(07-30-2014, 11:20 PM)Warren Castille Wrote: I personally subscribe to the "Your actions in the story make you who you are" idea. An interesting backstory is great for storytelling (and goes great in a place like here) but I've never been satisfied with my RP being me telling people about the things I've done.
This, basically. Merri has an incredibly detailed background I've fleshed out for him over the last four years, but 99% of it rarely gets referenced because there's really no need. It's there to define his character, and why he is the way he is, but ultimately it doesn't really come up.
Having this huge back story isn't what draws most people into your character. It's being engaging and having a fun character in the present. So, my suggestion would be to develop a rough idea for your character's background. Where they came from, how they grew up, maybe a few important events that have occurred in their life up until this point that has influenced who they are, and then just dive in once you're comfortable with what you have.
Most of your character's development usually just comes from being them. They'll come into their own over time.
As far as uniqueness goes, there's a fine line. You can certainly have a john doe of a character, and people won't really bat an eye. There's plenty of them. Conversely, having a character with some unique traits also is incredibly common, given the setting, so you certainly shouldn't be afraid of giving your character some spins to make them your own. We've seen blind characters who see through "feeling" aether, we've had mute characters that communicate solely through gestures, and countless characters that hail from all corners of Hydaelyn. Even my own character is missing an arm, and has a magitek-based prosthesis in it's place.
Point being, don't let other people's opinions stop you from playing a character archetype you'd like to play. In the end, you literally can't please everyone in roleplay. Some people won't like your character, the way you play them, or their background. Other people will love it. In the end, though, most people won't give you trouble for it even if they don't like your character. It just sort of boils down to having respect and being a mature adult at that point.
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