Concepts are an optional component of character creation – only use them if they interest you. A concept is a general personality type or set of motivations you can build a character around – whether that be for roleplaying, selecting skills, or determining your relationships with your team. They’re intended to be open-ended and allow for variation. Furthermore, if none of them suit your needs, feel free to design your own.
NURTURER
There’s nothing like the feeling of knowing others are happy because of what you do. You want people to be more than okay, more than content – life is hard enough without adding to their woes – and you are very good at looking out for bumps in the road ahead. This doesn’t make you soft; some nurturers would rather gnaw their own limb off than admit taking care of others makes them happy, but it does mean you have a bad habit of helping others before helping yourself.
Questions to ask yourself
- How much does reciprocity and acknowledgement matter to you?
- Does it bother you when someone else refuses your help?
- What do you do when you need help?
GLORY-SEEKER
You want to be remembered, for good or ill, for boldness, for doing what others will not, could not, cannot, and you want everyone to know about it. You picked the right profession, to be sure, a Hand is often rewarded for ambition. But this gives you a sometimes unhealthy obsession with what other people are doing and ways you can out-do them. Be careful you don’t get yourself lost in the Threads in your eagerness to make a name for yourself.
Questions to ask yourself
- What kind of victories matter to you?
- What are you willing to give up in order to pursue your ambitions?
- Is there anyone in particular you’re trying to better than?
CHARMER
You like it when others like you…a lot. Maybe too much? But it rarely gets you into trouble and sure gets you out of it and it’s certainly a better alternative to violence. You know in your heart of hearts, you’re not looking for peace, you’re looking for attention, but you have so much fun trying to figure others out and how to make them smile.
Questions to ask yourself
- How do you want others to see you?
- Does this matter more than how you want to see yourself?
- Does having your actual self be perceived terrify you?
PROTECTOR
You are going to get through this, you hear? Whether it’s one person or everyone you meet, you’re determined to keep others safe and/or sane. You are a wall, a guard, a very big and determined problem if someone wants to mess with your chosen charge. This may come from a very strong set of morals, obsession, spite – the potential reasons are endless. But no matter what else happens, you’re not giving up until the danger is gone. Sometimes not even then.
Questions to ask yourself
- Do you want them to know how you feel?
- Is this a weakness or a strength?
- What will or won’t you do to keep your oath?
SCRAPPER
You’re not necessarily angry all the time, but you probably are. Regardless of what got you here, you really like solving problems physically. Whether it’s roughhousing with friends or throwing the first punch when you think someone’s looking at you funny, you probably get yourself into a ton of trouble by not thinking before you start shit. Perhaps it’s all a big misunderstanding, perhaps you make sure to save it for your enemies, but when it comes time to act (or even before that point), you’re all in. Biting and kicking.
Questions to ask yourself
- What really gets your goat?
- How has this worked out for you?
- How much do you think you can suppress it versus how much you actually do?
JESTER
You like making people – including yourself – laugh and there’s no amount of pride that’s worth missing an opportunity to do so. How you go about this varies wildly – not every jester is an out-and-out prankster. You could possess an incredibly dry wit, always have the right comeback, or know how to lighten a tense moment. What matters is why you’re making people laugh and if you’re punching up or down.
Questions to ask yourself
- Who are your usual targets? Do you count as one?
- Is the laughter joyful or is it a weapon?
- Are there times when humour isn’t appropriate? Where do you draw those lines?
COLLECTOR
Stuff, stuff, stuff! You enjoy having it – either you’re a maximalist at heart or your interests are more targeted – and few things make you happier than being surrounded by things you like. You could be an indiscriminate taker of things, but you usually have a reason for what you’re grabbing. Is it shiny? Is it meaningful? Do you know just the perfect place for it?
Questions to ask yourself
- Does it matter if the stuff you want belongs to someone else?
- Where did you develop your interests?
- How have your interests changed over time?
DAREDEVIL
You’re alive and it’s awesome, but even more awesome is finding new ways to almost not be alive. Heck, as a Hand, you can explore all kinds of fun and thrilling ways to die and come back and do it again. You might be the first to volunteer for something dangerous or you have very specific ways you enjoy courting death, combat or hobbies or exploration, for example. It’s not the only motivation you have for what you do or even the strongest, but it’s definitely one of them.
Questions to ask yourself
- How much are you willing to put others at risk?
- Are you impulsive or do you prefer to plan your feats?
- Does the story afterwards matter more or less than the deed itself?
MANAGER
Someone’s got to handle logistics, and you derive a lot of satisfaction from doing so. You know any task will go off-course without understanding the group’s needs and limitations – it’s not so much you want to be in charge as you want to keep things from going poorly. All right, maybe you like being in charge a little or a lot, but in your heart, you just want to make sure things don’t fail before they begin.
Questions to ask yourself
- Just how many lists do you have?
- Are you any good at delegation?
- How do you react when plans change?
INVENTOR
Perhaps you should be labeled an optimist, because there’s always a solution for any problem. You may not know what it is yet, but you know it’s out there and you can discover it. Trying and trying until you’ve got it is just your way of life and failure spurs you on as you get ever-closer to the answer. You may prefer getting hands-on with gadgets or more theoretical but what you’ll never do is give up.
Questions to ask yourself
- Do you prefer to push the limits of existing disciplines or discover new ones?
- Do you get bored once the problem’s been solved or are there always ways to improve?
- Can your impulses ever cause you to step on someone else’s plans?
SKEPTIC
It’s never hurt anyone to be wary and it’s a perfectly rational way of approaching all the strangeness that’s entered your world over the last decade. Perhaps you wonder what’s really causing all this or are more focused on immediate issues, but at the heart of a skeptic is a desire for answers. You need proof before you’ll make a decision or make up your mind.
Questions to ask yourself
- Do you require yourself to provide proof to others?
- How does this colour your approach to emotional responses and other areas where evidence may not apply?
- How high are your standards and do you meet them yourself?
HOMEBODY
Why did you put on that Ring? Everyone would consider you the last person to ever seek adventure or strangeness in the Worlds, but here you are. You may be cheerful or grumbly about it, but the best thing to you is a cozy home and all that entails. Perhaps keeping that home safe is what got you out here, after all.
Questions to ask yourself
- Were you pressured into doing this?
- Is there something or someone you’re trying to protect?
- How do you keep to your routine on the road?
LONER
Some people enjoy solitude; others have it thrust upon them. For whatever reason, you tend to spend a lot of time by yourself. But even the strongest Hand has to work with others sometimes, and your turn is up. What prompted you to choose *this* group of people? How do you connect with them, if at all? What are you seeking out in the Worlds?
Questions to ask yourself
- Why work with a cohort?
- Are you trying to change who you are or reinforcing it?
- What sort of accommodations do you need when working with others?