Advice On Rping

[*xUberdooMx]

FELLOW FORUM TROLLS, I BEG YOUR WISDOM! I have a hard time thinking of how to RP my character, Ivarson Bloodhair. He's got a backstory, but I have a hard time a) representing his character, and B) having a reason to do anything.

a) I was going for a pre-medieval Viking originally, but was told that historical fictional characters from the real world weren't allowed, so I switched to making him a Rashemi berserker, which, it turns out, is probably a lot easier. He's chaotic evil, but I have a hard time with that, since if I truly RP'd a CE character, he'd pretty much be an outcast, and would get his ass kicked left and right, and would probably not have anyone to go out and play with, which is a nice segue tooooo...

B) I hardly know what my purpose is, and as a result, haven't really got friends. How do you approach someone and ask if they want to go to the grey wastes? "Hey, wanna go take a walk? It's mildly infested with undead, but it's still an ideal hangout." I feel like that doesn't fit, not even to someone as illogical as I want Ivar to be. So what are good reasons? Practice? Random loot?

I can hold a conversation IC pretty well, it's just a matter of getting there for me. I'm pretty inexperienced at all this RP stuff, and am bad at initiating RP at all. Anyone have advice for me?

[*Zadara]

Hi!!!

This is such a great question - and after months of playing a CE character (well heÂ’s not really CE anymoreÂ…), I still do not know how to answer it with certainty (IÂ’m not sure I ever willÂ…)

I'll just share my personal experience with you – and hopefully you can glean something useful from it!

I originally created a Doomguard weapon smith known simply as “The Artificer.” When I first started playing, he was exclusively rude, arrogant, and downright violent to most characters he met in Sigil. A few poor people actually did RP their characters to react with fear (rather than violence or rudeness) – though the ratio was about 20:1 for --- Characters who’d tell the Artificer to “Pike-off” as he demanded they travel to Undersigil with him as his subordinates: Characters who actually were frightened enough to become subservient.
Though this was somewhat fun for two weeks, I quickly got bored of RPing a meanie, and being an outcast.

Thus I decided to make a secret alter ego for the Artificer, Jach Sensbane: a whimsical, seline, and effeminate old fool who was exceedingly nice to most he met. I found this to be a lot of fun – as I’d befriend PCs as Jach, and later berate them (and be berated in return) as the Artificer.

As time has passed – I have found myself playing less often as the Artificer and more as Jach ( just yesterday, I asked a DM to change the character name from “The Artificer” to “Jach Sensbane”). In a sense, you can say that I “chickened out” of continuing to play the Artificer more frequently because I limited his personality to an arguably rudimentary (and stereotypical) paradigm of CE: someone who is rude, violent, and wants instant self-gratification. I got bored both of repeatedly RPing these character traits, as well as the loneliness that stems from being a total jerk to others!

My advice to you: try to go beyond these stereotypes, and construct a more complex character. Perhaps your beserker is functional in most civil settings, yet is a complete maniac once he enters combat. Perhaps he is a more “insidious” type of CE who plots and plans (something that would normally be reserved for LE types) to ultimately spread chaos and destruction. I know these suggestions aren’t the best, but they’re all I can come up with right now.

Good luck! Have fun! And however you determine your character to behave, I hope to see him in game!

[*Ceremorph]

Also, simply because there's a ban on "I'm a 12th-century viking from Norway!", that does not mean that you're tied to the Forgotten Realms. Yes, they have managed to come up with nations that correspond roughly to many historical periods of Earth, but there are also other campaign worlds out there (Dragonlance, Greyhawk, Dark Sun, and Lankhmar among others), not to mention the almost unlimited number of primes tied to the Planescape setting. Can someone play a marauding sea-reaver from a society that mirrors that of the Norse (or even better, that of Norse mythology) who hails from some prime nobody has heard of? Of course! The primary thought behind that rule is to prevent the "I'm a 20th century american/englishman/whatever who stepped through a portal and found themselves in Sigil" conceit, which in turn leads to the dreaded "genre-savvy" character who sees modern references in everything.

[*StealthedAssailant]

any alignment is not easy to play, evil is mostly harsh because it's normally reserved for DMs and NPC's. Since normally, evil always loses in the end so to speak otherwise everyone will feel betrayed. It's basically the years of propoganda that good always triumps over evil and even though evil may win a battle good always wins the war gibberish we are fed through works of fiction and overal popular culture.

I for one, like playing evil characters that are either brash and hopelessly fall tragically over and over again despite themselves. It's lonely if the majority of the server does not align with the philosophy of villainism that you are portraying. But you just have to be more creative to outwit their stereotypes and offer a surprise once in a while. All my CE or Evil characters have to have some kind of element that still shows some part of their "humanity" (since we as players are all human and can only identify with human traits we give our avatars) left, but it is faint and hopelessly shrouded with darkness.

It also helps to keeps a character from becoming a two-dimensional archetype that really has no depth. Just because a character is evil, hardened, violent, doesn't mean that they are immune to emotional vulnerability, actually it's quite the opposite imo. They tend to take on traits to cover latent insecurities in themselves as sort of a coping mechanism, but if you probe them long enough, you might actually see what makes them the way they are.

So I would definately give your evil character a try but instead of making him the archetypical killing machine, psychopath, sociopathic, megalomaniac, add a weakness or two that he or she is sensitive too and keep people guessing. :D

[*Product of Void]

TROLL?? I AM AN OGRE!!!


Just ask around :P


I truly hate telling others how to RP their character. Though if advice is requested then I do not feel so bad giving it.

Chaotic is not about random. It is more of less focused or easily distracted. It could be someone with ADD or perhaps forgetful. Unable to focus or just unwilling to plan or think ahead. Chaotic can be like I was for one year making decisions by a coin toss (very literal and yes I did).


Evil slaughter and death is a function of evil yet not the required or meat and potatos. Evil is uncaring or unwilling. Its forcing your ideals on others or limiting their freedoms. Evil is crupting, selfish, and self serving. As a man can be greedy the can also have no care for money yet lust for power or perhaps


One thing to keep in mind is Alignments are something only YOU and the DM's see. So it really does not matter.

I do have a character that is NE though I think of them as more LE why NE? due to class requirments. Who is going to know? pff no one.

Design a character that is fun and something you would like to play develop a personality and story have fun. I think that is something you can gain by what zadara did. I know I once built a hin female starting her out CE though as I built a personality it became clear to me she is more CN.

Find your RP comfort zone, have fun and enjoy the game.

[*Mr_Otyugh]

Rather than considering chaotic evil as 'destroyer', consider it as mostly self-interested person whom follows most of his quirks despite the well being of those around him. Now intelligence and wisdom scores would be also deciding how much they value allies.

Meeting others and getting them to travel with you to hostile planes, rather than going with it directly to point "Lets go to <plane X>" try providing service for others, of course jink or other selfish thing being main motive for the character... providing service gives you reason to attempt to market it to others and start the conversation in Great Bazaar.

Perhaps even make some "barbaric" tradition that he follows to test the might of others... arm wrestling, loser follows the winner for rest of the day kinda thing. (but being chaotic evil, he'd likely follow them himself when it became non-profitable for himself)



Motivation to travel to planes:
- If you're playing a religious type: Search for holy relic of the deity (and likely failing) / Destroying enemies of your deity / Spreading the message of the deity to the planes... in rather brutal manner.
- Self-interested types: If you have a single ultimate goal, the planes perhaps provides a single step towards the victory.. gem of lightness that'll be part of unfinished device or something.
- Greed: Simple greed is always good reason :P with added liking gore perhaps.
- Finding a Worthy Challenger: Perhaps the character is into finding a worthy challenger for themselves and travels the planes after "hearing of them" to kill them in duel <,<

*shrugs* just few ideas, but you can get very creative.

[*Ceremorph]

Another thing to remember about alignments: especially in a Planescape setting, we tend to look at the "paragons" of the alignments and assume that's what the alignment means. However, no mortal can ever be as LG as a Solar, or as CN as a Slaad. The mortal version fades in comparison. Whereas your run-of-the-mill Hezrou might be a completely amoral engine of destruction and blasphemy, let's remember what we always hear about the people who turn out to be murderous psychopaths in the real world.

"He always seemed like such a nice young man."

Your CE character might be more than willing to cut the hearts out of random strangers if it serves his purpose, whether it be a lust for power or some twisted revenge... but he also might enjoy walks on the beach with a pretty girl, drinking at the bar with a friend, or growing lovely flowers in a windowbox.

If, on the other hand, he likes to press wildflowers, puts on women's clothing, and hangs around in bars he's not actually CE, but is instead a lumberjack. And he's OK.

[*deusex2]

Rather than considering chaotic evil as 'destroyer', consider it as mostly self-interested person whom follows most of his quirks despite the well being of those around him. Now intelligence and wisdom scores would be also deciding how much they value allies.

That would be neutral evil, no?

First things first-don't leave any witnes alive :lol:

Second-as much as it hurts to admit, but playing netural evil is actually the best way...Only you have to be a REALLY mean netural evil, who prefears violence as answer to everything.

And last, but not least:

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/ootscast.html

http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0001.html

Your role model is Belkar ;)

[*Lost and not Found]

On all of the years I've played NWN and NWN2 online, I have not even once ran into a single Drizzt-clone. However, what I found was servers filled with hordes of generic Rashmeni berserkers. Thus, I ask if you could reconsider the origin of your character? You do not need to be from Rashemen to be a berserker, especially not when you are travelling the planes. :|

[*Mr_Otyugh]

Rather than considering chaotic evil as 'destroyer', consider it as mostly self-interested person whom follows most of his quirks despite the well being of those around him. Now intelligence and wisdom scores would be also deciding how much they value allies.

That would be neutral evil, no?

Hence the following quirks part to become 'chaotic'.