What questions have you heard or been asked that really got you thinking about your character? Not the basic ones that you answer out of obligation, no, I mean the ones you hear and then REALLY want to know the answer to.
These are subjective opinions, but mine are:
1. Why did your character become an adventurer?
Others:
Where did your character come from?
What do they HATE?
What do they casually enjoy doing most?
I personally like to leave family questions at least a little bit open ended to give the GM some toys to play with and also so I don't lead myself into the MY PARENTS ARE DDEEEEAAAADDDDDDD trap. It's a DC 20 trap, and my will save is terrible.
Questions about childhood make my eyes glaze over. I figure that out much, much later.
So, what are your favorite questions?
What events in a characters life shaped them so heavily that they would be okay sleeping on a corpse so that no one can get to the loot until they get a chance first?
How has their interactions with authority before the events of the story dictate their current interactions with the captain of the guard on where to find illegal drugs?
What is the motivation and drive that leads a character forward to adventure and how does this apply to their habit of killing unconscious enemies consistently while people are fighting and dying around them?
These are questions that truly intrigue me.
One of those ones that perhaps shouldn't be read over literally but:
Why would a [race] become a [class]? Race is definitely replacable by a nationality, or culture. But the general point is that there is presumably some social construction which led a character to develop their particular talents. Be it before, or after, they decided that risking their life was a good living.
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This is the first question that I always ask myself before building any of my characters:
What is the character's defining philosophy? What is the one viewpoint that encapsulates how the character views the broader world around him/her?
I don't really care too much about talents or backstory at first; I've found that those tend to write themselves once I get a clear sense of who the character truly is, and I feel that for me, there's nothing more defining about a character than his central world view.
If I have no particular character in mind, just a build, my usual go to is something like: "My character build specializes in X, Y, and Z: What kind of man would have developed this skill set and do such things?"
My favorite questions to help me develop my characters...
What don't they know about themselves?
What part of themselves are they afraid of?
One thing that I would like to point out, "My parents are dead!" is not such a terrible trap and can be used for good effect.
For example, one of my characters has a mother who has her own backstory that I created, only to make it so that she was dead in my character's background story (father still alive). The news of her death is what caused her emotional breakdown and awakening of her sorcerous abilities, and since the one who brought the news seemed to either not know the circumstances or not willing to share them, it gave her the motivation to become an adventurer.
In addition, it also becomes a plot hook that the DM can create. Maybe she died investigating the very same thing that she finds herself now involved in, and thus has a more personal motivation to see it through. Maybe she discovered a secret conspiracy in the city she worked for and was silenced.
Basically, as long as you tie it together right, I think it's fine to fall into that trap, just so long as you have feather fall prepared so you don't take the fall damage.
Why do i want to make this character?
"What keeps your character from retiring on the fortune they've amassed at level 3"
"What keeps your character from retiring on the fortune they've amassed at level 3"
That's usually been my biggest question - why in the hell would they keep doing this, especially when they've amassed in a couple of months what most wealthy elites take a lifetime to earn? Why a character would keep going in such a hazardous profession truly shapes the rest of who they are, whether it's for love, money, redemption, or the lolz.
Where's their line? What wouldn't this person do - what would they feel obliged to prevent?
I GM more than I play, and that means lots of villain-building. Knowing the boundaries of what they consider acceptable makes them behave more realistically, can make for interesting and even sympathetic moments when they realise that they can't do something they've set out to do, and can make for fabulous moments of villain upstaging when they encounter a villain that can do things they can't - for reasons of personality as much as power.
"In (situation X) what would this person do? Why? Why not (Y) instead? How would they do it? What if they were told there was no choice, and it was only (Z)?"
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With one's parents or guardians alive, what even pushed someone over the edge to the point of no return? If one's parents are dead, how did it happen, and how does it influence one's motives?
While I mainly play PFS, I try to have some sort of even that deems leaving one's hometown to find redemption, a better thrill, or better understanding of how or why they did something.
(Example) Arthus Pithammer - A dwarf born to a middle class family in Maheto seemed to have pretty much everything a dwarf could hope for when growing up. His family had both parents alive and well, with three brothers and a sister running the family trade store. Some guards in the town though had taken it upon themselves to ostracize the crippled in town. While Arthus generally paid no attention for the most part, as he thought most of those with disabilities should be shunned or ousted, something snapped one day when he saw these same guards tormenting his younger sister. Once he regained consciousness at one of the city's many temples, the stout dwarf was informed that he would either have to face trial or leave without a trace, for the murder of four guards with his bare hands.
The question that usually inspires me to develop a PC is "What does he want?"
"What is this characters retirement plan?"
"Does this character want a family?"
"Has this character become good because they are intrinsically good (thus, will likely stay that way) or because they were raised that way and left because of it (thus, may slide towards evil)"
Why do i want to make this character?
i should i emphasize the this i meant this question in regards to other possible characters.
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As someone who runs and plays APs, I start with the players guide. I ask myself what kind of person would be driven by this type of campaign. What themes would be interesting to explore. It flows from there.
Traveller is the opposite I usually have no idea what my character will look like until I start rolling. Even then Traveller's lack of leveling allows you to really explore the character through play. Its a different experience and I love it which is why I'm not a one system for everything chap.
As someone who runs and plays APs, I start with the players guide. I ask myself what kind of person would be driven by this type of campaign. What themes would be interesting to explore. It flows from there.
That's frequently my process as well - I love the player guides for that. I love Paizo's background generator for when I'm having trouble bringing an idea together as well. Sometimes it gives me the last little detail or two I need to get a good concept rolling.
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Why did I become this class and how does this effect me?
Almost every oracle I've played has a large part of their backstory revolve around their curse.
Why am I adventuring?
I have (likely) over 100 gold most people not in big cities live on coppers a week. Why am I not living the high life why am I going out murderhoboing?
Lawful?
Remember that lawful people don't always have to be someone who follows the actual laws they can be people who follow their own code of honor. By deciding on this and writing up a set of laws for yourself it can spell out their entire philosophy on life and thus you can extrapolate their backstory from it
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Does this codpiece properly cover my thunder? Do I wear something underneath it?
As a GM, my goal is less about the reasons, and more about the how.
When I have people make characters, before they are allowed to tell me their class, their race, or anything, I begin by asking them how they would handle a situation as their character.
"You're trapped in a dark room, there are no visible lights anywhere, although you think you might be seeing a glow from above, as if there was a window several feet above your head that had been boarded shut. What do you do?"
"You're in a dark alley on your way home, when up ahead, you see the hulking silhouette of a rather large humanoid ahead of you, wielding what appears to be a giant hammer... what do you do?"
"You're trekking across the wilderness in an unknown part of the world, when you come across a gaping chasm in the ground. You need to get to the other side according to your maps, how do you circumvent the obstacle?"
These tell me more than a sheet does. And, it tells them what abilities would best be taken at character creation. And oddly, almost no 2 answers are the same.
As a GM, my goal is less about the reasons, and more about the how.
When I have people make characters, before they are allowed to tell me their class, their race, or anything, I begin by asking them how they would handle a situation as their character.
"You're trapped in a dark room, there are no visible lights anywhere, although you think you might be seeing a glow from above, as if there was a window several feet above your head that had been boarded shut. What do you do?"
"You're in a dark alley on your way home, when up ahead, you see the hulking silhouette of a rather large humanoid ahead of you, wielding what appears to be a giant hammer... what do you do?"
"You're trekking across the wilderness in an unknown part of the world, when you come across a gaping chasm in the ground. You need to get to the other side according to your maps, how do you circumvent the obstacle?"
These tell me more than a sheet does. And, it tells them what abilities would best be taken at character creation. And oddly, almost no 2 answers are the same.
This is a really great approach! I'll have to remember this next time I'm working on characters with anyone.