Although it's true that the games we play are often used as escapist fantasy where we don't want to deal with realistic elements, it's actually enjoyable sometimes to play a character that manifests handicaps and other "flaws." My characters have included a blind Timonae, a one-legged bisexual computer hacker, a one-armed witch hunter, and a speech-challenged master of ceremonies.

What kind of flaws have you played out? How do you enjoy "flawed" characters compared to the steady hero types?

I think most good characters need a flaw. If not as major as the ones you listed, I'd say minor flaws just add that realness that a character needs. Most guys I play have flaws, it makes a character interesting.

My characters tend to vary with flaws. No one is perfect so sometimes I will play them very dim witted. Sometimes I play them very sharp witted. Sometimes arrogant, sometimes shy. It depends on what I list in the characters background, and have set in his character document I keep on my computer while playing him.

Reality is far too real and true is stranger than fiction...I'll stick to escapist RP. No flaws in my characters.

I'd try using italics more often.

I mean,

I'd try using italics more often.


Works pretty good for me.

Flaws are usually great stuff. And I'm a big fan of doing things BADLY. That warrior who struggles to put their armor on and then clanks into things because they can't very well see through the narrow slit in their visor. Fun. That sneaky liar who happens to say the very wrong thing at the wrong time. Fun. Or even the more subtle flaws seem to add so much more depth to the character.

But lately. Well, maybe just today, I don't know. Me and my character actually wish we were, well, special. And I don't mean the handicapped kind.

I've been trying to play a plain girl forever, but it's really hard to write a desc that says PLAIN, without actually spelling it out. So with this attempt I did. Something along the lines of, 'This character is not particularly remarkable or memorable in any way. Her face consists of a mouth, a nose, and two eyes.' It's longer than that but you get the jist.

I had considered myself reasonably self-confident out of character, I'm quite pretty in RL, so why would I have trouble playing a plain girl? Oh, but how wrong I was. It actually made me cry tonight, out of character and I feel like the silliest girl for crying over a game. Over a character -I- made up. Mind you she isn't the typical wall flower. She doesn't blush, or dart her eyes away, she's more of the 'I'm invisible anyway, so who cares what I say or do' type.

But there I was sitting with some uber beautiful characters and, I can't quite pin it down, but it got to me. It got to me hard.

So, eh. I guess in conclusion, I understand why women especially rarely play anything other than gorgeous. Even with a healthy ego outside of the mud, it's just.... hard.. to be the outcast. I admire you guys and girls who play ugly. I really do.

That mind block sounds fun. I especially like that you got a chance to play out the moments of lucidity and reflection of your character.

Yaaaaah. I might have been a bit off topic, but I didn't intend to be. When I see the words 'steady hero type' I get this picture in my head of some beautiful character who is perfect in every way and nice to everyone and their dog. Maybe my characters don't quite fit in the 'flawed' category. I tend to play people who have subtle flawed misconceptions of the world that influence their behavior.

For example I played a girl who never let anyone touch her, not even her hand, simply because she was under the misguided notion that if she did, she'd fall in love and have some illicit affair. I realize this isn't something as grandiose as a speech impediment, or a missing limb, but still.. Maybe all characters should be flawed to some extent, but then what seperates the 'hero' from the 'non-hero'?

I'm sorry--I didn't mean to imply that you'd gone off topic. I meant that I was going to start off topic by not speaking about a handy-capped character of my own, but of a character where I'd had a similar experience with feeling something about the character.

Aww, I must have misread it. My own apologies.