Achilles of Zorr

Subject: Achilles of Zorr Wed Sep 24, 2014 7:37 pm

First topic message reminder :

Name: Achilles

Age: 16

Gender: Male

Height: 5'6

Ethnicity: Zorrian

Race; Human

Allegiance: Neutral

Origins: Human

Powers: N/A

Appearance:

Achilles is muscular but lean, though his goal is to grow. He has brown, narrow eyes and blonde hair, with a dark tanned skin, and very large hands and feet. He's usually in sweats and a tank top, and prefers to walk barefoot, though he may throw on some sandals now and again. His signature colours are orange and brown.

Strengths:
1. Athletic; trained since a young age for war, physical feats come as second nature.
2. Swordsman; fights with a sword.
3. Animals lover; he likes animals and is very good with them. He is one of the few people in the history of Zorr who managed to domesticate a Zorrish Griffin.

Weaknesses:
1. Young and stupid; he takes risks in an attempt to impress people, which usually involves him getting hurt. His injuries are almost always funny, for other people to witness.
2. Stupid; he can be too trusting and easily led.
3. Wanna-be heartthrob; he is easily distracted by pretty girls.

Personality:
By nature he is kind at heart, tends to be understanding, defaults to gentle, and is overall very friendly.
However, he can be quite foolish, is prone to risk taking, quite the show off, very arrogant, and of course, boastful.
He often relies on others to help him think with logic rather then emotion.

History:

The first born son of the King, Achilles is a Prince of Zorr. However, this means very little to the King, as in Zorrian Culture, the King hand-selects the most capable leader to be the 'Crown Heir'. Achilles must earn the right that other first-born princes receive due to timing, but he isn't really sure he wants that responsibility.
Achilles' Mother is prized among his people, for most women who die without the assistance of midwives during childbirth, she managed to survive birthing seven sons, and recently, one daughter. As a result, Achilles was raised with six siblings to help with, who he always encouraged to be good to each other... a foreign concept, passed on to him by his foreign mother.
Before leaving home, his future wife was chosen by his father, which really bummed him out because he had been hoping to find a girl and fall in love while away from home. It remains, to this day, a secret hope.
Like his cousins, he attended the Zorr Military Academy, and is currently the first Zorrian student to attend Red Fountain. He was permitted only to attend, if his Aunt, Molpadia, was there to ensure he kept up with the training standards set by his people.

Subject: Re: Achilles of Zorr Thu Sep 25, 2014 6:49 am

zerowing21 wrote:: Kitten, just because you're not getting your way, doesn't mean you have to go on the attack against other people's characters. At the time Lily made that character she wasn't even using a sailor moon avatar. The backstory is not the same for that character however. This is why we work with people to iron out this stuff to prevent it.

It is still a personality trait none the less and its to general. Maybe if you said something like, due to not having no real world experience, he is ignorant, then that would work.

As for your comments for the set limit. We have the set limit because we want to see a detailed character. We've had people put up one of each trait and that was that, we have the three minimum for a reason. I do know what fleshed out means. The standards might be high, but these sheets are meant to allow for a full OC to be made within the rules that works. Personality traits can't be in the strengths or weakness because its a defining trait to who they are.

As for the sword skill, you have to explain how his sword skill is better than others. Just don't list it and say he is. Details for this are key and help us understand.

A yes the 'I'm not wrong, you're just mad for no reason' defense. Haven't heard that one since the fourth grade.

I wasn't attacking anyone's character, I was pointing out that one character got rejected for something that was permitted in another character, which makes no sense unless the mods were cherry-picking people they did and didn't like. In the quote I copied and pasted here, the 'back story' provided had one similar sentence, one concept, which has been used endlessly in media, so the idea of rejecting it because it reminds you of another fictional character is ridiculous, especially when, again, another character with MORE similarities to a known fictional character, was accepted.

-and no, you don't know what fleshed out means, because again, you're looking for quantity of traits and not quality. You're looking at numbers of traits, not significance of those traits.

and again, since you ignored when I said it before;
Strength does not mean it's something that makes them superior to other characters. What was asked of us on the profile sheet was skills and things they are good at, not specifically things that make them better then other people.

A weakness is something that an enemy can use against you, stupid and naive would be included in that. Anyone with an education past primary levels can tell you the same thing.

Subject: Re: Achilles of Zorr Thu Sep 25, 2014 7:08 am

Hello, there seems to be an issue that has been arising since today. I'll address them one at a time to both our satisfactions.

Quote :: I wasn't attacking anyone's character, I was pointing out that one character got rejected for something that was permitted in another character, which makes no sense unless the mods were cherry-picking people they did and didn't like. In the quote I copied and pasted here, the 'back story' provided had one similar sentence, one concept, which has been used endlessly in media, so the idea of rejecting it because it reminds you of another fictional character is ridiculous, especially when, again, another character with MORE similarities to a known fictional character, was accepted.

Yes, the Mina vs Heather thing you've brought up. The Mina one, I shall admit, I was not aware of. I don't watch Sailor Moon enough to know them by their human names, although the planet Venus thing should have tipped me off, so I will admit fault for not paying closer attention to that incident. That does not, however, give the Heather character the right to take Elsa's plot and run with it. The character can be inspired by it, but cannot share those qualities to the point I can clearly say "Well that's Elsa in a new land." Heather shares these qualities with Elsa: a princess who has ice powers who hurt someone and gets banished (only difference was Frozen had Elsa locked away before she did her own self-banishment thing) to a frozen location. So yes, while a person of great power going into banishment is a common trope, Heather shared more in common with Elsa than the trope.

The mods and I will discuss what will become of Mina since she is not original and will need to be mended until she is. I will notify the creator of Mina so it can begin. I do not appreciate established characters being transcribed here.

Quote :: -and no, you don't know what fleshed out means, because again, you're looking for quantity of traits and not quality. You're looking at numbers of traits, not significance of those traits.

I'm sorry, but please present proof where it says that you have a maximum number of traits to have under strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps you and I are reading it wrongly.

From the OC sheet: Strengths: (By strength we mean are they good in any subjects or do they have any special skills. Not the physical strength of your character; 3 are mandatory)
Weaknesses: (By weakness, I mean what are they bad at, or what can be a weakness to their powers? 3 are mandatory)

From the Guide: A minimum of 3 strengths are required of this section, and they must match the Weaknesses section give or take one.

Perhaps you were confused by the words mandatory? Upon re-reading I can see why you would assume that we only want three; in truth, what we want is three minimum. I put mandatory on the sheet because I wanted members aware of the lower limit and not think that they could put seven strengths and only one weakness. If this is what had you hung up about the quantity of traits, then I will mend the wording from mandatory to minimum for less confusion.

Quote :: and again, since you ignored when I said it before;
Strength does not mean it's something that makes them superior to other characters. What was asked of us on the profile sheet was skills and things they are good at, not specifically things that make them better then other people.

Yes, the Sheet does not have it written because it was written on a different site where the members didn't need to be explained on what strengths was (and no, the sheet wasn't stolen; we have permission for it). When it was brought here, it was hard for members to figure out what to put in strengths. So, I wrote a guide for it to better prepare the members for when they submitted their OCs for review. From the Guide it says:

This, along with weaknesses, personality, and history, seems to be the hardest for people to comprehend. Basically, what is your OC good at? What makes them shine above those around them? What makes them special? This is the section where they are meant to shine and promote their good qualities.

Quote :: A weakness is something that an enemy can use against you, stupid and naive would be included in that. Anyone with an education past primary levels can tell you the same thing.

Except there's one issue with your statement: those are too broad. Simply stating that a person is naïve or stupid is simply too broad a claim to make, and doesn't flesh out the character in any manner. That is why we deem it a personality and not a weakness. Now, if you expand on what the person is stupid in/at or how naïve the person is, then we consider it a weakness since it is more specific and less broad.

Has this helped in any way?

Subject: Re: Achilles of Zorr Thu Sep 25, 2014 7:55 am

[quote="Kyra_Xyrespace"]Hello, there seems to be an issue that has been arising since today. I'll address them one at a time to both our satisfactions.

Quote :: I wasn't attacking anyone's character, I was pointing out that one character got rejected for something that was permitted in another character, which makes no sense unless the mods were cherry-picking people they did and didn't like. In the quote I copied and pasted here, the 'back story' provided had one similar sentence, one concept, which has been used endlessly in media, so the idea of rejecting it because it reminds you of another fictional character is ridiculous, especially when, again, another character with MORE similarities to a known fictional character, was accepted.

Quote :: Yes, the Mina vs Heather thing you've brought up. The Mina one, I shall admit, I was not aware of. I don't watch Sailor Moon enough to know them by their human names, although the planet Venus thing should have tipped me off, so I will admit fault for not paying closer attention to that incident. That does not, however, give the Heather character the right to take Elsa's plot and run with it. The character can be inspired by it, but cannot share those qualities to the point I can clearly say "Well that's Elsa in a new land." Heather shares these qualities with Elsa: a princess who has ice powers who hurt someone and gets banished (only difference was Frozen had Elsa locked away before she did her own self-banishment thing) to a frozen location. So yes, while a person of great power going into banishment is a common trope, Heather shared more in common with Elsa than the trope.

The mods and I will discuss what will become of Mina since she is not original and will need to be mended until she is. I will notify the creator of Mina so it can begin. I do not appreciate established characters being transcribed here.

I think both characters should be allowed to be played, as long as the characters aren't being written as;
'Hey, I'm Elsa, I almost killed my sister Ana, resulting in X, Y, Z happening'
After all, the Trueblood TV series is based on a book which is a World of Darkness rip off, and it still works because of HOW it's written. A rip off or reference character isn't a bad thing, especially in RP format, and why not let users have their fun?

Quote :: -and no, you don't know what fleshed out means, because again, you're looking for quantity of traits and not quality. You're looking at numbers of traits, not significance of those traits.

Quote :: I'm sorry, but please present proof where it says that you have a maximum number of traits to have under strengths and weaknesses. Perhaps you and I are reading it wrongly.

You read it wrong. I never said there was a maximum number of traits to have under strengths and weaknesses.
ONCE AGAIN, I shall repeat myself,
the number of traits shouldn't be important, the significance of the traits, should be important. You could have a billion flaws that don't matter because they don't affect the character very often, but if you have one flaw that affects them all the time, then that is worth more then any number of flaws.

Quote :: From the OC sheet: Strengths: (By strength we mean are they good in any subjects or do they have any special skills. Not the physical strength of your character; 3 are mandatory)
Weaknesses: (By weakness, I mean what are they bad at, or what can be a weakness to their powers? 3 are mandatory)

From the Guide: A minimum of 3 strengths are required of this section, and they must match the Weaknesses section give or take one.

Perhaps you were confused by the words mandatory? Upon re-reading I can see why you would assume that we only want three; in truth, what we want is three minimum. I put mandatory on the sheet because I wanted members aware of the lower limit and not think that they could put seven strengths and only one weakness. If this is what had you hung up about the quantity of traits, then I will mend the wording from mandatory to minimum for less confusion.

No, I know what mandatory means, but once again, why would three insignificant flaws not be surpassed by one significant flaw?
For example
1. Bad at math
2. Afraid of thunderstorms.
3. Easily grossed out by bad smells.
Those are all 'flaws', but they only apply at specific times and settings. If Math comes up (and really, how often would it in an rp?) then how is it reasonable as a flaw? Thunderstorms don't happen every post, and bad smells wouldn't be that common ether unless someone's OC doesn't like to shower.
However, a weakness like
1. Illiteracy
This leaves the character challenged almost everywhere, because how would one get through a modern setting unable to read or write? There would be a nagative social stigma attached to it as well, causing the character to want to hide it and feel shame. That would be a far more significant weakness.

Quote :: Yes, the Sheet does not have it written because it was written on a different site where the members didn't need to be explained on what strengths was (and no, the sheet wasn't stolen; we have permission for it). When it was brought here, it was hard for members to figure out what to put in strengths. So, I wrote a guide for it to better prepare the members for when they submitted their OCs for review. From the Guide it says:

This, along with weaknesses, personality, and history, seems to be the hardest for people to comprehend. Basically, what is your OC good at? What makes them shine above those around them? What makes them special? This is the section where they are meant to shine and promote their good qualities.

-and if we don't want out character to be written as a special, unique snowflake superior to others? Is there a reason we can't just write the characters as interesting based on their personality rather then 'I can do X, Y and Z!'

Quote :: Except there's one issue with your statement: those are too broad. Simply stating that a person is naïve or stupid is simply too broad a claim to make, and doesn't flesh out the character in any manner. That is why we deem it a personality and not a weakness. Now, if you expand on what the person is stupid in/at or how naïve the person is, then we consider it a weakness since it is more specific and less broad.

Has this helped in any way?

I think it's impossibly stupid to ask for a basic profile, but want which explains every detail of the character, rather then just their skill sets and powers. Why would I want to interact with a character, have my characters ask them questions, if all the information was provided in a profile on another page?
I understand you guys want to limit god-modding and 'mary sues', but this is not the way to do it. I have rp's that have lasted for YEARS, my longest rp is still running after nine years with multiple posts daily, and we're all still interested because we're still getting to know the characters.

Guest

Kitty, I understand that you've got issues with how things are ran here, but they are the way they are because it's what we've decided as a staff team. Every place has it's own way of running things, and this forum is no different from the rest. I would like you to no longer further argue about changes suggested by the Role-Play Moderators, and would appreciate it if you listen to them. Thank you.

Subject: Re: Achilles of Zorr Thu Sep 25, 2014 1:55 pm

Quote :: Because the mod doesn't like Frozen and instead likes Sailor Moon? That's not fair at all.

Woah there sweetie, I love Frozen just as equally as I love Sailor Moon. I did notice the Sailor Venus rip off and told Lily to change it and so she did and I left it as it was. Please just focus on your OCs and not other people's OCs. We are not biased and you're being extremely defensive and rude as well.

If you want to defense your OCs you can feel free to make an "argument" not call us stupid and dumb. That's extremely rude and won't change anything about you We certainly don't do things the way you do and that is not wrong. Everything can be done in more than one way and that's how we do it.

I don't want to sound mean but let me set this straight. I don't care about the experience of RP you have had and how things have worked out for you in the past 10 years or so. You shouldn't find trouble with our rules if you're so experienced.

What is bothering you so much with how the RP works here? We set the rules and that's how we expect things to be. If you don't like it then please don't join and stop complaining. If you do want to join however, please present an argument in a more appropriate way. Your attitude is certainly not appreciated and neither are you remarks.

We are not closed-minded idiots running an RP in a famous forum trying to wreck havoc and abuse our powers. We know exactly what we're doing and we're still improving it. Changes will come sooner or later but in general that's how the RP in this forum is running and that's how it will run from now on.

Please, I ask of you you now to apply those changes or ask for your OC to be locked. These are the only two options I'm offering. Thank you.