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The Cliche That You Can't Escape


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Pick the thematic/narrative/aesthetic cliche you just can't get enough of, despite recognizing its on some level overplayed or expected. No matter what, you find yourself coming back to this motif when you write or RP because it just gets you by the brain every time. For me, it's the "brainwashed/child assassin" story. It's been done to death and yet I find it utterly impossible to dislike, exploitative as it is. Something about that scenario really grips me.

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...Stoic, standoffish female. Usually a badass with a dark past. xD I'm terrible I know. But I just enjoy it so much as my first RP character was along those lines in Ayenee (yahoo chat) back in the late 90's.

 

(Shit... I'm looking at you new-to-be-xaela :| )

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I approve. To be sure, these are some really clingy cliches already. They don't know when to quit. Yet they endure and that lends them a strange sort of charm. Maybe you want to do something with a cliche you've exhausted, or escape it.

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I approve. To be sure, these are some really clingy cliches already. They don't know when to quit. Yet they endure and that lends them a strange sort of charm. Maybe you want to do something with a cliche you've exhausted, or escape it.

 

I'm not sure I want to really escape it just yet. But what I want to do with it personally is to actually -finish- it at some point. Not the whole "She rides off into the sunset never to be seen again."

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I know a lot of people have seen it before, but some may not; http://tvtropes.org/ is probably the best place to find 'cliches'. I get so into it personally that I begin to lose time. This is typically what I play; http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StoicWoobie

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I approve. To be sure, these are some really clingy cliches already. They don't know when to quit. Yet they endure and that lends them a strange sort of charm. Maybe you want to do something with a cliche you've exhausted, or escape it.

 

I'm not sure I want to really escape it just yet. But what I want to do with it personally is to actually -finish- it at some point. Not the whole "She rides off into the sunset never to be seen again."

 

This right here actually, every single character I've played of this trope has never finished their story. They've never had resolve. They've either been phased out because the RP died or they've been killed at some point before anyone could change them or at least start them on a different path. I'd like to see them actually evolve to become something else or at least play out.

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I always gravitate toward technologically savvy characters, especially in a magic-dominated fantasy setting. I like that it represents an equalizer against magic, as magic is typically dominant and only exists in a portion of people. I also like that it comes with its own set of very human, relate-able issues.

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Femme Fatales. I intentionally wrote Armi the exact opposite to get away from it since I do it so often and I'm being really careful to avoid "Snarky femme fatale" on Langli - my Au Ra - too. Loki is actually what I usually roll, it's really easy to fall back on and Armi continually proves a fun challenge. Though Armi does have something I do like exploring, which is Martyr syndrome, so she even can't get away from the cliche's!

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Joss Whedon has corrupted mine so thoroughly I always accidently use one of his characters as a template for mine.

 

Is that a cliche? Whedon-izing.

 

I approve of this Trope but that's just me. >>;

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The Rebellious / Badass / Tomboy Princess trope, from having grown up with Disney female leads, YA fantasy novels and Final Fantasy IX. 

 

The "rogue with a heart of gold" cliche never gets old either. 

 

...and to tie it all nicely together, after all this time, I'm still a fan of the absurd Rogue x Upper Class Lord/Lady pairing. *hides*

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All of my characters end up being conventionally attractive so there's that.

 

I tend to deliberately design my characters to be fairly different though in terms of background and personality. My blood elf back in WoW was a seasoned soldier, cynical, well trained and was very direct to the point of shunning social interaction in favour of serving his homeland.

 

My Midlander, however, isn't much of a combatant, he's flirtatious, friendly, diplomatic and enjoys indulging in life's luxuries when he has some time to sit back and relax.

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All of my characters are protective by nature. I've also got a penchant for adopting the blue-collar worker-type even in settings where you're "allowed" to go a lot higher.

 

If we're talking superheroes I'm too far into power armors. I love the idea of super-powerful outside with squishy human center. The idea of suddenly being stripped of your comfort zone and equipment to overcome a challenge or encounter or scenario is too good for me to ignore.

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