Yea, I'm nerdin' ova here. I'm playing Requiem and Alternate Start mods for Skyrim, which change the gameplay quite a bit, so bear with me there. This is also the first time I roleplay a character, which is hard to do in Skyrim, where the temptation of metagaming is super strong. Regardless, please enjoy the story, tell me what happens to him, and your feedback. Also, DO post your own characters.
My character is a Nord, with the usual backstory you'd expect from a lowborn. Orphan, he was abandoned at birth by his desperate and impoverished mother on her way South, and thus was raised in the streets of the Imperial city. Being relegated to the life of the common rabble you'd find in the backstreets, you eventually toughen up or die. This early life left permanent psychological scars on him, considering he'd been exposed early to the absolute worst of what humanity has to offer : thefts, murders, inequalities and more. He however, was clever and subtle enough to make it through, and learned to acquire a varied skillset out of these ... experiences. Regularly stealing food, gold, books, ingredients and gems, he'd live to become initiated in magicka, but realizing his blood makes him unable to easily acquire the power he so desperately craves, he decides to betray his friends by stealing as much gold he could, before heading off to his homeland. There, he hoped to finally be able to find ways to quench the thirst of power and coin so he could finally undo the horrible start of his life.
As a teenager and a young adult, he heard the tale of legendary mages, of transcending mortal limitations, and reaching god-like levels of powers. He heard of the Daedra and Necromancers, he heard about ways to shield oneself from harm, or to completely reduce someone or something to mere ashes. And yet, he was still unable to even cast the most basic spells for mere seconds. He heard of ways he could permanently alter his mortal coil not only through magical studies, but also through alchemical reactions. He also heard rumors of Sinderion, the master alchemist, who is said to have disappeared looking for "Blackreach". After stealing a horse, finding one of the many entrances, he finally managed to reach Sinderion's outpost, finding his remains, and his research. Unfortunately for him, his research wasn't what he expected, and he thus had to fight his way out of there, his gold, food and water spent, but with some of the possessions of the long-dead genius in his backpack.
With the coin he stole nearly spent, he thought to himself he had to get some more, by any way necessary. But having exited the ruins in the middle of nowhere, he first had to get food and water, and therefore headed to the nearest city, Windhelm. There he tried to look for work, trying to listen to rumours. Almost as if it was fate guiding his actions, he found out about Aventus Arentino, and listened. The poor orphan wanted Grelod, ironically nicknamed "the kind", to suffer a horrible death . Weirded out, but with the promise of reward, he left for Riften aboard a carriage.
Stealing wasn't pretty, but this was something else. As an orphan, he also knew the pains of not only being abandonned, but being raised for a time in an orphanage. He knew that the old hag has it coming, no matter what regular folks may say or think about this "murder" thing. There's no justice in this world, but how could these people know ? He absolutely hates them, for he never had the same luck they did. He too would've liked to enjoy a regular life, he would have enjoyed becoming a scholar. Or a mage. Or someone fucking normal. He never had the chance to grow up with food security, nor a permanent roof over his head, nor a mother's embrace to keep the darkness of the night away. He never had friends, nor family. No one helped him out of the misery he was in, so he had to help himself, no matter how distasteful. It's not like the sons of the nobility and the merchants, nor anyone not born in the gutters of the Imperial city could know.
And so he arrived to his destination, Riften, being the hive of the scum of the earth, and home to what would be his first murder. But beforehand, he was approached by Brynjolf, with an offer. During the next few months, Skyrim is shaken by stories of a shadow, murdering and stealing precious items. The thieves guild is back in town, and people of all stripes are found dead. But these pale in comparison with the assassination of the Emperor. And even then, the Nord wasn’t satisfied. His lust for power brought him to Whiterun to get hired by the companions, just to make that extra gold. What he’s going to find however, is something far beyond his first expectations, since he fell to the temptations of power once more, and let himself turn into a monstrosity. He then travelled Skyrim and Solstheim in search of more power and gold, fulfilling tasks from everyone, ranging from the lowest beggar, to the devious Daedra; eventually becoming incredibly wealthy in the process. Turns out that selling your sword, skills, your morals, and your soul to the highest bidder has proved to be profitable.
And yet, even a man with few morals has a soft spot, and this one felt the pain of Lucia and Sophie, both of them begging to survive. Using the now endless funds at his disposal, he bought himself a plot of land in the Pale, near Whiterun, for he and his two daughters who still to this day, are entirely unaware of his nature, or his past. A nature that makes him hate others around him; and a past that made him grow greedy, deceitful and revengeful. Do Lucia and Sophie deserve such a legacy from their father ? What now ?
I had a Pathfinder character a few years ago that was fun to play. He was a spoiled rich boy out to make his name in the world who thought he was lawful good because he was too insulated by wealth and class to realize that the laws were written for his benefit. It was fun playing a dumb piece of shit who thinks he's the cat's pajamas.