QQ&A: Improving the tragic backstory
A question for me about the classic PC backstory. Note well that I am paraphrasing hard here:
“A typical backstory is ‘the Big Bad killed my parents/spouse/family and now I’m just so mad, grr!’ How can I tweak that to make that more interesting?”
Great question!
It all comes down to the simple insight that there’s so much worse than mere death – especially in a fantasy setting.
Doubly especially in a narrative setting.
See, in the context of a story, death is far from the worse fate. Oh, you can do so much better.
Kidnapping
“WTF, mate. Are you seriously saying that having a loved one kidnapped is worse than having them die?”
Yes, I am, in this context.
“This is some G-rated, Super Mario BS. I like my games to have grit, suffering and darkness!”
And you think character death is the best way to get there? At least death is certain. A kidnapped character could be dead. They might be being tortured. It all might be okay. Maybe they’ve escaped, but that’s not likely.
Death is final. Say what you will about it – at least you can move on from it. With kidnapping, there’s always hope but not much of it. That tension between hope and despair – that constant sense of helplessness – is beautifully horrifying.
“So you’re saying you’d rather a loved one died than be kidnapped?”
What, you mean in real life? No, of course not.
In fiction, though, this creates much more and better drama.
You’re right, though – we can do better than this.
Mysterious Disappearance
This is an extra layer of uncertainty over kidnapping. With that, at least you know that someone took them – sometimes even who.
But if they simply vanish one day, you don’t even know that much.
A skilled GM, stringing the PC along with just enough clues to keep them hopeful, but never enough to offer certainty, can make this a backstory painful enough to be worthy of a hero.
Possession
Those other two tragic backstories play with a lack of certainty.
We humans hate that. It’s why, when you talk to people who believe the End Times will happen in the next few years, many of them seem relieved. The world ending on Tuesday at 5pm is, on some level and for some people, better than the open question of will the world ever end.
It’s not the only way to torment a player/PC.
Give them a horrible certainty and watch them squirm.
Right up there is possession. Have their loved ones alive and aware, yet prisoners in their own bodies. Send them to fight the PCs – or not. Simply having them kneeling at the feet of the Big Bad is horrifying enough.
There’s still an element of uncertainty here: is it possible to undo the possession? If the answer is, “I don’t know, but it might be possible. It’s never been done though,” that’s a fragment of a spark of hope to end a fate worse than death.
If there’s no reversing it, the PC has to kill their loved ones. That’s dramatic, I guess. It’s better if they have to kill them even if there was a chance they could have saved them.
Oh, and with possession, don’t beat it with the power of love. “I know you’re still in there and I know you don’t want to hurt me. Fight back! Regain control!” Ugh. That’s been done. Also, it shows how weak the possession really is. You can fight it off by trying hard enough? Okay, good for you, Big Bad.
Anyway, take that and use it if you want.
Like all things, these backstories will fizzle in the hands of a mediocre GM, but sing in the hands of a good one.
It’s like cool concepts for new races.
Ooh, a society of subterranean fish-camels with acid for blood…?
Oh, their society is literally just Victorian London. Yawn.
Good GMs know how to distinguish their races and cultures. It’s often enough to slap a real-world culture on it and call it a day.
But for something special, you want to go deeper.
That’s why Call of the Gods is so awesome. It shows you how to craft non-human cultures that make sense and fit the world.
It’s a great product for writers and GMs alike.
You can find it here: