So what are you waiting for? Sit down with a pen and paper and outline your character’s entire past right down to what they had for breakfast the morning before their mom’s birthday 6 years ago! This in turn will help your DM create more interesting plot hooks and encounters which will create a cycle of awesomeness for your DnD Campaign. Whether you are laughing at the hero making a bad decision, crying that a character you loved has died, or angry at the villain of the story, these emotions have brought you closer to the story and have caused you to become invested.Ĭreating a character backstory allows you to feel your character’s emotions and become invested in their story.

If you think back to any form of fiction or non-fiction you’ve truly loved, you will find that it is because the creators of that piece have made you feel emotions. Knowing how your character will react to certain situations is crucial for building a character that is more deep than “go here, kill that”. Why is a Character Backstory Important?Ĭharacter backstories are so important because they give a player a baseline for their actions. It is the events that have transpired in their past that have shaped everything about them, all the way down to their appearance. In my opinion, a character’s backstory will dictate their bonds, ideals, flaws, and personality traits. I also disagree with the approach of splitting a character’s traits, bonds, flaws and appearance away from their backstory. I personally don’t like the way WotC has approached the character backstory on their official sheets. Seems simple enough, right? Well, actually it is, but I think we can do a lot better. The official WotC Character Sheet has a couple of different sections that delve into a character’s motivation. A backstory tells the tale of your hero as they grew up and became the adventurer they are today. Having established character backstories is a crucial part for any DnD campaign, whether it’s one of the published D&D Adventures or a homebrewed campaign.ĭownload Character Backstory Template What is a Character Backstory?Įvery DnD character has a story, even before the campaign starts.

What does an Effective Character Backstory Look Like?.

Why is a Character Backstory Important?.

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