Character File

[Curubethion]

I thought it would be interesting to start a "character file", where we share fiction characters that we've made (preferably fantasy). Please don't use anyone else's characters for RPGs/fiction without their permission. I'll start it with one:

Deren of Forde:
Wandering warrior and member of the Eagles, an organization keeping watch on the evil wizard Grucov. Exiled from Forde (his homeland) as a boy, and still haunted by it. Expert fighter and horseback rider; fights with bow, sword, and morstav (wooden staff).

I hope you all like it!

[Elfmaster XK]

Hey. I was just thinking that it'd be good to have a thread where people can post their characters to see if they needed fleshing out.

Ie. Someone posts their character details, and then anyone else can ask a question about them. This gets you thinking about the character as a person, and makes them a more real figure for you to write about. Plus, other people might have more information about a place your character is from if they are from that place or a place like it.

So for Curub, who only has written a short character description I could ask LOADS.

What I will ask is how old is he? How did he come to be so good at fighting? If he was exiled from his land, who taught him? What is he not good at, if he is a good fighter and rider, and a member of a (i presume) highly esteemed organisation? Everyone has flaws.

If he was exiled, and is still now, why is he Deren of Forde? Surely he would not be allowed to be of Forde if they threw him out?

Etc.

Just thought it'd be a nice way to help us all develop well rounded and believable characters.

[Rosie Gamgee]

Very interesting, Curub and EM. Cool ideas. Question: are these characters supposed to be... sort of 'up for grabs'? Or are they the sole property of the people who have created them?
I guess what I'm asking is, if I post a character that I have created, will someone borrow him, or parts of him? Or is this not allowed? (I hate to sound so legalistic--just a question.)

Here's a guy I created for a story. He actually hasn't appeared in the story yet, but he's coming:

Ealadan, Prince of Holtholm. The second son of the King. Tall, fair of hair, blue eyes. Educated by the Loremasters, and in love with the daughter of a lesser noble, a match that would displease the King if he knew it. He travels with three friends to win the hand of his maiden.
Later in the story he will lose his memory (cheesey, yeah), and his friends. He doesn't get the girl. The folk he falls in with call him 'Jolly', and his ultimate fate is to slay a dragon.

[Earniel]

Originally Posted by Rosie Gamgee

Question: are these characters supposed to be... sort of 'up for grabs'? Or are they the sole property of the people who have created them? I guess what I'm asking is, if I post a character that I have created, will someone borrow him, or parts of him? Or is this not allowed? (I hate to sound so legalistic--just a question.)

I reckon they're all property of their creators unless those specifically state they're up for grabs. Taking other people's characters without permission would be rather against 'netiquette' but there's really no way to enforce it.

[Elfmaster XK]

Originally Posted by Eärniel

I reckon they're all property of their creators unless those specifically state they're up for grabs. Taking other people's characters without permission would be rather against 'netiquette' but there's really no way to enforce it.

Yes indeed, our lovely sea elf moderator is correct. If you do post a character you must remember there is no way to stop someone seeing him/her and deciding to create a character like yours. And in fact there is so much written and only so many types of people. No one is likely to notice really unless they actually steal your character, name, history and all.

Originally Posted by Rosie

Ealadan, Prince of Holtholm. The second son of the King. Tall, fair of hair, blue eyes. Educated by the Loremasters, and in love with the daughter of a lesser noble, a match that would displease the King if he knew it. He travels with three friends to win the hand of his maiden.
Later in the story he will lose his memory (cheesey, yeah), and his friends. He doesn't get the girl. The folk he falls in with call him 'Jolly', and his ultimate fate is to slay a dragon.

What is it like in Holtholm? Is it cold and Icy?
Where does Ealadan live? With the king? In his own little palace somewhere? In a bin?
Who is the girl and why would she displease the king? Not just because she isn't a princess, unless the tradtion is the prince must only marry a princessm which would then be his sister/half-sister, or a foreign princess. And does the king know about the girl yet?
Where do his firends and the maiden come from? Are they also from Holtholm? What are they like?
Who are the folk he "falls in with" They sound unscrupulous from that phrase.
Are they in any way like his old friends? If not, why has he joined them? His memory is gone, but unless his personlality changes greatly would he not still opt for the same sort of people as friends?

[Curubethion]

Wow, this is awesome! It took something like over a year for this to get revived, but...

Now to get to those questions! I've since finished the book that included this guy, and I'll need to flesh him out. I wrote that character description a little while ago, and I was being a bit vague then.

What I will ask is how old is he? How did he come to be so good at fighting? If he was exiled from his land, who taught him? What is he not good at, if he is a good fighter and rider, and a member of a (i presume) highly esteemed organisation? Everyone has flaws.

If he was exiled, and is still now, why is he Deren of Forde? Surely he would not be allowed to be of Forde if they threw him out?

He's about 35 or so years old...I forget exactly how old I made him in my story.
He's gained his fighting skills from training back at home, as well as his journeys abroad and during exile. Some of the members of his organization helped him learn. I guess I should alter that slightly...since he's not a complete expert. He's not really agile, but fairly strong.
His biggest flaw...first of all, he's got that little issue with being exiled, which makes him not that popular. He also has the good ol' problems with facing his past, etc.
"Deren of Forde", which I didn't use that much in the book, now that I think about it, is just an identifier I use for him.

[Elfmaster XK]

Okay, that's good.

What about...what is Forde like? What is the place he has been living like? When he was exiled, did he try to go back? Where did he actually go? Did he get chased out?

Has he ever been to any kind of school or learning establishment?

As an exile, he must lack social skills, so does this get him into fights? Or does he just shun other people.

His issues with being exiled and facing his past...what effect have they had on him? Is he quiet about them, angry, or does he tell people to get sympathy (some people do this...)?

[Curubethion]

Originally Posted by Elfmaster XK

Okay, that's good.

What about...what is Forde like? What is the place he has been living like? When he was exiled, did he try to go back? Where did he actually go? Did he get chased out?

Forde's very flat. There's a bit of Germanic feel to it.
I think he might have been chased out...after his exile, he left his country alone entirely, even after everyone forgot about his exile. It's something now that he places on himself.

Has he ever been to any kind of school or learning establishment?

Well, the world's fairly medieval, so, just like the common man, he's never been schooled. However, he has learned to read by virtue of others in the organization.

As an exile, he must lack social skills, so does this get him into fights? Or does he just shun other people.

Well...he doesn't exactly lack social skills. He's had contact with the other members of his organization, although he's still much of a loner.

His issues with being exiled and facing his past...what effect have they had on him? Is he quiet about them, angry, or does he tell people to get sympathy (some people do this...)?

He keeps them all to himself. Sometimes he dwells on them.

[Elfmaster XK]

Originally Posted by Curubethion

Forde's very flat. There's a bit of Germanic feel to it.
I think he might have been chased out...after his exile, he left his country alone entirely, even after everyone forgot about his exile. It's something now that he places on himself.

What of his family back in Forde then? Were they happy he was exiled, ashamed, sad, did they try to stop him leaving, did they spit on him as he left? Did they try and find him again, any of them at all?

Well...he doesn't exactly lack social skills. He's had contact with the other members of his organization, although he's still much of a loner.

People only exposed to a certain group lack the ability (often) to interact with people outside that group. So he might be fine with members of his organisation, but what if some little girl came along and asked him to come play with her? What would he do, surely she'd cry if he said no? Would he be bothered? Same, what would he do if a big fat man came over, sat at his table and drunk from his pint?


Okay, one of my characters from my novel. Not my main character, but a minor character who doesn't get to see that much of the story! For the DOB it isn't a mistake. I need to write out how the dating system works to explain it! Haven't done that yet!

REMOVED PROFILE

[Curubethion]

Originally Posted by Elfmaster XK

What of his family back in Forde then? Were they happy he was exiled, ashamed, sad, did they try to stop him leaving, did they spit on him as he left? Did they try and find him again, any of them at all?

I'll get back to you on that one...I think I did mention his family once or twice in the story. I need to check for consistency.

People only exposed to a certain group lack the ability (often) to interact with people outside that group. So he might be fine with members of his organisation, but what if some little girl came along and asked him to come play with her? What would he do, surely she'd cry if he said no? Would he be bothered? Same, what would he do if a big fat man came over, sat at his table and drunk from his pint?

He'd definitely be at a minus when dealing with people outside his organization. He's not very social with them. In the story, he has to protect the central character, and he doesn't have a lot of personal interaction with him.

[Acalewia]

Ok here's a character from a novella I'm writing. (Too long to be a short story too short to be a novel)

Erane:

Born to a elven mother and human father, she is the only offspring of that union. Her father was a member of a small group of warriors called the Asagai, thus she was born with a tattoo-like mark on her left wrist. After her father's death at the age of 16, her mother sent her to live with her relatives while she left. When Erane came of age, she took the Oath of the Asagai. Afterwards she was shunned by her elven family and other elves as a whole. She began to live among Men. After the elves left, Erane began to hide the fact she had elven blood. She did not age, so she began to disappear or faking her death every so often. She has had several lovers over the years. She was believed dead after the battle that ended the Great War, known only as the War. She reappeared three years later in a small village that was home to her last lover. The people thought she was a mute man they called the Stranger due to the fact she never spoke or showed her face. She answered the call to fight a monster in a country called Jute. Enoute her compainions discovered she was indeed a woman. After defeating the creature, it became known she was the last of the Elf blood and one of the few women to take the Oath of the Asagai.


what do you think?

[Earniel]

Nice. I think EXK may want to dig in deeper, though.

So I gather her story is the one you wrote that poem of the unexpected female warrior for?

[Acalewia]

Well the story was inspired by the poem. I wrote the poem first.

[Rosie Gamgee]

Sorry; haven't checked on this thread in a few days.

Originally Posted by Elfmaster XK

What is it like in Holtholm? Is it cold and Icy?
Where does Ealadan live? With the king? In his own little palace somewhere? In a bin?

Holtholm is the royal city of this particular country. It's breezy and cool, but a very beautiful city. The architecure (argh--for some odd reason I can't spell that word today) of the palace and other royal buildings is something akin to the ancient chathedrals like Notre Dame and Chatres. Lots of vaulted ceilings and butresses.
Ealadan lives in the same city as the King, but they don't cross paths overmuch. He's something of a stranger to his father, seeing as he's the second son.

Who is the girl and why would she displease the king? Not just because she isn't a princess, unless the tradtion is the prince must only marry a princessm which would then be his sister/half-sister, or a foreign princess. And does the king know about the girl yet?

The King doesn't know about her. She came from the south of the country to learn from the Loremasters, for she's a nobleman's daughter. Unfortunately, this nobleman has a rather shady history and the King dislikes him.

Where do his firends and the maiden come from? Are they also from Holtholm? What are they like?

They are not from Holtholm. They're a humble group of gypsies. Some are from the south, others are from different countries.

Who are the folk he "falls in with" They sound unscrupulous from that phrase.

Not unscrupulous. Just.. rude, in a manner of speaking. Unrefined.

Are they in any way like his old friends? If not, why has he joined them? His memory is gone, but unless his personlality changes greatly would he not still opt for the same sort of people as friends?

Some of them may remind him in ways of his friends. He has joined them only because he knows not who he is and where he came from, and he has no where else to go, no other link to reality.


Hey, I have to say that already this has helped me discover things about this character that otherwise I might not have known. Thanks.

[Elfmaster XK]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

Ok here's a character from a novella I'm writing. (Too long to be a short story too short to be a novel)

Erane:

Born to a elven mother and human father, she is the only offspring of that union.

What does she look like? Appart from her tattoo does she have any distinguishing features? Scars maybe?

After her father's death at the age of 16, her mother sent her to live with her relatives while she left.

I didn't quite understand this sentence fully, but I assume you mean her mother left her. Where for and to do what? And why did she leave the child? Was she ashamed of her union with a man and its product?

When Erane came of age, she took the Oath of the Asagai. Afterwards she was shunned by her elven family and other elves as a whole.

Because she had taken the oath? Or for some other reasons? What did this do to her mentally and physically? Did she find it difficult to live alone? How did she learn how to cope without anyone else to feed/protect her?

She began to live among Men. After the elves left, Erane began to hide the fact she had elven blood.

Where did the elves go? Is this a fan-fic character then?Did she hide the elven blood to fit in more, or because she was afraid of being shunned also by men?

She did not age, so she began to disappear or faking her death every so often. She has had several lovers over the years. She was believed dead after the battle that ended the Great War, known only as the War.

Where did she go? Did she hide in one place, with someone else, always keep on the move?

She reappeared three years later in a small village that was home to her last lover.

People would likely still be alive and remember her after only 3 years. She would have to hide for a long time to be forgotten and start over, otherwise they would notice she had been faking her death.

The people thought she was a mute man they called the Stranger due to the fact she never spoke or showed her face. She answered the call to fight a monster in a country called Jute. Enoute her compainions discovered she was indeed a woman. After defeating the creature, it became known she was the last of the Elf blood and one of the few women to take the Oath of the Asagai.


what do you think?

What sort of temperament does she have? She seems like a very lonely figure to me. Has she any friends/had any friends? Why did she chose not to go with the other elves? Or was she not allowed?

[hectorberlioz]

I'm in the process of writing a "pirate" story, and one of my characters is Gorgias Vabblangin, who ran for town mayor, lost, and got to be deputy.

I haven't fleshed out his age or specific characteristics yet, but judging from his name, I can tell he's going to be very interesting...

[Tuinor]

Here's a character from a story I have recently started, if any are interested:

His name is Aen, a young Man (roughly eighteen) with a really hard past (I know, I know, the stereotype fantasy hero). He was born in the small town of South Dale to the race of Mortal Men known as the Undari-Ruan. At the age of nine his home town was sacked by orcs (I really hate to use orcs or elves, but I can't think of any good names by which to call these creatures), but his father and other men of the town managed to escape the catastrophe along with him and others. Instead of simply letting go, Aen's father established a sort of band of those who had lost their homes and lead them in countless raids against the orcs. Aen grew and learned early on about war and death, but as he grew close to coming of age his father's band, which he was a part of, was ambushed and supposedly all but him were slain. For a long time he wandered alone in the wilderness until finally he came upon the fortress city of Odoruen, where he was met by a prophet who gave him a greatsword ironically named Hope, saying that he would be the bearer of Hope to Mortal Men. Not knowing what fate shall throw at him next, he once again takes on the life of the wanderer, and despite his negative outlook he keeps the blade.

His looks are rather drab. Though his golden hair is rarely found among his people, which tend to have dark brown or black hair, his light blue eyes are common in all the Undari-Ruan. He is perhaps a bit shorter than the standard, but for his age he is very muscular. Some scars show on his body, but what warrior doesn't have scars? His clothes are often what give people the misconception that he is a troublemaker, for the leather they are made from shows many signs of tear and abuse. The only thing of worth that he wears is a gauntlet made up of three kite-shaped plates. He hides his face under his hood very often, as his different colored hair makes him feel like an "Outlander," as foriegners are known in that region.

So, what do you think, all you reading out there?

[Rosie Gamgee]

Originally Posted by Tuinor

Here's a character from a story I have recently started, if any are interested:

His name is Aen, a young Man...

He sounds a lot like Aragorn, and a bit like Beren, what with the wandering in the wilderness and the rough appearence/troublemaker's reputation. Is your story set in Middle Earth? I noticed you had the name Dale, and then there's orcs, etc.

[Tuinor]

Actually, I am trying to distance myself from Tolkien's works as much as possible without having to dramatically alter the story, so I'm kind of stuck. I really don't want to use orcs, elves, or anything from Middle-Earth. I want to stand on my own without having said I copied from anyone, but I'm finding that increasingly difficult. Every time I seem to have a good idea about a character, I suddenly happen upon another one that's just the same. The world I have created in which his story occurs is named Terracia (the "c" is pronounced like an "s"). I know it sounds like a crumy name, but I have had it for over five years and I just can't seem to change it.

[Curubethion]

If you're using orcs, elves, dwarves, etc., don't worry about people accusing you of copying. They're from ancient mythology, so they're public domain.