(01-08-2016, 11:20 AM)Askier Wrote: The following is my opinion and is neither right nor wrong, just an opinion.I think this and that are different things. Since you primarily play villains, a lot of people likely expect your characters to die. It might be planned, but either way people aren't really going to be surprised by it. In a sense, it is actually a much lighter decision than it is for other PCs. I know a lot of folks who intend to kill their villains from the start. This isn't to say you can't have strong character relationships with a villain, only that fiction's conventions suggest a fate that leaves RPers less blindsided by death in many cases.
First, I find the fact that Nat received such dramatic backlash for her choice to kill her character to be really surprising. I've always respected Nat for having the balls to ACTUALLY kill her main character and go through with it all the way. Killing off a character isn't an easy thing at all to begin with and I always felt Nat's death was one of the most memorable moments in my rp career. Especially since I was there when Nat did it.Â
Second, if someone decides to axe their character off, it's their right to do so. Will it affect other characters? Yoouuuu beeet ya. But is death in real life any different? Do we get to PICK when the people we love go? Do we get a nice, drawn out -hey I'll be dying soon- talk from those about to go? No. Death is something that can happen in a flash with no ceremony or warning and to say that people should be warned OOC is a nice idea but, in my opinion, hardly a necessary one. Maybe that makes me an ass, but doesn't the idea that we could lose a beloved character at any moment make the rp spent with them even better?
People talk about how death is so common in Eorzea, so doesn't a player character dying actually drive that reality home? What good is saying "Eorzea is dangerous" if no one ever dies?
People kill off characters for all sorts of reasons. Plot purposes, tired of playing them, etc. Hell I've axed off like five different characters for various reasons. I think its a very viable tool and one players should use if/when they desire to do so and I always respect a player when they do it cause it takes guts. If you haven't killed off a character, trust me when I say it really is something not done lightly.
So in answer to the OP, yeah I'm open to killing my characters. lol
The big thing in your post that stuck out to me was the idea that because death is sudden in real life, it can, or perhaps even should be, in rp as well. As someone who's a fan of Kill 'em All Tomino's work, I'm familiar with the appeal to this. The director loves sudden death designed to shock the viewer and create a dangerous atmosphere. However much a narrative resembles real life, though, everything within it is designed with intent. However much characters resemble people, they are designed constructs. Nothing in a story is purposeless or happens on its own; even if the reason is simple like "I don't want to make another Gundam series" in Tomino's case, there is meaning behind everything that occurs. Fiction isn't real life, no matter how much it tries to be. When characters die, it serves a purpose, and the writer's intent is inextricably tied to that purpose. It's why I dislike terms like "forced" or "contrived" as in my view all fiction is a matter of hiding that artifice, but it's always there. The design behind the narrative, to me at least, renders attempts to impose the meaningless chaos of real life upon fiction simply stylistic affectation. The problem with this in the context of RP is that the character no longer only serves its creator's purpose.
What then does that say when a player you're working with suddenly kills off their PC? RP is group writing. If done with malice, this is essentially similar to the kid in creative writing who abruptly shifts a love story into a military drama during that exercise where you pass a story around the room and everyone adds something. But most people really just feel their character's story is done, or are tired of their character, and shouldn't be forced to keep playing them, so clearly it's not malicious. I think the key here is motivation and communication. When you RP, your character is your own but their story is shared, and it is courteous to work with others regarding that rather than against them, or you might as well be writing a fic. But it shouldn't be an unreasonable sense of personal attachment that keeps someone else's character in the story either. Tomino's work kills off character often out of a deliberate malice towards his viewers. Imagine the frustration the people co-writing his work would feel (if he ever allowed that to happen) when their own plans are derailed by his personal vision.
ã€Œè’¼æ°—ç ²ã€ã‚’使ã‚ã–ã‚‹ã‚’å¾—ãªã„!
AV by Kura-Ou
Wiki (Last updated 01/16)
My Balmung profile.
AV by Kura-Ou
Wiki (Last updated 01/16)
My Balmung profile.
