What do you start with when creating a character?

For me I tend to create a character based off of interesting information I stumble across, and build the concept of a character from there.

For instance, I was reading up on some Dungeons and Dragons lore when I stumbled upon the origins of the monstrous hags. One of the lore bits was that after consuming an female infant, they spawn an identical infant, which on some occasions they raise as their daughters. Upon the 13th birthday the hag-spawn undergo a mandatory ritual to transform into a full-blown hag, however what would become of the child if the ritual was interrupted and the child was removed from the influence of their evil mother? What if it is impossible for the child to turn into a hag now, and the mother hag now seeks to eliminate her as a potential weakness? Perhaps the hag spawn comes across heroic adventurers and joins them to escape the influence of her mother?

Of course tying different characters together just because I found something interesting can be difficult, but they often make for more interesting characters to explore.
 
When I decide to make a new character, I like to start with their race (Whether it be with or without powers), then thebackstory/parents because then that allows me to determine what they're going to become. I like to determine their race first because I don't believe you can do much without knowing that. Then I move on to the backstory, because it allows me to shape them and determine if they're chaotic, good or bad, and some tiny details.
 
Character concepts usually just come to me, like what they're like as a person, how they look. There on I go to what their purpose is, where they are, what's the story? The small little details come later. I usually don't worry too much about names because they can be switched pretty easily, although it's really rewarding when you find just the right one.
 
I usually get a fundamental feel for them, the essence of how they are feeling at a single point in time. From there I look back at what got them there and forward to how they will deal with their circumstances and where that might take them. With that I usually have an impression of what they look like and with these two pieces, I start to build outwards defining the personality and behaviours. But it's in the writing where they come to life and sometimes change entirely from what I initially see.

Here's a good example. I had this guy in my head who was a smart ass, conman, attractive, long hair and beard with a potty mouth. He was also a serial killer with a wicked and irreverent sense of humour. The idea was he would con his way into heaven, become immortal, con his way back to earth and become an immortal serial killer. He sounded fun. When I began writing his backstory, things changed drastically and now he has a second chance at life and is fighting to cope with serious mental disorders to become a better human.
 
I start with a vague idea for a character and then I design them. When I’m drawing and designing that’s when I come up with ideas for their personality and story to really make them complete. I name my characters last and they are usually named after cities. It takes me a long time to make characters and they are always changing.
 
I start with a concept, just what I want to see in the story and what I feel might be missing. I then choose their role in the story (are they a good guy, bad guy, double agent, etc). After that I choose a name, which is usually in japanese and defines the character (for example, a character named "Rin" is dignified and cold, but a character named "Aki" is bright and ambiverted. Finally I create their personality, and base their design off of their personality (as well as what is considered the norm for that universe)
You can never have too much information! Characters grow and change like a human. I've written character bios that are like 5 pages long. One of my ocs was literally made to develop over time, starting as a basic AI with no emotional capacity, but learning how the world works and what emotions are over the course of the story until she eventually falls in love. She also developed PTSD, OCD, separation anxiety, and dissociative personality disorder that have gradually lessened, but (realistically) returned after a major traumatic battle (she's a young hero/SHIELD agent in the Marvel general universe rather than the MCU).
I'm kind of rambling but what I mean to say is, you can never have too much information and development!
 
When I make a character, usually I have a certain vibe of a universe or world I want to create, like its genre and general aesthetic, and then I create characters to populate that world! Then, I like to draw them and hammer out a few basic character traits before giving them a name, which basically goes like this:

“Wow, that name sure sounds cool! Let’s use it regardless of its meaning or if it’s even an actual name!”

(My main character has a name from a YouTube sketch comedy video about Star Wars so...)

Then, I start to define their relationship with other characters in the universe and flesh out their personality. I like to come up with a core conflict the character faces and theme their personality around that, like having issues with abandonment or self-confidence. It helps with figuring out what their character arc will be, which then helps me define the plot! Of course, these steps aren’t always linear, and I fiddle around with my characters all the time to the point where none of them are anywhere near where they started! That’s the fun of it for me, though, because my characters get to grow and change with me!
 
I am a mess when it comes to creating a character.

I often start with a photo, like what does the person looks like. Seeing a character in what the wear or what action they are going on the image is often my starting path, and from there on it becomes a general mess xD

I will jump around in google docs while I write my character, sometimes I start with power and abilities, sometimes appearance or background. In the end, it will all sort itself out and I will have a character that is ready to play.

I generally do write more sad, evil over dark characters over happy go lucky ones.
 
Hmm...

Gonna lurk through the thread first and wait until someone creates their characters first. From there, creating a character that would either clash or support them.

First of are names. Since I do base my characters from plants and their symbolism, researching on them comes a priority.

Second would be the characteristics [also based on the plant symbolism]. If I think they are overpowered, I look for other charcterisitcs.

Lastly, the pictures. I'd rather write the physical description but that would take ages
 
I always start with the idea, what I want them to be at the moment, and what that means to me. They kind of just evolve on their own, but the idea of what they are, is kind of the starting point and from there, it kind of just doesn't stop. They learn things from interacting and the world they are in. So, that's about it.
 
I, admittedly, most commonly start with the looks of a character. I enjoy digital art, so if I draw a character which has a design that's fascinating to me, I start from there. The appearance of the character will most likely develop as I progress with the story line though.
 
I usually base my character around a certain concept that I like the sound of, I have a fair few characters that fit into each-other's stories and such just because I decided to build them off each-other as well though.
 
When creating a character, where exactly I start depends on one of a number of things. If it's a character in a story, I generally try to imagine what kind of role I want that character to play in the story, and use that to flesh them out from there (how will fulfilling the role affect them, what in or prior to the story compelled them to fill that role, etc.). For RPs, I tend to draw inspiration from the pre-established plot/setting, choose and/or develop a character archetype based on my own observations from the plot/setting and my own ideas for ways to explore the different factors that may contribute to character development, and then let the pieces fall where they may from there.

For example, once upon a time, I tried to do an RP based on the obscure N64 video game Bio F.R.E.A.K.S., which was a fighting game that, though somewhat lacking in terms of gameplay, had a surprisingly complex and well-developed storyline that was tragically underused in the game itself. In a nutshell, this storyline featured a dystopian near-future scenario in which the U.S.A. (now called "Neo-Amerika") completely broke apart due to large tech corporations taking over whole states and fighting each other for territory, resulting in the creation of a tournament in which each corporation would design genetically-engineered super-powered humanoids to settle disputes between corporations in one-on-one combat, but then said humanoids in turn forming a resistance after getting sick of being forced to fight/dismember/kill each other as little more than slaves. My original character concept going into this kind of RP was one such humanoid created by a scientist who, having grown to love her like a daughter, sabotaged the machinery that would have stripped her of her free will, and later decided to take her and flee rather than see her forced to fight in the tournament. Then I got the idea to have her become an accidental superhero, at which point the humanoid resistance sees an opportunity to make her the face of the resistance, so they offer to train her and provide protection for her adopted family in return. This is just a basic summary of my thought process at the time, but you get the idea.
 
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I usually start with a general concept/idea I may have. First I tend to start off by thinking what kind of person they would be, if they have any abilities, and then figure out what they look like. Then I'll start working on a backstory, figuring out their personality, bonds, ideals, and what their flaws are. Playing dnd has really helped me learn how to flesh my characters out. Characters are ever growing and can learns. I like characters that are flawed and feel a bit more realistic.
 
Depending on the setting and story of the roleplay, I start with what type of character do I want to play, their personality(which I usually think after I find a face claim) and how will they interact with the other characters if I made them a certain way. I think the hardest thing for me to come up with sometimes is their full name. lol I know that shouldn't be the hardest part but I often don't use the same name twice. Just my own preference.
 
Whenever I create a character, I often work on the general concept first. Once I get a hold of it, I would begin working on their personality and abilities. Everything else would then follow along.
 
Normally I just have random ideas, but a lot of my characters take inspiration from pre-existing characters like Giganta from the DC universe, Magica from Ducktales, Handsome Jack from Borderlands 2, and a bit of Star Wars and Warhammer mixed in for good measure. Every so often, I do have an semi-original idea or I reboot and revise past ideas in other fandoms. Helga was a bit original, but she is heavily inspired by Norse mythology and is meant to be German. Wanda I've thought of while playing Witcher 3, even though necromancers would be considered evil I thought it would be funny for the Witcher to work with a funny necromancer sidekick.
 
Usually I start with personal inspiration. Maybe a theme, or idea. Maybe I want to make a bad ass cop, or maybe I'd love to make a spin on a fire mage this time.
After the concept mixes with my inspiration I start pushing out things like age/gender, and to me the most important part is their personality since that's a good chunk of the character outside of their history and other basics.
Then I judge power level, and then everything else slowly falls in line.
Admittedly usually names are the only thing I struggle with. I tend to think of it from and outside perspective. How will people be seeing their name, nickname them? Will they prefer to call them a already made nickname, shorten their first or last name.. call them by their first or last name.. do they have a last name? etc etc, haha~
 
I tend to start with their personality and status. Are they going to be an evil crook? Or are they going to be an exhausted singer? Are they going to be sweet or mean? From there I start thinking of their backstory or their hobbies... Typically the name and their appearance cones last since it takes me longer to come up with that
 
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