to lift a rock, you say "Make a STR check." Depending upon how they roll, that's their STR. Maybe something like so: their resulting ability score is 8 + half their first d20 role. If they role a natural 20, they roll again and 1-10 and it stays at 10, 11-15 and it goes to 19, 16-19 it goes to 20, a second natural d20 results in another roll.

I don't know how you'd translate this to class stuff, but maybe something similar. But you'd want to be rather vague about it, so they didn't catch on too quickly. "I cast meteor swarm."

Early on, you could be very narrative based and "hand-wavy," and give little hints.

 

[niklinna]

Another idea: if your players know each other quite well, and can keep a secret, have them create each other's characters to 'discover' during play. Like a secret santa kind of vibe.

I've played something like this too, it's freaking amazing. We each played ourself in a horror scenario, and then somebody else was playing an evil spirit out to get one particular other character, and passing notes about the things they made us see or hear The notes had to go through the DM for anonymity of course, which was chaos, but it was a ton of fun!

 

[Grakarg]

There was a 1-shot adventure like this for the Dungeon Crawl Classics game (DCC).
Twilight of the Solstice. They might have made others.
It was a Holiday special adventure and it came with pregen characters, you'd scratch off the stats and abilities as you used them to reveal what they were. It seemed like a fun idea for a one-shot, but I never got a chance to play it.

 

[Sabathius42]

It's going to make for a stop and go adventure but to me the easiest way to allow them to make the character they want AND to do a little surprise in a one shot would be to simply seed the adventure with 13 "level up" points in the story and each time the party hits one you have them level up their PC.

It's not quite the same as you are wanting but it allows them to have exactly the character they want....and the surprise is still there since they don't know how high a level they are going to peak at.