AMIA ARCHIVE • View topic - Cutting down on altitis

While standing in Kohlingen square in character yesterday, I noticed something that made me sort of disappointed in myself. Several characters who I've interacted with stood there visibily and mentally changed- not drastically mind you, but enough for me to tell that they've been through a lot.

I look back at my characters, and while I have the play time to have them all developed to someone who doesn't play that often, I really want to hit that last step of the journey.

I have two characters who have the potential to go through a lot of RP that will see them grow, another who hasn't started their journey just yet and lastly another I have left hanging.

But even four characters will stunt any deep and interesting RP, so I ask anyone who's had similar problems: How'd you do it?

By being fully cognizant of the fact that I play alts for the benefit of other peoples characters, rather than the benefit of my own, and this fits perfectly with the fact that I don't have a very good attention span for my own characters.

I used to have altitis but then I took an arrow to the knee.

MoshingChris wrote:

By being fully cognizant of the fact that I play alts for the benefit of other peoples characters, rather than the benefit of my own, and this fits perfectly with the fact that I don't have a very good attention span for my own characters.

This is mainly my current opinion of my own characters. I have several who, just for their very existance, find it easy to spark up RP that lasts for hours. The issue is, that's mainly what I use those ones for, but my two 'main' characters have a lot of potential I'm not executing due to a lack of focus.

There are times I think I'm getting completely immersed and developing them and suddenly... interest is lost. I'm basically struggling to invest enough time to continue to develop them as deeply as I want, and I'm sure it's all down to my alts.

My two cents:

Try not to focus on builds and try to focus more on roleplaying your mains. Find things for them to do, set goals for them (As an exemple: My wizard tries to increase his understanding of illusion magic by creating his own spells as one of his goals, asking other wizards for advice, discussing it with them and always volunteering to help with people who explore his chosen field as well.)
The more goals the better as you have more chance to work on one when online (You arent as dependant on certain people being avaideble if you have more goals as you just work on something else.)

There is a dutch proverb which translates as 'The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence' meaning things you dont have tend to look more appealing then the things you do have and as they would be when you would have them. Leading to an endless circle of desire and a host of alts.

Realise the above and dont allow things to distract you or make yet another char because shifters/scythe weaponmasters/ paladins/ pale masters/ genasi/ shadowdancers (etc) are so awesome and you really want to play one too. When you dont have alts you cant be tempted into playing them.

I still have dozen of alts that I could play, but my main simply as character has taken my interest. I can achieve things with her and I can be ruined by other characters. The trip so far has made it faschinating, she went through social exclusion and now she seems to be over it. All that took place, simply made me more interested to play her, well not all, at one point I did feel like quiting on her. But I do remember during her creation that I promised myself to see her through, just because I was let to be part of Alternative beginings. The DM's have been so largely involved in the plots that I have taken and partly fashioned her with other characters to what she is today.

How to cut altitis? Find something that inspires you to play the character, goals, intentiosn or a drive that make you feel that you can't give up on the character just because then you let yourself down. But I as well advice not to tie on one thing, like I was adviced by another player/DM.

As well I have had great support in OOC level that I have been able to discuss. To receive feedback to improve how my main is and without their insight and advices, I would not be here. Simply, I cut out the altitism because of depth of interaction I started receiving with some players I got to know better IC:ly, or rather their characters. Plus the fact that I've been enabled to play character who has more than one thing, if I don't feel inspired to do some certain thing, I can work another at the time.

In the same time I feel like this character is the final stand I will attempt in taking. Perhaps finally becoming Councilor of Winya Ravana, been trying that for several years by now! (VOTE ME!) Just kidding about the latter, but trully, there is a feel that this is my last try and I want to try to make it memorable.

Speaking for someone who has ran basically one character for my time here, (my alt is developed, but used as a backup for myself, or others, if need be), I believe it takes a lot of patience, and persistence. I can easily see the lure of making new characters, and the thought has not only crossed my mind, but even been requested of me, more than a few occasions. I've stated before, in another thread, that I find it hard to get my character involved with players/characters that won't be around long. It's a nice break from the norm, but any substance is completely lost for me, and I tend to gravitate towards longer standing characters. I've watched Crow grow and change so much, yet he is still Crow. For me, that level of development could not be achieved, if I ran even another semi-main character. It's to the point, that I don't want to take away from Crow's development, to run another, even though I have fun with my alt.

I guess, you have to 'want' to have a fully developed character, or a small few, to stop making more and more. I never did get it anyway, even PnP, I hate having a shitload of active characters, it's too confusing, but then, I'm not a multitasker either. Maybe it comes from being an only child, who knows, lol.

I have a ton....a TON...of Alts. Like...at least 50.

I try to mostly spend my time on Delia, Aly, and Danika. They have RP, such that I really don't have much time for others. Though I may dork around on one or two, I have as much as I can handle with these three. They're constantly changing, and evolving, and stuff's going on BECAUSE I spend time on them, and it's taken me...about this long to learn that.

I'm still working on "sticking with it when it sucks". That's step 2.

My only suggestion is this: Find a character you really like and literally stop playing everyone else. That means this guy has to be the guy you're going to play. For me this is my Blackguard, for Bobo it's Andrew. But once you find the one that sticks you'll probably have a much better time with the alt thing.

There is no easy fix - Play whatever you like; how you like; untill you find that one true gem.

Im sorry

bobofwestoregonusa wrote:

My only suggestion is this: Find a character you really like and literally stop playing everyone else. That means this guy has to be the guy you're going to play. For me this is my Blackguard, for Bobo it's Andrew. But once you find the one that sticks you'll probably have a much better time with the alt thing.

Er. Bobo plays at least 2 other chars, just not as much.

Find a purpose, and stick to it. No good in asking other people. It's all about your own willingness and state of mind. If you don't want to stop playing your alts, don't. If you want to stop playing them, do so. Don't lie to yourself about wanting to play something when you don't.

For me, I try to imagine all the times I've been engaged in some really good, meaningful RP with another character that I've never met before. More often than not, it starts as something small and seeming insignificant, but it's still interesting none the less. That just leaves me looking forward to the next meeting and what it might bring to my characters development, as well as what I can bring to this new characters development. There is always a good story somewhere, you just have to read the book.

And then, I think about the many times that RP has been suddenly cut off because the character my toon met isn't around anymore. That kinda annoys me, and so, I don't want to do that to someone else. The reward is..imo...that for all that effort in sticking to that one..or maybe two toons, then that toon will have grown to something we can really bring life to the game with. So, I find it's really not that hard to stick to that one or two toons after a while because they've grown to be so interesting to me.

Play what you want to play. Doesn't have to be one single character. Not everyone wants to develop the same character for years and years of RL. My characters have objectives and stories, some are long, some are short and sweet. Some of them succeed at what they want to do, some of them fail. It's all part of the ongoing story. Everyone has fun in a different way, and for some people this is seeing their characters develop over time. For others it is the filling of different roles and concepts.

I'm not really sure how I focused on Avadon as my main.

I mean, I have alts, I've played alts and I've developed smaller stories with them years ago, but I guess focusing my time and attention on one character made it easier for other players to invest their characters' stories in mine.

I don't know if anyone else has found this true (as I think about it more, I'm kind of arriving at an answer), but if you keep this discussion separate from running a faction or group, more often than not, I have found that my main attracts others mains and their mains attract me and mine. I'm a practical guy and, even in my play style, I'm focused on positive results and experiences. So I like the feeling of knowing I am invested in something lasting farther than just a trend or new build spec or what-have-you.

It's easy for me to say it's easy because I've been doing it for years, but once you've found that niche and solidified your character with folks like that, it really does get a lot easier to focus on one toon. More than anything though, anyone playing this game should do what makes them happy. That's the most important thing, in my opinion.

My advice for your mains is to keep being creative. When roleplay with Robert gets stale, I toy around with ideas of what else I could do on him.

Over time he published a book on the topic of undead, and I still have an unfinished work on Lycantrophy and the Netheril Empire sitting around. Exploring his siamorphyte background a bit more I am now working on finishing the "Greater and Lesser Noble Houses of Amia and Ruathym", given the church of Siamorphe keeps detailed reccords on nobility in case there are feuds regarding claims and the like. Because I like to play in a world with a fleshed out background, I am trying to tie in as much amian history as I can by researching old topics on the forum, talking to old characters, etc. With such research he heard of an old Benwick artifact he now wishes to recover, and is bringing in friends and allies to help him on. So now I am trying to get a dm onboard to run it for the group!

Over time I discovered he is an ethusiastic hunter. So he now has a kenell of hunting dogs and three falcons, and I put in dream coins for two summon reskins. The children of Ulrik have house slippers made of rabbit fur. Zelly got a rabbit fur hat as a present. When people talk to him about politics, he can be hawking meanwhile at Tristram's Path! Then I discovered his love of wine when I fleshed out his families background, and he now has a rich wine cellar and a general distaste for the local vintage of the region. Little things like that often give way for fun roleplay, as other characters at times now visit him with a bottle of exotic wine to drink with him. I developed the type of food he prefers to eat when people come over to eat a late breakfast with him.

Next to such little things, working with other characters on bigger projects can be tons of fun. Ulrik and Zelly for the expansion project. Nicha, Deagan, Abdullah, Noelle and Danika for the Griffin Eyrie.

Finally, keep exploring interresting relationships with other characters, both pc and npcs. Ulrik and Zelly had a very hostile relationship with Robert in the begining. Now the two were two of his closest friends and confidants, who allow him to set asside his reserved mask and let his true feelings and turmoils to surface at times. Having had such a long developed relationship with Zelly, that has become incredibly deep, and experiencing her perish in such a manner was a great challenge for him. Incredibly fun to roleplay out. One of the most defining and complicated relationships has been between Eileen d'Cordor and him. He has long fallen deeply in love with her. However, as he believes her husband is still alive and they are his liege lord and lady, he feels his heart is making him commit an unspoken treason. So he tries to put his feelings aside and has taken a vow not to take another wife, so he will not act as a man who loves her but as a loyal knight. Yet he would never indulge on other fancies either, given that would betray his love to her.

Take the time to write a backstory. Based on how old your character is, look at the events of the Forgotten Realms timeline and write down where your character would be, what they were doing, and how it affected them for each major event. The Time of Troubles would still be remembered by long-lived races and middle-aged and older humans. Who did your character follow? Did their deity survive? Did they have to pick a new one?

Make your characters "human". They don't have to be paragons of their class, alignment or deity. Even powerful clerics aren't expected to be perfect. Give them mortal flaws, mortal desires and realistic goals. Maintain two lists of goals for your character, one for what -they- wish to accomplish, and one for what -you- wish them to accomplish. Their list takes precedence, with yours coming into play when there's nothing for them to do on their path. Do a similar but briefer overview for the character's immediate parents/guardians/slavemasters/whatever to get a feel for what forces shaped your character. Make a list of completely ordinary life "milestones" most people go through. First job, first lover, first experience with death, first person or creature they killed, where they were educated/trained, and have answers for your character.

This would give you a very solid foundation, and then (and only then, IMO) do you actually look at the game and mess with builds. After putting in that much "homework" you're more likely to have an attachment to the character that leads to them becoming an established main. Having a wealth of off-screen experiences to draw from gives you more staying power IC to fuel motivation for the character even when things are currently slow IG. Also, spend your DCs when you get them! Investing them in a character makes you less likely to give up on it. Just my thoughts, anyway

Summing up my process regarding my characters:

That said I generally only play one character at a time in a "Cause an effect" manner.

Well, I've played one character forever. Now I won't go so far as to say I don’t have alts because I do have 3 alts which are used for very specific purposes.

A Fighter/Weapons Master used to help friends level up since my main has been level 30 for a long time.
A Fighter/Rogue/Shadow Dancer that was made so I could RP with a friend since our mains were of contrasting alignments.
A new PC for BoB's alt beginnings.

Now, those alts have used less that 5% of my RP time all together. So, how do I manage to stick to my main for 95% of the time? Well for me it’s been all about learning that one character. I have tried to answer any and every question there could be about her. I thought about her story and then even tried to write it, answering for myself the big question which was why would someone take on 'the life of an adventurer' when there were likely many other more peaceful and arguably happier lives the might choose to live. I guess for me the 'diving into her past' has really brought her close to heart and given me more than enough reasons to want to see her develop from there.

I think "altitis" has gotten kind of a warped perception. Asking how to learn to love playing just one or two characters is kind of like how to learn to love playing a wizard, or a blackguard, or whatever. It's just a matter of taste, and I don't think it can really be taught. Enjoying flipping around through a catalog of characters is just a preferred play style like any other preferred play style, and you either enjoy it or you don't.

Asking "how can I enjoy playing just one character" seems to me to be kind of like "how can I learn to enjoy eating anchovy pizza." The only answer is: force yourself. If it's really that important to you, then just choke that pizza down until you acquire a taste for it. Archive all your characters but one, and whenever you feel tempted to unearth one of them, just force yourself not to. Hammer into your mind the idea that Amia exists solely for the purpose of enriching one really awesome character.

The pithy little Wit or Wisdom blurb says, "I don't play NWN, I play Amia." Refine that further: "I don't play Amia, I play Kaithan." Amia just happens to be where she lives.

My trick was to keep busy and stay involved. Talk with anyone and everyone, be willing to get into whatever RP offers itself, and have projects to pursue both for others and yourself. Fleshing out your characters is well and good, but growth comes naturaly and inevitably from interaction with other characters.

One of the big reasons people give for swapping characters is that nobody that character RPs with is online, but their other PCs' friends are playing. If instead you forged relationships (not all of them friendly) with new people every chance you get, you'd soon have people getting in line to interact with your PC. You don't need to be an evil necromancer to have something to do with Tarkuul RP, nor is elven blood required to have connections to Winya. Some demographics are too far from eachother to get much more than occasional antagonistic interaction, but an active "main" PC shouldn't have any lack of people to play with.

Then again, I'm inactive again so I'm not exactly a model example.

I can't see the problem...never had more than one or two active characters..

When I think about making new characters, my mindset is a choice of: Do I want to be a part of something, or do I want to be a hero?

If you just want to be a part of something, make a bunch of alts so you can be everywhere at one time. Anytime an event hits the Shout Box, you know where to go. People will gripe about you behind your back though. At least, I will gripe about you. I'm a griper when it comes to altmasters.

However if you want to be a hero, a character that my character can refresh themselves with and actually get to know, like or dislike, etc. Then you should stick to one character you can play well. These are my favorite people, because they have richer storylines than five-minute mike. For that reason too, I don't support forced perma-deathing, because then you are pushing your players to alt more often, or expect to alt more often. Let the players decide that, if they love their character and enrich themselves on one character alone in the world, then they are doing their job! For that reason to, I distrust alt-beginnings. Just my own opinions.

I didn't read all the replies, so I'll just say how I do it.

My characters tend to become very deeply invested in something in their setting and I become deeply invested in them in exchange. I played Lyle constantly because he was doing big things in Bendir Dale that required him to be around and at hand. I was invested in playing him, to the point where my alts were usually not invested in anything, thus I felt no reason or real drive to play them outside of a few of their friends. The same thing happened with Andrew. I got invested with him and his various projects, which lead to Lyle falling to the wayside and eventually retiring

Now at my current place, I have a main, Andrew, and an alt, Bobrin. Andrew gets close to 90+% of my time because I am more interested in developing his story, having him do thing, etc. If it were novelized, I'd think of it like this: Lyle was the protagonist of book one, Andrew is the protagonist of book two. Every other alt in between is a supporting or bit character in someone else's story.

One thing I'll add. Make sure you really, really, really, really, really, really, really like your main character before you make them your main. Builds help, but personality is the thing here. I don't mean someone you'd want to meet, I mean someone you'd like to get inside the head of.

Hey everyone, thanks for the replies and I've read them all.

I've got an idea of how I want to invest my time in to a character I enjoy as well as having another for certain play times (a bit like Bobo said he was distributing his time).

But yeah, just wanted to hear how others focus their times and I found a method that works for me.

Well.. for me, doing something new worked.
I'm not a great RPer at all either way, but.. I made my first female kobbie and just sort of fell in love with her. I figured out her personal reasons for doing things, some major likes and dislikes, and her personality sort of formed as a result. So.. I'd say, figure out the major things first, sort of like a frame to work within, and see where it takes you. I'm probably just rambling now though, sorry.

I want to say that I don't have anything against people that play lots of characters, but if I notice that one player makes a new character every week I eventually stop taking their characters seriously. I'm sorry if that seems like metagaming, but if I'm 90% sure someone's character will be archived within in a week or two I won't really bother getting too familiar with them ICly.

Anyway, sorry for my ramblings. I was cured of altitis quite a while ago ^^

Edit: I also want to add that my main's experiences has defined her far more than anything else! Maybe perserverance is key :]

Look at altitis as a process by which you find the character that you really want to play, rather than one where you play a lot of characters very little.

It's a journey that may lead you to some dead ends, but you'll be wiser and more experienced when you finally do find the character you want to play.

I have to agree with Selmak there.

I used to have a terrible case of altitis. I have dozens and dozens of characters in my vault. Even Zelly was just a throw-away character I started and stopped after two weeks. Then one day I broke her back out of the archives and looked a little more at what I had made - a copper DD Arcane Archer with Dev Crit: Longbow. There was just something cool about that to me, and she evolved so much from there on out. She became my main and I barely played any other character after that.

It all comes down to finding that one little gem that stands out in your mind.

I'd like to thank you lot in this thread, those who I've speaken to OOCly in game and to Rigela for motivating me these past few days.

I've archived my alts and now I'm left with two core PCs I've been fleshing out lately. Even though I made this thread a few days ago, the change in both my experience and enjoyment of the server has shot up. I'm not going to play the character who's marked in some epic statue in a city they founded, but I know I'm going to be part of this persistent world, one that I've been mostly blind to from pretty much when I started to... *looks at the post* 30 October 2013, 6:39 AM (my timezone).

This thread can be locked, as it achieved what I originally asked for in my op.

Just want to reiterate that different people enjoy Amia for different reasons. Playing one character is great for some people, playing alts is great for others. Neither of these are wrong. For those people who have openly said that they won't take characters seriously if it's an alt, or not give them a chance, etc; well you're just metagaming. And you're aware that you're doing it. It's acting openly and blatantly against the rules and spirit of the server, whereas the people who do have a few alts are just playing the game their way. The whole using of the word 'altitis' makes it sound like a sickness, but really it is just a different playing style.

My main point is; Play what you want to play.

Pretty sure the only form of metagaming that is even implied to be against the rules is so called 'obvious metagaming', and even that is vague. Metagaming is more encouraged than discouraged on amia, in my experience.
But to clarify, I'm not saying I ignore their characters or anything. I just don't feel like forming strong IC bonds only to have that character go poof a week later while my character is left wondering what happened to them. I'm really tired of doing that kind of RP over and over.

@ Gobbledygook:
I've stated it, and no, I'm not metagaming.
I never said I ignore those characters, my character interacts with anyone. What I meant was, I refrain from forming solid lines of RP. If I happen to remember whatever RP was going on with said altitis alt, I'll continue if it happens along. I have no problem giving any character a chance, but when they disappear repeatedly, they become background characters. There's characters that Crow has met once or twice, and he remembers. If they showed up, it'd be like "Hey, where the fuck have 'you' been?", but very few. Most of them are characters that have been around, and have an impact. Crow has spoken with Ulrik, maybe a dozen times in his life, but he damn well knows who he is. There are some short term characters that have an impact, but very few that I've noticed.

Give your character two different goals:

The first one being a long term and possible goal that would take great effort and resources. Such as leading a faction and becoming renown and great warriors.

The second being a the final goal in which your character strives to be ultimately. The trick is to make this goal impossible. Such as becoming a God or Ruling over Amia and blowing the planet. You should work at this goal should be the prime motivator to all your choices and actions.

Inbetween these you should make small goals: Such as making new spells, developing a new technique and so forth.

This is just the way I do it, and It kept me busy for my two characters that I did play off and on for like four years.

I'm a much more community-minded person. It's what fuels me to play as I do, and what gives me a lot of anxiety when I come up short. When I get on to play on Amia, I don't really do it for myself. I do it because I enjoy helping to create something cool.

Aiseth said that there were two options, in her opinion: You play to be a part of something, or a 'hero' (Read: Dynamic, long-lasting character). But I don't think the first choice gives justice to what the aim is for people who make a ton of alts. My aim has never been to just be a part of something, it's always been to improve that something. I get my kicks out of playing a needed part and helping to benefit the whole. So I naturally tend to drift toward making more characters to fill all the different holes that I see. I think it was easier to stick to one character when the server was larger. Aylomen was able to interact with a ton of people, and fill a certain niche. I never felt the need to say, help an evil influence, because there were plenty of evil folks. I didn't feel the need to help foster growth in other places because it was already there-- so I could sit back and enjoy a smaller community without subjecting myself to the whims of the larger community.

Like I said before, it's also that same line of thinking that permits me to beat myself up when I don't perform, because I'm not just letting myself down and not having fun-- I'm harming the community (In my mind, at least. Whether or not I am in actuality).

I really liked Liz's post, and think its pretty spot-on. Having a lot of alts or playing one character is just a matter of taste. And people can choose to play how they like. I'm notorious for my fad characters and factions-- but dammit, I have a blast with a lot of explosive excitement until folks move on.

ChickenChaser63 wrote:

The second being a the final goal in which your character strives to be ultimately. The trick is to make this goal impossible. Such as becoming a God or Ruling over Amia and blowing the planet. You should work at this goal should be the prime motivator to all your choices and actions.

Nailed it. It's exactly what I did, and I never wanted to play another character.

Yup! I have similar goals for Gerald I never talk about! But working toward them makes him so much more fun >.>

MoshingChris wrote:

By being fully cognizant of the fact that I play alts for the benefit of other peoples characters, rather than the benefit of my own, and this fits perfectly with the fact that I don't have a very good attention span for my own characters.

Basically. I tend to go back and forth between two specifically, but this basically hits it on the head.

I have ADD

JusticeXIII wrote:

I have ADD

This, but my solution was to main a shapeshifter. I can be so much at once, whatever my mind decides on a whim.

Not to be a wet blanket, Hackums, but the noble ideals fall short when the growth such a character fosters deflates immediately after they get shelved. It's very much a temporary solution.

Sphinx wrote:

JusticeXIII wrote:

I have ADD

This, but my solution was to main a shapeshifter. I can be so much at once, whatever my mind decides on a whim.

I second this as someone with ADHD

I think that the solution lies in having goals/story in mind for the character.
Granted i haven't posted my bio for Reinhart yet but i have a good of idea of what his motivations/background/goals/personality is.

That added depth should keep you playing as that one particular character.

NinjaClarinet wrote:

Not to be a wet blanket, Hackums, but the noble ideals fall short when the growth such a character fosters deflates immediately after they get shelved. It's very much a temporary solution.

I actually agree completely with this. These type of factions/rp's basically come and go. The saying cut off the head and the snake dies applies here. That said though, who am I to say how someone plays the game? It really does all come down to taste and what a player views as fun.

I myself would rather see less alts but thats just me and my style of play. Some people can keep up and have the time for indepth rp with four or five characters or more in some cases. I myself don't see -how- they do it since I myself do well and have time for maybe two or three at the most. But just because I can't keep up with that many characters doesn't mean someone else can't.

As of right now I mainly play two characters with in-depth roleplay and even with just two characters I still run into conflicts as far as not being able to be in two places at once. One faction/roleplay inevitably misses out when two roleplays collide, and it -does- happen whether you mean for it to or not. So I do -try- to keep at least one of my toons in the background of things if at all possible. While the other is more in the foreground and readily visible in most events.

Take a 5 year break from the game :lol:

From a faction point of view, it was actually a discussion we had on the Justin Bieber Fan Forum (the amian skype chat). Svensk asked for some pointers what one could do to get places and factions to become more active, and Hackums and I started speaking about the difference of fad- and long-standing factions.

I am a player who places a lot of weight on the continueation of the story arc. In all of my factions I tended to steer away from mass recruitment, always placing more weight on the long run. If we are honest, every player on amia has some sort of reputation that proceeds him after a time. I never cater to players known to just follow the fads. I just do not like that they tend not to be dedicated for the story for a longer period of time, and will jump to the next exciting thing when it presents itself, leaving your faction to struggle to find replacements and pick up dropped projects.

With those who remain dedicated and explore their character, developing them over time, and show initative through creative ideas, I always feel it is a great investment to involve them more and more. They enrich the story for the months if not years to come. It really spurs my interrest to give them as much a possibility to rise and shine as possible. But such factions are a lot more work, given you need to constantly evolve and seek plots to remain a place of interresting roleplay. We can see that by how faction leaders burn out, and then get followed by 4 new faction leaders who also burn out in a combined fraction of that time when they realize what being on top truly means.

With fad factions I mean factions that quickly spring up, quickly become very popular, and eventually die due to players getting upset, lack of interrest, or finding a new thing to play. Those seem to attract players who make characters to be with a group, rather than playing for the sake of the character. Both are very important, and the fad factions contribute tons to the server. They are almost like NPCs to me, who help tell the tale of one story, and then get replaced by something new in the next adventure. The long-standing factions in turn give them the existing storyline that they can become a part in.

If Hackums makes a new character I am not as much as interrested to involve him as I would be if Lutra does. One is a character that will likely get dropped in eight weeks, where the other will be aorund for two years. Though the rp with both would still be tons of fun. Of course there is a lot more than just that to it, and newbies fall out of line completly. So many of them are such great rpers you do not want to overlook them.

I distinguish between two strains of altitis: Serial Altitis, in which the subject makes up a new character, plays that character more exclusively for a while, then retires it and moves on, rinse and repeat. As opposed to Parallel Altitis, in which the subject tries to keep up an unmanageable stable of characters all at the same time.

Serial Altitis like Hackums describes, I have no problem with at all, and even kind of enjoy (when other people do it). Life is like that, ya know? People come into your life or your job or your circle of friends all the time, and then their circumstances change and they move on, or something terrible happens and they die, or whatever. NinjaClarinet, I think you're right in saying that this sort of RP is only a "temporary solution," but I insist that "temporary" does not equal "failure."

Liz wrote:

I distinguish between two strains of altitis: Serial Altitis, in which the subject makes up a new character, plays that character more exclusively for a while, then retires it and moves on, rinse and repeat. As opposed to Parallel Altitis, in which the subject tries to keep up an unmanageable stable of characters all at the same time.

Serial Altitis like Hackums describes, I have no problem with at all, and even kind of enjoy (when other people do it). Life is like that, ya know? People come into your life or your job or your circle of friends all the time, and then their circumstances change and they move on, or something terrible happens and they die, or whatever. NinjaClarinet, I think you're right in saying that this sort of RP is only a "temporary solution," but I insist that "temporary" does not equal "failure."

^ Pretty much this.

I also chuckled at Gabe's post given I have like four characters in my vault based on his "fad" factions that I really only made because he asked me to. No real finger pointing or negative reflection on him either because opinions like pants change, but it was funny.

I dare you to name four characters you had in my fad factions over the eight years I have been here.

Basile Benoit (Sure House Caris whatever, at the start it could have been a fad)

Beors Wolfhammer, I think four or five of us created characters for that and then you bailed on us.

Cuthbert my Halfer because at the time you wanted to revive Bendir Dale with that That Halfling lass.

Kamenati my Jergal Cleric which was around the time of you shelfing Sharina, just prior to the LN v LN shit we had going in Khem, after you and Op told me the Kelly faction was really active and that I should make a character, you both then shelved your Kellies for a bit and I was left Flapping in the wind. This heresy actually made me and hendrack shift focus and create Taur and Ramas so it didn't end up to bad.

Cutting down on altitis - How do you do it?

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