I am willing to bet that most of us who play RPGs remember our first D&D character (or, if not D&D, our first RPG character).
My first character was actually two, Malem and Ammel, twin Half-Orc fighters. They carried half the weapons list with them despite the fact that I had no idea what most of the weapons were (Bec de Corbin? Sounds good, I'll take two.). I was eight years old.
Malem and Ammel were the sons of an orc and a human female, and when they were very young, they left their home to live with their orc relatives, driven out by the village. They never forgot their human nature, however, and after their father was killed by the orc chief, they fled to the human frontier and sought their fortune as mercenaries.
I actually rolled a halfling fighter named Hagar first, but my ability scores were terrible, and I rerolled, coming up with Malem and Ammel.
So what about you?
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I don't even remember the name of my first 5 or 6 characters. They were almost all illusionists though. Like you, I was pre-teen--8 or 9, I think.
My brother was the DM, and didn't want me playing with him, so he kept killing off my characters. My parents made him include me, though, so I basically just created the same character over and over. I remember being awed by the complexity of his dungeons and plotlines. I'd love to find his old notebooks and see if they still seemed good, or if it was just me being a kid that made it seem that way.
[ November 17, 2004, 01:02 PM: Message edited by: Noemon ]
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
My first character ever was Theran Lightblade, a human paladin -- at a time, of course, when there was no other kind. *laugh* I was eight, too.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
My first was a dumb jock fighter with a big sword.
My most recent is also a dumb jock fighter, but this one is cool. Posted by katharina (Member # 827) on :
My first character was an elf wizard with magic, little fighting ability, and a shocking lack of languages.
[ November 17, 2004, 01:04 PM: Message edited by: katharina ]
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
Mine was Morgan, a NG Theif. I still have him, he is around 18th or 20th level now. He hasn't been played in 20 years, except as a video game character once and a while...
Kwea
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
NG?
edit: I figured it out -- Neutral Good.
I was trying to figure out what race NG was.
[ November 17, 2004, 01:07 PM: Message edited by: mr_porteiro_head ]
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
I was in fifth grade, and I started with the Basic set, so all the non-human races were just a way to have multi-class characters.
I think I started with an elf, but it was a long time ago.
The first one I really remember was Kalmegil, swashbuckler extrordinaire. The name is derived from Sindarin and means shining blade.
Dagonee
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Mine was an elf in the basic D&D campaign, too, Dag!
Don't remember his name. 4th grade.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
Yeah, my second was a half-elven Ranger, I think.
Later on I had quite a few Wizards, and got pretty good at playing them.
But Morgan was my first character, adn I always came back to him, fro the frist 3 or 4 years anyway.
I was playing with a Palidin, and I was fairly religious back then, so I didn't want to play an evil character, adn in the context of our campaigns it wouldn't have worked, so MNoran was more of an Indiana Jones type of theif, disarming traps in an adventure setting rather than a Master theif or catburgerler.
Kwea
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
My longest running character was a half elf magic user/thief named Ander (a name which seemed terribly original to me when I created him, something that now seems puzzling to me). I played him for about a decade, playing more weekends than not for probably 6 of those years. He was a lot of fun to play. He developed an interest in zoology, and worked up quite a few manuscripts detailing the gross anatomy of many fantasy creatures, bred his own race of giant spiders, and created tons of new spells and magical devices.
hollow glass sling bullets filled with green slime were among his inventions, but they're one of those things that seem like a much better idea in theory than they do when your character is carrying a pouch full of them, and is jouncing around on horseback.
[ November 17, 2004, 01:23 PM: Message edited by: Noemon ]
Posted by saxon75 (Member # 4589) on :
I don't remember my characters from my early RPG days very well at all. Back then we mostly didn't play using actual gaming systems. One of the counselors at the day care place I went to after school and during the summer--he was in high school, I think 16 years old--did these free-form games with my brother, two of my friends, and me. He was one of the most imaginitive GMs I've ever had (although, in fairness, stuff may have seemed cooler because I was like 8). I don't remember my characters very well, instead I remember the elements of his games, the magic swords (he had the coolest names and stories for all of his magic swords) and pet dragons from the fantasy games, the intelligent computers and space armadas from his SF games. We just called them "Mind Games." My gaming friends and I did those free-form style games all the way through high school.
Come to think of it, I must have done some D&D before the Mind Games, because one of my earlier Mind Game characters was a halfling paladin, and I remember thinking it was really cool that I could be a halfling paladin because D&D didn't let you do that.
Posted by EarlNMeyer-Flask (Member # 1546) on :
My first was just some random fighter with mediocre stats.
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
My first real use of the D&D system was in the SSI Gold Box games. I had this weird habit of making these same two characters for every party I created — two dwarves named Dorfus Major and Dorfus Minor.
[runs off to remake them in TOEE]
[ November 17, 2004, 01:53 PM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
Posted by Eruve Nandiriel (Member # 5677) on :
My first D&D character was Allia, a CN human wizard. She is a real pyro, she'll throw a fireball even at the risk of toasting party members (I got to find out how a fireball works in a tunnel ). She's currently level 6 (it's a slow campaign), and it's amazing she's still alive. Probably because of the intervention of a god-knows-how-many-levels-wizard, who has me marked to use as his next body. Oh, and she's really obsessive about her belongings. She has a chest that's all wizard locked and fire trapped, no one's getting in there.
On the other hand, my brother is about to lose his third character for this campaign. The first got hog-tied, stripped naked, and portalled back to town by his party members. The second got himself turned into a genie, and is now locked in a bottle on a shelf in the wizard school. And the third is halfway to being turned into a vampire.
(edit: stripped naked, THEN hog-tied, and portalled back to town...after I looted all his items )
[ November 17, 2004, 02:04 PM: Message edited by: Eruve Nandiriel ]
Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
Wouldn't you have to strip him naked before you hog-tied him? It would be pretty hard to do otherwise.
*point of curiousity
Posted by Toretha (Member # 2233) on :
My first was a half-elf Bard with LOTS of languages and a tendancy to do weird stuff with spells
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
not if they cut the clothes off of him.
Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
Geoff, you are still playing TOEE? Sweet. I really hope that once Vampire is fully out of the way, Troika gets to make some more DnD games, but it ain't looking good.
I've only played the PC games, starting with Baldur's Gate, but I had some great characters. I'm currently working through TOEE with characters based on the guys in Slash's campaign at Sakeriver.
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
No, actually, I didn't really enjoy TOEE that much But I could see the craftsmanship that went into it, and am still really looking forward to upgrading my hardware so I can fully experience the glory of Vampire: Bloodlines. (It got its first couple of reviews today, by the way — four stars and raves at GameSpy.)
Personally, I'd much rather see Troika move on to their semi-disclosed post-apocalyptic project than any D&D license ...
Posted by Alcon (Member # 6645) on :
Hehe mine was a minor jedi in the West End Games Star Wars RPG. 4th grade. All I remember is a battle on a structure over a huge cliff. I was convinced that our target was hiding in a building this side of the cliff and I rammed might lightsaber into it... the result was rather interesting to say the least *cough* Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
Troika has the Fallout license, right? Or rather, Interplay has it and may have an unholy alliance with their former employees?
[ November 17, 2004, 03:47 PM: Message edited by: TheTick ]
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
I'd describe my first character, but I'm sure Tom would have way more fun doing it.
Hobbes Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
*extremely small voice*
Will someone explain "Dungeons and Dragons"? I really don't have a clue exactly what it is.
*cowers*
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
It's like playing cops and robbers, only you sit still at a table and roll dice so the other guys can't yell "missed me" all the time.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Plus you can have a small, stuffed tiger trail you around.
Hobbes Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
[ November 17, 2004, 04:23 PM: Message edited by: mr_porteiro_head ]
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
Yeah, I "forgot" to mention the mandatory player death and initiation into the dark arts. We generally don't tell people about that until they're second level.
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
Gah!
I give up. It's some sort of role-playing-game where poeple have characters of various magical capabilities and there's a dice involved.
Oh, and something about a stuffed tiger and the dark arts.
EDIT: And everyone's played it but me.
[ November 17, 2004, 04:27 PM: Message edited by: Teshi ]
Posted by twinky (Member # 693) on :
I don't remember my first ten jillion characters. In fact, I only remember a handful of them -- the ones who distinguished themselves by being interesting.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Gotta have a stuffed tiger.
Hobbes Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Teshi, D&D is a role playing game, in which the participants each play a character that they have created. The person who is in charge of the game is referred to as the "Dungeon Master", or "DM". DMs do not themselves play a character in the game. Rather, they act as the narrator, creating the world in which the player's characters exist.
Does that help?
If you'd like to take a look at an example of a very good play by email game of D&D, Slash has one that he's been running for over a year. Here is a link to the archive that contains the earliest turn digests. Start at the bottom and work your way up. When you've read all the links on the page, use the "Select Other Month" picker to advance to the next month.
It's a really fun game, if you're imaginative and a bit of a geek.
[ November 17, 2004, 04:54 PM: Message edited by: Noemon ]
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Hey! You gave after I started my reply, but before I had time to finish it! That's hardly fair!
Posted by Teshi (Member # 5024) on :
Thank you Noemon for your concise explanation that did not contain any dark arts or stuffed tigers.
Glad to help. I hate it when I honestly want to know the answer to a question and no one will give me a straight answer. Not that I'm above coming up with all sorts of funny answers too, of course.
Posted by ephealy (Member # 2219) on :
I got kindof lazy on my first character. In the Red Box Basic Set for D&D, there was an introductory adventure starring a human fighter. I just used him for a long time. My mother was DM, until I got some of the guys in my class involved. We'd watch Hulk Hogan et al beat eachother up, pop in some Black Sabbath, and play some D&D. It was a great time. I can't believe that was so long ago (20+ years).
Posted by sndrake (Member # 4941) on :
My first D&D character was a hobbit thief with a chaotic/neutral character. He experienced rapid advancement on his first adventure when (having passed a note to the dungeon master) he ran away from the rest of the group with all of the loot they'd gotten. They had been foolish enough to entrust him with it.
What I didn't know is that the dungeon master gave me only a one out of eight chance of pulling my heist off. He barely made it out of the dungeon alive going solo.
Eventually, he got killed in an adventure I think I blocked out of my mind. Too painful to recall. Posted by Bean Counter (Member # 6001) on :
My first was Mustang Gambit, a Lawful Fighter, I believe he was crushed by that classic trap the rounded boulder. Then it was Archigracien Saxon a Paladin that fell into a King Arthur type of imperfect King, he died of old age...
Of course like all D&D players I was slowly indoctrinated into devil worship and occult ritual and I use the powers I have gained to steal dice and miniatures.
BC
Posted by Puppy (Member # 6721) on :
quote:Troika has the Fallout license, right? Or rather, Interplay has it and may have an unholy alliance with their former employees?
Actually, Bethesda Softworks (makers of The Elder Scrolls series and the upcoming Call of Chtulhu game) bought the Fallout license from Interplay just as the latter was gulping down its last dying breath. Leonard Boyarsky of Troika has expressed that he wished he had the Fallout license (since most of the key creative staff from Fallout currently works at Troika), but c'est la vie. The Fallout fan community is still solidly behind just about everything Troika does, and clings to the hope that Troika's next project will be a spiritual successor to Fallout.
Posted by TheTick (Member # 2883) on :
You are right, I remember hearing about that. Heck, and I've been checking the Bethesda jobs page and seeing references to it. Posted by Misha McBride (Member # 6578) on :
My first D&D character was a elven thief named Shion. She didn't get much play as the group I made her for broke up soon after. My first real campaign character would have to be Alystii, a dark elf fighter. She was a bit of a Drizzt clone but soon developed her own personality. My current D&D character is an elven thief/mage by the name of Reshana, she's great fun to play. I was amazed at how well the two classes complement each other.
My all time favorite and longest played character would have to be Misha McBride, a dhampir mechwarrior from a hybrid White Wolf/Battletech game.
Posted by Intelligence3 (Member # 6944) on :
quote: a hybrid White Wolf/Battletech game
??
????
!!
Posted by Misha McBride (Member # 6578) on :
It's easier than it sounds. Battletech is based on the expasion of the human race in the year 3050 (give or take 100 years). One can assume that vampires and werewolves and things would still exist, so we can plausibly integrate White Wolf into it. Both games are rather gritty so they meld together quite nicely.
The actual system is pretty easy also. Battletech is primarily a tabletop game, so you simply write up a character using the White Wolf system, use those stats for the roleplaying parts and use Battletech sheets when you want to have a tabletop battle.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
That sounds pretty awesome.
Posted by jexx (Member # 3450) on :
Am I the only one who played a Druid character?
to quote mack--
0_o
Okay, sure, Druids have virtually no power, but they loved the fuzzy critters of the woods and hugged trees. I'm such a tree-hugger. *le sigh*
I only played D&D to draw the pictures and meet guys anyway. How pitiful is that?
Later on, a very "Monty Hall" DM friend caused my Druid to die and be resurrected....as a Drow. A Drow Druid. It was fun AND confusing. I had to constantly roll dice for motive or something.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I've played one druid. He was fairly fogettable, really. I played him as an adult, but I can't remember a thing about him, other than that I didn't play him for very long.
Posted by MaydayDesiax (Member # 5012) on :
My first character was a rogue/warrior who was rather clumsy and stupid.
She nearly died multiple times and shot a baby.
I'm sure Tom, Kat and Hobbes could go into detail. Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I'm playing my first fighter type, a horribly disfigured mongolesque barbarian, in FlyingCow's current PBEM campaign. I'm having a lot of fun playing a character so different from those I usually play.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
MD, I was paying too much attention to phrasing everything I wanted to do in the passive voice to notice anyone else's character, well that and, you know, blending in with the other 6'5", pale thieves.
I still like hearing Tom describe my character, he was may more into it than I was, only the other end of enjoyment abaout it...
Hobbes Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I'll let you know once I finally get to play D&D.
It's a conspiracy I tells ya!
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Bob--you should come up with a character that is from present day Earth, who somehow gets transported into a D&D world! I'm sure any DM would snap that character concept up in an instant!
Seriously, you're welcome to submit a character for the campaign I'm currently brewing.
Posted by MaydayDesiax (Member # 5012) on :
Hehe, it was fun to hear Tom scream out, "SEVEN FOOT TALL MAN!"
Although even better were your smooth replies to everything he said.
[Edit for disgraceful English]
[ November 17, 2004, 08:17 PM: Message edited by: MaydayDesiax ]
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
I dunno. I think I'd like to participate first in a face-to-face game where people don't mind a complete newbie asking questions. I'm clearly missing the point of it all and I really need to learn it first before I just muck up someone else's good time unintentionally.
I tried lurking in one of the e-mail based games, but it was too hard to keep track and, not being in the game, I quickly lost interest.
Posted by Hobbes (Member # 433) on :
Someone has to be the sober ying to Tom's raging yang, and Christy wasn't in the room.
Hobbes Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Well, I completely respect that, but if you change your mind feel free to send me a character (not that I've made public the necessary details of the campaign yet). I certainly won't mind having an inquisitive newbie or two in the group.
Posted by JaimeBenlevy (Member # 6222) on :
Ahhh this game sounds so cool. I want to learn how to play so bad, it really sounds like my kind of game. I just don't where to start and how I'm going to learn all those rules Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
rules? There are RULES!
Noemon...thanks!
Posted by JaimeBenlevy (Member # 6222) on :
I dunno...aren't there?
Posted by The Silverblue Sun (Member # 1630) on :
glowing silver paladin
Posted by Bob_Scopatz (Member # 1227) on :
Your first character was a television inside a ball?
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
I don't remember my first character, but I remember my favorite NPC.
I started DMing shortly after I learned to play. One of the first villians the players ran into was Mendax.
He was a devil, when the game allowed you to play devils. He wanted your soul and made life threatening dungeons to steal them. More often, he told lies and he told truths all to convice people to give in to their dark side.
The Truth was more productive than lies in getting people to turn evil.
He was fun to play.
He showed up in almost every campaign I created after that.
I confused one group for over a year. They were ready for Mendax, but were taken totally by surprise by a guy named Xadnem
Some of my players grew up and played elswhere, taking Mendax with them. He showed up in campaigns in Europe among other places.
He showed up in a play I wrote in College, and a novel I'm working on now.
He's fun.
Posted by Lost Ashes (Member # 6745) on :
Dan, we've had a long running NPC like that. He's been from one campaign to the other, killed, reborn, incinerated and reintegrated.
His name was Quasmo the Odd, and odd he has always been. If there was a plot to be schemed, he was behind the schemers. If there was a war to be fought, he'd be on the sidelines watching from his pavillion. If there was debauchery, he brought the bauch... a real classy guy.
Last he was seen, reincarnated as an opossum and left to fend for himself.
He'll be back some day. Can't wait.
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
I sneak a recurring NPC into all my campaigns. The party never meets him, though, because he always hangs out in a bar on the other side of the game world and never does anything worthy of note. Nor does he have much of a personality. But if he dies, the entire planet will be destroyed through a series of unique coincidences.
By doing this, I resist the urge to put a favorite NPC into any of my games. Posted by Mr.Funny (Member # 4467) on :
My very first character? A human fighter by the name of Bill the Fred. He likes swords. A lot. Think Fighter from nuklearpower comics.
He's actually still around as a 20th level character.
My "main" character at this point in time is an elven ranger by the name of Salogel of Doowkrim.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
![[Evil Laugh]](graemlins/evillaugh.gif)
). She's currently level 6 (it's a slow campaign), and it's amazing she's still alive. Probably because of the intervention of a god-knows-how-many-levels-wizard, who has me marked to use as his next body. ![[Angst]](graemlins/angst.gif)
Oh, and she's really obsessive about her belongings. She has a chest that's all wizard locked and fire trapped, no one's getting in there. ![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
![[Cool]](cool.gif)
![[Grumble]](graemlins/grumble.gif)
![[Eek!]](eek.gif)