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<blockquote data-quote="fusangite" data-source="post: 3051287" data-attributes="member: 7240"><p>I've been wanting to comment on a phenomenon I've been noticing for a while here on ENWorld and this thread has given me the perfect opportunity. Thanks wayne62682 for the opportunity.</p><p></p><p>In my experience, a character's qualities, traits, quirks and background are not something you decide before you play the character. They are things that arise through the process of play. But thanks to character creation mechanics like GURPS and the longstanding tradition of PCs writing up a character background piece before starting to play, we seem to have developed this idea that our characters are like parts in a play or movie -- something predetermined, to be acted-out in a series of situations.</p><p></p><p>When I make a character, I don't know very much about him. As I play him and he reacts spontaneously and authentically to situations that confront him, I learn more. I usually don't know anything about my character's family until the moment he starts talking about his family. It is through the process of play that characters become textured, complex, real entities; who they are is formed by their experiences. Instead of focusing on the experiences your character may or may not have had before you became his player, focus on the experiences you/he have through the process of play.</p><p></p><p>In my view, too many preconceived notions about a character hurt his development. So do really obvious two-dimensional quirks such as accents, frequent shouting, slogans, exaggerated verbal styles and inflexible codes of conduct or systems of belief. Look at your character's actions over a month or two and ask yourself what you already know about him; that's the basis for authentic play.</p><p></p><p>People often seem to have trouble distinguishing between role-play intensive gaming and performance-intensive gaming. If you are playing a long-term character as opposed to a just-for-laughs cardboard cutout in a one-shot, make sure your character is someone you can play regardless of how relaxed or hyped your are for a game; make him someone who is not a burden for you to carry. Putting on a performance does not equal roleplaying and, quite often, gets in the way of it.</p><p></p><p>In sum, do what the DMG tells DMs to do with alignment: observe your character in action and then describe him; learn who your character <em>already</em> is. Don't describe him and then try to shoe-horn him into your preconceived description.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="fusangite, post: 3051287, member: 7240"] I've been wanting to comment on a phenomenon I've been noticing for a while here on ENWorld and this thread has given me the perfect opportunity. Thanks wayne62682 for the opportunity. In my experience, a character's qualities, traits, quirks and background are not something you decide before you play the character. They are things that arise through the process of play. But thanks to character creation mechanics like GURPS and the longstanding tradition of PCs writing up a character background piece before starting to play, we seem to have developed this idea that our characters are like parts in a play or movie -- something predetermined, to be acted-out in a series of situations. When I make a character, I don't know very much about him. As I play him and he reacts spontaneously and authentically to situations that confront him, I learn more. I usually don't know anything about my character's family until the moment he starts talking about his family. It is through the process of play that characters become textured, complex, real entities; who they are is formed by their experiences. Instead of focusing on the experiences your character may or may not have had before you became his player, focus on the experiences you/he have through the process of play. In my view, too many preconceived notions about a character hurt his development. So do really obvious two-dimensional quirks such as accents, frequent shouting, slogans, exaggerated verbal styles and inflexible codes of conduct or systems of belief. Look at your character's actions over a month or two and ask yourself what you already know about him; that's the basis for authentic play. People often seem to have trouble distinguishing between role-play intensive gaming and performance-intensive gaming. If you are playing a long-term character as opposed to a just-for-laughs cardboard cutout in a one-shot, make sure your character is someone you can play regardless of how relaxed or hyped your are for a game; make him someone who is not a burden for you to carry. Putting on a performance does not equal roleplaying and, quite often, gets in the way of it. In sum, do what the DMG tells DMs to do with alignment: observe your character in action and then describe him; learn who your character [i]already[/i] is. Don't describe him and then try to shoe-horn him into your preconceived description. [/QUOTE]
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