How to fix an annoying character?

by Akraasiel

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Felicia2010-05-29 10:17:00
I don't have a problem with written or typed accents in general. The Harry Potter books have them, H.P. Lovecraft's fiction has them... there are countless examples of written accents done well in literature, both past and contemporary.

There's a thin line between flavorful and obnoxious, though, and it takes a careful hand to stay on the flavorful side of that line. It's easy to overdo it, and inserting an apostrophe in place of every single instance of certain common consonants probably constitutes overdoing it. I'd be interested in seeing some extended samples of these controversial accents (Ongaku's, Akraasiel's) to judge for myself.

In a game like Lusternia, I don't think a heavy accent is worth the cost of annoying the bejeezus out of large swathes of people. Realistically, toning down an accent or dispensing with it entirely shouldn't be a huge blow to your character, because accent is a pretty minor trait overall, and shouldn't form a vital basis for your RP (in my opinion, anyway).
ongaku2010-05-29 10:19:43
QUOTE (Felicia @ May 29 2010, 05:17 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I don't have a problem with written or typed accents in general. The Harry Potter books have them, H.P. Lovecraft's fiction has them... there are countless examples of written accents done well in literature, both past and contemporary.

There's a thin line between flavorful and obnoxious, though, and it takes a careful hand to stay on the flavorful side of that line. It's easy to overdo it, and inserting an apostrophe in place of every single instance of certain common consonants probably constitutes overdoing it. I'd be interested in seeing some extended samples of these controversial accents (Ongaku's, Akraasiel's) to judge for myself.

In a game like Lusternia, I don't think a heavy accent is worth the cost of annoying the bejeezus out of large swathes of people. Realistically, toning down an accent or dispensing with it entirely shouldn't be a huge blow to your character, because accent is a pretty minor trait overall, and shouldn't form a vital basis for your RP (in my opinion, anyway).

I don't really see how my accent is "controversial," considering that I stated I don't get OOC complaints about it. <.< Besides that, I don't feel comfortable ditching the accent altogether at this point, considering Gaku's had it since I started playing him nearly 4 years ago.
Felicia2010-05-29 10:26:01
QUOTE (Ongaku Nil'Goeth @ May 29 2010, 06:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I don't really see how my accent is "controversial," considering that I stated I don't get OOC complaints about it.


Okay, one controversial accent and one non-controversial accent, then. tongue.gif

Controversial or no, my point still stands. It's up to each individual to make that choice for their character, of course.
ongaku2010-05-29 10:31:46
QUOTE (Felicia @ May 29 2010, 05:26 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Okay, one controversial accent and one non-controversial accent, then. tongue.gif

Controversial or no, my point still stands. It's up to each individual to make that choice for their character, of course.

I definitely agree. smile.gif Every character is going to be annoying to some people sometimes. Honestly, I didn't find Akraasiel all that grating when Lucan talked to him. Luc was kind of happy just to have someone to talk to. >.> I think it somewhat depends on individual perspective of what is and is not annoying.
Diamondais2010-05-29 15:19:19
QUOTE (Ongaku Nil'Goeth @ May 29 2010, 06:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
I don't really see how my accent is "controversial," considering that I stated I don't get OOC complaints about it. <.< Besides that, I don't feel comfortable ditching the accent altogether at this point, considering Gaku's had it since I started playing him nearly 4 years ago.

I don't really complain too much about accents in an OOC form, he brought it up and I gave him my answer of why I find his character annoying or easy to dismiss. I don't like accents in text, I have no issue with them in real life considering the vast majority of my family and many of the people I interact with in real life have an accent, don't speak very much English, etc. but I find them highly difficult to read.
Sylphas2010-05-29 18:14:11
The difference between accents here and in a book is that a book's dialog is carefully crafted, whereas spur of the moment chatter between people in Lusternia isn't nearly so thought out. I'm sure Lovecraft and Rowling didn't just type something into a accent translator script and have their dialog transformed.

Accents add a lot of flavor if done well, but there are definite drawbacks. I've seen people do the "drop EVERY instance of a letter" which annoys me to no end, because letters don't map perfectly to sounds, so instead of an accent your character just sounds really weird. H is the biggest villain with this. "Hard", "this", "thick", "chime", and "shine" all have the letter H, but it's a different sound in each case. Dropping it with a script or just being overzealous makes you unintelligable and annoying sometimes.
Jack2010-05-31 07:14:23
QUOTE (Sylphas @ May 29 2010, 07:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
The difference between accents here and in a book is that a book's dialog is carefully crafted, whereas spur of the moment chatter between people in Lusternia isn't nearly so thought out. I'm sure Lovecraft and Rowling didn't just type something into a accent translator script and have their dialog transformed.

Lovecraft wrote terrible dialogue. Hell, he probably achieved the effect by writing normal dialogue and then wiping his arse with the page.
Sivas2010-05-31 09:53:10
I felt it quite amusing when I first met Akraasiel, I instantly thought senile old man... But if you really want to change his personality, you should make up a catalyst event and change as a result of that. Such as joining a huild and getting a mentor, (who could help you diagnose when you revert back to a crazy old man, as mentioned above). I think accents are great, adds a bit of spice to the environment