Backstories

The backstory defines the skills of the colonist in question and is divided into two parts, childhood and adulthood. The backstory may either enhance or impair the colonists competence regarding specific skills. Currently there are 11 childhood and 18 adulthood backstories. 7 of the latter are not available in the character creation phase, however they do appear as raiders and wanderers.

Childhood

Abandoned child

"[Character] was a quick witted, funny child. One day he/she wandered off on /his/her wealthy genetic parents, and was ultimately lost in a supposedly unused ore warehouse. Due to cloning technology, his/her parents decided that the time looking for /him/her was better spent on just cloning a better son/daughter."

Construction: +1
Shooting: +1
Melee: +1
Social: +1

Cleaning disabled
Cooking disabled
Firefighting disabled

Abductee (1)

"[Character] was abducted by xeno humans when he/she was still a baby. They experimented on him/her to understand his/her genetic structure.

As he/she grew up, [Character] grew a little bit too big and strong for his/her captors and eventually escaped."

Construction: +2
Research: -3
Mining: +4
Melee: +4
Social: -2

Researching disabled

Abductee (2)

"[Character] was abducted at a young age and forced to do menial labor on a pirate ship."

Construction: +2
Melee: +2
Cooking: +2
Crafting: +2

Adventuring child

"[Character] was raised to become an engineer. For years, he/she planned to stow away on a cargo ship and start a new, more adventuresome life.

One night after his/her parents fell asleep, he/she managed to sneak aboard a cargo ship just before it left port."

Construction: +2
Crafting: +3

Amateur botanist

"Spending many summers crawling through dirt, [Character] found that he/she had quite the green thumb. Instead of learning to cook the food he/she grew, he/she just grew more and more."

Growing: +4
Artistic: +2

Cooking disabled

Amateur engineer

"[Character] grew up in a family with a military and engineering background. He/She wanted to join the military, but his/her father didn't like the idea, so his/her interest turned to great flying machines and works of engineering. He/She secretly hoped that this would one day lead him/her to a life of galactic exploration."

Construction: +2
Research: +2
Mining: +1
Shooting: +1

Cleaning disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Apocalypse child

"[Character] spend his/her childhood on a post-apocalyptic world. He/She fought for survival at a young age, on a planet where trust did not exist.

He told everyone that he had no luck."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +3
Crafting: +2

Researching disabled

Aristocrat

"Born into an aristocratic family, [Character] spent his/her younger years in blissful ignorance. His/Her studies were sporadic and he never took a liking to anything involving his hands.

Fate, however, would force a change in habit. A global war broke out and the nukes melted the planet's surface into radioactive glass."

Social: +2
Cooking: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled

Artful dodger

"[Character] grew up on one of the urbworlds and had to fend for him/herself all his/her life. He/She never trusted anyone, relying on his/her persuasiveness and cunning to survive.

He soon became skilled with firearms and knives as well as words."

Shooting: +1
Melee: +2
Social: +3

Cleaning disabled
Art disabled
Crafting disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Cooking disabled
Doctoring disabled

Artisan farmer

"[Character] grew up on his/her family's glitterworld farm. They were one of the last farms on the planet that preferred traditional farming methods instead to glitterworld technology."

Growing: +7
Research: -2
Shooting: -2
Cooking: +2

Hunting disabled

Aspergers rebel

"[Character] grew up as a rebel on an formerly-advanced rimworld devastated by war.

His/Her Aspergers syndrome meant he/she struggled with social situations and was incapable of caring, but he/she learned hard skills like research and shooting very quickly."

Research: +5
Shooting: +2
Social: -3

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Doctoring disabled

Aspiring pop idol

"[Character] was being trained in song and dance to become the next big pop idol. He/She grew up being taken care of by company handlers.

He/She never knew manual labor, but learned a lot about music and social etiquette."

Mining: -2
Shooting: -4
Melee: -4
Social: +4
Artistic: +4

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled

Awkward nerd

"Always fascinated by machines, [Character] spent his/her time studying robotics and holography. He/She preferred the company of his scientific creations to that of other people."

Research: +5
Melee: -2
Social: -2
Crafting: +4

Firefighting disabled

Blackjack player

"The only useful skill [Character] learned from his/her tough military school was card counting. He/She amassed many enemies by cheating at casinos, becoming ever more edgy and violent as the threat of retaliation grew.

When he/she was finally caught, they burned half his/her skin off. He/She will never be able to face fire or violence again."

Research: +3
Shooting: +4
Melee: +2
Social: +2

Hunting disabled
Firefighting disabled

Blessed child

"[Character] was born under auspicious circumstances to a midworld spiritual group and held in reverence throughout his/her childhood.

He/She learned to take care of the poor and give succor to the faithful from an early age."

Social: +3
Medicine: +2
Artistic: +1

Bone collector

"Born to a family of fortune hunters, [Character] always had a passion for ancient history.

Though never a tough or social boy, he/she loved to dig through history books as well as dirt piles."

Growing: +2
Mining: +2
Shooting: -3
Melee: -3
Social: -3
Medicine: +2
Artistic: +2
Crafting: +2

Brutal thief

"Growing up in a gang, [Character] learned the brutality of the streets.

Knowing that showing weakness could be fatal, he/she closed him/herself off to others."

Growing: -2
Shooting: +2
Melee: +4
Social: -2
Medicine: +2

Art disabled
Doctoring disabled

Cat herder

"[Character] helped out in his/her father's cat breeding business, socializing, herding, and feeding hundreds of cats.

When he/she refused to clean up after the cats, he/she was transferred to the breeding science division."

Social: +2
Cooking: +3

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled

Cave child

"[Character] grew up in a large and intricate cave complex that extended deep into a mountainside. He/She helped the adults maintain and improve the deep caves."

Construction: +3
Mining: +3

Caveworld tender

"[Character] grew up in a cave complex deep beneath the surface of an inhospitable world. He/She worked with the children tending the tribe's fungus crop."

Growing: +4
Mining: +2
Shooting: -3

Caveworld tunneler

"[Character] worked as a digger in the massive underground cave complex.

He/She knows rock so well that he/she can almost navigate caves by smell. Years underground have damaged his/hers vision, so He/She can't shoot very well"

Construction: +1
Mining: +6
Shooting: -2

Researching disabled
Crafting disabled

Chess master

"[Character] loved to play chess. He/She even earned the nickname Bishop for some of his/her craftier moves.

He/She never got into trouble - mostly because he/she was good at not getting caught."

Research: +2
Social: +4

Child prodigy

"After graduating college at age twelve, [Character] devoted his/her life to becoming immortal. However his/her research crossed the line when he/she tried to modify his/her body using gene therapy and mechanical augmentation. He/She was arrested and condemned to a prison planet."

Research: +6
Mining: -3
Cooking: -3
Medicine: +6

Child slave

"[Character] was born to a poor family on a rimworld. His/Her father sold him into slavery at a young age and he/she was traded many times. A tycoon bought him/her as part of a child labor force and sent down into mines to look after machines and to work alongside them."

Construction: +2
Mining: +3
Social: -2

Researching disabled

Circus performer

"Growing up in the circus, [Character] learned a lot of interesting things. More interesting then the balls he/she jugged were the pockets he/she picked between shows.

A mistake with some firesticks made him/her develop a deathly fear of fire."

Social: +3
Artistic: +2

Coliseum cleaner

"Dusing the 'Inner Destrian War' fallout, his/her parents were captured and he/she was born into a life of slavery. Forced to clean coliseums after bloody battles for money. Watching, waiting, and learning. Coliseums were the only thing he ever knew. One night while cleaning the coliseum, his family was murdered."

Research: +4
Social: +2
Crafting: +1

Mining disabled
Doctoring disabled
Firefighting disabled

Coma child

"A childhood accident put [Character] into a coma. He/She didn't wake up until he/she was in his/her late teens. His/Her body never recovered from the years of inactivity, but people tend to take pity on him/her when they hear his/her story."

Construction: -2
Mining: -2
Social: +5

Construction grunt

"Growing up in his father's lab, [Character] was given the life of an intellectual elite. He/She got everything he/she desired, and price was never an object.

However [Character] did not partake in the luxury given to him/her. Instead, he/she pursued more psychical. and - in his fathers eyes - lower class jobs."

Construction: +4
Social: +1
Crafting: +2

Cleaning disabled
Plant Cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Core dilettante

"[Character] spent his/her formative years on a glitterworld in the core region, where he/she and her friends pursued lives of idle pleasure.

As he/she grew up, he/she began to find the life of ease unfulfilling. He/She decided to look for a more challenging path."

Research: +2
Social: +2
Artistic: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Hunting disabled

Core world student

"Born a female/male named Alex, [Character] didn't fit in well with the other girls/boys. When very young, he/she preferred creative pursuits, such as crafting jewelry, over sports. He/She felt he/she had the wrong body. Luckily, his/her family and friends supported his/her sex reassignment; as a teen, he/she underwent surgery to became a female/male."

Construction: +2
Shooting: -1
Cooking: -2
Artistic: +4
Crafting: +4

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Cooking disabled
Firefighting disabled

Corp student

"[Character] was bred to become an executive officer for the large space trading corporation that owned his/her home planet. His/Her family had been working for that corporation for seven generations.

At age six, he/she started to study at the corporate academy, where he/she learned to become a loyal follower and a ruthless executive."

Research: +3
Social: +3
Medicine: -2
Artistic: -3

Cleaning disabled

Disciplined farmer

"[Character] was the younger of two sons on the family farm, a frontier plot that struggled to turn a profit. [Character] father was a strict disciplinarian, constantly at his sons to work harder, and keep quiet. [Character] burned hand making breakfast once and swore never to cook unless his/her life was in danger"

Construction: +2
Growing: +3
Research: -1
Mining: +2

Cooking disabled
Warden disabled

Displaced noble

"Born on an urbworld to the ruler of three megacities, [Character] prospects looked good - until a violent insurrection overthrew his/her family. Exile introduced [Character] to hard work and combat, but some high.born squeamishness remains."

Research: +1
Shooting: +3
Crafting: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled

Dreamer

"Since his/her father was often away, [Character] took the role of man of the house. He/She learned the value of hard work, but never really had a childhood.

Every day, [Character] dreamed of leaving his/her home and exploring new worlds."

Construction: +1
Research: +3
Social: +2

Drug mule

"Raised in an orphanage, [Character] turned towards the gang life at age ten.

He/She was exploited by the local gang as a drug mule to traffic 'substance F' across rival gang territory. He/She took a bullet or two."

Growing: +1
Shooting: +2
Melee: +3
Social: -2

Researching disabled
Cleaning disabled
Art disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Wardening disabled
Doctoring disabled

Fallen prodigy

"Born on a glitterworld falling into chaos, his/her father was killed in action. He/She struggled for a scholarship at Utmaior Academy and had to prove his/her right to be there. The child genius was jealously bullied as a charity case and couldn't make friends with kids his/her own age."

Construction: +2
Growing: +2
Research: +5
Social: -3
Medicine: +3
Crafting: +2

Wardening disabled

Farm boy

"[Character] worked on his/her family's farm, looking after the animals and treating them when they were injured. Preferring hands-on tasks and outdoors, he/she avoided softer jobs that might have kept him/her cooped up inside.

He/She enjoyed his lonely work, and tended to stay out of people's way and do his/her own thing."

Growing: +2
Mining: +3
Melee: +4
Social: -3
Cooking: -2

Farmer boy

"[Character] parents died in a fire when he/she was seven. He/She grew up on his/her uncle's farm, plowing fields and doing manual labor.

He/She could not bear answering questions about his/her parents, so he/she replaced social contact with hard work."

Construction: +2
Growing: +4
Mining: +1
Social: -3
Crafting: +2

Wardening disabled
Doctoring disabled
Firefighting disabled

Feral child

"Abandoned on an animal planet as a small child with nought but a blanket with a name embroidered on it, [Character] made him/herself one with the wilderness.

When he/she was 13, he/she encountered a team of mineral surveyors who "offered" him/her passage off of the planet."

Growing: +2
Melee: +4
Crafting: +1

Researching disabled
Warden disabled

Feudal farm boy

"[Character] was the son/daughter of a medieval farmer, and was expected to follow in his footsteps. He/She was brought up as a kind, well trained farm boy.

He/She lived in an unusual feudal kingdom which co-existed with a midworld society which was itself well-known for genetic manipulation."

Growing: +4
Social: +2

Researching disabled

Fire tender

"In his/her childhood, [Character] was responsible for keeping the tribe's fire going. He/She took this responsibility very seriously."

Cooking: +2
Crafting: +2

Fire-scarred child

"[Character] was an active child who lived an uneventful childhood until he/she fell into a fire and suffered horrific burns to his/her hands and arms. Although the scars have faded, he/she can't bear to be in close proximity to fire."

Mining: +1
Melee: +1
Cooking: -2

Cooking disabled
Firefighting disabled

Foundry apprentice

"[Character] grew up as an apprentice in the foundries of an industrial world. This experience gave him/her metalworking skills and strong muscles, but stunted his/her artistic development "

Construction: +3
Melee: +1
Artistic: -2
Crafting: +3

Frightened child

"[Character] grew up with a laundry list of phobias and neuroses. He/She feared, among other things, doctors and foodborne pathogens.

As a result, he/she learned to cook and care for himself, but many of his/her fears dog him in adulthood."

Cooking: +3
Medicine: +3

Firefighting disabled

Frontier marshal

"[Character] inherited a sense of duty from his/her father, and began a law enforcement career on his/her frontier homeworld.

He/She tried to uphold the law with honor, but the corruption and greed of local government officials often discouraged him/her."

Shooting: +4
Melee: +3

Gang member

"[Character] grew up homeless on an urbworld. He/She was forced to fight and struggle for everything, making him/her hard and ruthless long before adulthood.

[Character] would have stayed in those streets, had he/she not been injured in a shootout and had his/her body confiscated for use by one of the worldwide city's ruling corporations."

Growing: -1
Shooting: +2
Melee: +5

Researching disabled
Wardening disabled

Glitterworld kid

"The son/daughter of a genetically-engineered "perfect mate" on a glitterworld, [Character] was much more shy, withdrawn and nervous than his/her parents. He/She kept mostly to him/herself, studying science and medicine and taking on gardening as a hobby.

In his/her teens, he/she ran away from home, seeking a quieter life."

Growing: +4
Research: +2
Social: -3
Medicine: +1

Glitterworld nerd

"[Character] loved technology from the day he/she was born. He/She had a mechanoid companion which he/she tried to modify when he/she was 10.

His/Her obsession with technology meant that he/she never appreciated arts or culture."

Research: +5
Artistic: -2
Crafting: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Art disabled
Plant cutting disabled

G-nome sculptor

"[Character] was engineered in a lab as part of the G-nome Project. He/She was implanted at birth with encyclopedic knowledge of all aspects of xenobiology.

The G-nome scientists nicknamed him/her Gizmo and occupied him/her with sculpting. He/She developed a love of sculpting gnomes and gnome accessories."

Research: +2
Social: +2
Cooking: -5
Artistic: +4
Crafting: +2

Cleaning disabled
Cooking disabled

Gun kid

"Growing up in a urbworld, [Character] never had it easy. Every day was a struggle and pollution, hunger, and gangs of older kids.

In the little space he/she had to him/herself he/she studied his/her passion - guns, combat tactics, and war history."

Shooting: +3
Melee: +3
Artistic: -3

Hacker prodigy

"[Character] was raised as the only child of wealthy surgeons. After being pressured into accepting a medical apprenticeship, he/she snapped. He/she seized his/her inheritance and went underground to learn how to exploit computer networks. He/She quickly became one of the most feared hackers on his/her planet."

Research: +7
Medicine: +4

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Cooking disabled

Herder

"As a child, [Character] tended the tribe's muffalo herds, keeping them safe from predators and treating the sick. It was quiet work, but he/she enjoyed being away from people."

Melee: +3
Social: -2
Medicine: +3

High baroness

"[Character] was born as low-ranking royalty in a large imperial family.

He/She was placed in charge of running his/her home planet from an early age, and learned important political and cultural skills in the role."

Research: +2
Social: +7
Artistic: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Firefightings disabled

Hillbilly prodigy

"Born on a cold hillbilly planet inhabited mainly by firred xenohumans, [Character] grew up to the sound of bar fights and shootouts. Though his/her childhood was spent playing the banjo and working as a mechanic, his/her abnormal intelligence made him want something more; he/she entered medical school at age twenty."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +2
Social: -2
Medicine: +2

Cleaning disabled
Art disabled
Wardening disabled

History student

"As a child, [Character] spent learned many artistic forms including music and novel writing. As he/she grew older, he/she began to study legends from this/her home world - legends of the lizard-like beings at the center of his/her culture's folklore."

Social: +2
Artistic: +4
Crafting: +1

Hive world child

"[Character] had an isolated upbringing in an urbworld hive city. His/Her hatred of heights kept him indoors often, and made him/her an introverted child.

When he/she did go out onto the catwalks of the city, he/she enjoyed playing war games, becoming proficient with various simulation weapons."

Growing: +1
Research: +1
Shooting: +3
Artistic: +1
Crafting: +1

Firefighting disabled

Idealistic cadet

"Raised in the military traditions of his/her forefathers, [Character] was taught from a young age that he/she would be a great leader and the hero of the Dichter family.

He/She excelled at his/her studies and graduated from the academy with honors."

Mining: -3
Shooting: +4
Melee: +3
Social: -2

Mining disabled

Imperial student

"[Character] studied on an imperial midworld where guns were banned and self-defense study was encouraged. The relative safety allowed him/her to focus on his/her botanical research."

Growing: +2
Research: +3
Shooting: -3
Melee: +2

Cleaning disabled
Crafting disabled
Firefighting disabled

Industrial orphan

"[Character] never knew his/her parents. His/Her earliest memories were of drudgery in the mins and workhouses of his/her industrial world.

Because of this, he/she never received a proper education."

Research: -2
Mining: +3
Crafting: +3

Indworld urchin

"[Character] grew up on the streets of a world in the early stages of its industrial revolution. He/She passed his/her days stealing, begging and tinkering with discarded machine scraps, always on the lookout for a way to escape poverty."

Construction: +1
Melee: +1
Crafting: +2

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Mad scientist

"[Character] grew up miserable on the plains of a neolithic planet. He/She found the strength to fight under the teachings of an old, broken scientist.

He/She quickly learned to play with people's fears, and was nicknamed 'mad scientist'."

Research: +4
Melee: +1
Social: +2

Cleaning disabled

Mechanoid nerd

"[Character] grew up in an urbworld as the only child of a pair of mechanoid designers. They encouraged his/her interest in the machines. Eventyally, he/she became obsessed with building his/her own.

Unfortunately this also lead to him/her being a loner as he/she preferred technical books to friends."

Construction: +2
Research: +3
Social: -2
Crafting: +2

Medical student (1)

"[Character] grew up on a glitterworld in a family of doctors and chose to maintain the tradition.

He/She had a few friends, but got along with his/her siblings very well."

Social: +1
Medicine: +6

Medical student (2)

"Born into a long line of doctors, [Character] was tutored in all fields of medicine, from herbal ointments to the modern synthetic drugs. He/She also picked up a healthy disdain for lower class work."

Construction: -2
Social: +3
Medicine: +3

Hauling disabled
Mining disabled

Medieval lordling

"[Character] was a minor noble in an old kingdom on a medieval world. He/She grew up in a manor made of stone, served by bowing lowerclassmen.

Such a life teaches no technical skills and instills a lifelong aversion to manual labor - but [Character] learned early the ways of social manipulation."

Construction: -1
Growing: -1
Mining: -1
Social: +4

Medieval slave (1)

"[Character] grew up pulling carts and digging holes on a medieval world. Simple manual labor is his/her oldest companion - along with the master's lash.

He/She didn't learn to read until age nine."

Construction: +2
Growing: +2
Research: -3
Mining: +2

Medieval slave (2)

"Born into slavery, [Character] never knew his/her parents. He/She eventually escaped from his/her masters and boarded a military cargo ship, where he/she was pressed into military service."

Construction: +2
Growing: +3
Research: -3
Mining: +1
Cooking: +2
Artistic: -2

Researching disabled

Medieval squire

"[Character] grew up on a medieval planet as a knight in training. He/She trained directly under the king's war adviser for most of his/her youth, and learned to fight with a sword and shield."

Construction: -1
Growing: -1
Mining: -1
Shooting: +3
Melee: +5

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Cooking disabled

Mercenary recruit

"Descended from a long line off-world mercenaries, [Character] grew up in a busy trading hub.

His/Hers interest in the foreign goods at the market often distracted him/her from his/her chores and training."

Shooting: +3
Melee: +1
Crafting: +3

Midworld sketcher

"[Character] was born into a loving but poor family.

He/She discovered he/she had an artistic talent which he/she inherited from his father. His/Her mother taught him/her the benefits of hard work and determination. As he/she grew older, [Character] developed a fascination with technology and military history."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +1
Artistic: +3

Military child

"[Character] grew up in a family with a rich military background. His/Her teenage years were spent traveling system to system wherever his/her parents were deployed

He/She enlisted at age 18, following the tradition of his/her family"

Construction: +2
Shooting: +3
Melee: +1
Medicine: +2
Artistic: -3

Nerd

"[Character] was curious about everything. While other kids played tag in the suburbs of their industrial city, [Character] read every book he/she could find about technology, robots, and weapons - whatever looked coolest.

His/Her strong French accent kept him/her from making real friends."

Construction: +1
Research: +4
Social: -2
Medicine: +2
Crafting: +2

Wardening disabled

Noble ward

"[Character] was adopted by a prominent noble family after being left on their doorstep by his/her mother.

He/She quickly learned secrets that passed between the nobles like cheap wine - of world beyond his/her own, languages, cultures and technologies both new and old."

Research: +4
Shooting: -1
Melee: -2
Social: +3

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Firefighting disabled

Officer cadet

"From a young age, [Character] trained to be a leader of men. He/She enrolled in the Vanu Defense College when he/she was a boy/girl and became proficient with a range of weapons and survival techniques."

Growing: +1
Reseach: -3
Shooting: +3
Melee: +3
Social: +1
Medicine: +1
Artistic: -3

Researching disabled
Art disabled

Optimistic child

"[Character] was blessed with loving parents and a pleasant midworld live. He/She was an optimistic and sociable kid who loved making friends and listening to their stories. His/Her imagination would run wild with ideas and questions."

Social: +4

Organ farm

"[Character] was raised in an illegal underground organ farm. His/her body was used to grow organic implants for wounded mercenaries. Though his/her upbringing left him/her haunted, it has also given him/her a unique understanding of human biology."

Medicine: +5

Firefighting disabled

Orphan (1)

"Born on a deep space station, [Character] was orphaned at a young age. In the orphanage, he/she stood up for the weaker kids and fought off the bullies."

Melee: +4
Medicine: +2

Crafting disabled

Orphan (2)

"Left alone in the world without parents, [Character] did the best he/she could to adapt.

Having to take care both of him/herself and younger kids at the orphanage, he/she learned a lot about humans and how to interact with them."

Social: +6

Orphan of war

"[Character] lost his/her family and home early in life. His/Her life became emotionally hollow, but his/her painful memories drove him/her to survive.

He/She took several jobs, but never achieved more than a basic education."

Construction: +3
Research: -3
Mining: +3
Cooking: +3

Wardening disabled

Pampered

"Born on a decadent glitterworld, [Character] was raised to be the best and given every expensive toy.

This pampered lifestyle which caused him/her to miss many basic lessons others take for granted. As a result, cooking is a terrifying prospect that he/she will never consider, and manual labor would take time to get used to."

Research: +2
Melee: -3
Social: +3
Medicine: +3

Cooking disabled

Pickpocket

"Orphaned and abandoned on the tumultuous streets of his polluted, teeming homeworld, [Character] survived by deft hand and fleet foot. A natural born thief and trickster, he/she rose to prominence early, running the notorious and violent urchin gang 'Doomben Rats'."

Melee: +2
Social: +2
Artistic: +2

Cleaning disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Power-mad scholar

""Knowledge is power." These words sparked something within [Character], and came to form his/her core drive. When not entombed within libraries, he/she would take things apart to see first-hand how they worked, with little regard for the border between mechanical and organic."

Construction: +3
Research: +3
Social: -3
Crafting: +3

Privileged prodigy

"[Character] was recognized as gifted early in his/her glitterworld upbringing. Luckily, his/her family was in a position to cultivate that genius through advanced education. His/Her training included science, leadership, and the arts."

Research: +2
Medicine: 1
Artistic: +2

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Hunting disabled
Firefighting disabled

Psychology student

"[Character] researched new religions and traditions and often dreamed of distant stars.

His/Her dreams prompted hum to ask what lay beyond the lights in the sky."

Social: -3
Artistic: +4

Hunting disabled

Rebel slave

"[Character] was born into corporate slavery and raised to perform menial tasks for minimum pay. He/She was just another cog in the machine.

[Character] found his/her freedom by joining a revel organization whose goal was to break free from their corporate masters."

Construction: +1
Growing: +1
Research: -2
Shooting: +2
Social: +2
Crafting: +2

Art disabled
Mining disabled

Reclusive child

"[Character] didn't learn to speak until he/she was nearly 5 years old, and, even then, he/she preferred to keep to him/herself. When he/she was in his/her early teens, he/she made a habit of wandering off the village to live in the wilderness for weeks at a time."

Melee: +4
Crafting: +3

Wardening disabled

Reclusive prodigy

"Growing up on a flourishing glitterworld afforded [Character] the chance to fully devote him/herself to his/her studies.

Having taken a keen interest in genetic modification and neural augmentation from a young age, he/she had little time (or desire) for a regular childhood."

Research: +4
Medicine: +4

Art disabled
Wardening disabled

Scavenger (1)

"[Character] grew up in one of the few remaining cities on a world ravaged by nuclear war.

He/She learned to survive on his/her own in this post-apocalyptic wasteland by scavenging for technology and supplies."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +2
Social: -2
Cooking: +2

Researching disabled
Art disabled

Scavenger (2)

"[Character] spent his childhood escaping grunt work to go digging through wrecks and ruins for treasures. His/Her natural curiosity got him/her into a lot of trouble, but it also yielded many interesting finds."

Research: +3
Mining: +3

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled

Scout

"Born to colonial administrators from a small imperial power, [Character] was enrolled in a youth program that taught military scouting skills.

He/She learned to survive in the wilderness, to obey, and not to ask questions.

Construction +1
Shooting: +3
Crafting: +2

Researching disabled
Art disabled

Shelter child

"[Character] grew up in a shelter deep beneath a toxic world. He/She received a comprehensive education, but had no opportunity to do physical labor."

Construction: -2
Research: +3
Mining: -2
Social: +2
Medicine: +3

Shooting coma

"[Character] fell into a coma at a young age and spent years dreaming about shooting. When he/she awoke, he/she was useless at most tasks - but he could aim pretty well."

Shooting: +8

Everything else disabled (except Hunting)

Shunned girl

"[Character] was born into a small, poor family. She was bullied relentlessly, beaten and hated. As she grew up, she developed an interest in guns. She usually studied from books, but occasionally managed to get some practice time with the real thing. [Character] later discovered a talent for art and began to teach herself how to draw and paint."

Shooting: +2
Social: -2

Sickly child

"As a child, [Character] suffered from a rare disease. Quarantined in a research hospital, he/she had minimal human contact and got little physical exercise. In the sterile hospital environment, however he/she became very familiar with science and medicine."

Construction: -2
Research: +4
Melee: -2
Social: -2
Medicine: +5

Slave farmer

"Abandoned as a little girl, [Character] was found by a farmer. Being infertile himself, the farmer kept her as a slave. The constant beatings left her scarred and unable to handle violence. After many years, she ran away."

Growing: +4
Shooting: +2
Melee: -3

Hunting disabled

Sole survivor

"[Character] entire tribe was wiped out in a raid. Though he/she was adopted by another group, he/she was emotionally scarred, and preferred to stay near home, cooking and tending crops."

Growing: +3
Cooking: +3

Hunting disabled
Firefighting disabled

Son of a huntress

"In the mountains of the planet Ticonderoga, [Character] was raised by his/her tribal mother. She taught him/her survival skills - trapping, tracking, shooting, skinning, cooking and healing.

His/Her departed father had left behind old bold-action rifle, and [Character] practiced with it every chance he got."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +2
Cooking: +2
Medicine: +1
Crafting: +1

Researching disabled

Space fanboy

"[Character] dreamed of space travel. He/She built his/her own pretend spaceship from an old police box and went to see the great unknown."

Research: +2
Crafting: +3

Space smuggler

"[Character]'s parents used him/her to help smuggle contraband between a cluster of rim worlds.

Aided by his/her small size, [Character] became very adept at carrying out his/her parents' missions, learning, weaponry, negotiations, and most of all smuggling."

Growing: -2
Research: -2
Shooting: +3
Melee: +3
Social: +3
Medicine: +2
Artistic: -2

Spoiled child

"[Character] grew up the child of an industrious colony manager. In this position, most manual and dangerous tasks were forbidden by his/her parents, but on the rim everyone has to dirty their hands."

Construction: -2
Growing: +2
Mining: -2
Social: +2
Cooking: +2
Artistic: +2

Firefighting disabled

Stableboy

"[Character] was a stableboy on a medieval planet, mucking dung almost every day to earn his keep.

By the time he was in his late teens, [Character] had saved up enough money to pay a space trader to take him offworld."

Mining: +2
Melee: +2
Social: -2
Artistic: +2
Crafting: +1

Wardening disabled

Starforce cadet

"Raised on Amen-Ti, glitterworld capital of the Star Empire, [Character] had an easy childhood.

As a youth, [Character] decided that joining the Starforce would be his way of giving back to the Empire."

Research: +2
Mining: -3
Social: +2
Medicine: +1

Station whelp

"[Character] spent his childhood as a penniless orphan living on a space station. He/She managed to scrape by doing filthy jobs and stealing. He/She became so violent due to poor treatment by hi/her "betters" that he/she was banished from the station, just to be picked up by space pirates."

Shooting: +3
Melee: +5
Social: -2

Wardening disabled
Doctoring disabled

Straggler

"Despite being blessed with parental love, [Character] hardly knew his/her parents.

He/She was frequently left to his/her own devices which meant more time devoted to exploring his/her interests...and getting into trouble."

Research: -3
Melee: +2
Artistic: +2
Crafting: +2

Wardening disabled
Doctoring disable

Street child

"[Character] drug addict mother died, leaving him/her an orphan at a young age. To stay alive, he/she resorted to theft, and when necessary, prostitution. When [Character] was caught stealing from a church, the priestess saw a wounded but smart child, and too him/her in to give him a second chance at life."

Social: +3

Street kid

"Growing up on the streets of the a desert planet, [Character] his/her only friend was a dog named Rest. The pair scraped by, finding just enough food to survive.

When he/she was 13 years old, an interplanetary criminal group took him under their wing."

Melee: +3
Social: +3

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Student engineer

"A genius child, [Character] was put in a special training program covering aerospace warfare and engineering.

One day, he/she tried to befriend a squirrel by giving it a bracelet. The squirrel bit him/her, earning him the nickname "Squirrel Boy".

[Character] came to believe that work involving manual labor is beneath him."

Construction: +2
Research: +4
Mining: -2
Cooking: -2
Artistic: -2
Crafting: +4

Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled

Student socialite

"[Character] leaned politics in an elite training school for socially gifted students on Kalthas IV.

While he/she was naturally adept at reading and manipulating people, he/she found no joy in it. He/She left the academy several years before graduation."

Social: +6

Everything else disabled (except Wardening)

Terra child

"Born to environmental engineers, [Character] spent his/her childhood on a planet undergoing industrial terraforming.

'Exposure to potent terraforming chemicals altered his/her brain, making him restless, unpredictable, and occasionally violent. It also inspired a deep affinity for plant life."

Growing: +5
Melee: +3
Social: -3

Test subject

"Test subject #11,529,914 of experiment #56,048 spent his/her childhood in white rooms performing mental and physical tests.

His/Her only companion was a voice that called itself Mother. Mother rewarded success with praise - and failure with harsh punishment."

Research: +2
Melee: +2
Cooking: +1

Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Wardening disabled

Tinkerer

"[Character] grew up on a scrap-heap of a planet - the garbage dump of other planets in the system. He/She learned to make new machines from the dead parts of old ones. With some friends, he/she eventually escaped on a salvaged and repaired ship."

Construction: +2
Crafting: +4

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Toxic child

"Growing up on a an Industrial planet, [Character] started working in a chemical plant at age of six. Years of exposure to industrial toxins left him/her physically and mentally scarred. He/She eventually blew up the facility and escaped the planet in a stolen cargo ship."

Research: +5
Social: -5
Crafting: +4

Traders' child

"[Character] grew up in a family of nomadic traders, making a living from selling and buying goods on many worlds.

[Character] learned the customs and methods of trade of many cultures by participating in his parents' business."

Construction: -2
Growing: -1
Social: +1
Crafting: +1

Tragic twin

"[Character] was drawn to the water from an early age, and spent as much of his/her time as possible in and around it. His/Her twin became trapped during a dive and didn't survive. [Character] never returned to the water again."

Growing: +1
Research: +3
Social: -3
Cooking: +2
Artistic: +2
Crafting: +1

Tribe child

"[Character] grew up in the tribe, running around the village, moving with the muffalo herds, learning essentials skills from his parents.

He/She never learned to read and never saw a machine that wasn't an ancient ruin."

Growing: +2
Research: -3
Shooting: +2
Melee: +2

Upper urbworlder

"[Character] had a privileged childhood on a major urbworld. Living in an apartment far above the dense poverty of the city, he/she spent most of his/her time reading or drawing the cityscape he/she saw through his window."

Construction: +3
Research: +3
Artistic: +2
Crafting: -3

Urbworld criminal

"Born into a bad circumstance on an overpopulated urbworld [Character] turned to small-time crime as a way to avoid starvation and hypothermia.

Robbery and murder were daily activities for him. [Character] learned that surviving was winning."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +3
Medicine: +1

Urbworld hooligan

"[Character] grew up in a dangerous urbworld. He/She quickly learned how to get daily meal - by crime. Such means left little to no space for cooking and growing activities."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +3
Cooking: -3

Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled

Urbworld urchin

"The urbworlds - ancient and deep industrial cityscapes bursting with humanity and poison. [Character] grew up in the dark, unwanted reaches of such a place. He/She had to fight for every scrap of food."

Shooting: +2
Melee: +4

Vatgrown assassin

"[Character] was not made as a man, but a cold-hearted assassin. He was bio-engineered by scientists, and trained as a killer. He was bred to have no emotion, no feelings, and no care for who lives, and who dies."

Construction: +2
Shooting: +4
Melee: +1

Art disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Cooking disabled
Doctoring disabled

Vatgrown medic

"Raised to be a combat medic, [Character] was trained in firearms as well as medicine. His/Her favorite phrase when coming upon a wounded soldier was "Life or death?" Most chose life."

Shooting: +3
Medicine: +3

Art disabled
Crafting disabled
Cooking disabled
Wardening disabled

Vatgrown slavegirl

"[Character] was vat-grown as a slave in an illegal urbworld laboratory. As a young child, she was taught only cook, clean and serve her masters. For most of her childhood, she knew nothing else."

Cooking: +5
Artistic: -2

Researching disabled
Hunting disabled

Vatgrown soldier

"[Character] wasn't made as a person, but as an instrument of destruction. Grown in a bioweapons facility and taught combat during his/her accelerated growth, [Character] still has a proclivity for combat of all kinds and an aversion to human contact."

Shooting: +4
Melee: +4
Social: -4

Warden disabled
Doctoring disabled

Vengeful child

"As a child, [Character] returned to his/her village to find that it had been wiped out by bandits. He/She swore revenge on the attackers and began a violent rampage across the wilderness."

Shooting: +3
Melee: +3

Doctoring disabled

Video gamer

"[Character] was raised in a glitterworld. Everything he/she wanted came to him/her. In school he/she was a social butterfly. At home, he/she spent his time looking up the newest gadgets and playing his/her favorite video games."

Research: +3
Social: +3

Firefighting disabled

Voyager child

"[Character] was raised on an R&D starship and spent most of his childhood in a long sleep, travelling between the starts.

Approaching a mysterious planetoid, the ship was severely damaged. His/Her next memory is of the ship heading out of orbit, fully repaired. He/She soon developed an unnatural gift for technological research."

Research: +4
Social: -3

Crafting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Repairing disabled
Constructing disabled
Cooking disabled
Wardening disabled

VR addict

"[Character] was a VR head - someone who is permanently jacked into the virtual gaming universe by his spinal plug. He/She moved through his daily tasks barely aware of the physical reality around him/her. This left him/her nearly unable to socialize."

Research: +2
Shooting: +1
Melee: +1
Artistic: +1
Crafting: +1

Wardening disabled

War child

"[Character] parents were drafted into a civil war in his/her home country. Growing up surrounded by fighting and death, he/she became well-accustomed to tragedy and tough as nails. His/Hers expressive side, however, never developed."

Shooting: +5
Melee: +3

Art disabled
Doctoring disabled

War refugee

"A war broke on out [Character] home planet. Gathering what little food and belongings they could, [Character] and his father stole a ship and escaped into deep space. They slipped into a long sleep and hoped for the best."

Growing: -3
Research: +5
Shooting: +6
Melee: +5
Social: -3
Cooking: -3
Artistic: -3

Art disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Growing disabled
Wardening disabled

Wild child

"[Character] was abandoned on a toxic world overgrown with hostile plant life. He/She became accustomed early to the cold burn of loneliness.

He/She learned to fight, but ate his/her food raw and uncooked."

Shooting: +4
Melee: +6
Social: -2
Cooking: -3

Researching disabled
Cleaning disabled
Art disabled
Doctoring disabled

Winerunner

"Abandoned by his parents, [Character] was raised by the monks of the Novo Mosteiro dos Jerónimos monastery on Aracena VI. (Portugal reference)

The monks taught him discipline and hard work. In return, he/she would go into the city and 'acquire' exotic wines for the monks' nightly tastings."

Melee: +2
Social: +2
Cooking: +2
Crafting: +2

Work camp slave

"[Character] grew up as a slave to a particularly nasty noble family on a medieval world.

While he/she received no formal education, the harsh labor regimen made his/her body strong."

Construction: +2
Growing: +2
Research: -3
Mining: +2
Social: -2

Researching disabled

World slider

"[Character] was raised by a world-hopping band of criminals. He/She learned not to leave evidence of his/her presence in case the group had to leave in a hurry. He/She also learned about medicine and hand-to-hand combat from his/her fellow criminals."

Construction: -2
Melee: +3
Medicine: +4

Youth delinquent

"[Character] was the only child of celebrity sommeliers. Her parents expected her to take up the family profession, but after her third admission to a youth detention center, this career path became unlikely.

While in detention, [Character] became skilled at making shanks and developed an interest in ornithology."

Shooting: +3
Melee: +1
Social: -1
Crafting: +3

Cleaning disabled
Art disabled
Doctoring disabled

Youth hooligan

"[Character] was a worthless child. Despite being born into a good family, he/she failed to live up to expectations, spending his/her time selling cigarettes to 15-year-olds."

Research: +1
Social: -1

Youth soldier

"[Character] was born into a long line of soldiers. He/She followed that heritage, joining a military training program.

He/She excelled in all physical training programs in his/her Marine course, and even passed most of the intellectual exams, While he/she was never particularly bright or nimble, [Character] learned the value of hard work and suffering."

Construction: +2
Shooting: +2
Melee: +2

Hauling disabled
Mining disabled

Adulthood

* Unavailable during character creation.

Assassin*

"[Character] was a professional assassin. He/She was cold, calculating, and made a good profit. In this business, an utter lack of empathy was an asset."

Construction: -2
Growing: -2
Mining: -2
Shooting: +10
Melee: +10
Researching disabled
Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Constructing disabled
Warden disabled
Doctoring disabled

Army cook

"[Character] joined the army as a worker and spent most of his time cooking and repairing. While he was stationed on a dangerous planet, he underwent basic shooting and survival training."

Construction: +2
Research: -2
Shooting: +2
Melee: +2
Cooking: +3
Medicine: -2
Crafting: +1
Warden disabled
Doctoring disabled
Firefighting disabled

Bartender

"[Character] worked as a bartender on a seedy space station. The job entailed one part drink mixing, one part diplomacy, and one part head-bashing."

Melee: +2
Social: +2
Cooking: +1

Bounty hunter

"[Character] is a self-employed bounty hunter. He spends his days hunting space pirates and collecting cash bounties."

Shooting: +6
Melee: +4
Medicine: +2
Cleaning disabled

Colony settler

"[Character] was a settler on a new colony world.
Such a life requires a jack-of-all trades at basic hands-on tasks."

Construction: +4
Growing: +4
Mining: +4

Combat Engineer

"[Character] became a combat engineer. He/She built bases, fixed guns, and repaired vehicles for the army - when he/she wasn't shooting at people, that is."

Construction: +2
Shooting: +5
Crafting: +3

Con Artist*

"[Character] never created a thing in his/her life. He/She did, however, prove to be natural at getting others to give him/her what they had created."

Social: +10
Soldiering disabled

Courtesean*

"[Character] was used for his/her body by hundreds of customers in brothels on several planets. He/She gained some mental marks and a special kind of street smarts."

Melee: +3
Social: +8
Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Constructing disabled

Deep space miner

"[Character] did the sweaty, grimy work of pulling metal out of asteroids on a deep space rig. He/She used his/her hands-on industrial skills daily - and wasn't bad in a bar fight either."

Construction: +3
Mining: +7
Melee: +2

Glitterworld surgeon

"[Character] worked as a surgeon on a world mostly free of disease and suffering. His job mostly involved elaborate and creative cosmetic surgeries. He has a good understanding of human biology, but never had to remove a cancer - or a bullet."

Social: +1
Medicine: +3
Artistic: +5

Herbalist

"[Character] lived in the forest near a village. Though many of the villagers feared him/her, sick villagers would come to her to purchase salves and poultices made from the herbs she grew in his/her garden. He/She was happy to help them - for a price"

Growing: +4
Social: -2
Medicine: +4

Housemate

"As an adult, [Character] kept house and cared for children while his/her spouse worked."

Cooking: +3
Medicine: +3
Crafting: +2

Illegal shipwright*

"There is a law that say that you're not allowed to put terawatt-range grasers on a cargo scow. Especially if you hide them under what looks like a communications dish for better ambush potential. [Character] discovered that there was great profit to be made, however, from those who are uninterested in these laws."

Construction: +7

Inventor

"On his/her homeworld,[Character] worked as a moderately successful inventor. He/She developed several minor technologies."

Research: +2
Crafting: +5

Joywire Artist

"[Character] worked in an urbworld lab developing cutting-edge joywire software to maximize user pleasure."

"When the local government imposed harsh restrictions on joywire manufacturing, he began selling his products on the black market."

Research: +2
Medicine: +2
Artistic: +3
Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled

Luddite Rebel

"When the majority of people on his/her world chose to give up their individuality and biological humanity to join together in an online hive-mind [Character] joined a rebel faction that chose to forsake most technology."

Construction: +3
Mining: +2
Melee: +3
Researching disabled
Crafting disabled

Medieval doctor

"[Character] worked as a doctor on a medieval planet. He/she firmly believes that most ailments can be cured with a little bloodletting.
He/she was also a master anaesthetist, developing a specialty technique that involved a heavy blow to the head.

Melee: +6
Medicine: +1

Medieval farm oaf

"Tilling, hoeing, guiding ox carts, pushing wheelbarrows. Digging ditches, planting seeds, predicting the harvest.
Medieval-level farmers aren't educated in the usual sense, but they know a lot about growing plants without technology. That said, such a life leaves one essentially incapable of participating in intellectual, technology-driven activities."

Growing: +8
Mining: +3
Research disabled

Medieval lord

"[Character] was a lord on a preindustrial planet. He/She went to parties, managed the underlings, and even learned some swordplay.
His/Her soft hands did not hold a work tool during that entire time. He/She considers manual labor to be beneath him/her."

Construction: -5
Growing: -5
Mining: -5
Shooting: +5
Melee: +5
Social: +7
Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Plant cutting disabled
Mining disabled
Growing disabled
Constructing disabled

Military commissar

"[Character] was an internal spymaster in an Imperial army battalion. He/She made sure that the men were loyal, and did not fall back unless ordered. This made him/her unpopular, but he/she gained great skill at detecting the slightest dishonesty."

Shooting: +3

Military inventor

[Character], in a final act of rebellion, left his fathers lab and joined the local imperial military. He/She used His/Hers laboratory skills to design machines of war, at this He/She was one of the best on his planet.

Construction: 3
Research: 3
Shooting: 1
Social: 2
Crafting: 3
Art disabled

Navy scientist

"Interstellar warfare is won by technology, so imperial navies are always on the peak of modern research. Even better, they have first access to Transcendent artifacts because they find them in space."

[Character] worked in a navy lab."

Research: +8

Pit Brawler*

"[Character] was 15 when he/she got in his/her first fight. He/She won, but more important was the enjoyment of his/her audience. Pit fighting turned out to be a lucrative career for those who could survive it. And it was even mostly legal."

Melee: +8
Researching disabled
Doctoring disabled

Space Marine*

"[Character] was a warrior in an Imperial navy. His/Her job was to be punched into enemy warships, gun down the crew, and capture the ship intact. And he/she was good at it."

Shooting: +7
Melee: +5

Space pirate*

"Piracy appears everywhere that governments are weak and society spread thin. [Character] was part of this age-old part of human existence, extorting and smashing peaceful trade ships for profit."

Shooting: +4
Melee: +4

Stalwart Farmer

"With the farm under constant threat from brigands, [Character] learned to defend himself with his fathers rifle. He also mastered how to construct fences to keep livestock and local wildlife out. [Character] tried to paint a picture of his home and learned he can only draw scribbles and ducks."

Construction: +3
Growing: +3
Research: -2
Mining: +2
Shooting: +5
Melee: +2
Art Disabled

Starship Janitor

"While other passengers pass the years between star systems in cryptosleep sarcophagi. [Character] had to wake up at periodic intervals to perform inspections, check the navigation systems, and to oil the mechanoids."

Construction: +2
Crafting: +3

Teacher

"[Character] was educated in the liberal arts and taught at a public school. He/She was widely knowledgeable and well-liked by his/her students."

Research: +3
Social: +4

Urbworld entrepreneur

"In the urbworlds, most suffer. But someone has to run the corporations. [Character] learned the skills of the trade - greasing palms and technical analysis. He/She is a sociointellectual machine."

Research: +3
Social: +6

Urbworld politician

"It's no secret that the Companies own much of the urbworlds, but someone has to take the bribes. [Character] was one such figurehead. He/She learned how to manipulate the hopes and dreams of the people while living comfortably on a penthouse."

Social: +8
Cleaning disabled
Hauling disabled
Crafting disabled
Plant cutting disabled