Take that from someone that is really scarse on alts and tends to focus almost everything on a single character - not that I could not make more alts, I just don't have the time nor the motivation to play them, and also I feel like I would only play one for long periods of time before switching to the other when I start prefering playing the other instead, which is not super cool for my RP partners.Â
So, while I think alts probably help for a lot of people, I don't think it's necessary all in itself. In my case, I'm doing perfectly fine without. You might find that I'm possibly weird in that I tend to actually enjoy my characters more and more over time. I grow attached to them as I flesh them out, make them evolve struggle and change.
I find that the important part where everything will be decided often happens early for me, after one month or two of roleplay where I just finished polishing out the base concept and start seeing what works and what doesn't, and what I actually like and dislike. It's pretty much impossible to get a clear cut and exhaustive concept that will prove to work on the long run, AND please you. And I guess I'm extremely picky when it comes to the characters I play so the smallest thing that eventually makes me "meh" about the character tends to get reworked pretty quickly.Â
And I feel that it's a big part why a character stops being fun to play. You have to proud of the result.
There is another thing too. As said above, I shy away from pre scripted plans for character development. I'm more about doing outlines. Rather than saying that "This is what will happen to my character and I'm going there", which just puts a lot of constraints and eventually frustration when something different is trying to awkwardly force your character in another direction, I prefer to find short, medium and long run goals for the character to strive with. If they never realize? It's fine, a goal can be a success, or a failure, or somewhere in between. Goals are here to provide hooks for everyone and yourself to play around. It gives the character drives to progress and move ahead and so, creates stuff and prevents stagnation.
It is also important never to rush any plot. Taking the most famous example, if you rush a long lasting romance story in 2 or 3 or even 10 RP sessions, it not only feels clunky and rushed, but it will also mean that you character will soon start living the equivalent of several lifetimes in a year. And eventually, it feels super disappointing because the amount of "ommpf" you get out of it is ridiculous compared to the expectations.
( this is also a shameless plug to playing FLAWED average and modest characters, gives you a lot more leeway in that regards considering the long lasting impact and the margin you have to work with progression wise )
So, while I think alts probably help for a lot of people, I don't think it's necessary all in itself. In my case, I'm doing perfectly fine without. You might find that I'm possibly weird in that I tend to actually enjoy my characters more and more over time. I grow attached to them as I flesh them out, make them evolve struggle and change.
I find that the important part where everything will be decided often happens early for me, after one month or two of roleplay where I just finished polishing out the base concept and start seeing what works and what doesn't, and what I actually like and dislike. It's pretty much impossible to get a clear cut and exhaustive concept that will prove to work on the long run, AND please you. And I guess I'm extremely picky when it comes to the characters I play so the smallest thing that eventually makes me "meh" about the character tends to get reworked pretty quickly.Â
And I feel that it's a big part why a character stops being fun to play. You have to proud of the result.
There is another thing too. As said above, I shy away from pre scripted plans for character development. I'm more about doing outlines. Rather than saying that "This is what will happen to my character and I'm going there", which just puts a lot of constraints and eventually frustration when something different is trying to awkwardly force your character in another direction, I prefer to find short, medium and long run goals for the character to strive with. If they never realize? It's fine, a goal can be a success, or a failure, or somewhere in between. Goals are here to provide hooks for everyone and yourself to play around. It gives the character drives to progress and move ahead and so, creates stuff and prevents stagnation.
It is also important never to rush any plot. Taking the most famous example, if you rush a long lasting romance story in 2 or 3 or even 10 RP sessions, it not only feels clunky and rushed, but it will also mean that you character will soon start living the equivalent of several lifetimes in a year. And eventually, it feels super disappointing because the amount of "ommpf" you get out of it is ridiculous compared to the expectations.
( this is also a shameless plug to playing FLAWED average and modest characters, gives you a lot more leeway in that regards considering the long lasting impact and the margin you have to work with progression wise )
Balmung:Â Suen Shyu
