Why your characters age is a big deal.

Captain Squee

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Just as anyone else in the RP section, I have seen countless people make their characters the ages between 16-25 religiously. Personally, I feel as though there are enough people in that age range. What, do all of our characters die at 30? Why is there nobody old enough to win a battle on talent that hasn't been fighting with flukes? Your characters age is a big deal, the amount of time your character has been alive not only impacts the biography as a whole, but it also effects the entire world you place him in. Ever hear of the butterfly effect?

So here's my own personal take on why your characters age is very important. Please note these are all personal opinions.This is also assuming a fantasy setting.

If you choose to have a younger character, this is not a bad thing. It just means your character will struggle with the ways of combat, and you should be reflecting that in your bio under the abilities, talents, and other such tabs given for the bio templates. The biggest thing about a young age is by far the character development. If you enjoy playing characters for their personality, which I do on occasion, then the older you make them, the less room for changes mid-roleplay you have. The "growing up" factor can be a lot of fun. It's also a good way to make it so your character skills can progress as the RP moves on. However, one thing I think we're all sick of seeing is when the 19 year old prodigy completely demolishes the 40 year old, experienced as hell, legend of all the world. This shouldn't be happening, there's no way your characters experience can top them unless you have a phenomenal advantage with your abilities and magic features. Facing someone with the same power level but a different age should always end in the more experienced fighter winning. I may only be speaking for myself when I say this, but I'm tired of everyone saying their teenager can kick my 200+ year old legends that are immune to time itself because your teenager uses fire. Enough of that, for all of us. Struggles can be overcome even if hard, and it's a great way to make your character develop, which is the fun of choosing a younger character.

So maybe you'd rather pick a character that is an excellent fighter, but already has a well established personality? Then make an older character. If your character is well aged, you can still make it so that he sued to be a child prodigy, but now you've backed him with experience and he will know how to get through very difficult situations by remembering something from the past. Not to mention, if you so desire to make your character old enough in a roleplay that has a history of war, you can make this individual an important aspect of a few battles that shaped the world. You could have lived to see enough bloodshed that you could have been what insirectly drove an entire nation to victory! Pack this kind of experience on your powers and you can use your powers to their fullest as is, but you've got the scars to prove it wasn't easy. There are many ways to fight, but experience is hard t beat.

So, just a brief explanation as to why I prefer older characters. If you have anything to add, feel free. I might even add more in later as I go, but I'm just sick of seeing 17 year olds kill armies worth of people by batting an eye.
 
I have used Shenorai and Leondra as the bounty hunter/ghost duo ever since I was sixteen. Although they have aged with me with every RP they land themselves in, one thing was always constant: Shenorai herself was always a year younger than I currently am.

Not only does my character age, but I also tack on important/unforgettable RP events to her experiences during her time as a bounty hunter/mercenary. I do agree that the 'growing up' factor is important enough to help establish a character. During her younger years, Shenorai took a LOT of abuse (and nearly died on multiple occasions). Yet who she met in her youth (other RP characters) helped to shape who she is now. Her adventures and misadventures are (usually) kept in her memory and that is what makes it easier/more difficult for her to interact with specific characters/gestures/events.

Interacting with someone's dog? She'll quickly be reminded of the talking nuisance that was her pet wolf for the longest time.
Given a red rose? She'll be reminded of a dear friend she lost long ago who would distribute roses to all of his female friends.
Sees someone running around with a huge sword strapped to his back? She'll hope it's her childhood friend, yet quickly become saddened if it's not him.

Sure, I may have changed her history and her personality fluctuates from madwoman to serious woman, but Shen and Leondra still remember these things.
 
As a personal issue, I tend to be unable to relate to characters who aren't within that 16-25 age bracket. As such that makes RPing with those other types unpleasant to me and as we all know, if you're not enjoying it, RPing is a chore. I'll admit that I tend to sort of level the playing field a bit by giving my younger characters some hidden potential or magic but that's because, let's face it, seeing a veteran of battle whip a kid's ass is downright annoying - at least let there be some sort of struggle, even if the kid loses.

As for the growth potential, I agree that it's nice to see your character progress but when you have an idea of how you want your character to end up, getting there takes a long time and it's worse if the RP halts because of someone. I'd rather leave someone's abilities open ended and let them become better at what they do and able to do more rather than set up 'level ups' for the character.

Everything said, I've played older characters, or perhaps I should say I've tried. Only one of them was ever accepted and he unfortunately never got to show his flair because people vanished. The rest had, for their ages and backgrounds, very appropriate skillsets but... Whatever, I'm not opening old wounds. The point is, I can rarely get behind an older character, and unfortunately Rp's tend to flag and the development we envisioned for our characters fails because of it so I tend to play 16-25 with moderate skills because I enjoy that age range and I don't want so much work to go down the shitter.
 
Personally, as a recent R&B song tells the message. Age is only a number...Now granted, I believe the reason most RPers tend to stick with that 16-25 age limit is largely because people tend to relate them to their favorite characters from their favorite Eastern RPG's, where it is often rare to find a player character who is even over 30. Compare with Western style RPG's where characters are generally a lot older, probably anywhere from 30-65.I do agree that it is exaggerrated, and even somewhat into Mary Sue levels, to have an experienced, yet young character, playing as the Mobius One of the RP, capable of single-handedly, completely destroy an entire nation's armed forces singlehandedly in the matter of a couple months. But at the same time, I don't believe that it would be wrong to say that a character at that age range would be completely, and utterly incompetent at whatever it is he or she is entrusted to do, so long as it is a duty he or she is capable of doing within his or her station. I don't expect the character to be a leader overnight (that one, I'm guilty of, when I was young and dumb) but I do agree with you Squee, that it takes blood, sweat, tears, luck & determination, but mostly blood, to overcome these trials and learn from them. That I would love to see in a character, rather than God Mode Sue.
 
I’m typically a person that enjoys playing younger characters. There really isn’t any other reason to this other than I just like playing younger characters. As I grow older in the years, I find that I get better at writing them as I discover new limitations brought onto me by older age. In a way, it goes to show that you truly don’t know what it is you had until you realize that it’s already gone. With that being said, there is one huge advantage that one of the many “19 year old prodigies” would have over the battlehardened 40 year old badass.

Which is their speed, stamina, and very much arguably, their strength.

However, let’s not let that go without saying that the concept of skill is something that can trump all of these things. No matter how you look at it, while one can be fast, while one can have strength, and even all of the stamina in the world, it doesn’t mean shit if they don’t have the skill to back it up. I find it hard to believe that an 18 year old, even in a fantasy setting, should be able to beat someone who has had years of experience. Furthermore, I do find it a bit difficult to believe that praises should be sung of their accomplishments or that they are somehow a lieutenant in the army at their ripe young age.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m totally guilty of having a character like this. However, I believe I can chalk that up to inexperience in writing and RPing on my part. It’s fun to RP your character beating the ever loving shit out of an army. It super fun RPing a battle in which your character beats the ever loving shit out of their rival. However, it’s also fun to RP within the limitations that your character should have, but most of us tend to leave out.

Now magic on the other hand, is a bit different for me. One can be well skilled in magic at a young age, but due to the fact that there’s so much they need to learn, it’s very likely that the character probably wouldn’t be able to create a giant ass exploding ball of death that can destroy the planet should he/she so chose.
Ya feel me?

They wouldn’t be able to do this, not because of strength or stamina or anything of the sort. They probably wouldn’t be able to do this because they wouldn’t know the damn spell and that shit like that requires a hell of a lot of practice. Even with your character studying and practicing from the age of six, it’s unlikely they would be able to know how to cast the hundreds of years old spell that can destroy worlds.

It’s part of the reason why, for the most part, I kept magic simple in my RP. There were fireballs and lightnings from fingertips. Very rarely did I deviate from that. Later on, I added on limitations. My characters nose would bleed, they would weaken and tire, or even in some cases just pass the fuck out. It was fun to RP, I got creative, and I worked within the logical limitations that my character should have had. It can be very rewarding if you so chose, and shouldn’t be something to shy away from in the slightest.
 
I have one simple answer to this question. I wanna rp someone that's younger then me. I wanna feel young (at heart).








Mod Edit: This is a post count section. Try to expand your posts a little when it comes to discussion topics, okay? ^_^
 
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I don't think age matters too much so long as the character is believable. I find a character who is aged 16 who is built like a tank and is the pure definitiion of a hero, very hard to believe in. However, give said 16 year old that kind of power, but maybe have them be an arrogant little shit, then I would find that far more believable. It would also pave the way for them to learn to use their strength responsibly and towards the better good of whatever.

So long as their is a believable enough reason for a character to fall into the role that the RP'er assigns them, then I don't think age matters.
 
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