Grr, this got lost a couple pages back, but let me ask you this -- what difference, if any, exists between the following two people:
- A character with a given selection of stats, feats, skills, spells, and equipment which makes him really good.
- A character with a given selection of stats, feats, skills, spells, and equipment which makes him really good plus a satisfactory backstory which explains it all.

I'm asking because I understand many points being made by many folks, but I don't understand yours. What makes the first character worse in-game than the exact same character who also happens to have a favorite color? Are they somehow incapable of doing the same things?