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First-Degree Characters
This generally includes two types of characters:
Non-Player Characters that the Storyteller thought up on the fly to serve a short purpose, and
Player Characters that the player created with the intention that they're probably going to be cannon-fodder or not stick
around for long.
Characteristics:
+ NPCs don't have a name at all and are just called "the
innkeeper," or "the bartender," etc.
+ PCs (and some NPCs) have a hastily-thought-up and stereotypical name and / or physical description, ie. Flarg the Barbarian,
Joe the Bodyguard, Candy the Stripper, etc.
+ the character has hardly any development / background story to him / her at all, and probably doesn't even have a last name
Examples of 1st Degree Characters:
+ the guy Aura had to pay $80 million
+ any of the women Count Ortiz dated
+ most of the wrestlers in the XWF
+ the reporters who were camped outside Stormwatch Tower
Second-Degree Characters
This generally includes two types of characters:
NPCs that the Storyteller put some thought into because they're going to be re-occuring characters, and
PCs that the player just barely created, and hasn't played much or spent much time fleshing out yet
Characteristics:
+ the character has a first and last name that was thought out to some degree rather than just thrown together at the last
minute
+ the character has a little bit of a background / description that adds some flavor to their personality and differentiates
them from First Degree Characters
+ the Storyteller / player only knows enough about the character to be able to begin playing them, and expects the character
to flesh out as time goes by
Examples of 2nd Degree Characters:
+ most brand new PCs
+ Dr. Karker -- Aura's psychologist
+ Dave Summers
+ Sifiris
+ Siren
+ Nymue Fox-wise
+ Oiseta
+ Pia Loredan
Third-Degree Characters
This generally includes two types of characters:
NPCs that have complex backgrounds and personalities; players generally grow to know them so well that they are always pretty
sure how the NPC will react to different situations
PCs that the player has developed to a high enough degree that they know how to play them comfortably and the other players
feel like they know the character pretty well
Characteristics:
+ the character has a background that includes family members, friends, contacts, enemies, and identifying personality-quirks
+ you feel some attachment to the character, but if something happened to the character you'd have a moment of regret and
then move on -- the connection has not gotten to an emotional level
+ you made the character because you'd always wanted to try playing a certain race / class / physical description / profession,
so you're just experimenting / living vicariously through your character
Examples of 3rd Degree Characters:
+ Bob Weinstadt
+ Geryon
+ Songbird
+ Herman Walker
+ Maxine Mercer-Pax
+ Zee
Fourth-Degree Characters
PCs / NPCs that the player / Storyteller developed so completely and / or played for so long that at some point they felt
the character "wake up" in their head -- that the character has its own "soul" and is very easy for the player / Storyteller
to tap into
Characteristics:
+ the character's background and personality is fleshed out to the point where the player or Storyteller could play Truth
or Dare in-character with ease
+ when we scope the room we know exactly how our character would respond to anyone else in the room
+ we know when our character is attracted to someone, and we feel their elation if things go well with them, or their heartbreak
if things go crappy
+ we write stories / journal entries for them
+ we think of theme-songs for them
+ we are emotionally connected to our characters, and feel their emotions rise up in us during various situations
+ if our character died we'd be upset, and it would take a while to move on or stop thinking about them
Examples of 4th Degree Characters:
+ Count Raoul Ortiz
+ Divis Mal
+ Supreme
+ James Crane
+ Radar
+ Caestus Pax
Fifth-Degree Characters
Whereas fourth-degree characters have a soul that the player can sometimes
"channel," fifth-degree characters often take over. This is a very intense connection.
Characteristics:
+
The player is almost always channeling / being inhabited by their character to the point where out-of-character and in-character
becomes very fuzzy (people refer to each other out-of-character by their character's names, or arguments in-character bleed
into arguments out-of-character)
+ The player thinks about the character all the time out of game, and sometimes even dreams
about him / her
+ cancelled games make for stressful weeks
+ the character begins writing the stories and journal entries
for the player
+ you get teary-eyed when a song reminds you of a sad thing that happened to your character, or energized
when a fighting-song comes on that your character "likes"
+ you feel distressed when your character gets into a fight with
another character, or breaks up with their significant other, or has a close friend / family member die, etc., and may have
trouble holding back tears while role-playing
+ you feel like you're on cloud nine when your character achieves a great
accomplishment, or gets together with the character they have feelings for
+ you don't need no stinkin' music to get you
into the right frame of mind to channel! You ARE your character!
+ if your characters died you'd: be pissed / be devastated
/ start bawling / struggle to hide your emotions / have to restrain yourself from jumping up and strangling Dave / spend the
week in a daze, trying to let it sink in that you -- er, your character -- is actually dead
Examples of 5th Degree
Characters:
+ Slider
+ Aura
+ Aidan Bradley
+ Vanessa
+ Sero
+ Kassandra Grimaldi
+ Damage
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