Hey there, this is part two for helping with your character’s personality! Today, we will be discussing ideals, and what exactly it means.

What exactly are ideals?

As discussed when I first discussed personality with you guys, ideals are, in a way, your character’s strongest beliefs, and what drives them forward in their adventure. These could include your personal codes of conduct, what you strive for, or what your personal philosophy is.

A good way to help determine your ideal is to look at your character’s alignment. For example, let’s say that you are Chaotic Neutral. This alignment is about holding your own personal freedom above all else. Thus, an easy thing to put in your ideal is that you desire freedom.

Background ideals

Ideals found within backgrounds are also amazing ideas for your character. It can help determine your backstory, such as what events in your life led to your main ideals and goals.

For example, let’s go simple and focus on the Acolyte background. This background assumes that you have spent your entire life within a religious order of sorts, devoting yourself to a specific deity.

For ideals, you could put the Faith ideal found in that. It states it like this: “I trust that my deity will guide my actions. I have faith that if I work hard, things will go well.”

Your ideal could also change

Now, this is the case with all of the four personality components, but once you have your ideal you don’t have to lock it in for the rest of the campaign. Some of the best characters grow along with the story

For example, back to that acolyte background example. Say that they were a Paladin who has devoted their entire life to a deity of justice. What would happen to the Paladin if they wind up having a crisis in faith, due to a recent catastrophe that was set in motion during the campaign? Maybe he begins to feel disillusioned with his deity’s ways, and changes both his ideal and his oath entirely. Maybe he strives to prove that his god’s ways are ineffective at making the world a better place. Moments like these can truly define character development between a party.