Thoughts on Character Creation - Flaws are the Best

You know you've seen them, read about them, those characters that are perfect. They can do anything, beat anyone and everyone loves them. Those heroes who are unstoppable or an OC (Original Character) who outshines and outlasts the main cast. Those characters who are always so perfect.....and they are BORING!
Note: I try to avoid referencing anything as a Mary Sue/Gary Stu as I find such titles to detract from what is being said. Yes, I know what they mean, but like most things I hear or watch, they tend to come off so negative. They talk about all the bad things associated with them, but they never really talk about how to take something perfect and to make it flawed in a way that gets the point across. That said, I doubt I'll do any better, it's just that I hate hearing those two names all the time when character discussions occur.

If I can say one thing when it comes to creating characters, is that you should always consider the flaws before you get into depth with them. This is more true when it comes to a characters backstory, as the two tend to go hand-in-hand together. Flaws are usually associated with something to do with their past and their past can be shaped based on their flaws. Flaws a fundamental when creating your characters and while their is nothing wrong with creating characters with god-like powers, you should also give them god-like flaws to match. Flaws are interesting, they provide limits for a character as well as create new interactions with other characters who may share similar flaws or have strengths that can help cover those flaws.

The first type are small flaws. These can be minor things like a small fear or personality trait that can show up on occasions, but doesn't cause too much problem in the over all story. These things can be simple fears and phobias, such as arachnophobia for example. Such things can help keep a character on the bad end when they should have no problems and even help flesh out a backstory to explain such fears. They can also have opposing flaws to their own talents, cause just because your good at one thing does not make you great at everything. Having them not be good at things helps balance their talents out, with them having to deal with the fact they fail at things or that there needs to be other characters around to help off set those flaws, creating great opportunities for character interactions.

Now lets go to the other end, having a great power, but giving it a flaw. Making a character with incredible skills or powerful magic etc. is perfectly fine, but giving them limits or flaws can help not only balance that character out, but makes them more interesting. Limit their ability to use this power or add some form of negative backlash to using it. Perhaps they can only use that power by possessing certain items or through some complex ritual that grants power, but is short lived. The greater the power, the more limited it must be, otherwise what is the point. There is no drama, no tension and it makes it harder to feel the emotion or to cheer on the hero. There is nothing wrong with a character calling on power at the height of the battle, but you should make sure that it is hinted at or shown in small doses leading up to it. I guess the best example I can use is Gohan from Dragonball Z, who leading up to his true power in the Cell Games Saga had several scenes over the series in which he got angry and unleashed power, hinting that he had great power within and so when it was used during that saga there was enough backstory that it made some level of sense when he became that powerful for that fight. They even threw in a fall, before leading to that final moment of triumph. Even at the height of power, they can still have flaws that can cause the Hero to risk defeat.

This leads to personality flaws. A character can be anti-social (which is a common one, but if done right it works wonders to a story) or they can be overly trusting or gullible. Perhaps they are egotistical or simply absent minded or eccentric to negative degrees. While personality flaws are the common go to ground for character flaws, they are also very important to the overall view people will take on what they think of your character. As with the last paragraph on having great power, having personality flaws can also be added to help offset these issues. Arrogance tends to lead to the downfall of many powerful creatures or perhaps fearful or even being a pacifist can also restrict a character from getting involved. Personality flaws are the easiest to add so be sure to really get creative with them.

Another one is more focused on OC's. Never have your OC Hero beat a shows main Villains, nor should they out shine the main cast when their Villains are involved (to be fair, they shouldn't out shine the main cast in most things anyway). These Villains are meant for the shows main cast to overcome, not your character. If you do want to have a Villain as a Arch-nemesis for your character to overcome, then create one. Much like Heroes having flaws, so too can your Villains and thus making them more interesting too. However, you should also consider what reason or flaw that the Villain would have that gives a reason why that Hero is able to defeat them. This can be anything like a flaw in their power that only a character who was a descendant of a particular bloodline can overcome (a little far fetched, but could work in a supernatural setting) or perhaps there is something about the Heroes past that is somehow connected to the Villain, making them more focused of getting at that Hero. A past history with that character would add to the backstory and show reasons why that Villain is so obsessed with your character over the main cast, even going so far as to explain why your character feels that they must be the one to defeat them. Villains themselves are great for using flaws, as they can range from the most despotic and sadistic to comedic.

I admit, these aren't the greatest of examples. Their there to help give an idea of how a character can be shaped by flaws. One thing I suggest to you is to find characters you like and try to find their flaws, look into how they effect the story and how they make the character more interesting to you. There are also a few places on the Internet that have RPG flaw lists and generators and I highly suggest you check them out and look through them. They might give you ideas of flaws and maybe even give ideas for strengths for other characters too. In fact, I highly recommend you check out various RPG's as they are great inspiration for character creation ideas and is something I highly recommend looking at if you want to add more flavour to your characters.

Don't be afraid to try out a few of them and see what kind of character interactions or stories you could tell with them. Ask yourself if those flaws fit the characters style and personality and how they interact with their strengths. You don't have to flood your character with flaws, just adding a few and toning down on strengths can be just as good. Sometimes a simple character with a few strengths and flaws can be more interesting then someone who has a bunch of them.

Remember, character flaws can by just as much fun as character strengths.

My First Video - I'm Truly Sorry

I'm doing some video editing as part of my study assessment, so I decided to give it a shot with another bad joke idea I had. Not too bad for my first attempt.

New Yooka-Laylee Trailer

New trailer is out and the game is coming out swimmingly. Givin the recent reactions of other games at the moment, this game appears to be exactly what we expect, a spiritual successor to Banjo-Kazooie. It's nice to see a game and forget about fancy graphics or complex gameplay and just see fun. A number of games seem to lack that feature.

August Project Update - Part 2

So quickly, the Skaven got a re-shoot and the new photo is now uploaded on DeviantArt. In the meantime, I am working on two short gags (one which is spending more time making it then the gag itself, but it's good practice with using vectors), so they should be up in the next week or so.

Along with them, I have already finished Old Cranky and am close to getting the Brutal Effigy done. Once I have the dried grass tufts, I will add them and upload that small Guild group shot with the others. Will also work on Jacob Lynch, Skith 2.0 (he's just about finished) and will work on completing my next Mousling project too. I want to get a number of shots done so I can upload them in one single session. Expect more soon.

Project Photo Post

So I got those photos done, I won't upload the Skaven one on DA until I finally get a shot that I'm satisfied with. That said, here is the current Skaven Age of Sigmar group:

However, I didn't want to just upload a shot of a complete project. As I've stated in the past, I have been working here and there between them in order to keep myself from getting frustrated with them. As such, here is the completed models for my Outcast collection:

My Guild collection (in preparation for my Wild Ones crew):

The Hungering Darkness:

And here are some of the more close to completion miniatures:

So I have been doing some work here and there. Perhaps I'll get some more done over the next few weeks (certainly after my assessments are done). I really need someone professional to help me with blending cause as you can clearly see, better quality photographs really show off just how bad I am at it and I've tried for years to get the hang of it.

Quick Update

So we had a Royal Show holiday yesterday and it gave me a chance to get some of that project stuff started. In preparation for the arrival of The Wild Ones box set, I've got all but two 50mm bases and so set them up with some wood putty and rocks for the base layer, with today adding the Cracked Earth citadel effect, which should be fully cracked tomorrow. Also got the Brutal Effigy's undercoat done too.

The Hungering Darkness is done (or at least, 'I've had enough' done) as is Miss Anne, though like the Guard she'll need dried grass flock before being complete. I am considering getting some Guild Hounds as not only do they work well with Iggy Pup (a.k.a Luna), but their armoured look really matches the style of the crews theme.

Got most of Old Cranky's base done (just needs flock) and he himself has the skin painted. Shouldn't be too hard to finish. Fixed Skith 2.0's arm, though it just doesn't look as good as the original conversion. Also close to finishing one of the Ronin and while my stockings blending wasn't great, it does look better then my first few tries. Happy enough to leave it and finish the rest of the model.

Gotta go out tomorrow to grab footage for part of an assessment, so should get a photo or two done and up as well (well, that's the plan at least). Also been thinking about getting one of those Wocom Intuos tablets, the $150 ones as that will probably help with no only study, but could also prove to be useful in other project ideas I have. Just got to decide soon as budget is very tight and I can only spend so much on study related items.

August Project Update

Oh boy, what fun we have with the little time we have. Yeah, fat chance much will get done.

So, Skaven wise, I have finished the Warlord, 10 Clanrats, the Ratling Gun and the Poisoned Wind Mortar (well, by finished I mean threw my hands in the air yelling "That's it, I'm done with this crap"). Should get photos done this week as there is a public holiday and it's a chance to get some things done.

Unfortunately, my flat mate ended up accidentally breaking Skith 2.0 and loosing one of his claws (he was just about finished too, just needed a touch up here and there). Unable to find that one, I'm now forced to come up with an alternative, given those claws came from a Hellpit Abomination arm I got from Ebay, which sadly there are no more available anywhere now. I have an idea, but we'll just have to see how that goes. I do want to eventually create a profile for the Skith character in my characters section soon too.

Malifaux wise, things are moving very slowly. My skill has really suffered over the last year or so and I can't tell if it's my brushes, my paints, my lighting or me. Both the Outcasts and Arcanists have come to a stop, having tried to practice painting stockings and failing each time. Once I've worked out an alternative, I should get those back into gear (still need to get the plastic strips for the Arcanists floor boards). I've  worked on the Hungering Darkness (for the third time) and have decided that no matter what I do, he is going to look terrible, so I'll just do a wash or two in some spots and give up on him. I hate to do so, but nothing is working and I'm not in the best mental state to cope with this. That said, I'm hoping the rest will work out better, despite the crappy bases I've made (though I did miss making one by mistake).

Positive side, both Old Cranky (a much needed defensive totem for my Gremlins) and the Brutal Effigy has arrive. Given I've nearly finished two Guild Guard and Miss Anne Thrope, it should round out my crew. Oh yeah, forgot to mention that I did decide to order that Nightmare set (along with the Gremlin book and the free Miss Fire model....gotta love those Miss models) and these models will round out that crew for 50ss (with upgrades and extra soul stones). Once I get some dried grass tuffs from my local store in the next week or so (they have to order it) I can start getting some shots done. When they show up it'll probably give me the motivation to work on them. That or they'll show up during my assignment period and irritate me that I have no time to work on them.

Oh well, who knows, might do an unboxing video or something. Seems a good way to practice some video editing for my studies.