BZPRPG News and Discussion

[Keeper of Kraata]

I just pick on it because I seriously hate the whole 'Psionics and crystal go hand in hand' trope. Plus, Sonics is noted to be able to vibrate ANYTHING to pieces, it's just that crystals have that lattice structure that makes it so much easier. And as for 'chaining attacks', Vakua has proven to be good with making things emit vibrations in unison; use one piece of crystal to get on the same wavelength as the rest of the crystal, and you have a perfect sound that works for all of it.

 

Although, waiting to see a joint Mata Nui/Kentoku armor special that ends up like Stalhrim armor from Skyrim would be pretty cool.

[silo]

While we are (were) on the topic of character creation, my thoughts were basically this: Silo - bounty hunter, Rekhyt - Silo but nicer, Mortem - the Bad Guy, Karaihe - the one with no tactics, Mura - the one who can't fight (*gasp*), and Venemi - the one who is almost Good. That was literally my entire thought process.

Btw, welcome back Ghosthands

Edited December 15, 2014 by Sil

[IcarusBen]

 

Actually, going back on the topic of Dasaka, I don't play those characters because I don't want to be forced into one option over another. I don't mind playing a female character, so long as I get to CHOOSE that the character is female. If I'm not allowed to influence arguably one of the most important aspects of the character, then I feel like my decisions on the character don't matter. My RP characters represent various aspects of me, and I don't want to have to give up control over what aspect they're representing.

 

I'm steering very, very clear of this.

 

Not touching it with a ten foot pole.

 

someone else is going to do it for me and i'm not getting involved

 

Whoops! Sorry. Did I post that? What I meant to post was "I dislike and am whining about something that literally everyone else is fine with."

 

Still, by saying you aren't getting involved, you got involved. Silly staff person you XD

 

Actually, now I do have a question; what does Echelon use for his guards? I want Adomai to make a grand entrance where he uses his magnetism to crush the masks of Echelon's guards (y'know, to prove that Adomai is awesome and Echelon should hire him) but that might only really work for Matoran guards, though I suppose magnetism could squash Rahkshi and any bio-mechanical being like Toa or Lesterin (especially since they also wear masks) or Skakdi. I just want Adomai to kill something disposable (I.E it only exists to be killed.) Any thoughts?

[Vezok's Friend]

Yes:

 

Don't.

 

 

 

 

You want to make a grand entrance? By all means, go for it. You want to make a great entrance by toying with some goons? I think the last time somebody tried treating NPCs like that their player character died. 

[Keeper of Kraata]

I as much as I want to see someone else get their rear end handed to them by Echelon, I don't think masks are magnetic. Not even Ba-Toa can do that.

[sunflower]

their player character died.

"beeeeeeeewaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrreeeeeee

 

bewaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrreeeeeeeee"

 

-says the wise old dragon!corv

[Keeper of Kraata]

Well, Skorm killed a Marine NPC by drowning them (ironic), but as a consequence he's now a very much wanted criminal in Ga-Koro.

[AuRon the champion]

 

Actually, going back on the topic of Dasaka, I don't play these characters because I don't want to be forced into one option over another. I don't mind playing a female character, so long as I get to CHOOSE that the character is female. If I'm not allowed to influence arguably one of the most important aspects of the character, then I feel like my decisions on the character don't matter. My RP characters represent various aspects of me, and I don't want to have to give up control over what aspect they're representing.

 

http://tfwiki.net/mediawiki/images2/0/08/AnimatedSlipstreamModel.jpg

 

"So, which part of me did you come from?"

"Don't ask."

[Constructelf]

 

 

Well, those are reasons I don't want to play a Dasaka. If the Kalta were to somehow end up in Kentoku, it would be fun: Vakua's frustration with communication, Casanuva going stir-crazy from lack of material to magnetize, Kalyss being awesome and getting stuff done, etc.

 

Not to mention how dangerous certain elements would be: Vakua can't talk to you, but he can still chain vibrations together, shattering all that nice crystal. Vakua using any allied Dasaka's crystal as focii for chaining attacks was something I wanted to go into with his contact with the expedition.

This is something I've seen cropping up a lot, and after consulting with my peers, I would like to address.

 

(Note, KoK, I'm not picking on you specifically. You just brought it up most recently. )

 

Dasakan crystal is not that brittle. It's a substance they successfully use for swords and armor, after all. Be it a property of crystalline protodermis itself (it's protodermis in crystalline form, after all) or a property of how it is treated, it isn't easily broken. It is slightly more brittle than a metal weapon, but not noticeably so. For a De-Toa to shatter a well-made piece of Dasakan arms would require a significant amount of effort and energy, though admittedly it is more feasible than trying to do so with metal. Chaining it certainly isn't possible.

 

And, as a note, the use of a Toa of Crystal against them is still subject to the same rules affecting PC equipment as, for example, a Fe-Toa is. Which is to say you can't just go wrecking them.

 

One shouldn't assume properties of crystal are the same as the Dasaka's weapons, because if they were, then using them as weapons would be completely impractical.

Eh.

 

Was just going by the "like real life unless noted" vibe that I was getting and was basically copying and pasting the properties of real life crystal.

 

>.>

 

<.<

 

(Two hours worth of research down the drain...)

 

Guess I could keep doing it as a joke?

[sunflower]

Eh.

 

Was just going by the "like real life unless noted" vibe that I was getting and was basically copying and pasting the properties of real life crystal.

 

>.>

 

<.<

 

(Two hours worth of research down the drain...)

 

Guess I could keep doing it as a joke?

don't get me started on science-y stuff

 

ghostie just got back and i don't want to do this to him

 

(but for real guys "real life unless otherwise noted" is an amazing thing to follow)

[IcarusBen]

Yes:

 

Don't.

 

 

 

 

You want to make a grand entrance? By all means, go for it. You want to make a great entrance by toying with some goons? I think the last time somebody tried treating NPCs like that their player character died. 

It's an attempt to make Echelon go "Hmm... this guy sounds like a rather decent if not terribly cliche bad guy. I should let him work for me and give him a vial of antidermis so he can try and eclipse me and fail horribly," not make him go "OFF WITH HIS HEAD!"

[Palm]

 

Actually, going back on the topic of Dasaka, I don't play those characters because I don't want to be forced into one option over another. I don't mind playing a female character, so long as I get to CHOOSE that the character is female. If I'm not allowed to influence arguably one of the most important aspects of the character, then I feel like my decisions on the character don't matter. My RP characters represent various aspects of me, and I don't want to have to give up control over what aspect they're representing.

 

I'm steering very, very clear of this.

 

Not touching it with a ten foot pole.

 

someone else is going to do it for me and i'm not getting involved

 

 

Oh? OK??? Then choose to make a female character????

 

Making a Dasaka character doesn't force you to dice-roll. It's only if you want to try and make a male.

 

Also I've never understood this argument. I mean, I can understand the importance of asserting your freedom on a larger scale., which is pretty important. But this is a game and pretty insignificant. By this argument, we shouldn't make characters with only certain allowed masks (although yes I understand that there's a lot more choices from masks, but you should see my point) because you don't really get to pick as freely an option.

 

Also, sex and gender identity are an important part of a character only if you choose to make it so. You're creating a character! You are their mind, body, and soul, and you make their choices for them. You make them speak how you want them to make you speak. You're virtually god (a god that doesn't break any rules laid out by the staffers). What's an important aspect of a character is up to you: Ironically, your choice. I see so many people use the whole "it'll change things" argument when creating characters of certain genders, and while I think it's a decent argument for Dasaka culture because gender-roles are actually a huge part of their culture, but oh my god if I hear that same argument in play of Mata-Nui characters I'm going to have a heart attack and die where I sit.

 

But in the end again, it's up to you.

[IcarusBen]

Making a Dasaka character doesn't force you to dice-roll. It's only if you want to try and make a male.

 

That. That little thing right there. 

 

Yes, I understand. Gender roles are important to the Dasaka, that's understandable. But should I, as a player, have to create 39 Dasaka females just so I can get that one male character? I understand that's one of the big differences between the two, but if you ask me, it's more of a burden than a boon. If I'm remembering right, even if you fail the dice roll, you still have to play with the character, no matter what.

 

Does it make sense in the story? Well, yeah. Does it make sense from a gameplay perspective? Absolutely not!  Imagine if we had to do the same thing with elements, or with masks, or with weapons. Oh, you wanted a disk launcher and a Sanok for your Po-Toa? Too bad. You get a halberd and a Kaukau for your Bo-Toa. Oh, but you don't get to just discard this character just because he's lived his whole life in a desert and is hydrophobic and can't use a halberd to save his life. Nope, you've gotta use him despite his character being horribly flawed.

 

But, again, this is one of those things I'll have to deal with. At least I can choose not to make a Dasaka character but stick with other, non-gender skewed races. Not to mention I sure most anyone can adapt a male character to a different set of privates, but it's the principle of the thing that irks me.

 

This may explain why I'm not a staff member.

[Eyru]

i guess i'll just pop in for a sec and point out that you roll to choose your character's sex not their gender and the two are actually different 

 

so really nobody's stopping you from making a masculine dasaka

 

 

EDIT thx gravs <3

Edited December 15, 2014 by Tyler is Love

[sunflower]

male

Male generally refers to sex, though.

 

eyru why ;~;

 

Terminology aside, that is absolutely correct.

[Palm]

i guess i'll just pop in for a sec and point out that you roll to choose your character's sex not their gender and the two are actually different 

 

so really nobody's stopping you from making a male dasaka 

 

Yeah I should've clarified. Also this idea actually opens up a massive place of untapped character stuffs. I can just imagine the possibilities! I might actually have to do this.

 

 

Does it make sense in the story? Well, yeah. Does it make sense from a gameplay perspective? Absolutely not!  Imagine if we had to do the same thing with elements, or with masks, or with weapons. Oh, you wanted a disk launcher and a Sanok for your Po-Toa? Too bad. You get a halberd and a Kaukau for your Bo-Toa. Oh, but you don't get to just discard this character just because he's lived his whole life in a desert and is hydrophobic and can't use a halberd to save his life. Nope, you've gotta use him despite his character being horribly flawed.

 

Yeah but being a female or male in Kentoku changes nothing about gameplay except how other characters treat you and whether or not you can own a clan. Not exactly constricting stuff. And even then, you can do things differently. You can fight the power (row row) so to speak.

 

non-gender skewed races

 

Real talk, the other races are sort of accidentally skewed because not a lot of us make female born characters.

 

Also, other than fitting the sexes of Toa of psionics, I feel like the forced sex was also a bit of nudge to make female characters because there's not a lot coming from us the players on that front.

[Razgriz]

Getting euphoric up in here

I may have to tip something

like a cow

[silo]

 

Making a Dasaka character doesn't force you to dice-roll. It's only if you want to try and make a male.

 

*SNIP*

You don't have to play every character you create, although creating a ton of females just to get one male would be kinda cheating.

If you create a female character, I don't really see how that changes their personality that much...

[AuRon the champion]

Jiyu owns a clan.

 

Jiyu's a guy.

[Ghosthands]

You don't have to play every character you create, although creating a ton of females just to get one male would be kinda cheating.

 

 

Yes you do, because yes it would.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Ghosthands

[Razgriz]

Think we're gonna need some retroactive punishments then ayy

[Eyru]

You don't have to play every character you create, although creating a ton of females just to get one male would be kinda cheating.

 

 

Actually, you do.

 

If you roll to create a Dasaka, you have to play that character, regardless of whether or not you got a male or a female. If you create 39 gals to get the 1 guy, you're gonna have to play all 40 of them. That's how the whole imbalance remains in place IC.

 

 

EDIT ninja'd by Ghostie

Edited December 15, 2014 by Tyler is Love

[Krayzikk]

I just pick on it because I seriously hate the whole 'Psionics and crystal go hand in hand' trope. Plus, Sonics is noted to be able to vibrate ANYTHING to pieces, it's just that crystals have that lattice structure that makes it so much easier. And as for 'chaining attacks', Vakua has proven to be good with making things emit vibrations in unison; use one piece of crystal to get on the same wavelength as the rest of the crystal, and you have a perfect sound that works for all of it.

 

Although, waiting to see a joint Mata Nui/Kentoku armor special that ends up like Stalhrim armor from Skyrim would be pretty cool.

Keeper, when a staff member says that doesn't work, it doesn't work. Period.

 

Firstly, De-Toa can canonically destabilize materials. Not shatter. They can still destabilze here, too, but it's not an easy thing to do. Especially since doing so on sturdy materials requires getting the frequency and energy application just right.

 

I don't care how good you say Vakua is, it doesn't change rulings on how things work.

 

Plus you can't just destroy PC equipment with powers at the drop of a hat, as per the rules. It's why a Fe-Toa can't just wreck everybody. Destruction is permitted, but only under certain circumstances.

 

Also;

 

Any Dasaka you roll for, you play. Zero exceptions. If you don't, you are breaking the rules outlined in the Dasaka Petitions.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Ninth Krayzikk

[Keeper of Kraata]

I have nine characters: two (three if Skakdi follow the same gender pattern as the matoran species) break the gender rules. Casanuva further breaks the color rules, since he is primarily blue instead of black.

 

Also, I was wondering when someone would step in and say gender=/=sex, and could even be used to make an interesting character. Player freedom is still an issue I understand, along with railroading characters into specific conflicts.

 

Edit: Krayzikk, what I was saying was that a De-Toa could use crystal as point of focus, perhaps allowing him to attack something further away. Crystal just allows for different tactical approaches when figuring in elemental powers, like how they will be less vulnerable to Iron, Magnetism, and Lightning.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Keeper of Kraata

[sunflower]

I have nine characters: two (three if Skakdi follow the same gender pattern as the matoran species) break the gender rules. Casanuva further breaks the color rules, since he is primarily blue instead of black.

They're not rules so much as guidelines in here anyway.  They still exist to some degree, at least to the point where one can go "Well that's not average", but not overly so.

[silo]

I don't think canon Skakdi follow the same gender pattern because Vezok.

Also, thanks for clarifying about the character thing

[Razgriz]

Just like how there's no holding in boxing

like Floyd Mayweather right

eh

EH

[toa grimlock]

I've been kinda out of it last week and was wondering if I missed anything major.

[Razgriz]

There was a good fight in Ta

Po's got an uprising stirring

Stannis doesn't have a plot device any more

thats basically it

[Nuju Metru]

The Gender Petition was created the way that it was for a few reasons:

 

1) It's important to maintain sex ratios on Kentoku from a story/realism point of view. The fact that both male and female Dasaka (Toa/Matoran of Psionics) officially exist can be taken as a staff canonization of individuals who are "off-sex" of their elements. Y'all can assume that the same concept and the same ratios, roughly, apply to other Toa/Matoran elements (i.e. there's probably a 40:1 ratio of male versus female Toa of Fire out there). However, because the culture on Mata Nui doesn't place nearly as much importance on a being's sex as the culture of Kentoku (and because I can never imagine saying "there are too many female Toa of Earth IC you guys, tone it down"), a process like the Dasaka Gender Petition for other elements is absolutely unnecessary. 

 

(In case you were wondering - because I found that I just did - why Dasakan society weighs its citizens' sexes so heavily, I think it's because unlike Mata Nui, Kentoku has basically always existed cut off from the variety and sexual balance afforded by the presence of elements with male-favoring sex ratios. The Kentoku Archipelago has, for as long as anyone can remember, been inhabited only by Psionic elementals; this incubator of isolation with their own kind has trained the Dasaka to become hyper-aware of the subtlest differences between themselves and their peers. This also explains the formation of the ancient caste system. Individuals of the subdominant sex - curiosities, rarities, and breeding necessities - are therefore understandably treated very differently than individuals of the dominant sex.)

 

2) I anticipated that most players would choose to play male characters if given the choice. This doesn't need a lot of explanation, because as the recent BZPRPG census of characters affirmed, that already happens. Our player base is very heavily male, so it makes sense that when creating characters, most people's unconscious default is to make a character of one's own sex, and consequently we end up with far more male characters than female characters.

 

But is this imbalance a bad thing? I certainly think so, especially when (if we assume male characters are most of our default) players actively choose to make their characters female, and then consider that deviation from their comfort zones to be sufficient CD to differentiate that character; in other words, players consider a character's female sex to be her defining trait. Just as bad (and often concurrent to this) is when players, usually inadvertently, portray their female characters as stock types that perpetuate sexist stereotypes. These kinds of female characters, which I've seen too many of over the years, bring me to:

 

3) I want those of you who can only perceive yourselves playing male characters to grow a little empathy and realize that people work the same, regardless of their sex. I'm a feminist (if you couldn't tell), and so I believe that males and females act, feel, dream, hate, love the same way. The fact that such a conceit as equality between the sexes still necessitates use of an ideological tag (I mean, really, common sense) aside, the way that boils down to RPing is that that fascinating character concept you'd envisioned as male can exist just as easily as a female! Krayz pointed this out a few pages back pretty excellently by turning somebody's male character situation into a female's; I for one found the female protagonist version to be immediately more compelling, probably because I don't come across female characters like that in this game nearly often enough.

 

If you feel like you don't understand females, and so feel like you can't or shouldn't play female Dasaka characters, I'd encourage you to try anyway. It's actually really simple: just play your female character with the same depth of desires and complexity as your male character. Proudly and powerfully inhabit the fictional female body of your character with your male human soul, and you'll actually be coming closer to understanding how the female brain works (spoiler: just like yours). As a male, I've found empathy with females - heck, just empathy with people - to be really useful in places beyond the RPG forum; it's a skill worth cultivating, and this is a fun way to do it.

[Palm]

Yeah Tuara started as a stock character like that.

Then I thought about it critically and was like "um no that's dumb".

But now I don't play her as much cause she's locked down right now and also because being in a relationship with Dorian kind of makes things about Dorian. Ain't nothing wrong with being with Dor (actually a great number of their dynamics are unhealthy and messed up) but I'm making the decision to break away from his adventures a bit so Tuara can be cultivated more as a character again.

Point is, it's really easy to fall into that trap even once you've tried to define the character in other ways.

Also, watch out criminals cause the Tuara coming up will be looking for you and busting your face inside out. Or something.

[Let's Henshin!]

Well Nuju just wall'o'texted what I was going to say but I'm just going to leave this here.

 

Years ago(And oh god it has been years I feel old.), when I first asked someone how I should play female characters he gave me a very blunt response.

 

"I just play them as I would a male."

 

Sounds weird at first doesn't it? Yet the fact of the matter is that it isn't as odd as one would necessarily think at first, as Nuju explained gender doesn't define your character.

 

Let me say that again.

 

Gender does not define character.

 

You know what does? Personality, personality defines your character. The only real affect in your writing that gender will have is what pronoun you decide to use. There have been many occasions where I've built an entire personality, bio, etc and then basically just flipped a coin on whether they were going to be male or female.

 

So yeah, you can argue about subtle psychological differences between genders, the difference between sex and gender and what have you, but at the end of the day what matters in writing is one simple thing: Personality. All characters have a personality, so focus on that.

 

Just my two cents.  

Edited December 15, 2014 by Purple Devil

[Geardirector]

*snip

 

Slow. Clap.

[Razgriz]

Yeah I'm with Onarax

Girls and Dudes a large majority of the time do think differently, to say otherwise is wrong

but just focus on working a personality you like playing

in the end it's a micronesian robot role playing game

it's okay to chill

Edited December 15, 2014 by Uncle Chael P. Sonnen

[Daniel the Finlander]

Girls and Dudes a large majority of the time do think differently, to say otherwise is wrong

To be honest, I can't recognize someone's gender on the internet just by reading their messages. Of cource, because of the biological differences, upbringing and culture they do tend to think differently, but from what I've discussed, seen and read women don't think that differently. Sure, they tend to be more emotional and care more about their looks etc., but I've seen those traits on many guys as well. There are clear differences, but they are diminishing, which has been happening for many decades now.

 

Anyways, don't let the gender of your character define his/her personality, like Nuju and Onarax said. A great piece of advice.

Edited December 15, 2014 by Daniel the Finlander

[Ghosthands]

I know that not everyone likes the Gender Petition system, but let me tell you a little personal story.

 

Before the Dasaka were introduced into the game, I had never written a female character before. Never. Ever. Not once.

 

And when they came along, guess what? I wanted to play a male. Now, I did get that male in the end, but to get him I had to create four females and play as them, including creating a clan to improve my odds. The system forced me, for the first time, to write as women.

 

It's not an exaggeration to say that it opened my eyes. The female characters I created are every bit as alive and dear to me as my 'old guard' of Mata Nui characters, and the Dasaka male that I got (Dakte) is all the more interesting to write now that I have that added perspective. I'm really thankful for that, because without the Gender Petition I probably still wouldn't have discovered that I'm just as comfortable writing females as writing males. I've learned that at the end of the day, it's not the gender/sex you have to associate with, it's the person. I'm sure I'm a better writer for it.

 

And, lo and behold, who's the first staff NPC I've created? She's called Loraan.

 

Oh, and if you're not familiar with my Dasaka women, here's a quick roll call: Kilanya, leader of Clan Ageru; Gotsoko, Grumpy-Old-Librarian-In-Chief; Enali, inquisitive schoolgirl extraordinaire; and Tazera, who spends most of her time in a ship with Ayiw—

 

i meant in the nautical sense okay!!!

Edited December 15, 2014 by Ghosthands

[Razgriz]

jesus headbanging christ, gabe

[Mel]

On the subject of character creation, I tend to vary.  Lucira, Ranok, and Talli were all rehashes of previous characters.  Hatchi was fairly planned out, as was Morie.  I created Shuuan, however, completely on a whim.

 

 

i guess i'll just pop in for a sec and point out that you roll to choose your character's sex not their gender and the two are actually different 

 

so really nobody's stopping you from making a masculine dasaka

 

 

EDIT thx gravs <3

 

I like u. :3

 

 

The Gender Petition was created the way that it was for a few reasons:

*awesome things*

 

At the risk of being all nostalgic and stuff--I would like to point out that when I started playing the BZPRPG there were like...three active female characters.  I'm very pleased with the direction this has been going since then.

[Light]

I just assume things are ether ghosts until proven otherwise, I dunno whatchall are talking about.

 

But yeah, back in the day when I only played MARY SUES YES I WAS ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE
 

I kinda doubted my ability to write a woman. I did, I'll admit it. Then a little character named Tali Alihera Relo happened and life changed. I did one, very specific thing that changed my entire perception of all writing the opposite gender ever.

IT DOESN'T MATTER. What Purple Devil said up there was true. Write with the personality you choose, and you're golden.

[IcarusBen]

I don't see the difference between gender and sex. What's the difference?