NPCs are one of the things I struggle with the most. I always feel like I never give them the attention they deserve, that they feel flat and uninteresting, and that coming up with them is really hard.

It is one of my biggest perceived weaknesses.

So obviously I've read a lot of ideas about how to deal with them.

NPC Basics

There are a few things that all NPCs need and then the rest really depends on the type of game and strengths of the GM/Ref.

Names

All NPCs need names. At least in every game and every group I've played with, this comes up with even the most basic introduction between character to NPCs. Sure, I am very guilty of handwaving this, but that sends a really loud signal that this NPC is a cardboard cutout and isn't relevant.

Personality

This can show up in a lot of ways, but you need to know how this NPC acts and behaves. Not everyone will be friendly, indifferent, scheming, or hostile. You need a way to decide their overall personality. One way is to use a modified reaction role, but this is pretty one-dimensional.

An Offer

Most all NPCs have something or can have something the NPCs want. This could be an item, information, a start of an adventure, or access to a rumor. This is the big bit of why would a player waste time talking to them. That is assuming the point wasn't just fun role-playing.

Optional Things

What are some other things that pop up a lot for defining NPCs? Here's a list of some of them:

• Occupation
• Residence
• Relation to other NPCs
• Inventory
• Class/Level
• What they're doing or mien

Example Formats

Ambition and Flaw

This is a pretty easy one, but an NPC is described with their name, an ambition, and a flaw. This checks most of the boxes for essential things and provides hints at others.

The hiccup with this format is that an ambition may be secret or it may be public. It also needs to be specific. The same is true with a flaw. You need to have an idea how that flaw might appear in an interaction or how the party may learn about it.

DNA

I learned this one from the NSR Discord. It stands for:

• Description
  • Physical
  • Personality
  • Quirks
• Need - Must be specific
• Agenda/Aspiration/Asset
  • Agendas are secret and what they're working towards.
  • Aspirations are a little looser like, "Be the best brewer"
  • Assets are a thing they have that the party may want or need

I like this format as it covers the basics in a well rounded way. The hiccup is that it does not lend itself to rapid generation using tables due to the needed specificity.

Building NPCs

There are two ways to basically handle this, one is that for important NPCs you pre-generate them as a part of session prep. This, unfortunately will represent < 1% of the NPCs your party will encounter or engage with.

The other way is on-the-fly. This is where you need to have tools or something at your disposal to quickly generate them. One technique is to pre-roll a battery of them that have just a few blanks to fill in. For example, you keep 10-20 NPCs on hand at all times. Maybe the place they live changes or their occupation. Maybe their asset or rumors change. That quick swap is far less work than trying to fill this out on demand.

Running NPCs

This obviously varies from system to system as to what options you have, but I want to focus on the OSR style of NPCs. That is to say, the importance of the Reaction or Morale roll.

A reaction roll is a simple 2d6 roll that indicates the stance or reaction of an NPC. A typical one looks like this:

When an encounter with an NPC starts I'll either start at their initial disposition (Reaction) if it is obvious or I'll roll to decide how it starts. This would be modified by charisma or anything else.

From here, as the party role-plays with the NPC I'm listening for signals as to major things they're attempting. For example, maybe they're going to lie, bully, negotiate, or develop the relationship. These signals prompt a new roll which again will carry modifiers.

This continues until the party gets what they want or combat happens.

I find this fits in my brain nicely as it allows free-form role-play while also having a somewhat objective way to handle it that is based on player choice and player skill.

Resources

Zelda-like NPCs
This is an interesting article that builds out some tables for NPCs like the ones from BoTW. I don't think the NPCs in those games are good examples of NPCs, but they're useful as a spark of inspiration.
Home Zine
A zine that had the DNA method in it.
Courtney Campbell's NPCs
His writing especially on NPCs and how that works with reaction and morale roles changed a lot for how I think about NPCs and how to keep interactions both mechanically sound and interesting.
Troika
Miens are such a clever way to represent the disposition of any creature or NPC in the moment. You have an NPC barkeep but you can roll a mien to find out that he's "Fretting" or "Toiling" to represent how the party encounters him.