Please note this is all "in my own humble opinion" and you should feel free to discard or outright disagree with anything I write.
I am an altoholic. It helps that I am now on an RP server and feel the need to create an actual character for every toon before I roll a new one, and yet I'm already up to 6 toons. Three Alliance, three Horde. I think I've reached a limit for the time being, until I can find a new "niche" for a character to exist in.
Besides, I need to save a slot for the Pandaren and the monk I'm going to roll...
The last toon I rolled was just a few days ago, a troll druid named Gerthi. I like druids, and I like trolls. It's a good fit. She doesn't have much of a personality yet, but I was bored and felt like playing through the troll starting area and hanging out with Vol'jin. The only thing I really know about her is that's she going to be a bit grumpy and gruff. I'm bored of seeing all the druids I know hang out in cat form; Gerthi's a bear.
I want to make sure that whoever Gerthi turns out to be, she's not too similar to another one of my toons. I want each of my toons to be a distinct character, so I actually have a reason to pick playing one person over the other. That's why Elren will attend troubadour night, but Derscha will not. I don't want each toon being the same character with a different face. Therefore, I need to know what makes my characters tick, and how they will develop differently.
A unique character is more than an character with a unique accent, or peculiar hobby. The heart of the character is in her motivations, and her temptations.
There's a lot of pre-made character sheet questionnaires out there for roleplayers and writers. Some of them are just way too long, but I like starting with one to help me define a character. Some of the questions I like to answers are:
- What is your character's greatest aspiration?
- What is her greatest fear?
- Who is she, when she's at her very best? What's the greatest she can achieve?
- Who is she, at her very worst? How low can she can descend?
The first questions's about the character's motivation, what is driving them forward. The second is about what's holding the character back. The second one is important because it provides conflict, and room for character growth. There's no fun in playing a Mary Sue who wants to be a doctor, and pursues it with no fears or worries. I would rather play a Mary Sue who wants to be a doctor, but fears that it will take up too much of her time, and she'll never have a family. Deciding career vs family is a bit cliche, but it's a very common concern even in real life.
I like the last two questions the most. Questionnaires will often as you what your character's best virtue or worst vice is. Vices aren't necessarily things like cigarettes, gambling addictions, or disabilities that need to be overcome. Vices can be patterns of actions or thoughts that can lead your character to do something "wrong" or just make a "bad" decision. Vices are the things that make your character act less than perfect.
However, it's often too easy to give the "resume/Mary Sue" answer where you say your character's worst vice is that she "spends too much time helping others" or something similar. For me, asking myself, 'Who is Mary Sue at her worst?' makes me give more than quick pithy answer. When I answer those two questions, I essentially am creating two new characters: Perfect Mary Sue, and Horrible Mary Sue.
The first character is... a Mary Sue. A hero. The second one is Mary Sue if she were cast as a villain.
"Mary Sue, at her best, is a generous person who finds satisfaction in helping others for no other reward. She will help others anonymously, and teaches others to lend a helping hand. She is a reliable and helpful friend."
"Mary Sue, at her worse, is a nosy busybody who can't help herself from butting in on people's problems, whether they appreciate it or not. She only finds satisfaction when she helps other people, and it skews her priorities. She will neglect her own responsibilities and justify it by saying she was doing something more import. She will actually impede other people's character growth by helping them too much. She may even create bad situations just so she can help people."
I particularly enjoy writing the second paragraph, even if it's far more extreme than I intend to take her. It gives me a much more interesting insight into her character than the hero paragraph. This Mary Sue isn't a selfless saint, but someone with a deep need to be recognized and validated as a person by helping other people. She will probably never sink so low as to actually create disasters, but she may be tempted to influence events so people seek her out. She will tempted to brag and engage in one-upmanship on "good deeds" with other people just to feel less insecure. It's that second paragraph that provide the flaws that give Mary Sue more depth, and the temptations that provide conflict.
It's generally agreed that new writers and roleplayers will veer into Mary Sue territory in a effort to write a character that people will like. A new roleplayer may feel nervous playing someone who isn't kind and generous, thinking it will reflect on the actual player. An experienced person will also probably favor nice and friendly. PLus, in the online RP world, you have time to think about your character's response, and that means characters are more likely to be rational than in real life. In my experience, I have to consciously think about my character's flaws to compensate for the tendency to write nothing but perfect, bland, rational, friendly folk. I want my characters to make mistakes!
I've mentally labeled my characters by vices to keep in mind while playing. To try to sum them up quickly: Ketlan is "thoughtless," Elren is "naive and reckless," and Derscha is "oblivious." Hordeside, Kezrin is "obsessively curious" and Renzly is "controlling and spiteful." I haven't quite figured out Gerthi yet, but she will likely be some variation of apathetic.
You can try to add "quirks" like "my characters takes spoken things literally" or "my character is hyperactive all the time," and that will affect the way you act, but do those quirks affect how your characters make decisions? If asked to travel to the next town to deliver a package, would all your characters give the same answer (ignoring the quirky accent) for the same reason?
Here's my characters' responses.
Would you deliver this package to the next town?
Ketlan: I don't see why not.
(Ketlan will agree to do things without thinking them through.)
Elren: Sure!
(Elren is bored and wants something interesting to do.)
Derscha: No problem! I'm heading there, anyway.
(Ignoring the fact that she works for a delivery company, Derscha will say yes because she takes things at face value, and it seems like a simple enough request.)
Kezrin: What's in the package?
(Kezrin will want to know all the details about the delivery before agreeing to anything. She will say no if the delivery seems suspicious.)
Renzly: No.
(Renzly likes to be perverse and 'in control', and will say no just because she can. She will probably say yes if begged, or paid handsomely for her time.)
Mary Sue: Of course! Anything else you need?
(Mary Sue is flattered she was asked, and would feel guilty if she said no.)
Hypothetical Gerthi: Why are you asking me?
(She doesn't like to be bothered with other people's problems, but will help if given a reasonable answer.)
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