What have you done to spice up your character?

Kurokoi

I just started playing. Quarantine has brought me into trying new things I normally wouldn't. Enjoying the community so far and getting into customizing my character. I keep seeing people who have put a lot of thought into the RP elements of how their character speaks, moves in from place to place and even a few... sprites(?) that activate around their presence.

I've met some really creative folk, like a mysterious god-like character whose presence fades in like a fog, or a Siren with a soft and delicate voice, A Raja with a thoughtful disposition... the imagination and creativity is awesome so I thought I would create a post where people could showoff their favorite parts and perhaps... a little inspiration for myself?

I'm still trying to figure out what my character's character is... right now, all I know is he's a fish-like Grook (that's right, fish-like not frog-like).

Archaeon

Bdsm    

Jinos

Custom expressions spring to mind.

When they're not overdone and sprinkled together with regular emotes - A particular way a character emotes their facial expressions, or gestures with certain mannerisms will linger in your mind long after you see it. 

Iocun

I've mostly done stuff to remove spice from my character.

My custom items tend to look more generic than the generic ones (and are mostly barely visible/noticeable at all), I have my character wear/wield very few things, keep reducing his description more and more, have done everything in my power to reduce his HONOURS to the bare minimum, am replacing many default emotes with simplified custom ones, no voices/background/bloodline/coat of arms, a pet that looks pretty much like a default mount, etc.

Caelan

Archaeon said:

Bdsm    

ur toon, not what do you do every Saturday.

Atalkez

Iocun said:

I've mostly done stuff to remove spice from my character.

My custom items tend to look more generic than the generic ones (and are mostly barely visible/noticeable at all), I have my character wear/wield very few things, keep reducing his description more and more, have done everything in my power to reduce his HONOURS to the bare minimum, am replacing many default emotes with simplified custom ones, no voices/background/bloodline/coat of arms, a pet that looks pretty much like a default mount, etc.

Check out the HUMBLE trait, I believe it is.

Kurokoi

Iocun said:

I've mostly done stuff to remove spice from my character.

My custom items tend to look more generic than the generic ones (and are mostly barely visible/noticeable at all), I have my character wear/wield very few things, keep reducing his description more and more, have done everything in my power to reduce his HONOURS to the bare minimum, am replacing many default emotes with simplified custom ones, no voices/background/bloodline/coat of arms, a pet that looks pretty much like a default mount, etc.

Oh, I really like the devotion to a style and a minimalist theme is great! Really gives your character a life of its own. Even if someone copied you, the things they eliminate may not be the same as what you eliminate. Very cool.

Kurokoi

Jinos said:

Custom expressions spring to mind.

When they're not overdone and sprinkled together with regular emotes - A particular way a character emotes their facial expressions, or gestures with certain mannerisms will linger in your mind long after you see it. 

I've been looking into custom expressions accompanied with reflexes. Doing some type of auto "animation" if I can... but don't have any idea on how to approach reflexes.

Iocun

Atalkez said:
Check out the HUMBLE trait, I believe it is.

Never been without it, since traits exist!

Kurokoi said:
Oh, I really like the devotion to a style and a minimalist theme is great! Really gives your character a life of its own. Even if someone copied you, the things they eliminate may not be the same as what you eliminate. Very cool. 

That, plus I feel that having a generally minimalist aesthetic allows the things that are special to stand out so much more. When I have my character wear a ring of personal significance, I don't want it to be buried among hundreds of other rings. When I assume a pose, I don't want it to be lost among titles, wielded items and pets.

Kurokoi said:

Jinos said:

Custom expressions spring to mind.

When they're not overdone and sprinkled together with regular emotes - A particular way a character emotes their facial expressions, or gestures with certain mannerisms will linger in your mind long after you see it. 

I've been looking into custom expressions accompanied with reflexes. Doing some type of auto "animation" if I can... but don't have any idea on how to approach reflexes.

Stuff like that can be super cool, as long as you are careful not to make it too big/extravagant/"noisy". Triggered/reflexed stuff can feel out of place when it fires at the wrong time, or simply annoying when it fires too often or is too wordy. People are often disinclined to read very verbose emotes and similar things.

Carefully crafted expressions in not too many words can be very cool though.

Celadriel

I am getting the sense you aren't a fan of longform RP.

Iocun

Oh, not necessarily at all. It depends a lot on the context. If there's a limited number of (interacting) people in a situation where there's ample time to read stuff then giving detailed descriptions is perfectly great. Particularly when people are clearly focused on "RP stuff" (i.e. a ceremony, RP combat, doing a performance, etc.). But in many day-to-day situations, especially when many people are involved, it easily becomes too much.

Perhaps that's just because I'm not the fastest reader though (especially since English isn't my first language).

Celadriel

I get that. I'm used to playing in a smaller IRE mud years ago and the pace of general chatter here overwhelms me often as a newbie. There are SO MANY people here and group or room chatter is much more spammy than what I'm used to.

Atalkez

Personally, I’ve taken to doing unique customizations from big mobs I’ve killed. I like mementos/trophies from things, either something for my trophy room in house or something I wear every day.

Iaxus

I customise my stuff based on personal RP. If you ever look at Iaxus, everything (that can be) is fire themed. 

Ysela

Personal ways of doing particular things. I remember @Orzaansyn did a very good job of conveying who her character is through a small number of often repeated (but not overused) custom emotes, for example always sitting down (and doing so in a special way, as well as getting to her feet after) at all gatherings. @Jurixe nods her dark hair in a particular way, if I recall correctly, and in general manages to convey an air of mystery (lacking better words) through small things like that. Using existing emotes and making them yours, e.g. always greeting people the same way/with the same emote, is the same principle.

Working in custom items to show them off without making it obvious that is what you're doing is good too, through using them when it is natural. (Not sure how successful it is, but Ysela has taken to standing on top of her jackal when she makes speeches, for example. A better example might be Orzaansyn's emote of standing up including the immaculate state of  her dress, as per the example above.)

Manner of speech is another thing, both voice/accent and word choice/sentence structure.

Kurokoi

Ysela said:

Manner of speech is another thing, both voice/accent and word choice/sentence structure.

Manner of speech is a tough one, especially on the fly. I've seen a few characters who do this really well already. I'll have to emulate things that come to me naturally and embellish them, but I agree. Less is more and don't be over the top... unless of course that's the character.

Big Papa Jomi

I’m still trying to figure Jomi out fully, but a few things I’ve done...

Since he’s historically from Qurnok, I’ve taken to try to make him more tribal and savage-ish. It’s kind of tough to do with alchemist because it’s very science-y, but otherwise... His clothes are all horrible stuff (cloak of mhun faces, trousers of mhun skin) because savage Mhaldorian, he doesn’t contact words (so no use of like don’t, won’t, can’t, etc etc), and he grunts a lot. Right now I’m going through a character arc where he’s ashamed of Qurnok Troll’s weakness (abuse of the cypress)  and became Atavian, but he’ll get over it and I have a race reset waiting for when he gets back to his roots.

Saonji

Big Papa Jomi said:

I’m still trying to figure Jomi out fully, but a few things I’ve done...

 It’s kind of tough to do with alchemist because it’s very science-y, but otherwise...

You were a Runewarden originally for ages. I don't think it should be "tough" unless you want it to be - People change, especially when they leave their birthplace and adapt to their new home.

Big Papa Jomi

Well, I mean, it’s only tough because of the sentence right before that that you deleted :P.... I WANT Jomi to be more of a rough around the edges, savage, tribal-esque Mhaldorian. Not mean, but simple and ruthless without being a dick about it (tho I do enjoy the occasional gank cuz I’m OOC a dick sometimes)

runie fit with Jomis rp pretty nicely. I just didn’t enjoy it all that much, combat-wise. Everything else about it I loved. I’m having more fun with alchemist, BUT it doesn’t fit my idea of Jomi now or after this small character arc. And I would like class to fit into my RP so eh I feel a bit stuck and can’t make up my mind. I’ve been considering monk tho but yknow, another class change wouldn’t be all that smart, money-wise.... But with monk, I wouldn’t have to buy an SoA, which I’ve been saving for, and I’ve got some decent artefacts now 

Kurokoi

Big Papa Jomi said:

...I WANT Jomi to be more of a rough around the edges, savage, tribal-esque Mhaldorian. Not mean, but simple and ruthless without being a dick about it (tho I do enjoy the occasional gank cuz I’m OOC a dick sometimes)

I like it when people make asshole characters and RP them well. It's hard to cue people into this without breaking character and so far in my play through of the game, there is a varying degree between the level of RP people want to go. Probably hard to do with so many players.

But, if you're RPing an asshole, I suppose you're prepared for some people just not liking you. I'm too much of a people pleaser IRL to do this successfully, though I'm going to try. My current character I kind of want to mold into a lovable bad guy. We'll see what happens.

Minifie

Started hosting RPI DnD campaigns. Now I'm too spoiled only ERP in FFXIV duties can meet my unquenchable desire for high-tier roleplay.

Saonji

Big Papa Jomi said:

Well, I mean, it’s only tough because of the sentence right before that that you deleted :P

Point is given ones origin it shouldn't be overly hard to be 'savage' regardless of class. Science, especially, started out quite rough and primitive. If anything formulation should make it easier, since you're still working with basic chemicals compared to how Sublimation works.

Iaxus

Minifie said:

Started hosting RPI DnD campaigns. Now I'm too spoiled only ERP in FFXIV duties can meet my unquenchable desire for high-tier roleplay.

If you count ERP in FFXIV as "high-tier roleplay" I am an expert roleplayer.