Hydaelyn Role-Players
Can't Decide - Printable Version

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Can't Decide - Yahdo - 04-16-2013

Hello, new to the forums and all and well, I can not decide on what type of character I will want to RP as. As you all now there are an almost infinite number of character types you can create, only limited by your own imagination. Well, it seems my imagination is going on overdrive and I can't decide on what type I want to play. I had ideas on being a villainy mage who ends up making a cult in hopes of gaining as much power as he can. A hulking highlander who has no clue on how big or strong he is when doing menial tasks such as hugging someone to opening the door by tearing the hinges out. Another idea I had was a mage in training looking for a master to study under who tends to fall asleep a lot. And that isn't even scratching the surface of what I have in mind, so many possibilities, so many stories to tell. Well, my question to all of you is, how can I best make a decision?


RE: Can't Decide - Dreke Lamorte - 04-16-2013

First thing, I would recommend deciding your play goals.

Do you intend to play a single character? Multiple?
Are you as interested in being a gamer as much as a RPer?
What do you plan on maxing/maining?
Will you be playing multiple characters on one account, or deleting and replacing as inspired?

If you can pin down your play-style and personal milestones as a player, everything will become a lot easier.

Most people stick with creating a lasting character that they can experience all of the game on.


RE: Can't Decide - Eva - 04-16-2013

From my own personal experiences, many decisions are best made on the fly. If you make up a character with a very loosely-woven set of guidelines, it gives you a lot of wiggle room once that character starts interacting with other characters. For example maybe you've decided that this character will be pompous around others (you can kind of concoct the reasons for this character's degree of arrogance later) but as you interact with others in a RP setting, maybe some other angles of his or her personality will emerge. It's a little unusual/quirky/awesome how a character sort of takes on a personality of their own after they begin talking and interacting with other characters. It's one of those things I think where you may be better off with some very vague guidelines (so that you can change them if you need to!) and then kind of establish more specifics about what the character is like after throwing him or her into the proverbial deep end of the pool.


RE: Can't Decide - Arlon - 04-16-2013

I've had the same issues. I know that I plan to play a sadistic white mage who is as good at killing as he is healing but what race? and what name? It's tough but what I would suggest is to get into the character creator and see what feels right. Also, like Eva mentioned, dont set anything in stone, in case you want to change something later.


RE: Can't Decide - Sigyn Shieldbreaker - 04-16-2013

Once you figure out a race, the name will come. There are some topics with guidelines for a good, race-appropriate name for your character and you can always ask for help as the people here are always friendly. You can also go the route of using non-racially exclusive names and include some reasoning (Raised by Hyur?) in your background.

I, personally, try to look for something that isn't already done and do that. The reason isn't to try and fill a niche, so much as the fact that I've already rp'ed so many different types of characters that usually, looking for what already exists helps me flesh out something relatively original for the area. I went with upstanding Pally Roegadyn. Being a paladin is, from what I could tell, pretty beneficial for a Hellsguard Roe, and there weren't many female Roegadyn when I first joined the RPC. There were however, plenty of my first choice and I'd rather not tread on any toes by accidentally making a character very similar to someone else's.

But everyone feels differently about this and, thus, deals with it differently. If you want to play a race or class that a lot of others will be doing, then maybe you could just make your personality really interesting and edge in to a racial or class-based LS/FC. I found in WoW that sometimes you can make a colorful character that is very adherent to their culture, or one that is very much outside of their own culture and something of a rebel. Personally, I prefer the first since they're a bit more rare in the RP I've seen in some other games. When there are too many Thalassian-speaking Orcs, and war-paint wearing Blood Elves, things become a bit skewed and throwing something more traditional into the mix is, in itself, colorful.

I think I'd like to see more peaceful (not cutesy/silly, no offense to anyone) characters who are Lawful or Neutral Good, and likewise, I'd like to see some straight up Lawful Evils (as opposed to Chaotic Evils, since they're... often prevalent also). But being evil often estranges you from others, because in playing an evil character, you can sometimes, accidentally stray too close to the 'trolling' line, and agitate others. It's a subtle art that I haven't seen done properly in some time, much like a True Good or Lawful Good character who isn't extremely high-browed and belittling of others (the world of the true paladins had become something of a stereotype synonymous with characters who give other characters the impression that they think they're better than them.).

Once you can decide on your alignment and race, you can start thinking about what class best suits their purposes in RP, and move on into fleshing them out and figuring out why they are who they are now.


RE: Can't Decide - Dreke Lamorte - 04-16-2013

I've always been comfortable with morally grey. Tongue

I tend to avoid using the D&D alignment weals as guidelines. They are very, very narrow definitions. Like, neutral does not mean not being good or evil, and the whole point of the system originally was to be a cardinal direction for your character to relate to, and accentuate things that you do, and experience, based around his/her internal intentions. Somewhere along the line, it got turned into a completely different thing.

We end up not even using it in my groups campaigns, anymore, and we end up having much more vibrant characters, and longer campaigns.

Sorry to derail. Just wanted to share.


RE: Can't Decide - AeroCura - 04-16-2013

(04-16-2013, 12:28 PM)Yahdo Wrote: Hello, new to the forums and all and well, I can not decide on what type of character I will want to RP as. As you all now there are an almost infinite number of character types you can create, only limited by your own imagination. Well, it seems my imagination is going on overdrive and I can't decide on what type I want to play. I had ideas on being a villainy mage who ends up making a cult in hopes of gaining as much power as he can. A hulking highlander who has no clue on how big or strong he is when doing menial tasks such as hugging someone to opening the door by tearing the hinges out. Another idea I had was a mage in training looking for a master to study under who tends to fall asleep a lot. And that isn't even scratching the surface of what I have in mind, so many possibilities, so many stories to tell. Well, my question to all of you is, how can I best make a decision?
Haha this sounds like me when I was first thinking of a character! Tongue  I don't really know what to say (there's some really good RPers here tho, so no worries) I just sort of made a list of personality/character types and the one I related to most is my main, the others are gonna b alts ^^


RE: Can't Decide - shockwave2493 - 04-17-2013

I am in the same boat. I have no idea what class to RP let alone play. I guess ill just end up making a class that Ill enjoying playing with PvE and PvP then RP them.


RE: Can't Decide - JaydenMoon - 04-22-2013

My problem is not what to play but not what to play. I usually rp 3 characters.

 lady an uncoothed kind of ditzy, funny, fears love, yet very serious when it comes down to business in games where I may only choose a name she is referred to as Unloved because with her upbringing that is the name she fit to give herself, worked well with how rift lore went being reborn she felt the need to remove her birth name of Jayden Moon and take on a name that summed her up as a entity. But here I get to play her with her real name and that excites me even if Jayden Moon doesn't fit lalafell naming policy my backstory will detail how she got her name. I don't know if she will be same charistics as usual but we will see!

Man named Orthae personality usually the hero type, wanting to save the world and everyone in it even if it requires his life. 

Another lady she is mad at the world, hates society and the downfall it's creating, with her she falls in love easily with the wrong types which reinforces her hate towards the other sex, her emotions are all over the place even when business is involved. 

My problem with where I am at is how naming for each race is predetermined so I either have to create a good backstory in detailing why my chars are named what they are or abide by the naming and loose a part of my character. I was utterly disgusted on the lalafell naming scheme it really made me think of Oompa Loompa. Alas I will most likely do what I please and create a good backstory on the how's and whys!


RE: Can't Decide - Vixeren - 04-22-2013

(04-16-2013, 12:28 PM)Yahdo Wrote: Hello, new to the forums and all and well, I can not decide on what type of character I will want to RP as. As you all now there are an almost infinite number of character types you can create, only limited by your own imagination. Well, it seems my imagination is going on overdrive and I can't decide on what type I want to play. I had ideas on being a villainy mage who ends up making a cult in hopes of gaining as much power as he can. A hulking highlander who has no clue on how big or strong he is when doing menial tasks such as hugging someone to opening the door by tearing the hinges out. Another idea I had was a mage in training looking for a master to study under who tends to fall asleep a lot. And that isn't even scratching the surface of what I have in mind, so many possibilities, so many stories to tell. Well, my question to all of you is, how can I best make a decision?

Ah, man just think about it, draw it up on a white board, think about it. throw ideas left and right.. It will come around to you.