From: CX6L@MUSICA.MCGILL.CA (CX6L)
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.misc
Subject: Re: Newbie System?
Date: 9 Oct 92 20:14:18 GMT
Organization: McGill University

In article <7150@blue.cis.pitt.edu.UUCP> seawasp@vm2.cis.pitt.edu (Sea Wasp) writes:

> I agree with your above remark. However, it seems to me that premade
>characters are directly against all roleplaying. If you made the character
>and handed it to me, it isn't my character. You designed it differently,
>you have a different conception of it, and in short it isn't a character
>for me; it's a collection of numbers with no relation to me at all. Premade
>characters have always felt completely alien to me -- I find them to be
>promotions of ROLL-playing because the user (I can't really say "player")
>of the premade is just picking up a cold set of numbers without even the
>tenuous personal connection of these at least being HIS numbers and
>trying to maximize the return on numbers whose meaning he (especially if
>a newbie) will have very little concept of.
> I never play premades. This keeps me out of  tournaments, I suppose,
>but then tournaments never struck me as particularly productive either...
>                                 Sea Wasp

While I agree that pre-made characters are not the best way
to roleplay, there are (as always) two sides to this kind of
thing. Some players consider playing a pre-made character,
with attitudes, quirks and foibles *they* would never have
chosen, to be the ultimate role-playing challenge, and would
consider it a mark of true skill, and a lot of fun! Other
players disagree, and feel that the true measure of role-
playng skill is the degree to which a player has developed
a basic personality type (s)he has played in many different
settings, and which is, as a result, very consistant, well-
played and well-defined. Neither is right...or wrong.
     That being said, I feel that in a con situation there
is rarely the time to let the players all make their own
characters, and the characters one does get tend to be
useless because of the proliferation of house rules, or
because the designer feels differently about certain rules.
Also, con adventures are generally capsules, with clear
beginnings/ends and relatively obvious plot devices (compared
to a campaign, I mean). As such, these adventures require
an appropriate cast to function correctly within the alloted
time. Cons do serve the useful purpose of spreading the
hobby, and of collecting many hobbyists in one place for
constructive discussion and brainstorming: so I do not
feel gaming at cons is pointless. Note that one can game
at a con and not have a tournament. Numerous times, I have
run what amounted to mini-campaigns at cons, with no teams,
time-limits or anything. These were *not* tournaments: just
a chance for players from different backgrounds to get
together, see different styles, get a few ideas, meet folks
and have fun!
     I am writing an adventure for Con.Cept (17-18th Oct,
Montreal) right now, and I *need* to know the cast before
I write. I mean, I have an adventure that just won't work
if the mages do/do not have certain spells. Since it has
mystery components, I need "thinking" and "interacting"
types, not just caped loners with swords and attitudes.
I do not trust the players to generate such PCs: not on an
hour's notice!
     I think pre-made versus player-made is sort of like being
given a part in a play versus writing a part for yourself in
your own movie: some actors enjoy the challenge of playing any
role, others enjoy playing a role they have always dreamed
about. Both are valid ways to have fun while acting!

PS: I personally prefer MY characters to ANYONE's preg-mades!

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