The author of this week's new RPG Untamed Worlds, Jack Norris, is here to tell you all about character creation in this game of anthropomorphic sci-fi action...

The Big Ideas 

When I started designing Untamed Worlds, one of my main goals was to make character creation fast and easy, yet evocative and interesting. I wanted players, after they created their United Expeditionary Force (UEF) operative PCs (short for both Player Character and Personal Critter), to have a solid idea of who they were, where they came from, and what their role in their group is. I also wanted the process to be quick and intuitive enough that groups eager to jump in and play could make a few key choices and get started. 
 

An illustration of an octopus in a spacesuit plugged into a high-tech rifle

So, with those goals in mind, I quickly settled on a short “lifepath”-style system using broad strokes and big decisions to quickly and effectively create cool characters across a wide variety of concepts, all within a “space commandos on the frontier” focus. Players would determine the major parts of a character’s life and training, from birth through to deployment as a UEF operative on the wild sci-fi frontier of the Untamed Worlds.

I also wanted a character creation process which (to me at least) brought back feelings of being a kid looking at the data cards and character files on the backs of my various action figures like G.I. Joe, Transformers, and others. As I write this, I’m still smiling remembering just how much personality I gleaned about those toys from just a handful of specialties, weapons, and some concise backgrounds. Sometimes less is more, especially when imagination is in play. I wanted Untamed Worlds to use a similar framework, where a player could explain their character with a few key elements and, in doing so, provide a strong image of their PC. I also wanted each decision to be important enough to how characters played that a few similarities didn’t make everyone feel interchangeable.

An uplifted monitor lizard raised on a UEF training “farm” whose training was as a scout and communications expert should feel immediately unique, even from a crocodile heavy weapons and infantry specialist raised at the same facility – to say nothing of a dolphin soldier raised by a family of marine biologists and trained as a medic and pilot, or a human dissident “volunteered” into the UEF to avoid a lengthy prison sentence and assigned as a squad leader and intelligence officer, or countless other concepts. 

An illustration of a bipedal chimp with a sci-fi visor and military gear, controlling a drone painted like a shark from a hologram on their wrist

Elements of Character Creation

Having determined how Untamed Worlds characters would revolve around a few key choices, I created those elements: heritage, background, primary and secondary specialties. With these decided, most of the character is formed, fleshed out by minor adjustments, character details, and some interesting gear. So what are these elements? Let’s take a look.

Heritage

Heritage is just our way of saying what type of animal (including humans) your character is. These categories are somewhat broad, but there are still a lot to choose from. Want to be a catgirl or gorilla guy? We’ve got you covered. Want to play a lizard woman, fish person, monkey dude, or badgerman? You’re all set. For story and setting reasons, insects and some other animals aren’t allowed, but there are still a lot of options. I like plentiful options in gaming myself, so I try to provide them in the games I create. Even if you’re that weirdo who wants to play a human, you can.

Background

Joking aside, humans are a bit special in the setting. Not better. Just special. This is mostly reflected in unique backgrounds reflecting how a member of the dominant species that usually sends uplifts to handle the dangers of the Untamed Worlds managed to end up in the UEF. This ties into the setting and the stories groups will create through play.

Uplifts share the same three basic backgrounds, but there is still room to customize. A PC raised in a UEF training facility (commonly called a “farm”) will have different formative experiences than one fostered with a human family or raised in one of the “feral” preserves in UEF space. Examples of these backgrounds are provided in the game, but players are encouraged to flesh them out with as much or as little detail as desired.

Specialties

 

After backgrounds and heritage, players select their Primary and Secondary Operational Specialties. These are the roles for which the UEF has trained you and they combine with Heritage and Background to form the core of your character. The specialties are balanced, all providing the same number of Skill boosts and Tricks (Tricks are additional abilities provided by your characters heritage, background and specialty). However, the choices result in greatly different aptitudes. An infantry specialist will be trained in close and ranged combat, athletics, and the basics of skills such as demolitions and the like. A medic will focus on medical skills, related sciences, and even being fit enough to haul their buddies off the field for treatment. Intelligence specialists are better at processing information and trained with certain technology, but they don’t get nearly the weapons training of a sniper or heavy weapons expert. Again, I refer back to my old action figures: not every G.I. Joe or Transformer was a front-line bruiser or stalwart leader, but they all had their places to excel. 

An illustration of a anthropomorphic shark in a spacesuit holding a smoking machine gun

Finishing Touches

After specialties comes some small adjustments and additional choices to flesh out abilities the PC picked outside their major formative experiences. If you haven’t yet, this is also when you’ll figure out your base health and some other derived abilities as well as deciding on a name, rank, and other character elements. 

 An illustration of the components of a disassembled sci-fi pistol

Gear Up…

Then it’s on to grabbing your gear, which is a mix of shopping excursion and making do with what the UEF (in the form of the GM) provides and allows. There are jet packs, various types of armor, numerous weapons, and specialized gear ranging from vehicles to personal robotic assistants. 

... And Ship Out!

And that’s it. You’re ready to serve. I hope to see you out there, fighting to protect the Untamed Worlds.

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Untamed Worlds is out tomorrow in the US and this Thursday in the UK. Order now.

Find character sheets, a quick reference and lore appendices on our gaming resources page.

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