A level 1 player character is assumed to have taken on at least 1 somewhat notable quest or mission. That’s why they are level 1 and not a pissant peasant with virtually no stats. You might not be known world wide, and you wouldn’t have saved the world or anything grandiose as that; but maybe your fighter was a city guard and known to have stomped out some bandit camps in the region or helped hold back the advance of a goblin horde.
So, if you are a first level character who is new in town that should be a complete stranger, how do you play that?
A level 1 player character is assumed to have taken on at least 1 somewhat notable quest or mission. That’s why they are level 1 and not a pissant peasant with virtually no stats. You might not be known world wide, and you wouldn’t have saved the world or anything grandiose as that; but maybe your fighter was a city guard and known to have stomped out some bandit camps in the region or helped hold back the advance of a goblin horde.
New in town doesn’t mean unheard of. You could build up a reputation on the way to town that is being passed around by other travelers.
And some if the rumors could be things that happened the night before.