Many years ago, I remember reading an article in a magazine for

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Not OP, but I want to see this book.

>>51834918
IIRC, character builder's guidebook.

>>51836392
>>51834918
https://www.amazon.com/Builders-Guidebook-Dungeons-Dragons-Roleplaying/dp/0786916478
this?

Could be the miniatures hand book or the phb 2

>>51834918

Kind of related, but I'd argue that there's generally too much pressure on people to be super creative with their backgrounds and class combinations and such when starting up games. It gets overblown, resulting in special snowflakes with contrived stories. You can have a fantastic story emerge from a human dirt farmer.

Though I guess a well-written background can highlight the skill of the writer, so there's a purpose for it in places like roll20.

>no tomboy barbarian elf gf
Why live?

>>51836914

You know people worry about special snowflakes, and I get that I suppose, but they are pc's. They are supposed to be special. Look at any archetypal fantasy work. Are the main characters just typical average people? In many cases the answer is no. There is something special about them. A reason they are the heroes.

The game is a chance to act out your fantasies. People want to be special. People want to be important. They want to be the hero. That's fine. There is nothing wrong with that. That's a large part of what these games are for, so you can play at being the hero and act out your fantasies.

The problem is when players can't get along. A lot of people point at special snowflake characters and say that is the problem. This is not the case. You can have a party of special characters and have a good game. The problem is that people can't coordinate and make sure everyone is having a good time. If you have good players who can get along, work together, and let everyone have their time in the spotlight, then there is no reason you have to have dirt farmer characters.

Dirt farmer characters are not the sign of a good role player. They can be, don't get me wrong, but quite frankly in most cases dirt farmer characters aren't very interesting.

>>51837081
There are really two kinds of special snowflake, is the thing.

There's the person who stands out from the crowd, and there's the person who stands out from the setting. People are more often complaining about the latter.

>>51837140

That is fair. I assumed a base level of competence and an ability to work within the setting, but I suppose that may be setting the bar a little high. Obviously if you get something that flies in the face of reason that is a problem. The question then I suppose, is where do you draw the line?

Lets take >>51836971 as an example. Now lets say, for the sake of discussion, that the elves in your setting are highly cosmopolitan. Fantastic magical cities, art, high culture, etc. Now at face value this character concept, a barbarian elf, would appear to be in conflict with the way elves have been established in the setting.

But, lets say the player came to you with an almost Tarzan like backstory. Parents lost, baby orphaned, and then found by a tribe of barbarians. Say they saved the child and raised it, but eventually the elf babe realized it wasn't like the others. They aged differently, they looked different. They weren't the same, so when they were matured enough they set out to find their own people. Would this be an acceptable backstory? Or too snowflake? I would hear your opinion, and the reasoning behind it, if you wouldn't mind.

>>51837081

Maybe I'm a little jaded. I see something that belongs in a JRPG with fifty charm points and wacky overblown personalities and I just lose any sense of immersion. I see the guy who gripes about humans being boring - and I liken it to pouring a gallon of hot sauce on a pizza because otherwise it's "bland".

The pizza isn't fucking bland, hypothetical guy I'm complaining at, you've just burned your taste buds to charred husks and can't discern simple flavors anymore. You see a fairly typical person brimming with subtle bits of character, style, tastes, and personality, and immediately discard it as trash because there's nothing bombastic that can wretch your attention out of its general apathy. I'm a little mad.

>>51837495

Yes, you are quite jaded, and it shows. I sir, am rather piqued by your assumptions. By no means have I advocated overblown personalities, nor at any point did I state that humans are boring.

I said that Dirt farmer characters are not by default good characters, you fucking twat. Furthermore I did acknowledge that a simple mundane character can be part of an interesting story. I merely pointed out that generally you are more likely to see more heroic characters, and that there is nothing wrong with that.

At no point did I say that those characters couldn't be human. Nor did I condemn nuance. You are literally putting words in my mouth which I at no point said nor intimated. You've allowed yourself to become irritated by an imagined bogey man which exists only in your own head. Your attributing things to me which where nowhere in my post, and frankly I am insulted.

To be perfectly clear, since apparently you are unable to comprehend anything that is not spelled out for you unto minutia, I will elaborate on my earlier point. People want to act out fantasies. Many of these fantasies are informed by heroic stores. Take for example the Lord of the Rings. Its pretty damn Iconic right? Entire generations of role players had their perceptions informed by Lord of the Rings. The Fellowship are not normal individuals. They are by and in large, with the exception of Sam and perhaps Merry and Pippin, special individuals.

They are important. They are generally speaking individuals who stand out considerably. Are they special snowflakes? Do they make you think of JRPG characters with fifty charm points? Do they have wacky overblown personalities? No, they fucking don't.

They are a party of special characters, who have unique stories. They aren't dirt farmers. They're fucking heroes. Some people want to play heroes, and some people want their character to be something more than Joe from down the lane who up and grabbed a sword one day.

>>51837764

'Hypothetical guy' from my scenario was not you. It was a hypothetical person. Any person fitting the trope.

>>51838748

Ah. My apologies.

>>51837264
In a way this is half the backstory of my character.
Orphaned at a young age around 12-15 he was raised by wild elves but realized he will never be the same as them. He can pretend to be but he is different so he went out alone.

So answer your question, yes that is a valid backstory

A shameless bump because I'm interested.

>>51834918
https://dnd.rem.uz/3.5%20D%26D%20Books/Hero%20Builder's%20Guidebook.pdf

probably this