This section gives you a basic understanding of GURPS character mechanics and the creation process. If you are familiar with the system and have created characters in GURPS before, then you can proceed to Character Races to begin building your character.
How Characters are Made
Character creation in GURPS is done through a character-point system where the game master assigns a character-point total, and then you build your character so that it reaches but doesn’t exceed that total. For example, if the game master has directed you to build a 100-point character, you start with a character-point value of zero and add attributes and other traits to your character (which will either increase the character’s point value or decrease it, depending on the trait) until you reach a net value of 100 points. Then, you have a 100-point character. For more details on the GURPS character creation process, see Creating a Character in the GURPS Basic Set (p. B-10).
Although GURPS gives players much more power to customize and build characters to their liking than other games systems, without guidance, it is easy to become lost in the process or create a character that doesn’t fit within the campaign setting. Thus, the character creation sections have been designed to take you through the character creation process step by step so that you can build an appealing character that fits within the Hauther campaign setting. Once you have finished with this introduction, it is best to continue with the following sections in order.
Basic Attributes
In the GURPS system, there are four basic attributes that you consider when building a character: Strength (ST), Dexterity, (DX), Intelligence (IQ), and Health (HT). At the beginning of the process, all characters begin with a score of 10 in each basic attribute, and then they may be changed either by racial templates or by the player. Each ±1 change in the score for ST or HT increases or decreases the character point value by 10, whereas each ±1 change in DX or IQ increases or decreases the character point value by 20. The reason for the difference is that nearly all of the skills in the GURPS system are based on the DX and IQ attributes, making them more valuable. Refer to the GURPS Basic Set (p. B-14) for more details on basic attributes.
How many points to devote to the basic attributes of your character and when to do it during the creation process is up to you. While all attributes are important to every type of character, you may wish to increase one or two of your character’s key attributes in the beginning, and then add some more later if you have some points to use. Which attributes are key to your character depends on the type of character you want to create. You can find which attributes are more important in Character Archetypes section.
Secondary Characteristics
Secondary characteristics are the traits of your character that are dependent on one or more of the basic attributes. For example, how much weight your character can lift and how much damage your character does with a muscle-powered weapon depends on your character’s ST score. On the other hand, traits like your character’s perception ability or willpower depends on your character’s IQ. Even though secondary characteristics are dependent on the scores of the basic attributes, you can use points to adjust them as well. For example, your character may not be very intelligent, but you can spend points to make your character very good are noticing things. Refer to the GURPS Basic Set (p. B-15) for the complete list of secondary characteristics and costs to adjust them.
Character Templates
As noted above, without guidance, creating a character in the GURPS system for a specific campaign can result in characters that don’t fit within the setting or characters that don’t make sense. One way of guiding character creation in GURPS is through the use of character templates. These templates are attribute modifications, advantages, disadvantages, skills, and other traits that are grouped together in one package. You can think of them as a little bit like character races and character classes used in other gaming systems. The advantage of such templates over traditional character classes as found in other game systems is that you have more options and control of your character.
When you select a template for your character, you apply all of the traits listed within the template to your character and then add the character points to your character’s total. Some traits or modifications within the template may be required, while some others are optional. Depending on the template, you can apply more than one template to your character, mixing and customizing to your liking.
Racial and Archetypal Templates
There are various kinds of templates used in GURPS, but the two used in the character creation process here are racial templates and archetypal templates. A racial template is a group of attribute adjustments or abilities that come as part of being a particular race. Typically, you can choose only one racial template for your character. If mixed-race characters are possible in the game setting, then typically separate templates are created for such characters. It is usually best to apply racial templates to your character first, even before adjusting basic attributes, as the racial modifiers become the foundation for all other choices you make for your character.
Similar to racial templates, archetypal templates are a group of adjustments or skills that come as being a particular archetype, most often referred to as character classes in other gaming systems. Some archetypal templates may be similar to character classes, such as a wizard or warrior; others may be closer to a profession, such as a blacksmith or scribe; and yet others may be closer to character background, like being raised in Casperia or in the outlands. There is no end to the kinds of archetype templates you can add to your character so long as they don’t have conflicting requirements or restrictions and you have the points available to apply them. As explained above, many traits or skills for the archetype may be required or optional, but most often they require you to determine how many character points to spend in a particular skill, giving you more control of your character creation and more variety over the final template cost.
Working Outside of the Archetypal Template
One of the great aspects of this character creation process is that you aren’t confined to what is in an archetypal template or even required to use one at all. While you can go through the character creation process on your own, it is better to select a template and then add individual skills or traits to your character to make it as you want. For example, if you wish to create a wizard who is also a pistoleer, either you can choose both of the templates and apply them to your character, or you can choose one and apply a few skills from the other. On the other hand, if you wish to make a warrior who can cast spells, you can choose a warrior template and then simply add the appropriate magic advantages and spell skills to the character. There are so many ways to create the character you envision. However, the potential problem with this method is creating a character that is incomplete (meaning the character doesn’t have skills that the it should logically have) or a character that doesn’t fit into the campaign setting. Therefore, caution should be used and the guidance of the game master should be followed.
Where to Go from Here
From here, you can move on to next section, Character Races. Read through the available player-character races, and then select one for your character. Once you apply the template to your character, then you can move on to Character Archetypes. Here you can see the various types of player-characters available for gameplay. In some cases, you can choose more than one template. Then you can move on through the next few sections, Advantages and Disadvantages, Skills, Equipment, and finally Bringing It all Together. By the time you have finished this chapter, you will have a complete character ready for gameplay within the Hauther setting.