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RavieRaptor · **11-07-2016, 01:37 PM**

So, I don't get much rp, so I've been trying to create a character people like and want to interract with. I just want a list of stuff and I can create one based on that. Sorry for posting so many threads.

Gegenji · **11-07-2016, 01:53 PM**

I don't think there's a catch-all answer to that. Different people like different things - and that includes character types and styles of RP. Some will want slice-of-life stuff, some will want gritty intrigue plots... and different types of characters fit those molds better than others. Asking for a list is likely going to give you a lot of conflicting aspects that might not mesh well at all.

And even if there was a list of "perfect traits" to give someone to make them likeable and attract RP, that doesn't mean that you'll have fun playing that sort of character. That's why it's most important to play something you yourself feel comfortable playing and have fun with. Balmung has a lot of roleplayers. Somewhere out there is going to be a group that is interested in that same type of RP you are. It's just a matter of finding them.

And even then, it's not a guarantee you're going to be flooded with RP once you find them. Unless you're actively putting yourself out there and getting that RP, you're going to spend a lot of time sitting idle. That's not saying you need to be hopping from one great, earth-shattering event to the next or anything like that, of course. It's just that downtime is normal, and it will only last for as long as you sit on your laurels before hunting down the next story arc you want to tell with your character.

Valence · **11-07-2016, 01:58 PM**

Most importantly, what do you like to play?

I'm pretty sure while one can certainly find out a few major tendencies (like going for the romance heavy usual tropes), that you will also find all kinds of tastes and that playing something you dislike will probably end up with you disatisfied.

I also do believe that a well written character will always attract quality, even if not necessarily quantity... Do you really need that many people? Find the good ones. It's a quest on its own but it's worth the trouble.

Aegir · **11-07-2016, 02:06 PM**

Some character types definitely don't work out as good as others. Super anti-social characters or quiet characters can be frustrating or overlooked. I don't want to spend every interaction chasing a character around the map because the only response I get from them is: "I'm broody, chase meeee."Â

Although you can counteract almost any type of character if you're a fun person OOC or if you find a really good way to write it. My roommate plays a quiet character, but he fills his one word responses with a lot of personal observations and non-verbal descriptions.

Thunderbolt300 · **11-07-2016, 02:14 PM**

As with writing any particular story, you have to know your audience when you write a character. Ultimately, you're probably shooting for a particular niche of RP, and if you focus on that, you should be pretty well set. The best weapon a character has in their arsenal is personality though- put a lot of effort into coming up with something that's provoking and unique, and you'll go pretty far pretty fast! In the end though, it's all about having fun, so make sure you really enjoy what you're going for!Â

Using Making Connections (both posting and responding) can offer you some good avenues, as well as joining Linkshells that fit with the character type you're going for.

Regardless, I wish you the best of luck! You can do it!

Enla · **11-07-2016, 02:17 PM**

(11-07-2016, 02:06 PM)Aegir Wrote: Some character types definitely don't work out as good as others. Super anti-social characters or quiet characters can be frustrating or overlooked. I don't want to spend every interaction chasing a character around the map because the only response I get from them is: "I'm broody, chase meeee."Â

Although you can counteract almost any type of character if you're a fun person OOC or if you find a really good way to write it. My roommate plays a quiet character, but he fills his one word responses with a lot of personal observations and non-verbal descriptions.

I'd also echo that those types of personalities are usually not as fun to play personally, though your mileage may vary. Trying to get my anti-social characters to actually interact was like pulling teeth as a writer and it left me with a rather rancid taste in my mouth. It's why I tend to avoid the archetype these days when it comes to my personal characters. Though if I ever have a character of that ilk I'll do as Aegir's roomate does and fill the bulk of their emotes with flavor text and bodily movements instead. Or even give them a specific tick that will allow me to force an interaction if all else fails.

For me I'm a sucker for well written, flawed characters. Doesn't matter what kind of character they are beyond their personality as if that particular piece is lacking I find the rest just can't make up for it.

At the end of the day however I highly -highly- recommend playing an archetype -YOU- enjoy. We can spout or preferences until our faces are blue. Yet at the end of the day if you don't stick to what you'll enjoy you're just going to end up with a Frankenstein's monster of a character that you'll likely resent. Take a moment to sit down and write what -you- want out of an RP character and then go from there. Not just that you want them to be liked, but what kind of character you would have fun writing. As ultimately roleplaying is supposed to be a fun activity.

Wink

Caspar · **11-07-2016, 02:17 PM**

I *could* give you a list of all the combined traits of characters I like, disparate as they are. But in truth I don't think that is what you're asking, to be blunt, and I also don't think a list will help you to make a *perfect* character.

1. For every RPer whose concept I like, there is someone who does the same thing in a way that doesn't stick out to me as much. For every character concept there are in all likelihood ten others (Or twenty if you're me lol.) that are the same. Why do you think only a few of them get noticed? Their traits are similar enough that they don't stand out on their own to a lot of people, so why? The answer is approach. A player puts themselves out there and does what they can to earnestly convey their love for their concept and familiarity with its narrative. This is something an artificial concept drawn up by committee is less likely to do because it is a compromise, though honestly that would be an interesting experiment.

2. Me, you, anyone else. If we just put a list of all the elements we enjoy, we'll probably find inconsistencies that don't mesh with our other tastes. Drawing upon that may simply create a chaotic mess of a character that is based around what ten or so others like rather than what you in particular want to play. Does that sound fun to you? RP is about enjoying writing and working with others; why adopt practices that are unpleasant just to be popular?

3. What I mean by "I don't think that's what you're asking" is that, at the risk of being presumptuous, I think you're really just wanting others to play with you. This is a natural desire. It feels awful thinking others aren't interested in your RP because it is easy to get stuck in a mental trap where you think it reflects on your writing and by extension yourself. If you find yourself doing this, consider stepping back and looking at the situation from another point of view. Maybe it's your approach, not your concept. Perhaps you don't put your character put there enough or lack visibility because you're shy or you don't know how to initiate and that could be something to work on. Maybe you seem desperate and that makes others feel uncomfortable. Maybe you're just in the wrong time zone or can't find the people who like the same RP themes as you. None of this makes you wrong or inherently less capable as an RPer. In all cases my answer is the same: they're there. You've just not found each other yet.

Kilieit · **11-07-2016, 02:21 PM**

Characters that produce a good back-and-forth between many different types of other character are usually the easiest to gain connections on.

I don't think there's a cut-out or a check-list for what these characters look like, though (agreeing with what those above are saying). Except that: they usually have a basic amount of EITHER interest OR need for socialising with others, if not necessarily the social skills. Remember the point of RP is to interact with others' characters, so build yours with that in mind.

If you're wanting to reverse-engineer this, then think about something like - what type of roleplay events do you find fun to attend? (Slice of life, combat, etc?) Or what type do you think look like they could be fun? Make a character that'd show up to that type of event, while still remaining flexible.

Like - if you wanna go to bar events - don't necessarily make a bartender who will only show up to bars, because then if something else shows up that looks fun you're limited away from that and you're back to feeling bad again - make a character who likes a drink after work. If you wanna go to combat events, make a mercenary who takes lots of different contracts from different employers; don't limit yourself to one region or one type of job.

As for the details, such as... What work are they drinking after? What different employers, and why? How did they get to be where they are today in life? Well, that's flavour that's entirely down to you, and I think will make very little difference on the amount of RP you can find. So basically: do whatever you think is fun, or compelling.

The main thing that's going to impact your amount of RP is how much you put yourself out there. You gotta turn up to events, add people to your friends list that you had fun roleplaying with, message them back to ask if they wanna roleplay again, send tells in-game to people who've posted in the Making Connections forum, join a linkshell or eight, and keep showing up to sessions. Once you've got that down, everything else falls into place; plots emerge naturally between characters, further meetings organise themselves. But first, you gotta show up.

tl;dr:
1) Broad character concepts are good; don't limit yourself.
2) You can make basically anything work as long as you're following point 3, which is
3) Show up. Show up. Show up. Keep showing up.

Thunderbolt300 · **11-07-2016, 02:29 PM**

(11-07-2016, 02:21 PM)Kilieit Wrote: Characters that produce a good back-and-forth between many different types of other character are usually the easiest to gain connections on.

Felt like this needed a salute by itself.

Having a proactive character is so much better than having a reactive one, but it also means you need to have kindling and fuel for the character to be able to keep them going. It can take a bit more effort and being a bit inventive with coming up with new hooks to use to interact, but it's totally worth the payout.

Seriphyn · **11-07-2016, 03:31 PM**

People will roleplay with anyone as long as you're fun, interesting, or any such compelling combination.

Lydia Lightfoot · **11-07-2016, 03:41 PM**

Personally, I tend to favor "everyday" type characters - the ones who aren't a super special snowflake, the ones who don't have some huge array of capabilities. Just the sort who are ordinary people. They probably have some things they're pretty good at doing, some definite strengths, but they also have weaknesses and flaws that make them feel real. They probably haven't slain dragons and primals, they probably haven't personally saved Ul'dah from some beast tribe invasion, and they probably aren't a legendary prodigy in their field of expertise.

On the other hand, I generally avoid characters who are essentially trying to "be the Warrior of Light", or whose players write with the philosophy that their personal PVE activities (including quests completed, dungeons finished, main story progress, equipment items, and even sometimes as far as claims like their level or their stats) strongly affect their characters' roleplay (and, they often argue, so do yours - so if your character doesn't have the best item level in the game and theirs does, they'll assume this means their character is ICly better than yours). But, that doesn't necessarily mean they're wrong, it just means they roleplay with a different philosophy than I do, and those philosophies are generally incompatible.

RavieRaptor · **11-07-2016, 03:44 PM**

Wow, I didn't expect all these messages so soon. Thank you all for your input. I think it's just me being paranoid and that I roleplayed a shy healer for the longest time. Now I tend to alt-hop cause I can't find that niche character I want. I enjoy playing Miqo'te but there's so many that erp people assume they're erpers right off the bat. The most popularity I got was when I played my female elezen at the Grindstone. Got a whole bunch of people's attention.

Val · **11-07-2016, 03:47 PM**

(11-07-2016, 03:44 PM)RavieRaptor Wrote: Wow, I didn't expect all these messages so soon. Thank you all for your input. I think it's just me being paranoid and that I roleplayed a shy healer for the longest time. Now I tend to alt-hop cause I can't find that niche character I want. I enjoy playing Miqo'te but there's so many that erp people assume they're erpers right off the bat. The most popularity I got was when I played my female elezen at the Grindstone. Got a whole bunch of people's attention.

You're going to get the "It's a miqo'te so they must ERP" stigma, but just play what you enjoy. Prove them wrong by diversifying yourself from all the horrid Miqo'te RPers and show them that you're better than that. Don't let it stop you from doing something you want! Some people may still inevitably write it off, but generally you can tell within the first few posts if someone is blatantly seeking ERP or if they're genuinely interested in RPing with you.

ZacharyVolfire · **11-07-2016, 04:04 PM**

Merchants are great because if it exist someone might need to buy it. Depending on what you deal in will give you better surplus of characters ot interact.

Kismet · **11-07-2016, 07:26 PM**

I personally find it concerning when someone wants to cater to someone else's interests over their own. That mindset, whether it's intentional or not, doesn't exactly send the greatest impression.

If you RP what you enjoy and what makes you passionate, then I will receive the best example of what your RP ability is. If you're just trying to RP what somebody else likes... then your RP won't be genuine. All interaction with you will probably feel stale and the concept will fall flat. Please do not do this.

That's not to say you shouldn't try new concepts or that you shouldn't get out of your comfort zone. I'm just saying it needs to be a decision you actively chose -- not something you force yourself to do just because somebody else said so/in order to please them. The only person you should be concerned with making happy is yourself.

Just do what you like, do it as well as you can, and the rest should fall into place.

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