Role-playing psych out.

B

Bond

Newbie
I'm planning on PCing the Oregon event next month, which is not something I do very often, and I've been considering my character. My last PC was generally a relaxing character, something I've grown tired of. My previous Dark Elf PC (Elec) was a pretty serious role-playing experience, he was a bad man, completely humorless and mean. I played that PC about 10 times and then couldn't do it anymore, but now I find myself longing something, maybe not a bad guy but a character who has a personality outside of my comfort zone.
I don't want to ruin the surprise for those of you with whom I'll be playing, but I was wondering about how everyone else does it. What do you do to get into the right headspace? Do you psych your self out for a character, do you do it differently for different characters or do you just have a "Roleplay state of mind" you get into?
Inquiring minds, they want to know.
 
Costuming, Makeup/Hair, props, and Music are/were things I used for different characters to help become them. Especially back when I played lots of VTM MET. This may seem weird but once dressed for the character looking into the mirror helps too. So I can see who I am supposed to be and then begin to think how they would act and be.

With Music I often would have a theme song or album of mixed songs that helped me get into the mood for that character. Like for one of my VTM characters Red, I often listened to Tori Amos, specifically, her Little Earthquakes album, so much angst and inner turmoil in that album, and I would also listen to Aqua. Which was Red's outer shell, her easy going always ready for a good time part that she showed to everyone. And for like Cera, she listened to a lot of Techo/Trance/Electronica. She was very into techno gadgets and computers. And I also used the Music as a prop for her. It was a way for her to escape from people. While it is not very possible to walk around at Alliance with ear phones on in character. Listening to the music prior to gaming starting may be a way to help get you in the right mind set.

I have also found that whether a character is like me or not, they are in some way a part of me. Whether that be a small part of me or something I would never do in the real world but here in a LARP setting I can explore what it would be like, they all are a piece of me. So thinking about that sometimes helps me prepare of playing the character too.

Costuming, makeup and hair were another big thing for me when I was playing several different VTM MET characters. Having a set costume with hair and makeup helped me become that other person. I was able to begin to think like that character. I used that for when I played NPCs too. I would do key costume changes.

Well, there are some of my tricks, hope you find it helpful.
 
It varies. I mean seriously varies.

For Leo, I would just listen to a lot of depressing music. Leo was kind of a tragic character.

For Diera, I would think about all the shitty things people did/do/have said/say to me and how much I really just hated people. But, as we all remember, Diera was a little special. (You'll also note, she's Retired.)

For Nyrani, I just put on the make up. No real prep. It's one of the two main reasons I picked jaguar for her sarr type. She's a bit more silent bob, if you catch me.

So it depends, and it varies. If you have something particular in mind, you can PM me and I can float you some ideas. I'm not planning on attending the Oregon event so you wouldn't be ruining the surprise. :)
 
Have an involved set of gear. You'll notice all of my characters have very distinct gear, and none of it goes on quickly. "Gearing up" as a character really helps get me into the mood to play the character.

Have a specific way of speaking. Kerjal has an accent, Iftikhaar does not use contractions, Roger speaks very fast and high energy, Xiniu lumbers his way through speaking and doesn't use the letter H. It helps me remember who I am and how I'm supposed to be. Without this, I sometimes forget that I'm supposed to be playing a character, with this, it's easier to ignore the fact that I'm not the character.

Play with a group that will encourage you to be in game and play how you're supposed to be playing. If you're playing Good Guy (tm) and your group is morally gray, you're going to end up doing things you shouldn't be. This works both ways.
 
Music is definitely helpful. I like to use movies, too. I pick one with a character fairly close to the one I'm playing, and watch it once or twice over the week before an event. (For Dassio, it's "Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.")

Also, I mentally put my character in different situations to see how he'd react. What would my character do while locked in a prison cell? What would he do if he met the king? How would he react if accused of a serious crime?
 
obcidian said:
Have a specific way of speaking. Kerjal has an accent, Iftikhaar does not use contractions, Roger speaks very fast and high energy, Xiniu lumbers his way through speaking and doesn't use the letter H. It helps me remember who I am and how I'm supposed to be. Without this, I sometimes forget that I'm supposed to be playing a character, with this, it's easier to ignore the fact that I'm not the character.
Click to expand...

This, I've learned, is my one really big rule for characters. I have to have a different way of speaking. It is a constant reminder that I am not me at the moment. Also, I like to have a fairly involved back story and I read it and all my notes from previous games before I go IG.

I think a character is more fun if you have to stretch yourself to play them and follow their philosophies. Pick a few things your character just won't do, no matter what. Make them things that your real self has no problem with. Whatever decisions you make about the character, follow through, don't wimp out. Otherwise, it's just too easy. Too easy to play a character that will do anything or who doesn't care. Also, having a defined set or morals, good or evil, really helps me visualize my characters and play them.

~Carmen
 
Thanks very much for the replies, but I think I should have worded my original post a bit better. I know how I'll be playing and I know how I get there, but I was curious how everybody else does it. :)
I love hearing about everyones methods, personally I take a couple days before the event if I'm playing a character who is going to be RP heavy and I try to analyze everything I do, every day situations and decide how this guy would have reacted to them. I think it's easy to determine what your character would do if there were a dragon burning down the town, but scenarios can get more difficult to predict and sometimes the situations that are almost normal can give you pause, because you just hadn't thought about it.
I usually have a strict (or not so strict) code of morality defined, not necessarily what the character would have done in game but something to give me an idea what they consider acceptable or not. The other things I do are generally character specific. Staring at stars, looking at myself in the mirror(creeeeepy), it depends on who I'm playing and why.
 
Ah yes, I very much like the "deciding how to react to certain situations before hand". Keeps the character strong. I also like having stuff about child rearing, agricultural practices, marriage, etc in a backstory so that the character is ready with an answer to any question and really feels like they have come from a real life.

Another one: scents. I think scents can be huge for getting into character. Ie, all my gypsy stuff smells like incense. All my barbarian stuff smells like this awesome combo of talcum powder/sage/cinnamon. Just opening up a box of their gear helps with the mindset.

Also, I'm so curious about this character of yours now, Bond..

~Carmen
 
Knowing mundane things about your character really helps you know who they are. You can design a neat costume and run around game being spooky and gacking monsters, but that doesn't develop your character at all, except maybe you hate trolls after a while. Knowing normal things about the character you're playing really help you get into the mindset and overall make for a more fulfilling experience, I think.

And I'm sure your curiosity will be satisfied at the Oregon event. :D
 
For me it is a mix of a lot of the different things people have already mentioned, plus a few extras. Costuming, make-up, accents, character history are all very important for me to play my characters, but more than anything its the minor character flaws that really get me into it. Its fun to think about what my character would do in a situation, but the truth is wacky stuff is always happening, most of which none of us see coming. When I create a character/npc I generally let the personality quirks/flaws guide me. They might change at some point, but until given a reason to change them IG, I use them to help guide my reactions.

Example: Elaina (young biata NPC) --> Mentally 8. Would trust anyone who was not overtly scary or mean to her. Intensely curious. Could only use her magical skill in an intense emotional state. With only these few rules I was generally able to respond to most situations without ever having to think "is this what I would do or what my character would do."

This system helps me the most with Slice. Although Slice and I have some traits in common, there are a lot of traits/opinions we just don't share. I find playing a character that is distinctly morally different from myself very rewarding, but if I don't have character flaws built into my characters I would have hit a wall a long time ago.

And speaking of crazy accents and funny personality quirks...I too will be at the Oregon event, and will get to play Amelie again. =)
 
For me im just crazy/paranoid in RL so i just use that in game since this is my first and only toon so far lol
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top