The first are the big five character traits: openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness and neuroticism. These five values will help describe and record how the character tends to behave under different conditions. The player may choose the values between 1 and 10 or simply roll them and play what comes out.
These five basic traits will help define actions which will in turn mold the character throughout the adventure. Aside the big five character traits live saints and daemons, the angels and ghosts of personal experience. Saints and daemons live in the character's mind and both will help him or her overcome the hardships encountered. The former with a benefit and the later at a cost. With time these will grow and change the character's perception of the world around the character, of life, of others and him or herself."Now you might not believe it, but under fire Animal Mother is one of the... finest human beings in the world. All he needs is somebody to throw hand grenades at him the rest of his life." (Pvt. Eightball, Full Metal Jacket)
Character traits are being added as character description values. These range from 1 to 10 and are covered the in the following explanation.
A summary of the factors of the Big Five and their constituent traits:
- Openness to experience: (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious). Appreciation for art, emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, curiosity, and variety of experience. Openness reflects the degree of intellectual curiosity, creativity and a preference for novelty and variety a person has. It is also described as the extent to which a person is imaginative or independent, and depicts a personal preference for a variety of activities over a strict routine. Some disagreement remains about how to interpret the openness factor, which is sometimes called "intellect" rather than openness to experience.
- Conscientiousness: (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless). A tendency to show self-discipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement; planned rather than spontaneous behavior; organized, and dependable.
- Extraversion: (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved). Energy, positive emotions, surgency, assertiveness, sociability and the tendency to seek stimulation in the company of others, and talkativeness.
- Agreeableness: (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind). A tendency to be compassionate and cooperative rather than suspicious and antagonistic towards others. It is also a measure of ones' trusting and helpful nature, and whether a person is generally well tempered or not.
- Neuroticism: (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident). The tendency to experience unpleasant emotions easily, such as anger, anxiety, depression, or vulnerability. Neuroticism also refers to the degree of emotional stability and impulse control and is sometimes referred to by its low pole, "emotional stability".
This diagram shows clear examples of a high or low score on each.
If you want to roll for these values instead of picking them a roll of 3d4 - 2 is done for each. This might result in a set of unexpected yet very interesting character traits to play.
If you want to see what your trait score is take a look a this test:
http://drphil.com/shows/bigfivepersonalityquiz
Saints & Daemons
"You have to have men who are moral... and at the same time who are able to utilize their primordial instincts to kill without feeling... without passion... without judgment... without judgment! Because it's judgment that defeats us." (Kurtz, Apocalypse Now)
Saints and daemons are background experiences that forged the character. A saint is a special gift that the character has that makes him or her excel at what she does. That special intuition, that charisma, that six sense, that particular endurance, motivation or spirit, maybe something his grandfather taught him or some self taught skill from living in the streets. Usage of a saint power grants bonuses to the character when doing certain tasks, success enhances the character's spirit, but failure in its usage may feed the daemons within.
For example, hard work and perseverance during youth may grant the character a special saint power to control his body very well. Enduring the hardships of hiding and concealment, able to stay perfectly still and control himself for long periods of time. This grants bonuses to rolls and actions related to scouting and concealment.
Daemons are also gifts that give power to the character, but do so at a cost. Using a daemon power will corrupt the character and make the daemon even stronger. Working around a problem without using a daemon power will raise the spirit of the character. Much in the same way a saint grants bonuses, so does a daemon grant bonuses, but its usage, failure or not, slowly corrupts the character.
For example, an animal like instinct in the character grants her a bonus in reflex rolls. She will draw faster, react faster and foreshadow enemy actions. Using this power to gain an advantage in a shoot out would result in a more effective, yet more vicious attack and the slow corruption of the character's soul.
When I go home people'll ask me, "Hey Hoot, why do you do it man? What, you some kinda war junkie?" (Hoot, Black Hawk Down)
The drive is a thought, ideal or wish the character has that fuels his or her life. It can be a mid or long term goal, it's what pushes the character on through the darkest moments. Drives change and evolve, but above all drives are challenged. The character's traits will dictate how and how well the drive's goals are pursued.
Will the drive be banal and superficial and unable to push the character forward in dire moments? Will the drive be too overwhelming and push the character to a breaking point or leave him to be consumed by his or her daemons as the character does everything in his or her power to achieve the goal?
The drive also represents the character's interests and in a way, ego. Strong changes in drive may result in a high impact on the character's personality. Drives that lead to disappointment can result in the birth of new daemons in the character or heavily accentuate basic traits. Usually not in the stronger more virtuous manner.
Oh, maaaaaan and I was getting short. Four more weeks and out, now I'm going to die on this rock. This ain't fair man. (Hudson, Aliens)
Image source
http://www.datingphilosophy.com/2013/01/28/the-big-five/
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