Contrivances.
Make some shit up.
Aghurlal is paranoid and doesn't like to draw attention to himself (he is bad at not doing this, but the point is that's a motivation of his). Left to his own devices, he doesn't approach strangers or talk to them.
So: I come up with some bullcrap reason for him to basically have no sensible choice but to do so. He's confused, or lost, or messed something up and needs an explanation/directions/help. He was in the area for work, and because of XYZ contrived internal reasons that basically don't matter to anyone but me, he decided he needed to go over and figure out or ask what they were doing. (Spoilers: this is how he ends up at 90% of open RP events.) His friend or colleague dragged him along and since he's here, what harm could a little small-talk do. Maybe he'll even learn something useful that'll help him with his work further down the line.
It's not like he has a smart-phone to keep him occupied - if he's at an occasion and he's not doing anything or talking to anyone, he's staring into space and it's boring. He may be paranoid and private, but that doesn't make him immune to boredom either. (Spoilers: this is how he ends up in 90% of his linkshell-based RP.)
You are basically stopping yourself from roleplaying, because continuity matters to you - and continuity is important, and can be a source of enjoyment! But here's the question you have to ask: is this fun? When you say "well, my character can't, because of 7, 8, and 9", is that fun? You don't have to turn factors 7, 8, and 9 into -7, -8, and -9 (i.e. total character flip into something you don't click with) in order to make a difference to your RP outcomes. You just have to stop stopping at "well he wouldn't naturally" and start looking at "okay, well what circumstances would he do it under? What crazy, weird thing could happen that would make him join in?"
And then make the crazy, weird thing happen.
Because rule of fun.
This recent thread in the Character Workshop has some good ideas, and I posted a link to this compilation of Crazy Weird Things that can happen to make naturally shy or withdrawn characters reach out to others.
My bottom line is, though: you need to rethink your priorities and stop placing character continuity above character participation. For some people that priority order works, but if it was working for you, you wouldn't be here. Don't be afraid to make up the most contrived, stupid plot device ever if that's what it takes to get your dude in line with the rest of your FC or whatever - nobody's going to be quizzing you on that. They're going to be talking about the awesome, fun RP they had with you and your awesome, fun character.
Make some shit up.
Aghurlal is paranoid and doesn't like to draw attention to himself (he is bad at not doing this, but the point is that's a motivation of his). Left to his own devices, he doesn't approach strangers or talk to them.
So: I come up with some bullcrap reason for him to basically have no sensible choice but to do so. He's confused, or lost, or messed something up and needs an explanation/directions/help. He was in the area for work, and because of XYZ contrived internal reasons that basically don't matter to anyone but me, he decided he needed to go over and figure out or ask what they were doing. (Spoilers: this is how he ends up at 90% of open RP events.) His friend or colleague dragged him along and since he's here, what harm could a little small-talk do. Maybe he'll even learn something useful that'll help him with his work further down the line.
It's not like he has a smart-phone to keep him occupied - if he's at an occasion and he's not doing anything or talking to anyone, he's staring into space and it's boring. He may be paranoid and private, but that doesn't make him immune to boredom either. (Spoilers: this is how he ends up in 90% of his linkshell-based RP.)
You are basically stopping yourself from roleplaying, because continuity matters to you - and continuity is important, and can be a source of enjoyment! But here's the question you have to ask: is this fun? When you say "well, my character can't, because of 7, 8, and 9", is that fun? You don't have to turn factors 7, 8, and 9 into -7, -8, and -9 (i.e. total character flip into something you don't click with) in order to make a difference to your RP outcomes. You just have to stop stopping at "well he wouldn't naturally" and start looking at "okay, well what circumstances would he do it under? What crazy, weird thing could happen that would make him join in?"
And then make the crazy, weird thing happen.
Because rule of fun.
This recent thread in the Character Workshop has some good ideas, and I posted a link to this compilation of Crazy Weird Things that can happen to make naturally shy or withdrawn characters reach out to others.
My bottom line is, though: you need to rethink your priorities and stop placing character continuity above character participation. For some people that priority order works, but if it was working for you, you wouldn't be here. Don't be afraid to make up the most contrived, stupid plot device ever if that's what it takes to get your dude in line with the rest of your FC or whatever - nobody's going to be quizzing you on that. They're going to be talking about the awesome, fun RP they had with you and your awesome, fun character.
![[Image: tUzrT.png]](https://puu.sh/tUzrT.png)
