Hiraetha
Mystic
I think (And I do think most people would agree) that the Hollow World server is amazing, and a great community overall. Yes, it has some faults, but they aren't things that can't be fixed. And, as a disclaimer, this might be a bit long, and contain opinions that you may disagree with- which is fine. Just don't rant at people (including me) in the comments because you feel that I said something wrong. If you want to discuss it, I'd be happy to. More than happy to. And perhaps you can sway me. Probably not I'm pretty stubborn.
Of course, there will always be people that go against the general guidelines of RP. This thread, specifically, is on character development. I will not use any specific examples, because I think that when people make these mistakes, they really don't realize that it is overpowering. I am also not saying that I did not do this in the early months of my RP experience, because I did. I personally have tried to minimize the amount that I do this, like a lot of people do.
When a new character is created, they are new. Most, unless born into a noble family, don't start as nobles. Most don't start as being perfect rangers or assassins, or even pirates. You have to work your way up to these things, and if you start out with everything your character can have, such as perfect stealth and the ability to scale ten foot walls, RP with become boring for you. Fast. Roleplay is meant to include the development of characters.
These are examples that I have made up, and have nothing to do with any one person from this server.
Say person A creates a character. A wonderful, stealthy, dagger-throwing character. And, in their back story, they have perfected those two things.
And then theres person B. Person B has had there character for nearly six months, compared to the week of person A. Now, their character started out with nearly nothing. Over time, say, they joined the Rangers. Or Darko's Crew. (Amazing people, really~) They developed skills- and did minimal time skips, and really spent time on their character.
Character A and B get into a fight. A can throw daggers and leap over ten foot walls, apparently. B can shoot an arrow, though it isn't as accurate as it could be. Which, tell me now, is more realistic? Because I'm fairly sure- as I have thrown knives in competitions before- you need actual experience. I have been throwing knives for nearly six years now, and for the first two I could hardly hit a target. It is still hard for me to hit a heart on a target, nonetheless directly where I am aiming.
Character A throws a knife, and hits B in the shoulder. Just before the knife hits him, B shoots an arrow. A expertly dodges the arrow- NO. Stop. Do you know how hard it is to dodge an arrow? Well, apparently in A's backstory his trained for a long time. Is that fair to B, who, for so long, worked on their character's skills? No. It's not.
Not everyone can jump roofs, or dodge knives-hell, if I tried that, I'd fall to my death, or get stabbed.
Of course, not everyone does this. I see plenty of people in RPs that have worked for 2+ years on one character. And that is amazing.
Another thing/example is languages. Nobody can learn a language in three days of RP. That is hardly three weeks. For example, someone (A) wants to learn Fae. First- that language is fairly sacred, is it not?- so I do think it would be hard to find a book. And if you where to get a Caparii to teach you, it would take a long time- and not time-skipped time. RP time. Or say when someone is learning a language from a book. I know I get confused looking at my German textbook sometimes, because I have no idea how to pronounce things. So- what about things like grammar? It is hard to become fluent in a language- let along remember all of those words- in that little amount of time.
Then there is timeskipping childhoods. Many of you know my little Primrose, aevil sweet little six year old. I started her at that age because I felt it was an age where she could do things, but was still a child. Yes, she was a temp at first- to test- and I admit, I have fallen in love with her. But I don't plan on skipping her whole childhood to get her to sixteen.
I know playing a little kid gets boring. But you can make it fun! I have so much fun playing a little six year old, and I do it for nearly eight hours a day. Or more. Playing as a child allows you to get to know your character. Give them opportunities they otherwise wouldn't have. Let them bond with people.
And yes, timeskipping messes stuff up. At least in big amounts. If you age ten years in one day- One day little Prim would be a sweet little six year old, and the next nearly a full grown adult. I don't think that'd be fun for me or the people around me.
Right, last subject- I, too, have done this with a few of my characters, and it is a bit of a touchy subject. If you want to go down to the last paragraph, feel free! Love. Character love. I don't think love develops at first sight. People have to know each other- and if two characters marry after knowing eachother for a month RP time... It's not realistic. It has to develop, (hence character development~) Anywho, that was a bit off topic, but just a point to be made by myself. Not sure if anyone else agrees with me.
I tend to see, when people do these things, they tire of their character and want a new one. And if they had put in that extra time, their character could develop massively into a well-rounded, overall amazing character.
Of course, there will always be people that go against the general guidelines of RP. This thread, specifically, is on character development. I will not use any specific examples, because I think that when people make these mistakes, they really don't realize that it is overpowering. I am also not saying that I did not do this in the early months of my RP experience, because I did. I personally have tried to minimize the amount that I do this, like a lot of people do.
When a new character is created, they are new. Most, unless born into a noble family, don't start as nobles. Most don't start as being perfect rangers or assassins, or even pirates. You have to work your way up to these things, and if you start out with everything your character can have, such as perfect stealth and the ability to scale ten foot walls, RP with become boring for you. Fast. Roleplay is meant to include the development of characters.
These are examples that I have made up, and have nothing to do with any one person from this server.
Say person A creates a character. A wonderful, stealthy, dagger-throwing character. And, in their back story, they have perfected those two things.
And then theres person B. Person B has had there character for nearly six months, compared to the week of person A. Now, their character started out with nearly nothing. Over time, say, they joined the Rangers. Or Darko's Crew. (Amazing people, really~) They developed skills- and did minimal time skips, and really spent time on their character.
Character A and B get into a fight. A can throw daggers and leap over ten foot walls, apparently. B can shoot an arrow, though it isn't as accurate as it could be. Which, tell me now, is more realistic? Because I'm fairly sure- as I have thrown knives in competitions before- you need actual experience. I have been throwing knives for nearly six years now, and for the first two I could hardly hit a target. It is still hard for me to hit a heart on a target, nonetheless directly where I am aiming.
Character A throws a knife, and hits B in the shoulder. Just before the knife hits him, B shoots an arrow. A expertly dodges the arrow- NO. Stop. Do you know how hard it is to dodge an arrow? Well, apparently in A's backstory his trained for a long time. Is that fair to B, who, for so long, worked on their character's skills? No. It's not.
Not everyone can jump roofs, or dodge knives-
Of course, not everyone does this. I see plenty of people in RPs that have worked for 2+ years on one character. And that is amazing.
Another thing/example is languages. Nobody can learn a language in three days of RP. That is hardly three weeks. For example, someone (A) wants to learn Fae. First- that language is fairly sacred, is it not?- so I do think it would be hard to find a book. And if you where to get a Caparii to teach you, it would take a long time- and not time-skipped time. RP time. Or say when someone is learning a language from a book. I know I get confused looking at my German textbook sometimes, because I have no idea how to pronounce things. So- what about things like grammar? It is hard to become fluent in a language- let along remember all of those words- in that little amount of time.
Then there is timeskipping childhoods. Many of you know my little Primrose, a
I know playing a little kid gets boring. But you can make it fun! I have so much fun playing a little six year old, and I do it for nearly eight hours a day. Or more. Playing as a child allows you to get to know your character. Give them opportunities they otherwise wouldn't have. Let them bond with people.
And yes, timeskipping messes stuff up. At least in big amounts. If you age ten years in one day- One day little Prim would be a sweet little six year old, and the next nearly a full grown adult. I don't think that'd be fun for me or the people around me.
Right, last subject- I, too, have done this with a few of my characters, and it is a bit of a touchy subject. If you want to go down to the last paragraph, feel free! Love. Character love. I don't think love develops at first sight. People have to know each other- and if two characters marry after knowing eachother for a month RP time... It's not realistic. It has to develop, (hence character development~) Anywho, that was a bit off topic, but just a point to be made by myself. Not sure if anyone else agrees with me.
I tend to see, when people do these things, they tire of their character and want a new one. And if they had put in that extra time, their character could develop massively into a well-rounded, overall amazing character.
