Sometimes the perfect character is not the best character. In my experience some of the most memorable and fun characters are the ones who are flawed. I feel that drawbacks, weaknesses and personality quirks are some of the best sources of role play in any game.
While any experienced gamer will tell you that you need to design a character that is good at what he/she does, the strive for perfection should be avoided. It is the weaknesses and drawbacks that lead characters to rely on one another, form bonds, and make characters more realistic. Real people have real problems and are usually not perfect. Plus having a flaw gives you more opportunity to roleplay instead of rollplay. Furthermore, as I will show, having character flaws can allow people to have fun rather than gripe when they make mistakes or have unlucky streaks.
The example I will give is from a campaign I ran last year. The character was an old wizard, So old in fact that he had forgotten more about magic than most will ever know. He had before senility been a mighty and famous caster but now was struggling with the most simple spells (returning to level 5). The player had designed this character will comedy in mind and played him well enough to be entertaining but not enough to be a burden or a distraction. Needless to say having a crotchety old man running around with young adventurers led to a lot of fun conversations and NPC interactions. What really made this character memorable however was how the character handled failure in combat and stressful situations. Instead of getting frustrated he roleplayed the character forgetting the words to the spell, casting the wrong spell (like a harmless illusion or cantrip) or reaching into his bag and pulling out the wrong components. Furthermore when critical successes occurred he roleplayed moments of clarity where the other characters got a glimpse of his former glory. In this way by designing a character with a major flaw he turned in game failures from a source of frustration to a source of comedy and entertainment for the party.
The principle is that flaws make characters more interesting and therefore encourages more roleplay. Think about most of the movies, comic books, and books you've read. What makes you feel a connection to the characters is not how they are perfect but how they are flawed. This is especially true in western pop culture where we LOVE our anti-heroes.
As a storyteller you should encourage your players to give their characters drawbacks that enhance the game with memorable moments and stories. You can encourage this by offering rewards to those players that give their characters meaningful drawbacks, skeletons, flaws. Even if these flaws do not have huge combat or mechanics consequences they will enrich play.
Showing posts with label RPG. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RPG. Show all posts
Friday, April 9, 2010
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Promoting Fun Party Conflict
Character interaction, a mythic beast in many games today. most often interaction occurs between the players and NPCs. Interaction between PCs usually occurs only when a conflict of interest arises. Some might argue that PC interaction also occurs during planning conversations, however I have found that these conversations are more OOC since they talk not as their characters but as players trying to overcome an obstacle, weighing their assets and skills objectively.
The problem becomes facilitating party conflict that helps the story and entertains the party. Players create backstory and most of them expect it to come up. If they hate a certain country, they want to encounter soldiers of that country. They want the opportunity to show who their character is. A lot of the time, my own games included, I set events in motion that I know will create party conflict and have been burned by the results. The game grinds to a halt because I underestimated how important certain aspects of the character were to the player and/or it just now becomes apparent that two or more characters have irreconcilable differences. The players stop having fun and turn into politicians in British parliament.
The seeds of this problem start in character creation but ultimately rest with the storyteller. You as the storyteller need to communicate with your players about their characters both as they are created and as they grow during the game. In order to have resolvable and fun conflicts you need two things:
1. Characters who have enough differences to make the game fun but not enough that they can't adventure with the rest of the party.
2. an overarching goal that appeals on some level to all of the players. That way they have a vested interest in moving the plot forward and will be more willing to compromise or let something go. (example: if you have a rogue that only cares about money, even if they are getting paid they will be much more stubborn. The character has no vested interest in achieving the goal since other quests give money just as well. To combat this make the quest have a challenge or item affiliated with it that the rogue would be interested in. He could become as famous as the prince of thieves or get X item that is UNIQUE)
Steer a player ever so gently towards a more appropriate character. If you know the rest of the party is lawful good and they want to play a social Darwinist assassin you might need to haggle the player down. makes sure the skeletons in his/her closet are not things that the rest of the party would shun/kill/arrest them for. If you have an uber do gooder, ask the player to temper the character with a more realistic view of situations and the importance of the spirit of the law. That having been said if a character is dead set on playing a difficult character, make sure they are comfortable with the consequences of their character. If a player is willing to risk death or imprisonment at the hands of the party to play out that moment of revelation, so be it. I can guarantee that event will be memorable in the campaign. It is a fine line that must be walked between to much conflict and not enough.
Conflict is ultimately the source of action for any campaign. Most of the time it is external conflict with NPCs because both players and storytellers fear interparty conflict. I think with a good group of players and well thought out characters party conflict can be an incredible source of fun.
The problem becomes facilitating party conflict that helps the story and entertains the party. Players create backstory and most of them expect it to come up. If they hate a certain country, they want to encounter soldiers of that country. They want the opportunity to show who their character is. A lot of the time, my own games included, I set events in motion that I know will create party conflict and have been burned by the results. The game grinds to a halt because I underestimated how important certain aspects of the character were to the player and/or it just now becomes apparent that two or more characters have irreconcilable differences. The players stop having fun and turn into politicians in British parliament.
The seeds of this problem start in character creation but ultimately rest with the storyteller. You as the storyteller need to communicate with your players about their characters both as they are created and as they grow during the game. In order to have resolvable and fun conflicts you need two things:
1. Characters who have enough differences to make the game fun but not enough that they can't adventure with the rest of the party.
2. an overarching goal that appeals on some level to all of the players. That way they have a vested interest in moving the plot forward and will be more willing to compromise or let something go. (example: if you have a rogue that only cares about money, even if they are getting paid they will be much more stubborn. The character has no vested interest in achieving the goal since other quests give money just as well. To combat this make the quest have a challenge or item affiliated with it that the rogue would be interested in. He could become as famous as the prince of thieves or get X item that is UNIQUE)
Steer a player ever so gently towards a more appropriate character. If you know the rest of the party is lawful good and they want to play a social Darwinist assassin you might need to haggle the player down. makes sure the skeletons in his/her closet are not things that the rest of the party would shun/kill/arrest them for. If you have an uber do gooder, ask the player to temper the character with a more realistic view of situations and the importance of the spirit of the law. That having been said if a character is dead set on playing a difficult character, make sure they are comfortable with the consequences of their character. If a player is willing to risk death or imprisonment at the hands of the party to play out that moment of revelation, so be it. I can guarantee that event will be memorable in the campaign. It is a fine line that must be walked between to much conflict and not enough.
Conflict is ultimately the source of action for any campaign. Most of the time it is external conflict with NPCs because both players and storytellers fear interparty conflict. I think with a good group of players and well thought out characters party conflict can be an incredible source of fun.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
The Setting as a character in the story
Making locations memorable is a challenge in RPG games. Often times the adventure takes place in what is largely an ignored theatrical backdrop. Most players space out during the overwritten descriptions of port towns and forbidden castles we as storytellers work so hard on, just barely paying attention in the off chance our descriptions hold campaign relevant information or clues. indeed in most situations the setting is as important as the stage scenery is to a play.
I found that often in my games this occurred for two reasons:
1. The flowery backstory of the town had no influence whatsoever on the experiences the players.
2. There is a lot of assumption that occurs both on the part of players and storytellers as to what different settings are supposed to be like.
To address these issues I came up with an anthropological approach to location building.
First, I thought of the history of the place, comparing it to similar locations from real life and creating location features based on that. (of course this does not apply to deserted castles and the like)
For example, If a city was on a river I would change the way the gods were worshiped and viewed to reflect a fisherman's way of life. If a town was on the border with a hostile nation I would make REAL xenophobia something the party had to contend with.
in short think of the location like a character in the story, think of how what has occurred in that location influences its traits. If the landscape itself comes alive with its history and is unique because of it, the players will interact with it and remember it
Also places do not just sprout up and then stay stagnant, they change, they have bad years and good years, bad leaders and good leaders.
think about these things and come up with the evolution of an important location that you will probably never tell your players outright. just create the history so you know how it is different from other places. When all is said and done making interactional features of the city unique is what will make it memorable.
Secondly, If there are assumptions at play, challenge them. I am not recommending making your locations completely unpredictable or without similarity to others. However, if every town functions much the same as the last, no amount of flowery description will make the players remember it much past the session.
instead of a Governor have a council of elders.
if the town is on a border between two cultures blend the styles of dress and the laws.
Change the festivals, change the laws. What if a town of farmers allows no one to carry weapons inside it for fear of losing their freedom. what if a abandoned castle full of monsters and treasure has a small squatter community living outside of it. Another way to do this is change the religious affiliations, a dark god for some may be a primal protector for others. all of these things plus many more could be implemented but in order for them to have an effect they must be more than backstory, they must influence the party. Make sure if the town is hostile to X country if you have a knight of that country in the party that he meets with realistic animosity and lack of hospitality. if the party is in a far flung fantastic city, make sure exotic events are common to their experience.
a common oversight is that many storytellers let the party walk around fully equipped all the time. having to take off weapons and armor to meet with leaders and questgivers not only makes the experiences more realistic but forces the party to think on their feet if problems should arise.
A perfect example: In a game I played in the party had taken refuge in a small elf village deep in the jungle that believed the ending of life was a solemn and grave matter. Like the blue kitty people in Avatar they cherished life and would only kill for food. All crimes were either punished by community service or exile. When asked how we had gotten there our paladin described in heroic detail the swathe of destruction we had carved through the "monsters" of the forest to get away from the other humans we had been fighting as part of a war campaign. The DM made the revelation of that knowledge change the way the elves treated us. They knew we were outsiders but now they knew we were murderers and while they were cordial and allowed us to resupply, their children ran away from us and they were quick to send us on our way. The DM could have expedited the process and let our party pass through the town without really interacting with it, But by doing that he made it memorable and taught us a lesson about how our heroism could be perceived as villainy by others.
too often what kills locations is the generic nature of the interactions regardless of the descriptions.
I found that often in my games this occurred for two reasons:
1. The flowery backstory of the town had no influence whatsoever on the experiences the players.
2. There is a lot of assumption that occurs both on the part of players and storytellers as to what different settings are supposed to be like.
To address these issues I came up with an anthropological approach to location building.
First, I thought of the history of the place, comparing it to similar locations from real life and creating location features based on that. (of course this does not apply to deserted castles and the like)
For example, If a city was on a river I would change the way the gods were worshiped and viewed to reflect a fisherman's way of life. If a town was on the border with a hostile nation I would make REAL xenophobia something the party had to contend with.
in short think of the location like a character in the story, think of how what has occurred in that location influences its traits. If the landscape itself comes alive with its history and is unique because of it, the players will interact with it and remember it
Also places do not just sprout up and then stay stagnant, they change, they have bad years and good years, bad leaders and good leaders.
think about these things and come up with the evolution of an important location that you will probably never tell your players outright. just create the history so you know how it is different from other places. When all is said and done making interactional features of the city unique is what will make it memorable.
Secondly, If there are assumptions at play, challenge them. I am not recommending making your locations completely unpredictable or without similarity to others. However, if every town functions much the same as the last, no amount of flowery description will make the players remember it much past the session.
instead of a Governor have a council of elders.
if the town is on a border between two cultures blend the styles of dress and the laws.
Change the festivals, change the laws. What if a town of farmers allows no one to carry weapons inside it for fear of losing their freedom. what if a abandoned castle full of monsters and treasure has a small squatter community living outside of it. Another way to do this is change the religious affiliations, a dark god for some may be a primal protector for others. all of these things plus many more could be implemented but in order for them to have an effect they must be more than backstory, they must influence the party. Make sure if the town is hostile to X country if you have a knight of that country in the party that he meets with realistic animosity and lack of hospitality. if the party is in a far flung fantastic city, make sure exotic events are common to their experience.
a common oversight is that many storytellers let the party walk around fully equipped all the time. having to take off weapons and armor to meet with leaders and questgivers not only makes the experiences more realistic but forces the party to think on their feet if problems should arise.
A perfect example: In a game I played in the party had taken refuge in a small elf village deep in the jungle that believed the ending of life was a solemn and grave matter. Like the blue kitty people in Avatar they cherished life and would only kill for food. All crimes were either punished by community service or exile. When asked how we had gotten there our paladin described in heroic detail the swathe of destruction we had carved through the "monsters" of the forest to get away from the other humans we had been fighting as part of a war campaign. The DM made the revelation of that knowledge change the way the elves treated us. They knew we were outsiders but now they knew we were murderers and while they were cordial and allowed us to resupply, their children ran away from us and they were quick to send us on our way. The DM could have expedited the process and let our party pass through the town without really interacting with it, But by doing that he made it memorable and taught us a lesson about how our heroism could be perceived as villainy by others.
too often what kills locations is the generic nature of the interactions regardless of the descriptions.
The Philosophy of Character Building
How can you use the Socratic Method to create a good character? let me explain how I use a series of questions to help myself and my players create dynamic personalities for their characters.
But wait, Everybody Knows how to make a character for an RPG right? Pick your race, assign your points, pick your special abilities and then come up with a backstory that will explain him/her being in the party. throughout my time as a DM I have heard people explain their characters like this:
"My character is a Brutal Warrior whose only desire is glory on the battlefield. He hates orcs and is chaotic neutral"
"My character is an outcast dwarf who seeks redemption and honor in helping others"
Both of these are excellent starts and are seeds that could grow into dynamic characters. However, these backstories are very broad and while they speak volumes about where the character has been and their large scale goals, they don't really reveal much of a personality. I think often in games people are told to create a history for their character but not a persona. Where a character has been and what they have done informs their personality of course but it does not define it.
Due to the emphasis on a character's history instead of personality many characters suffer from an inconsistency of behavior or what I call "situational personality disorder" (SPD). You have all seen this, a character has up until that point not engaged in X behavior or expressed any leanings towards X but since the campaign now requires it in order to overcome a challenge the character shifts his or her behavior to fit the situation. I believe that in many cases this occurs because the player never established what the character would do in morally ambiguous situations. The answers to the questions that follow form a frame of reference which can help the player react to situations in a manner consistent with a dynamic (realistic) personality.
These questions take the character from a collection of characteristics and abilities on a sheet to a unique individual that the players will feel more inclined to play with consistency of behavior, almost like they are doing the character wrong by not following what their personality would desire. These questions also create a framework in which they can think like their characters instead of thinking only in terms of game practicality.
Question Examples:
how does the character feel about killing? is it ever justified? does he feel that monsters can be killed with impunity but not humans? what about Dwarves, Elves, Aliens, etc?
What is the role of the law in the character's mind? is it for the good of all? does it stifle freedom? is it the tyranny of government? does the character obey the law? what kind of situation does it take for the character to commit serious crimes?
does the character believe in higher powers? what does character believe he owes the gods?
how does the character think of those higher in society? Lower? what does the character think of his/her place?
what about the opposite sex? Strait, Gay/lesbian? are the opposite sex to be protected or to be manipulated?
how loyal is the character to his/her word?
how does the character feel about other adventurers? does he/she seek camaraderie or just the accomplishment of personal goals?
Does the character care about the opinions of others?
does the character want to find love?
does the character have a family? wife/husband/Lover? where are they? what are they doing?
why did the character join his profession? is his profession in line with his class or was he a farmer until he became a fighter to defend his home from bandits?
these questions are just a small sampling of the questions I ask my players to answer when making a character. I tailor them depending on the vague backstory they give me and the setting I plan to run.
I have met with a lot of success using this system. The players have often created memorable characters they love to play. Using this system I have actually seen long time dungeon crawlers try to skip through combat to get to character interactions.
I wish you luck and good gaming,
Athanasios
But wait, Everybody Knows how to make a character for an RPG right? Pick your race, assign your points, pick your special abilities and then come up with a backstory that will explain him/her being in the party. throughout my time as a DM I have heard people explain their characters like this:
"My character is a Brutal Warrior whose only desire is glory on the battlefield. He hates orcs and is chaotic neutral"
"My character is an outcast dwarf who seeks redemption and honor in helping others"
Both of these are excellent starts and are seeds that could grow into dynamic characters. However, these backstories are very broad and while they speak volumes about where the character has been and their large scale goals, they don't really reveal much of a personality. I think often in games people are told to create a history for their character but not a persona. Where a character has been and what they have done informs their personality of course but it does not define it.
Due to the emphasis on a character's history instead of personality many characters suffer from an inconsistency of behavior or what I call "situational personality disorder" (SPD). You have all seen this, a character has up until that point not engaged in X behavior or expressed any leanings towards X but since the campaign now requires it in order to overcome a challenge the character shifts his or her behavior to fit the situation. I believe that in many cases this occurs because the player never established what the character would do in morally ambiguous situations. The answers to the questions that follow form a frame of reference which can help the player react to situations in a manner consistent with a dynamic (realistic) personality.
These questions take the character from a collection of characteristics and abilities on a sheet to a unique individual that the players will feel more inclined to play with consistency of behavior, almost like they are doing the character wrong by not following what their personality would desire. These questions also create a framework in which they can think like their characters instead of thinking only in terms of game practicality.
Question Examples:
how does the character feel about killing? is it ever justified? does he feel that monsters can be killed with impunity but not humans? what about Dwarves, Elves, Aliens, etc?
What is the role of the law in the character's mind? is it for the good of all? does it stifle freedom? is it the tyranny of government? does the character obey the law? what kind of situation does it take for the character to commit serious crimes?
does the character believe in higher powers? what does character believe he owes the gods?
how does the character think of those higher in society? Lower? what does the character think of his/her place?
what about the opposite sex? Strait, Gay/lesbian? are the opposite sex to be protected or to be manipulated?
how loyal is the character to his/her word?
how does the character feel about other adventurers? does he/she seek camaraderie or just the accomplishment of personal goals?
Does the character care about the opinions of others?
does the character want to find love?
does the character have a family? wife/husband/Lover? where are they? what are they doing?
why did the character join his profession? is his profession in line with his class or was he a farmer until he became a fighter to defend his home from bandits?
these questions are just a small sampling of the questions I ask my players to answer when making a character. I tailor them depending on the vague backstory they give me and the setting I plan to run.
I have met with a lot of success using this system. The players have often created memorable characters they love to play. Using this system I have actually seen long time dungeon crawlers try to skip through combat to get to character interactions.
I wish you luck and good gaming,
Athanasios
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