Character's Dark Secret

Character's Dark Secret (d100)

Character creation, dark secrets

What’s Your Character’s Dark Secret?

Everyone has secrets—especially RPG characters. What’s your character hiding? This chart helps reveal their hidden side and offers clues about who they are.

Every secret tells a story. Does your character live a double life? Why, and how do they manage it? Maybe they’ve struck a shady deal or keep The Book of the Dead under their pillow. Was it found in a late grandparent’s attic, or obtained through darker means? Why do they keep it?

Roll once, twice, or as many times as you like. Take notes and consider how these secrets connect to your character’s personality and story.

For more insights—like fears, impressions, or memories—combine this chart with others here: https://chartopia.d12dev.com/collection/4586/

Citation

"Everybody got secrets"

d100	Result
1	Ancestors Always consults their deceased ancestors. They wait for signs, or alternatively, receive answers from a vague object.
2	Artist Stays up at night creating art. Tries to keep it a secret because it feels embarrassing and they want it for themselves.
3	Asylum Someone decided the person was too mad and dangerous to be around others, locking them in an asylum. Whether they were released or escaped is unclear, but it's a period of life they want to keep hidden.
4	Binge Eater Binge eats at night. Even when full. The episode lasts for a few minutes, followed by an emotional release and exhaustion, then sleep.
5	Atonement Feels they must atone for past sins or mistakes, no matter how small. They are obsessed with penance, constantly seeking redemption in an attempt to erase guilt that won’t let go.
6	Bloodline Believes they come from a long line of powerful ancestors and carries the weight of their family’s legacy, whether it’s a blessing or a curse. They feel bound to live up to the expectations placed upon them.
7	Book of the Dead Has the Book of the Dead in a human-skin edition at home. Got it at a good price.
8	Buried Fears being buried alive. The person feels embarrassed to talk about it but has left very detailed instructions for their death.
9	Cabinet Keeps the stuffed dolls looking like their dead enemies in a cabinet in a locked room.
10	Cats Sleeps with too many cats in the bed.
11	Center of the Earth Convinced the center of the Earth is inhabited.
12	Child Hater Truly hates children. Can't stand them, despises them.
13	Child Murderer Has killed a child under controlled circumstances. The child was either extraordinarily evil (according to the character) or it was a necessary evil to reach a goal.
14	Collector Has an unusual collection—whether it's antiques, rare artifacts, or something far stranger—that they refuse to part with. The collection is their prized possession, and they sometimes go to great lengths to add to it.
15	Color Blind Severely color blind, manages to mostly hide it.
16	Complex Has an intelligence complex and often feels dumb around others. Compensates with silence or threats.
17	Complicated Urinates in a complicated and unusual way. They were incorrectly instructed at an early age, and it has stuck ever since.
18	Confessions Keeps a journal or diary in which they confess their deepest, darkest thoughts. It's a secret they guard fiercely.
19	Contempt Despises themselves and everything around them, doesn't know why.
20	Correspondence Corresponds intensely with someone considered ”the enemy”. Not ideal, but all their other friends at home are terribly boring.
21	Corset Hidden under clothes, they wear a corset for better posture and a slimmer waist.
22	Craftsman Secretly desires to be a craftsman and would really like to build a house.
23	Cursed Object Owns an object they believe is cursed, possibly linked to tragic events in the past. They keep it out of superstition and fear, convinced that its presence brings misfortune.
24	Death List Is at the top of a very powerful person's death list. Someone powerful has the person on their death list for something they did.
25	Difficulty with Numbers Has significant trouble handling numbers and math problems. Over the years, they’ve developed methods to hide this.
26	Distance Feels sick from care and is confused about why. Compassion and kindness create discomfort for the person.
27	Distrusts Shoes Doesn't believe in shoes, never has. Wears them in public but takes them off as soon as they get the chance.
28	Distrusts Water Animals Doesn’t trust aquatic animals, doesn’t swim in open water, and never eats anything from the sea.
29	Double Life Lives a double life—one persona for their public and family life, and another for secret activities or relationships they must keep hidden from the world.
30	Dying Is dying from illness, it will take time but is inevitable. For now, it’s still possible to hide it from others.
31	Dyslexic Has a lot of trouble reading and avoids situations where they have to read anything.
32	Empty Nest Has an empty nest at home after their children left, feeling lonely and aimless. They try to fill the void with distractions but feel increasingly isolated.
33	Existential Crisis Obsessed with whether the creator exists or not. The thoughts keep them awake at night.
34	Extremist Secretly convinced of an extreme political ideology.
35	Fantastic Place Far Away Has a dream of visiting a fantastic place far away that is completely different from where they are now.
36	Farm Has a small animal farm in a locked room.
37	Father Complex Never feels good enough to make their distant father proud. Hears his voice accusing them of being a failure.
38	Fear of Failure Is paralyzed by a deep fear of failure, unable to make decisions or take risks for fear of making a mistake. This fear keeps them stuck in place, unable to move forward in life.
39	Fearful Deep down, they are very scared and overcompensate with aggression.
40	Fetish Has a very unusual sexual fetish. It’s become somewhat of a problem in relationships and requires some explanation.
41	Forged Identity Has a forged identity, whether through deception or self-invention, to escape the past or create a more desirable future. The truth is buried, but the lie is becoming harder to maintain.
42	Guilt Carries an overwhelming sense of guilt, whether due to a specific incident or a general feeling of not living up to expectations. This guilt haunts them, affecting their every decision.
43	Hates Everyone Unclear why, but has truly and deeply hated everyone since childhood. They’ve learned to hide the hatred in order to function in society.
44	Hates Their Job Wants to actually work with something completely different.
45	Haunted by the Past The person is constantly haunted by something they did in the past, unable to escape the memories or consequences. It influences their decisions and relationships.
46	Heart Problems Has a bad heart, sometimes needing to sit down due to severe chest pains.
47	Hypochondria Believes they are constantly ill or dying from various ailments, even when there is no evidence of illness. This fear dominates their life, often affecting their mental and physical health.
48	Illegitimate Child Their child is not their biological child. The real mother is part of the lie that the child is their biological one, or she’s out of the picture.
49	Immune Has been immune to the four elements since childhood. So far, those around them think it's just luck. They’ve kept it a secret to avoid distrust, but in fact, no element—fire, ice, or anything else—affects them.
50	Imposter An imitator, they previously killed someone and took their identity.
51	Impulsive Quickly loses interest in what they’re doing and wants to do something else.
52	Inferiority Complex Secretly feels that their culture and traditions are trash compared to others.
53	Invisibility Complex Feels invisible to others, believing that they are overlooked or ignored. They desperately seek validation or recognition but never feel they truly belong.
54	Isolation Lives in complete isolation, disconnected from friends, family, or any social groups. Whether by choice or circumstance, they have distanced themselves from others.
55	Jealous Sickly jealous. It doesn't matter what it's about, the person often pretends it doesn't bother them, but behind closed doors, they have outbursts of rage over someone else having something they don't.
56	Killer Has killed the wrong person once. It was dark, they were drunk or confused. Thoughts sometimes return to that evening.
57	Lies Has a tendency to lie, even about insignificant things. The lies often spiral out of control, and they sometimes can’t remember where the truth ends and the lies begin.
58	Loner Prefers to be alone, avoiding social gatherings and company. Despite this, they feel a sense of longing for connection but fear the vulnerability that comes with it.
59	Lump Has a tumor in the form of a lump on their back. It grows slowly, and they are very careful to hide it.
60	Mania Brushes their hair obsessively, two hundred strokes every morning, afternoon, and evening.
61	Masochist Needs to feel pain to become sexually aroused. The degree varies but has steadily increased over the years.
62	Model Maker Builds small models and dolls. It’s not a big secret, but it’s something the person wants to keep for themselves.
63	Monster Protection Has set up traps against monsters in their home. Bear traps, falling weights.
64	Naive Naively socializes with violent criminals or fanatics. They find it exciting and thrilling, unaware of the potential problems that could arise.
65	Nest When alone, the person likes to crawl under beds and furniture where they feel safe.
66	Nightmares Always dreams nightmares, every night. Often wakes up anxious.
67	Oracle Always consults an oracle or similar spiritual guide before major decisions. They blindly trust the prophecies.
68	Overthinker Lays awake all night thinking. What they’re thinking about varies, but it keeps them awake, struggling to let things go.
69	Paradise Has a distant place they dream of visiting. They’ve read about or been told about it.
70	Parental Murderer Killed their parent. Either the parent was a terrible monster, or the ruler was. Either way, it was done after careful planning.
71	Passion Drama Killed their lover in a passion drama. It wasn’t planned, and they deeply regret it.
72	Photographic Memory Nothing is forgotten, neither good nor bad things. Both practical and draining.
73	Platform Shoes Secretly has inserts in their shoes to appear taller.
74	Possessed A creature has settled in their body. After a few traumatic years, the couple has reached a kind of compromise and symbiosis. They are very careful to keep this a secret from the outside world.
75	Prejudiced Extremely suspicious of people who look physically different. A different nose is enough for them to become suspicious.
76	Rejected Child Rejected their deformed baby, something that haunts them.
77	Represses Represses issues with food and optimistic sayings. Whenever it gets tough, they bring out food.
78	Sanctuary Hides a wanted lover or friend being hunted by the law.
79	Secretly Rich Is much more powerful and richer than they let on. Perhaps the person has a threat against them and lives incognito, or they pretend to be poor to get closer to the people.
80	Seeker Drawn to and searches for controversial things or strange things. The person is always looking for the next mysterious fact.
81	Sex Addict Abuses sex, it's a constant need and occupies their thoughts. The person is chasing feelings and excitement that have long since faded.
82	Short Story Writer Writes short stories under a fake name. They might have low self-esteem and be sensitive to criticism, or write such controversial texts that they need an alias when necessary.
83	Skeptical Only trusts their closest friends. The person never takes anyone’s word as certain and always double-checks what people have said.
84	Soul's Price Has sold their soul to a enemy. A secret pact has been made with a great evil that promises great power in return.
85	Suicidal Is secretly suicidal. They don’t know if it’s a cry for help or a desperate longing for release. It’s just a thought they can’t shake.
86	Superstition Completely believes in some superstition, often irrational.
87	Terror Has a deep, unshakable fear of something trivial—maybe the color yellow, a specific animal, or a seemingly harmless object. This fear rules their life, though they never tell anyone about it.
88	Tightrope Walker Constantly lives life on the edge, taking risks for the thrill of it. Whether it's gambling, dangerous activities, or reckless decisions, they push themselves to their limits in every part of their life.
89	Toxic Relationship Is stuck in a toxic, emotionally damaging relationship that they feel unable to leave. Despite knowing it’s unhealthy, they can’t bring themselves to break free.
90	Traitor Once betrayed their closest allies for personal gain. It’s something they’ve tried to bury, but the guilt is always lurking, threatening to resurface.
91	Unhinged Has bursts of irrational behavior that can sometimes be violent or destructive. These episodes seem to come out of nowhere, and they often don’t remember them afterward.
92	Vengeful Holds grudges for years, secretly plotting revenge against those who wronged them, no matter how minor the offense might seem to others.
93	Violent Outbursts Has moments where their anger boils over, leading to violent outbursts. They struggle to control it and regret it afterward, but the cycle repeats.
94	Wasted Potential Feels like they’ve squandered their potential, constantly reminding themselves of what they could have achieved if they hadn’t made so many mistakes.
95	Weak Constitution Is physically frail, often sick or weak. They work hard to keep it hidden from others and avoid situations where they might need to show their vulnerability.
96	Witchcraft Practices witchcraft or occult rituals, though they are careful to keep it secret. They feel it gives them power or comfort, but the risks and consequences are always in the back of their mind.
97	Workaholic Is obsessed with work, constantly prioritizing their job over relationships and personal health. They hide how much it consumes them and the toll it takes on their mental health.
98	Xenophobic Feels a deep fear or distrust of people from different countries or cultures. Despite their best efforts, they can’t shake the prejudice, and it colors their interactions with others.
99	Yearning for Escape Dreams of running away to a completely new life, where no one knows them. They fantasize about leaving everything behind and starting fresh, but they never follow through.
100	Zoologist Has a secret obsession with studying animals, even the dangerous or obscure ones. They keep detailed records and even keep exotic pets, they try to keep their collection hidden from others.

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