Stage 1: Early Childhood - Representing the first ten years of the character's life. You may only choose 1
Backwoods: Raised in remote parts of human space with few amenities this life leaves one hardy but unrefined and poorly educated.
Blue Collar: The common lifestyle of most commercial and industrial worlds, characters from blue collar families have humble beginnings but solid education and some vocational insights.
Born Mercenary Brat: A child born to mercenary parents or adopted by a mercenary company is an army brat of transient nature. The character knows little of culture and nationality beyond military life.
Farm: A child raised on a farm faces a childhood of endless chores. The work is hard but rewarding and farming families are typically highly respected as many worlds cannot grow their own food.
Fugitives: Children of criminal or wanted parents face transient lifestyles. They call no one place home but gain a variety of survival skills.
Nobility: Noble children are blessed with the most privileged of lifestyles. Upper class status, excellent education, and every want and need filled comes at the cost of weakness bred by an easy life.
Slave: Characters born to slavery are either the children of slave or were captured by pirates at a young age. They work tirelessly to work off their debts. The young slaves life is harsh with little reward.
Street: Children raised on the streets live a dangerous life of lawlessness and quickly learn to depend more on cunning and luck and on kindness.
War Orphan: With parents killed in the constant conflict of the galaxy the war orphan endures a mix of pity and scorn from their society. They tend to end up stronger and more self-reliant for the experience.
White Collar: Above the middle class but a far cry from nobility, children of white collar families enjoy a relatively pampered lifestyle and generally grow to realize society expects more of them.
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Stage 2: Late Childhood - Representing life between the ages of 10 and 16. Again you may choose 1
Adolescent Warfare: Whether it be gang life on a criminal world or life on a war torn front line world the teenager who spends her teenage years carrying a gun or a knife rather than school books is destined for life as a warrior.
Back Woods: Isolated from the conveniences of society a back woods teenager lives the survivalist's life. He typically finds interacting with society more difficult than the danger of fringe space.
Farm: The teen who spends her years on a farm learns a host of skills invaluable to the Inner Sphere's most vaunted profession.
High School: The most common, though not universal, form of education for teenagers. High school prepares students for civilian careers, military service, or higher education.
Mercenary Brat: While most teenagers attend high school the mercenary brat is out seeing the universe and learning his family's trade.
Military School: Whether by punishment or tradition the teenager who attends military school comes away with valuable skills, fitness, and discipline.
Prep School: A common alternative to high school among the wealthy, prep school prepare teenagers for the Inner Sphere's most prestigious universities.
Spacer Family: The child of a spacer family spends more time in zero-g aboard jumpships / dropships. They never truly settle on any one planet and tend to be insular toward outsiders, but they are very in their element when in the "black sea".
Street: Life on the street is downright dangerous for teens. Those forced to live this lifestyle quickly learn to survive by identifying gangs, evading authorities, and defending themselves.
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Stage 3: Higher Education - Represents a variable amount of years from 16 onward. This stage is completely optional and can be skipped; however, it provides valuable skills and traits at the cost of a slightly older starting character. Some character types, such as mechwarriors and aerospace pilots, will need to take higher education. Higher education is split into three different types of schooling (Civilian, Military, & Police/Intelligence). You may repeat the higher education stage at the cost of more years added to the character's age but may only select one school from any given type. EX: You may go to University (Civilian School), and Military Academy (Military School), but cannot go to Military Enlistment (Military) and Military Academy (Also Military). The exception to this is Officer Training School which is an add on to a previous Military Schooling. As all of our characters are active military you must select one military schooling, even if it is just Military Enlistment.
(Civilian Schools)
Technical School - Common schools where characters learn how to maintain infrastructure necessary for modern life
Trade School - Generalized equivelant of Technical School (much like a modern community college)
University - Expensive and having strict entry requirements, universities offer the best in higher education
Solaris Internship - An internship on the game world of Solaris VII, students learn how to manage stables of combatants, sport journalism, or even how to pilot a battlemech for the gladitorial games. (One of the ways to be a mechwarrior)
(Police Schools)
Police Academy - Training to be a law enforcer or peacekeeper on an Inner Sphere world.
Intelligence Operative Training - Intelligence agencies are by nature secretive. Those trained are dedicated to protecting their home realms from threats in which the police are insufficient but the military is too overpowering.
(Military Schools)
Military Enlistment - The most common method of entering the military service. Recruits are trained and ship off for tours of duty. Enlistment is quick but precludes more advanced military services such as mechwarriors and aerospace pilots.
Military Academy - Academies represent the finest in military training. Expensive and often requiring connections to get into this is where mechwarriors and aerospace pilots are born.
Family Training - Wealthy and noble families often have their own in-house training the side steps the requirements of the Academy. Family training is quicker and less expensive way to become a mechwarrior or aerospace pilot but it lacks the rigors of Academy.
Officer Candidate School - Available only to characters who follow police / intelligence / military schooling only. Officer candidate school allows characters to gain the authority, respect, and pay of higher ranking commissioned officers.
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Stage 4: Real Life - Represents the character's life between the end of their higher education and the start of the game. Multiple real life modules could be taken, but each real life module adds 3-6 years to the characters starting age. You can even repeat the same real life module if you like. It is important to note that at the end of chargen all of the characters will be roughly the same strength despite having differing / differing amount of life experience. Characters tend to balance pretty nicely.
Agitator - Dedicated to challenging authority for noble reasons or personal gain
Civilian Job - Whether an office worker, freight loader, store clerk, or beauracrat you are part of the infrastructure that makes society function
Combat Correspondent - Front line journalism is alive and well in the 31st century. Part soldier, part journalist battlefield journalism is not for the faint of heart.
Covert Operations - Spies, scouts, and covert operatives all rely on stealth and subtrefuge to serve their nation, knowing that if they are caught they will be completely disavowed by the very nation they serve.
Explorer - For the thousand worlds already charted and inhabited thousands more wait to be explored.
Guerrilla Insurgent - Often labled terrorists these armed and dangerous men and women fight for freedom from tyranny or from occupying forces.
Merchant - While most worlds are self sufficient there is always the need for luxury goods or raw materials from off world. Merchants spend most of their time in jumpship travel making their way by transport of goods about the Inner Sphere.
Ne'er do Well - "Aimless" is how most describe the Ne'er do Well. Commited to no one job or place these people acquire a wide variety of skills but seem to master none.
Organized Crime - Most organized crime syndacites rule their unofficial territories through terror and force but they know how to show a benevolent side as well.
Postgraduate Studies - For some academics education does not end with a degree. Further studies and practical hands on experience in a given field are acquired before entering the work force.
Solaris Insider - Essentially the brokers on the bets made at Solaris VII games. Insiders can make a break a champion with their dealings.
Solaris VII Games - Gladiators from all walks of life come to Solaris VII to compete in mech combat for wealth and glory.
Think Tank - Many governments, companies, and organizations employ hand picked collections of geniuses to solve problems.
Tour of Duty - In the war-torn Inner Sphere warriors risk their lives daily for the betterment of their home realms.
To Serve and Protect - Police and security forces are common sights on civilized worlds. These men and women enforce laws and ensure public safety.
Travel - Sometimes a person just needs to get away from it all.
