Hello internet folk, have you wanted to play a game that simulates the rouges of Star Wars or the adventures of Firefly in space? Then turn your attention to Scum and Villainy, a Forged in the Dark RPG about space scoundrels. Let’s look at how to make a character for such a system.  

Choose A Playbook

Like many of the Forged in the Dark games, we begin by selecting a playbook. In some other systems, this is a class or role that you play. Your playbook will help signal the story and talents you want the play to focus on. The playbooks are…

• ‍The Mechanic: A brilliant tinkerer and gearhead who keeps the ship running and builds cutting-edge (or janky) tech.‍
• The Muscle: A tough bruiser, bodyguard, or enforcer who solves problems with force, intimidation, or raw resilience.‍
• The Mystic: A wielder of strange, ancient powers and arcane insight connected to the Way and its more profound mysteries.‍
• The Pilot: A daring hotshot behind the controls—expert in vehicles, evasive maneuvers, and getting in (or out) fast.‍
• The Scoundrel: A charming rogue, gambler, or grifter who lives by their wits, style, and silver tongue.‍
• The Speaker: A persuasive diplomat, fixer, or mastermind who manipulates people and plays the social game.‍
• The Stitch: A resourceful medic and scientist who patches up wounds, concocts drugs, and experiments on the bleeding edge of biology.

Initial Setup

 As you pick your playbook, you will have some initial traits set and some options before the next step in creation. Your playbook will have you set 3 dots of actions. Actions are what your character is good at and determine how many dice you roll when attempting such actions.  

 Secondly, we get a unique starting ability for our playbook. This helps both, by giving us a mechanic that fits the style and a vibe for how the playbook is naturally played.  

 For example, we are going to build a character alongside to help cement this. So, looking at the playbooks, we want to see a lot of action and be in the thick of things. We grab the Muscle playbook. They start with 2 in Scrap, the ability to fight in close combat, and 1 in Command, the ability to intimidate and order others.  Making note of that, we also have the starting ability Unstoppable, which will let us use nearly superhuman strength in situations.

Choices

 With the playbook and our initial traits figured out, we now have some choices. These choices help flesh out the character so that not every person from the same playbook seems the same.  

Special Abilities

 Each playbook has special abilities that fit the role it fills. At character creation, you get to select one. You learn more as you gain XP in the system.

 Taking a chance to look over the Muscle abilities, we have already started with Unstoppable, but we want to be a major asset to our team. After looking over the abilities, we settled on Bodyguard. This helps us and gives us a bonus for taking the hit and protecting our crewmates.  

Heritage

 Everyone came from somewhere in this system. That is your heritage. There are a few Heratiges, summarized below. So, where did you come from?

• ‍Imperial: Raised within the structured, privileged systems of the Hegemony, you were educated, indoctrinated, or groomed for life in its powerful institutions.‍
• Spacer: Born and bred aboard ships and stations, you’re a child of the void—comfortable in zero-g, wary of planetside life, and used to the hustle of orbital living.‍
• Colonist: From the rugged frontiers of Hegemonic expansion, you grew up surviving harsh worlds, wrangling alien threats, and making do with what you had.‍
• Manufactured: You’re not precisely born. You were engineered, cloned, or constructed by the Guilds. You’ve gained independence, but you might still hide your identity.‍
• Wanderer: Never rooted, you or your family drifted from world to world, chasing opportunity, escaping trouble, or simply following the pull of the Way.‍
• Xeno: You were raised in an alien culture, outside human norms—rich in strange traditions and often mistrusted by those in the Hegemony.

 Alright, back to our creation. We are going with a Colonist. Duke Hela is a Colonist who grew up at the end of civilization, which led to his strength and ability to protect those close to him.  

Background

 Not everyone was a Scoundrel before taking to the stars. What you did before is your background.  The book has some general categories you should refine after picking them to add depth to the character. The general backgrounds are as follows. 

• ‍Academic: You’ve spent your life pursuing knowledge: researcher, scientist, or student, digging into theory, history, or the universe's secrets.‍
• Labor: You come from the working class, hands-on and practical, familiar with sweat, machines, and the daily grind that keeps the galaxy running.‍
• Cult: Your life was shaped by religious belief, mystical teachings, or spiritual order, whether orthodox or fringe, enlightened or fanatical.‍
• Guilder: You were part of the bureaucratic or economic machinery of the Hegemony, handling logistics, design, finance, or corporate interests.‍
• Military: Trained and tested in combat or strategy, you served as a soldier, mercenary, spy, or officer within an organized fighting force.‍
• Noble: Born or entangled in wealth and politics, you’ve lived among the elite, shaped by privilege, diplomacy, or ambition.‍
• Syndicate: You lived on the wrong side of the law as a criminal, smuggler, fixer, or enforcer tied to an underworld organization.

We know that Duke was already a Colonist, so following that, maybe with their talents, they had fallen into a Labor job before joining the crew.  Specifically, working on a farm in a dangerous region riddled with dangerous Fauna led Duke to grow unnaturally strong from conflicts and exposure.  

Action Dots

 Now that we know the character better, we will add more action dots. An Action starting rank cannot have more than two dots in any single Action. At this point, you get 4 more points to put into action. One should represent your heritage, and the other should describe your background. The last point should represent the character's experience up to this point in their life.  

 Duke is continuing their journey. As a colonist, he is used to making things last, so I will put a dot into Rig, which is used to fix things. Their laboring allowed them to work with animals, strengthening their connection with non-sentient life, earning a dot of Attune. With two more points to flesh out the character, I want them to be intimidating when they want to be, so another dot in Command, but likable so that the final dot will go into Consort, the ability to get along and connect with people.

Friend And Rival

Your playbook will provide some people you've connected with in the past. These are people with talents that align with you and can be helpful or a hindrance. This is reflected in a bonus die or losing a die for a roll once a cycle. One will be a friend, someone looking out for you, another a rival, that, although you don't see eye to eye, can be of use if goals align, but just as often find in need of each other's skills.  

 Looking at Duke's options and seeing the Crooked Cop Yazu, we can picture them at odds. A rebellious but honest past rubs wrong with a Crooked Cop, so they will be our Rivals. Now, for a friend, deciding this is a childhood connection, Aya, the assassin, was once a member of Duke’s colony. Though the details about what happened between now and the past are vague, Duke trusts Aya and will have her back as a Friend.    

Vice

 Being a Scoundrel strains anyone who wants to do more than just scrape by. Your vice is how your character blows off stress. Though the vice’s details can be hammered down as you play in the setting, you pick a category of your character’s go-to.  

• ‍Faith: You find solace or purpose through religious devotion, cult rituals, or spiritual ceremonies observed regularly.‍
• Gambling: You chase the thrill of risk through games of chance, betting, or high-stakes wagers.‍
• Luxury: You indulge in lavish experiences, expensive items, and the trappings of wealth and status.‍
• Obligation: You are committed to a duty, cause, or person and spend your time fulfilling that responsibility.‍
• Pleasure: You seek comfort and joy through sensual experiences like romance, food, drink, art, or drugs.‍
• Stupor: You numb your mind and body through intoxication, overexertion, or reckless habits.‍
• Weird: You dive into the arcane, investigating the Way, interacting with ancient tech, or performing bizarre rituals.

 Duke is one of the high-risk games. He loves gambllng, leading him to the local casinos and gambling dens.  

Final Details

Now we just come up with the final details, like name, alias, and meeting the others.  This gives us a character to start Scum and Villainy.  

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Matthew Pauze (He/Him) is a storyteller by trade. He lives in Canada and has a passion for game design. He is dedicated to his family and improving his craft among the tabletop RPG community.