Character Type Interactions and the Players

Just as players tend to fit into one or more of the previous post's categories, those same players tend to play "to type." There are obvious examples of this and less obvious ones as well. Every gamer has encountered at least one of those players who won't play anything except a specific race or class, whether they fit in the setting or not. When I was a teenager, I went through a phase where I wouldn't play anything except a Jedi. My referees (who were all older than me) were very nice in accommodating this, even in fantasy settings. Luckily, I grew out of that sort of silliness and only play them in Star Wars.

I've encountered people who will only play Paladins or Clerics of a specific deity, even if that deity doesn't exist in the game. There have also been those people who will only play a Dwarf or an Elf, when the game won't support such things. These are obvious examples of playing to type. This kind of player can only be handled in one of two ways as a referee, indulge them or just be very clear that the type isn't allowed in your game.

The less obvious examples are people who always play a certain personality or political type, yet the outer coating of the character changes. This can range from someone who always plays the rebel outsider to someone who always manages to work their personal New Age world view into their concept. The first example would be the person who in Vampire: the Requiem plays the Carthian and in Star Wars prefers the Smuggler. The second example is the person who in Dungeons and Dragons plays the Druid or Ranger and in Werewolf: the Apocalypse prefers the Child of Gaia. These are comfort zones and we should always expect players to stay within a certain range of their comfort zones.

The only time that the less obvious types are a concern, is when you have two or more people whose comfort zone would always be in opposition. Some play styles (per my last post) and character types are just not compatible. As fellow players and referees, we will need to remind folks that they aren't being targeted or that the other person doesn't hate them.

My personal example would be two folks I've gamed with for several years each. One of them likes an obtuse and free-flowing game, thus tends to play intellectual manipulators and enjoys using obscure philosophical, intellectual and political resources. The second person prefers a predictable beer and pretzels approach to game, so tends to play characters that fit into a pretty specific structure and doesn't waste much time with intellectual details. These two people constantly find themselves at odds in various games.

Neither of them have a superior play style or type. Their play styles and comfort zones are just not compatible. Most players are mature enough to realize that it's just in game and not in the real world. If the players tend to take game personally the referee may have to take more direct action. When a group is large enough, such as a LARP or tournament game, this can be handled by keeping such people away from one another. As a referee, do your best to keep the characters busy at opposite ends of the game.

If you have a smaller game, or it's impossible to keep them away from each other, the referee may have to sit them down. This can be uncomfortable, but ignoring the problem will only make it worse. It will need to be made clear that they aren't the victim/s, it's just a matter of incompatible play styles and character types. If they tend play less intellectual characters, the group's intellectual elitist will always target them. If they always play the anarchist, the establishment characters will always oppress them. Certain types will always target certain other types in game.

If they can't accept this, they may want to look at other gaming options. I have several gamer friends that I avoid playing games with. I love them outside of game and have great times swapping cheesy stories with them. On the other hand, we don't game well together. Nobody likes to lose players to hard feelings, but sometimes not being in the same game as someone that makes you miserable is the only option. It is a game, after all. It's supposed to fun.

Player Archetypes

Every player has their own goals and desires. One player may acquire and accumulate Phenomenal Cosmic Power, but never use it unless they absolutely have to. Another player may hate the very idea of flashy but impractical abilities to the point that they mock other players for using them and even petitioning the game company to remove them. Lastly, there is always the player who accumulates and uses these sorts of abilities because they love their effect.

There have been quite a few archetypes proposed over the years. Most of them are targeted at the stereotypical Male gamer and target a specific genre. I will try to take the archetype into a more general categorization that can be applied across genres and players.

Casual Gamer: This archetype games to hang out with their friends. They aren’t there for the game itself, as they would move on to whatever game or activity their friends moved on to.

Diva: This archetype has to be the center of attention. They tend to become upset and disruptive if they lose their position at the group's center of attention.

Dungeon Crawler: This archetype is interested in killing the monster and gaining experience. Role-play encounters will bore this player, since they just want to get back to the action.

Explorer: This archetype loves to explore the game world. They are happiest when immersed in a detailed game setting.

Funny Guy: This archetype is out for a good time and will do anything for a laugh. As long as they and the other players are laughing, their actions don’t have to be logical or make sense in-character.

Griefer: This archetype plays to have an effect on other players. This can range from annoying the other players to directly attacking the other players’ characters. They get their enjoyment out of Player Versus Player content.

Meta-gamer: This archetype uses knowledge that the player has to advantage their character, even if the character does not have that information. This can include monster stats or the backgrounds of other characters. Sometimes this is intentional. Others it is an inability of the player to separate information.

Power Gamer: This archetype is out to “win” the game, even if the game isn’t designed to work that way. They Min Max their characters and tend to focus on the rules over story content.

Role-Player: This archetypes is interested in developing and portraying a complex character. They prefer to talk through a situation or outthink their opponents.

Specialist: This archetype plays one type of character only; ninja, Jedi, paladin, Elf, etc. This can relate to character class, race or type. They tend to become angry if they can’t play their character type in your campaign, even if it wouldn’t make any sense. An example would be a Drow in Serenity.

Storyteller: This archetype loves games that tell a continuous and involved story. Everything in the game should fit into this story; role-play, combat, etc. They have been known to sacrifice their own characters in the name of story.

Thinker: This archetype has fun by solving challenges through strategy and planning. They love battle maps and puzzles.

For most of these archetypes, combination is likely. Most players do not fit exclusively into one category; you will find a person who is part Role-player and part Meta-gamer, or even part Funny Guy and part Casual Gamer.

EDITED: 04/08/10 12:40 PM

Welcome to my new project

Just to give you an idea of what to expect from this blog and who I am:

Mostly, I will be telling funny stories from my games and sharing my views on what a healthy, enjoyable gaming group is. I don't have kids or want kids; so don't look to this blog for parenting vs gaming issues. I really can't help you, other than to tell you how the other gamers feel when the kids somehow become a disruption to the group.

I'm a rare breed; the middle aged, female gamer. My social skills don't suck, I'm gainfully employed in a technical field, own a home and I bathe on regular basis. My books are out-breeding the weeds in my garden. Outside of gaming, most of my hobbies are geeky. I like filk music, fannish media, MMOs, dressing in costume just to freak out the mundanes and I've been collecting Star Wars stuff since Episode IV was just Star Wars.

My gaming habit started from the time I could read and count. I've played role-playing games off and on since 1979 and live-action rpgs since 1993. Some of the people I currently game with have been part of my gaming group since 1992. Other have joined in the last couple of years.

I've played every incarnation of Dungeons and Dragons... and the Star Wars RPG. My gaming tends to focus on White Wolf and WotC products. I've played a lot of games other than those; Rifts, Cyberpunk, Shadowrun, Traveller, etc. I'm also open to trying new games. As far as LARPing; I'm a long term member of the Camarilla, I've played in a local boffer LARP, and I'm always on the lookout for some Amber Diceless.

On the MMO front; I've played Star Wars Galaxies, World of Warcraft, City of Heroes and I'm eagerly anticipating Star Wars: The Old Republic. I'm not really a console gamer, nor am I really into CCGs/TCGs. Though, I've dabbled in both. My board game collection is threatening to eat my books. I suspect they have secret battles while I sleep.

I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. My goal is to publish at least once a week. I also appreciate questions and comments.