Gamer Community

[satindesire]

Warcraft used to make me "embrace my inner skank" and then want to shower. The clothing in Outland and Northrend became much better. But the newbie stuff used to make me do the same thing. "Jesus, you're kidding me, that thing is metal and MAN that's binding, do you have any idea what kind of cutting into breastseses that would actually do when I try to swing a blade?"

I can understand the sexual appeal of fine looking horsey-legged Drannie ladies trotting about in skimpy clothes, but clothes are clothes, and armor is armor, and should LOOK like armor.

I never saw 16th century knights running around in a metal loincloth, that's for damn sure.

Well, if any did, they sure didn't live long enough on the battlefield to make any history books, at least.

"How can this metal thong give my 350 armor rating plus 30 defense?! That makes NO FUCKING SENSE!"

The northrend clothes were so awesome. Very old-viking, realistic for WoW, which was such a beautiful change.

I remember my low level pally when I finally had her in all low-level green mob drops. She looked like a refugee from a dyer's scrap heap. The least they can do is make more armor that matches. Geeze.

 

[Keroin]

The quality of realism in characters is how you spot a good RPer from a...ahem.."casual" one.

I had to stop offering character building help as a mentor because I was "too harsh" according to my peers. I guess after my 50th 'fallen angel teen character with long beautiful hair is in high school and no one knows she's an angel but her father is a demon so she's really half-demon and half-angel and some people want to kill her to make this prophecy come true" and me saying "um, what kind of Judeo-Christian theology are you operating under to write such a story?" I had to stop.

Characters have to have balance. They have to be logical. They have to have flaws.

Which is why I understand the need for rules in games. I can imagine, without them, many players would just make themselves invincible.

 

[Recidiva]

Which is why I understand the need for rules in games. I can imagine, without them, many players would just make themselves invincible.

It's funny as hell when you play with - again - bad roleplayers who are there for their egos and not to co-create a good story.

I was in a battle like that with people who would force-roleplay someone else. "I smash your face into the wall and your nose crunches!"

"My nose does not crunch and I'm nowhere near a wall and you just miss at everything and I rule."

"No, but your nose is broken and you are simply dazed and are dreaming that you won, but you did not win! I win!"

That's actually funnier and more creative than it actually was. Which was painful to watch.

 

[Loradai]

wow been fun reading all of your responses about gaming. I too have found my favorite RP/gaming partner and married him quick (was afraid someone else would snatch up such a jewel. ). We have enjoyed playing a many video games together (EQ, WoW, D&D online, Diablo, Baulder's Gate ect...) We have just came across a very family friendly and kid friendly one, Wizard 101, We have been running around our way through that recently and it has been quite fun.
I have played in a few of his D&D pencil/paper games as well but I usually am the one that screws up the story line. He and his friends have been playing since they were 8 or so and I have just started so I don't know alot of the lore and so forth and like to do my own thing .
So most of those games I leave as a night out with the guys unless they really want me to play and then I roll up a character but I have not played in a few years now.
I guess I get to play out my RP ideas here and there with people I run across online and so forth. Well enough rambling just thought I would put my ideas/gaming bio up in here

Lora

 

[Recidiva]

wow been fun reading all of your responses about gaming. I too have found my favorite RP/gaming partner and married him quick (was afraid someone else would snatch up such a jewel. ). We have enjoyed playing a many video games together (EQ, WoW, D&D online, Diablo, Baulder's Gate ect...) We have just came across a very family friendly and kid friendly one, Wizard 101, We have been running around our way through that recently and it has been quite fun.
I have played in a few of his D&D pencil/paper games as well but I usually am the one that screws up the story line. He and his friends have been playing since they were 8 or so and I have just started so I don't know alot of the lore and so forth and like to do my own thing .
So most of those games I leave as a night out with the guys unless they really want me to play and then I roll up a character but I have not played in a few years now.
I guess I get to play out my RP ideas here and there with people I run across online and so forth. Well enough rambling just thought I would put my ideas/gaming bio up in here

Lora

Great to meet you

My son played Wizard 101!

He got his own Warcraft account last year for Christmas.

HIs favorite gaming series now is the "Persona" series...and he's taken such an interest in the game and such that now he's wanting to learn Japanese and just bought some DVDs to teach him the language.

 

[satindesire]

Which is why I understand the need for rules in games. I can imagine, without them, many players would just make themselves invincible.

Amongst the majority of gamers, there's a rule that "God-Modding" (I.E. being invincible) is strictly not allowed.

N00bs/"casual"/sucky people still do it, but they seem to always stay out of the better threads. Quality calls to quality, thank God.

 

[Keroin]

It's funny as hell when you play with - again - bad roleplayers who are there for their egos and not to co-create a good story.

I was in a battle like that with people who would force-roleplay someone else. "I smash your face into the wall and your nose crunches!"

"My nose does not crunch and I'm nowhere near a wall and you just miss at everything and I rule."

"No, but your nose is broken and you are simply dazed and are dreaming that you won, but you did not win! I win!"

That's actually funnier and more creative than it actually was. Which was painful to watch.

That is hilarious! But painful at the time, I am sure.

 

[Homburg]

I get it, I just don't get it. If you know what I mean

I've only participated, (in a very limited capacity), in one public, (online), RPG and two private (2 person) RPG's, so I'm far from an expert, but I love creating characters that are damaged, that fail, that could very well die at any moment. But then, I've never played for points or winning or anything like that - I just like the writing part.

I have told people for YEARS that flaws are what makes a character. All the advantages in the world bore me. I want to know what makes life a struggle. Struggle is interesting, overcoming it is what makes a story worthwhile.

In my own case, I adore flawed characters, and my NPC's always have flaws somewhere. I do a lot of voice characterisation when run/play, and frequently do speech impediments, language barriers, accents that are tough to understand, etc. I also like flawed outlooks that don't quite line up with the thrust of the game. Those are tougher to build because you need enough collusion to be a workable part of the plot, but with enough atavistic/misanthropic tendencies to hold the concept together.

The last time I played Vampire, for example, I ran a Nosferatu (the ugly ones) what was a World War One veteran, and was scarred pretty badly by exposure to mustard gas. He'd also lost about 50% of his voice in that exposure, so I made up this rough, gravelly lower-class British accent and refused to raise my voice when people couldn't hear me. He was pretty much a conflict-avoidant coward (again, WWI vet, so he'd seen too much brutality in combat), and socially unwilling due to core level disagreement with the culture of the Camarilla (sociopolitical organisation in the game).

So he's uglier than homemade sin, has this messed up voice (that, for whatever reason, the women in the game found panty-wetting sexy), zero ambition, and a yellow streak up his back. And yet he was one of my best characters ever and everyone in the game loved him.

 

[satindesire]

A sexy Nosferatu is like happy cancer.

Your character is fascinating, but sexy? Those girls got a serious 'bad boy' problem. XD

 

[Keroin]

I have told people for YEARS that flaws are what makes a character. All the advantages in the world bore me. I want to know what makes life a struggle. Struggle is interesting, overcoming it is what makes a story worthwhile.

In my own case, I adore flawed characters, and my NPC's always have flaws somewhere. I do a lot of voice characterisation when run/play, and frequently do speech impediments, language barriers, accents that are tough to understand, etc. I also like flawed outlooks that don't quite line up with the thrust of the game. Those are tougher to build because you need enough collusion to be a workable part of the plot, but with enough atavistic/misanthropic tendencies to hold the concept together.

The last time I played Vampire, for example, I ran a Nosferatu (the ugly ones) what was a World War One veteran, and was scarred pretty badly by exposure to mustard gas. He'd also lost about 50% of his voice in that exposure, so I made up this rough, gravelly lower-class British accent and refused to raise my voice when people couldn't hear me. He was pretty much a conflict-avoidant coward (again, WWI vet, so he'd seen too much brutality in combat), and socially unwilling due to core level disagreement with the culture of the Camarilla (sociopolitical organisation in the game).

So he's uglier than homemade sin, has this messed up voice (that, for whatever reason, the women in the game found panty-wetting sexy), zero ambition, and a yellow streak up his back. And yet he was one of my best characters ever and everyone in the game loved him.

Tension is what drives stories. Without character flaws, there's little opportunity for tension.

Also, I like to figure out what characters biggest assets are...and take them away...tee hee!



...

BTW, I've read a few of Hommy's characters and I must say he is absolutely brilliant at character creation. Brilliant.

 

[FurryFury]

I do adore flaws as long as they don't irritate everyone and make the player group unable to be a cohesive group.

My last vampire character had so many potential flaws that I could see would work and be fun to play. I had to pick between them.

 

[Keroin]

I do adore flaws as long as they don't irritate everyone and make the player group unable to be a cohesive group.

In what way? What kind of flaws?

 

[Recidiva]

I do adore flaws as long as they don't irritate everyone and make the player group unable to be a cohesive group.

My last vampire character had so many potential flaws that I could see would work and be fun to play. I had to pick between them.

Yeah, you have to be careful about your flaws and then sorta quirky-flexible if you can be.

A geas is pretty boring. I'm reminded that while rewatching "Angel" that the inability to have sex is...really not sustainable in a fun way for years. And the "Indie Movie" quirky character that just must have happy hamster smiling faces on gear is tiresome.

But basically you gotta realize you're in a chorus and not a soloist. You gotta be distinct but be able to blend.

 

[Homburg]

A sexy Nosferatu is like happy cancer.

Your character is fascinating, but sexy? Those girls got a serious 'bad boy' problem. XD

It was the voice. Dead honest. I even wore shirts that I use only when I'm going to work on the car and oil-stained jeans. I don't do make-up, but I didn't mind going for a little bit of costume. The voice was just killer though.

I can think of five female players that confessed to me either that said voice was distracting as hell (in a good way) or just flat out turned them on. One in particular that I liked to play with would get very blush-and-giggle when I I RP'ed with in that character. She would make up reasons to interact with that particular character.

--

Tension is what drives stories. Without character flaws, there's little opportunity for tension.

Also, I like to figure out what characters biggest assets are...and take them away...tee hee!

Both of these, very much so.

BTW, I've read a few of Hommy's characters and I must say he is absolutely brilliant at character creation. Brilliant.

Thank you kindly. I really wish you could be around for some of the conversation and interaction that defines these characters.

For exampe, I described Eumaeus and Sammael to you. Eumaeus has a sort of coastal Isles accent. Irish-esque without being quite Irish, and Sammael is very Northern Irish with her harder consonants and stronger lilt. A PC mentioned sticky=notes to Eumaeus, and he'd never heard of them (Eumaeus is a roughly 100yr old vampire and just had not seen them before).

PC: "It's a little yellow note with sticky stuff, adhesive, ont he back.

Eumaeus: Y'mean like a deeecal?

PC: Well, sort of, except the stucky stuff isn't sticky like a decal. It comes off.

E: Why d'fuck would ye want it te come off?

PC: So you can remove it.

E: But ye just stook it te someting.

PC: Yeah, but you can take it off te remove it.

Eumaeus gets distracted by Sammael and begs off from the PC. As they walk off, Eumaeus starts asking Sammael, his ghoul, about sticky notes. Keep in mind that I play both characters, so I'm talking to myself.

E: Sam, what're sticky notes?

Sammael: (she looks at Eumaeus crosswise) Eh, sorta wee piece o' yella paper wot has tacky glue onna back.

E: So tis like a deecal then.

S: No, ye c'n take it off.

E: (getting irritated) Don' make no sense. Why d'fuck would ye want te take it off when ye jus' fookin stook it on?

S: (getting exasperated) Oh bloody hell, I'll jus' show ye.

The last line happens as they are leaving the room, and the players are all laughing. Sam comes back in, grabs some post-it notes from somebody and leaves. A few minutes later, Eumaeus comes back in to the original PC, and holds up a post-it.

E: Dese... are fookin' brilliant.

And then he walks out. The players fell out laughing.

It was intended to be funny, but also to point out the fact that the 100yr old vampire has no clue about a lot of things that you and I take completely for granted. Stuff like this is what I dig about these games, and never quite comes across in text

--

I do adore flaws as long as they don't irritate everyone and make the player group unable to be a cohesive group.

But basically you gotta realize you're in a chorus and not a soloist. You gotta be distinct but be able to blend.

Very much so. Far too many people make characters with unworkable personalities, then whine that they're "It's not my fault, I'm just playing my character!" I always say the same thing - "You wrote the character that way. Yes, it is your fault."

 

[Keroin]

Thank you kindly. I really wish you could be around for some of the conversation and interaction that defines these characters...


And then he walks out. The players fell out laughing.

It was intended to be funny, but also to point out the fact that the 100yr old vampire has no clue about a lot of things that you and I take completely for granted. Stuff like this is what I dig about these games, and never quite comes across in text

Ha, cute! Yeah, I'm sure everyone got a good laugh there.

In my old writer's group, one of the members was an actor. We would all submit our work for critique a week before the meeting, then we would read a portion of the work at the meeting. Now, with this guy, I would read his written work and be underwhelmed but as soon as he started reading it aloud the words would suddenly spring to life. The contrast was strong enough that I actually brought it up to the group, in discussion.

Lots of slam poetry is like that. On paper it's...meh...but performed by the poet it's breathtaking.

Someday I shall have to see you "in character"

Very much so. Far too many people make characters with unworkable personalities, then whine that they're "It's not my fault, I'm just playing my character!" I always say the same thing - "You wrote the character that way. Yes, it is your fault."

Interesting. Yes, I could see that happening.

 

[Homburg]

Ha, cute! Yeah, I'm sure everyone got a good laugh there.

In my old writer's group, one of the members was an actor. We would all submit our work for critique a week before the meeting, then we would read a portion of the work at the meeting. Now, with this guy, I would read his written work and be underwhelmed but as soon as he started reading it aloud the words would suddenly spring to life. The contrast was strong enough that I actually brought it up to the group, in discussion.

Lots of slam poetry is like that. On paper it's...meh...but performed by the poet it's breathtaking.

Someday I shall have to see you "in character"

That is the exact problem. I am simply not good enough as a writer to really bring off what I characterise vocally. I am utterly jealous of people that write good dialogue for that reason.

 

[Keroin]

That is the exact problem. I am simply not good enough as a writer to really bring off what I characterise vocally. I am utterly jealous of people that write good dialogue for that reason.

Oh pish posh (as CM would say). From what I have read from you, your written dialogue skills are just dandy. They may not pack the punch of what you can do in person but that's just a difference of medium - watching a movie will always feel different than reading a book. You have nothing to be ashamed of in the written dialogue department, quite the opposite.

My dialogue skills are solid, where I stumble is geography. I am forever leaving my readers "lost" - not a huge problem in RP but definitely in fiction. Now whenever I edit my work I am always checking (and double checking) to make sure I have oriented my reader.

 

[Homburg]

Oh pish posh (as CM would say). From what I have read from you, your written dialogue skills are just dandy. They may not pack the punch of what you can do in person but that's just a difference of medium - watching a movie will always feel different than reading a book. You have nothing to be ashamed of in the written dialogue department, quite the opposite.

My dialogue skills are solid, where I stumble is geography. I am forever leaving my readers "lost" - not a huge problem in RP but definitely in fiction. Now whenever I edit my work I am always checking (and double checking) to make sure I have oriented my reader.

*blinks*

I hadn't even thought about geography in writing.

Something new to fret about.

 

[Keroin]

*blinks*

I hadn't even thought about geography in writing.

Something new to fret about.

LOL, it's really not an issue in RP, in my opinion. No fretting.

Let me fret about it.

 

[Homburg]

Well, considering that most of the locations are in my brain, I can generally orient the descriptions however I want.

Still...

 

[Keroin]

Well, considering that most of the locations are in my brain, I can generally orient the descriptions however I want.

Still...

Well, the difference is in RP you can jump out of "the story" to explain things to people. You can say, in advance, "This scene takes place in a restaurant on Pier 46 in Seattle..." then give everyone a brief description of the surroundings before play starts.

In fiction, you have to weave all that into the narrative, as unobtrusively as possible, often from the POV of one character, so it's a bit trickier. Also you can't provide photos or links to photos .

 

[FurryFury]

In what way? What kind of flaws?

I'm sorry, in what way what? LOL. I really am not sure what you are asking?

Yeah, you have to be careful about your flaws and then sorta quirky-flexible if you can be.

A geas is pretty boring. I'm reminded that while rewatching "Angel" that the inability to have sex is...really not sustainable in a fun way for years. And the "Indie Movie" quirky character that just must have happy hamster smiling faces on gear is tiresome.

But basically you gotta realize you're in a chorus and not a soloist. You gotta be distinct but be able to blend.

I agree.

<snip>Very much so. Far too many people make characters with unworkable personalities, then whine that they're "It's not my fault, I'm just playing my character!" I always say the same thing - "You wrote the character that way. Yes, it is your fault."

Afuckingmen! I HATE that. Far too many are really ass holes just trying to hide behind that bullshit.

 

[aniven]

Bouncing around games atm. Quit EQ, picked up Dungeons and Dragons Online for a while again but its always been a side game. Can't seem to keep focus'ed on it. Thinking about picking up EQII again but I have reservations. I've never really been able to become immersed in it but have real life friends on AB. Maybe their entertainment factor will win out lol.

 

[Recidiva]

Bouncing around games atm. Quit EQ, picked up Dungeons and Dragons Online for a while again but its always been a side game. Can't seem to keep focus'ed on it. Thinking about picking up EQII again but I have reservations. I've never really been able to become immersed in it but have real life friends on AB. Maybe their entertainment factor will win out lol.

They've made a ton of changes to EQ2, I've been having a lot of fun this time around.

New Halas is out and the homes there are gorgeous...and transportation is a jillion times easier. Give it a try

 

[aniven]

Poking around on a buddies account right now before I activate mine, the accounts page was down this morning for maintance :/

My issue is they all feel like casters, no matter what I play. Combat arts etc eh oh well there are always the tradeskills!