Stats for fictional characters

[GuesssWho]

So, how would you stat your favorite characters? And would you ever want to play them?

[Lvl 2 Expert]

Depends on the system, the level and the type of adventure?

[TheOOB]

I generally try not to stat characters from other sources. As time goes on I see the rules of a game to be more specific to the PC's. I rarely if ever have characters in a game world follow the same rules as PC's, which means if I want a certain type of NPC in the game I just make them work the way I want without worrying about how a player would make them.

[Jay R]

It depends on the character, the genre, and the writing.

I like to play characters that can be simulated by the player, not by the GM.

I don't want to play Sherlock Homes, because my observation and deduction skills aren't on that level, and either you're rolling dice to replace thought or the DM is giving you all the cool stuff.

On the other hand, I'd love to play an inventive scientist - Dr. Quest or Reed Richards or Tony Stark - because while I can't design a rocket, I can say, "He designs a rocket."

My usual way to design a character is to have a specific fictional character as a base, but then add two or three traits to differentiate my character from that base. I designed a 2E elvish thief on Tarzan, modified for being an elf, and for medieval background. I designed an original D&D bard based on Fflewder Fflam, but without the lying and the kingship. I designed a Flashing Blades rogue based on Disney's Aladdin, but with rapier skills and no monkey.

[SimonMoon6]

I'd go to writeups.org

Then, I'd find the writeup for the character in question. (Type in to search field, hit enter, click on link, click on game stats.)

Of course, that only works for the DC Heroes RPG, but you need a superhero RPG to fully and accurately model every kind of character from fiction.

[StealthyRobot]

I don't think that's what OP was asking. I will restate the question: Leaving all reasons aside, how would you stat a fictional character?

I'm going to assume this means making it like a PC, and can be an appropriate level and maybe some fitting homebrew stuff if needed.

So, I would do the Lone Wanderer/Courier from Fallout. Level could be anything, and if guns weren't allowed it would be either crossbow wielding fighter with a club for back up or an unarmed monk. Obviously lots of adventuring gear and well equipped for anything.

(I statted it for DnD 5e as I'm most familiar with it)

I think it would be cool to see things like batman, or maybe Mario.

[Hybridartifacts]

As a GM I have done stats for quite a few fictional characters and also some actual people - Mr Tumnus from 'Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe' was an interesting one, but to be honest there was not all that much to go on and I made him a crossbow wielding assassin anyway... the real Alice from Alice in Wonderland was a bit more of a challenge - especially as I was doing her stats as an old lady not the child in the stories. I had to think of where she had been and where she might have gone from there as she got older. Its obviously something that has been done a lot in many rpgs - any that are based on some sort of existing literary or tv/film media for example, and I would think one can get a good sense of how the writers have converted them into stats from those.

One issue can sometimes be that you have fragments of a character to work from - some can be really well drawn by a writer or biographer while others can focus over much on a few core traits leaving other aspects you might need for a rpg untouched. I recently did stats for a famous Pre-Raphaelite painter and to be honest have no real idea how physically capable he really was in life though I gave him a high intelligence and creativity as both seem rather obvious for him.

As to playing them... usually I think most players get more satisfaction from inventing their own characters and get uncomfortable with a sense that they would be 'acting' if they did an already existing one. We had terrible difficulties a a game group playing a lot of games that tied into existing franchises with getting a good balance between a sense that major characters from the franchise needed to be present but nobody really wanting to play them. Though of course the GM generally does play them and is more used to picking up and existing character as an npc. I like doing it, because I enjoy it when I am GM'ing, but it's not everyone's cup of tea.