Create a Homebrew Campaign | #14: Writing a Character Arc
I’ve stated throughout this course that my favorite part of any homebrew campaign is involving the players. Creating handouts for them, working their characters into the world, getting feedback from them, and playing the game with them… it’s a lot of fun, and it’s what makes a tabletop game unique! This is something you really only do with tabletop campaigns. When you sit down to write a book, you’re usually working alone or, sometimes, with one or maybe two other people. But when you create a homebrew campaign, you’re getting input and collaboration from several people, all of whom are invested (or should be invested) in making this homebrew campaign a fantastic experience.
Today, we’re going to have one last session regarding players and how they can shape your world and story. Specifically, I’ll be talking about character arcs, which are sections of your campaign’s story that focus on one or two of the characters, giving them the spotlight. I’m going to talk about why they matter and give my suggestions for creating effective, impactful character arcs that are just as powerful (if not more so) than the main story.
Why Bother?
Not every dungeon master is going to see the value in character arcs. For many campaigns, the focus is going to be the core story and the characters aren’t going to have much of an impact on it. When a character dies, it may be a bit sad for a session or two, but you’ll move on and the story will continue regardless, just as it would have if the same player had just left the table. They don’t really have much influence on the story, and the story doesn’t care all that much about them, either. To me, this doesn’t give way to a strong roleplay experience and gives off more of a munchkin vibe. That may be fine for your table, but that’s not the sort of campaign I’m talking about running, here.
Character arcs are a crucial part of developing characters through roleplay and story, as well as a way to help everyone get to know the histories of their fellow party members. When you run a character arc, you’re giving one character in the party the spotlight that is usually shared by the entire party, and you develop that character at an accelerated rate. You’ll reveal secrets—both to them and to the party—and develop the story that was presented to you through their backstory (based on what we received in response to the questionnaire we sent out early in this series).
Because character arcs give a particular character the spotlight, I find that they’re a fantastic way to engage an otherwise disengaged player. If you have a player who isn’t really roleplaying very much or whose character doesn’t really stay involved with the party (perhaps to the point that no one is sure why this person is with them, to begin with), then bring in a character arc. Develop that character and that character’s relationship to the party and the main story. Force that character into the spotlight and make them shine on the stage. A character arc is a place where roleplay will be required for the focal character—they can’t shy away and make their companions do the participation.
I find that this is often crucial for rogue characters, which are stereotypically dark and brooding. It’s not really the player’s fault, it’s just the character that they’ve chosen to play. The backstory is probably grim anyway, so they don’t want to talk about it with the party, which leaves it up to you. The character arc presents an opportunity to develop otherwise unexplored characters and character traits.
Avoiding Filler Arc Syndrome
In a previous session, we talked about one-shots and how they can feel like filler arcs, which we want to avoid. We really want to avoid that feeling with character arcs. It shouldn’t feel like a random sidetrack that has nothing to do with the story and doesn’t contribute anything at all. There needs to be a reason for the character arc to take place. Perhaps the party goes to a particular town based on a rumor they heard about your big bad, and it just so happens that the backstory of one of the player characters is back there. Who would have thought? Or, maybe while they’re journeying to the next town on their way to thwart the plans of your big bad, one of the characters is dragged away in the middle of the night by a group of bandits that is owed a debt by the character. There are tons of ways that you can make sure it doesn’t feel like the party is being awkwardly sidetracked.
Additionally, it doesn’t just need to be the initial hook of the arc that weaves into the story—you can weave the central campaign arc into the character arcs by dropping characters or information into the campaign arc. In fact, my most recent character arc is where I introduced the party to the big bad of my campaign! Not only was it not filler, it was critical and set the stage for things to come. I strongly advise doing this; set up your character arcs so that they are so interwoven with the main plot, none of them feel like they’re meaningless filler. You can (and should) also use this as an opportunity to ensure your party is driven to see the main plot of the campaign through. It’s a great way to add additional story hooks that push the party toward the end of your campaign, especially if you feel your initial story hook was a little too weak to keep them engaged.
Finding the Character Arc Hook
Writing a character arc is much like writing every other arc in your campaign except that some of the work has already been done for you: your players have already given you ideas, thanks to the questionnaire! When they wrote their backstories, they gave you tons of fodder, you just have to look for it. Once you’re ready to write a character arc, sit down and read through the responses you got to the initial backstory questionnaire. Search for things you can twist or some mentioned characters that could be involved in the arc. Try to find at least one unanswered question about the character that you believe the player will want to be answered by the end of the campaign. Where are my parents, what am I, how did I get these powers are all questions that could likely present themselves.
When you have your question, you have your hook. This is what the character arc needs to answer, and you’re ready to sit down and start drafting the arc.
Running the Arc
When you run your arc, it’s important that you let the character it’s focused on shine significantly. This is the perfect place for it! The spotlight is on this character, so let the character do what comes naturally. If it’s a rogue, present plenty of opportunities for sneaking, lockpicking, disguising, or whatever else serves as a strong suit for the character. If it’s a barbarian, make sure there are a lot of things to smash. For wizards, present opportunities to learn new spells or use the spells that the wizard already knows and uses frequently. Whatever it is, set the stage for the main character of the arc to be on full display and succeed. My most recent character arc focused greatly on intelligence, since not only was that the strong suit of the main character, it was the weakness of most of the others, who have a much lower intelligence score than he does. It allowed him to succeed on most of the saves that the rest of the party failed at, showcasing his niche within the party.
It’s not just about the skill checks, though. You want your arc to be the place where you reveal secrets about the character and give the character opportunities to reveal more information. The main character will be driving decisions, communicating with NPCs related to the backstory, and generally being the focus while others take a bit of a backseat. This doesn’t mean they’re not important, but… well, think of the arc’s focal character as Frodo and the other characters as Sam. We all love and need Sam, but the story doesn’t happen without Frodo.
Conclusion
And that’s my advice for creating a character arc! In this part of the course, we learned about finding and writing the hook for a character arc, why character arcs are important, and how to run one to ensure that the focal player is in the limelight and has the opportunity to show off. Character arcs are a fantastic way not only to develop a character but to help a player come out of a shell (and not just if the character is a tortle)! If you’ve got a newer player who’s shy about roleplaying, run a character arc! It’s sure to help the player get more comfortable with the concept.
Thanks so much for taking the time to check out this post, I really appreciate it! If you would like to support me in other ways, the best way to do so is to subscribe to my YouTube channel. Additionally, you can follow me on social media; I’m @TLBainter on most social media platforms and will have links for my socials down below.
Next week, I’ll be talking about the tools and software that I use and recommend for running and maintaining a solid homebrew campaign! After that, I have just one more session in this course and then we’re done. What an adventure this has been!
Until next time, bye!