1581 – Character Generator

An interactive assistant for creating a hero according to the “1581” rules.

1General Information

In the book: young heroes are typically ~16–25 years old.
This is only flavour and has no mechanical effect.

2Family Background (Background roll)

or choose manually below.
Select a result to see the Background description and Good Fortune cost.

3Nobility and Good Fortune

Every character starts with 9 points. Your current pool: 9.
Note: the page only helps track your spending – it does not enforce all rules automatically.
Mechanically: modifies your Background and reduces your Good Fortune pool.
Use this for other expenses: skipping Burden roll, extra Expertise, Attribute tweaks, luxury gear, etc.

4Career Paths

Each time you take a Career Path (1×) you gain 3 Attribute Points (AP) and 4 Skill Points (SP).
• AP: 2 (or 1) must be spent on that Career’s Attributes, the rest are free.
• SP: 4 different Skills get +1d12 each: 3 from the Career list, 1 freely chosen.
• Taking the same Career 3× → you gain one Expertise for free.
• You may buy an additional Expertise in a Career Path you have 3× for 3 Good Fortune.

5Attributes & Aging

Each Attribute has a value (number of “lucky numbers” assigned on d12) and a set of those numbers. AP and lucky numbers are calculated from your Career choices; you may still edit them manually if your GM allows.
Enter lucky numbers above or generate them from Careers to see global counts and rule warnings.

Burden

Burden Rolls are based on age (20) and the number of Career Paths.
Used when the result is Career Burden (21–24) and for story purposes.
No Burden rolls yet.

Aging

For each decade reached (30, 40, 50, 60), make an Aging Roll: 1d12 (+1 / +2 / +3 modifier for older ages).
At this age no Aging Rolls have been calculated yet.
30–39: +0, 40–49: +1, 50–59: +2, 60+: +3.
No Aging rolls yet.

6Skills & Expertise

Skills are loaded from /data/skills.json. Each 1× Career grants 4 Skill Points, which you assign in step 4 (3 to Career Skills, 1 freely). Here you only see the resulting dice: 1d12 base (untrained) + +1d12 per SP. Expertise grants a one-die reroll.
Add Career Paths to unlock Expertise choices (3× in the same Career).
Expertise allows you to re-roll one 1d12 after a Skill test. Apply only when relevant to the situation.
Loading skills…
No rolls yet. Use the “Roll” button next to a Skill.

7Motivations

You have 3 points to assign. You may buy 1 extra point for 2 Good Fortune.
acting out of religious zeal
personal honour code
desire for glory and recognition
loyalty to lord, king, family, faction
ambition, wealth, personal advancement
Total spent: 0 / 3 points.

8Starting Equipment

Ask your GM: the book provides wealth guidelines (3–5 gr, 1 fl., 3–6 fl., 10–15 fl., etc.).

SCharacter Summary

General

Name: —
Age: —
Gender: —
Identity: —
Religion: —

Background & Good Fortune

Background: —
Privileges: —
Remaining Good Fortune: 9
Notes: —

Attributes

Set Attributes in step 5.
Lucky numbers overview will appear here.

Skills

No Career-based Skill Points yet.
Configure skills and dice in step 6.
Expertise:
No Expertise selected.

Career

No career paths selected.
Burden Rolls: 0 / 0
Rule: 1 roll at 4th Career, then +1 per Career.
Burden notes: —
Burden history: —

Motivations

FAITH 0, HONOUR 0, SLAVA 0, DUTY 0, SELF 0 (0 / 3 pts)

Equipment

Fill in equipment in step 8.