Hey folks! In my introduction, I asked about logical flaws in my character. Well, it just so happens I found a big one. Well, two or more actually. I was wondering where I could go with my character. What do you think of the below? I am trying not to have her too edgy, though I do need to work on her relationship with her mother- if anyone has suggestions for a strong mother character please put them below. I know that a prostitute would be an easy answer to a mother character, due to her father’s profession as a wayfaring space pirate- but something deeper would be awesome. Perhaps true love might be out the window for a space pirate- Brasstrace’s father. So, on to the first flaw: Brasstrace, a character that I am still working on (Well, I did play with her a bit), is a “nice scavenger”. The concept sounds promising and interesting in the start, although it is difficult to pull off. In my opinion, the “race” justification of an Apex having a very liberal outlook conflicts with the survivor archetype of a scavenger. She respects all races, and is always up for learning about anything. She avoids conflict, and has an incredibly easy going attitude. Perhaps this is unlike the regular survivor archetype of someone who is grizzled and jaded by the stuff they have seen in the journies through the universe. Although, there could be some realistic work-arounds: Her father (Harrier “Berrytop” Bian), although a space pirate, could have some semblance of a disciplined background, like part of the military police on the Apex home-world during the Miniknog revolution. Harrier’s father (Brasstrace’s grandfather) was a War Profiteer who maybe encouraged his son to participate in the military as a cover for his own operations. Harrier learned discipline, good manners, and a strict no-nonsense attitude. Brasstrace was raised on her father’s ship, learning respect for others and strict rules that impacted her interactions with others. After her father went crazy when she was 18 (he started wearing a berry on his head, hence the name “Berrytop”), she left to pursue her fortune among the stars as a scavenger. Being a scavenger, she became much more restless and unwilling to do any actual work. She still retained her father’s values, even as she scoured derelict space ships and abandoned colonies for supplies and loot. So, now I have a character that faces a liberal and friendly personality that is quite different from a regular grizzled survivor. Perhaps the archetype is cliche, or maybe I am too biased to be comfortable in my character’s platinum toed boots. Now, onto the other problem. Brasstrace doesn’t use guns. I understand that many people in Antares use guns, as it is the norm of combat in the universe. Brasstrace tends to avoid direct combat. In the face of a hostile using a gun, I gave Brasstrace the proclivity of swordplay proficiency in fencing to reflect her awareness and reflexes in combat- rather than strength. She uses flares, bombs, or molotovs as diversionary measures to avoid direct combat. As she usually is working in places with little to no hostiles, or in the tight and claustrophobic hallways of a derelict spaceship, this would be an alright justification in my mind. Perhaps you folks could think of a better one? Or open the door or more character development in Antares? What do you think? To summarize, I need a few suggestions for where I can take my character’s backstory. She needs a strong mother figure, a justification for being a “nice” scavenger, and a justification for not using guns. Perhaps I could work a mother character into the justification of her being nice- or even not using guns.
Quick mother concepts: Runaway attracted to the 'bad-boyness' of a pirate, only to realise she's in over her head later. A person of importance in her own regard, who the father manipulated and eventually disposed of. One member of a larger harem. The best advice I would have for the personality is to put a "but" in there. Like she's generally kind to people, but selfish when it comes to money and possessions. Or that she's really rather generous, but silently judges people that need handouts instead of doing their own work. Being "nice" is fine, but try and get to a more specific idea. Empathetic, loyal, just, etc. Pick a few specific positives, and negatives too. Rapiers are in the same class of weapons as pocket knives. They were used largely for civilian disputes, meaning that they were really only effective against people without real weapons, and without real armour. More a social tool than an actual killing machine. If you are someone who's life involves going into dangerous places, you'd need to have some sort of mental deficiency to decide that a sword-type weapon would save your life more often than a gun. As a sidearm sure, but when it comes down to it unless you've some extreme physical advantage (see Florans and Glitch) it makes no sense to not use the very weapon that made swords obsolete.
I really like the runaway idea, as it gives more character and depth to her backstory; perhaps it could intertwine somewhat with the military background of her husband- Brasstrace's father? Definitely a good idea, though I still think that the harem is too much of an easy solution to a forgotten mother. The mother doesn't have as much of a profit backstory as the rest of Brasstrace's family does, so perhaps she could be of some different ilk, like a teacher or something? Of course, she would leave after she realizes she is "In over her head", though it seems unlikely she would be forced by her husband. Being captured may be more likely, though harems are looking for younger women, right? A mother well into her child-rearing years might not fit in to well with a harem. Brasstrace did act "Just" my first RP (first ever). Instead of being "Generous", she probably could have some semblance of respect and fairness. "Money is the language everyone speaks" could be her underlying doxa, as I tried to make her character revolve around profit. Perhaps it is 1 dimensional, though my justification is that profit could bleed into many other aspects of her life. As she keeps to herself most of the time, she doesn't interact with many people, thus she can maintain some semblance of "fairness" without dishing out too much money. Coming to Antares though, she may find that being too "fair" has it's consequences, especially with prolonged exposure to others. You know, with character development in Antares (because dynamic characters are the cats pajams). Of course, this can be expanded on later, and perhaps even this justification has it's flaws. Well, instead of using a rapier, could there be some work around for weapons? You are right that a rapier would be pretty obsolete against automatic laser rifles, as they are today (well, obsolete against conventional guns). In my work around (above), I tried to use her ability for diversionary tactics to avoid direct conflict, though it may be hard to justify her surviving 17 years in the endless void with just bombs, flares, and molotovs. Maybe I will have to find a gun for her. Do you think there could be any non-lethal projectile weapon? Say a grenade launcher that fires concussive or smoke based explosives? This is an improvised smoke bomb- looks pretty potent: Anyways, thank you so much for your feedback! Based on what you are saying, perhaps I will have to scrap this character later, though it is always good to get constructive feedback. What do you think of my responses? Thanks again! Yours, Tracey (Brasstrace)
I develop characters very differently, so it's sort of tough for me to say it's scrap worthy. I tend to just through a vague personality together, and work on the rest as I go. It lets me end up with much more natural feeling characters, although those first few formative hours can be sort of tricky and inconsistent. My advice for the mum concepts and similar is not to worry about writing a history novel, but rather ask yourself why this is important, what trait am I imparting with this element of their history. I also felt I should mention that this isn't Antares anymore, but rather "Council Space". There's a post about the lore change somewhere...I found it so I trust you can. The diversionary tactics you describe are more effective when combined with firearms. It's an unfortunate situation, especially since Starbound as a game enforces the concept and the idea of space swordsman is rather novel. It is really just a function of efficacy vs romantics. Fencing can still be a hobby if hers, and in fact that's the only real application for that weapon. The whole weapon concept you have is sort of suffering from snowflake syndrome, or being unique simply to be unique. The things that are really special about people are surprisingly mundane. Just think of people you know, and the traits that truly separate them from eachother. People can be exciting and interesting for the simplest reasons, and your characters don't need to be any different.
Apologies in advance (and previously) for writing verbosely. I guess you are right about the weapon thing. Again, it is my first time doing actual role play, so I wanted to make something interesting- something that was dynamic and could mold over time. Maybe I did go a bit overboard with my character; trying to make something meaningful- getting too attached to it, and thus making it more complicated than it probably should be. I probably still can keep the character, but I should chop some unnecessary branches off of the family or character trees. Perhaps it is power-gaming to try and develop a plethora of justifications for a character that is an oxymoron in certain cases. Maybe I should just shelve this idea for now, and start with a clean slate. Brasstrace still is my favorite character, but I still need to work on the idea. A character that has too many odd ends means a puzzle piece that just won't fit (and a really weird puzzle piece at that). Anyways, thanks again for your feedback. It means a lot. I'll go for a walk and think of a new one- perhaps one that isn't "Space Zorro". Perhaps not a combat based one, but still something meaningful (not so much so, as you say). Sincerely, Tracey (Maybe Brasstrace) P.S. Telemundo did something similar to "space Zorro" called Zorro: Generation Z. Zorro uses a light saber to fight the mob- and is pretty much Batman. P.S.S. Also, sorry if my justifications seem like power-gaming. It's a folly on my part, so I thank you for pointing that out .
If this is your first character, then I'll say the same thing I say to everyone: Do not get too attached. I don't think I know anyone that stuck to their first character without them going through some extreme changes or already being pretty experienced. Red (pictured in glorious art over in my avatar) was my first serious character, who I actually had to stop playing because his depression was feeding my own. Still my favourite though, but that's mostly nostalgia speaking. And you're right about justifications. Your character's history should be reflected in their actions, but ultimately is less important than the present. A complicated past is a way to just shove your exposition in other people's faces. It's a hard mentality, and I don't mean any insult by it, but it's difficult to get out of the idea of being the "main character" and needing to stand out. Good catch also on not being combat based. That's just a general thing I'd suggest to anyone newer, combat leads to misunderstandings, and those just lead to sad. All in all, you're going to have to just go for it at some point. I'd advise you to try starting somewhat basic, but in the end from speaking with you I trust that you'd learn and grow from any mistakes. Don't be afraid to ask for criticism or help IG, people might outwardly display annoyance or condescension, but when prompted you'll get mostly good feedback.
Regarding the physical disadvantages. At the base survival chances, this includes strength and whatnot. Everyone is equal, only if you trained and know on how to survive combat situations you gain an advantage. Just saying.
Well if you really want to be someone who's close quarters but isn't lethal, you could always use a riot shotgun as your weapon of choice. The ammunition variety for a riot gun include, beanbag rounds, taser rounds, tear gas, and rubber bullets. It's a primarily defensive weapon that can hold about 6-10 rounds. They have to be loaded manually if you're trying to switch out ammo type which will in turn prevent powergaming by making you have to do another action to reload. A bayonet could be attached to the weapon so there's that form of melee. Only thing is that the gun is rather large and kinda intimidating. Riot gun - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
