6 intriguing NPC designs

It's easy to get stuck in the same old tropes when designing characters for your game. The orphaned rogue, the wizened mage, and the hardy dwarf will always have their place–but today I want to walk through examples of NPC designs from members of the Storycraft Discord Community that gave me fresh ideas for how to approach NPCs.

Let's look at 6 unique characters and what made them stand out. By the end, you'll have inspiration to design memorable NPCs for your own games.

Herman the formidable yeti

What I loved about this Yeti was the fact that his name was Herman. You've got this fearsome monster with glowing blue eyes living in the harshest of environments. Everything about this NPC says "danger". I'd expect to run, hide, fight, or maybe lose the fight and get hung upside down in its icy cave to dwell on my mistakes while I wait for my ultimate fate as its breakfast.

But then you meet him and his name's Herman. It's the most common and disarming name you can think of. Hilarious!

Shout out to Elric, who is using these characters in several of his Storycraft worlds.

Link to full character description: https://discord.com/channels/631861753306808340/1248324688464318575/1274185298409951417

Elias the apocalyptic skeleton shoveler

Elias Rennick is a melancholic figure in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. He spends his days meticulously scooping up skeletons and disposing of bodies. He carries with him a haunting sense of loss but finds a grim sense of purpose in his work. Elias is known for his attention to detail and his quiet, methodical approach to the grim tasks at hand.

What I love about this character is how he's been grounded by his grim profession as a corpse shoveler. It adds a "slice of life" effect to the typical post-apocalyptic scavenger trope making Elias feel much more real.

Link to full character description: https://discord.com/channels/631861753306808340/1248324688464318575/1267818462688837726

Mossbeard the transformed recluse

Marcus was transformed into a monster but still remembers fragments of his past life as a truck driver. He spends his days crafting trinkets that remind him of his former life.

You can create interesting dynamics with your characters by splitting them into two (or even three) distinct phases. In this case, Marcus had a full personality and life as a truck driver, but is now something completely different. How has the transformation changed him, and how has he stayed the same?

This design trick also works really well for worldbuilding. Think of your setting in multiple distinct ages then imagine how the current time and place result from those ages piling on top of each other. Bits of the distant past are visible but no longer understood.

Link to full character description: https://discord.com/channels/631861753306808340/1248324688464318575/1273697756677931019

Grimzky the cursed cleric

Grimzky is a socially awkward but surprisingly compassionate undead cleric. Known for his sarcastic remarks, he often uses his undead appearance and dark humor to mask the weight of his cursed existence as an immortal.

What I love about Grimzky is the contrast between their approachable personality and their serious role. As an immortal, undead Cleric there is no doubt that Grimzky has to deal with some heavy sh*t. And yet most adventurers would perceive him as a shy and insignificant skelly at first glance.

Elara the medieval vtuber

Elara Moonpaw is a charismatic bard known for her mesmerizing performances and cat-like agility. She is the life of any gathering and can captivate audiences with her storytelling and music. Despite her playful exterior, she harbors a deep determination to prove herself and reclaim her lost fame.

The best part of Elara is the description that Discord user stoutgnome used to generate her: "the medieval equivalent of a catgirl vtuber"

This is a great idea for a character design and a clever application of AI. Thinking of modern professions then moving them backwards into a different period can lead to interesting results. The fact that Elara's concept began as a vtuber gives me so many unique ideas for how she might act in the game.

Link to full character description: https://discord.com/channels/631861753306808340/1248324688464318575/1273964924493889570

Fredrick the corrupted NPC from a forgotten RPG

Fredrick is a "meta-game" character design brought to life by Discord user Bricade's creative description. The description they wrote was: "Fredrick an older npc who was a part of a forgotten rpg. He used to be the first character players would go to for getting a quest to save the kingdom. He has forgotten a lot because of corrupted data."

A character like this could be used in many creative ways, such as guiding players by "remembering" useful bits of the world or entertaining them with references to figures from other games and pop culture.

Link to full character description: https://discord.com/channels/631861753306808340/1248324688464318575/1268360694533849088

Summary of character design techniques

The Discord community for Storycraft has given me tons of inspiration for fresh character design ideas. To summarize, here are 6 techniques to try out:

1. Combine a humble name with a fearsome aspect to create a comedic contrast
2. Use an unexpected profession to make the character concrete
3. Imagine the character in two distinct phases: they are transformed and now in their second phase
4. Combine a weighty role with a lighthearted personality
5. Apply a modern profession to a medieval time period
6. Make a meta-game character combining fantasy, sci-fi, and your familiarity with game tropes

Thanks to all the community members who sparked these ideas!

Feel free to reply to this email if you want to bounce ideas around about your own characters or if you want access to an early build of Storycraft (iPhones only for now).