Creating NPCs

[Warden]

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)
Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)
Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

Thanks

[Phantasm]

Originally Posted by Warden

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)

In my games, nameless NPCs tend to vary between "no sheet at all, maybe a bit of off-the-cuff personality" and "combat stat block for mooks".

Originally Posted by Warden

Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)

These guys, unless they're Allies, don't get much more than a combat stat block and a few personality traits. If they're Allies accompanying the PC on an adventure, I'll occasionally make up a full character sheet or let the player whose character has them as an Ally make it up.

Originally Posted by Warden

Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

Ah, the main villain. Anywhere from a detailed combat stat block to a full character sheet. Most notably, I'll look for motivations and multiple plots he's got going above and beyond the villain's skills in combat. Folks like this should be memorable, even if the villain operates in such a manner as he's not in front-line combat unless he absolutely needs to.

[evileeyore]

Originally Posted by Warden

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Minimal.

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)

No name, no stats, no need for a sheet.

Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)

A few notes on personality, appearance, and highest skills. If said 'supporting cast' becomes a member of the party, they get a more filled out sheet. If they become an Ally, they get a full sheet.

Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

A few notes on personality, appearance, and highest skills.

[Christopher R. Rice]

Originally Posted by Warden

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)
Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)
Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

Thanks

I wrote about this a while back - this is what I do.

[PK]

Originally Posted by Warden

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)

Absolutely none. I have a random name generator if I need a name, and then I assume that any roll I make for the NPC is against a 12 if it's relevant to their profession, 10 if it's sorta-relevant or an attribute, or 8 otherwise. Noncombatant have Damage 1d-2/1d-1 and punch for thrust-1, combatants have Damage 1d-1/1d+1 and punch for thrust or use a weapon.

Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)

Usually as above when I introduce him, but once he becomes a recurring character I'll flesh him out as I go. For example, if he has to roll Search and it occurs to me that he'd probably have a decent Search, I might roll against Search-13 and then note on his sheet that he has Search-13. Since these guys are generally far less competent than the PCs, this isn't abusive; I make a point to be fair and never give one a high skill level in something that would counter the PCs' current action "just because."

Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

I actually like to stat the Big Bads up completely, ahead of time. I figure the time I save in not statting anyone else up frees me up to do this. Plus it keeps things honest; presumably, these are the only NPCs on the same or a higher power level than the PCs, so giving them stats "on the fly" in response to a situation could easily become unfair even if I was trying to be fair.

[Warden]

Thanks all

Just what I was looking for

[Rasputin]

Originally Posted by Warden

I was wondering how much effort goes into making each of the following npcs?

Nameless (eg: barkeep, bus driver)

Nothing beforehand. I go off a sheet of names and mannerisms (the GC Skeleton Sheet, for those of you who have Brian Jameson's Gamemastering), and roll or pick one of them to be my barkeep in play. After the game, I put a new name and quirk onto that slot in the sheet, and flesh out the one I just used a bit more. Mostly I go a bit more into how he looks and what his role is. Maybe a bang skill to represent the overall NPC's competence (which is usually 12).

Originally Posted by Warden

Supporting (eg: Captain Rendig of the city watch)

The seven sentence NPC is my detail level. Again, once met, I add more detail, mostly background.

Originally Posted by Warden

Main villain (eg: The Black Knight)

As supporting, plus full stats and background right off the bat. Of course, I flesh out more once met.

I operate on an important principle: once you've met an NPC, you're more likely to meet him again rather than meet a new NPC in the same role. Thus, I add details after a meeting, just because they might meet him again. This lets me have NPCs that reflect what my players want, because after all, their interests crossed at least once before, right? Also, since I run a sandbox, I can tie hooks to other areas to frequent flyer NPCs to easily feed them to the players.

[whswhs]

Originally Posted by PK

Usually as above when I introduce him, but once he becomes a recurring character I'll flesh him out as I go. For example, if he has to roll Search and it occurs to me that he'd probably have a decent Search, I might roll against Search-13 and then note on his sheet that he has Search-13. Since these guys are generally far less competent than the PCs, this isn't abusive; I make a point to be fair and never give one a high skill level in something that would counter the PCs' current action "just because."

When I'm preparing a session, I try to draw up one or two of these with full stats, because they give the session more resonance when I do. For example, back in my Water Margin campaign I had the PCs approached by an Irishwoman who made a really unconvincing pass at one of them (rolled an 18 on Sex Appeal, what could I do?). She could have been just a name and a couple of stats, but in fact I had written up a full sheet that reflected her having been trained in the Way of Dove and Serpent in a secretive European monastic community; her having been captured by pirates, raped, and left pregnant during an early mission; and her having been recruited by the Eyes of Heaven to spy for the Chinese Empire after they captured her captors and rescued the hostages. The PCs never discovered most of that, but it made her a lot more interesting and let me reveal important bits about her.

On the other hand, I'm perfectly willing to make up a character on the fly and then flesh them out. I kind of have to; my players go places I didn't plan for.

On the other other hand, a thing I like to do is invite one of my other players in for a guest appearance. I remember, for example, one of my players who took the role of Mad Galadriel and scared the bejasus out of the regular players. I need to do a full character sheet in that case. Note that most of the time these guest NPCs are not villains.