accomplishedThe Friday night gamers arrived around 7:00 pm or so. After we caught up with life for about 10 minutes or so, everyone gathered around the gaming table/area, and we got down to business. I started off by talking to the players about the game world, giving them an overview of everywhere and some of the important elements of the game, and explained to them the basic game mechanics. After answering some questions the players had, more than I expected to be honest, we got down to the character generation process. This initial step of character creation took a little over an hour, and was time well spent, though I was feeling a little bit hoarse. (Good thing I had some Ricola cough lozenges on hand.)
I went through an overview of the process of character creation, and the players were a bit intimidated, but said that it sounded a bit simpler than the Life Path system they've done for other games (notably Atlantis: The Second Age), though they felt that since it was science fiction, it would be more mathematical.
Suffice it to say, the evening was an interesting one, with the players having a good time of character creation. The players have an interesting mix of characters, to be sure.
*****
Kathy - Kathy came into the game knowing a little bit about what she wanted to play, and she got it. A bit against her usual stereotype. She created Olandria Cariolis, a Diplomat from the Coral Republic who's just learned something that she shouldn't have, and is about to go potentially on the run. (From who...is another question.)
Angela - After a bit of pondering and talking to the others, Angela settled on playing Hagga Franklin, a young woman from the slums of Equinox who has become a technical expert with mechanical devices (Technician/Mechanic). She's got her secrets too, and is currently looking for a way off Equinox, since she's got a bit of wanderlust.
DavidM - Looking over the list of Professions, and after talking with the other players, David decided rather quickly on Argent Halley, a Smuggler born in the Mediterranean Union, with a few interesting pieces in his "collection" and a few enemies (one of whom may have it in for both Kathy's Olandria and Angela's Hagga. Should be an interesting character.
Ellie - Ellie is one of the players who's growing up quickly, and she decided early in the process (after hearing about the Polaris Effect) that she wanted to play a use of said power. Ellie created Hannah Shavewater, a mid-teen girl from Myrtis (in the Mediterranean Union?), who was found washed up on some sub-sea rocks by a Watcher. Recognising the girl's potential, he brought her to Equinox and the Cult of the Trident. She shows promise with the Polaris abilities, but her training isn't complete. And she's got some gaps in her memories about stuff. She's made a deal with Argent Halley to look into who she is, and where she comes from.
Mark - Mark never fails to intrigue me with his character types, and this time out was no surprise. In consultation with Kathy, he created Efron Martiss, a Mercenary from the Red League who's been hired by someone (and is being paid a good price) to see to it that no harm befalls Kathy's character, Olandria.
*****
The players finished creating their characters after about 4-1/2 hours of working together (including about an hour of learning about the game world and asking all manner of questions), and have merely to finish up the equipment and gear for the characters at the start of next week.
When we were finishing up, the players commented that it was a thoroughly enjoyable "game session" and that they loved the pseudo-Life Path system and weren't at all intimidated by the math of the character creation process. They did add that they found some of the game concepts odd, but felt that this was because of the game's European origins and heritage.
Overall, an interesting group of player characters created by the Friday nighters. I was rather impressed at how well the characters worked together at creating their group of characters too, and there's some neat links and connections there that I'm looking forward to exploring in the campaign game.
If anyone has any questions about the character creation process for the Polaris RPG, please don't hesitate to ask. :)