Day 14 - Compelling Characters
#RPGaDay2024
It was late when I posted this. As in, three minutes to midnight late.
I never say when I’ve had a long day. If I qualify a day as anything, it would be “interesting.” Even if it is “interesting times” kind of interesting.
What makes a character compelling? There is no accident when it comes to character design. It’s more than tweaking their powers, skill modifiers and minmaxing their combat capabilities. Paradoxically, the more one looks at the numbers, the less compelling the character becomes.
Because characters must have, for want of a better word, character.
Recently, I posted an article to Academia.edu, called The Gallant’s Playbook. In that short, short guide was everything one needed in a comportment guide.
Here are the basic tenets.
This is a list of guidelines, codified from bitter personal experience, on how to behave in public - particularly in online public spaces. How you behave in private is your own affair, but these rules often help there, too.
Be a source of pleasure, not drama.
You are an entertainer, but you don't always have to entertain.
Don't chase. It's unbecoming. Let them chase you.
You bring wonder. Never get stale.
Share your affections often, and your story rarely.
Mystery is your currency. Be generous with the coin.
Tiny morsels. Little bites. That is how to share your life.
Make EVERY word count, as if they will be your last. One day, they will be.
You're always okay so far.
Your client is always more fascinating than you. Let them feel awesome.
Life is too short to be boring. Shake off that ego.
Move with languor. Speak with grace. Life is not a sprinting race.
No matter how bad your day is, leave them feeling good.
And always leave them wanting more.
This is what is meant by “character.” Always show the world that you have a persona. Your characters should, in some way, be outstanding - awesome.
And you really can’t get that through number crunching on a character sheet.