Arena:Character Creation

Background of a lit house at night that appears during character creation

Character creation in Arena involves the selection of your class, race, name, gender, stats, and appearance.

Class Selection

When creating your character, you can choose to select your character's class from a list or answer a series of questions in order to generate a class.

Generate Class

The Thief constellation

The Mage constellation

The Warrior constellation

You will be presented ten scenarilighted by a blue bolt of lightning. With every lightning strike, one of the three constellations becomes brighter in the dark blue sky.

Scenarios

The scenarios you will be presented will look like these (without the words in the parenthesis):

• On a clear day you chance upon a strange animal, its leg trapped in a hunter's clawsnare. Judging from the bleeding it will not survive long. Do you:

a) Draw your dagger, mercifully ending it's [sic] life with a single thrust? (Warrior)

b) Do not interfere in the natural evolution of events, but rather take the opportunity to learn more about a strange animal that you have never seen before? (Mage)

c) Use herbs from your pack to put it to sleep, then free it from the clawsnare and take it somewhere where it can be safe, knowing that in doing so you will probably deprive a hunter and his family of sustenance? (Thief)

• One summer afternoon your father, Talin, gives you a choice of chores. Would you rather:

a) Work in the forge with him casting iron for a new plow? (Warrior)

b) Gather herbs for your mother who is preparing dinner? (Mage)

c) Go catch fish at the stream using a net and line? (Thief)

• Your father and you are returning from the town market when you see a small boy running from a store. In his hands he clutches a loaf of bread. Behind him races the baker with a cleaver in his hands. You know that the boy must be hungry, but the town is suffering from a drought, which has made food valuable. Do you:

a) Side with justice and urge your father to stop the boy? (Warrior)

b) Help the poor waif by running into the baker's way? (Thief)

c) Stand out of the way and wait to see what your father decides, trusting his experience? (Mage)

• Your father tells you one night the story of his battle at Borim Valley, where his men had routed the enemy. They would have captured them all if not for the brave sacrifice of a young Sergeant on the opposing side, who held a pass long enough for his men to retreat to safety. He had done so knowing that it would cost him his life. If you had been that man would you have:

a) Fled, rationalizing that your experience with battle tactics was too valuable to be wasted, and could make the difference later? (Mage)

b) Held the pass also, so that the men under your command could flee, though it meant your life? (Warrior)

c) Searched for some means to distract the enemy so that your men might have the possibility of escaping, but not at the cost of your own life? (Thief)

• Your mother sends you to the market with a list of goods to buy. After you finish you find that by mistake a shopkeeper has given you too much money back in exchange for one of the items. Do you:

a) Return to the store and give the shopkeeper his hard-earned money, explaining to him the mistake? (Warrior)

b) Pocket the extra money, knowing that shopkeepers in general tend to overcharge customers anyway? (Thief)

c) Decide to put the extra money to good use and purchase items that would help your family? (Mage)

• While in a market place you witness a thief cut a purse from a noble. Even as he does so the noble notices and calls for the city guards. In his haste to get away, the thief drops the purse near you. Surprisingly, no one seems to notice the bag of coins at your feet. Do you:

a) Pick up the bag and pocket it, knowing that the extra windfall will help your family in times of trouble? (Thief)

b) Pick up the bag and signal to the guard, knowing that the only honorable thing to do is return the money to its rightful owner? (Warrior)

c) Leave the bag there, knowing that it is better not to get involved? (Mage)

• Your father sends you on a task which you loathe, cleaning the stables. On the way there, pitchfork in hand, you run into your friend from the homestead near your own. He offers to do it for you, in return for a future favor of his choosing. Do you:

a) Decline his offer, knowing that your father expects you to do the work, and it is better not to be in debt? (Warrior)

b) Accept his offer, reasoning that as long as the stables are cleaned, it matters not who does the cleaning? (Thief)

c) Ask him to help you, knowing that two people can do the job faster than one, and agree to help him with one task of his choosing in the future? (Mage)

• Your mother asks you to help fix the stove. While you are working a very hot pipe slips its moorings and falls towards her. Do you:

a) Push your mother out of the way? (Mage)

b) Grab the hot pipe and try and push it away? (Warrior)

c) Position yourself between the pipe and your mother? (Thief)

• While in town the baker gives you a sweetroll. Delighted you take it into an alley to enjoy, only to be intercepted by a gang of three other kids your age. The leader demands the sweetroll, or else he and his friends will beat you and take it. Do you:

a) Drop the sweetroll and step on it, then get ready for the fight? (Warrior)

b) Give him the sweetroll now without argument, knowing that later this afternoon you will have all your friends with you and can come and take whatever he owes you? (Mage)

c) Act like you're going to give him the sweetroll but at the last minute throw it in the air, hoping that they'll pay attention to it long enough for you to get a shot in on the leader? (Thief)

• Entering town you find that you are witness to a very well dressed man running from a crowd. He screams to you for help. The crowd behind him seems very angry. Do you:

a) Rush to the man's aid immediately, despite your lack of knowledge of the circumstances? (Warrior)

b) Rush to the town's aid immediately, despite your lack of knowledge of the circumstances? (Thief)

c) Stand aside and allow the man and mob to pass, realizing that it is probably best not to get involved? (Mage)

• You and your best friend buy your first daggers together, a matched pair. You loan him the amount since he doesn't have enough gold, and he agrees to pay you back later. After leaving the shop you and he sit down to marvel at your new weapons. To your dismay you notice that there is a small notch on the blade of the dagger you selected. Your friend asks you to please watch his weapon for him while he runs an errand. Do you:

a) Wait for your friend's return then point out the flaw in your dagger and return to the weapons shop to demand a refund. (Warrior)

b) Switch the daggers, rationalizing that since you paid for them you should get the first choice, and that if your friend ever notices the notch, you could always take him back to the weapon shop and get a refund? (Thief)

c) Keep his dagger safe until his return, then switch the daggers with your best friend's knowledge, justifying it with the fact that you paid for them, and then offer to accompany him back to the weapons shop? (Mage)

• You are at weapons practice with Armsmaster Festil. He is very old now, but takes his teaching very seriously. In fact you have heard him comment that it is all he has left in life. Today he has ceaselessly taunted you at every mistake. Finally he asks you to attack him with the same technique you just did, in an effort to show you the proper execution. Do you:

a) Do the technique just fast enough so that he can block it, knowing that it is more important to allow the master to retain dignity, regardless of your personal feelings? (Warrior)

b) Attack him at full speed, knowing that you could probably score the hit and justify his unfair treatment of you by showing the class that you were actually doing it right? (Thief)

c) Refuse and leave practice, unable to compromise your anger with his dignity, and realizing that whatever course you choose would cause you to lose respect for either him or for yourself? (Mage)

• While throwing a ball to you your friend breaks a window on his house. His father rushes out and demands to know who broke the window. You know that your friend's father is a strict disciplinarian and will punish your friend severely if he takes the blame. You on the other hand, not being his son, could get away virtually unscathed. Do you:

a) Raise your hand and take the blame before your friend can answer? (Warrior)

b) Remain silent and not get involved? (Mage)

c) Point at your friend, knowing that anything else would probably delay the inevitable and make things just that much worse for him? (Thief)

• Armsmaster Festil during a lesson on strategy remarks, 'The best victory is to completely and totally humiliate your opponent'. He then turns to you and asks you if you agree with him. You know the Armsmaster has been in numerous life and death conflicts and has the experience of a seasoned warrior. Do you:

a) Agree with his remark, knowing that at this moment your experience is not enough to justify any stance but total agreement with whatever your Armsmaster says, a man who has dedicated his life to strategy? (Warrior)

b) Disagree with his remark, reasoning that it must be some type of test, and that the truth will only come from opposition with his opinion, and not sheep-like agreement? (Thief)

c) Refuse to answer the question, choosing to withhold an opinion until you have more experience and can converse on the subject in an intelligent manner with him? (Mage)

• The senior student in your weapons class has trounced you unmercifully for the past several years. Today is the Tournament of Students and you find with dismay that you are paired against him for your first match. As you prepare your friend approaches and offers to tell you of an injury the senior student suffered in yesterday's sparring class, which you missed. Do you:

a) Accept the offer, knowing that it would allow you to concentrate on the injured area and greatly increase your chances of beating him? (Thief)

b) Refuse the offer, knowing that win or lose you would rather do it through your own skill and not some extra knowledge in what should be a fair and honorable fight? (Warrior)

c) Accept the offer, reasoning that it is better to have the knowledge in case you need it, and realizing that having the knowledge does not necessarily mean using it? (Mage)

• An old man stops you on the way to market, claiming to have been robbed. He is lying on the trail and seems gravely injured. He asks you to run to town and get the constable. You give him your word that you will go directly to town and bring the constable back. As you make your way back you notice a suspicious man creeping along another trail. He doesn't seem to notice you yet. Do you:

a) Follow the man, reasoning that if this man is the robber you could lead the constable directly to him and safeguard other travelers, although it would mean breaking your word? (Thief)

b) Take note of him but continue on, reasoning that the man on the trail is hurt too badly to stop, regardless of any other consideration? (Mage)

c) Take note of him but continue on, reasoning that your word is your bond and that it takes precedence over anything else? (Warrior)

• While fishing one sunny afternoon you find that the boots which you discarded are now full of ants who are busily making their way from a piece of bread you dropped to their anthill. Do you:

a) Pick up the boots wash all the ants off now, even though you are not leaving until dusk? (Mage)

b) Watch the ants, curious as to how they work so efficiently, and content to live and let live? (Warrior)

c) Make boats out of leaves and then send each ant down the stream to pass the time until a fish bites? (Thief)

• You hear Armsmaster Festil remark during weapons class, 'The intent of your opponent can be seen in his blade'. Many of the students scoff at this, though not openly. Do you:

a) Feel that the disrespect the students show at this points to something which they do not understand, and therefore causes you to focus your efforts on understanding it all the more? (Thief)

b) Feel that he means the way the opponent attacks and moves shows you how he feels? (Warrior)

c) Realize that Armsmaster Festil should not be the object of scorn, but rather one of respect, for he has lived a full life and survived things none of the students could imagine? (Mage)

• The town has a lottery in which the winning chit is called. You look in shock as the winning chit number matches your own! Before you can say anything another family walks forward. You have seen them before and know that they are extremely poor. Your family on the other hand is very well off, and could do without the 100 gold piece prize. Do you:

a) Say nothing and allow the other family to claim the prize? (Warrior)

b) Stand and show your chit, knowing that the prize is rightfully yours? (Thief)

c) Stand and show your chit, and offer to split the prize in half with the other family? (Mage)

• Armsmaster Festil poses a question one day to his class. A company of 100 men is attempting to flee from the enemy. There are two paths out of the broken stronghold. One path will kill half the men under the officers command, but the other half would survive. The other path has a fifty percent chance that everyone would die, but also a fifty percent chance that everyone would survive. As the commanding officer would you:

a) Choose the path that would guarantee half your men would survive? (Mage)

b) Choose the path that has a fifty percent chance that all would survive, and a fifty percent chance that all would perish? (Warrior)

c) Turn the choice over to the men and let them decide by majority vote which path they should commit themselves to? (Thief)

• You have a great aunt and a great uncle living in two different nearby villages, both of whom have asked your father to allow you to live with them for a few weeks. Your father knows where he plans to send you, but he is curious about your opinion. Given the choice, would you rather:

a) Live with your great aunt -- a wise old woman of considerable wealth. Living in luxury for a few weeks could not only be enlightening, it could also be very interesting. (Thief)

b) Live with your great uncle -- a sick old man who has always been something of a stranger to you. A few weeks with him may be ardorous [sic], but he is in more need of your help than your great aunt. (Warrior)

c) Think of a way to divide your time between your great aunt and great uncle. Perhaps you will not be able to spend as much time with either as much as you would like, but neither would be left out. (Mage)

• A friend has on several occassions [sic] made remarks about how much he likes a particular gold ring of yours. One day you discover that this ring is missing and after making a thorough search, find it in a coat your friend had left in your pantry. Are you most inclined to:

a) Ask your friend how he came about the ring, reasoning that it is highly probable that he found it and meant to return it to you. (Warrior)

b) Confront him with his theft. You know that there is no way the ring just fell into his pocket by accident, and therefore he is nothing but a common thief who would betray you for material gain. (Thief)

c) Say nothing, deciding instead to wait and see what your friend does. If he is innocent or guilty, you will know by whatever actions he takes. At that time, you can confront him with the truth. (Mage)

• A good friend of yours is in love with a girl from a neighboring village, a girl who barely knows him. He is extremely shy and inexperienced, and he pleads for your help. Would you suggest he:

a) Go to her immediately and declare his love. If the relationship is to be, he needs to be honest from the start. You offer to accompany him to the village for support. (Warrior)

b) Find out more about this girl using any contact he can find in her village. He will not be so shy if he knows something about her, and may even find out she is not the right girl for him. (Mage)

c) Let you help him write anonymous love letters and poems to see her reaction without needing to face her directly. If the reaction is favorable, he can talk to her friends in the village and arrange an "accidental" meeting. (Thief)

• Armsmaster Festil is relating the story of a great king he knew in a faraway land whose inventors created a wondrous balloon of such size, it could transport dozens of people through the air to any place they chose. If you were this king, he asks you, how would you use this remarkable balloon? Would you:

a) Explore regions previously impossible or extremely dangerous to visit by land. (Mage)

b) Keep the balloon a secret, saving it for surprise attacks or defense in a time of war. (Thief)

c) Commission the inventor to create dozens of these 'balloons' in hopes of making a travel system across your realm that will speed up transportation time and the exchange of ideas. (Warrior)

• There is a lot of heated discussion at the local tavern over a group of people called 'Telepaths'. They have been hired by certain City-State kings. Rumor has it these Telepaths read a person's mind and tell their lord whether a follower is telling the truth or not. You believe:

a) That this is a terrible practice. A person's thoughts are his own and no one, not even a king, has the right to make such an invasion into another human's mind. (Thief)

b) Loyal followers to the King have nothing to fear from a Telepath. It is important to have a method of finding assassins and spies before it is too late. (Warrior)

c) In these times, it is a necessary evil. Although you do not necessarily like the idea, a Telepath could have certain advantages during a time of war or in finding someone innocent of a crime. (Mage)

• You are told that a young man has been caught by the village guards and accused of murder. Apparently, his brother was killed by a group of four ruffians in a local tavern, and in his grief, the young man tracked each of them down and murdered them. Upon reflection, you believe that:

a) The young man acted honorably in avenging his brother's death. The village lord should let him go free. (Warrior)

b) Even as you sympathize with the young man, vigilante law cannot be tolerated if there is to be peace. (Mage)

c) The young man's only mistake was getting caught while exacting vengance [sic]. For that, he now must accept whatever fate has in store for him. (Thief)

• One night, walking home, you are attacked by a young man you know from Armsmaster Festil's class. You defend yourself ably and knock him unconscious. While he is out, you:

a) Tie him up, intending to interrogate him later when he wakes up. You want to know why he attacked you. You can then turn him into the Armsmaster at your leisure. (Mage)

b) Slit his throat. You know him from class, and think he would have done the same had your positions been reversed. (Thief)

c) Leave him with a visible scar, the knowledge of his defeat at your hands and the visible reminder punishment enough for one who has resorted to such dishonorable tactics. (Warrior)

• Your father delights in telling you stories of his travels in his youth. In one memorable tale, he tells you about a primitive island he visited where a young child was sacrificed once a year to appease Arius, the God of Fire. Whenever the natives neglected the sacrifice, the island volcano would erupt, killing hundreds of villagers. You immediately tell your father:

a) You do not believe in any such Volcano God. Civilized men should intervene, find the natural cause behind the eruptions, and stop the sacrifices. (Mage)

b) The God Arius must be evil to demand child sacrifice. The villagers should find some way to combat this God, instead of just giving in to his demands. (Warrior)

c) It is tragic, but the death of one small child is preferable to that of many villagers. If it works, they should keep the tradition. Gods are not to be toyed with. (Thief)

• Armsmaster Festil introduces a new student to the class - a small, awkward boy named Tys who does not seem to have any natural talent at all. The class is divided into two sides for a mock battle and, as one of the 'generals', you are to assign your soldiers to positions. Tys is one of your men. You decide to:

a) Put Tys at the frontline with the other fighters, rationalizing that in any realistic battle, he would probably be a casualty anyway, and that there must be some sacrifices. (Mage)

b) Use Tys as a scout, rationalizing that because of his small size he would probably be good at sneaking in and gathering information on the enemy. (Thief)

c) Assign Tys to several posts during the course of the battle, staying near and helping him so he can gain valuable experience and improve. (Warrior)

• Your mother is terribly ill and you have been sent with a few gold pieces to buy some rare, medicinal herbs for her. As you reach the door to the apothecary's, you realize there is a hole in your purse and all the gold has fallen out. Do you:

a) Enter the store, tell the apothecary your dilemma, and promise on your honor to pay him back for the herbs your mother so desperately needs. (Mage)

b) Attempt to steal the herbs from the apothecary's. You know the old man who works in the store will not be able to catch you, and your mother lies sick. (Thief)

c) Run back home and admit the loss, hoping that your father will have more gold. You know you'll be punished, but you will neither be in debt to the apothecary, nor will you be a thief. (Warrior)

• A boat you are in is suddenly caught in a tremendous whirlpool. As the current reaches an impossible velocity, the little boat begins springing leaks and starts to sink under the vortex. You can see no way out that does not promise death, so you:

a) Pick up a bucket and begin bailing furiously, hoping to keep the boat afloat just a few more seconds. (Mage)

b) Sit back and accept your fate, choosing to die with a sense of decorum and nobility, not as a commoner who fears the unknown. (Warrior)

c) Dive into the churning current. You may only be hastening your own death, but at least you are doing something. (Thief)

• You're hunting in the King's Hunt, a contest in which the best hunter will win riches enough to live comfortably for the rest of his or her life. You track a white stag many of you had shot at earlier. You are alone as you examine the stag and recognize the arrow as one fired from your friend's bow. As you retrieve the arrow for closer examination you hear your friends arrive. Do you:

a) Claim to have fired the arrow that hit the stag, thus gaining the honor for the kill? (Thief)

b) Show the others the arrow and proclaim your friend the archer of the day? (Warrior)

c) Suggest dividing the prize, reasoning that although your friend's arrow brought down the hart, all of you were instrumental in the tracking and the kill? (Mage)

• One month after Tales and Tallows, you look at the horde of treats you have collected and find lots of brandied plums, a treat you particularly dislike. You know your younger sister likes them. Do you:

a) Give her all your brandied plums? (Warrior)

b) Trade the brandied plums for something she does not really like but you do? (Mage)

c) Pretend that they are excellent brandied plums and see if she will give up something really good in exchange? (Thief)

• Your cousin has given you a very embarassing [sic] nickname and, even worse, likes to call you it in front of your friends. You have asked him to stop, but he finds it very amusing to watch you blush. What do you do?:

a) Make up an even more embarassing [sic] nickname for him and use it constantly until he learns his lesson. (Mage)

b) Make up a story that makes your nickname a badge of honor instead of something humiliating. (Thief)

c) Beat up your cousin, then tell him that if he ever calls you that nickname again, you will bloody him worse that [sic] this time. (Warrior)

• Othisa, a friend, has been beat by a boy several years older than either you or her. She asks for your help. Are you more inclined to:

a) Gather a bunch of friends together and ambush the boy, teaching him a lesson about bullying. (Thief)

b) Tell Othisa to avoid the bully - no reason to make things worse than they are. (Mage)

c) Challenge the older boy, knowing that you will probably take a beating, but confident that if you do it enough times, he will move on to pick on someone who is an easier target. (Warrior)

• Your parents are having a party for several relatives. While helping around the house, you see your cousin slip into a darkened room. Curious, you follow and discover him slipping a silver candlestick into his jacket. He is an honorable boy, but you know his family has suffered some recent financial hardship. He has not seen you yet, do you:

a) Clear your throat and tell him to put the candlestick back, reassuring him that your parents can help him if his family is in trouble, but he should not resort to stealing. (Mage)

b) Close the door behind you and say nothing. Your family can live without the candlestick, but your cousin's family obviously cannot. (Warrior)

c) Treat him like any other burglar. Lock him in the room and call for your father. If he chooses to be merciful because of your cousin's poverty, that is his decision. It is your father's candlestick, after all. (Thief)

• While exploring the woods with two other adventurers, you come across a small, abandoned hut that seems to have once belonged to a mage. Looking through the window, you see the remains of a laboratory, many potions and scrolls still on the shelves. A fighter named Geotina, who thinks you a cowardly sort, suggests breaking into the shack and exploring. Another fighter named Hunard suggests going to town to find out more information. You advise:

a) Going into town. They are more familiar with the area and may have important information about this hut and the surrounding area. (Mage)

b) Breaking into the shack, but leaving one person on the outside in case something goes wrong. You should investigate new things, not run away from them. (Warrior)

c) Daring Geotina to go in first. If there is a trap, she can trip it, then you and Hunard can go in and explore at your leisure. (Thief)

• It is a particularly grueling class with Armsmaster Festil. He has been unreasonably demanding on everyone, including you. His criticisms seem to border on abuse, and it seems he has no positive comments to make. He turns to berate you at the end of class, and over his shoulder, you see some classmates put an aggressive but non-poisonous snake in Festil's hand sack. You would:

a) Do nothing. The great Armsmaster needs a dose of humility and this might be a good way of paying him back for all the misery he has put you through today. (Thief)

b) Tell Festil you saw a snake creep into his hand sack, but do not tell him what your classmates did. No reason to get anyone in even further trouble. (Mage)

c) Immediately tell Festil what the classmates did. There is no excuse for treating a seasoned fighter like him with disrespect, regardless of his treatment to you that particular day. (Warrior)

• Because you expressed interest, Armsmaster Festil told you a few hints about recognizing magical weaponry. Later you are practicing archery with a few friends. One boy who was never a strong archer has become something of a sharpshooter. You suddenly realize that he is using magical arrows. What do you do?:

a) Tell the others about the arrows. In a friendly archery match, using magical arrows is cheating. (Warrior)

b) Tell your friend you noticed that he was using magical arrows, and if he doesn't get you some, you will tell the Armsmaster and the others the reason behind his improvement. (Thief)

c) Say nothing. If you have a need for magical arrows you can always mention something to him later. After all, magic is not really a cheat, it is a different skill. (Mage)

• Practicing alone, you develop a new fighting style you are very excited about. When you mention it to Armsmaster Festil, he tells you it would never work in practical combat. Do you:

a) Use the new style in the middle of a class spar. When it works, Festil will be forced to admit its practicality or give a reason for not accepting it. (Thief)

b) Keep asking Festil questions about it, focusing on details of the form to find his objection. Eventually he will have to give a more specific criticism. (Mage)

c) Accept his word without question. Armsmaster Festil has been fighting since your grandfather's day. He knows a flawed style when he sees it, and it is better not to waste his or your time asking why. (Warrior)

Warriors are portrayed as honorable and brave people who will never back off on a promise. Mages strive for knowledge, make balanced decisions, and listen to those who are wiser and more experienced. Thieves are innovative; always thinking of new ideas and inventions. However, they are less ethical in their work, and always ready to change sides if it means greater profit.

The following table contains the possible combinations of constellation answers that will suggest a specific class.

Class	Constellation Combinations
	Thief	Mage	Warrior
Acrobat	6	2	2
	5	3	2
	4	3	3
Archer	1	4	5
	3	2	5
	2	3	5
Assassin	6	4	0
	5	5	0
	5	4	1
	5	3	2
Barbarian	0	3	7
	1	2	7
	0	4	6
	1	3	6
Bard	8	0	2
	7	0	3
	7	1	2
	6	1	3
Battlemage	0	6	4
	1	6	3
	1	5	4
Burgler	8	2	0
	7	3	0
	7	2	1
	6	3	1
Healer	0	8	2
	0	7	3
	2	6	2
	2	5	3
Knight	0	0	10
	1	0	9
	0	1	9
	1	1	8
Mage	0	10	0
	1	9	0
	0	9	1
	1	8	1
Monk	5	0	5
	0	5	5
	3	3	4
Nightblade	3	7	0
	4	6	0
	4	5	1
	4	4	2
Ranger	4	0	6
	3	1	6
	2	2	6
	4	1	5
Rogue	6	0	4
	5	1	4
	4	2	4
Sorcerer	2	8	0
	2	7	1
	1	7	2
	3	6	1
Spellsword	3	5	2
	2	4	4
	3	4	3
Thief	10	0	0
	9	1	0
	9	0	1
	8	1	1
Warrior	2	0	8
	0	2	8
	3	0	7
	2	1	7

Select Class

You will be shown a menu with the 18 built-in classes sorted in alphabetical order. To scroll, simply click on the arrows on the left side of the mini-screen or move the bar up or down. To select a class, simply double click on it. You cannot make your own custom class. You cannot also back out of this menu back into the "How do you wish to choose your class?" menu. The 18 built-in classes and their stats can be found on the class descriptions page.

Choose Name, Gender, and Race

After you choose your class, you will be asked to type in the name you want for your character. If you include a space in your name, Arena considers the portion before the space to be your first name; only this first name will appear on the HUD and characters will sometimes use it in dialogue. The maximum number of letters allowed in the character's name is 18, though a very long name may overflow the name box on the HUD. After you type in the name, press the Enter key.

The next prompt you receive asks your character's gender. Click on either male or female, or press the M or F key, to continue. While this decision is mostly for personal preference, males tend to be stronger than females, while females are more likely to have a higher intelligence. Do not press Esc at any time, as your character will become glitched.

Your next task is to choose the place of your character's birth, which determines their race. Click on the province you want to hail from on the map of Tamriel you will be shown. The Imperial Province is not available as a choice. All eight races and their descriptions can be found on the Races page. Upon escaping the first dungeon, you will be teleported to a random settlement in your home province. The provinces and their respective races are listed below.

Map of Tamriel

Province	Race
Black Marsh	Argonian
Elsweyr	Khajiit
Hammerfell	Redguard
High Rock	Breton
Morrowind	Dark Elf
Skyrim	Nord
Summurset Isle	High Elf
Valenwood	Wood Elf

If you choose a race that complements your class, the game will be easier. For instance, a Breton mage or a Redguard warrior would be a good fit of race to class, and you would get racial attributes that benefit that class. If you choose a race that contrasts with your class, the game will be more challenging. For instance, a Nord thief or a Khajiit mage would get racial attributes that would not be as much benefit to the class.

Character Stats

The next step in character creation is determining your stats. You will be shown a menu with the eight attributes and other stats on the left half and a picture of your character on the right half of the screen. The attributes are generated ("rolled") for you and are presented with race and gender adjustments already made. You get the base racial & gender modifier + d20 + 1 for each attribute. The modifiers are listed in the table below.

	Argonian		Breton		Dark Elf		High Elf		Khajiit		Nord		Redguard		Wood Elf
	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F
Strength	40	40	30	30	50	40	30	30	40	40	50	40	40	30	40	40
Intelligence	40	40	50	50	50	50	50	50	40	40	30	30	30	30	40	40
Willpower	40	40	50	50	30	30	50	40	30	30	30	40	30	30	40	40
Agility	50	40	40	40	50	40	40	40	50	40	30	40	40	50	50	40
Speed	50	40	40	40	50	40	40	40	40	50	40	40	50	50	50	40
Endurance	30	40	30	30	40	40	30	30	30	30	50	40	50	50	30	40
Personality	40	40	40	40	40	40	40	50	40	40	40	40	40	40	40	40
Luck	30	40	40	40	40	40	40	40	50	50	40	50	40	40	30	40

Your "Health:" stat is determined by a roll of your class Hit Die + Health bonus + 25. The "Health:" bonus is located above "Charisma:" and is calculated based on the endurance stat.

You are also given 4d6 (4 to 24) Bonus Points you can spend to upgrade any attribute you wish. Be sure to look at the modifiers that surround the stats. Things like damage bonus and fatigue will increase as you add points to their related attributes. Higher intelligence will increase your spell points (if you can cast spells). The other stats affect other modifiers as well, giving different benefits to your character. One exception is the Health stat. You cannot directly increase your Health stat with the discretionary points. However, if you increase the Health bonus by adding points to your endurance stat, the additional Health bonus points will be added to your Health stat when you start the game.

After you finish, you can either reroll the stats to start over with a different distribution of stat points in your character and a new set of stat points to spend, or you can accept the attributes you modified and move into the last stage of creating your character. A "good roll" gives you an average of 55 or more points for each attribute.

Dice Rolling

Generally when you see a value like "d6" you can think of it as rolling a 6-sided die. Starting Health is described in the Arena Player's Guide as "25 + d6" for the Mage Class. In the Class Table, the Mage Class has a "Hit Die" of "d6". This is a Dungeons & Dragons-style terminology where the starting Health for the Mage Class is 25 + the value from the roll of one 6 sided die (a random number from 1 through 6). For the Nightblade Class the starting health is 25 + d8, meaning the actual value would be from 26 to 33.

Arena, however, uses a special formula to produce the dice rolls that doesn't result in what we might expect. The values for d6 and d8 are not {1..6} and {1..8}, but rather {0..5} and {0..7}. This means the starting Health for the Nightblade Class is not a value from {26..33}, but rather a value from 25 through 32.

For the remaining Hit Die values, the process can be described as using multiples of d6's {0..5} or d7's {0..6}. The Hit Die for the Battle Mage Class is d10. Instead of a single d10 die {0..9}, two d6's {0..5} are used. This is often written using the notation XdY for throwing X number of Y sided dice such as 2d6. Rolling multiple dice has some unique results. Instead of d10 having possible values of {0..9}, you have possible values of {0..10}. This also creates a "weighting" effect for average values. This means you are more likely to roll a 5 than you are to roll a 0 or a 10. In order to roll a 0 or 10 there is only one option; 0+0 and 5+5. However to roll a 5 you could roll 0+5, 1+4, 2+3, 3+2, 4+1, or 5+0. This "weighting" gets stronger as you increase the "d" value because this often increases the number of dice rolled. Meaning for d30 it is possible to roll a 0 or 30, but extremely unlikely. Most rolls will be closer to 15. If the dice roll exceeds the maximum value from the original "d" value, the dice are rolled again. EX: d16 uses three d7's {0..6} giving a combined possibility of rolling {0..18}. If a 17 or 18 is rolled, the dice are rolled again until the value is in the range of {0..16}.

Hit Die	d6	d8	d10	d12	d14	d16	d18	d20	d25	d30
Dice Used	1d6	1d8	2d6	2d7	3d6	3d7	3d7	4d6	5d6	5d7
Range	{0..5}	{0..7}	{0..10}	{0..12	{0..14}	{0..16}	{0..18}	{0..20}	{0..25}	{0..30}

One final process was added for Health stat rolls. If the value from the "dice" roll plus the Health bonus (based on the Endurance stat) equals 0, then +1 is added to the Health stat. This has the effect that 1 and 2 appear to be rolled more than expected, and rolling a 0 appears to be rolled less than expected. (If the Endurance health bonus is +0, it will appear as if you never roll a 0. If the Endurance health bonus is -1, it will appear as if you never roll a 1.)

Notes

• Starting Gold is a random value between 50 and 199. (In the game code this is a random value with a min(50) and max(200), which acts like 50 + d150 but it is not treated like a standard dice roll.)

• If you click on the name of your character, you are given the option to change it.

• When you level-up you will be brought back to the stats screen.
  • Changing your name is possible, but you will need to save and restart for the changes to take effect in all areas
  • You will be shown your base stats (without equipment bonuses) and given a random number of {3..6} Bonus Points to distribute.
  • Health will be updated by your Health bonus (based on your END stat) + a random number based on your Class Hit Die.
    • This is not "rolled" as it was for the initial stats. A d6 will be {1..6} and a d10 will be {1..10} without multiple dice or weighting.
    • If your base Health is 25, your class die is d6 and your Health bonus is +1 then your new health is 25 + {1...6} +1; or {27..32}.

Character's Appearance

You can now choose your character's face. There will be a selection of faces for you to choose from; however, it is entirely personal preference what face you will choose since they have no effect on your character's attributes or any sort of gameplay. You will see the face you chose for the rest of the game in the lower left corner of the playing screen, so you might as well pick one you like.

Your character's appearance has mostly already been determined by the race and gender you chose. What your character's default clothing is depends on which subclass you choose. Most classes start off with a brown or white shirt (depending on if you are male or female, respectively), while spellcasters start with turquoise or green robes.