These are guidelines were written to help writers create good characters for a story but I think they can also be used to create good RP characters.
Good ideas to keep in mind when creating a character especially an evil or dark character.
Heroes, Anti-heroes and VillainsFrom the book Bullies, Bastards and Bitches-How to write the Bad Guys of Fiction
by Jessica Page Morrell
(pages 56-66, 76-78, 119-12cgi88-290)(Think Luke Skywalker.)
A Hero... Is an idealist.
Has a conventional moral code.
Is always proactive.
Is often decisive.
Is a modern version of a knight in shining armor.
Succeeds at his ultimate goals, unless the story is a tragedy.
Is motivated by virtues, morals, a higher calling, pure intentions, and love for a specific person or humanity.
Is motivated to overcome flaws and fears, and to reach a higher level. This higher level might be about self-improvement, a deeper spiritual connection, or trying to save humankind from extinction. His motivation and usually altruistic nature lends courage and creativity to his cause.
Often, a hero makes sacrifices in the story for the better of others.
(Usually when he is the star of the story in genre fiction, such as Westerns)concludes the story on an upward arc, meaning he’s overcome something form within or has learned a valuable lesson in the story.
Always faces monstrous opposition, which essentially makes him heroic in the first place. As he’s standing up to the bad guys and troubles the world hurls at him, he will take tremendous risks and sometimes battle an authority. His stance is always based on principles.
Is always a good guy, the type of character the reader was taught to cheer for since childhood.
Can be complex, but he is generally unambivalent; an anti-hero is a complicated character who reflects the ambivalence of many real people.
(Think Han Solo)
An Anti-hero... Is a realist.
Has a moral code that is quirky and individual.
Can be ordinary.
Can be passive.
Can be indecisive or pushed into action against his will.
Can be a tarnished knight, and sometimes a criminal.
Might fall in a tragedy, but in other stories he might be redeemed by the story’s events, or he might remain largely unchanged, including being immoral.
Can be motivated by a primitive, lower nature, including greed or lust, through much of the story, but he can sometimes be redeemed an answer a higher calling near the end.
While possibly motivated by love or compassion at times, is most often propelled by self-interest.
Can appear in mainstream or genre fiction, and the conclusion will not always find him changed, especially if he’s a character in a series.
Also battles authority and sometimes go up against tremendous odds, but not always because of principles. His motives can be selfish, criminal or rebellious.
Can be a bad guy in manner and speech. He can cuss, drink to excess, talk down to others and back up his threats with fists or a gun, yet the reader somehow sympathies with or genuinely likes him and cheer him on.
An anti-hero’s action and ways of thinking demand that the reader think about issues and ask difficult questions.
Types of Anti-heroesEveryman
Vigilante or Tarnished Knight
Charming Criminal
Dark Hero
Bad Boy
Reluctant Hero
Loser
Outcast
Screwball
Disgraced Hero
Oddball
Rebel
Dark HeroesThese characters are somehow tormented and usually have not reconciled their needs for love or community. In fact, they typically have a hard time admitting any vulnerabilities. A dark hero is usually:
• an alpha character. ...
• an outside or from the wrong side of the tracks. If he’s of noble birth, he often rejects some aspects of his family’s values.
• angry, cynical, aloof, and self-serving.
• marked by a traumatic past event or childhood abuse.
• hiding behind a gruff or cold facade, but beneath is not as bad as he tries to act.
• not living up to his best self.
• wearing a serious or pained demeanor.
• exhibiting some kind of inner conflict.
• living outside of the moral and legal codes of the time.
• tarnished by the evil he goes up against.
• willing to adopt a vigilante approach to problem-solving.
• guided by ambiguous morals and unresolved emotions.
Bad BoysWriters most often us bad boys because they bring an extra layer of tension to a story. Like dark heroes, they are often shaped by their circumstances and pasts. Perhaps they fell in with the wrong types at a tender age, or were wrongly accused of something. Perhaps someone or something taught them to bend the rules–at least a bit. In addition, a bad is usually:
• an alpha character.
• interested in freedom and adventure over security and safety.
• the black sheep of the family.
• a rebellious pleasure-seeker.
• unconstrained and untamed.
• promiscuous.
• unapologetic about the things he does.
• daring and risk-taking.
• suave without being too polished.
• extremely self-sufficient and highly independent.
• cocky, forthright, and extremely self-assured.
• not interested in maintaining a certain reputations.
• able to use humor in situations.
Traditional HeroesTraditional heroes in fiction are usually men of action who are the masters of their own destinies. Jamie Fraser of Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series personifies a traditional hero. He can be hard-edged or suave, but he’s always alpha or dominant male who takes huge risks to protect those he loves, along with risking all to defend his beliefs, his country, or his property. He is always formidable, intelligent, and brave. Readers admire his boldness and willingness to sacrifice. A traditional hero is usually:
• an alpha character.
• taught honor in childhood.
• the product of a relatively normal childhood.
• haunted by something he has overcome in his past.
• law-abiding(or trying to be and has plausible reasons for breaking rules ).
• a leader of mankind.
• controlled, at least most of the time.
• faithful with the right woman.
• sometimes easy-going in demeanor, but is always going to have a grave purpose.
VillainsEvil is the source code of writing a villain, and you want to understand its ramifications in all your characters’ lives. In the most general terms, evil is the absence of good. But there are many shadings of evil, and you’ll want to choose an exact shade of evil to paint your villain with.
...Your villain’s motives will match his traits; often, the more depraved the motives are, such as to create terror in a large population, the blacker his traits will be. So a villain with far-reaching plans to harm many people might be merciless, ruthless, calculating, and a natural leader, although the types he leads wouldn’t qualify for a citizen’s merit badge, either.
...To depict a villain who is not melodramatic or thinly drawn, start by understanding the nature of his evil and deciding the darkness of his soul, just how far he’ll go to achieve his aims, and why he does what he does.
Besides being the opposite of goodness, evil will always create vulnerability in its victims. Evil comes from acts that oppress, harm, manipulate, and torment people. Evil always causes emotional duress and leaves a legacy of trauma. ... .
Characteristics of EvilHere is a list of some general characteristics of evil that should start your creative juices flowing:
• Evil involves the power to induce fear or, in some extreme cases, to terrorize.
• Evil is used to control or manipulate other people’s emotions.
• It is evil to cause physical pain.
• It is evil to manipulate reality. This can happen in many circumstances, such as politics and intimate relationships. There are many ways that people lie, blame others for their own actions, or otherwise distort the truth.
• Evil people often prey on the most vulnerable–the poor, the frail, the elderly, the uneducated, children, and women.
• Evil people like to exert control over others. This can include a wife batterer, a corrupt politician, or a professor who craves power over students.
• Evil is witnessed in its power to destroy. This can mean arson, rape, murder, or a suicide bomb. It is also evil to destroy a person’s confidence or happiness, or to anything to lessen a person’s sense of safety or well-being, as in the case of a stalker tormenting his victim.
• Moral decay is always a characteristic of evil.
• Evil hates to come in contact with goodness.
• Evil acts include the need to dominate, as seen in sadistic acts such as rape and pedophilia..
Characteristics of Villains• Villains are consistently bad; their badness is not a random or one-time event.
• Villains have some defining trauma or situation in their backgrounds that started them down a dark path.
• Villains are often alpha males (or females), meaning they tend to be people others defer to.
• Villains have aberrant moral codes and justifications for crimes and murder, such as following the laws of the jungle or tribe, or twisted notions of honor and justice, such as those espoused by people involved in organized crime.
• Villains are complicated and multi-dimensional.
• Villains are intelligent, because it takes brains to plan crimes and elude capture.
• Villains are typically not afraid of confrontation.
• Villains are out to destroy heroes.
• Villains make choices that are immoral.
• Villains often have a blindness, denial, or lack of awareness of their own darknesses.
• Villains are motivated by either malice or lack of malice to achieve their ends.
• With their acts, villains try to diminish or extinguish goodness, innocence, or spirituality in others.
• Villains hide their operations and crimes, and they absolutely hate to be revealed.
• Villains often have some aspect of narcissism built into their personality makeup.
• Villains are often concerned with their public images, and they carefully orchestrate what people know about them.
• Villains are extremely unpredictable.
• Villains often cannot handle criticism or threats to their power.
• Villains often scapegoat others to protect themselves.
• Villains sacrifice victims to achieve their ends.
• Villains can ignore their victims’ humanity.
• Villains can be attractive, charming, and elegant(these characteristics make the villains chillingly effective).
Tactics of VillainsVillains don’t just walk the walk, and talk the talk, they dare to perform the worst acts in order to make the most gains. These acts can include blackmail, torture, theft, and murder. We might want to label them homo sapiens extremus; they’ll use any means to achieve what they want–and what they want, they want desperately. To accomplish his nefarious goals, a villain often:
• takes extreme risks;
• obsesses about details and a plan of attack;
• plans a drawn-out strategy that challenges him and his opponent;
• lies to cover his tracks;
• uses wealth, physical appearance, or sexual wiles to draw lovers or underlings into his web;
• finds some way to justify hurting others, usually claiming the victim has gotten in his way;
• controls others by using guilt and loyalty;
• acts with kindness or generosity to throw others off balance; and
• plays head games, and plays them well.
Creating A Potent Villain...What makes a villain mesmerizing and dreadful are some of the same things that make a hero riveting: charisma, depth, and motivation. Here are some tips for shaping your villain:
• Make your villain complicated and complex. For example, a villain who is charming and brilliant is more interesting than one who merely is sinister or evil.
• Imbue your villain with fascinating qualities, like a specific philosophy and vision. ...
• Understand your villain’s brand of logic and how he thinks.
• Give your villain a particular and interesting skill set. Perhaps he’s a locksmith, an expert in gems, a master forger, a scholar, a chemist, a psychiatrist, or a computer hacker.
• Imagine your villain as a child and teen. For many criminals in the real world, often their deviant behaviors and crimes began in childhood. Determine if there were circumstances in you villain’s childhood that caused trauma. ...
• Consider where your villain lives. A condo in a sleek high-rise? A remote castle? A bungalow in an ordinary neighborhood? Often, a truly depraved villain needs privacy for his misdeeds, as well as a means to hide his crimes.
• Decide if your villain has underlings, or if he operates as a lone entity. If he has henchmen, will he allow them to live if they know too much or make mistakes?
• Decide what your villain’s bag of tricks includes. Does he drug his victims? Does he use a computer to send a series of threatening and disturbing e-mails? Does he forge documents? Does use blackmail, threats, or extortion?
• Make certain that your villain is more than capable of taking down your protagonist.
• Make certain that the outcome of your villain’s struggle is delayed and uncertain until the last possible moment.
AppendixQuestions for Bad GuysThe following are questions to pose about various character types, especially antagonists and villains. However, you would be wise to know the answers to these questions for any major player in your story.
• What does he most desire in the story?
• What does he fear the most?
• Does he have enemies?
• How is he larger than life, meaning what qualities and actions does he have that linger in the reader’s imagination?
• Is he distinctive in appearance and attitude?
• Does he have an interesting career?
• Is he disfigured, or does he have another physical characteristic to make him memorable?
• How far will he go to achieve his goals?
• Have you first introduced him with a flair?
• Is he introduced early in the story?
• How does he act when he loses his temper or is enraged?
• Does he use bad language?
• If he were wakened from a sound sleep, how would he act?
• If he were to face an intruder in his home, how would he act?
• Does he lie?
• Has he experienced any great losses in his past?
• If he is somehow repulsive, can this be justified?
• Is he somehow sympathetic or likeable? If so why?
• Is he somehow flawed, vulnerable, or wounded–mentally, physically, or emotionally?
• Does he have specific crime skills or powers?
• Is his motivation plausible and interesting?
• Is he capable of insights, humor, or irony?
• Is he powerful enough to crush the protagonist?
• Is he included as an adversary in key scenes in all three acts of the story?
• Is he defeated at the end of the story?
• If you saw him walking toward you for the first time, what would your first impression be? Would his true personality be apparent via this first impression?
• What is most noticeable about his appearance? Besides these physical characteristics, is he neat, sloppy, stylish, flamboyant, elegant, or Bohemian?
• How does move and hold his body? What does his body type, movements and gestures say about him?
• Does he remind you of celebrity, a person you know, an animal, or an object?
• What kind of clothes does he wear? Expensive? Conservative? Trendy? Outdated? Do these clothes reflect his personality?
• What is his voice like? Throaty? Sexy? High-pitched? Squeaky? Confident and resonant? Timid and barely audible? Is there laughter in his voice? Does he talk quickly or hesitantly? Does he have a lisp, an accent, or recurring pet phrases?
• What time in history was he born and growing up in? Are these events still relevant in his life? What decade had the most influence on him?
• What games did he play as a child? Did he spend time outdoors? Was his neighborhood safe?
• What is the most important thing in his life? Is it a spouse, child, job or possession? Is this importance healthy? Does he fear losing it?
• Is he driven, competitive, or obsessive? If not, how will you create his conflict? Do the problems, complications, and challenges of the plot affect him personally?
• How does he react to the secondary characters? How does he act toward children, sick people, elderly people, and animals? How does he treat cab drivers, store clerks, waitresses, and people on the street?
• How is he going to grow and change as the result of the story’s events? Will he become weaker before he gets stronger? Will he almost give up? Will he mature?
I would suggest those who want to get into this in more depth to buy this book, I have found it an valuable resource when creating more interesting characters.
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