You Think Your Character is Cool? My Character is a F***king….

It’s time to put on your robe and wizard hat because we’re diving into the realm of sword and sorcery for this writing prompt. If you’re not familiar with Dungeons & Dragons, the original tabletop fantasy role-playing game, that’s okay. That just means you aren’t a nerd. 

At the beginning of every game of D&D (which can take weeks on months over the course of multiple meetings), every player creates a character, an alter ego for them to inhabit as they slay dragons, explore dungeons, and vanquish evil. You choose your species – will you be a mysterious elf or a violent orc, a benevolent halfling (the non-trademarked term for a hobbit) or a demonic tiefling? You also choose your profession, a.k.a. your class. You can be a magician – a sorcerer, warlock, or wizard. You can be the agent of divine will – a cleric, druid or monk. If you prefer to wave a sword around, you can be a fighter, paladin, or ranger; or, if you prefer axes to swords you can be a barbarian, or a rogue if you prefer daggers. You can also be a bard if you want to wield the power of…well, music.

If that sounds like too much trouble, pay a visit to "Who the Fuck is My D&D Character".

There you are! Rather than slogging through the actual process of creating a character from scratch, this site gives you a basic character, simple but complete.

The format is simple – adjective, species, profession, homeland, backstory – but the combinations can be humorous, thought provoking, and fantastic.

These might not be the sorts of characters you would actually show up to a serious game of D&D with, but they could definitely serve as the protagonist for a short fantasy tale.

If you are working on a story with a large cast of characters, this site may be able to generate ideas for minor characters, albeit with a little bit of tweaking.

Many of these character ideas raise some questions that you, as the writer, are invited to answer. What was the argumentative rogue’s “accident”? What’s in the overemotional barbarian’s sealed letter? An entire adventure could spin out of one of these questions.

Depending on the character idea that strikes your fancy, your tale might be a comedy…

…or a tragedy.

Your tale may feel intensely real…

…or somewhat wacky.

Your character may be flawed…

…a victim of circumstances…

…or deeply troubled, but it is ultimately your decision as to how these characters struggle against and overcome adversity.

Prompt

Take a look at the images in this post, all of which came from"Who the Fuck is My D&D Character". If none of them strike your interest, go to the site and it will randomly generate a character for you. Once you find a character that inspires you, write a short passage that –

1. Introduces the character to your reader, 
2. Makes the character’s history clear, without necessarily stating it explicitly,
3. Illuminates the character’s role in the fantasy setting of your choice.

Bonus hard mode: don’t browse through the site. Just pick the first randomly generated character it gives you and start writing.

Who knows, with enough writing this could provide the seed for a fantasy adventure novel!

Read Vernon's work on Floodmark here.