To play [[Breaking Worlds]], you take on the role of a character within the setting - an adventurer in the town of [[Fiveways]]. 
The kind of character you play is up to you. You can be a soldier or a pacifist, a priest or a scholar, a revolutionary or a reactionary, and many more things besides. We encourage you to use your imagination and consider what you will have the most fun playing.

It is important to think about how your character fits into the setting of Breaking Worlds, and what abilities you want them to have. With this in mind we have created a guide here to creating a character for the game. If you are new to LARP, we recommend going through it in order.

=== Choose an origin ===

Every journey starts somewhere. Player characters in Breaking Worlds were all at least born human, but they can have any of the following origins:
* [[Arginet|Arginese]] - your character is from the realm of Arginet, the main setting of Breaking Worlds. They might be from [[Fiveways]] or further afield; have a look at the pages on [[geography]] if you want to explore some possibilities.
* [[Foreign nations|Foreign]] - your character is from another nation in the world of Arginet. You should choose one of the countries linked from the foreign nations page.
* [[Offworlders|Offworld]] - your character was born in another world and has come to Arginet through a [[The Breaking|mysterious rift]] in the last few months. There are many possibilities for what their homeworld was like.

=== Choose a nature ===

Despite their beginnings, not all characters in Breaking Worlds have remained fully human. Your character may be any of the following:
* [[Humans|Human]] - a living, breathing mortal without any special magical nature.
* [[Fay]] - a human who has become suffused with [[The Elements|elemental]] influence, changing their personality and appearance. In Arginet this is traditionally associated with the [[Social class|nobility]] although any native of the world the characters live in can be fay. Offworlders may not start play as fay.
*[[Wights|Wight]] - a human or fay who has died and returned to life as their [[Ancestors|spirit]] has reanimated their corpse. Wights have only started to appear in the few months since [[the Breaking]] began.
If a living character dies in play and their body is safe, the refs may allow them to return as a wight.

=== Choose an affiliation ===

People are often drawn to causes or identities bigger than themselves. Breaking Worlds supports, but does not require, characters taking sides in the conflicts of the setting.

If your character is Arginese, they ''may'' start as a full member of one of the three main political [[factions]]:
* [[The Noble Houses]] - the old feudal nobility, internally competitive but united in defending the status quo.
* [[The Royal Armies]] - loyal only to [[the Crown]] and to each other, determined to strengthen and protect the nation by any means.
* [[The Reform Coalition]] - a fractious assortment of reformers and revolutionaries seeking to build a new social order.
All three of these factions are active throughout the country and have substantial resources at their disposal. However, they demand loyalty from their members and will not hesitate punish backsliding.

If your character is Arginese or from a foreign nation, they ''may'' start as a member of a minor faction or organisation. This could be a [[Animist orders|religious order]], a guild, a diplomatic mission, or any number of other groups. Feel free to make up your own - although minor factions like these won't be able to provide material support in the same way as the big three, they give your character more freedom and form a part of their identity within the world.

You can also play a character who is completely independent. They could have joined the adventurers for personal gain, excitement, curiosity, or even by accident. If your character is from offworld, they must start as independent.

It is possible to join or leave factions during play, regardless of your character’s origin. Bear in mind, however, that there may be in-character conditions or consequences for doing so...

=== Choose a class ===

Everyone has something they’re particularly good at. In Breaking Worlds characters may belong to any one of three classes:
* [[Warrior skills|Warrior]] - a fighter trained with weapons and armour, capable of dealing and taking serious damage.
* [[Channeller skills|Channeller]] - a [[Channelling|magician]] who can use raw [[The Elements|elemental]] power to fight, heal, and manipulate the world around them.
* [[Evoker skills|Evoker]] - a mystic who summons and bargains with spirits to gain new powers and create magic items.

Each character gets the starting skill from their class for free, and has a slight bonus applicable to skills from their class. Although you can always buy skills from other classes as well as [[general skills]], it is not possible to change your class in play.

You can start without a class if you only buy general skills and do not have any class skills. You may choose a class in any future downtime, and if and when you do so you immediately get its starting skill for free - but until that point, you may not buy any class skills.

=== Choose skills ===

The abilities of a character within the framework of the rules are defined by their [[skills]]. These are intended not to be restrictive, but to keep gameplay fair and balanced. Combat, magic, healing, and downtime abilities are the areas where your character’s skills are most important.
* All characters start with some basic combat and healing abilities, described on the [[starting abilities]] page. Note that wights have slightly different abilities to living characters - they cannot bind spirits without training, but are slightly more resilient.
* You get the starting skill for your class for free.
* You may spend experience points (XP) to buy more skills.
* Characters start with 20 XP. You need not spend this all at character creation.

=== Choose a name ===

The name of your character can say a lot about them. The page on [[names]] describes naming traditions in Arginet and other nations - we encourage you to use it as a guide, though you should remember that the choice of name is really up to you.

=== Background ===

An optional, short summary of your character's life up to now, particularly concentrating on what made them who they are, what drives them, and if there are any particular goals they are aiming to achieve. Please keep it concise!

This is also the place to tell us how much you want us to interact with your background. Would you rather be left alone to roleplay around it in peace? Do you actively enjoy having past poor life choices come back to haunt you in play? Let us know; we can't guarantee anything, but we'll try our best to please.

=== Character advancement ===

Throughout the course of the game, your character will make discoveries, gain friends (and probably enemies), and learn new powers. To represent their abilities developing over time, you get additional XP to spend on their skills.
* You gain 3 XP for every week in which you play a character at a game or in which you crew or monster a game.
* You may spend XP from your pool on a character you play.
* There is a limit on the XP level of a character. The maximum XP for any character starts at 20 XP and increases by 1 XP at the end of each week.
If you play or crew every week, you will gain XP faster than you can spend it on any one character. This is a deliberate choice intended to make it easier for players whose characters die or retire during the game, or who are only able to attend occasionally.

=== Character Submission ===

Please email character writeups to larp-refs@srcf.net .

2016-10-02T21:23:50Z

Pufferfish: /* What the Armies will never do */

For most of its recent history [[Arginet]] was at peace, broken only by a few minor [[Foreign nations|overseas]] campaigns and the occasional case of bandits, and as a result its standing armies were rather distant from the political spotlight. [[The Breaking]] has changed all that. Now that skirmishes with interplanar beasts are a common occurrence, generals are as likely as dukes to hold the attention of the crown, and both military spending and recruitment are at all-time highs.

The Royal Armies are among the most meritocratic institutions in Arginet. Having the money or connections to start out with a commission always helps, but it is entirely possible to rise through the ranks right from the bottom, and this has become easier as soldiers now see a lot more combat than they used to.

The Armies have a reputation for being more concerned with the material than the [[The Spirit World|spirit world]], but they have some support from [[Animism|the priesthood]], and (significantly) their ranks contain plenty of [[Channelling|channellers]] and [[Evocation|witches]] trained in combat alongside the more conventional line troops. They’ve also been very quick in learning how to deal with manifested [[spirits]], and are fairly pragmatic about battle casualties [[Wights|returning to life]].

More than most people, they face harder and more dangerous times thanks to the Breaking, but they also face many opportunities. They are more vital to the Kingdom’s survival than they have ever been before, and have the resources and organisation to hold together against the greatest threats.

====Five things about the Armies====
* '''Fight for the Crown.''' The Armies are loyal to the Crown alone, and stand apart from the politics of [[the Noble Houses]].
* '''In our hour of need.''' After many years playing a minor role the Armies have become vital to the survival of the nation.
* '''Led by the best.''' The Armies are highly meritocratic. Promotions and commissions are awarded to the most capable regardless of their background.
* '''Pragmatic and practical.''' They are willing to use any tool to complete their objectives, and take pride in being free from the hidebound rules of the nobility.
* '''Into the jaws of death.''' Soldiers and officers must defend the nation from unnameable dangers, and are expected to do so with courage and valour.
====What the Armies will never do====
Everyone in the armies is expected to obey standing orders. Although most officers give their subordinates a degree of free rein, disobeying the rules of engagement set by the high command will be viewed extremely dimly; looters in particular can expect dishonourable discharge or execution.

====Read more...====
* '''[[The Royal Armies branches of service|Branches of service]]'''
* '''[[The Royal Armies internal matters|Internal matters]]'''
* '''[[The Royal Armies attitudes to others|Attitudes to others]]'''
* '''[[The Royal Armies religion and spirituality|Religion and spirituality]]'''
* '''[[The Royal Armies costume|Costume]]'''
* '''[[The Royal Armies archetypes|Archetypes]]'''

{{IC|“Come on lad, we know it’s hard, but we’ve got to make sure they’ve got the gifts for the spirits, don’t we?” The voice was kind, the Sarge must have sent on so many, and now... and now...

The young soldier nodded numbly and fell to his knees by his friend (Mel, always cheerful, always quick witted, not quick enough) and drew a breath. Naming. Naming came first. “Private Melissa Carter is the name you chose, and we introduce you by that name so that the Guides will let you pass into the Spirit World.” 
His hands reached for purchase. Grass? Grass. Yes. Offerings, next was offerings. He’d have to do soldier’s offerings, there was nothing else in this damn patch of nothing in the middle of nowhere. “We send you with the elements you return to. For Wood, a stick.” Barely a twig, but it was enough, resting on her chest. 
“For Fire,” his throat caught, but he forced himself to continue, “my warmth.” He touched her forehead, feeling his heat seep into cold flesh before retreating. 
“For Earth, grass, to... to remind you of home.” The traditional soldier’s offering was mud, but no, not that, she was better than that, not when the mud had killed her. 
“For Metal, your knife.” Always by her side, it joined the grass and twig. His vision blurred. They’d seen too many knives tucked at the side of the road. You never took a knife that had been left, never. 
“For W...” Damnit he was crying, teardrops falling onto his hands. He reached out and let them fall onto the dagger. “... water. Our tears. I’m so sorry.”

He felt Sarge’s hand on his shoulder. Silent strength. After a few moments they squeezed. “Story. Then Farewell.” 
“Yes Sarge.” He swallowed, “Mel, you were always better than me. Remember back in Lowen? It was always you training, dragging me out at stupid o’ clock in the morning to spar, always so cheerful, always dreaming. You... you were fucking amazing. I remember up the weir where you first told me you were going to join the Army and all I wanted to do was follow you. Dammit Mel, what am I going to do now without you to follow?” He swallowed back a hysterical laugh. “You’ve gone and made me choose my own path haven’t you? Bastard, always pushing me to be better.” His breath hitched and he tried to wipe away the tears. “Goodbye Mel. We’ll meet again someday when we follow you to the Spirit World, but for now... for now you get to scout ahead.” 
He bowed, feeling Sarge bow behind him and knowing the others were too. “Goodbye Mel, we’ll miss you. Go with the spirits.”

There. It was done. He collapsed into a heap as the others came in with oil and tinder, the Sarge moving him away as the flames cleansed what was left behind.}}

{{Factions}}
{{Armies}}