Can't fault that. I'm of the belief that what's important for a character is what's going to happen, not what has happened.

(also, I think this is the first time I've seen the OG's real name)

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that's the only thing i've ever believed, really. playing ww games sours you on pages of other people's own pc fanfiction.

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I must simply disagree.

Yes, what you unveil to other characters should be succinct. Just as in the SCA, no one wants to sit down and listen to a three-hour persona story.

But what you work out for yourself is all that detailed backstory. Because later, when you are in the midst of roleplay, it's your backstory that informs little tidbits that pop out in conversation.

For my RPG (MMORPG, to be precise, EQ2) I have brief character descriptions that one can see from the short bio section examining my characters if you encounter them somewhere in-game (i.e., here, here, here.

But I also have some extensive and (I think!) entertaining backstories for each of them that gives a bit of dimension and life to them (i.e., here, here, here, here). And bits of that come out in game when appropriate.

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Yeah, I tend to agree...my character's reactions to things feel a little more "real" when I can look at events in the context of where they grew up, their formative experiences, etc.

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Some games certainly need more than 500 words. But then again I am not Robin Laws, Jonathon Tweet, or Greg Stolze, so my ability to write entertaining and engaging backstory is correspondingly limited. Perhaps limiting the amount of damage I can do to my campaign ideas through explanation is a good thing.

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