In Under the Wire

Good Day!

Alright, I admit it: I am running late today.

Blame it on all the activity going on lately! I am involved in a myriad of projects, mainly so I can keep busy. Of course, when the activity really picks up, that means I end up fighting just to keep my head above water. I suppose I could make one or two people wait, but I'd rather not- not when I have the time to sit down and get this done later in the morning.

So here we are. :D

So, What's Happening Valucre?

Vanity's End: A Black Tarantula Event- This is a user submitted event, so I am just going to borrow their words here: Vanity's End is a party being held at The Black Tarantula. It's a mirror-superstition themed event, open to any who wish to participate. I really think the "Wish Game" will really keep people engaged. 

Some Details from the thread:  

“Mirror, mirror, on the wall...”: See those rather large mirrors hanging on the walls? Notice the faces looming within them? Ask any one of them a question, receive an answer!

Wish game: This game requires the signing-up of each character who wishes to participate. Each group will be comprised of 3-5 people. Before the game begins, each player will receive a blank token to keep on their person. Once started, the tokens will reveal their faces; 4 will bear a portrait of Medusa; 1 will bear the portrait of Perseus. The object of the game? Be in possession of the Perseus coin by the end of the round. Lie, cheat, and steal, if you must; just be aware that any extensive physical altercation will be broken up, and the players involved will be disqualified. The reward: a granted wish. Whatever your desire, The Black Tarantula will see it done (within their means, of course).

Mirror-breaking: The main event. Just before midnight, The Black Tarantula’s lovely wait-staff will make their rounds, ensuring that each and every patron to this special night receives a square-foot sized mirror. At the strike of midnight, the mirrors are to be broken. How? Smash it on the floor! On your table! (but not on the bar, lest you tempt the wrath of Rebo) Use some trick of the mind! Use your hands! Use your friends! We don’t care how you do it, just make it fun!

Sound like a good time to you? Well, check out this thread and be sure to tune in SEPTEMBER 14th.

The Haunting in Patia- Roen is looking for a few good men (or women) to come help him deal with some serious supernatural problems his character created at some point earlier. The RP sounds quite interesting and if I weren't already bogged to my ears, I'd volunteer myself. Survival is not guarantee, so keep that in mind before you sign up. If you're willing to risk it all in the face of something terrible, this just might be a thread for you. Check out the thread for details, and see if you got a character who can lend a hand to our favorite devil.  

The Summons... again?- Alright, a fine member of ours, who sometimes has a habit of taking extended... breaks, is looking for some recruits for a level 3 quest in Terrenus. This quest is one that entails a great deal of risk for the characters, as you will be fighting some powerful clerics summoning even more powerful creatures from beyond the boundaries of our plane. If you are looking for big rewards and some serious fun, I'd check them out. I've offered to reprise my role as Storyteller for the RP, on the promise that its founder sticks around. Check it out here.

Want to own a piece of the action?- Alright, Supernal just recently bumped his thread as a reminder that he has some of Terrenus' leadership roles up for purchase- namely, you can purchase the role of a Mayor, influential politician, police forces, or different levels of gang members. The more you own of a city, the more influence you hold! On the other side, if you wish to do some work with Genesaris, you can gain access to a city for free- on the condition that you will make the attempt to generate activity (get RPs going, make a quest, etc) and contribute to some of its lore. If you fail to follow through, you'll lose it though.

If you want Terrenus, go here: Terrenus

If you want Genesaris, PM me on the site. :)

The Daily Weekly is Hiring- The daily weekly is looking for full-time reporters as well as those who work on commission only basis. If you have a character that you think would make a great journalist, than why not check it out? If you think you have a character who might be good with a pen and could drop an article now and then, that works too! All for the sake of VB, a useful commodity on Valucre. Check them out here: Daily Weekly

Say Hello to Our New Friends!

Welcome, Michikun

Welcome, Oblivionstem

Welcome, Cyberneko

Welcome, Suzie QQ

Welcome, Wolfchronicals

Welcome, Valeria vi Luster

Welcome, Meba

Welcome, Wants2play

Welcome, Yoshua171

Welcome, Lioness

Welcome, Oricai

Welcome, Megs

Welcome, MechaRawr

Welcome, Dreamwalker

Welcome, Mona Hraefn

Welcome, Hellsibell

Welcome, Mistress_Rose

Unbelievable, 17 new members in a single week. That is the best we've done so far, since I started aggregating this. Welcome to all new members, I hope you find your niche! 

If you are unsure of where to start, try the Tavern of Legend. I know I've seen a few of you drop by. :)

Other Highlights?

I just showcased 17 new members, and went the extra mile on what's going on, and you still expect some highlights? Give people an inch, they run off with the entire thing of yarn. @_@

Gaian Academy- Hey, do you want to do a character from the very bottom level and work your way up? Well, we just might have something there for you. The Gaian academy is designed to take would be adventurers and teach them how to become successful in that field. The Academy is a school for teenagers to young adults, where you RP students in various classes (either ones already made or elective ones you come up with and get approved by Supernal). Every once and a while, they have a big event to get everyone together. :)

Rate a Thread- Hey, do you want to feature how cool a thread is? Well, you have the option of rating a thread. At the top of the thread, at the same place you would go to subscribe or get a printable version, you have a button that says, "Rate this Thread". From there, you can rate the thread itself. If you think something is insightful, or an idea really cool, or an RP well done- give it a good rating!

Closing Thoughts 

We are here to write, and our method of writing is through the medium of role-playing. But what drives a role-play? The characters of course. 

Sometimes, coming up with a character can be the most difficult part of what we do. You want to make someone that will be interesting, fun to write about, and has depth. Of course, sometimes our motivations are to make someone tough, and cool, and have other traits we wish to see in ourselves. Sometimes, it might get tempting to get lost in the quagmire of an arms race or even worse- stumble down the path of a Mary Sue. 

Save your character from that fate.

When it comes to making a character, one of the first things you should be looking for is room to grow- for better or for worse, you want your character to have lots of room for change. Playing a character who is too static is making a character better fit as an NPC and not as a player character- an RP character is a main character, make sure they are dynamic! A character who has traits that can be shifted based on experiences has the opportunity to develop, and that makes them more interesting and should help keep them from feeling stale. 

At times, it can be tempting to go overboard on making a character really cool- if your character starts sounding like Edward/Bella 2.0, stop right there. Just stop. No, really- stop it or kill it, but don't unleash that on to the world. 0_0

People have flaws, and those flaws should be really. Not everyone is great at everything, loved by everyone, absolutely confident in life or the perfect match for every situation. Maybe your character is a bit too rude, perhaps naive, or maybe they are judgmental- and never to their benefit. Maybe they have a tendency to rub people the wrong way, or perhaps they lack confidence- there are many ways to make someone more interesting and more real. That doesn't mean you have to make them the proverbial butt-monkey of the universe, but they should have some faults. 

Besides the personality, we also have to look at powers and abilities. Fortunately, because we are a mild powers site, arms races are far less common. It used  to be that making a character often entailed detailing how you you could blow up the universe better than everyone else. Now that powers are reigned in better, it's less tempting. However, you still might feel tempted to put too much focus on your abilities and not enough on the substance of the character. Do that character a favor- develop the person first, worry about the powers later.

That means even if you are creating a new character with certain powers in mind, put those powers on hold and make the person before worrying about applying them. Playing a character should be fun for the sake of who they are, not just because of what they do. Don't get me wrong, sometimes, what they do is awesome and adds a good splash of flavor- but they should be able to stand alone, stripped of all abilities, they still shine in their own right. If you can do that, you have the makings of someone who will be awesome and memorable. 

That's about all I have to say on that at the moment. However, if you are worried about whether or not you are running the danger zone of a Mary Sue/Gary Stu, you can run them character through this Litmus Test: The Universal Mary Sue Test 

As with anything, take the results with a grain of salt, and treat them like advice, not condemnation. The questions alone are often good for making you think about whether or not you might have gone overboard with things. If you are happy with how they are, that's fine too. More often than not, you might find areas to improve before you even hit the submit button. ;)

Later Folks-

Acies

“If you will practice being fictional for a while, you will understand that fictional characters are sometimes more real than people with bodies and heartbeats.”

~ Richard Bach