How to create an interesting character?

[Vibius]

Hello all.

It would be nice if everyone (particularly those who have been playing the same character/s for a LONG time) did share his advice in how to create an interesting character, and also it would be nice that everyone did not say the name of their characters even if we know who are they

In my opinion an interesting character is one that has reasons to adventure AND to interact with other characters, perhaps the later more important than the first since that will make sure that you have plenty of interaction with others and minimizes your "idle" time.

Also is important to choose a faith and a class that suits your style of play and you enjoy it, no matter if other faiths/classes offer cool rewards/powers, in the end you will not have as fun as if you were playing a class/faith that is really of your like.

These are just a few brief advices, but I am sure that among all the players we could make a great discussion on how to create interesting characters.

[Lerytha]

In the long process of "creating" an interesting character I tend to go as follows:

1. A basic personality

An idea, or a sentence, uttered by that character. This leads me to create a personality. So, "arrogant elf wizard" or "bookish human wizard" or "uncouth manly woman-warrior" or "sly, posh, overweight priest", etc. In a sense, I begin with a facsimile, a basic sketch. A phrase, if that.

2. Create backstory/name

It doesn't matter about the name being first. Sometimes a name is in my head, sometimes I choose it after I've done backstory. Anyway, after the basic personality, I create a vague backstory, so "daughter of Amnian merchants leaves for Waterdeep in protest at the attitudes of the ruling mercantile families", or "apprentice wizard on Evermeet leaves for the mainland, succumbing to wanderlust". The vague backstory in a sense, is the REASON for the character to be there at all. At this point, I then go into a little bit of detail, so, early life, mid-life, current, etc. An important note at this point, is that I always leave in gaps. I like my characters to grow organically. Sometimes I think "ah, that's what happened to my character at that age", and write it down and mention it during RP. By leaving space for characters to grow backwards (their backstory to be added to) you can keep it interesting.

3. Enhance personality, add race/class quirks

This is where I then deepen the personality beyond the original phrase. So I delve into how they might react to a certain race, etc. Then I read about the race and class the character is, and if anything strikes me as odd about my character in relation to that (e.g, moon elf arrogant wizard, xenophobic... hmm... doesn't really go with the stereotypical view of moon elves, so why is the character so xenophobic at this point? Right, I need to have that worked out before I start roleplaying), I open up their backstory file and work out why they are different. Maybe a wizard is less bookish than most wizards... in which case, there has to be backstory for it. Maybe an elf actually doesn't hate the drow and orcs... in which case, there has to be backstory for it. In a sense, you don't need backstory to explain why a race would act in the normal way it is described. That's just assumed cultural upbringing.

4. Create character

(fairly easy)

5. Like any battle plan, most characters do not survive the first encounter with the enemy

i.e, an amazing concept, with a fully realised backstory and wonderful quirks and weaknesses, might wander into the Market Square, and you the player might suddenly lose interest. In which case, you log off, and try something else until something makes you play that character again.

6. If they survive...

...then you just keep playing, and playing, any playing. And in order to keep playing, with my two main characters, I've set myself rules:

- Don't attempt to plan everything out in advance.
- Don't stick to a plan if ICly your mind should have been changed, just because OOCly you fancy it. OOCly, there's many things I've fancied doing, but ICly it doesn't make sense because sometimes of just one conversation with one person. You wouldn't BELIEVE how many plans and schemes I've come up with only to mutter because I made the mistake of talking to someone who said, "No, because..." and my character had to agree. The player didn't, but stupid character did.
- Don't be afraid to weaken your character for fun RP
- Don't be afraid to do stupid things if its IC
- Don't be afraid to let your character develop past the original concept. I know within two months of playing my "arrogant moon elf wizard" character, I had to change her slightly, then slightly some more. I made them gradual changes, but the character now (despite having a core, unalterable arrogance) is by many, many, many hundreds of degrees, removed from the character she was when I logged on as level 1.

Anyway, those are my points and "rules". They don't work for everyone. In fact, they tend to be so completely thought out (the characters) that I either love them or hate them. And as of yet, despite putting time and effort into creating many characters, I only regularly play two. Except for my gay Sunite when I've just watched a rom-com, but that's just me feeling all girly sometimes.

~Ol

[Harroghty]

You have some great points here and so I will try to be as succinct as possible and recommend only two things:
-Make a character you have something in common with. Harroghty is not too far off from my real life persona (but he avoids the profanity and crude jokes) and I find that if you have some common bond to a character then it will be more natural to play and you will assume his or her role more easily and this brings me to point two...

-Have fun. If an acting challenge is fun for you then go for it, but if you find yourself stressed out sometimes by playing a character maybe you should evaluate why that it is and adjust (you can tinker with them until you hit your stride). Ultimately, this game is an escape (or at least an enthusiasm) for its players and so if it becomes too stressful you will look to do something else to unwind...

...and if you do these two things then I believe that you will be interested in the role that you've created and, most of the time, your enthusiasm will catch and people will enjoy playing with that character (even the dastardly ones!) for the depth you add to their game. It becomes a cyclic thing, you know, back and forth.

Cheers, and have fun.

[Nedylene]

When it comes to me and characters I have my own little way of developing them. My steps are as follows:

1) Find a name. And not just ANY name.. It has to be one that catches me and seems interesting and one I can "envision" saying. I'm a girl, names are important.

2) Decide a class I want to play.. Muse to myself what type of race would fit this class qualification. Do I want a spell caster, a priest, a rogue?

3) Create character and I actually tend to use the creation process to develop an image of the character. Figure out the height weight, hair color, eye color, details.... I start to mesh with an actual image and once I can see the 3D image that connects with the name it is all go!

4) Next, here is where it takes a bit of play. I make a broad back story.. Usually family, place or origin, reason for not being a stay at home future bride. Then... I start to play her. I let her develop in my mind with personality and with each thing that happens I think how THIS girl would react and roll with it. Many of my friends usually help me in this development stage and sure a few people here could pinpoint exactly where I got the FEEL for the character.

5) This is the detail work. Once the I have the feel for the character, the distinct personality, mannerism and quirks I delve in deeper into her backstory. Start to put names, stories and lingo to each "player" in her past. Find a small story for her "important" parts at life like... childhood, puberty, discovery of drive, finding of faith (if it's a priest) etc etc.

From there is really just flies. All of my characters that I have fallen in love with have had some "piece" of me in them. Either my bitchiness dark side screw the world interior that I never actually show in real life ... Most of the time.... Or my love for history, pride at heritages, love for ethnic things... Even my love for magic and mystery. Every one of my characters has a "piece of me" in them. I can relate to them, laugh at them, cry with them (not literally, well alright I AM a girl and when it's PMS time maybe /sometimes/ it happens).

Another key for me to fall in love with a character is that they develop IN GAME. If anyone remembers a young Arcane mage they will remember a few uhm... brash decisions and moves. Perhaps even the fateful RP that actually tamed her. It is that development that grabs me hook line and sinker. Every single one of my "favorite" Characters has a rich history both before their creation and after their creation. They were shaped by other players and events in this game and it is that history, that something special that makes me fall in love with them over and over again.

It is a key though.. Find a way to develop your own character in a way that makes sense in your mind. Make a framework for them but do not fill in every little gap detail and "life plan" The key of a roleplay game is to take that roleplay and let it develop your characters.

[Mele]

Make characters to play and have fun with. Don't set huge goals(FM, head of org etc), don't make for specific reasons (IE: Empty-ish faiths it's cool if you want to help them but it's more important to make a character YOU are in to) just make a character you think sounds cool and go with it.

[Dapher]

Everyone has had GREAT ideas, and pointers that are valid. One thing I notice a lot is people generally have either a majority of good character, or evil characters. I...well I have two low level evils that never get played and three high level good characters that get A LOT of RP time. It is important to remember what your anignment is especially when creating your character. Scars, and a history to him/her will give more aspects to your RP. I agree with Harroghty about playing characters that you have something in common with...but at the sametime, I like to experiment, I like something new a challenge. If you have had any RP time with Dapher, and then you RP with Jarris. They are completly diffrent characters, Dapher and Telnier resemble me most of the time, I created Jarris for a challenge. Mele said create a character that you want to play, and do it for the fun of the game, and the RP. I totally agree with that 100%

[Raona]

Pardon if this is overly pithy...but I would encourage folks to have (or at least focus on) fewer PCs. I just don't see how one can develop and remember rich storylines, backgrounds, and personas for 30-odd PCs. Having just one or two PC's doesn't guarantee they will be interesting...but I think attempting to play 30 really works against your chances of having any of them really hold your (or anyone's) attention enough that you work them a little harder, rather than just dropping them when they get dull.

[Selveem]

In many ways, I would agree with Raona, but I feel this is also heavily influenced by the players themselves.

I would say that I am not a GREAT roleplayer, but I have had some very, very great roleplays and I feel for the most part given my tenure that I have done the characters I play justice overall.

There are many different facets to ourselves that allow us to key in on our characters and hone their stories. I would like to see less people concentrating on so many characters, too, in some cases.

Of all my characters, I would say only about five of them have REALLY rich characters. By this, I mean that they have a good background story, have had a solid involvement with other characters and interacted with some in a very deep way that has helped shape both my character and their characters, have individual characteristics (less physical than personality traits - some of which define their characters more than others), etc.

As Dapher suggested, scars are a good way to capture great roleplays and deepen/enrich their story. This is one of the reasons why I love RPing as a Tempurian and (even on other characters) RPing with Orcs.

I think a very important way to conjure an interesting character is to spend time writing their description. Little things really help give some depth to your character and their presentation to the fantasy world.

On an off note, I would like to see a thread on "How to maintain an interesting character" as I have seen that often people seem to have challanges there also.

[Mele]

Having an account with many characters gives you a chance to play different things and find what fits you most, what will be most interesting to you.

An interesting character isn't someone everyone ELSE likes or remembers or whatever. An interesting character is one you enjoy playing, who has enjoyable RP. Not someone who is famous and powerful and knows everyone and everything.

My account is full of characters. Over 40. I get ideas and backgrounds and excited and I create. If I get into them, I play them. The rp they have is mine. Even if someone thinks it's insignificant because it's one of many characters I have. If I don't play them they sit there for a while until I decide that as much as I was excited to create them, I wasn't to play them and I delete them.

My least known, lesser played characters are the ones I enjoy most. While I have a lot of roleplay with a good five or so well known, the five plus I have less known who do their thing with their friends are the ones I enjoy most.

Not everyone makes a character they love on their first hit, if you have to make 100 and tinker around with them until you find yours, more power to you.

[Horace]

My system, it won't work for everyone, but it works for me.

1) Decide on class.

2) General personality, his social traits for better or worse.

3) Pick a culture or region I believe compliments the class and/or general personality. Ed Greenwood and Jeff Grubb did all but call Faerun - Gaea...and Ed's even said in his personal version of Forgotten Realms there are portals to earth (which I assume has no magic). Anyway they started the trend and every accessory past that practically assigns a real world culture to the region they're creating, though they certainly are not 100% analogous the influences are undeniable even if Mr. Greenwood does so . Very generally these are what is mostly agreed upon - Chessenta/Greece, Amn/Spain, Calimshan/Arabia, Chult/African wetlands, Cormyr/France, Dalelands/Switzerland, Damara/Germany, Durpur/India, Moonshae/Celts, Mulhorand/Egypt, Unther/Mesopotamia, Rasheman/Russia, General Northwest/Scandinavia, Sembia/Italy, Shou Expatriate/China...it goes on for a while.

To me this is important. If I was playing a game set on Earth I'd obviously choose very early on what country my PC is from. I don't try to use it as a gimmick, like a poorly written bond villain, but I do try to make it a significant influence in my PC. For example, if I wanted to make a bookworm I certainly wouldn't make him a Tuigan (mongol)...I'd very much consider making him a Tuigan if I wanted a barbarian horseman. Obviously you all are able to work with the stereotypes for more examples.

4) Virtues or Vices, I list Chastity/Lust, Abstinence/Gluttony, Liberality/Greed, Diligence/Sloth, Patience/Wrath, Kindness/Envy, Humility/Pride. I decide which of these are factors in my character's nature, what have more weight than others. And I make sure all my PC's have at least one vice that takes precedence over the virtue, so they at the very least have an internal obstacle to work against to make him more human.

5) Personal motivations - short term aspirations (ones that can be fulfilled in game), long term aspirations (ones that can not be fulfilled in game without you marrying an Immortal). The long term aspiration is important, in my eyes, to keep the character relevant to yourself so his story doesn't just end.

6) Name - I'm in Nedylene's school of thought. Without a name I feel embraces the character, I'll hate him. I can't play one of my own creations with a name I don't feel suits him, which is troublesome for me because I also like my names to be real names. There are associations we make with names that can compliment the personality you already have set in place. Just looking at the who list right now Danten, two sharp syllables that sound slavic to me, that name enhances my image of how he already portrays his PC. I feel like if my name doesn't have that same affect on other player's, I've failed with that character and I'll start over.

7) This one is for FK only, where the rest are generic for all game. Faith - using all the information I have fleshed out before, I think about which faiths I'd enjoy my PC being in. Basing it off of player's I enjoy playing with, character's I'm impressed with, and how well my PC would fit. I don't go into game with my mind set on one, since IC things can and will happen to influence either way, but I'm aware of my list.

8 ) How can I play up the stereotype without him being a tired rehash? I love stereotypes in gaming. I love the giant barbarian man, or the old wizened wizard, and I feel these stereotypes exist for a reason. A personal goal of mine is to make a PC that fills the stereotypes but is still a character that people will remember, for more than just being a dual wielding ranger elf. I personally believe that making a stereotype interesting to others, is more difficult and more rewarding than making a character that stands out because of the lack of stereotype. Did I mention I hate Drizzt? He's a good example of a character who is interesting only because of not being a stereotype.

9) Last but not least, the most important part of any character you will make for any multi-player roleplay intensive game, "What does your character bring to the game", how does your character's existence in the game make the game more enjoyable for the player's you're participating with? If I can't immediately answer that, I know I made the character incorrectly for this medium and genre, and I'll start over or adjust.

[Jaenoic]

I have to echo what's been said again and again... You have to love the name. A few times I've wanted to make a character but didn't, because I just couldn't get the right name. I feel I struck gold with Jaenoic. It's just perfect for her, it falls in line with her accent and I created a whole naming system for her family. I've really come to fall in love with that name.

Another aspect which I have found to be crucial in keeping a character interesting is some sort of intrigue/flaw/contradiction. Take Jaenoic for example, when I first made her I knew I wanted her to be an Ilmateri, that kind and caring sort of soul. But I also made her a fighter. Stereotypically Ilmateri are priests, healers who take away pain, rather than more martial classes which traditionally "inflict" pain. That conflict of class gave a real struggle to her character, something which still to this day helps shape her aspirations and actions. I've tried making other characters that don't quite "break the mold", like the traditionally stern and unemotional Helmite. I ended up enjoying him, but went back to Jaenoic before long because he just didn't have any room to develop. I had already made him "perfect" so to speak!

To me, I think that glaring flaw, that inherent paradox, is what will make a character great. A brash squire who needs to be properly molded in training rather than the already follows all the virtues type of squire, a servant of Shar with a soft spot for puppies and the color yellow, a tiefling that resents their own heritage and struggles with a self-loathing while also giving in to their natural urges to commit evil... For me, these are the things that keep me coming back to my characters. Knowing there's always room for them to grow and develop, and work on that flaw(while developing others at the same time!).

[Saranya]

I find that Raona has nearly spoken my mind, but on the chance her short post was lost among the long ones...

The best way to create an interesting character is stop creating characters. Make a PC ride through the dull/frustrating/tedious to find new RPs and have a chance to develop fully.

It is always a shock to return from a six month deployment and find 85% of the active characters have changed. A good PC, like any person, needs time and experience to flourish. The character (and the mud) will be better for it.

[Coralie]

To me, making an interesting character is pretty much as stated above..
1) I like the idea of choosing a class first. (Which here, I have to agree with Mele, about it not really mattering how many characters you have. It is good to get a feel for what you like the best. I personally have more than just a few with great storylines and ic involvement. Sometimes I am just not in the mood to play my priest or bard, so I like to play my fighter, and if I’m in some kind of supernatural, magic mood, I will hop on my wizard, same as if I just got done watching the discovery channel or animal planet, I would probably want to get on my druid. Nothing wrong with that. *To help with keeping characters lives separate, if you have trouble – I personally like to keep a page on word doc. on each main character I have. Their friends, enemies, what they were doing last, ect. I think that helps a lot.)

2) Then to decide if I want them to be a goodie or a evil (I have a few of both, just because when I get in a “mood,” I feel I am able to rp on certain alignments better than others. If I had a bad day or maybe just feeling a little out of wack that day, you know I will be on my evil. If I had the most wonderful, super, fantastic day in the world, I would most likely be on my good align characters.)

3) A description & Adj (This pretty much just pops in my head when I get an idea. From watching a movie, reading a book, or just put together through my own mind. I ooh, that sounds nice, and I go with it.)

4) And then add thee name to fit them (Just like many others posted above, it has to be the perfect one! )

5) A short background story (Not too long, because you still want room for the character to be able to develop. And not to short, so if your are rping and someone asks you a question, you already have somewhat of a feel for your character and are not like uhh...)

6) The odds and ends. What they like. What they do not like. Their silly/ serious quirks. (What deities do they like? Which ones they don’t? Do they bite their nails? Do their swirl their drink before taking a sip? Do they hate wrinkles in their clothes? Are they a carnivore? Do they have an accent? Are the confident? Are they shy? Are they clean freaks? Are they always messy?)

You just really have to find something –you- like. If you think it’s a good idea then try it out! I’m not saying to drop the character the first time you are aggravated, as this is sometimes where good rp comes in! However, it actually took me a good couple years or so to decide my favorite class and I certainly do not see anything wrong with that. Just make sure you are happy rping it, give them some devotion, time, and effort, and surely a rich character will be born.

[Mele]

Don't "stop creating characters" until you find the one that fits you. Not everyone here is a cookie cutter. Some people will take a few shots to find one they fall into and love.

Making several alts to attempt to become faith manager of the faiths with non / less active faith managers = not cool.

Making several alts to avoid harsh roleplays = not cool.

Making several alts to try to get into a faith instead of rping the first one who wanted said faith = not cool.

Making several alts to find one you feel most in tune with, most content playing = cool.

Just because YOU(you understood, not you you) find your roleplay niche in your first shot doesn't mean everyone does. I wish we wouldn't discourage people from playing how they want. We come here to play and try different things no one should be restrcited to number of alts, types of alts, etc.

If you have a vast enough playtime for them and enjoy it, it's not hurting anyone. It's not even hurting anyone if you don't have the time. It's how you want to spend your time here, not how everyone else wants you to.

[Glim]

I would agree with Mele here. I have many many alts. Indeed, whenever I get the idea for a character I pretty much create it. Eventually I might get bored with that character, that is ok. Because the ones I don't get bored with are the ones that have become my mains.

Also, I would tell people, while it is helpful, it isn't necessary to create long background and history for your characters before you even make them. That can come later. The biggest thing, I think, is that you can relate to said character, even if it is in the hidden parts of your mind. Know your character well, learn to think like them, become them for that short while you are logged on. That is the beauty of roleplaying, imo, and it is what truly creates a lasting and unique character.

[Lysha]

One thing that I like to do to help make an interesting character is think of what I want to make ahead of time and find a name that suits.

Second, I like to give them quirks. A favorite food, a fear, a nervous habit, ect..

Let's take Faria for example...she loves cherries, she's scared of the dark, she's always messing with her hair, and she speaks with endearments like hon, dear, sugar, ect.

Things like this give the character more of a personality, I feel.

Oh, and a background story. Where they lived, what brought them to where they are, family, and such.

Hope this helps...