====== Conceptualising a Character for Dark Age ======

So you've decided you want to play on Dark Age. Fantastic! Welcome aboard! We don't bite - and, well, if we do, then I'm sure there's shots for that sort of thing. But do you know where you want to begin? It's a big world and an indepth history you'll be stepping into and it can be a little much to take on board for someone who's not too familiar with it all. 

Or, you might be a veteran player who wants to make a new character, but totally stumped for ideas. You think you're onto a winner and keep trying to come up with an amazing concept but are you essentially putting out Mary Sues and Joe Bloggs'?

Either way, hopefully, the following will help you whatever your history with the shard when it comes to inventing and being innovative when it comes to character creation.



==== Do Your Homework ====

Before you do anything **read the website**. Yes, even if you have read it before! I know plenty of older players who didn't know bits of lore existed! That means the [[http://www.darkagerp.com/world|World]] page, the [[http://www.darkagerp.com/playersguide|Players Guide]], and the [[http://www.darkagerp.com/starting|Getting Started]] pages. 

Why? It is REALLY so much easier to know what you're doing in-game as well as out before you jump in. Yes, it's a lot to learn but the more you know before you apply the better your application may well turn out.

Once you are read up, make sure you have a name, age, ideal race and gender for your character. Basics are basics for a reason.

==== Be Imaginative: Background ====

What sounds better?:

//"Joe is a carpenter from overseas. It is a family profession. He is a determined sort."//

or,

//"Joe is an apprentice carpenter, born in Grennin and trained in the same walls by his father, a Master carpenter. The tough business attitudes of the folk of Grennin that he has faced trying to build a name for himself have left Joe far from disenchanted, as he is a determined youth with big aspirations."// 

The second sentence shows a knowledge of the various cities on Terra, which GMs will like. Genericism or being too bland can be very offputting not only in an application but for you as well. There isn't much to work with if you churn out very little in terms of a background. Think of what sort of family your character was born to, and list three to four major events in their life before coming to Denshy and Eridan. Whether that be their first job, being recruited for a guard, assassinating someone or running away from home. A timeline of events gives you something to work around. As always, aim to avoid genericism. There's only so many Joes avenging the death of their family/lover/sibling/pet duck to bandits/a warring nation/an evil priest/demons and demonic fowl therin that a GM will want to read about.

For Humans in particular there is a lot of info on locations and cities that can apply to any history. That said, all our playable races have considerable amounts of information about them. But a special race requires in-game earnt XP and, most times, we would prefer for new players to begin with a human character so they can get used to the environment in-game, so that GMs can see what their roleplay style is like, and to earn any needed XP through roleplay so they might consider special backgrounds or races for a new character. 

In some special cases, if your application is truly exceptional and you have played here with one character already a small amount of XP can be waived on application. This takes writing skill, though, and so again - read up on them. The more you know the better you can write!


==== Be Imaginative: Professions ====

The beauty of Dark Age's skills system is that you can truly make your own class and professions; there is no strict definition of a class here. However, taking what could be considered a stereotype class and building on it can really help if you're truly stuck for ideas. As such for my examples I am going to take some common 'stereotype' classes and expand on them a little to give some food for thought. Make sure you apply knowledge taken from the previous links, too, though, to make them that bit more interesting.

== Fighter Type ==

Is your character a fighter? If so, why? What has driven them to be combative? What weapons do they prefer to use? If they like to use big and heavy weapons, how does this reflect on their personality? Or are they a fencer, a martial artist, an archer? And again, how does this reflect on their personality? Do they have a history in combat - are they a soldier, or a ranger, or a monk, or a battlepriest to name a few? Are they spiritually driven? Is there something else to their choice of work? Are they mercentile, are they a bloodthirsty maniac, or are they honourable, like a knight?

== Rogue/Rogueish Type ==

Is your character a rogue? If so, why? What makes them rogueish? Are they a low-end rogue like a pickpocket or a beggar, or a high-end rogue like an assassin or a con-artist? Have they been in trouble in the past? What was their upbringing like to influence this decision? Are they a complete ruthless criminal or are they more tactile? Are they spiritually driven? Is there something else to their choice of work? 

Or are they simply rougeish - a bard of some shape, like a fool or a performance artist? Again, if so, why, and what influenced this choice? Furthermore, if a bard, what is their chosen instrument or best performance skill: playwriting and acting, singing, foolery and clowning, acrobatics, and many other performance skills can suit a bard.

== Crafter Type ==

Is your character a crafter? If so, why? Why did they choose to learn their trade and what did they choose to learn? Who taught them? Is it a family trade or their own choice? Are they or were they an apprentice? If so, who did they study under? What do they enjoy making the most or is there a specific item in their craft they are particularly skilled at making? Do they cater more to a specific audience within their craft such as a bowyer (woodworking) or a bladesmith (blacksmithy)? Are they traditional in their methods or are they flamboyant and the equivilent of "on trend" when it comes to their designs? Are they spiritually driven? Is there something else to their choice of work?  Is there more to their trade than just profiting from it; is profit even secondary to them? 

Again, there's a lot more than these, but these three may hopefully set cogs in motion.


==== Be Imaginative: Personality ====

Face it - a dull as dishwater personality won't really get you off on the right foot in-game. (Then again, that could plausibly be worked into a concept but it'd take some skill and patience!) So be creative when it comes to writing your personality for your character.

To begin with, what is the general air you might get about your character if you were meeting them yourself? Would they be a happy person or a sad person? Would they be someone you want to stay well clear of? Start with a single catch-all adjective to describe their general personality and build upon it.

So let's say I want to make a female human who is very self-absorbed. As a result I expect that, in personality, she might well be a complete prude, haughty, and with a stiff upper lip. If she is quite so posh and haughty she may well be a noble girl. A noble upbringing may have seen her isolated, so she might not have very good social skills. As a result she'd probably be particularly rude towards those who are not as high a rank in society as she is. At the same time, she may well be a total kiss-ass to those of a higher or equal rank in society to her. I would expect this character would generally be quite unpleasant and needy. Already I have a lot to work with from the single definition of "self-absorbed".

If you wanted to go against the grain you could also argue that a character could appear one way but be the total opposite. So I might have myself an outwardly self-absorbed seeming noble who, actually, under all her rudeness, is a total sweetheart with a soft spot for fluffy-wuffy kittens. Sometimes it's good to look one way and act the other. Just don't have a total polar opposite; this same idea of a deep down softie with a love of small felines //might// not work if you're playing an ork. It's alright to be out there but not TOO out there.

It is also important to think about what they sound like, how they might smell, talk, walk, gesture and many other facets of personality that can be looked over. No being is perfect. Does your character have a tic, an accent, an impediment? A limp, a disability or more?

==== Be Imaginative: Appearance ====

This brings me tidily on to appearances. Again, no one is perfect. I expect if you look in the mirror you will be able to find at least one thing on your person that might be a little quirky or different about you. Apply this same logic to your character appearance.

The basics are always best to start with. What is the colour of their eyes, hair, and skin? How do they style themselves - both their general appearance and their clothes? Are they cleanly, prim and proper or are they scruffy, dirty and generally unpleasant looking? Are they ugly? Are they pretty? Are they disfigured in any way - and this can be from scarring, to missing appendages, to all other sorts of complications. Try not to totally cripple your character (unless you want to play a cripple) so that they are totally unplayable, though.

Make sure you take racial features into consideration. Some player established families and houses also have common genetic traits and these are also worth considering. E.g: Members of the Merinthire bloodline typically have hair colours ranging from bright orange-red to more muted orange-browns, even though sometimes producing blondes. Also, if your character alters their appearance regularly for whatever reason - like dying their hair - try to give an insight into WHY they do this.




==== Other Things to Remember ====

As good it is to not be generic don't go overboard. No lime green haired florists with three lines of noble blood in them, with one arm, a peg leg and a particular penchant for opera singing and stamp collection. Point being, be imaginative. Just not too imaginative.

Lastly, the following is an exercise on character taken from an article of the UK Newspaper The Guardian, designed for helping create characters, from here: [[http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2008/sep/20/katepullinger.writing.fiction3|How to Write Fiction]]. If all else, may this provide a helpful start when it comes to creating your Dark Age character.

== Exercise: developing character ==
1. Think of a character, a character with whom you have little in common: if you are a man, choose a woman; if you are very young, choose someone middle-aged, etc. Establish the basics: name, age, nationality, appearance. Next, start to think about who this person really is and make notes:

a) What does he/she like to eat?

b) What is her/his favourite item of clothing?

c) What does he/she smell like?


2. After establishing these facts about your character, go on to ask three more questions, making more notes: 

a) What is his or her greatest fear?

b) What is the first thing everyone notices when this person walks into a room?

c) What is his or her relationship with his parents?


3. Now that you have him or her clear in your mind's eye, write a scene with this character in it. Keep it simple; write about an ordinary activity, for example, washing the dishes, walking to work, getting ready for bed, talking to someone. Don't tell us what kind of person this is, show us through their actions - body language, tone of voice, the telling detail.


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Good luck with your application!