1A -- Making Characters

In honor of my misspent youth in dusty basements rolling 20-sided dice amidst the clutter on top of card tables, I picked up the 4th edition Player's Handbook and H1 -- Keep on the Shadowfell.

I haven't played in ages -- since college, really -- I went once to an RPGA event and the people all seemed nice but it was all crowded and people were sick (not like mentally, but physically -- like with the flu or something) and I came down with a bad cold afterwards.

I created 4 characters -- half-elven ranger, human warlord, human mage and dragonborn paladin -- and created a backstory (thats what 1 is based on -- no rolling for intitiative yet!) and decided to use the Missing Mentor hook, adapted.

Even though I haven't played yet, just creating the characters was fun. I found an excel spreadsheet on the internet that is incredibly useful for character creation. I found the point system for talent distribution really nice (when I was little, I always wanted characters with all 17s and 18s but now it doesn't bother me so much -- perhaps a recognition of the reality that most of us are not excessively one thing or another). Also a neat thing was that using Google Image search I pulled up character sketches for my characters that I pasted in to the character sheets. I remember back in the 80s that I would have these images of awesome looking heroes but then that damned little space in which I drew and my execrable lack of talent would result in some travesty of a misshappen little figure with features only Dr. Frankenstein would love.

Reading through H1, it seems interesting enough. I'll see, I guess. I have since thrown out all my dice, but again, thanks to the internet, there are virtual dice rollers. I like the ones that actually show you images of dice when you roll. Its a nice touch.