Explain Yourself

[Jalice]

Hi Everyone!
I'm starting a new topic labled Explain Yourself. This is not to be confused with writing a memoir or your whole life story but merely a way in which I want to know, based on some background information why your character does what he/she does? I'm not the best at RPing, however, I've noticed more and more that characters tend to do in game whatever they want just 'cause'. I see no patterns in killings, or jumps, or even labour activities. I would like to get away from the "I killed this person because they are from a city I'm at war with". I'd also like to get away from characters jumping just for 'xp' or labouring just to get rich. If you want to be rich why? Were you poor as a child and need that security of being rich? Why do you jump the people you jump? Because they are good/evil? And what makes you fight for one side or the other? Basically I'd like to see more substance of characters all around. Like I stated above, you don't need to get into a huge long story, as that is a whole different thread, but what makes your character choose the actions he/she chooses on a day to day basis? Hope this may be as enlightening for others as I hope it to be for me!

[Jalice]

Okay to show you what I mean....I'll go first. I am going to leave out names and just state the basic facts of her life. Her mother was a priestess of Apollo and her father was a free-spirited wild Parrian whom the family did not see very often. They met, fell in love, and out of wedlock conceived Jalice. Parents tried to keep it a secret but after 12 years were discovered after birthing another child, a son. So Jalice basically watched her Father and Mother get slaughtered protecting the children after being 'found out' but doesn't know by whom. It could have been those that serve the Light considering the children an abomination, it could have been those that serve darkness trying to stamp out children of the Light before they reach maturity. So currently Jalice has a big puzzle on her hands she is trying to figure out. She moved to Parrius to be of a neutral stance while she unlocks the history of her Father and decodes a message given to her by her mother encrypted in a lullaby. So you may see Jalice on and she's not been a huge fighter yet or a real stand out force in Avalon. She knows that 'evil' rests in the souls of the Good but likewise believes that shreds of 'good' rests in the souls of the 'evil'. She has a propensity to lean towards that of true goodness but has no quelms about demolishing those who portray a false good. Likewise she will fight true evil with her last breath, but will also sacrafice to bring out the good she may see in someone 'evil'. Jalice is a force swinging back and forth between the questions "what is truly Good" and "what is truly Evil". Once she finds out the murderer of her parents she no doubt will have found her side and you may yet see a fighter in her.

Jalice also has a strong nuturing tendencey, not only for the young but for her friends as well. She was forced to abandon her baby brother for his survival and carries this guilt with her till this day. In some ways she is trying to make ammends and to work herself pure from the hideous monster she has envisioned herself to be since that day.

[Furion]

Mmk, I'll give it a crack, cause I'm bored

Well, Furion strives to be the best he can be in every aspect of his life. What he sees as "best" might differ from how other see it though. Furion is left Mercinae, and joined Thakria for several reasons:

From his perspective, he was hung, drawn and quartered by Mercinae, for trying to do his duty by learning to fight. Just because he was learning from Thakrians, doesn't mean that he wanted to change sides, he was pushed away by Mercinaens judging him for doing what he thought was right.

Then, he joined Thakria because he wanted something to fight for. A cause. He felt that Thakria could give him what he wanted. In return, he gives Thakria what he can. His loyalty, his life, etc.

When Furion was newly Thakrian, he decided to join the Warlocks. He slowly became more sinister and dark, and found that the Mage skillset didn't please him anymore, instead of trying protect the light, he now wanted to destroy it, and felt that he could achieve this better as a Sorcerer.

Slowly, he started to get used to his new skills, and decided he wanted to take the next step in serving darkness; he wanted a new patron. So he sought to join the Order of Vengeance, and once he was accepted, he swore an Oath of Vengeance against Mercinae and the Light, and slowly increased his efforts to kill and offer people to his Lady.

He doesn't see himself as 'evil', in fact, he sees himself as righteous and good, and sees Mercinaens as evil. He's obviously deluded, but yeah, that's the fun thing about playing him 

[Jalice]

Hmmm....very interesting! So it sounds to me like Furion started off as a 'good' kid but once in the fray was disappointed by those he looked up to and all that "Good" is supposed to entail? What do you think  made Furion turn more sinister and darker? Was it the let down by whom he thought friends? Did he view Light as weak and was driven more by the power of Dark? Was he constantly under-estimated from the Light? Seems to me Furion sounds like an Anikan Skywalker kind of character. *ponder.

[Algernon]

There is a very faint line between player interaction and character interaction.  Vaska and Belgadeth, for instance, just like to log on and kill people.  From what I can tell, they aren't interested in characters and role play.

Sometimes there is no line at all.  Furion and Mage-ernon recently had an amusing moment that was not consciously RP, but worked as both a player interaction AND a character interaction.

Mage Algernon went loping along the streets of Thakria, learning his way around and seeing if there were any enlistables to kill and offer to Apollo.  Furion, young sorcerer and former mage brother of Algernon, deployed his demons and came to the defence of Thakria.  The fight commenced.  Algernon is much bigger than Furion but notoriously klutzy, and he goofed up.  Furion was able to summon the mage into a locked room and overcome his former head tutor. 

In the aftermath, Furion said something very much like, "Wow!  I thought it would be a long time before I could do that!" 

This made me laugh out loud because it's the character talking as much as the player and vice-versa.

Oh, and Jalice - are you going to identify your brother?

[Jalice]

Hmm, I do see your point Algernon. I do think there is a very fine line. But I guess that's what I'm trying to do with this forum....make the line a little thicker. I want to get people to think about their character and the actions the character exhibits and if those actions are true to the character. I think you are right about some people logging on and not interested in the RP but I guess that's their choice as well. But for those of use who are trying to do a bit of RPing now and again......what say you? I think enevitably RL person and character will cross paths now and again but if people knew the goals of their character and mindset might that not help to clarify that a little bit? SO Algernon, I pose this question to you......why does Mage Algernon do what he does in game? *wink  Why does he have such a heart for the Light?

Ahh...the mystery of Jalice's life....who is this abandoned brother? Well I guess you'll have to read my memoir when I get it typed up. Fascinating no? *LOL

[Narissa]

Sometimes you just want to fight cause, frankly, it's fun. I'm my case, wine is usually involved...

Actually, I got really disenchanted with the random "because I can" jumps I kept seeing, so Narissa swore a formal oath (it's a special command) to Xanthe to only fight in Vengeance - be that to defend her city from attack, her guild, or to kill those who initiated combat against her.

When the whole Xanthe Order thing fell apart, the oath kinda died (plus a lot of SD/Merc were using it as an excuse to whine: "OMG I DIDN'T TOUCH U AND UR ATTACKING ME, OATH BREAKER!!!" "....dude, you're felling staves in Thakria..." "STFU U LYING OATH BREAKER!!!"), but that concept still kinda governs Narissa's life (there are only a few, special, dear people that I will run in and stab on sight), although pissing her off or failing to acquiece to her whims when she's in a flouncy princess mood can be an invitation for pain. Perk of the job, I think.

So, yeah. Most fighting stems from revenge and dominance: team me, I'll fight you when you are alone to show you why teaming me is bad. Carry bonds on me, and I'll hunt ya down until they are gone. Talk snarky, and I'll rip your tongue out. That kind of thing...

The rp behind that is pretty bog-standard and obvious. Coming of age in Parrius, with enemies constantly attacking her, has created a rather brutal, defiant, vengeful bitch out of Narissa. Achieving power, prestige and control - and, more importantly, having others ACKNOWLEDGE this - are things Narissa strives for, sometimes obsessively so. When these aren't happening, enter (stage left) the infamous temper....

[Algernon]

God only knows why he does what he does.  RL-gernon would have found some quiet job and gotten off the battlefield long ago.  Mage boy is terribly loyal to his friends and hates injustice, and is pained when it occurs in his own city mates.  His drive is to make his city a place where citizens feel safe walking around.  If he manages to overcome his ineptitude in battle, he might just achieve that.  In the meantime, he keeps making the effort and seems to have inherited some of old Kobyashi love for puns.  (Wraith himself suggested to Algernon that he is more than a little bit "wraithite.")

[Rakira]

Rakira....an oddity to be sure! Rakira's life started on a rather chipper note. Born in Thakria, she quickly found it too dark and sinister and went to Springdale. She was perhaps overly protected and loved there, with her city mates hiding her from the big mean city invaders. She was obsessed with her pets, especially her first, Flickerfoot. After his death, she swore she'd get revenge and was on a fighting kick. Soon though, her loving personality struck a lot of nerves, gaining her lots of conflicts and many views from the ship. She was soon discouraged and found herself dying to the same big bullies, and thus, stopped trying. She focused more on running, and one chance night, was stolen out of SD Square and into Alister's cottage, triggering a change in her life's coarse. Full of hate, she left her loving home and returned to her birth place. There, she strove to prove herself, despite the opposition, and lost almost all her trust in people in general. Needing to find an outlet for her hate, she vowed to get a Unicorn, and name him Flickerfoot and find some way to allow him to get revenge for him and all her other pets' deaths. To this day, this is the goal she works for, still teetering between the sweet, innocent, loving SD Rakira and the Loathing Thakria Rakira.

A side bar, aside from this, she also has a fierce temper and a strict code of right and wrong.

[Furion]

Hmmm....very interesting! So it sounds to me like Furion started off as a 'good' kid but once in the fray was disappointed by those he looked up to and all that "Good" is supposed to entail? What do you think  made Furion turn more sinister and darker? Was it the let down by whom he thought friends? Did he view Light as weak and was driven more by the power of Dark? Was he constantly under-estimated from the Light? Seems to me Furion sounds like an Anikan Skywalker kind of character. *ponder.

Oh, yeah, Furion definitely started out as a 'good' kid, and you and Algernon can probably remember how keen Furion was to protect Mercinae and stuff. One of my favourite memories of his youth was when Kiarn was fighting Algernon in Centre Cass, and Furion was like "How can I help next time?"

I think the main reasons Furion became sinister and darker was that he was seriously hurt when he left Mercinae. He was very close to some people who he felt, betrayed him. India: If you want to keep hanging out with city enemies, you might as well just join them (or something along those lines). Apollo: Well, if you're moving to Thakria, I'll be sad when you ask to leave the order. (Furion thought "what the heck, YOU were Thakrian". Then decided that if his patron was automatically going to assume the worst of him, he couldn't trust him anymore.) Chasity: If you're going to leave for Thakria, I want you to disown me. Etc etc. He was also severely upset by what he had put Algernon though, because honestly, as a Mercinaen Algernon was his inspiration really. Algernon's :You're breaking my heart. When Furion left Mercinae deeply scarred him as well.

As he slowly got over the wounds of betrayal, Furion (in his eyes) grew wiser. He thinks that by being dark and sinister, he won't get close to people, and if he doesn't let people get close to him, they can't hurt him anymore.

Then, a massive turning point was one day after killing Chasity when Khashakin came after him and shipped in the attempt. Something in Furion clicked, and as he offered Khash's body he was like "Wow, this feels so good" and started killing everyone he could.

Also, Furion is *definitely* an Anakin Skywalker character, as he's always tried to do the "right" thing, but his judgement has slowly become clouded. He thinks that each time he kills someone who serves "good" he is performing the greater good by ridding it of their lies and hypocrisy.

The thing that I love about playing Furion is that no one else can really see this stuff that goes on inside his head, so their reactions are genuine and not manufactured. It's great fun.

Any other questions about Furion, I'd be happy to answer, I love talking about him like this.

[Jalice]

Hi All!
Wow some fascinating stuff! Excellent! Keep it coming! I have a few questions if anyone is up for answering them:

Algernon: What keeps mage Algernon fighting even after he's died over and over and even after the ridicule etc etc? We both know what growing up Mage entails(hmm that sounds like a TV show or a new topic for a thread! *LOL). I've watched the little guy get knocked down, get bruised beaten feel defeated but then the next day brush off his clothes and rise again (one of the reasons I chose EYE OF THE TIGER for his theme song). What keeps this little one from quitting?

Rakira: Why the love for pets? And seeing as how Rakira nurtures them rather than conducts experiments on them I'm assuming she has loads of good in her *LOL. What do you think is it about Rakira's outlook on life that draws people to her? I mean, she is one of the few characters that draws the very good (aka Jalice) to the not so good (aka Narissa). I see her personality as a sort of buffer and melting pot. How can this be?

Narissa: Very interesting about Narissa's view point. I see those very clearly. My question is, how does helping the young the way in which Narissa does fit into these view points? That's the one oddity of Narissa that I truly find very fascinating. She can be all the things you described yet bend over backwards to help the young (in her own sort of way of course). What about Narissa's philosophy allows this and how does this mesh into the character she has become?

Furion: I like getting into characters motives such as this as well. It's fun to really exlpore the character everyone plays. So my next question is.......if Furion was made to be who he is by the hurt and pain he has felt....if that fueled his anger and animosity. Do you think a reversal is ever possible for Furion? Do you think if he found one person to truly believe in him who was on the 'good' side that he'd go back or do you think his only option at this point is to dive deeper and deeper into the 'dark side'? Do you think there is any hope left for Furion or is he destined to be a tragic character created by circumstance?

[Rakira]

Rakira: Why the love for pets? And seeing as how Rakira nurtures them rather than conducts experiments on them I'm assuming she has loads of good in her *LOL. What do you think is it about Rakira's outlook on life that draws people to her? I mean, she is one of the few characters that draws the very good (aka Jalice) to the not so good (aka Narissa). I see her personality as a sort of buffer and melting pot. How can this be?

Ok, the pets! That's a hard question! Rakira's always had pets, has always been very protective of them. I guess you could say she sees them as her true friends and a part of her family. She always retorts when asked about them that obviously, they're the only 'people' that aren't going to plunge a knife into her back.

As for her drawing people, I'd say it's probably because she hates being judged before a person knows her. So, she tends to give people a chance, and helps out when she can. Though she may come off aloof or scornful at times.

[Algernon]

...What keeps mage Algernon fighting even after he's died over and over and even after the ridicule etc etc? We both know what growing up Mage entails(hmm that sounds like a TV show or a new topic for a thread! *LOL). I've watched the little guy get knocked down, get bruised beaten feel defeated but then the next day brush off his clothes and rise again (one of the reasons I chose EYE OF THE TIGER for his theme song). What keeps this little one from quitting?

Stupidity?  *Duck*

[Furion]

Furion: I like getting into characters motives such as this as well. It's fun to really exlpore the character everyone plays. So my next question is.......if Furion was made to be who he is by the hurt and pain he has felt....if that fueled his anger and animosity. Do you think a reversal is ever possible for Furion? Do you think if he found one person to truly believe in him who was on the 'good' side that he'd go back or do you think his only option at this point is to dive deeper and deeper into the 'dark side'? Do you think there is any hope left for Furion or is he destined to be a tragic character created by circumstance?

Heh, I think there is definitely a chance of a reversal for Furion, but only if (from his perspective) Mercinae has been cleansed of the hypocrisy and lies that form it now. Also, he would have to have completed his Oath of Vengeance, by showing Mercinae the mistake they made when they cast him out.

So, Furion may one day return to the Light, but seeing as he has a few long term goals, and will definitely be at Thakria for a long time to come. But hey, seeing as I'm only 15, Furion might be around for a *very* long time and it's a big possibility that he may one day try to fight for his city of birth, but there would have to be some good RP reasons for doing so, and maybe he could repent from Vengeance and go to Justice or something, I dunno.

But yeah, Mercinae would have to be a very different place than what it is now.

[Micheo]

Micheo was a young lad with and excitable mouth,  that lended him in trouble in one fashion or another.  He grew up poor and was taken in by esprii and was molded in the ways of a seer. Micheo was always a trouble maker, but esprii brought out the evil in him and was grooming him towards being a worshiper, of nostradamus, after a big falling out Micheo went to the thieves, for his loveable antics seem to be more profitable there than anywhere else, and the rest is well history