Basics of a Character

A PC(player character) is composed of a fixed number of attributes, skills, equipment and a fluctuating pool of fate.

Attributes:
During character creation, a number of points are given to spread amongst the attributes. Attributes form the basis of many contests resolutions and, because of that, have a disproportionate influence on resolution. Character Creation
Level
0 - minimum
1 - good
2 - standard human
3 - trained athlete
4 - peak of condition*
5 - nonhuman*
*A balancing requirement for a character who insists on being overly trained, is to require some form of re-occurring trade to keep that level of conditioning. The game equivalent of always going to the gym.
How many points? 
In my core game I use 5 attributes
Health
Awareness
Speed
Resources
Social
I then provide 11 points spread out as the character desires as long as the cap the attribute at 3.

Skills
Skills are “verbs” that define things a character can do. “Drive” “Sneak” “Heal” are all the types of skills a character has. Likewise, spread a fixed amount of points amongst skills.

For my games I have the player describe the background of the character and gain skills accordingly., once the skill list is complete, they get 12 points to spread around the different abilities.