Guide:Character Development 101

This guide was saved from an archive of the thread from the old WoW forums. Originally by Celune of Emerald Dream.

Character Development 101

This is intended for anyone who wants to roleplay but has no idea how to go about making a character, anyone who has been roleplaying but isn't really happy with their character, someone who wants to make a new character, or just anyone who might get a useful tidbit or two out of it.

I had written one of these for the old forums, which didn't receive that much attention, and unfortunately was lost - but I felt like it was a good resource so I am rewriting it. If you guys feel it it worth a sticky, please hit the red biohazard symbol and indicate that you think it should be stickied.

Let me say this now: this is not intended to tell anyone they NEED to do it this way, that this is the ONLY way to effectively create characters. I only wanted to share a method that I have found can create really good, realistic characters, but it's certainly not the only method to do it. This guide is written for anyone who wants to improve their character creation abilities, and I hope any readers will take from it whatever helps. It was especially written for newer RPers who may have never written a character before (or just never written one they were happy with).

If I've left out anything important please mention it and I'll edit to add it in.

I'll be making up a character as we go along too, so everyone can follow along in the process.

Table of Contents:

Step 1: The Basic Picture
Step 2: Turn a few traits into a personality.
Step 3: History (Herstory?)
Step 4: Balance is key.
Step 5: Don't fear change.
Step 6: A few things to Avoid.

Step 1: The Basic Picture

Some people might disagree with me, but what I have found as the most logical way to create a character is to start by thinking about what kind of person they are, in general.

Edit: Bluclaw recently brought to my attention that she does it differently, and it made me rethink the way I said this. I don't mean that you should start with a completely blank slate. Things that are okay to have at this point would be items such as a name/physical appearance (just don't be too attached to either in case it needs to be modified a little later), or a basic concept (Strong, silent warrior type? Friendly thief?). It's also fine to not have any of these yet, if that's the case. You can start with a personality and build the rest of your character around that.

What this DOES mean is that you DON'T start with their history, as many people try to do . Instead, just think about the major traits you want them to have. If you already have a concept, then the traits they have will be directed by that idea. If not, then just think about the type of person you want them to be.

As for my character, so far, all I have is a name and race. I want to play a human named Eidnis. Now I start thinking about how I want her to react in RP situations - in this case, I think it might be fun to play a cheerful, impulsive type of person. She'll be quick to laugh and also quick-tempered.

Those are the kind of basic traits you should base a character's personality around - their dominant moods. Here's a list of a few similar major traits to get you started thinking:

Angry
Immature
Caring
Solemn
Cynical
Rude
Sorrowful
Cold
Polite
Peaceful
Cruel
Carefree
Exciteable
Loving
Wild
Calm
Friendly

These are by no means a comprehensive list - just a few to get you thinking.

Step 2: Turn a few traits into a personality.

Now that you have those basic traits in mind, you need to create a full personality around them.

Let's see - we know Eidnis is cheerful most of the time. But also that she's quick to change moods; let's say her emotions are easily swayed by events around her. Someone like that is probably also open and makes friends easily, and very talkative. But let's put a layer of distrust under her open-ness - she may consider many people friends, but few of those are actually close to her and she finds it difficult to confide in people sometimes. She is fiercely loving and loyal to those she is close to, and likely to help anyone in need that she may meet. She has a strong faith in the Light.

This part is again only limited by what you want to do - the above is just an example of how I would like Eidnis to be in particular. At any rate, take the basic traits you have and build up some smaller ones that would go around it - think about people you have known, or yourself, even, and consider carefully which traits would go together and which seem too contradictory.

(Thanks to Canos for pointing this out) Especially if you are newer to roleplaying, you may find it difficult to figure out how a character would react to any given situation - and in these cases, it may help to base your first characters partly off yourself.

Let me say something important here, though: Don't, and I mean absolutely do not get caught up in the idea that the character is you or that you are your character - this only leads to worse-quality roleplaying, in general, because you tend to have different goals for a character you identify too closely with. It often leads to Mary Sues and/or godmoding situations, which nobody likes.

So instead of 'being' your character, just use your own reactions as a base for your character's, and think of it more like writing a novel about yourself. Think about how you personally would react, and go from there. Keep in mind that this will make your character's personality similar to your own, so if you want to make a wide range of different characters you should not use this for them all (or else they will all be similar to you and thus to each other). However, it is a great place to start for your first real character.

Also, if you hadn't done it yet, you might want to think about your character's appearance at this point. In the end, appearance is mostly what you can imagine for your character, with a few limitations - such as, great warriors cannot be thin and frail; strong, fighting women cannot be petite and skinny (unless they do all their fighting in cat/bear form . . . ) and likewise hulking strong guys are not so likely to be mages or warlocks. When you pick an appearance for your character keep in mind what class they are and adjust accordingly.

What's that? Oh, we didn't pick a class for Eidnis yet? Hmm . . . how about priest? Sounds good. As a priest she has less physical demands upon her form, so I'll make her rather short; perhaps 5'2". Also red-haired and green-eyed; I happen to like that combination, and there's that whole stereotype of redheads being intense people which fits here. And freckles, those too. Let's say she's a little bit vain, even as a priestess, so her robes are a pretty shade of green that set off her eyes, and kept in good condition. (She can be a tailor, why not?)

Before you come up with a history, you should try to firm up the basic parts of class, race, and appearance. Get it set the kind of person they are now. But don't forget that nothing's set in stone, not now, not ever, so if you feel like changing a bit when you form the history, then do so.

Now Eidnis is a real person, and we can move on to the next step!

Step 3: History (or Herstory?)

Some people may argue with this, but I think it's a much better method of creating characters to start with their personality before you create a backstory for them - in this way you avoid the problem of making a character that really is only a history. Haven't you seen many, many characters who's description goes like this:

I hate the Horde because the Horde killed my parents. I am always looking out to get my revenge on the Horde.

One-sided, motivated entirely by one rather over-used event. That character is nothing more than their past. But by making a personality first, you make sure that all your characters are really people and not just events. But their past will still fit well with the person they are today, because you write their past with their present state in mind.

So now that we have Eidnis as a real person with a developed personality, let's write a backstory for her that gives her that sort of personality - something that molds her into the person I have decided she is today. Let's see - being an only child would help her develop and keep that fiery nature, especially with a coddling parent. Her loyalty may have arisen from the loss of someone close to her - her mother, perhaps. She had to have been hurt by someone before to be so distrusting - perhaps her first lover or best friend, in her late teens? She also must have been raised in the worship of the Light as well. That's a rough draft of her history - next I would make it more concrete, and add things like 'where' and 'when'. Believe it or not, those details are less important than what actually happened.

Edit: thought of this bit later, but it's important.

When taking an ambiguous history like the one just above, world history is actually quite important in placing the details. Many huge events have happened very recently in the timeline. What is your character likely to feel as a result of that? It was only about 25-30 years ago that the events of Warcraft I occurred, so anyone younger than that has grown up with war. It was only four-five years ago that the whole world fought at the battle of Mt. Hyjal, and around the same amount of time that the Scourge has been a threat (Hint, the Scourge was created after Arthas took the Frozen Throne, in WC3X.) So take into account how these events would ahve changed your character - where were they? What happened to them during these times?

Along with world history also goes the more specific history for your race. If your character's a blood elf, then they've just experienced the departure of half their people into Outland with Kael'thas, and the catastrophic destruction of a good part of those who stayed. They're likely to be a little bitter. Draenei, similarly, have just crash-landed on some new planet after escaping their old one. Things have been shaken up. Take the time to look into the history of your chosen race, at least as far back as your character's life span, and think about how those events would have shaped their life.

Now, back to the specific example of Eidnis. Let's take that rough draft of her story and turn it into something concrete, with places and time details.

The History of Eidnis:
Eidnis was raised in Andorhal before it fell to the Scourge. As a smaller village, life in Andorhal was a bit provincial at times (think WoW rednecks, actually). Eidnis was the only child of her parents, Marcus and Ethyl, who loved their darling daughter. Marcus was the village priest who led the weekly services, which little Eidnis always attended dutifully; she grew up loving the feelings of peace and simply of 'belonging' that the church provided.

At age 12, Eidnis underwent hardship as her mother became ill and passed away in the span of months. Only her faith in the Light, and her loving father, sustained her during this time; although still young, she realized how much her mother had given her and made a promise to herself to always cherish and appreciate those who loved her, and whom she loved in return.

As she aged, Eidnis grew into quite a little beauty, a fact she oddly was not aware of for some time. In her 17th year, a traveling bard came into the village; he was suave, handsome, and wordly, to her eyes. He spent weeks in the village talking with her, courting her, telling her of his 'feelings' for her. Eidnis was both excited and frightened; she had never met someone like the bard. Though she feared he was not serious, when he looked into her eyes and gently touched her cheek, whispering words of love, she could not really believe he would lie to her. One late afternoon, golden in the autumn sun, she knew she was in love and went to give herself to him, truly believing they would be married and travel the world together, as he promised. But the next morning, he was gone, with not even a note to explain why - and though young, Eidnis was intelligent. She knew why.

Since then, she has found it difficult to trust others, and even more difficult to become involved with any man - which, coupled with her faith, led her to the priesthood. The Light, as Eidnis sees it, is something she can put her complete trust and faith in, with no fear of being wounded.

Eidnis left Andorhal with her father to begin her priestly training only weeks before the Scourge descended upon it. She heard of the carnage not long after, and it pained her greatly that everyone she had known since childhood was dead; the young woman spent days mourning their loss, inconsolable. But when her time was over she wiped her face, said a prayer to the Light, and continued on. They arrived in Stormwind safely and she received her training.

Eidnis has taken it as her personal mission to work against the threat of the Lich King and help end the Scourge forever. These days she travels the world, doing what she considers the work of the Light, but often returns to visit her father who now lives in Stormwind, working in the great Cathedral there.

With this history I have given her a very real past, but also a reason to be moving about in the world. Motivation is important: you have to think to youself, 'Why is my character wandering around instead of settled down?' It could be wanderlust, it could be a thirst for adventure, a quest to become an even greater warrior, a search for some person or object, or even, yes, revenge (if you do it correctly. Believe me when I say that the old 'Horde killed my parents and so I hate the Horde' story is pretty stale.)

So remember the main points of how to create a believable character history:

1. Pick your personality and traits first. Decide who they are today before you think about what happened to them yesterday.

2. Consider world history (this means go read the lore if you haven't.) and how it affected your character. This includes any race-specific events that would affect all the people of a certain race.

3. Write the backstory to push your character into the personality and life you have already chosen.

4. Give them a reason to be out in the world; find a motivation, and justify it in their backstory.

Step 4: Balance is key.

Everyone who has been here for even a little while must be familiar with the phrase, 'No godmoding'. Of course, one meaning of that is that you should never write the actions of other people's characters (without permission). But the other meaning, the one which is more important here, is that you can't have a super-powerful character who is awesome and never loses, etc, etc.

So, despite all the good traits your character may have, they must have some flaws as well. They are people, mere mortals, and they are not perfect.

Eidnis, for example, may be intelligent and a skilled priestess - but she is small and not very strong physically, nor does she have a high tolerance for pain. She has a quick temper which can cause her to say things she regrets, and a streak of vanity as well. She is afraid of getting close to people lest they betray her, which has led her to abandon the idea of ever being in a relationship with a man; Eidnis would rather be alone than be hurt like that again. She is headstrong and impulsive, and not that likely to take advice or think carefully about her options before taking action. She doesn't drink much, but when she does it only takes a few to put her under the table.

Think carefully about the concept of 'trade-offs' : your character's strengths and advantages must be balanced by their weaknesses. And by weaknesses, I don't necessarily mean physical traits either - mental weaknesses, things that hold your character back in certain situations, are just as useful here. What about the cliche of the super-strong warrior who's an idiot? It may be cliched, but it's also balanced, my friends.

To give another example of balance, here's Celune, my warrior.

Celune is tall and strong, very tall and very strong, in fact, comparable to most Night Elven men. She is a skilled warrior and a consummate actress, both traits being vital to her livelihood as a bounty hunter/mercenary. She is a master of subterfuge and trickery with a great understanding of how others think. However, she's not physically sneaky at all; in fact, she would better be described as slightly clumsy when not in battle. Her whole attitude is one of self-control, constantly criticising herself for the smallest perceived weaknesses. She spends her free time boozing and looking for one-night-stands, trying to drive away old memories. Due to her past she has adopted a cold and condescending manner, pushing all others away from her, and is convinced that Elune is toying with everyone, but herself especially. She is quickly provoked to rage and occaisionally loses control in displays of violence. She never learned to swim, and is terrified of ships and drowning and deep water in general (also incredibly seasick), though she never reveals this fact, considering it one of her worst weaknesses and afraid of being vulnerable to others.

So take my advice to heart - creating a balanced character with flaws and all will not only make them seem more 'real', it will make others want to interact with you more as well.

Step 5: Don't Fear Change.

Change is good. Part of roleplaying is the moving storylines, like a really cool book that we are all a part of. So don't be afraid to let your character change, especially if it seems right. Now this doesn't mean that every RP you are part of has to be permanently etched into your character's history; in fact, many of them may turn out to be something you don't really want to keep forever. But some storylines and events become a permanent part of your character's past, and you shouldn't try to avoid that. I just created Eidnis, so of course she has no events to make 'permanent', but with Celune there have been several threads that I made part of her official history.

Another part of this is the change you yourself might come up with. Hardly anyone writes a character and then sticks with them, exactly the same way as they were first created. Often you may come up with something else to add to the backstory, or you may tweak some events, or change other things around, and there's nothing wrong with that either. Until the character is dead, they're still a work in progress, right? In fact, one of the first threads I was ever in changed my first perceptions of Celune quite a lot, and led to some rewriting of her backstory.

Having mentioned death, I'll give you guys my opinion on it - some people kill off their characters when they are done with them. All I have to say about that is, if you want to, go for it. It's your character. Personally, I don't like the finality of that; plus it's very 'soap opera-esque' if you've killed someone off and then decide to bring them back to life somehow. But if you like the idea, then kill away. (Yours only, please, because killing other people's characters is godmoding, remember?)

6. A few things to Avoid

This is like the section in my 'Thread Development' guide where I say the controversial parts.

There are a few traits your character could have that are what I would call grossly overused; the cliches of character development. These can be in personality, appearance, history - in many aspects of a character these cliches lurk. There are two parts to the list I am about to give you: one part are things that are fairly ridiculous and will almost undoubtably lead to a bad character, and the other part are things which are overused in general and you probably should avoid if you don't feel very experienced (but which CAN be played correctly by a good roleplayer) - if you're not sure that you qualify as 'experienced', then you probably don't.

Cliches to avoid at all costs:

Vampires: there is absolutely no lore basis for vampires in WoW. Just don't do it.

Half-dragons, Half-demons: Again, not much basis for these. Half-demon is a tiny-bit better, but be careful if you give that one a try, it's often used as an artificial way to make a character seem 'dark'.

Physical impossibilities: This one is a pet peeve of mine. I have seen profiles describing night elf women who are 7'2" and weigh 140 pounds. What? Or those who are very slender and skinny yet with ample curves, plus you're a really strong warrior. Also not going to happen. Be realistic with your character's physical description - I delved into this a bit above, but things like buff magicians or warriors who look like fashion models are not very likely, and thus not very believable. In fact, 7'2" woman who weighs 200 pounds would be built like Kate Moss. Celune, who is 8'3" and muscled, weighs around 330-340.

If you don't know how to guess a weight, do what I do - find a BMI calculator, enter the height you've chosen for your character, and try out different weights until you find one that gives an acceptable BMI number. Remember, 18 is catwalk-model thin, with little muscle mass, and few curves. 25 is very curvy, on an averagly-muscled woman. If your character is muscled, then imagine their frame without muscles, and go 2-4 points up. (Celune works out to be a 24.4) Note - this works for Blood elves, Night elves, humans, undead, probably trolls too, and possibly Draenei. For other races, you'll just have to guess.

Cliches which are overused, yet not unplayable:

Remember, these are not necessarily bad form - but they generally do not lead to a believable character in most times they are used.

A scar over one eye: This may seem dangerous and dramatic to you, but there are so, so many people who describe their character this way. Now, rather than being a way to make your character seem unique, it is simply old hat, and not interesting.

Mysterious: always keeps their cloak hood up: Again, overused. It's like a stereotype in the roleplaying world. Just find other ways to make your character seem mysterious. (Of course, if there is a good reason for this, like some terrible facial disfigurement, then it could be interesting - but read the previous item as well.)

Werewolves: There ARE werewolf-type people in game - the Worgen. There is an entire village that turns from human to worgen based on whether it's day or night in the zone. However, if you plan to be a werewolf, you'd better have a good reason why you got that way (that means research the lore, don't just make it up) and treat the whole thing carefully. Just take my word on this one.

Has an ancient artifact of incredible power: This is a way many new players use to attempt to make their character unique, when they have neglected to give them a real personality. It often leads to godmoding, due to the incredible power of their object, or to the Mary Sue syndrome where their character is always key in every storyline because of their powers. Of course, I have seen this one done well - again, just make sure you are not using it just to make your otherwise boring character seem unique.

I have hugely incredible powers of magic/telekinesis/whatever. This is a balance issue - a character with great powers and no apparent reason not to use them is unbalanced and just heading for godmoding trouble. However, a character with great powers coupled with these limitations such as responsibilities not to use them, or the fact that they are an incredible drain on the person. . . again, don't try this unless you feel experienced, guys. If in doubt stick to something simpler.

Half-elven: The lore is fuzzy on how possible this is (espcially when it comes to other racial combos) but we do know for sure that human/high elf and orc/drainei hybrids have occurred rarely. Before you consider this, read the lore and make sure it would be possible. Note: hybrids with night elves are extremely unlikely, due to lore stating that the Night Elves only re-introduced themselves to the other races a few years before WoW's opening. Any half-night elves would still be children at this point.

Raised by a race other than your own: Again, the key here is lore. Make sure that it is possible AND plausible, considering both your character's current age and the state of the world when they were a child, that they could have encountered another race.

Famous Relations: You are not the son of Arthas and Tyrande. Nor of any other combination of WoW's most notables. Nor the sister, aunt, cousin, nephew, etc. This is another one of those cliches that people insert to make their characters feel more unique. It can be done well, of course, especially when it's not a familial relation (Such as the fact that Celune used to be a priestess of Elune and Tyrande was somewhat of a mentor to her) and I'm not ashamed to say I have used this cliche. Again, it takes care and judgement.

Someone killed my parents and I am out for revenge! Many people use this as a motivation when they can't think of something better. Very, very often it's either Horde or Alliance they hate. This can be done masterfully when it's thought through, but it's most common appearance is just as listed - a backstory where basically all it says is that "Tauren killed my parents when I was a child and so now I hate all the Horde and try to kill every Horde I see." This is not a character; this is not even a well-thought out motivation! If you give your character a thirst for revenge, make sure you think through the motivations - and then you might come out with something like,

"Tauren killed my parents when I was a child. Since then I have held a mistrust for Tauren because they speak civilly, of honor and friendship, but their actions betray their words. They are not wise, spiritual people but brutal savages. I will not trust the Horde as they are politically allied with the Tauren, nor will I work with druids because they are in league with these lying cow-people as well."

Well, that's it for the character development FAQ. I hope you got some usefulness out of it!