The First Steps

In order to become a high functioning player in my world, it's important to understand the world you are stepping into. I will attempt to list out some of the important steps you should take before even considering stepping into Gaia as a PC, but I'm sure I'll miss something.

It's important to not expect to be perfect and to know everything, after all, that's what D&D is about: exploring! The references below will just be a good base for you to use and draw on when in session or over the course of the sessions you are apart of.

1. Read and accept the Rules

2. Read and understand the high level events of the past History of Gaia

3. Understand the Continents and major conflicts on the one or ones you will be on

4. Read the sections below on creating characters that feel like they live in the world and are interesting to play for long periods of time

Before You Start

Before you set out to create the character of your dreams, there a few things that you should know about my world and the way I run my sessions.

1. I only run long term campaigns. These span months to years and are comprised of at least three arcs ranging anywhere from 8-13 sessions. Make sure your characters are interesting!

2. Your character will become cannon in my world. You will literally be etching your legacy into history for other characters to explore and experience, so keep that in mind.

3. I tend to organize my stories into arcs. Each arc has a larger theme it surrounds and any one session in it is a step in achieving the larger goal. Most of my arcs are centered around exploring the backstories you have written.

4. Expect your backstory to matter. Really spend some time developing out your backstory so that I have enough to go on and bring up thematically later on. Time spent here allows you to reap a lot of benefits later.

5. Roleplay is everything. Roleplay and interplayer dialogue runs my sessions. After all, you control the direction of things, so speaking and learning about your party members is crucial.

6. I run an open world. Your decisions matter and shape the world around you, so don't take that lightly. There are a lot of benefits and great aspects of open worlds, but they can also be a double edged sword. Be prepared to want to explore and sometimes stumble into your next adventure!

7. Multi-classing is allowed and encouraged starting after level 5. You may choose up to one additional class to serve as your multi-class and level it and your main class as you see fit!

8. You can use non-cannon based material (like Unearthed Arcana) as long as it's ran by me first and you are okay with things being balanced if needed down the line.

9. I homebrew a lot. So if you have an idea, run it by me. Whether it be a class, an item, a starting point, whatever, let me know and we can work it out.

Creating Your Character

I am going to attempt to outline the common path taken when players sit down to make their characters in my world. You don't have to follow this order, I just find that it's the most common.

Starting With A Good Idea

A good character, in my opinion, starts with a good idea you want to explore. Identify aspects of the 5e system you like, mechanics you can see yourself enjoying playing, and start there. If you like spell casting, don't be a barbarian. If you like healing and support, don't choose to be a rogue. You get the drill.

Once you identify what core ideals or play style you want your PC to have, then you can move on to solidifying that in the form of your class.

Picking A Class

Once you have the central mechanics solidified, move on to finding the class that best suits your interests. Classes are important because they inform the not only how you perform in combat and what role you will fill, but it also determines the important stats in your sheet which impacts the way you can RP and the skills and proficiencies you start with.

It's crucial that you get this right, so really spend time making sure the class is cool with what you want to do and you can foresee playing this character in some form or another for a long time. You can flavor things over time that change certain parts of your PC and play style, but the core can never change.

Once you have that nailed down, that will inform you of a race you may want to choose. Of course this doesn't have to be the case, but in my experience this is the typical order.

Picking A Race

You can be any race that is supported by the official D&D 5e source books, or any non-cannon race as long as it's cleared with me in advance. A lot of times, the race you choose will have certain benefits that may complement your class, so keep that in mind. Of course, if you just want to pick a race because it interests you, go for it!

There are certain races in my world that have stigmas attached to them, or are extinct, so make sure you ask if you're unsure!

Picking A Starting Location

A lot of times, depending on the race, you can live anywhere in the world. So my advice is to look at the map and the continent you're starting at, get to know the history of it and the topography and geography and choose what interests you and the backstory you want to have. If you choose a race that requires a certain part of my world, you will be told once I am made aware of the race decision, and I am usually very willing to bend the rules for you should that be required.

If you have any concerns or questions about the world and its locations, reach out and we can talk. Chances are I have all the answers you may need, and more.

Crafting A Good Backstory

A good backstory is tough to describe, but when you see it, you just kind of know. The idea behind the backstory is to provide enough dimension to your character and give you a strong foundation to build on, but should not shoehorn you into acting certain ways or strictly dictate the direction of your character. It's truly an art to get the balance right, but you want to write just enough to be "living in the world" but not too much to where I have no room to add stuff to surprise you later on when we explore it in an arc.

I find that the more work and thought you put into this, the better off you are and the more fun you'll have down the line. I recommend spending most of the character creation time in this part of the process and reaching out to me frequently to get information or questions answered. This is going to stick with you for the length of the campaign, so make sure you're happy with it!

The Rest

After this, all you have left are the ideals, flaws, and bonds of your PC and the starting equipment. This kind of stuff is pretty easy, but I allow for custom, homebrew versions of all these so reach out if there's something you want to add that comes from your backstory.

Make Characters To Have Fun, Not To Win

There comes a time in every players D&D life where they get the urge to build the most min/max character they can. I encourage you, if you have these desires, to seriously rethink going down this path because it can throw off party dynamics and make things unfun for others and yourself.

Instead, make a character that you would want to explore and live in for months and years at a time. Don't fret so much about having an 11 intelligence score, or not having a +9 to hit. If you run with the punches and just design a realistic, balanced PC, I promise you will have fun, probably even more than if you min/max.

I find that characters that have these weaknesses and quirks make them more pleasurable to play with and be around. Sometimes being that guy with the broken PC is just annoying and not a good time.

Actions Have Consequences

Everything in my world can be boiled down to actions and consequences. This is at the core of my decision making as a storyteller, the driving force behind the dynamic nature of my world, and the reason why sessions and stories have meaning! I take seriously what you as a player or group do in the world, and my players can tell you that you never know when something will pop up again.

As a result, it's important to factor in the consequences of your actions before carrying them out. Of course, this is a fantasy world so the consequences aren't real in the sense that they won't affect your real life, but I do my best to make sure your player feels these consequences on the scale proportional to the actions that cause them. I think this kind of thing is a necessary evil to keep things interesting and to keep chaos in check during sessions. After all, I keep an open world where you can do literally anything, and so the only way I have to keep things in check is to ramp up the consequences.

Now, I am not a stickler for everything that happens having consequences, but certain things will come back to bite you. Choose not to explore that cave? Great, in 20 sessions, when you return to that area, the cave is overrun by goblins and the nearby town is under occupation. Choose to kill that innocent merchant to take their cart? Sweet, a bounty is now placed on your head and a bounty hunter is after you. These kinds of things are great ways to make sure you think about what you do before you do or don't do things.

Don't Be Afraid To Change

While things like class and ability scores are pretty static, the way you RP and interact with the world can change with ease. If you think the direction of your character needs to change, let me know and I will do whatever is required thematically to achieve that end with you.

The greatest control you have over your character are the actions and decisions they make. This is your greatest agency, so if you feel like things are getting away from what you envisioned, I encourage you to use this power to get things back on path. This, coupled with my thematic weaving, can conquer almost any gripes or friction you may be feeling.

Communication Is King

Whether in game or out of game, communicating how you feel to me and the other players will go a long way in ensuring the longevity of the group and the level of enjoyment you feel.

I frequently ask for feedback, but if you have any concerns between those times, please reach out. Having fun is the most important thing!