So my whole group and I are still relativity new to D&D. We've only done like 2 and a half very short campaigns. Like my highest level character was level 4. Just so you know how new to this we are. Anyway I've always been really bad at coming up with a character. Resulting in me not enjoying the game or my character not interacting a lot. My DM is planning a campaign for a month from now so I have some time. This is going to be our first long term campaign, so I want to be really into this character and have fun playing it for a long time. 

I'm going to copy and paste the email my DM sent to everyone so you know all that I know.

"Behold! The age of exploration is upon us. The world of Astlian has recently entered a new age. An age marked with determined discovery, avid adventure, enlightened exploration, and ambitious aspirations. With the development of profound sailing technologies worldwide travel is now feasible. The Kedean Empire and the Melpeth federation stand in a cold war of competition as the age of expansion and technological advancement commences. All the while, large businesses like the West Aularian Trading company profit wildly at the economic expansion. Additionally, with the failure of the Melpeth penal colony upon the Black Isles (now called the Piratelands by most) the criminals originally sent there, now turned pirates, run rampant and well-armed all throughout the western reaches of the Western Aularian.

Inevitably, with the expansion of pirates comes the circulation of pirate tales. Stories of lost treasure, fountains of youth, cities of gold, and Atlantis are met with stories of and murderous pirates, kraken, and leviathan. Both the ambitious and the desperate set sail to the west in search of their own desired treasure. But not all will return. A journey that requires determination and grit lies ahead for all who choose to set sail. The warmth of the sun, the roll of the ocean, the laughter of a crew, and the roar of a battle, the joy of gain, and the pain of loss; all lie ahead for the ardent adventurer. Upon this journey you will make friends, and you will make foes. You will drink to success, and you will drink to sorrow. You will laugh, and you will cry. You will seek, and you will find. You will feel cold steel, and you will feel blazing fire. You will draw blood, and you will drip blood. You will taste victory, and you will eat defeat. You, you will become a champion of the sea. Welcome to Astlian. . ."

If it wasn't obvious, it was inspired by the anime "One Piece".

He as home brewed some pirate subclass for us and is allowing us to use any race from Volo (except Yuan-ti Pureblood)

The characters we have so far are a Human Bard and an Aasimar Paladin. Waiting on my character and 2 other people. (Just giving as much info as possible) 

I'm going to list the races I'm looking to play from First choice to last choice. Tabaxi, Lizardfolk, DragonBorn, Kenku. For some reason I am drawn to the really rare races. Now I'm just going to list the classes I'm looking to play (no particular order).  Ranger, Fighter, Sorcerer, and maybe a Rogue (My last character was a rogue so not sure if I should make another one).

So I'm just looking for some really cool and interesting character ideas. Gender does not matter to me. I don't really want a shady, life in the shadows character (That how my last character was). I'm just bad at creating a back story that works and RPing the personality I've created for the character (I'm just as new to RP as I am to D&D). So please help a man out. Please give me any tips that can help me portray the character or any character. I'll take tips for anything having to do with the game really.

[Edit] The story is that our characters are going to form a pirate crew together.

Swashbuckler Rogue Tabaxi would fit well. Also Tempest domain cleric (Blue dragonborn). Sailor background for either. DeX based battlemaster fighter, lizardfolk, pirate background. (Or charlatan, just because trying to play the traits and flaws as a relatively emotionless lizardfolk would be an RP challenge)

Of your choices, I like Dragnborn Sorcerer (Draconic of course), outlander background. Shanghai'd in a coastal town and forced to help crew a a schooner traveling to a distant island. Captured by pirates and and allowed to join the crew due to to your magical talents. Ship was destroyed in a storm and you were rescued by a cargo ship after drifting at sea for a time.

Now you find yourself in a strange port seeking work, adventure, fortune, whatever your destiny holds in store next.

Tabaxi and Monk would go well together, however you could roll that into Ranger as well, since both classes favor a Dex basis.  Rogue would also be appropriate if you wanted to try that again, and would also be a fair choice for Kenku.

Some possibilities:

• A book-learned scholar (wizard, sage, historian, etc) tired of reading about other famous people and out to make your own mark. Enthusiastic, maybe a bit naive.
• A former pirate looking to go straight, but made a name for yourself and need to be more incognito. Wants to be a better person, has to fight old ingrained impulses to be nasty.
• Quietly hired by a wealthy merchant or noble to explore new lands and claim the land, or business opportunities, for your employer.
• Member of a religion (could still be any class--a ranger can have a religion, for example) who has learned about a famed artifact of the religion that lies somewhere in the lands now being explored. 
• Wanted for a crime (did or didn't commit), and need to flee the area. Looking for any excuse to get away and make a new life, either temporarily or permanently.
• Playing two lords from the warring two countries against each other--both employing you to explore, or to spy on the other. Making money from both, trying to keep both from knowing about the other.

Quote from Quasimojo >>

Of your choices, I like Dragnborn Sorcerer (Draconic of course), outlander background. Shanghai'd in a coastal town and forced to help crew a a schooner traveling to a distant island. Captured by pirates and and allowed to join the crew due to to your magical talents. Ship was destroyed in a storm and you were rescued by a cargo ship after drifting at sea for a time.

Now you find yourself in a strange port seeking work, adventure, fortune, whatever your destiny holds in store next.

 

 Thanks for the idea! I actually really like this. One of my favorite characters was my dragonborn fighter. Never really thought of a dragon born spell caster. Seems like it would be interesting. 

A Tabaxi Hunter (Ranger) or Scout (Rogue) would be easy to write a back story for and would be fun to play. But I think that playing a Lizardfolk with the Sailor or Pirate background would be a ton of fun, and would fit into your DM’s story perfectly. Write the back story and then figure out which class to play based on the back story. 

The one that I’d pick is Sailor. I’d be a Lizardfolk sailor whose ship had been captured by pirates who escaped by diving overboard and swimming to the closest island and surviving until he worked his way back to civilization. 

As this is a maritime campaign, any of your preferred races would be fine except I think Tabaxi aren't that fond of water. Personally, I'm just a huge fan of dragonborn, but that's just me. The bottom line is your preference. Just remember, this is a long term commitment. It's like getting a pet. Don't buy the puppy because it's cute unless you're also willing to clean up dog sh-t for the next 20 years. 

Also, while you are obviously free to play your character however you wish, each race does have certain... well... tendencies. Tabaxi are notoriously curious, lizardfolk are usually cold and calculating (bordering on heartless). It helps to choose a race that is somewhat similar to your own natural personality. It'll feel more comfortable, at least until you really develop a knack for acting.

In terms of character class... the Swashbuckler rogue in Xanathar's Guide would fit perfectly into a piratey adventure. A tabaxi shashbuckler would be tons of fun, not just in combat but also as the charismatic face of the party. Also consider the range at which combat will likely take place. Sure you'll be on land a bunch, but at sea you're dealing with long range attacks. Rangers and fighters who specialize in archery will be hitting enemies when other classes are still sitting there waiting for the enemy to get closer. Sorcerers are also good at range. The Storm Sorcerer in Xanathar's can also provide your ship with some amazing benefits like at level 6 you can change the direction the wind is blowing in a 100 foot radius. So you can just stand on deck and point the wind straight into your sails and give your whole ship a boost! Catch the enemy ship, outrun the enemy ship, the crew will love you!

Race and class are easy though. The REAL meat and potatoes is in the backstory. That's my favorite part of any character. Choosing a background from the players handbook is just a tiny part of that process. From that list Sailor seems like an obvious choice. But any could work. Outlander: a druid who grew up on a remote and mostly uninhabited island. Noble: an officer of the ship with Academy training. Guild Artisan: a cartographer (map maker) who goes on adventures to collect information to make his maps the most accurate. Guild Artisan: a carpenter or shipwright who helps maintain the ship and sails and repair the damage after battles. Entertainer or Charlatan: someone who knows the best taverns in every port and always has a story to tell!

You are a level 1 character. Why? Why did you decide to go through the training? Why not stay home? What happened? 

Are you a sailor because it's family tradition? Or because there simply aren't any other jobs in your town? Are you a noble paladin because your wealthy family sent you to the naval academy so you could open lucrative new trade routes? Are you a criminal because the captain of your last ship made a pact with a devil and when you led the mutiny against him, he won and put a price on your head? (proof that you CAN be a lawful good criminal). 

Just keep going back one step at a time. 

Why did your character choose this class? Where did they train? Who are your allies? Who are your enemies? Do you even like the ocean? Is your family still alive? Where are they? Are they proud of you? Are you a local kid or did you travel here from far away? Are you familiar with the local customs or do you always stand out? Do you keep a journal? Do you worship a deity? Which one? Why? Do you have any superstitions? Tattoos? Bad habits? Favorite foods? Is there a particular item that has sentimental value for you? Are you on the run from someone? Are you even who you claim to be? Maybe your last ship sank in a storm and when you washed up on a beach barely alive your rescuers asked you your name, and since you're just a poor sailor from a poor family you gave the name of one of the wealthy officers from your ship, and those people recognized the name and treated you really well and you've never been treated so kindly so you just kept going along with the charade but you're terrified that someone might discover your secret oh and maybe the officer who's name you stole also survived and unbeknownst to you he's out there hunting down the bastard who's pretending to be him!

Texture. It's hard to explain, but a character's flaws can be just as fun as their strengths. Don't just build the most mathematically capable character. Build a character who has texture. Think of your five favorite books and your five favorite movies. Who are the main characters? Who are the heroes? Sure they all have great abilities or some such destiny, but they all have flaws too, and those flaws drive the story just as much as anything else. Luke would never have met Han Solo if Han hadn't been hiding in Mos Eisley because he was a criminal with a price on his head. Playing your flaws as well as your strengths will make your character more three-dimensional.

Maybe you were happy to be just a simple fisherman in a small coastal community where you were happily married and the locals looked up to you and respected you (background: Folk Hero), but then some sahuagin attacked your town and killed your family so you completely lost your mind, so you picked up your spear and went hunting, and now you're a level 1 fighter who lives for pure revenge and you carry your wife's necklace and a lock of your daughter's hair in your pocket and you spend most of your time by yourself, often muttering things to your deceased family because you think they can still hear you, and everyone thinks you're just this weird quiet guy but when you see sahuagin you completely lose your mind and just fearlessly attack them while screaming bloody murder, scaring your friends as much as your enemies and you don't care if you live or die because if you die you'll at least be reunited with your family. 

Maybe you're a tabaxi who heard a story once about The Perfect Pearl, a magical gemstone with amazing powers, so you're sailing the seas looking for it and you stop in every tavern you find and buy people drinks to ask them if they've heard of it or if they have any clues that might help guide you. 

Maybe you're a copper dragonborn storm sorcerer who is a bit of a prankster and who has a bad habit of getting piss drunk and starting bar fights because he told the wrong joke to the wrong person. 

The possibilities are quite literally infinite. Just remember that race & class are just two of the MANY factors that determine your character's fate. Race is just "what you are". Class is just "what you do". Neither of them tell us "WHO YOU ARE"! That's up to you. That's why a good backstory is so vital.

Well... I hope this helps. Happy Hunting!

Your DM has created a pretty awesome sounding world!  Sometimes I think it's more fun to create a characters personality and take a race and class that fit it.  Sometimes selecting a character from a movie or literature as a base can be fun.  Perhaps you are a Pirate seeking to build a new home for yourself free from oppression.  Swashbuckler?  Perhaps something horrible has happened to your home and you are on a quest to rite those wrongs.  Tritan?  Tortle?  Aquadic half-elf?  Perhaps you have had to take a pact with an entity to do so.  Warlock?  

There are so many great characters that would fit right in to the world your DM has created.  Sometimes when you're having trouble creating an interesting character, you can just borrow one and make it your own!  Maybe  you want to play a character like Jack Sparrow - seemingly clueless but secretly manipulating the whole of events around you.  Rogue Mastermind Pirate?  Or maybe you would like to have an adventure like Homer's Odyssey.  Long ago left your home and desperately trying to find your way back.  The whole of the world seems to be trying to get in your way.  Fighter?  Perhaps you were imprisoned for years but decided to use that time to better yourself.  You became educated, taught yourself to fight, and have now broken out looking for revenge.  Count of Monte Cristo!  A bit more refined of a Rogue Mastermind.  Or perhaps that same character has taken a pact with a demon in order to free himself.  Warlock?  Perhaps that education has lead you to a control of the world around you that you had previously thought impossible.  Wizard?  Or untapped something in you that was already there?  Sorcerer?  

Once you have the character and class, then you can dig into the mechanics and make him great.  I find that I often make the mistake of finding what mechanic I would like and don't really develop the character very much.  I find it's easier to start the other way.