#neb asks

3. What was the first thing you decided on, the character's name, appearance, personality or their role in the story?

Hm! I want to say it was her appearance. I think I typically start with appearance for many of my oc designs or else I won't be able to think of anything else for them, unless I have a personality bouncing around in my brain already.

4. And reverse, which one of the four things did you struggle with the most?

Role in the story! I first made her for a homebrew campaign during 2020 that we absolutely did not ever get around to doing, and I didn't really know much about playing dnd/ttrpgs aside from a 45-1 hr oneshot I did that didn't really utilize classes or anything and one spontaneous rpg thing that didn't really finish since it started with some normal roleplaying (as in chat style rp) to begin with. Our current session is where I've been able to actually flesh out her backstory as a character and have her interact with others.

18. Does the character have other characters connected to them? Do you have a family tree and "offscreen" connections made up for them or do they exist in a vacuum purely for the purpose of the story?

Yep! Initially, I was trying to think of if she was married with kids or single with plenty of nieces and nephews. Single with many nieces and nephews is her current status! And since we had a holiday hiatus, I was thinking more about her family life. I'd already been considering it during our prologue session and managed to nail down at least one sibling, but over December I managed to (slowly) come up with eight more siblings for her because I thought it'd be really funny to make her and her siblings Santa's reindeer (even though they aren't reindeer). Mistletoe is somewhere in the middle, and I need to figure out the age gaps and birth order of her siblings.

1. What kind of person is your OC in a crisis? Are they calm and collected? Do they panic? Or are they chronically the cause?

I guess it depends on what kind of crisis. She could either just...shut down and someone would have to physically drag her out/get her to move, or she'd be somewhat panicked but still levelheaded enough to navigate the situation.

20. Has your OC ever done something terrible and lied about it? Did they run away or blame someone else for it? How long did they maintain the lie and did the truth ever come out?

What’s the lie your character says most often?

19. Has your OC ever had an experience with the paranormal or the divine? What happened? Was it a one time encounter or is it a normal part of their life? Did they find it terrifying or thrilling?

5. What was the last time they cried, and under what circumstances? (Good way to get some *emotional* backstory in.)

Oh goody. So both siblings are pretty healthy when it comes to showing their emotions, but sometimes Elsine holds back for the sake of keeping the peace.

The last time Elsine cried was probably recently and due to anxiety (canonically true for the current rp i'm doing lol). She has to be overwhelmingly anxious for it to get that point. If she's just a little worried about a Worst Case Scenario(tm) but able to keep it mostly under control, she is less likely to cry.

Theodor, on the other hand, doesn't cry super easily, but he cries when he's dealing with his thalassophobia (i can't remember if he still has it in modern au) because of all the horrible stories he's heard about sea trolls n giants. His dad's a naval hunter, and Elsine sometimes makes trips to Iceland, which makes him worry about them when they have to do any sea travel.

10. What objects do they always carry around with them? (What do they need for their normal, day-to-day routine? What does ‘normal’ even look like for them.) 

Elsine: rucksack, dagger, writing utensils, paper, lunch, some snacks. This is just for work. She doesn't really carry anything when she's off work except her dagger. Her work days consist of scouting, and then she might stop by her mother's workplace for juicy gossip or go hang out at a friend's house for a bit. Off days can consist of anything: chores, hanging out with friends, errands, hanging out with Theodor, etc.

Lukas MCSM

skeleton man