About to give one of my lot a bag of holding. The character is an uptight mage. The bag is pale pink with blue patchwork and tied shut with green yarn. It looks like a craft project by a third grade girl. Like in a handy haversack, an unseen servant delivers the item most wanted to the top. But this servant is effectively a bored third grade girl. It will doodle on his books, decorate his clothes and bedroll with flowers, etc. Nothing that can't be fixed with prestidigitation if/when he notices. It'll stop if he tosses in some toys with his stuff.
Superman's flaws are a lot more subtle than a lot of people think. He does not trust others to do dangerous things because they are all squishier than he is. He is a horrible team player and always thinks he is right.
This is definitely true. 💯 Do you think writers use this well when writing Superman? We dont read the comics anymore. Does he struggle against this flaw all the time or is it overlooked for more punchy more often than not?
@HookandChance it definitely gets overlooked in favor of "edgy" evil Superman takes that are not usually that interesting or all that groundbreaking. Superman is the subversion on the uberman, and so subverting him is playing the thing straight.
idk how long this channel has been around, but i only found it like 2 days ago...not even 1k subs...but the visuals/sounds are all very nicely done, the ...scripting?...idk how much notes you guys got but the flow of everything is very nice. i love it
My favorite flaw I ever made was for my Thief Rogue, Dr. Alexander Hampton. He lost a loved one (and business partner) to a malady he could’ve cured but lacked the ingredients he couldn’t afford, everyone he pleaded with turned him away. His flaw is “when I hear screaming? I run towards the danger” because of 2 words *Never again*
Ooooof. Right in the feels. Hats off to you. Any flaw that gets you more into the trouble that makes games tense and exciting is a great flaw in our books. 👏 We need to hear more about Dr. Hampton. Does he now steal from the kind of folks that turned him away?
@@HookandChance he died in the one shot he was in: his final turn was healing someone with his Asclepius scapel (he can use is sneak attack once per day to heal someone) then he used his healer feat to bring them to near full hp. He died prioritizing someone else’s life over his own. So I think he’s content.
Yeah, my favorite character was Thaddeus "Doc" Brown. A swashbuckler rogue with the sailor background. I focused on a medical school dropout turned ship physician. Healer feat, expertise in medicine and persuasion. His flaw was he wants a cushy life and he's willing to do whatever it takes to get it. This "moral flexibility" led to some interesting scenarios. Like the time he broke the hippocratic oath to completely slaughter a bunch of wounded dragonborn ronin to help a friend recover her family's compound. Helping people and then stealing from them in order to build up his "stake". A mix of bravado and ruthlessness combined with a pride in his abilities, beit medicine or roguery. Sadly, he died while separated from the rest of the party, looking for a ranger that attacked us from the air for the past few days.
RIP Thaddeus Brown. Taken too young. Gone but not forgotten. He always said, "never split the party". That's a cool concept of a ship healer tho, what did you like most about them? Any weird behavioral quirks?
Well, we're actually going to shut it down now because we have achieved our goal. We set this podcast up to accomplish our dream of one day befriending a Jellyfish. We have met a few but most have been introverts so they are hard to get out to the clubs. But here you are! Let's gooooooo 😜 Thank you so much! Also, worry not, we aren't going anywhere! Great to have you, keep up the comments and hope to see you on our Discord.
One flaw I gave a recent character of mine is that they take too much responsibility. That may sound like a job interview flaw but it really isn’t. The reason why is because this character is a compulsive caretaker, one of the worst people to have that type of flaw. Why? Because it leads to burn out. It leads to taking responsibility for things beyond your control. It leads to others taking the individual for granted because the individual doesn’t speak up about their limitations, and may not even know of those themself. So yes, it’s a flaw. And no, my flaw isn’t that my character is too nice, or that they are too naive, or that they are a doormat, or too bossy. It’s that they are someone who takes on too much responsibility. I justify this with the backstory I wrote in for them. Namely, my character is a parentified eldest child, meaning they have had to take on the responsibilities of others and their care since younger than they should have had to. It was expected so they never learned or understood what about this wasn’t ok. And this would continue to be a thing all through growing up, even long after they left home as an adult and are now with the adventuring party. It stuck with their through the survivors guilt they suffered during the incident that killed their fiancé and even throughout their career as a field researcher. It is an ongoing flaw I play into in the roleplay and storytelling of my character in the campaign. Personally I think it works very well for my group. It lends itself well to highlighting the other party members, their strengths and flaws and character arcs, and allows them to invest back into my own and help my character also grow from their flaws, turn it into a strength, and better advocate and care for themself too. And that’s why I built that character flaw into this character I play. It has consequences. It leads to clashes, but it also leads to change and evolution and a whole arc that is lovely to play into. Especially since I contrast it with the hypocrisy of my character advocating and trying to teach the rest of the party the lesson they themself need to learn. Because they are very very intelligent. They just also are so used to putting the needs of others ahead of themself, that they forget to recognize the need to advocate for themself too. And they carry a needless guilt that is exacerbated by the trauma and grief of a loved one too. Mostly, I just wanted to create a journey of healing to be honest. It’s why I chose this flaw for my character.
@@HookandChance Much appreciated! Honestly that is the part I have fun the most fun with anyway. I’m as much the audience to their character’s story as they are to mine and it just creates a more amazing overall story if we can contrast and complement our fellow party members. Also I was a later addition to this campaign so that sort of helped when building since I had more knowledge to work with when asking them about their characters, the story thus far, and what the dm said about the themes and story beats. Helps me weave together my own character to better suit the campaign. The character I mention here is also one of my current favorites to play in all honesty because I really get rewarded for the details and roleplaying I do for them. It’s not an area I get to explore often in my more casual and teaching tables. I try to stay adaptable to the play style of the table and whatever campaign we are playing. I’m a caretaker personality myself and I just enjoy taking care of others. This is just another way I do so. I really appreciate your comment! Much appreciated! I look forward to listening to more of your videos!
@@HookandChance Oh man, not gonna lie, I can only think of what works because that's what I latched onto the most haha but I love y'alls dialogue, your back and forth is great and genuinely enjoyable. Content wise: I actually write fiction as a larger hobby apart from the occasional table top game I play in and participate in, so the understanding of character flaws and how they realistically function, in a nuts and bolts sense, was immeasurably helpful for understanding how to build characters that function like people. Plus the breakdown of the concepts behind it was flawless with depthful and accessible examples.
Thanks man! 😊 that means a ton! These kinda comments keep us going. Especially coming from a writer. Super happy it's helpful. If you're not already, hop into our Discord. There is a lot of writerly like-minds in there.
Current character I'm playing has flaws of running his mouth, being a risk taker, and being a bit vengenful and petty when someone calls him weak. These flaws extended from his want of having power. For most of his life, he's kind of been kicked around and bullied, and even after he got the ability to use some of his ancestral magic, he was still low on the pecking order. He's convinced that the only way he'll be happy and finally have some semblance of control over his life and some respect, is if he's strong enough to take what he wants. The running his mouth even when it's a bad idea is meant to be a confident power play to project confidence and make those acosting him reconsider their choice of harrasment. He fights recklessly to try and prove his might to others even though he's not built to take to much of a hit. And his vengeful behavior towards those who insult and insinuate his weakness is because he hates people pointing out what he already knows and he wants to stab back at them in disproportion measure with whatever means availible, be it verbal or physical.
Oooooh that's great! How has he been humbled in the past? We find the toughest part of playing out the flaws is showing character change and shifting ideas in gameplay without wrestling the spotlight away from other players. In this characters case, if the GM isn't giving your character opportunities to get what he wants without force, providing a growth opportunity, it can be hella challenging to express. How are you finding it?
@@HookandChance . He hasn't been humbled yet outside of other people that are more skilled and more powerful beating the living tar out him. And if anything, it's only pushing him to keep trying to reach for more power so he can come back and humble the one's who have beaten him down. I haven't gotten too much of a chance to roleplay these traits cause I often get sidelined by someone else. One of the other players keeps taking the spotlight without trying to and the DM has actively made comments in our discord chats asking for ideas for roleplay stuff to make not just my character, but two other PCs more interesting from a roleplay standpoint. the suggestions thus far have been shut down due to being "Unrealistic for the character" or "too time consuming." I've made attempts at trying to get my character to interact more, by having them get out in public and engaging in random social encounters, but the dice gets keep shutting me down or someone else shoves their way in. At this point, part of me is starting to think that the DM just doesn't like my character and rather than have a conversation, is waiting for a moment to kill them off in a way that narratively makes sene so I can "Do better" with the next one.
Damn, sorry to hear. That sounds super frustrating. We love the image of your character continually getting back up despite the challenges. Just brainstorming here, but perhaps you don't need anyone or even the gm to help with this arc. Perhaps simply your character stating the reason they are getting back up when they do. Over time, fight after fight, that reason can shift to an internal reason rather than external? Alternatively, another player might need help highlighting their character change, could two characters mentor each other in that way?
Thanks Evarhart! There is lots going on with the Discord if you're not too busy catching up on back episodes 😀 We'll be back to making new episodes when we get further along on our first book 😉
I do think being too trusting can be an interesting flaw. So long as you're not godlike in power, so it's not that interesting with Superman. But in a D&D character? For sure!
A rogue that sucked at trusting people with the stuff he stole no matter who, would be pretty fun. Or! A paladin whose god was Optimistic, and the paladin simply believed that people were trustworthy, and as they leveled up, that could genuinely influence others to behave more kindly towards them unintentionally xD
Fair. We tend more towards flaws that roleplay will allow them to take center stage more often and subtlety doesn't always come across in roleplay. So if we were taking on this flaw, we'd probably be more inclined to turn it up to 11. Straight up gullible, and takes everything at face value.
Ive also got a super edgy kind of character whos flaws i may have made a little too deep, but alas i made him anyways. Hes this super badass blood-mage/hunter who spent years learning magic and macabre things. He learned so much he became the face/chosen one of the academy he attended. He became even stronger with his blood powers but much of his humanity was taken as a cost. He cant eat, or speak without magic, or feel most sensations etc. He learned so much that the head, or leader, of the academy basically betrayed him out of the fear that he would topple the establishment with his new found knowledge. He sent my characters brother to kill him; having told him of how treacherous he was and a bunch of other nasty lies. His brother ends up killing him, but my characters chosen blood turned out to be the academies god head, basically what they worshipped and held as their pinnacle of being. This god, which is called The Mother (only known as The Blood to the academy) basically turns my character into this raging madman, killing his brother as he regains conciousness. When my character comes to, a bunch more scary stuff happens, assimilation, mutilation, loss, the whole rodeo. Hes forced to leave his academy for his lovers safety and his niece's. Hes now with the campaigns party, seeking power to fulfill his need to know more, and the mother's/his thirst for vengeance on those who betrayed him. His flaw might be a little deep, but i think its neat personally. Being so driven by vengeance that its the only thing keeping him alive may prove interesting as that is the characters 'want'. He has yet to know his need. I dont really know it either. If you read this, thankyou for coming to my ted talk.
We haven't seen any TED talks take questions afterwards but we'll ask anyway... In terms of his "need", beyond getting revenge what would lead them down a happier path? What do they need to learn. Character sounds pretty cool though. Name?
@@HookandChanceI'd say his "need" would likely be to learn to let go of all of his anger, all of his pride; his past basically. There's a character in the party who he's kind of becoming a pseudo mentor to, and he sees a lot of his past self in her. My character, Tahrot (Tarot) Ubif is a scholar at heart, but after all of the shit he went through, the torment, the loss, he became monstrous, in appearance and in his actions. He's almost an entirely different person now, and I think his scholarly side might be a way to tie him back towards his sense of goodness. And with that, happiness. If he doesn't become a better person, and is allowed to continue on a warpath, he'll either die pitifully or become a villain entirely.
You know we'll need some updates in a few months right? That's a spicy character arc. No "learn better table manners" for Tahrot. Just be better or f-in die... oooh boy he's got a bumpy road ahead
@@HookandChance Thanks for the feedback, it means a good bit. I'll try and keep you guys caught up. There's a bit that's happened in the campaign so far. Last session even. The party had just cleared a dungeon, it was relatively safe. It was all icy and had huge glacier like ice spikes everywhere; it was super cool. Anyways, after reaching the end, we were informed by a 'delayed message' spell that we needed to make our way to a nearby town named "Honeywood". Very creative, I know. After a very fast descent down the mountain we had to climb; to reach the cave/dungeon (a goat charged Tahrot, causing him to shout and jump to the side of the path, doing so tumbling down the entire mountain. And then half my party decided to roll down the mountain aswell; crushing me in the process. It was absolutely comedic.) we reached this town. There was this large magical dome enompassing the town, it was this green shield kind of thing. As we enter, we're informed the shield is going to shut so people can't leave or enter, we ask why, and then we hear someone shout "DRAGON!!! RUN!!!!" So we look around and waddya know, two white dragons flying above. I decide to go investigate this magic dome's magical source, to either speed up it's closing, or subsume it's magic to try and use it for myself. After a decision, I focus my magic into the artifact. It's this red crackling energy that comes from Tahrot's chest. Soon enough, the entire beam, and then the force field turns the same color; this sickly blood color. It somehow overpowered the FIVE other wizards powering it. In summary, my teamate, who i somehow resurrected after she was eaten alive, stops me from going any further; seeing that it's causing physical stress to Tahrot (his body starts to shake like he's coughing and blood drips from under his mask) Tahrot gets a little annoyed but understands. The next morning, I decide to try and finish what I started, either making this shield kill the dragons or take it's energy for myself. After some more self harm, i drop to 10 health, pouring my energy into it. My teamate stops me again as she rushes up to Tahrot from behind. She tackles him to the ground; and Tahrot out of some fervor attacks her, beaming in eldritch blast into her warforged body. He confronts her, "You don't get to decide my fate." He points his sword at her. Some more drama and neat stuff happens, and in the end, Tahrot throws himself into the magical beam as a last ditch effort. The use of his magics in such an intense manor brought memories, shame, regret, and loss out in him. He was pretty trying to unalive himself. The beam had become incredibly unstable at this point (due to my friend warforged tackling me; for good reason). Tahrot fell from the beam, just surging with the entire force of the artifacts power. Seeing that he wasn't dead, he made a mad dash for the barrier, seeing as I was likely going to explode. After using eldritch blasts to propel myself into the barrier, i sliced my sword into it as it had now became completely solid. Reaching the outside, I could hear the roar of a dragon in the snowy wastes, and then a silhouette, and then blackness. I exploded with all the stored energy. I woke to one of my teammates hugging me, and the sight of dragon bones. Quite a session. It was rather apparent that 'The Mother' had some play in it all, driving me to harm my warforged friend, and act so selfishly. I damn near blew up a town.
As an answer to Smoking as a character flaw, I would say it requires skills to use it as a flaw, but look at Constantine in the Constantine movie, and you see a pretty successful use of it that actually adds to the charm of the character while being a clear flaw. In an RP game, I would suggest Smoking as a flaw to have a certain % chance of getting a coughing fit that will disrupt their spell or attack, break Stealth (imagine a Rogue who ever-so-often get a coughing-fit and alert the guards), and so on. Or perhaps he has lung-cancer and can't quit, and is on the quest to seek some magical master who can heal him --perhaps if he's smoked something magical he shouldn't have, and no regular healer can heal him. (Works best in a comedy setting.) It takes skills to make it interesting rather than annoying, but it CAN be done.
Certainly true for many flaws like that. Something we always need to keep in mind though when we come to our suggestions is the rest of the table, with everyone having an equal stake in entertaining eachother, it makes it that much harder to suggest ideas that add to the table shenanigans. Flaws that are hard to bounce off of as another player are tricky ones to recommend. It a pain because it negates half of our ideas. 😜 but we think it's a good litmus test. If a dozen ideas about how each other character at the table would react then it's a good flaw. If it can be used in a dozen more situations the game might but you in, then it's a great flaw. But you're right, a skilled player can make almost any flaw a good one. 👍
Non-apologist Superman's flaws: I'm sure seeing a whole lot of nasty, horrible, evil happening in the world that Superman sure ain't stopping on page. Batman is.
This feels like the low-key reason superheroes were separated into tiers. Someone needs to give Darkseid a beat down, but that isn't the same guy that stops a bodega robbery because Supes just lazed his gun into slag while on his way to fight Doomsday. No tension exists on the bodega without some damn good character writing.
I think I stumbled upon a hidden treasure.
You're a hidden treasure! Thanks for commenting and joining us.
They had me at the Gibbering Mouther reference. Such a creepy monster.
About to give one of my lot a bag of holding. The character is an uptight mage. The bag is pale pink with blue patchwork and tied shut with green yarn. It looks like a craft project by a third grade girl. Like in a handy haversack, an unseen servant delivers the item most wanted to the top. But this servant is effectively a bored third grade girl. It will doodle on his books, decorate his clothes and bedroll with flowers, etc. Nothing that can't be fixed with prestidigitation if/when he notices. It'll stop if he tosses in some toys with his stuff.
Tracy this is such a fun, whimsical idea. Effectively no mechanical changes or effects beyond just great player engagement and rp flavour. Bravo 👏 👌
Superman's flaws are a lot more subtle than a lot of people think. He does not trust others to do dangerous things because they are all squishier than he is. He is a horrible team player and always thinks he is right.
This is definitely true. 💯 Do you think writers use this well when writing Superman? We dont read the comics anymore. Does he struggle against this flaw all the time or is it overlooked for more punchy more often than not?
@HookandChance it definitely gets overlooked in favor of "edgy" evil Superman takes that are not usually that interesting or all that groundbreaking. Superman is the subversion on the uberman, and so subverting him is playing the thing straight.
@@HookandChanceno they definitely write around it. It’s on the forefront with his son Jon Kent stories
idk how long this channel has been around, but i only found it like 2 days ago...not even 1k subs...but the visuals/sounds are all very nicely done, the ...scripting?...idk how much notes you guys got but the flow of everything is very nice. i love it
So happy to hear you are enjoying the show. We have lot's more coming. Please feel free to join us on our Discord if you haven't already!
My favorite flaw I ever made was for my Thief Rogue, Dr. Alexander Hampton. He lost a loved one (and business partner) to a malady he could’ve cured but lacked the ingredients he couldn’t afford, everyone he pleaded with turned him away.
His flaw is “when I hear screaming? I run towards the danger” because of 2 words *Never again*
Ooooof. Right in the feels. Hats off to you. Any flaw that gets you more into the trouble that makes games tense and exciting is a great flaw in our books. 👏 We need to hear more about Dr. Hampton. Does he now steal from the kind of folks that turned him away?
@@HookandChance he died in the one shot he was in: his final turn was healing someone with his Asclepius scapel (he can use is sneak attack once per day to heal someone) then he used his healer feat to bring them to near full hp.
He died prioritizing someone else’s life over his own. So I think he’s content.
Love this so much.
@@giraffedragon6110 Omg that is beautiful and I'm just sad because he sounds like an amazing character I would love to hear more about
Yeah, my favorite character was Thaddeus "Doc" Brown. A swashbuckler rogue with the sailor background. I focused on a medical school dropout turned ship physician. Healer feat, expertise in medicine and persuasion. His flaw was he wants a cushy life and he's willing to do whatever it takes to get it. This "moral flexibility" led to some interesting scenarios. Like the time he broke the hippocratic oath to completely slaughter a bunch of wounded dragonborn ronin to help a friend recover her family's compound. Helping people and then stealing from them in order to build up his "stake". A mix of bravado and ruthlessness combined with a pride in his abilities, beit medicine or roguery. Sadly, he died while separated from the rest of the party, looking for a ranger that attacked us from the air for the past few days.
RIP Thaddeus Brown. Taken too young. Gone but not forgotten. He always said, "never split the party".
That's a cool concept of a ship healer tho, what did you like most about them? Any weird behavioral quirks?
6:30 For simpler or slice-of-life stories I can see why quitting smoking would be a good/minor arc
Yeah that's fair. As far as arcs go, at least it's entirely in the players control.
I just discovered this channel and I’m obsessed with you guys now, I’m recommending it to all my friends
Well, we're actually going to shut it down now because we have achieved our goal. We set this podcast up to accomplish our dream of one day befriending a Jellyfish. We have met a few but most have been introverts so they are hard to get out to the clubs. But here you are! Let's gooooooo 😜
Thank you so much! Also, worry not, we aren't going anywhere! Great to have you, keep up the comments and hope to see you on our Discord.
One flaw I gave a recent character of mine is that they take too much responsibility. That may sound like a job interview flaw but it really isn’t. The reason why is because this character is a compulsive caretaker, one of the worst people to have that type of flaw. Why? Because it leads to burn out. It leads to taking responsibility for things beyond your control. It leads to others taking the individual for granted because the individual doesn’t speak up about their limitations, and may not even know of those themself. So yes, it’s a flaw. And no, my flaw isn’t that my character is too nice, or that they are too naive, or that they are a doormat, or too bossy. It’s that they are someone who takes on too much responsibility.
I justify this with the backstory I wrote in for them. Namely, my character is a parentified eldest child, meaning they have had to take on the responsibilities of others and their care since younger than they should have had to. It was expected so they never learned or understood what about this wasn’t ok. And this would continue to be a thing all through growing up, even long after they left home as an adult and are now with the adventuring party. It stuck with their through the survivors guilt they suffered during the incident that killed their fiancé and even throughout their career as a field researcher. It is an ongoing flaw I play into in the roleplay and storytelling of my character in the campaign.
Personally I think it works very well for my group. It lends itself well to highlighting the other party members, their strengths and flaws and character arcs, and allows them to invest back into my own and help my character also grow from their flaws, turn it into a strength, and better advocate and care for themself too. And that’s why I built that character flaw into this character I play. It has consequences. It leads to clashes, but it also leads to change and evolution and a whole arc that is lovely to play into.
Especially since I contrast it with the hypocrisy of my character advocating and trying to teach the rest of the party the lesson they themself need to learn. Because they are very very intelligent. They just also are so used to putting the needs of others ahead of themself, that they forget to recognize the need to advocate for themself too. And they carry a needless guilt that is exacerbated by the trauma and grief of a loved one too.
Mostly, I just wanted to create a journey of healing to be honest. It’s why I chose this flaw for my character.
We love that your flaw feeds the rest of your party roleplay opportunities. Bravo!
@@HookandChance Much appreciated! Honestly that is the part I have fun the most fun with anyway. I’m as much the audience to their character’s story as they are to mine and it just creates a more amazing overall story if we can contrast and complement our fellow party members. Also I was a later addition to this campaign so that sort of helped when building since I had more knowledge to work with when asking them about their characters, the story thus far, and what the dm said about the themes and story beats. Helps me weave together my own character to better suit the campaign. The character I mention here is also one of my current favorites to play in all honesty because I really get rewarded for the details and roleplaying I do for them. It’s not an area I get to explore often in my more casual and teaching tables. I try to stay adaptable to the play style of the table and whatever campaign we are playing. I’m a caretaker personality myself and I just enjoy taking care of others. This is just another way I do so.
I really appreciate your comment! Much appreciated! I look forward to listening to more of your videos!
This channel is soo good! I can't believe i just started finding these videos! Thanks guys!
Awww. Thank you so much! We're happy they're valuable to you. Please feel free to share publicly and let us know what topics you want to hear
I want the immovable rod discussed at 41:00. It will get much use!😂
Ahahahahaha! Oh no. Who needs batteries when you have MAGIC! We're certain a suppliment exists with these kinds of magic items.
Wow, well done guys this was done so well. This is great for anyone creating characters in stories or games.
Well Thanks Toni! Are you a writer or gamer or both?
@@HookandChance both
Man this was fantastic. Definitely going to listen to more.
Thanks! We'd love to hear what you think. What's working, what's not?
@@HookandChance Oh man, not gonna lie, I can only think of what works because that's what I latched onto the most haha but I love y'alls dialogue, your back and forth is great and genuinely enjoyable. Content wise: I actually write fiction as a larger hobby apart from the occasional table top game I play in and participate in, so the understanding of character flaws and how they realistically function, in a nuts and bolts sense, was immeasurably helpful for understanding how to build characters that function like people. Plus the breakdown of the concepts behind it was flawless with depthful and accessible examples.
Thanks man! 😊 that means a ton! These kinda comments keep us going. Especially coming from a writer. Super happy it's helpful. If you're not already, hop into our Discord. There is a lot of writerly like-minds in there.
Current character I'm playing has flaws of running his mouth, being a risk taker, and being a bit vengenful and petty when someone calls him weak. These flaws extended from his want of having power. For most of his life, he's kind of been kicked around and bullied, and even after he got the ability to use some of his ancestral magic, he was still low on the pecking order. He's convinced that the only way he'll be happy and finally have some semblance of control over his life and some respect, is if he's strong enough to take what he wants.
The running his mouth even when it's a bad idea is meant to be a confident power play to project confidence and make those acosting him reconsider their choice of harrasment. He fights recklessly to try and prove his might to others even though he's not built to take to much of a hit. And his vengeful behavior towards those who insult and insinuate his weakness is because he hates people pointing out what he already knows and he wants to stab back at them in disproportion measure with whatever means availible, be it verbal or physical.
Oooooh that's great!
How has he been humbled in the past? We find the toughest part of playing out the flaws is showing character change and shifting ideas in gameplay without wrestling the spotlight away from other players. In this characters case, if the GM isn't giving your character opportunities to get what he wants without force, providing a growth opportunity, it can be hella challenging to express.
How are you finding it?
@@HookandChance . He hasn't been humbled yet outside of other people that are more skilled and more powerful beating the living tar out him. And if anything, it's only pushing him to keep trying to reach for more power so he can come back and humble the one's who have beaten him down.
I haven't gotten too much of a chance to roleplay these traits cause I often get sidelined by someone else.
One of the other players keeps taking the spotlight without trying to and the DM has actively made comments in our discord chats asking for ideas for roleplay stuff to make not just my character, but two other PCs more interesting from a roleplay standpoint. the suggestions thus far have been shut down due to being "Unrealistic for the character" or "too time consuming."
I've made attempts at trying to get my character to interact more, by having them get out in public and engaging in random social encounters, but the dice gets keep shutting me down or someone else shoves their way in.
At this point, part of me is starting to think that the DM just doesn't like my character and rather than have a conversation, is waiting for a moment to kill them off in a way that narratively makes sene so I can "Do better" with the next one.
Damn, sorry to hear. That sounds super frustrating.
We love the image of your character continually getting back up despite the challenges. Just brainstorming here, but perhaps you don't need anyone or even the gm to help with this arc. Perhaps simply your character stating the reason they are getting back up when they do. Over time, fight after fight, that reason can shift to an internal reason rather than external?
Alternatively, another player might need help highlighting their character change, could two characters mentor each other in that way?
This was awesome. Glad I found you peeps!
Thanks Evarhart! There is lots going on with the Discord if you're not too busy catching up on back episodes 😀 We'll be back to making new episodes when we get further along on our first book 😉
Excellent episode!
Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it!
I do think being too trusting can be an interesting flaw. So long as you're not godlike in power, so it's not that interesting with Superman. But in a D&D character? For sure!
A rogue that sucked at trusting people with the stuff he stole no matter who, would be pretty fun. Or! A paladin whose god was Optimistic, and the paladin simply believed that people were trustworthy, and as they leveled up, that could genuinely influence others to behave more kindly towards them unintentionally xD
Fair. We tend more towards flaws that roleplay will allow them to take center stage more often and subtlety doesn't always come across in roleplay. So if we were taking on this flaw, we'd probably be more inclined to turn it up to 11. Straight up gullible, and takes everything at face value.
Love it!
Ive also got a super edgy kind of character whos flaws i may have made a little too deep, but alas i made him anyways.
Hes this super badass blood-mage/hunter who spent years learning magic and macabre things. He learned so much he became the face/chosen one of the academy he attended. He became even stronger with his blood powers but much of his humanity was taken as a cost. He cant eat, or speak without magic, or feel most sensations etc.
He learned so much that the head, or leader, of the academy basically betrayed him out of the fear that he would topple the establishment with his new found knowledge. He sent my characters brother to kill him; having told him of how treacherous he was and a bunch of other nasty lies. His brother ends up killing him, but my characters chosen blood turned out to be the academies god head, basically what they worshipped and held as their pinnacle of being. This god, which is called The Mother (only known as The Blood to the academy) basically turns my character into this raging madman, killing his brother as he regains conciousness. When my character comes to, a bunch more scary stuff happens, assimilation, mutilation, loss, the whole rodeo. Hes forced to leave his academy for his lovers safety and his niece's. Hes now with the campaigns party, seeking power to fulfill his need to know more, and the mother's/his thirst for vengeance on those who betrayed him.
His flaw might be a little deep, but i think its neat personally. Being so driven by vengeance that its the only thing keeping him alive may prove interesting as that is the characters 'want'. He has yet to know his need. I dont really know it either.
If you read this, thankyou for coming to my ted talk.
We haven't seen any TED talks take questions afterwards but we'll ask anyway...
In terms of his "need", beyond getting revenge what would lead them down a happier path? What do they need to learn.
Character sounds pretty cool though. Name?
@@HookandChanceI'd say his "need" would likely be to learn to let go of all of his anger, all of his pride; his past basically. There's a character in the party who he's kind of becoming a pseudo mentor to, and he sees a lot of his past self in her. My character, Tahrot (Tarot) Ubif is a scholar at heart, but after all of the shit he went through, the torment, the loss, he became monstrous, in appearance and in his actions. He's almost an entirely different person now, and I think his scholarly side might be a way to tie him back towards his sense of goodness. And with that, happiness.
If he doesn't become a better person, and is allowed to continue on a warpath, he'll either die pitifully or become a villain entirely.
You know we'll need some updates in a few months right?
That's a spicy character arc. No "learn better table manners" for Tahrot. Just be better or f-in die... oooh boy he's got a bumpy road ahead
@@HookandChance Thanks for the feedback, it means a good bit. I'll try and keep you guys caught up. There's a bit that's happened in the campaign so far. Last session even.
The party had just cleared a dungeon, it was relatively safe. It was all icy and had huge glacier like ice spikes everywhere; it was super cool. Anyways, after reaching the end, we were informed by a 'delayed message' spell that we needed to make our way to a nearby town named "Honeywood". Very creative, I know.
After a very fast descent down the mountain we had to climb; to reach the cave/dungeon (a goat charged Tahrot, causing him to shout and jump to the side of the path, doing so tumbling down the entire mountain. And then half my party decided to roll down the mountain aswell; crushing me in the process. It was absolutely comedic.) we reached this town. There was this large magical dome enompassing the town, it was this green shield kind of thing. As we enter, we're informed the shield is going to shut so people can't leave or enter, we ask why, and then we hear someone shout "DRAGON!!! RUN!!!!" So we look around and waddya know, two white dragons flying above.
I decide to go investigate this magic dome's magical source, to either speed up it's closing, or subsume it's magic to try and use it for myself. After a decision, I focus my magic into the artifact. It's this red crackling energy that comes from Tahrot's chest. Soon enough, the entire beam, and then the force field turns the same color; this sickly blood color. It somehow overpowered the FIVE other wizards powering it.
In summary, my teamate, who i somehow resurrected after she was eaten alive, stops me from going any further; seeing that it's causing physical stress to Tahrot (his body starts to shake like he's coughing and blood drips from under his mask)
Tahrot gets a little annoyed but understands. The next morning, I decide to try and finish what I started, either making this shield kill the dragons or take it's energy for myself. After some more self harm, i drop to 10 health, pouring my energy into it. My teamate stops me again as she rushes up to Tahrot from behind. She tackles him to the ground; and Tahrot out of some fervor attacks her, beaming in eldritch blast into her warforged body. He confronts her, "You don't get to decide my fate." He points his sword at her. Some more drama and neat stuff happens, and in the end, Tahrot throws himself into the magical beam as a last ditch effort.
The use of his magics in such an intense manor brought memories, shame, regret, and loss out in him. He was pretty trying to unalive himself.
The beam had become incredibly unstable at this point (due to my friend warforged tackling me; for good reason). Tahrot fell from the beam, just surging with the entire force of the artifacts power. Seeing that he wasn't dead, he made a mad dash for the barrier, seeing as I was likely going to explode. After using eldritch blasts to propel myself into the barrier, i sliced my sword into it as it had now became completely solid. Reaching the outside, I could hear the roar of a dragon in the snowy wastes, and then a silhouette, and then blackness. I exploded with all the stored energy. I woke to one of my teammates hugging me, and the sight of dragon bones.
Quite a session. It was rather apparent that 'The Mother' had some play in it all, driving me to harm my warforged friend, and act so selfishly. I damn near blew up a town.
p.s. i'll try and comment on your next podcast instead of this 4 year old vid. :))
As an answer to Smoking as a character flaw, I would say it requires skills to use it as a flaw, but look at Constantine in the Constantine movie, and you see a pretty successful use of it that actually adds to the charm of the character while being a clear flaw.
In an RP game, I would suggest Smoking as a flaw to have a certain % chance of getting a coughing fit that will disrupt their spell or attack, break Stealth (imagine a Rogue who ever-so-often get a coughing-fit and alert the guards), and so on.
Or perhaps he has lung-cancer and can't quit, and is on the quest to seek some magical master who can heal him --perhaps if he's smoked something magical he shouldn't have, and no regular healer can heal him. (Works best in a comedy setting.)
It takes skills to make it interesting rather than annoying, but it CAN be done.
Certainly true for many flaws like that. Something we always need to keep in mind though when we come to our suggestions is the rest of the table, with everyone having an equal stake in entertaining eachother, it makes it that much harder to suggest ideas that add to the table shenanigans. Flaws that are hard to bounce off of as another player are tricky ones to recommend.
It a pain because it negates half of our ideas. 😜 but we think it's a good litmus test. If a dozen ideas about how each other character at the table would react then it's a good flaw. If it can be used in a dozen more situations the game might but you in, then it's a great flaw.
But you're right, a skilled player can make almost any flaw a good one. 👍
Non-apologist Superman's flaws: I'm sure seeing a whole lot of nasty, horrible, evil happening in the world that Superman sure ain't stopping on page. Batman is.
This feels like the low-key reason superheroes were separated into tiers. Someone needs to give Darkseid a beat down, but that isn't the same guy that stops a bodega robbery because Supes just lazed his gun into slag while on his way to fight Doomsday. No tension exists on the bodega without some damn good character writing.
Too much yapping, too little value
Ouch 😂 How much yapping would equal the value?