Hello! I'm posting this thread to get a general idea of what people prefer in a game. Specifically, if you like playing AS a character, or developing your own.
For a while now I've been on the fence about adding named characters to my game The 12 Towers. I've been asked a couple times during play testing, and while I'd like to, i'm not sure if it would be fun, or just added confusion.
In the game, players take the role of "Keepers", powerful rulers that control a single tower on the game board. Past that, I haven't developed anything character based yet. On one hand, I think it'd be fun to add named characters and personal story lines for each, but I also like seeing what people can create on their own.
Let me know what you like! If you enjoy the process of making a character, or having one ready to play.
With the few ideas I had, the characters themselves will not have stats, but victory perks that carry on to the next game. I made a quick mock character card as an example.
My idea (so far) is this: Keeper characters give some depth and life to the Tower they control, displaying the type of ruler they are (Anarchy, Democracy, etc), and the types on inhabitants that exist around them. As a Keeper, they are already in a position of absolute power, and their goal in the game is to eliminate their opponents.
In the game, each tower has a rival (Fire vs Ice, Black vs White) I did this intentionally to add some conflict. So opposing Towers and characters will get a bonus for inflicting damage or destroying events and such that belong to a rival.
As for the stats and perks, I came up with this idea a while ago, but only recently figured out how to apply it. Like any game, points are earned for completing objectives and such. Those points are used to gain perks for the next game played. This can be useful for a campaign setting, or just playing multiple games for a while. It adds that incentive to keep players going, whether they win or lose.