[Alter Ego] Character creation

[JSE]

Maybe you remeber Alter Ego, my in-development universal role-playing system. Alter Ego uses "realistic" and detailed rules rather than abstract strategic devices. If you would like some more information about Alter Ego, please check out the following link to a previous thread in this forum:

http://www.indie-rpgs.com/viewtopic.php?t=12462&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=15.

I am currently fine-tuning the character creation system which - at least in my opinion - is one of Alter Ego's innovative features. Unlike other creation systems, it is less a design system than a chronological story-based make-up of a character's biography.

The system combines fate (i.e. dice rolls) and player decisions to simultaneously establish a character's background and his abilities and skills. You start at your character's birth and decide about his further development year after year until he enters the campaign. Each year, random events can occur to the character and influence this development to a certain extent.

It is these random events that I would like to ask your opinion about - or rather the way I should realize them. My current approach is to make random events dependent on a character's respective habitation (wilderness, village, town etc.) and to only predefine general event themes - like "Illness", "Love" or "Encounter" - so that the GM can detail events based on characters' respective situations. However, I am beginning to wonder if elaborated specific events are more convenient and satisfying.

What is your opinion about this? Any further comments are also appreciated.

[JSE]

I wouldn't like to see this thread drown - however, I understand that my question was probably too specific.

So, please ignore the above question and instead give me your general views and ideas about this alternate method of character creation - as opposed to traditional character design.