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This guild is intended for those who have a love of the fantasy genre, perhaps a growing interest in it, and for those who write in it. 

Tags: Fantasy, Writing, RPGs, Magic, Myth 

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Characters with Great Power Goto Page: [] [<] 1 2

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DM_Melkhar
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PostPosted: Wed May 06, 2009 10:33 am


Berzerker_prime
Eh... sort of, I suppose...

I guess it's really more of a case of having a good reason why such a power would ever need to be used and an even better reason why it isn't. Without the first, there's really no point to having it at all. And without the second, there's no reason not to be using it all the time.

And I would argue that the mere idea of "society would disapprove" doesn't really do it for me. In theory, you get up to those power levels, and society can go bend over and shag themselves because the individual would not be able to be stopped.

A cosmically powerful ability really should have an equally cosmically powerful drawback, like continents falling into the sea in its wake or the nature of all magic changing or some such. Sort of an "at what price victory" sort of idea. It works on a scale, of course, so a one-shot-one-kill sort of ability doesn't need to result in large scale devastation or anything. But perhaps the character gives up a portion of their lifespan or their soul is slowly taken over by a very real darkness or some such. Powerful abilities really just need powerful limiters.

That's good to know. I take all of that sort of thing into consideration anyway, but knowing the thoughts and suggestions of others is very helpful. Thanks for your input Berz. wink
PostPosted: Thu May 14, 2009 4:10 pm


Yeah, that was really good of you to mention Berzie.
I think that if you are really good at making games, then you can be also good at making characters with powerful abilities like that. After all, some games that have powerful weapons, spells or whatever, also seem to have quite a drawback. I know that all too well!

hypnocrown
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DM_Melkhar
Captain

PostPosted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 12:29 pm


Ok, from what Berz said, I can easily understand why it'd be boring to have characters with great power and then have them never use said power.
However, if they are going to use it and still be enigmatic (in some way), is there at time too early introduce their power?

I wanted to use the abilities of one, or at least hint upon them, in the second half of the first chapter. Bear in mind, this one and others like her are on quasi-deity level, but it doesn't mean their abilities aren't used in the right or necessary context.
PostPosted: Sun Jun 21, 2009 3:30 pm


I really love characters who have a lot of power, like Alianne from Trickster's Choice, by Tamora Pierce. And Aang, from Avatar: The Last Airbender. I think its amazing for characters like them to be able to take on the burden of having so much power and being pressured to use it.

I also think its okay for a character to have power and choose not to use it though. For example, (using videogame and anime references here x.x) Urahara from Bleach has a lot of power but he chooses to not use it, and only helps train others to harness their powers. And also, Abyssion from the game Tales of Symphonia is the most powerful character in the game, more so that the final boss, but he does absolutely nothing with his power. But its very fun to fight him. =] Not using their powers with purpose doesn't make them any less interesting. In fact, the way that they are so mysterious makes them all the more interesting. Plus, I think that characters who have so much power but don't do much with it might just be happier and more relaxed that way, which is good for them.

Calimouse


hypnocrown
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PostPosted: Tue Jun 23, 2009 3:45 pm


Too early? Hmm, let me think... I suppose it might be too early if you mention the character and its power way before seeing the character in action or even getting a glimpse of it. 3nodding

I was thinking that, a character with too many abilities might be interesting to follow up on. Wouldn't it? Has anyone seen the show "Heroes"? Peter is one such character cuz he can sort of use the powers of others as long as he makes contact with them and, it doesn't even have to be physical contact, the mere fact of being near them is enough for him to absorb them. However, it seems like he hardly ever uses all of his powers at once. I haven't seen past the second season and I've missed a lot sadly...
I believe Calimouse makes a good point.
Thanks for posting Cali! I don't know what to comment cuz, I haven't played any of the games you mentioned and, even though I've seen Bleach, I don't recognize the name of that character either. sad
PostPosted: Mon Jul 20, 2009 9:47 pm


So... make a character as powerful as you want. Make them god-like. Let them throw fifteen blades at once five-hundred feet through the forest to slaughter hundreds of bandits. Let them start an earthquake because they're angry.

Then... make their nemesis even more powerful. Problem solved-- and the rest of the book should certainly prove interesting. wink

Nebulance

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hypnocrown
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PostPosted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 11:09 am


That's sort of what I was thinking Neb (I hope it's ok for me to call you that).

I was also thinking that if you make the two antagonists to be of different race, like cat versus mouse for example; you could make a twist and have the cat be the hero while the mouse is the villain. However, to make it interesting, it could be like a regular cat trying to fight a mouse with super abilities like, a metallic tail or maybe ice breath. It's only a matter of your imagination, right?
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