Creating a Character

All new characters start at level 1 with 15gp to use on equipment.

Planning out your character idea

The first step to making a character is finding an idea that interests you. Doing so makes it much easier to pick your Ancestry, Background, and Class (ABCs). Are you a suave talking duelist? Swashbuckler or Rogue might be a good choice. Do you come from a swamp commune that worships a froghemoth? Maybe the grippli ancestry would interest you. When you're choosing a character idea make sure to also think about how they interact with other player characters, the town of Onadbyr, and the world as a whole. You can find a brief overview of the setting in the World introduction.

If you want to introduce new locations, concepts, religions, communities, or anything else to the world you can discuss your backstory with a Storyteller to see where it can fit into the world. Your backstory might have hooks that other players or storytellers take interest in!

Free Archetype Variant Rule

Characters are made using the Free Archetype Variant Rule. This rule only starts affecting your character at level 2, but it is important keeping it in mind while you design your character. The Free Archetype allows for greater variation in character creation and allows you to better fulfill your class fantasy.

We understand some archetypes may not be available directly at level 2. Exceptions can be made to rules in these cases. Please open a Ticket to discuss if this is something that impacts your character.

Filling out the ABCs in Pathbuilder 2e

If you're new to FoundryVTT, Pathfinder 2e, or tabletop RPGs in general it would be best to have a guiding hand through Pathfinder 2e character creation. Pathbuilder2e is an excellent web application that makes creating a pathfinder 2e character simple. If you feel confident with Pathfinder 2e and want to go straight to importing things into the FoundryVTT, you can skip ahead to the next section. Some other useful resources to look at include * Archives of Nethys; the standard pathfinder 2e wiki or a good old fashioned hardcopy or PDF of the Advanced Players Guide and other supplements you can reference those. The west marches tries to stick as close to RAW as possible.

Within Pathbuilder2e: Focus your attention to the bar on the left side of the page. There should be Ancestry, Background, and Class listed at the top. Work from the very top downwards, selecting what features you want to take. If you want to read more about a specific option you can click the "PRD" button at the bottom whenever you have an option selected to read the relevant Archives of Nethys page. Continue filling out the steps until you reach the end of the Level 1 section. These choices you've made are all the features you'll be importing into the FoundryVTT.

Ancestry, Background, and Class restrictions

Ancestry

Making a character with an ancestry that has the common tag, like humans and dwarves, can be done at any time with no requirements. Ancestries (and Heritages) with the Uncommon tag require you to write a backstory for the character, explaining where they originate from and how they got to the town of Onadbyr. The backstory should be at least a paragraph but no longer than a page or two. Taking an Ancestry or Heritage with the Rare tag requires approval by the majority of storytellers and would require you to open a Ticket to request it. You should have a thorough backstory and a good reason for choosing that Ancestry.

Background

Any Background with the Common or Uncommon tag can be used with no requirements. Backgrounds with the Rare tag require storyteller approval and would require you to open a Ticket to request it. Keep in mind to pick a background that meshes well with the setting.

Class

Any Class can be used with no requirements. At higher levels you will have the opportunity to take Dedication feats, which is pathfinder 2e's way of multiclassing. Some of these dedication feats may be locked. Refer to the Available Dedications if you're planning on a specific one ahead of time.

Spells, Items, and other things with Rarity

• Spells of Common rarity can be taken without approval. Spells of Uncommon tag require storyteller approval and an in-character reason to be taken.
• Any items your character is capable of using or wielding can be bought with your 15gp starting wealth, including items not commonly available in the Shops of Onadbyr. These items cannot be turned into formulas.
• For anything not explicitly mentioned use the following rule of thumb: Common can be taken, Uncommon requires storyteller approval, Rare requires unanimous storyteller approval.

Getting it Approved

If you're a new player creating your first character or a veteran on your 5th Kelek resident, you'll need to get the character approved before you're able to start importing it into the FoundryVTT server. To do so, open a Ticket in the Discord server and explain your character concept, a Storyteller will look over it and ask any follow-up questions. If you aren't taking anything restricted this process will be very quick, so if you're eager to get playing - maybe don't socket in 4 different rare features. Once that's all well and good you'll be given a FoundryVTT account.

Importing it into FoundryVTT

Open the FoundryVTT and log into your account. You should find a new character sheet in the New Residents folder of the Actors tab. There are a couple ways to import your pathfinder 2e character into FoundryVTT. Regardless of which option you pick, always be sure to check everything is correct. If you want a second set of eyes a storyteller will always be happy to look over it for you.

Importing from Pathbuilder2e using Pathmuncher

Importing directly from Pathbuilder2e is now possible thanks to Pathmuncher. You can find the Pathmuncher button at the top of your character sheet.

Importing Manually

If you didn't use Pathbuilder2e or want to go through the process manually you can import features piecemeal by clicking the various buttons inside your character sheet. When importing manually, the sheet will automatically 'pull' content from the compendiums into your sheet for you. If you want to replace something or look through the features yourself, you can navigate to the Compendiums tab and look for the proper category.

You're all Set!

With your character created and approved you're ready to start playing in Expeditions. When you join an Expedition, one be sure to inform the Storyteller that it's your first one so they can move your character sheet to the proper folder.