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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Barastrondo" data-source="post: 5868093" data-attributes="member: 3820">This is not generally that hard. One of the most beloved NPCs in one game is pretty simple: I told the players "He's sort of like Lord Rochester from Plunkett and MacLaine, though not quite as flamboyant." I knew that he was unabashedly open about being gay because he didn't care to be put in an arranged marriage for the good of his House, but also that he was rather more clever and competent than he let on. That was basically it. I'm pretty sure I know what he'd do in any given situation within ten seconds, as long as he'd know what he'd do. Most of my NPCs are archetypes when they first show up, and they wind up getting more depth as the players ask questions about them.If many players don't care about NPCs, I think it's fair to say that many other players don't care if you put a lot of time into them or if you just did something remarkable when the NPC first appeared. The first impression is way more important than a lot of detail the players won't see at first, or possibly at all. If a bandit surrenders to the PCs with comically exaggerated enthusiasm, they may keep him around as a lackey forever. Ad-libbing can replace a lot of prep work time; it's the same with social interaction just as it is with encounter design or exploration.</blockquote>