I play D&D in such a weird way like any time I make a character the first thing I go to after deciding on a class/subclass is “how do I make them hate being this exact type of person, and how can I make them Pathetic”
Oath of Redemption paladin? Dedicated to the belief that anyone evil can be redeemed? Ideals of always showing mercy when possible?
Yeah she did a bad thing once and she’s never let go of it. Thinks she’s the worst person in the world, unironically.
Oh we’re playing Curse of Strahd? All right, I’m playing a wizard who up until very recently didn’t go outside. She learned telepathy to avoid talking to people. She’s afraid of everything.
Armorer artificer? Her entire personality is armor. She puts barriers between herself and others because she’s afraid of being vulnerable. The layers of irony and performative toughness are exactly like her ridiculously high AC and saves, in that if you get through it she goes down incredibly easily
Oh she died? I’m having to make a replacement character? Ok, she’s a mechanical imitation of that artificer. She’s based on everything the artificer wanted to be, but feels fundamentally incapable of living up to the person she’s built to replace. She’s tougher, faster and stronger, and just similar enough to the original that the party finds her disturbing to be around. And she knows.
Path of the Beast barbarian? Her rage induces a painful and uncontrollable transformation that she hates. She’s afraid of hurting people she cares about, she’s afraid of not coming back from it, and she can’t healthily process emotions because every strong feeling feels like a threat to herself and others.