Creating a character consists of several steps. First the player selects an Origin, an Archetype and a primary and secondary power set. Next the actual avatar with its costume is created. Lastly, the player chooses a name and can optionally write a background story to add some flavor to the character as well as creating an individual battle cry.
There are five Origins a player can choose for his/her character that dictate what type of enhancements the character may use, affect a single short-ranged power and can influence the various hero groups that the character goes up against; these origins are Natural, Magic, Science, Mutation, and Technology.
There are five basic Archetypes (or classes) in City of Villains that affect a character's Power choices throughout the game. Brutes are primarily melee fighters with some defensive powers who do more damage the longer they stay in combat. Corruptors are primarily long-ranged fighters who deal moderate damage and secondary powers that either weaken their foes or strengthen their allies. Dominator primary powersets focus on preventing foes from moving and attacking while their secondary set consists of moderate offensive powers. Masterminds are able to summon various Henchmen to do their bidding and can bolster their Henchmen with powers from their secondary set. Stalkers are melee specialists who rely on the power "Hide" to increase their damage potential.
A sixth "Epic" character Archetype was added in Issue 12: Soldiers Of Arachnos. This Archetype allows players to play as stronger versions of Arachnos minions encountered throughout the game, discover many secrets about the inner workings of Arachnos and its secret societies and achieve high ranks. They are also unique amongst CoH/CoV characters to date in having branching career trees. At level 24, Blood Widows can choose between the Fortunata (ranged psychic attack) and Night Widow (melee) paths, while Wolf Spiders can pick the Crab Spider (brute) or Bane Spider (stalker) paths. These are unlocked by reaching level 50 on a Villain character, similar to the method of unlocking the Kheldian Archetypes in CoH.