6. An Accomplished Badass
The first and most obvious place to start is having our leading lady be a former or incumbent occupation/area of expertise that is considered, or demands her to be, 'badass'. The list is plentiful enough: police officer (looking at you, misleading GTA V artwork I have seen precisely one woman cop, and she was way out in Sandy Shores), soldier, sailor, air force pilot, paramilitary/mercenary, street racer, biker, or in some way affiliated with some nebulously nefarious group. A military or police background would give her the necessary familiarity and proficiency with a number of weapons and valuable insights into tactics and strategy when/if she turns to criminality. In order to get her on the typical protagonist's path, perhaps she becomes disillusioned with the federal government she is sworn to serve for whatever plot-expedient reason, or maybe there is a certain case that she feels morally bound to pursue, but the careless corrupt police won't go near it so long as their underworld associates are lining their pockets, forcing her to defect from the decadence in order to hunt her antagonists. If she isn't a servant of the state, perhaps she suffers a betrayal or a traumatising experience that compels her to leave that organisation or profession. As long as she is in a reputable position that gives her leeway to kick ass and take names, any background would work. For example: If not for her crippling drug addiction,
The Lost and Damned's Ashley Butler might've been a compelling protagonist; whenever I met her during the campaign, I felt pangs of pity and compassion, and an innate feeling that she could've been so much more than what she was just another damsel for Johnny to save and be harassed by. Seeing her fall even further as she mourned Johnny was tragic, made worse in that the player is free to casually murder her in that moment like it was just another lurid joke. Starting with a person who inspires fear and reverence in equal parts, we'll give her...