by Love Thu 9 Jul 2009 - 17:19
I always make my characters with possible paths of evolution in mind - usually based on some kind of paradox in their personality or something that is going to eventually come out and cause them to think about themselves in relations to the issues around them. There's always their sense of self, or how they see themselves as they think others do/should, then there is something that is really railing against that which might be triggered in the course of play.
These sort of internal conflicts tend to be based off of questions or conflicts that I can see in myself or that I see other people going through. So I think that in that way I play through the progression of conflict and tend to figure out the question or learn how to face it in a different way. The trick is not going through it too quickly so that you can't portray this sort of progress to your audience, the fellow players. It doesn't have to be bludgeoningly obvious (but it could be), and it doesn't have to be so loud that everyone hears about it. But it's nice to be able to give one or two other characters/players a peek into what is going on so that they can get in on your narrative. It's one of the many beauties of live action roleplay; the ability to share stories and tell them collectively.
I do admit that a lot of the time I really can't hold on to plot secrets of my own and often let out clues to the long term internal conflict that is in development, but one of the most exciting and rewarding things for me in roleplaying is finally having that big moment where you reveal the conclusion of events out in the open and savor that bit of spotlight you've been planning for for however many months. Or better yet, one of the characters who you've been involved with in their conflict (or even set off
) finally reveals the end result of whatever chain-events that you have been a part of.
It's these moments that are great to witness in a game. It's these evolutions from the original idea we have of our characters that make coming out and playing each month a treat because when our characters change and grow through their experiences, whether they are successes or losses, we have an end product that is different then what we could have imagined ourselves creating in the very beginning. And I guess to conclude this all, I have had characters that have felt like they made themselves. And through playing through their sometimes radically foreign outlooks I get to see different viewpoints and even facets of myself.
Characters are like chia pets. You gotta be patient, but it's fun to watch them grow.
Tue 3 Aug 2010 - 11:47 by cenobyte
» Magic Creation-Zeal Table
Tue 3 Aug 2010 - 11:28 by cenobyte
» Houses of the Blooded in Regina, August 28th
Wed 14 Jul 2010 - 15:02 by Bal
» The Sentinel's journal
Thu 8 Jul 2010 - 20:13 by Dorian Mason
» Character backgrounds
Tue 6 Jul 2010 - 12:19 by Corral
» The dreams of Edward
Sun 4 Jul 2010 - 0:32 by Edward
» Some of Eliel's secrets
Sat 3 Jul 2010 - 17:35 by Corral
» Question/June Game
Thu 1 Jul 2010 - 22:51 by cenobyte
» "Map" of the Fallen
Thu 1 Jul 2010 - 14:17 by Molior