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Discussion: To plan or not to plan?

Tags: #ZonnoSpark  #RP Guide 
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  • Ryokoichi
     
    December 9, 2016

    WuYiXiang said:

    Zonnonn said:

    Same with me usually. Starting a game, I mainly just wanna check out the fancy graphics and gameplay, so RP takes a back seat (I know, I know, it's blasphemous). And plus, finding cool gameplay and quest stuff that adds to RP makes the RP even better. To what extent is 'each minute detail'? I'd love to see how in depth other people go.

    Uh...

    I start with class/stats/abilities/general play style (typically some theme of "breaking the meta"). Then I follow that up character name/appearance/backstory. Then, it's motivation, quirks, taboos. After that, I run a character through moral hypotheticals like "How would she respond to Trolley problem?" and so on.

    After all that, I go with the "favorites" list. Foods, drinks, entertainment, et cetera. If I'm feeling entirely insane, I'll go as far as to fill this out.

     

     

    Wow, that list is really interesting. I couldn't read all of it. I was thinking filling out a DnD character sheet but I will try this one to. It will be more effective If I try to write down a story or two about the character, I think. I like to do that time to time.

  • Mercurias
    Member
     
    January 26, 2017
    One of my favorite playthroughs was as Aventus Aretino's biological father, and I'd planned from the start for him to be a Dark Brotherhood assassin, quick to snipe from the shadows and then sprint back to Shadowmere for an escape. When I got to the point, however, where the character was aiming his bow at the prisoners inside that abandoned shack, he shot the Khajiit criminal, then the mercenary who had crossed the line, and finally Astrid. He could kill for his boy, and he could kill to mete out justice, but he wouldn't suffer another parent to walk into a house and see their child the way he'd seen Aventus. The character then joined the Thieves Guild, adopted his own son, and turned the Guild into an underground kingdom. In time, he even remarried and adopted another child.
  • Zonnonn
    Member
     
    January 26, 2017

    Mercurias said: One of my favorite playthroughs was as Aventus Aretino's biological father, and I'd planned from the start for him to be a Dark Brotherhood assassin, quick to snipe from the shadows and then sprint back to Shadowmere for an escape. When I got to the point, however, where the character was aiming his bow at the prisoners inside that abandoned shack, he shot the Khajiit criminal, then the mercenary who had crossed the line, and finally Astrid. He could kill for his boy, and he could kill to mete out justice, but he wouldn't suffer another parent to walk into a house and see their child the way he'd seen Aventus. The character then joined the Thieves Guild, adopted his own son, and turned the Guild into an underground kingdom. In time, he even remarried and adopted another child.

    That's a pretty persuasive argument for planning to me and also for not, so I like this answer a lot!

    Giving your character justification for what they do, like you did with this character, can be the difference between a fun or boring playthrough. But changing direction, and essentially starting another character, is a massive plus to wingin' it and seeing what happens.

  • Mercurias
    Member
     
    January 26, 2017

    Zonnonn said:

    Giving your character justification for what they do, like you did with this character, can be the difference between a fun or boring playthrough. But changing direction, and essentially starting another character, is a massive plus to wingin' it and seeing what happens.

    Exactly. Sometimes making a plan and sticking to it makes for a good experience, but other times a plan only carries you to a certain point before you realize it isn't perfect, or it could be a lot more fun going in a different direction. For me, plans never have to be set in stone. Just like in real life, they seldom take all factors into consideration. They're just what guide me along the way.