Tool The Theory Of Character Creation: A Dummy's Guide To Starting Rpgs

What's up guys, what's the haps?
By the way, my name is Labs.
(that was a shitty rhyme lol)

I don't know what possessed me to think of all this,
but whatever it is, I guess I put too much thought into it to make it go to waste.

Oh yeah, and before you even start reading, please note that I might miss a few tidbits on character creation and you can shriek at me in the replies belo-
"bro u missed the blablabla"
...Basically like that.

So without further ado, here comes an incarnation of the ancient dark arts of the wall o' text...

Spoiler: Part 1: Identity and Password

In order for you to get by in the virtual world, you have to choose a second identity that you will hold closely and go by.
The name you don is completely up to you, but there might be times when the you five years into the future will regret having to be you as of this present day.


Things to look for in a good name:
Try making your second identity linked to your true identity in some way, or it could be totally unrelated to you. Real-life connection does not really matter, but it can help remember your other name.
If you're planning to make things permanent, try making a name for yourself that you will be proud of, something you won't regret to have in your life, something with a good ring in it; Make it worthwhile to keep.

Take me, for example;
I used to just be called Labyrinth in my very recent days of the Internet,
and then later changed it to LGLabyrinth because one-word names usually mean serious business.
I changed it again to ElegyLabyrinth for the sake of trying on new socks, but I plan on changing it back the next opportunity I get because I don't like "Elegy" too much...

A good place to start for a good name is a name you imagine yourself being called in everyday life, because you're going to have to get used to being called by your second name.


Avoid any and all trends.
It's crucial that you avoid trends, because they usually die out as time passes on and your name turns into an abandoned laughingstock and people will generally not take you seriously.

Unless it's only temporary, avoid the following:

Emojis / Emoticons

> ExampleXD​

Text brandings and effects

> xX_example_Xx​

One-word names, unless you plan on having a constantly serious face

> Example​

The "i___" username cloner

> iExample​

Assorted capitalization

> eXAmpLe​

Numbers (to an excessive extent)

> Example_1234535897421​

Popular shortcut phrases

> lolExample​

Names that don't actually have any word in them

> 3X4MP13 (reads "EXAMPLE" in "Leet-Speak")​

Signs that you're in a relation with someone, that's what subtitles are for

> Example_<3_Template​

Your real name

> ****** *** (censoring is fun amirite)​

...And other trends that are bound to happen in the future.​

Anything else should be legally and socially accepted unless there are special restrictions.



Regarding passwords:
Your password can be anything you want it to be, but just like usernames, you have to be careful with it.
Your password is probably the most important part of your account. It's the thing that keeps potential harm from using your second identity to do bad things.

I see your hand raised there, what's your question?
Well, how does a password work?
Simple; It's a security system.
When you start logging on to your account, it will ask for the password that the account is linked to. When the two passwords are identical, you're in; If they don't match, even by the slightest bit, you're booted out.
Usually, after a few tries, your account will get locked for a short amount of time. This bars ANYONE from entering the password, even yourself, granted you have another computer or laptop to work with.

Make sure that you can remember your password, and
Make it so that no one else but you can get any of your password info.
This is really important to keeping your account if you want to be as safe as possible.

A good example for a password would be about something that only you know about,
or something that you're sure no one else knows about.
Gist is, keep it as secretive as possible, as much as your secret diary if not more.

If you feel like you're going to lose your password, it's okay to write it down.
But by all means, DO NOT WRITE IT DOWN ON A LOOSE SHEET OF PAPER.
Keep your written password somewhere secret and someplace only you can access.
And as soon as you memorize your password, remove all physical evidence.
You don't want to lose a loose sheet of paper for a stranger to pick up, no?
'Cause that would be bad and you damn well know it.



If none of this part helped you, don't worry;
After all, I'm not in charge of a name you have to think of yourself anyway.
Not my fault that you can't get friends because of your name...

Spoiler: Part 2: Appearance

This part of character creation is not included in many RPGs, but can be usually be found more often in online games and MUCH more often in role-play games specifically.
The appearance of your character is completely up to you, but there are some psychological perks for exactly what you want your character to look like.


The very first and much-encountered trait is gender.
Aside from the physically obvious, you can usually tell if a character is a female because of long hair, a trait kept among many females. Vice versa for males as well; You can tell if they're males because of the usually short hair they don.
However, sometimes they can lie and choose the type of hairstyle that they themselves are not, but that's just them. You don't have the right nor time to attack them about their avatar choices, and it benefits no one.


There's also a visual stimulus that is triggered by colors.
As most of you know, the color red is a very imposing one; It usually means to stop, to back off, or if there's danger nearby.

Believe it or not, according to data based from the effects of colored hair has based off of anime characters, there really are things that set the character's personality based on hair color.

Black hair = Self-reliant, deep thinkers that often don't need help; Lone wolves, if you will
Gray hair = People that "do it themselves", are selfless, or are usually hiding something
White hair = Wielding an inhumanly justice and narcissism, you'd believe in magic (or else)
Red hair = Tempered and explosive, and/or calm and humble; it depends on who they are
Orange hair = Very much like their red-headed cousins, except more subtle and/or annoying
Auburn hair = Very often a signal for stillness, sincerity, or boredom; They're normies
Blonde hair = These guys can either be charming, hunting for trouble, or just stupid as fuck
Green hair = Seriously, if one of your friends doesn't have green hair, you're missing out
Blue hair = Righteous, introverted, just, mature; Think of water, and you have the right idea
Violet hair = Usually, strength is handed to these guys on a silver platter with cream on top
Cherry hair = A sign that means youth, innocence, passion, and more or less just gullible​

And without further offense, we present to you "squinty eyes"...
An uncommon selectable trait, race has differences in appearance and performance.
These don't really do much in terms of fashion, but this can change skin tone if that's what your after.
However, race usually does not come into play in many RPG games, but if there's one you like, go for it.

There can also be completely fictional races with different perks,
like dragons or elves or robots or whatever the game has going on in it.
The races usually have to do with the game itself anyway;
It doesn't make sense for an ancient historical game to have advanced technology.


Oh look, more clothes that you have to bother to wash.
What your character wears can define almost everything about him/her.
There is usually a set costume for the character, but there are times when you're allowed to pick out what clothes you like.

Clothes, just like uniforms, can define your character's occupation.
For example, a soldier might wear tactical armor to help protect itself in a close-quarters fight,
while a magician would wear robes to help connect with the ethereal entities to do its bidding.
Meanwhile, the spies and gunslingers might have their interests on wearing a flak jacket,
and a tribal warrior would wear clan-made leathers as how the legends went.

However, there's no need to stereotype; Mages might finally have learned the iron armor spell.
Who knows? I don't. Go out there and make yourself look nice.


Regarding decorative equipment:
Any decorative apparel such as headphones, scarves, or headbands can also apply to identifying your character, but it doesn't really affect how others take you for unless the majority is on a fashion trend.
Really, whatever your character wears on its head is up to you.



If none of this part helped you, don't worry;
It's just character creation. Be yourself!
I'm fussing over it so much just so that you don't have to.

Spoiler: Part 3: Character Building

This part of character creation is directed toward combat. Combat is very likely to be seen in many RPGs, but some RPGs that are more oriented toward interaction usually do not have any combat.
Your combat style is most likely going to be found from just playing the game, whether it be on the front lines as the center of attention or hiding in the safety of friends or environment and picking off enemies from a distance.

A basic idea is to think of rooted combat aspects is as a triangle:
It usually defaults to a tie between power, defense, and speed.
However, there will be many more assets that ties to what defines you as a fighter,
which will have to be experienced by yourself.

For now, let's go back to that triangle:

Power
/\
/.....\
/..........\
Defense................Speed...​

This triangle model can be applied to pretty much any combat style;
They can either:

Focus completely on Power
Focus completely on Defense
Focus completely on Speed
Excel at both Power and Speed,
Excel at both Power and Defense,
Excel at both Defense and Speed...

...or have a balanced range of all three traits.​

However, this triangle can also be used to rate anything about the subject fighter.
All we have to do is change the triangle's properties a bit.
For example, if we wanted to find the qualities of a weapon;
we would change Defense to Durability because it does not have any defensive traits for its fighter,
but must last long enough to supply the fighter the power the weapon itself possesses.

Power
/\
/.....\
/..........\
-Defense- Durability...............Speed.......................​

Henceworth, we can deduce the following:

How much damage can be dealt from the weapon,
how fast the weapon can recover between each strike to be able to strike again,
and how long the weapon will last before breaking.​

Some weapons, such as shields, however, may not have traits that most conventional weapons have (Shields do not have any Speed or Power aspect to them.)
Therefore, we fill the emptied traits with traits the shield has:
Defense, Durability, and Size.

Defense
/\
/.....\
/..........\
Durability...............Size.........​

From this triangle, we are now allowed to simplify the shield:

How much damage it can sustain for its wielder,
how much damage it can take before breaking,
and the maximum amount of the wielder it can protect at the time.​

Well, why is size relevant for a shield?
It's actually VERY relevant for the situation that the shield is to be used.
For example, the well-known RIOT shield was designed for full-body bulletproof protection,
and hence its defense and size is sure to be high,
while its durability must be at least a little less than mediocre from sustaining bullets.
However, here were also shields that were used for civil fights rather than full-purpose military gear.
There used to be a kind of small shield that was purposed for hand-to-hand combat.
Ladies and gentlemen, I present; The targe / buckler.
This shield was meant to block quick blows on a dime,
at the cost of having to lose some weight in order to do so.
Therefore its defense and durability were excellent, but its overall size pales when compared to the RIOT.

These qualities can also be used to find the subject's weaknesses.
A powerhouse of a foe that can sponge hits like a towel in the middle of the sea?
Make yourself hard to hit with Speed and take it out before it even knows you're there with Power.

There's also going to be other key elements in combat, such as but are not limited to:

Traps
Ambushing
Healing
Buffs and Resistances
Damage Over Time
Splash Damage
Status Effects and Special Conditions
Stealth
Assassination (or one-hit killing)
Infiltration and Espionage
Communication​

Depending on the type of combat (Action or turn-based), these elements may differ and vary.

The main idea is, you can draw out your maximum combat potential if you can find out what you're really best at.
Once you do, I'm sure that fights will go much easier for you.
In any combat situation, strategy and quick thinking is key to winning.



If none of this part helped you, don't worry;
Mortal Kombat is in favor of helping you out on how to button-mash.

Spoiler: Part 4: House Decorations

You can't do most things in life and in games when you don't even have a place to call home, right?
Believe it or not, RPG games isn't just turn-based hack-n'-slash multiplayer madness. In fact, that's simply one genre of RPG games.

RPG's initials spell out Role-Play Game, so it's not always about combat.
To you Sims fans, you know that you can play the role of God or something, I never really played the game myself.
Then again, this is supposed to be an adventurer's guide, not for people with God Syndrome.
And besides, I'm just here to tell you how to buff your crib~~


Let's start with the bare-bone necessities.
Starting your house off with cosmetics instead of useful furniture and storage would be a poor choice if you're gonna go out on an adventure.
Most veterans of the field are smart enough to know this step right away, but a place to call home is no laughing matter, unless you don't have much need for one.

For an adventurer to not have to carry all his/her belongings in a simple rucksack, you'll want to start off with a piece of furniture that will hold inventory spaces.
If it requires you to first build a workshop in order to make the chest, then do so. It's worth the extra inventory you don't have to carry.

[more info needed]

If there's any other things that you want to add to this community service announcement,
all you gotta do is say so in the replies below.


And as always...

 

Just got back online today. I'm gonna update this thread to have a username + password part and a house-decorating part soon.


I'm really fucking proud of teaching people when I don't have my drawing tablet working right now.
Sorry to those who wanted artwork instead, but I'll get it fixed soon and release another project soon.




also i dont normally talk formally im just settin an example for them newfags
btw if ur one of those newfags then why not show what you're made of in the Introduce Yourself section?

 

Hahaha

________________________________

Wait,I'm blond...I'm not stupid as fuck

;(

 

LMFAO "But can be stupid af" IMMMMMM DYINNGGGGGGGG

 

Please don't take the "dumb blonde" joke too seriously, I think yellow is a beautifully vibrant color if it makes you think otherwise

;D

 

Kinda sorta done, gotta think of housekeeping for another day though...

 

Added a password section in the Identity part.

 

:3 I am danger

 

i thoroughly enjoyed dis guide
+juan seal of approves

 

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.​

 

That was nice.....! I used to watch my father play Skyrim, with DLC. The houses were great..

 

Just from the first spoiler, I remember my old name on Battle bears...

*Shivers*

It was...
..
SubKillerLegit
EWW 9 YEAR OLD THOUGHTS OF ME TRYING TO BE COOL

 

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.​

 

@ElegyLabyrinth

Sir, do you have a life?

 

it's not for sale.