Anime Tropes appearing in Roleplay

[Reigen]

Complain about godmodding, but don't attack grunts as a whole.

He's not attacking grunts, he is expressing his opinion on things that are honestly somewhat of an issue when it comes to common sense, which he does have a right to do. I think I know him well enough to know that if he was complaining, the tone of his post would be very very different. If you're taking this as an attack, then I do suggest taking a step back to cool down before making further...rather heated posts.

I like this discussion, I really don't want it to turn into a thread of blame.

Now then~!

I agree with the post, but at the same time I do wish for everyone to understand that it's hard to RP out such situations if you've, ya'know, never been in one. I have never been ambushed by a dragon, so it's pretty hard to recreate emotion with text. Ever been chased by a pack of wolves? Well, you dont really know how you'd react if it ever happened so it's somewhat hard to RP. Emotions are very hard to convey over text and just as hard to RP out when you are raced with realistic situations in which...you've never experienced.

I fully understand the frustration of characters laughing at the face of a demon, which have been known to destroy and devour worlds and some of this is to 'blame' on events. I was in an event where we fought and defeated a -pitlord- all easy like. I was more afraid of the event where we summoned a doomguard. People died in that, the danger was real. One guy had a hole in his chest, one lost his arm and another died. That's the type of event where you have a sense of fear for your character because you know that if you mess up the character is gonna die. There are events where you charge though, killing thousands of scourge with little to no effort and people come out with no wounds at all and everyone goes to the bar and laughs about it right after. I've been in events where ten people are taking down wave after wave of mobs which far outnumber them.

When characters are given nothing to fear though RP because they know that X mob only has Y hp and the event will only last Z amount of time, then it's not really their fault. Those who went to my event know that I would not put a time limit on what I did. We had a puzzle event that stretched on for hours because it was more realistic for everyone to figure it out on their own rather than the DM holding their hand though the event.

TL:DR; Fearless characters are played more often because events give us no reason to fear the actions of our characters. Easy fix? Harder, longer events where yeah, your character can die if they charge into four enemies on their own.

[JVNemesis]

I getcha.

I've always /eyerolled at people making snarky comments while watching a fight to the death, or casual offhand "Well that was fun etc etc" after watching their friend get stabbed in the gut, but I know where they're coming from with that too. It's kind of dull to watch people exchange emotes over the course of an hour and just not say anything. And by kind of dull, I mean "really dull and not what I really want to be spending my time on." If I'm RPing, I want to RP. Not watch other people RP.

Something I've been noticing since I've started critiquing other people's writing and characters (outside of CotH) is that they get too attached. They...project, for lack of a better term. They go red in the face if you say something negative about their character, as if you'd insulted them personally. This extends to being shown up IC; their characters gets embarrassed, they feel embarrassed. Nobody likes being shown up, and if they can't/won't separate themself from the character, it becomes...well, your character does awesome things, you feel awesome, your character ignores the guards and fights the powah, you feel awesome. You try and impress people with your character's awesomesauce and incredibleness....

I don't think I'm explaining this clearly. Meh. That's how I see it sometimes.

I like playing powerful characters (in comparison to Joe Dirt and his pitchfork). Not because I take some sadistic delight in beating up the other kids and taking their toys (often), but because that is my personal preference. I've written weak/cowardly/crippled/otherwise lesser (again, for lack of a more accurate term) characters before. It's not that I'm incapable of doing it. It's that I, personally, have more fun with a character that is competent, capable of fighting back, of doing the things I want to do in RP. I enjoy flashy spell emotes and sword duels. Sometimes I enjoy fights that drag on longer than they realistically should have. "I get it, sure, that blow should've taken you down, but this is entertaining. Let's keep going a bit more." However unrealistic it might have been, I had fun. I'm willing to invoke suspension of disbelief for the sake of entertainment. I don't enjoy playing farmers/regular dudebros when there are so many other interesting things available to play in Warcraft. That's me. You might, and all the power to you. That's not why I personally RP here.

If people want to play a fearless badass, they will. They have, and they will continue to do so. That's their prerogative. That's the RP they enjoy. More power to them.

I recall a similar argument when there was the "gangsta elves" post, and people commented that the main offenders probably wouldn't read the post anyway. Possibly true.


Also, as an aside: People keep saying "Regular=/=weak." True.

But strong=/=unbeatable/fearless either. It is possible to make a character be powerful but afraid of things, be a badass but still be beatable, be awesome but still have flaws.

...

Oh dear. This got rather long.

Edit: Look up at Reigen's post. Liked.

[Delta]

This isn't an attack against grunts, rest assured. The colour of a player's name doesn't have much of anything to do with how they play their characters.

I actually enjoy characters with depth. When I see people shrugging injuries - mental or physical - off, it doesn't annoy, irritate or enrage me. It saddens me, because I'm seeing development potential thrown away. Elves bouncing off the walls in a manner reminiscent of a pinball machine, people taking on guard squadrons solo... it makes me wonder if they and I are roleplaying in the same universe, in the same setting.

I'm not saying this fella isn't awesome, but if all his underlings were as powerful as he was, who'd fear Lu Bu?

[Xigo]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSvnW1esv7s[/youtube]

[Zhaei]

This point should also extend to respect to Guards. I've seen so many people not caring for obeying Guard's (perfectly acceptable) wishes, either because they know OOCly that the Guard can't realistically do anything, or that they can't have their character being seen as lesser in any way. Hell, I've done some of the things mentioned in the thread. Realising how stupid it makes me seem from another party and never doing it again.

[JVNemesis]

can't have their character being seen as lesser in any way.

This is the wording I was looking for. Thank you!

[SachikoMaeda]

Time for me to throw this out there...

I love playing Doran because he's afraid of everything. Not everyone is the "I'm going to run out and destroy this enemy" kind of person. While I know his crying may annoy people, but without the cryer, how can anyone look strong? Xigo brought up a good point in that how can one gauge power of who is stronger than who if we're all playing the badass?

Everyone wants the snarky badass. Be a snarky badass. But find a balance. Even my own snarky jerk Aendron has his fears and weaknesses.

And I'm going to go on a limb and say I love Psycho's Anat. She's one of te only characters I have seen that can safely say "this is my rank in society, and that noble over there will make my life absolute hell if I make them mad". Time for the sidetrack rant: why everyone wants to disrespect nobility. Being a noble so far means nothing IC unless there's a power hungry commoner looking to kiss their backside and mosey on up the social latter. Why bother when everyone else sees themselves if the same social standing as the nobles?

But back on subject. Anime tropes. I may be guilty of a few myself because, I will admit, I am a weeaboo. I think the only one I can really recall was when Leron got stabbed in the gut and he entered a rage. Though that stab would did cause him problems. Not only did he nearly bleed out, but he got a nasty infection he had to deal with.

And my last bit. Everyone wants their characters to have a heroic death. Two of my own characters have died in combat. While the common thing people want to do is have them fall dead after a speech or something. My two that died? Aendron was terrified, but tried not to show it. He was severely injured and blacked out from blood loss. He wasn't aware he was about to die. Doran cried and begged to be spared. He's the only one I'm aware of who probably spouted "I don't want to die" over and over again before they died or in any intense situation. If you have one, then I love you so much for having a character with the most basic fear of their inevitable end. If they're not afraid of death, then why? Think. Accepting your own death and the fact you too will die is not easy. It will scare anyone. Well, mostly anyone.

But simply put. What he's saying is if we're all the snarky badass, then we can't really be the snarky badass without some "normals" around. We'd just be snarky jerks.


Edit: typed this all on my phone so some words probably sit all derp in there. I'm too tired to go in and fix it now. Blugh.

[McKnighter]

By the way, +1 for the Lu Bu/Dynasty reference reference. I need DW7. :C

[Zhaei]

Spoiler:

Being a noble so far means nothing IC unless there's a power hungry commoner looking to kiss their backside and mosey on up the social latter. Why bother when everyone else sees themselves if the same social standing as the nobles?

Agreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed

I'm a big fan of Doran because he gives a nice counter balance to the character's being talked about in this thread. But the greatest thing I've ever seen done with him was when he went psycho on Sangreala (c wut i did thar) to protect his friend. This had a great reason for doing so and his fear was still apparent throughout.

It's like the complete opposite. A snivelling weenie pie who sometimes snaps and became a badass.

[Hawk]

Abomination? "Oh, what's that smell". Dragon. "I want to ride that".

This. I admit, watching people treat a dragon like it were a kobold just plain confuses me. It's one of the most powerful things in Azeroth. Really, unless you're a lore figure, you should be giving about a hundred damns if there's a dragon in your face. Trash talking the thing just isn't "cool". /endrant

[Roxas65]

No, McKnighter, you do not DW7.

Anyways, the thing with awesomesauce characters, at least in my case, is that they get so -excruciatingly- boring later on. Nothing is a problem, so nothing interesting is ever happening.

My first character was, admittedly, awesomesauce and I not only tired of playing her, I killed her off. Then I started creating characters with more depths and flaws. Like Vyxen, who feels confident and powerful when watching an enemy through the scope of her rifle, but turns and runs in fear when they start getting close or Erizabeth, the soldier with a fatal heart condition that could make any battle her last and she was -terrified- of it. I've noticed this change in other people's characters too.

What I want said with this is that a lot of people grow out of this awesomesauce RP period. Much like a teen's rebellious period, you just got to let him go through it, because that's how we mature.

[Kira13]

I've had a similar discussion before, though it was on OOCC --or was it GMI, I don't know-- about why not let characters ride dragons. The answer was found after around 30 minutes, and that is, because dragons are not your average beasts. They're, obviously, incredibly inteligent and wise, fire-breathing lizards that can fly and, perhaps most importantly, turn into humanoids and, maybe, even other forms! That's, like.. woah!

Spoiler:

And now, just to troll you, Hawk, I present...
Human grown up in the jungle by a troll couple.

Now then, at the topic of this thread. While I am sure Xigo has been reffering to my Drak'tor --and perhaps the old (and dead) Joz'luz as well-- in the original post, I do have to say that, while I love being so powerful and fearless, it is, indeed, getting boring and annoying, not only to the others, but to me as well. Still, the fact that my blood-crazed character is so powerful, it can cause a lot of pain and thus, enjoy the fight by, perhaps, some mauling as well, actually helps me. Many of you might not know, but I am writing two books at the moment: one about Gilneas and the events that've happened and will happen, and the other one, about Drak'tor's 'adventures'. And yes, the latter does include a lot of mauling and brutal sceneries.

But then again, Xigo and all others, I can give you a plain example of myself playing a totally different character, and two of my friends can pretty much prove that. Vee, me and some other player I've forgotten (THOUSANDS OF APOLOGIES) have had a short session of incredibly mundane RP. What does that mean, is that we've each created one human character that had absolutely no training in fighting whatsoever, and have created a very little community with just the three of us! We were two ladies and a young lad, and while the two ladies --one of them, my character-- have grown up togheter for.. forever.. they have gotten in a little conflict, as they were both trying to impress the nice fisherman, who had absolutely no idea what was really happening --or was keeping it for himself. The sessions were very interesting and entertaining, at least in my opinion, but they are, as of now, on hiatus due to some reasons, one being my exams that have yet to be finished.

[SachikoMaeda]

I'm a big fan of Doran because he gives a nice counter balance to the character's being talked about in this thread. But the greatest thing I've ever seen done with him was when he went psycho on Sangreala (c wut i did thar) to protect his friend. This had a great reason for doing so and his fear was still apparent throughout.

It's like the complete opposite. A snivelling weenie pie who sometimes snaps and became a badass.

Went Psycho on Sangreala?


Oh, I remember that day. That was a very rare moment in which he shows a backbone mostly because:

His desire to impress Aydendril > his usual fears.

I like giving my characters "triggers" much like we would have in real life. I believe it's called thefight-or-flight response. His want to impress Aydendril there would have invoked the "fight" side of this response when normally he takes to "flight". But even when he does engage into fight mode, he cannot think under pressure. He can even forget he's a warlock with many spells at his disposal if under enough pressure. In his fight against Dalikan that he knew was a life-or-death situation, he completely forgot he could heal himself with a healthstone.

But I think some look into the fight-or-flight response and try to connect it to the character's personality. Example in real life:

A building is on fire. They building you are in is on fire. What would you do? I know I would run out of there and try to save my own hiney before I even consider running back in there to save anyone who may still be inside. I'm no firefighter and I'm nowhere near equipped to go in there. Does that make me a coward? No, that makes me either:

A) Someone looking out for themselves.
B) Someone who yielded to "flight" in "fight-or-flight.
C) All of the above

Just because you run doesn't make you weaker or any lesser.

In a fight, here's an example of how my own characters would respond:

Leron: "I have to defend my family. If this person/people is/are a threat to me and my family directly, I will fight them. If not, I think I'd rather sit somewhere safe and let my underlings handle this. I'm a noble. I don't need to get my hands dirty."

Fight only when needed to save his own rear.

Aendron: "This is pointless. Only the weak fight to prove they're only a tad less weak than the other."

I'm obviously the better person by not fighting.

Kirolan: "Fighting is in my nature now. If I die, I doubt it will be a great loss. If I win, then I will have longer to move forward."

Win or lose I'm still a walking corpse and nothing will change that.

Doran: "A f-fight?... Is Keyus watching?... Aydendril?... What about Urameil?... Is anyone in danger other than me? No? I'M OUT OF HERE."

I'll only fight to try and impress others so they don't think I'm weak or to defend someone close to me. Though, I know I'm not the best and I'd rather not risk being lesser than the person over there.


Just trying to show not everyone is "I CAN HANDLE THIS BECAUSE I'M THE BIGGEST BADASS THERE IS GUYS LOOK AT ME". If you like that character, then great! If you want to be the lead role, then go for it! Just remember we can't have a great lead without supporting roles. Role Play isn't too different from writing and/or acting. Both require awareness of characters that do not exist and a creative input to make that character real. Even in real life not everyone's the lead. I know I think of myself more of a support role in my circle of friends most of the time. But who's to say I can't take the lead sometimes? Your snarky badass can chill out sometimes and let others be the lead for a while, yeah?

[Roxas65]

There's really no need for you to defend yourself, Kira. Actually, there's very little reason to discuss this at all.

The best response to Xigo's post is basically to not take offense, because there was none intended, and simply say "That's an interesting opinion you have there, Xigo my main man. I will keep it in mind and perhaps experiment a bit with it. Who knows, maybe you're right or maybe it won't be anything for me after all, but at least I tried to broaden my horizons."

[Zhaei]

I agree with some of your post but

But then again, Xigo and all others, I can give you a plain example of myself playing a totally different character

that doesn't make it OK. I'm going to go and be honest and say that Draktor is a huge bore to RP with. You change a ton OOCly when you're playing him and either in combat or out of it I just don't find him interesting. He's too much of a forced badass, where I've RPed with characters who aren't RPed as badasses but are still... badasses. Good examples being Tikar, Riael and Rukil. People try too hard to be cool and I think the coolest people aren't the best fighters or the social robots. Such as Rukil.

Dropping in a note here and say I rushed this post, was not meant to sound as offensive as it does. Please forgive the tone.