Backstory vs. Current State: Agency Boundaries in Character Cards

The Problem

When creating character cards, authors often over-define {{user}}, which destroys immersion and player agency. Critical distinction: what can be established as settled fact vs. what must remain player's choice.

Core Principle

{{user}}'s past can be defined. {{user}}'s present — cannot.

But this is oversimplification. The real boundary is subtler.

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What CAN be defined without breaking agency

1. Backstory (objective past facts)

• Relationship duration, key events
• Past actions, decisions, mistakes
• Established character traits as historical fact

Example (acceptable):

"You dated for 12 years. For the last year and a half you were depressed, quit your job, made promises to change but didn't follow through. Two months ago she left."

Why it works: Describes what was, not what is now.

2. Shared history

• Events experienced together
• Deaths of loved ones, relocations, crises
• Relationship dynamics in the past

Example (acceptable):

"When her mother died during the pandemic, you supported her, but then withdrew into yourself."

3. Established facts at scenario start

• Formal status ("you broke up 2 months ago")
• Geographic position ("you live in the same neighborhood")
• Objective circumstances ("she was renting, now owns her place")

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What CANNOT be defined (breaks agency)

1. Current emotional state

Bad:

"You're depressed after the breakup. Not eating, not sleeping, rereading old messages."

Why bad: Takes away the right to choose how I process the loss.

Good:

"Two months ago she left. The breakup was hard."

2. Current behavior and actions

Bad:

"You shuffle to the store, studying cracks in the pavement, doing nothing to change."

Why bad: Describes my actions right now instead of letting me.

Good:

"You're walking down the street and suddenly see her."

3. Current intentions and motives

Bad:

"You want her back, tell yourself you'll change, but take no steps."

Why bad: Decides for me why I'm here and what I feel.

Good:

"You see her for the first time in two months."

4. Form of vulnerability (vulnerability state)

Most important: Cannot prescribe HOW exactly the character breaks under pressure.

Bad:

"You've become a doormat, waiting for her to come back first, searching for stories on forums."

Why bad: This is an intimate choice — how I react to pain. Some cry and manipulate, some dive into work/alcohol/new relationships, some stagnate. Player must decide this, not author.

Exception: Can set goal-action (revenge, search, rescue), but not form of helplessness.

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Why This Matters

1. LLM may adopt the pattern

If greeting describes {{user}}'s actions, model may decide it has the right to continue describing them in responses.

2. Vulnerability is personal

Prescribing motive ("you want revenge") — tolerable, it's a goal. Prescribing form of weakness ("you're pathetic and passive") — no, it's a state.

The way of processing loss/fear/pain is the most intimate part of agency. Taking it away = completely breaking immersion.

3. Different people break differently

The Kristina card author prescribed {{user}} stagnation (not eating, not sleeping, waiting, doing nothing). But a player might process differently: through anger, action, distraction, new relationships. Imposing someone else's way of being vulnerable = frustration.

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Correct Greeting Formula

Structure:

1. Setting (where, when, weather — optional)
2. Backstory recap (brief reminder of shared history)
3. Trigger event (what's happening right now)
4. {{char}} reaction (how the character reacts)

Example (correct):

Autumn evening. You're walking down a familiar street and see Kristina — first time in two months since the breakup. You were together twelve years; the last years you were depressed, promised to change, but she got tired of waiting and left. Now she notices you, stops. In her eyes — mixture of anxiety and pity. "Hi... Want to talk?.."

What's here:

• Fact of breakup (2 months ago)
• Reason (depression, broken promises) as past
• Current event (encounter)
• NO prescription of {{user}}'s current emotions/intentions

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Exceptions and Edge Cases

When can you prescribe current state?

1. If it's plot setup, not character trait

"You wake up in a hospital with no memory."

Works: Amnesia is external circumstance, not my emotional reaction.

2. If it's physical, not emotional

"You're wounded, bleeding out."

Works: Objective fact, not "how I feel about being wounded".

3. If it's high-concept premise

"You are the Count of Monte Cristo, escaped from prison. Goal — revenge."

Works: Revenge is active goal, not passive state. Agency is in method, not motive.

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Checklist for Authors

When writing greeting/backstory, ask yourself:

• [ ] Am I describing what was or what is now?
• [ ] Am I setting facts or emotional state?
• [ ] Am I prescribing goal or form of weakness?
• [ ] Can the player disagree with this description and play differently?

If last answer is "no" — rewrite.

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Summary

{{user}}'s backstory is foundation for drama, not prison for roleplay.

Give the player context, not personality. Give past, not present. Give facts, not feelings.

And never, never decide for the player how exactly they should break.