What makes Adventure Maximum unique.

Creating a Character in Adventure Maximum

In this blog post I give insight into how a basic character is created in the Adventure Maximum game system. The Core Rules are universal meaning a character can be from any setting or milieu. They are built by the player using easy to follow steps. To demonstrate this I will use the sample character from the core rules: Grondar the Barbarian.

Start with a Concept: The first step is to start with a basic idea of who the character is. This idea is the bare bones upon which you build the character. For my concept of Grondar I chose a tough barbarian in the style of Conan. 

Choose Tech Level: There are 10 Tech Levels in the game which range from Primitive (TL1) all the way to Far Future (TL10). These mirror the technological advancement of mankind and serve as guidelines for what era a character hails from. Let's make Grondar TL2 (Early Civilization).

Choose Expertise Level: There are 5 levels of Expertise for the game which range from Novice to Legendary. The player may choose the starting Expertise Level of the character based on the input from the WM (World Master) on what is needed for the adventure. For the sake of this exercise I'm going to make Grondar Expert Level.

Decide Attribute Bonuses: There are 13 Attributes in Adventure Maximum which define a character in the game.The average person starts with a Rank of 2 in each attribute. Being of hardier stock than average, an adventurer begins with a Rank 3. At this point the player adds Attribute Bonuses for the character based on his or her Expertise Level. Since Grondar is Expert Level he gets 9 bonus points to be spent on raising his attributes. Keeping in mind his character concept I add Intuition +1, Willpower +1, Strength +3, Dexterity +1, Condition +2, Speed +1.

Choose Skills: There are over 100+ skills in the core rules to choose for your character. These skills reflect knowledge in all 10 tech levels. Grondar gets 25 skills to start the game with, but since he is a Tech Level 2 character, can only select those available for his tech level or lower. Sticking to my concept of a barbarian fighter I choose accordingly until all the skills are selected. These include Sword, Brawling, Riding, Shield, etc.

Determine Skill Ranks: Once you've selected the character's skills it is time to determine the individual Skill Ranks of each. To do this the skills are divided into three categories: Primary, Secondary, Tertiary. By the rules Grondar gets 8 Primary skills, 8 Secondary skills, and 9 Tertiary skills. Based on being Expert Level, he gets +12 bonus to all Primary Skills, +9 to Secondary, and +6 to Tertiary. Each skill has a base value equal to one of the Attribute Ranks. I then decide which of his skills I want to be his Primary ones and add in the +12 bonus to the designated Attribute to get the final Skill Rank. I go through the same process for his Secondary and Tertiary skills until they all have a Skill Rank.

Choose Character Creed: There are six Creeds in the game rules and these define the basic moral structure of the character. They range from Saintly to Diabolical. Sticking with my original character concept I choose Warrior creed for Grondar. He is driven by honor and duty and respects strength in combat.

Round out the Character: The rules cover rounding out a character with such basic statistics as height, weight, starting cash, lift capacity, etc. Grondar is 6'4" tall, weighs 210 pounds of solid muscle and can lift 600 pounds!

At this stage the basic character of Grondar is done. The next step is to embellish the character making him more than just a brute armed with a sword and loincloth.  In Adventure Maximum the player makes the character unique by giving him a personality, buying special abilities, and taking disadvantages. This fleshing out of a character is covered in later blog posts. For now check out the front of Grondar's character record and how it appears in the game.  

For more information feel free to join the Adventure Maximum Facebook page below:

 https://www.facebook.com/adventuremaximum