Facets, Contradictions, and Allegiances

Depth is always one of the elements I strive for when considering characters in role-playing games. Of course this carries over to writing any kind of characters for any story or script. I don't always do it for short stories or novels but I have created characters using role-playing terms and conventions as if I wanted to use them in a game and then used that familiarity with the character to write their part within the story. I recently read a review of a role-playing game and it sparked me to write a note about character diversity. By that I mean the details, the nitty-gritty that differentiate one character from another even though they fit the same social circle, economic strata, and have the same education. What makes one engineer different from another on the same team?

Character diversity can be made by allowing players to select the following. A home country. Political affiliations or leaning toward particular ideals. Additionally there are points where the character differs from the ideas espoused by the party or their group. An immigrant could grow into a new national identity, change politics or move toward a political sub-faction. They could be a part of a guild or association, and from there variegate into a guild-faction. In the context of the game I made the notes for I asked questions like: Is the character part of one nation's military? What is their view of their allies? What is their view of their enemies? Is there competition between units in the same military? Service branch rivalries? How do they compete with other nation's units even when in a united goal?

All of this asks and answers essential questions like what is my character's role in group X, what is it contributing to the local corner of the world, to the country, to the world at large? How does their beliefs shape their style and methodology to their work, job, military service? It speaks to the measure of their character and reveals or further asks how they will deal with situations under stress. When given time. When researching new skills, including magic in applicable settings. When collaborating with others on such skills. Further differentiation might come from another role-playing game approach where a character has their social face and their private face. Not everyone projects their true self all of the time. Even what they do and do not share about themselves could be an important detail.

Mood: disciplined.

Music: Disciples Of The Lie by Iced Earth and Book Of Thel by Bruce Dickinson.

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Just A Flesh Wound

The first game-changer that came to mind, and spawned this brief series of discussions, is one very much ingrained in fantasy settings. To a certain degree it has been built upon ruthlessly in video games so much that it is entirely a staple without which most of those games would not exist. The premise comes from the earliest of fantasy fiction, at least modern fantasy fiction--older fantasy tended more toward mythology to outright belief. It seems to have a certain home in D&D as well. Without this specific element in these fantasy settings the games would be very much changed. This game-changing factor is the ability to miraculously heal at accelerated rates. It can include regenerating limbs, psychic abilities to heal and perform surgery, and the staple fantasy resurrections.

Amazing accelerated healing may come about by different means. Psychic abilities to heal the body have been mentioned. There are healing spells and magical potions that restore health. There are salves, balms, tinctures, and other forms of arcane herbal and alchemical methods of healing not only bodily damage, but also removing disease and congenital defects. Changing genres there are advanced forms of science driven healing from chemicals and drugs, to nano-bot surgeons injected into the blood stream, to the melding of man and machine with cybernetics. What is important about these forms of healing is not the exotic nature, not the unnaturalness--that would be normal for the given settings--but the efficiency and speed at which they work.

Whatever the method, these forms of healing change the dynamics of the setting. Militaries with these capabilities are more aggressive and likely to go to war. Consider the turn around of injured soldiers. True bravery is less, but daring moves--manoeuvres and strategy--more common. Extreme actions are frequently taken because the risks are less. Safety and carefulness is less important. Permanent damage taken out of the equation alters the dynamics of fear as well. What happens when terrorists' victims can be raised from the dead? Or the terrorists themselves resurrected? Thought should be put into how people will try to counter superior healing and returning the dead to life. This kind of healing will also alter people's life spans, which changes the game in other ways.

Mood: calm.

Music: Deep Unknown by Stratovarius and Obsolete by Fear Factory.

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Goal in the Bottom of the Ninth

It is time for a bit of a change in gears. The next few weeks or so the focus will shift toward role-playing games again. This is not to say--as is frequently said here--that what will be discussed is any less relevant to plotting a novel or writing a screenplay. All of these items, and all narratives really, share certain things in common such as plot, settings, and types of characters. This definition of character is as far as their place in the setting, in the society they were born into, and/or the society they adopt as their own. It informs and involves their profession. The other definitions of character are almost exclusive of this and need not change significantly from setting to setting. Only the actions they bring about change, not the motives behind them in the different settings.

The quantities that will be discussed involve modifications or elements of certain settings that change the nature of the game. They change the way plots and conflicts are resolved over the long term across multiple encounters. From role-playing games to stories these game-changers affect the timeframe under which the story progresses. They affect the level of tension in the story. At the same time they bring to the story different things in place of the lost tension. When conflict is altered it has a ripple effect that carries over beyond how combat is done. At the military level some of these changes will affect the strategic planning and materiel management. Others will have an effect on the motives behind going to war and the willingness to do so.

Much of the way a society handles itself and the traditions they involve themselves in come about because of their militaristic habits. At the least, military inventions and procedures trickle down because of the required innovation to constantly one-up the enemy and the sense of duty and efficiency required by any good army. Those two are just such a potent combination. At the same time that combination is pretty rigid and doesn't allow for much variation so of course it can only be one part of the necessary equation to create a society, or number of societies. The variations, the differences, from one group to another group are where a lot of friction comes and where conflict is developed. So it is that next week begins with the first look at one of these game-changing elements.

Mood: mellow.

Music: Paint It, Black by The Rolling Stones and Chariots of Pumpkins by John Carpenter.

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