by Elton Gahr

Created on: March 13, 2009

While there is no winning in the typical Dungeons and Dragons game, being a game and collaborative everyone wants to have a character which is useful and fun and so long as those two points are hit well it is a winning character, but that itself is not always easier. Especially in the first few games of a new campaign it seems like there is always that moment when you wonder if you chose the right character. Do I like playing this person always flashes through my mind at some point, but with some preparation you can help ensure that the answer to that question is yes.

The first thing to remember is fun. In typical Dungeons and Dragons every character is going to be good at something and though you can be more useful by tweaking that shouldn't matter too much if you have a good DM as he will give you challenges for each character even if they aren't optimized. This means that the more important part of the fun is the personality of the character.

The better you know the personality of the character you are going to play before the first game starts the easier it will be and the more you have ready for the game master the better he will be able to put your character into the game.

One of the best tools that I have found for beginning to understand your character is the three by three. This is a group of three enemies, three friends and three acquaintances of your character. Giving these to the dungeon master will not only make him happy, every DM loves to have more information about your character, but make it far easier for your character to be in the spotlight encouraging other players to better define their characters. it will also tell you a considerable amount about your character and give you extra opportunities for role play from the first minute you sit down.

Another excellent tool for creating a personality for your character are the numerous questionnaires on the internet. There are several written for dungeons and dragons characters which ask questions about your family, friends, history, goals, hopes and dreams, flaws and more. All of these will make your character more interesting to everyone and encourage people to have fun.

The third and final point to making a character interesting and fun to play is to give him plenty of room to grow. The best characters in any media are those who have flaws that they overcome. If you start as the perfect character with nerves of steel, a heart of gold and an unassailable reputation and you'll have a lot of trouble

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