~Strengths and Weaknesses/Realism~
Most good roleplayers know that
there is a fine balance between strength and weakness. Too much strength
turns a character into a god-moding super demon, while too much
weakness can have them killed in ten pages. If you're having trouble
with giving your character enough strengths or weaknesses, consider the
following:
A strength in one situation can be a weakness in
another. If , say, your character happens to own a metal sword that is
resistant to fire, he may be able to fend off fire attacks. But if he is
faced with electric attacks, the sword may conduct the electricity and
shock him to death. This is equally effective on abilities not
concerning weapons.
Personality quirks, while they have almost
nothing to do strength and weakness, add an extra sense of realism to a
character. In almost all cases, realism is a plus. Try different combination's of quirks for different results.
Finally, don't
forget this last topic: consider both the upsides and downsides to a weapon/scenario/etc. Everything has positive aspect and a negative
aspect. It may just happen to be that the delicious ice cream cone
Miyako is eating will cause her to have allergic reactions, or the field
that is wonderful for bird watching in the summer is a deadly mud
trench during rainy season.
Combining the aforementioned
techniques with similar others will help to give your character that
sense of 'realism' you've been searching for. Don't be discouraged if
things don't go well at first. Learn from the masters, practice, and
-most importantly- keep trying! I once heard that success is getting up
one more time than you fall down. You haven't failed until you've given
up.
