Shepard is an open book. Outside of being a space soldier and the last name, you are Shepard as yiu see fit.
Gerald is a pre-made character. It was not my character. I got bored because if that anf the fact thst Twitcher series was awful.
The good news us bg3 let's you choose which way you wanna go though all signs point to the vast majority of players making theur own character. Not surprising, either. Character creation is one of the best parts if rpgs.