The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and Tolkien - The One Ring

by Molpadia* » Mon Mar 17, 2003 2:46 am

Yes, good job ConquestLord. I've had the idea for Molpadia floating around my head for ages and have only now introduced her, im picking up on alot of the things Wandering said. I think this is one guy that really knows what he's talking about. Your advise was very good also Es. Molpadia, The Deathsong

by **Wandering but not lost** » Mon Mar 17, 2003 11:34 pm

I am glad that you are enjoying my advice very much. I am thrilled you feel that you are all benefiting it because that is what I am trying to achieve. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0> I'm always glad to help. First off I think you did a very good job with his past. I liked that you had the cause of his problems set in a misunderstanding where his innocent father was killed. It has a lot of promise in my eyes as a story. One thing I wondered too was if the Father wanted him to "go.. to.. Mordor..." because he wanted his son to get revenge against Gondor or maybe to continue his hopes of forcing a surrender. It is interesting. I find it hard to believe a general would lose loyalty at his own death so I interpret those words to mean that the son misinterpreted his father's wish, in that case I find it fascinating. I even think an interesting twist would be if the son later found out that he is doing the opposite of his father's wish or something like that by helping Mordor. If you did intend for the father to hate Gondor, then add some more to it than the father just being executed under wrong pretenses possibly. I'm not sure what to suggest. Anyway, I like the idea very much. However, there are a few issues I wonder with some details that seem somewhat odd to me. The first is at the execution him storming the guards, killing them, and trying to kill faramir. I wonder what was done to prevent Faramir's death without killing your character in the process because i would think if someone did so much killing that a group of nearby archers (you are in a castle swarming with troops armed for war) would come and take him out. At best he would be subdued by brute force maybe out of sympathy for his loss of a father (but this is less likely if he killed people). The other thing I wonder if about him stealing the horse and tourching the stables. The reason once again is because of the defenses in the castle. I imagine it would be nearly impossible to even really just walk out of the castle because it is geared for war and thus has its gates generally closed probably with very heavy guards. Thus, I would try and figure out how that was manages especially if you are agressive and overt in such a way as burning the entire stables. It would be impossible to sneak really. The final question is why did they let him just go to Sauron since most common folk could not (or would see his Mouth at best). I would suggest possibly making him have some sort of feigned message. That also makes it hard as to why he would not have seen the Mouth but you may be able to think around that. Anyway, I think the overall general concepts of his past are great. I think where there is some trouble is with the specific details as I mentioned above but I think you may be able to smooth that out in some way. As for the personality, what is he like out of battle? What else is to his character besides his hate of Gondor? Is he nice to his men/orcs or cruel to them? Also, what type of people does he command; are they orcs or men etc? He seems like a berserker character to me, from reading things. I think that is a very interesting type of character to play that not too many attempt. When he is mad, and thus more focused on attacking than strategy (if he is indeed a berserker though I may be misreading things and if so correct me), how do his men handle? Do they ever suffer from his rage and the consequences of possibly bold or foolish actions based solely on revenge? Did he know other people in Gondor before he left that were good to him? Maybe even other commanding officers that he would be hesitant to attack or kill since his father may have been friends with them? How does he react if he is in battle with them? As well, who else did he leave behind in Gondor and how do they react to him and his actions now? How does he react when fighting non-Gondorians like the elves or Rohan etc? Do any of the commanders of Sauron's army dislike him due to his background and what do they do about that? These are just a few small ideas. I am sure you can think of more and I may think of more later. Anyway, overall good character actually. I really think it has potential. Be careful, word of warning, playing a villain in a thread because so much of the thread's progress relies on you posting a lot and being very sharp. It takes extra effort so make sure you are ready for that dedication before joining. Also, don't join too many threads at once since it will be hard to focus on the thread where you are a villain in which takes a lot of focus. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0>

by **LadyElessar** » Mon Mar 31, 2003 6:37 pm

Reviving this thread as I'm attempting to break into the world of role playing. I've posted on a few other threads introducing myself as a big fan of Tolkien and of creative writing, consequently I thought I'd venture into role playing. I'm pretty busy with school work, but I'm slowly creating a character and before I post it in the archives or try my hand at role playing, I'm looking for some constructive criticism! This seems like a very useful and informative thread with some very helpful people so I thought I'd look here for some help! Thanks! NAME: Terelas RACE: Man of Gondor AGE: 26 years LINEAGE: Descendant of Tarostar, the seventh king of Gondor, family line resulted from illicit union with woman of Rohan. Terelas often dreams of one day ruling Gondor as Rómendacil III. Father was Bartamil, Ranger of Ithilien killed in skirmish with Easterlings, and mother was, Carcil, unwed woman of Gondor. HEIGHT: 6’0 BUILD: Not particularly tall, lean and muscular HAIR COLOR: Dirty blonde cut much shorter than most men, rarely seen as his head is often covered. EYE COLOR: Deep hazel with flecks of amber WEAPONS: Has accumulated many over his years in the wild. Still carries staff of Lebethron that belonged to his father, and the bow he has possessed since youth along with the seemingly always half-full quiver of arrows. Also carries a short sword, hunting knife he keeps in his boot and a broad sword of unknown origin he calls Amarth (Sindarin word for 'Doom') DRESS: Dark breeches tucked into deerskin pair of boots, dark green or tan shirt over which he wears a heavy black hooded cloak in colder weather. Atop his head he often wears a highly peculiar thinly knit woolen hat, commonly worn by children on the outskirts of Firien Wood. SKILLS: Skilled bowman and hunter, stronger with a short sword than with Amarth, but still a very skilled swordsman. Ability to befriend most animals – especially thrush, horse, dog, squirrel and fox. Reasonable comprehension and speaking level in Elvish assumed to be acquired from the learned people of his village. Acquired some medicinal healing skills from the woman who looked after him as a child, very self-reliant since a young age. Skilled builder and craftsmen as his wandering life demands it. MARITAL STATUS: Single, with no known female contacts. COMPANIONS: Halax, a dark bay stallion standing around 16h with white snip and one white sock adopted by Terelas as a yearling. Not one of the Mearas, but prior to acquisition by Terelas, part of a band of horses rumored to have faint lineage in Felarof, the great horse of Eorl. Oril, red coated hunting hound with numerous battle scars believed to have also been acquired outside Firien Wood of unknown age HISTORY: Born out of wedlock, Terelas, illegitimate child of Bartamil, Ranger of Ithilien, to avoid the humiliation of his mother, Carcil, was raised by the people of his mother’s village on the banks of the River Anduin. Named for the fourth beacon of Gondor, Terelas learned from the men of the village and became both a skilled bowman and swordsman. Having no permanent home, he was known even in his childhood as a wanderer and a loner for often spending days and nights outside the village on his own. He taught himself the ways of the wild, having always possessed a strong tie with nature and befriended most of the beasts of Anorien. In his eighteenth year, Terelas returned after an overnight on the plains with a leggy dark bay colt trailing behind him. Horsemanship was not a skill of the village and rumors quickly flew about his mysterious acquisition of the young horse, culminating in the accusation that Terelas had somehow stolen the colt from within the Rammas Echor. Taking great offense to the accusation, he left the village several days after and was never seen again on the banks of the Anduin. Knowing only the name of his biological father, Terelas set off from the small village where he was raised armed with a staff of Lebethron, a bow and half-full quiver of arrows, a short sword, a hunting knife and a yearling he named Halax. He waited several years before traveling to Minas Tirith in search of information about his father, Bartamil, fallen Ranger of Ithilien. First sent away from the city’s gates, Terelas brought forth the staff of Lebethron that he knew had been his fathers and was admitted into the annals to research his family history. Tracing the complicated history of houses and families, when Terelas learned of his family’s true history he promptly left the White City and can now be found wandering in and around the many foothills north and south of the White Mountains. He desires to one-day encounter the race of elves, but has never left the borders of Gondor. CHARACTERISTICS: Boyish features complemented by his unusually short hair-length, Terelas can first give off an appearance of innocence and harmlessness. However, he is neither and can be very quick to anger if one isn’t careful. Other than Halax and Orl he has no other companion and has no known close friends. Upon first meeting one would assume Terelas’ people skills were lacking. However, he has been known to frequent several small villages in the foothills along the West Road and the borders of Rohan and those who encounter him whether at an inn, tavern or blacksmith find him a pleasant, if not very quiet and soft spoken young man. Most find his entourage somewhat peculiar as he is sometimes seen walking rather than riding Halax, who trails behind him along with Oril. To catch a glimpse of Terelas is a rare occurrence as he often keeps to the highlands and forests. A rider of Rohan would be unable to distinguish him as anything more than a dark blur of horse and rider if not for the white sock on Halax’s right rear leg. Terelas is extremely perceptive, resourceful, and intelligent despite his volatility at times, which is most likely inherited from his father. Like many, he is especially quick to anger after a few pints of ale - his main weakness - and consequently tends to avoid crowded taverns. Similarly poor treatment of Halax and denying Oril entrance into any buildings is seen as a personal insult. Although a sensitive young man, he is a fierce and valiant foe of both man and beast, rumored to have slain a wild boar with his bare hands. Often mistaken for a Ranger, Terelas’ ambiguity gives him a dangerous and mysterious air and most people know very little about him as he mostly keeps to himself and reveals little about his background. Despite his quiet behavior and ability to appear rather standoffish, those who are patient and able to generate conversation find him to be still very much a young man, learning about the ways of the world and most importantly of people.

by **Wandering but not lost** » Fri Apr 18, 2003 12:22 am

First off, I think you have a wonderful character. What I love the most about him is that you have a character that seems real. He does not have any really illustrious larger than life personality (one of the problems I feel has developed into my own character). You keep your character realistic and he seems to fit well into the context of Middle Earth. He seems nice, but not so nice that he is unrealistic. You do a great job with your details as well- very thorough. I dont know if the lineage will restrict you as far as what time period you can play in since I am not too familiar with the lineage of Gondor to that degree nor do I know how many generations down your heritage is. Anyway, I actually am usually pretty good with advice but i have none for you. I really feel confident in your abilities. This is a great foundation to start off of- one of the best I have seen probably- because it really does not have any extremes that make it unreal. I guess my only advice is general- let the character dictate to you what they want to do. This can be hard sometimes though... hahaha. My character actually told me he wanted to sit in a cave as a hermit for a few months and then moved into a city to live alone for a while too... hahaha. Sometimes you desperatly wanted them to do things (I wanted him to travel) but they wont want to. Listen to them. I feel confident you will. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0>

by **LadyElessar** » Fri Apr 18, 2003 10:19 am

Wow! Thank you so much. I was expecting you to pick out tons of flaws! I know the lineage might be a bit restricting but I should add the word distant to describe it. The time period that I created him into is around 3018 and the War of the Ring so I'm talking 2000+ years. I don't know if this will factor into the difficulty of finding a roleplay to fit into or not. I haven't really looked for one yet. I still haven't even posted in the Lucky Tavern Inn! I'm a bit nervous to get Terelas out into the world as I know like you said, he'll probably lead me all sorts of places! But thank you so so much for your kind words. I created him about three weeks ago and actually just began writing a small story to get even more familiar with the character. I'm not sure if that's normal or not but I didn't want to jump right into a role play and I didn't want to just let him sit there. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif"border=0> I really can't tell you how much I appreciate your response - to risk sounding redundant - thanks again!! I was really nervous about creating a character and even more about posting, but you have made me even more excited to enter into the world of RP. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0>

by **Tunär** » Fri Apr 18, 2003 10:39 am

hey wandering, Thanks a bunch for the info.... i'm thinking about making an RP but i couldn't think of any good characters... thanx <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif"border=0>

by **Wandering but not lost** » Wed Apr 23, 2003 12:10 am

You are very welcome. Feel free to AIM me btw if you have any questions my sn is Taranwandering. Anyway, I really do like how maleable your character is. There is a lot of different paths you could take with him. As for joining a thread, read a few posts first on some good ones to get an idea of what they want. Well, anyway tell me if you join one. I'll watch for you a little bit just to see how you are doing since I bet you will do just fine. I'm actually going to try slowly easing back into Role Playing myself. I have been absent for quite some time... <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif"border=0> I found one that actually seems somewhat unique which is hard to find because it deals a lot with a vampire as a protagonist. I'm debating if I want to use Wandering or make a new character.

by **DragynMaster** » Sat Aug 30, 2003 12:41 pm

Casually BUMPING this thread for the eyes of newbies. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif"border=0>

by **Wandering but not lost** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 6:28 am

Wow thanks for bringing this thread back. I havent seen it in ages. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0> Anyway Welcome to TORC. I bet you've had the whole welcome speech a million times so I wont say it unless you ask me to. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0> If you want to post anything here for people to look at, feel free. <img src="http://www.tolkienonline.com/mb/i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif"border=0>

by **EiltDruin** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 3:08 pm

Thanks you helped me out alot, I thought I had read everything, But now I know I have not, See you around.

by **Wandering but not lost** » Sat Oct 04, 2003 4:43 am

I felt like bringing this back incase someone was starting out and hadnt seen it. I'm also toying right now with maybe entering an RPG thread I saw... I dont know though... but I figured this was at least a way I could break back into the pony with a post somewhere... Its hard to get back into the pony once you had a prolonged absence...

by **laureanna** » Mon May 31, 2004 4:23 pm

Wow! This is going to take me hours to read, but it is chock full of good advice. Therefore, I'm bumping it.

by **Wandering but not lost** » Tue Aug 03, 2004 2:26 am

Wow it made me smile to see this thread brought back by someone. I'm making a new character probably soon that is going to be played in a similar style to Wandering. I know the board isnt quite as adaptable to repeatedly using a character as it used to be but I still am very fond of the idea of having a character that goes through several journies. I can write a much more advanced personality since I get more time to develop it...

by **luthienelflover** » Tue Aug 03, 2004 6:32 am

I agree with that sentiment! When I first started RPing, I used different characters for every RP, but I've found that it's much more interesting to use the same one over and over. Unfortunately, the character I use for RP-based guilds (like the Bard's Guild and the Ring's Guild) is vapid and boring, but after using her for so long I don't really feel I can change her without invalidating all the RPs I've used her in so far. I should have been able to develop her personality in those, but it never worked. However, in a couple of my non-Guild RPs, I have a couple of all right characters, and one whom I am just madly in love with -- whatever he wants to do, I have to let him do it; I can't refuse him anything

I've only used him in two RPs (concurrently, of course, which is frustrating because you don't know the outcome of the first one so you can't say anything about it in the second!) but he's so much more alive than any of my other characters.

Anyway, I just wanted to say that I agree: playing the same character in multiple RPs is a very good way to develop their character. (Unless they're insipid to begin with, of course

)

Luthy

by **Quimrill_Renctar** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:55 am

Amen to that, Luth, That was my problem too.

My first characters when I started rping years back were all about what I percieved be coolness. They could fight, they were the tall strong silent types who dressed snazzily and had the personalities of a rock. The first character I evere made for an Rp was named Gurth, and while he is still great, and has a special place in my heart, and I still use him, I can't change his nonexistent personality anymore because it would destroy his essence.

s'shame really, he is still my favorite char. Though I have made a few really great colorfull characters here, I have three I have created here that I am particularly proud of.

by **luthienelflover** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 11:03 am

Quim, that was exactly my problem with the Luthien I play in all those RPs -- when I created her, I thought she was just the coolest thing ever. She was my first RP character, and while I had done a lot of non-RP writing (none of it much good, though

) and I knew what a good character should be like, I assumed I would be able to develop her later. So I started her off being a good fighter, very shy but with good social skills otherwise, pretty and of course Elvish. It all makes for a very dull combination

by **Quimrill_Renctar** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 11:46 am

Eh... yeah I hear you

lol! elvish, that was always my problem with elves. I don't mean to bach anybodies characters, don't get me wrong, I have seen and played with many a good writer with an elf on their shoulder but I never made one myself because they seemed to perfect. Just alittle too twinkish to me

I mean, and elf could be as old as you pleased and still look hot :roll:

an elf could know every concievable thing, because they were so old
an elf could have lightning quick reflexes, because they just could
an could have mistical magical powers because they were magical beings
an elf had a elloquence that no one could rival
an elf jump higher and run faster and go longer, because they just could
an elf was wise and did not make mistakes, and was not irrational
an elf be related to just about everybody famous, just because they were so old and had distant cousins who married well
An elf new everybody famous because they were so old and where at the right place at the right time at some point
an elf could have ancient and magical armor/weaponry, just because they could
an elf could have seen everything there was to seen and done everything there was to do because they were so old
and elf could have deep inner conflic and saddness over great wars, because they were so old
elves are immortal

Now there is nothing wrong with all that. Its just when you get people who put it all into one character and make this ubber Godlike, and gorgious, being that can crush huge armies with a single blow from his "soul eating sword of doom" forged by the legendary smithies of some place specialy in the land of that one unreachable, except by the very famous few, place; and still manage to pull of young and innocent.

For the same reason I never make, mages or wizzards. There are some good ones out there, but I prefere not to go there. If you can balance it all and make your character real and interesting, then you are truely good.

I personally prefer the flawed race of men. Men live and die pretty fast. If you want to make one live longer, take into account the extened life times of most men in middle earth or give him some blood from the ancient men of the west. Men also aren't perfect, they can be ugly, they can be clumsy as stumps, they can be rough and inexperienced in everything. I love a character with a good dose of flaws to backup all his better points.

by **luthienelflover** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 1:32 pm

LOL! Great descriptions of Elves. Now I can feel good, becuase at least my character isn't THAT bad!!

She can fight rather well, she has good reflexes and survival techniques, and she's boring as heck. But she's not sooper-dooper powefrul!!!!11

I agree that Men are the most interesting to write about, and my favorite character is a Man. However, I think that if you play young Elves (young being 500 or younger

) it can be interesting, because they don't have as much life experience so you can avoid a lot of the problems you mentioned.

Luthy

by **Lady_Galadriel786** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 1:49 pm

HAY!! WHat are you people trying to say? :angry:

Elena is a pretty old Elf and she's STILL very interesting!!! And so is Morion! *bleh*

by **Quimrill_Renctar** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 2:35 pm

lol, no worries LadyG, your one of those good writeres I mentioned, who have and elf on their shoulder. Its just when you get into the unstoppable, godlike elves that things get a little boring and frustrating. I mean what is the fun with playing when one of the characters can just snapp his or her fingers and everything is allright again.

I admit, it is fun to do that every once in while, say, in a situation that your character excells in, but your character should not always know just what to do everytime. That should be left to elderly NPCs and bad guys.

I do have one second generation halfelven character, but he is my evil bad dude who I bring in on the opposite side of the some of the rps I join or start just to give the good guys a real run for their money. I can make him seem twinkish and very Godlike and aloof, but that's for the most part alright with bad guys, because the ultimately loose in the end anyway.

I've been tempted to write an and Elven character but I think I would give him to many flaws. Its not entirely writers faults when they make Elves "too powerfull". I mean Tolkien did make them pretty hard to beat himself, and he did a good job at it too. So its almost as though if you make a elf with alot of flaws you are making a very strange and clumsy elf indeed

. Its a hard balance to strike, and I haven't even tride to strike it. I salute all of you out there that have made it work!

*salutes*
LadyG
Luthien

by **BrninThedwarf** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 2:42 pm

Ha!! I loved that desctiption of elves. That's the way I see them too...No offense Lady G. I am sure that you don't fit in with that description.

I personally love Durin's folk. The dwarves. They aren't tall and beautiful like the elves or the most commonly used races of men, they don't have great powers or a daunting physical appearance, and they don't live forever. People have asked me why did I choose a dwarf, well here's why:

1.They don't live forever, but they live longer than even the men of the Edain. 250 is an average top age.

2.They are a stout and strong race. Made for long labours.

3.They are the greatest smiths in all of ME.

4.They are comical and jovial by nature, and they have a love of life akin to the elves.

5.They are not able to be daunted by magical forces. (To paraphrase Tolkien: "No power was able to add or subtract years to their lives, nor could any power daunt or control them.")

6.Because their beginnings were unique.

7.Because I am unique on TORC, because I am an active dwarf character.(Excluding Wind Walker, I haven't seen any other dwarf characters that are active since I've been here.)

Quimrill_Renctar wrote:My first characters when I started rping years back were all about what I percieved be coolness. They could fight, they were the tall strong silent types who dressed snazzily and had the personalities of a rock

I came close to falling into the same trap with my character. That being the lack of personality. Brnin was strong and ready for some orc wipping, but lacked substance. My sister actually brought this to my attention, good old Willow. Getting into an RP helped, I was able to cause things to happen to him that left their mark, and slowly shaped his personality.

This is a cool thread. I like it.

by **Loopy** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:00 pm

Wandering: i just saw this thread. I would also like to thank you for all the good tips you gave us

. As you might know, the Ring´s rp is my first one, so i´m kind of a newbie :oops:

... However, i´ll try to visit this thread often, so as to learn more, and eventually develop a good character

Thanks!

by **Quimrill_Renctar** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:04 pm

Brinin, I can't agree with you more on this point.

BrninThedwarf wrote: Getting into an RP helped, I was able to cause things to happen to him that left their mark, and slowly shaped his personality.

That helps alot! When I first wrote Gurth on my other board, I figured out pretty quick he had no redeeming depth to him just a little too late to change him, but after five years of playing him, he's been through enough battles, parties, fights, and memorable stuff to give him a bit of a life all his own to reflect on. He still isn't the most expressive guy in the world but at least he now has inner demons and deep meaningfull thoughts, and even the occasinal inner monolog. Instead of just standing like a statue until it is time to kill something, he has a bit of fun now and then

Yeah, I admire the fact that you chose a Dwarf to play, I really do. I don't know if I could do that either, I just don't have the feel for them yet that I think that requires. I've been on the verge of writing one for a while, but I just love to read other people writing them, then actually trying myseld. That was the other thing I did with my Gurth, I went through the species on the board that everybody used and I picked the one that absolutly nobody played. It was a anthropormorphic baord, and he was a hedgehog!

I don't think people thought they could write around the spikes

by **Mithnen** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:15 pm

Very interesting ideas, guys!

Quim: I can totally see what you mean about having super-hero-like Elven characters. But then that gets annoying with a character of any race... Myself, I've only got one Elf and I think I'll keep it that way. Yeah, she's around 7,000 years old (hehehe

) but she's never been uber-powerful or magical or anything. Plus I worked my hindquarters off writing her history...

But I've got to agree: Men are the most interesting ones to play. They can just be as dynamic as you want them to be... Unlike most Elves, who are basically all the same: eloquent, elegant, and amazingly attractive, Men can be anything from pick-pockets to princes or army commanders to corsairs. I love 'em. My favorite characters to play are Men (Elvedui, a 'professional gambler', and Mithnen...based on yours truly

)

Brnin: Dwarves are great! It's so much fun to step away from all the hype of the gorgeous supermodel-esque Elves. But that might be a contributor to why there aren't as many active Dwarf characters. I think the reason they don't appeal to everyone (like Elves...or Men for that matter) is because they're not super gorgeous. I DO have a Dwarf character named Káin, though, so it's not like I'm bashing Dwarves... I love them, too... So strong!! *strikes a manly pose*

What about Hobbits? Have any of you a Hobbit character?

_Mithy

by **BrninThedwarf** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 3:22 pm

I personally don't have any Hobbit characters, but my sister does. WillowWeatherford. She is the biggest hobbit fan I have ever seen.

I agree with the fact that men seem to be the most fun to play as. I have another character named Daman who is a man...sort of :wink:

and I always seem to find myself writing better stuff for him than Brnin, my dwarf. Maybe it's because men aren't as hard to envision, because we all know what it's like to be human.

by **Quimrill_Renctar** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 4:35 pm

Heh, you guys make me want to write a Dwarf character bio up and see how he fits.

Mithnen, that is exactly what I as getting at. Again, nothing is wrong with regal and highstepping and powerfull elves, its just all in the way you play them. With all the beatuty that elves have, it is easy to make them colorless, if you don't write them well.

lol, no hobbits for me, they aren't exciting enough for me, to tell the truth. Yes Hobbits are deffinitely cool, but tolkien always describes them as peaceloving and merry folk. Good, but I don't know how interesting, for me personaly that would be to play, and I certianly don't want to add another peaceloving furry footed little guy gone warrior rogue to the mix, so I stick with men for the most part.
but again, I applaud those that can pull off a good hobbit!

I think Brnin has a good point there as well, we are human, we do find it alot easier to relate to men, they may just be easier to play for that reason, and those that can branch off into these other races and do truely well are the really good writers.

For my part, I love to write bios.

I love to write bios almost more than I like the actually rp. Sometimes I come to an rp and I don't have a character that fits, I get to rub my hands together with glee, place them on the keyboard, and see who comes out.

by **luthienelflover** » Fri Aug 20, 2004 10:21 pm

I applaud everyone who can pull off a good hobbit or dwarf. I've tried... but I can't seem to get it down. I find it impossible to be funny most of the time, and both races requre at least a little humour. I'll stick with men, and the occasional elf.

LadyG: we weren't trying to offend anyone! I was just generalizing. It can of course be done well -- as evidenced by the many excellent "old" Elven characters on the board -- but it's more difficult, and when I was totally enamored of elves (see my screenname????

) I was very new to RPing and had never played an Elven character before. The temptation is to abuse the very powerful guidelines Tolkien set. It's up to the writer to give the character flaws anyway. Anywho, what I'm trying to say is that you do Elena just fine

I was critiquing myself

But Mithy and Brnin are right, men are the most interesting to play. You can't have an Elf change dramatically during a storyline, particularly an old Elf. This, I think, is the real reason I don't like playing older Elves. They've been through so much that one little quest isn't going to change everything for them. However, men are so fleeting that "one little quest" could be their entire lives. You can really develop a man where you can't an Elf so much. My character Theren started off simply as a traveler with a simple history but he's developed quite the history and quite an enjoyable personality to poke at.

Luthy

by **corintur** » Sun Aug 22, 2004 12:56 am

My first charachter is also too perfect but I think I'm getting better in making new charachters, my latest is Armo a 16 year old thief and I have been thinking for a while about another charachter, when I'll finish him I'll bring him up here...

by **Wandering but not lost** » Mon Aug 23, 2004 5:07 am

Well, one quick comment:

While I do feel characters shouldnt be necessarily focused on being "cool," they can be cool without being flat. Istari has done some awesome characters that are "cool" but not flat. This vampire RPG we were in (which I missed because I LOVED my characters in that- I played 3 at once who were all part of a group of vampire hunters...) he played an awesome character.

Anyway, what I do, since a lot of my characters tend to be on the more powerful side (Wandering being a hugely obvious one) is that I make them very psychologically flawed. Wandering I often nearly reduce to the status of being a child merely for fun. The character in the Rings RPG, Wandering's child, is a strong character but has tremendous problems. I mean, its getting pretty obvious how often he dwells on his father's fairly severe training. As well, you'll notice too that my favorite flaw (which I also used in Wandering) is a moral conscience placed on a fighter character. Whenever he kills, he'll feel it... it will haunt him...

However, I wouldnt want everyone playing that type of character obviously :-p

Easy ways to play strong characters is to focus on flaws. I had one very powerful character whose flaw was that he actually was a complete fraud. All of his powerful abilities were achieved by other people helping him (it was the vampire RPG actually). It made for a great character!

Other interesting flaws for playing strong characters, make them overconfident. That was one of the flaws of my Vampire RPG characters too (one of the ones that helped the fraud). Make them powerful, but unlikable.

I mean, consider this like a real person. There are people you know who are good at everything. Yet what are their flaws?

Even a perfect character can be flawed. Introduce a foil character. Have a perfect powerful character (not godlike though since thats not fun) and have a character in your own group, another character you control, who is completely jealous of him. They are friends but there is a secret internal jealousy. Make it slowly manifest itself and break down the entire group... have the jealous character try to convince others not to trust the perfect character etc. Sometimes a character flaw need not be actually in the character but can be in those around him.

by **corintur** » Tue Aug 24, 2004 7:54 am

Here's the bio for my new character, tell me what you think...

Name: Serad.

Gender: Male.

Race: Men (Harad).

Age: 29.

Height: 7'0.

Build: very muscular, broad shoulders huge hands and feet.

Hair color: Bald. : wink:

Eye color: Dark brown.

Weapons: A big double bladed axe, a mace and a dagger. Serad also had a round shield. He carries the axe and shield on his back.

Clothing: Nothing special, usually wears a shirt without sleeves but when he goes somewhere cold he will wear a big brown cloak with a hood.

Skills: Serad is immensely strong, he is a great fighter with his axe but has little fighting skills with a sword. He is quicker than he seems. Serad cannot ride a horse.

Languages: Harad and Common.

Personality: Serad's look's could be deceiving, he looks big and scary but he actually is very gentle and nice (out of battle), he is very trusting in other people which could be very bad and he has gotten into trouble because of several times.

History: Serad was born in a little village in Harad, his father was a soldier and he was killed in war when Serad was 3 year's old, he grew up with his mother and at the age of 18 he was recruited to the army, he spent two years in training, the training left a lot of scars on his body, his face and scalp were scared and so was his chest, his commanders didn't like him at all because of his personality which they saw weak. At the age of 20 started serving as a soldier in the northern border with Gondor. At one of the missions they were sent to a Gondorian village where they were supposed to destroy the village, Serad saw his fellow soldiers rape the woman and children and then burn them alive. Serad then vowed that he will desert. He ran away to the south part of Gondor where a scratched of the emblem of Harad off his shield. He than vowed to wander the lands of Middle Earth and help people in need of help.

The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and Tolkien - The One Ring

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