- 1). Talk with the Dungeon Master of your game to see if there are any restrictions on the type of character that you can create. Some DMs may have a specific type of game in mind where certain character classes or races won't fit in well, or they may wish to restrict other aspects of character creation to help fit into the game's back story. If you've been having problems trying to decide what type of character to create, your DM may be able to give you helpful suggestions as well. Remember that the DM must approve your character before you can use it in the game, so take to heart any limitations that the DM gives.
- 2). Choose a race for your character. In addition to giving a basic look to your character, the race that you choose will affect your character's statistics, skills and feats. The races available in the Fourth Edition Dungeon & Dragons Player's Handbook are Human, Dwarf, Dragonkin, Elf, Half-Elf, Eldarin, Halfling and Tiefling. Each race provides its own benefits, drawbacks and flavor to the character that you create; refer to Chapter 3 of the Player's Handbook to read in-depth information about each race and make your decision.
- 3). Determine a class for your character. Your character's class is essentially the job that your character has and will not only determine the type of weapons and armor that you can use, but will also be the basis for the majority of your character's skills and abilities. The classes available in the Player's Handbook are Cleric, Fighter, Rogue, Paladin, Wizard, Ranger, Warlord and Warlock; Clerics, Wizards, Warlocks and, to a lesser extent Paladins, are all able to use some form of magic-related abilities, while Fighters, Warlords, Rangers and Rogues rely more on their physical attributes. Consult Chapter 4 of the Player's Handbook to help you decide on the class that will bring your character to life with the abilities that you want them to have.
- 4). Generate your character's statistics using four six-sided dice. Check to find out if the DM has a specific way he prefers players to generate stats; the most common method is to roll the four dice and add up the three highest totals (for a maximum possible roll of 18.) You will be generating six different statistics this way... Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, Wisdom, Intelligence and Charisma. Add any modifiers that you might gain from your race to the results of your roll. Chapter 2 of the Player's Handbook offers additional information on generating statistics if you need help.
- 5). Select your character's skills, feats and powers. Skills are general abilities that all characters are able to use, and by placing points in these skills you will be able to add a modifier to your dice rolls when attempting to use specific skills in the game. Feats are more specialized abilities that can grant stat bonuses or special means of attack or defense, and you must select a feat for your character before it can be used. Powers are class-specific abilities such as spells or combat techniques that must be chosen to be used. You will gain additional skill points, feat slots and powers as you play the game and increase in level. Information on all of the skills are in Chapter 5 of the Player's Handbook, and feats are in Chapter 6. Chapter 4 lists the powers by class.
- 6). Purchase equipment for your character from the equipment listing in Chapter 7. Your DM should help you to determine how much money you have available to buy equipment, and the DM may offer additional equipment options (or, in some cases, restrict the equipment that you can buy) depending on what the DM wants to allow in the campaign. Your equipment includes everything from the armor and weapons that you use and any magic items that you have to common items such as food, sleeping bags and any animals that you might own such as a horse.
- 7). Select your alignment (Lawful, Good, Unaligned, Evil, Chaotic), which is basically how your character behaves and views the world. Your alignment will determine which god your character might worship and can also affect everything from your character's back story to how other characters and non-player characters will treat them.
- 8). Using the statistics of your character, your feats and any armor or weapons that you have, fill out the rest of your character sheet. The sheet should show you how to calculate the remaining values such as Hit Points, Armor Class, attack and defense bonuses, and savings throws. You can find more information on how to calculate these final values in Chapter 2 of the Player's Handbook.
- 9). Finish creating your character by determining a back story for them and trying to give them additional details that make them into more than just a set of statistics on a piece of paper. Treat your character like a character in a story; view him as a part of a thriving world full of danger and adventure so that you can get the most enjoyment out of the game and add to the enjoyment of the other players and the DM, as well.
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