Character Development Questions #6 - Physical Appearance
- How does this character dress? How would they choose to dress, if all options were open to them: In standard dun brown robes with his Clan's crest on the chest, like most Suzume, with a green traveling cloak and straw hat usually. Not much of a fashion guy.
- Do they have any tattoos: Nope.
- Do they have piercings: Nope.
- Do they have scars: A few, but no more than most people.
- Do they alter their appearance in some way on a regular basis: Nope.
- Is there something they'd choose to change about their appearance if they had the opportunity to: Maybe be just a little bit taller. He's not really that sensitive about it, though he does think it'd be nice.
- Is there something about their appearance they're particularly proud of/happy with: Rather fond of his hair, nice and thick.
- Objectively, are they physically attractive? Fairly plain? Unattractive: Somewhat plain, kind of rugged looking.
- Do they have an accurate mental picture and opinion of their physical appearance: He kind of looks like Korean actor Song Kang-Ho, actually. Just a little bit younger.
- How much time do they spend thinking about their physical appearance: Little to none.
Character Development Questions #7 - General Knowledge
- Can they navigate their own local area without getting lost? To what degree: Exceptionally well, given his wandering nature.
- Do they know who the top politician or monarch is where they live? What about elsewhere: Only regionally, given how xenophobic the homeland is.
- Do they know if/where there are any major conflicts going on right now: Pretty well informed.
- Do they know the composition of water: Well yes, the playful water kami.
- Do they know how to eat a pomegranate: Um...
- Are they good with the technology available to them: Not a whole lot of technology to speak of.
- Could they paint a house? Without making a mess of it: Probably, yeah. Did a lot of such work while young.
- Could they bake a cake? Would you eat it if they did: I, uh... don't really trust Asian confections.
- Do they know how to perform basic maintenance on the common mode of transportation: Never really got on well with horses.
- Do they know the price of a loaf of bread: A few zeni, probably.
Character Development Questions #8 - Specific Knowledge
- Do they have a specific qualification in a narrow area: Magic! Also, outdoorsmanship.
- Is there something they do or know exceptionally well that most other people don't: Again, Oriental wizardry.
- Do people often comment on a particular skill or area of knowledge to this character: Not really. Tends to keep his skills to himself.
- Is there an area this character could be considered top of their field or a genius in: Nope, pretty average for what he is.
- Have they deliberately sought to gain knowledge in a specific area: No, his education was pretty general.
- Do they speak more than one language: Just the one, but again, xenophobic culture.
- Does their cultural background effect what they would be expected to know: Basically.
- Have they ever been publicly acknowledged for being well-versed in something: Not really. He's a bit too humble for such things.
- Have they ever been bullied for knowing a lot about something: Not exactly, but plenty of bullying in his past at the hands of his older brothers.
- Do they actively seek new knowledge, or let it come to them naturally: Definitely the latter.
Character Development Questions #9 - 'What if...' Questions
- What if they'd been born with a different biological sex: Well I guess they'd be a bit of different person, so I don't know? Probably not too different, pretty egalitarian setting in that regard.
- What if they'd have more or less siblings: Any more would probably be bad, already has five. Less would be bad, as he'd be under more scrutiny.
- What if a key formative event in their past had gone differently: Um, probably be a happier and freer fellow if not for the arranged marriage declaration.
- What if they lost a limb: Would probably cut into his Wizardly Woodsman image somewhat. He'd probably find some other excuse to shirk marriage, though.
- What if someone close to them died unexpectedly: Pretty devastated, if say, it was his father or sister. He'd probably man up and get married/take responsibility.
- What if they'd been born 50 years earlier? 100 years? 1000: Probably not much, as fantasy settings are kind of... static.
- What if they'd done something completely different on the morning when the story starts: Well, then he'd be shirking his samurai duty, which is a very Shamefur Dispray.
- What if they found enough money to make them wealthy for the rest of their life in a bag: Um, brief period of hedonism before appropriating it among his clan.
- What if they were stranded and deserted: He'd survive, most likely. Pretty resourceful outdoorsman.
- What if they were betrayed by someone they trusted: Again, pretty devastated. Probably dip into depression.
Character Development Questions #10 - Miscellaney
- What did they have for breakfast this morning: Tea and rice.
- What ridiculous belief/s did they have as a child: That the sky and weather changed depending on the mood of the Emperor, and whether or not he was sleeping.
- Do they like marshmallows: Don't think he's ever had any.
- Do they sleep on their side, front, or back: Side, usually. Sometimes back.
- Do they work better with sound or silence: Relative silence, some ambient nature sounds, I guess.
- Do they have a strange obsession with something minor: Slight interest in foreign goods, but not much.
- Do they like art: More simple and traditional work than anything.
- How fast can they run: Faster than most.
- Do they prefer to sit on the floor or on a chair: Well, based on ancient Japan, so...
- What do they want, right now: Some social freedom. Or a nice bath.
Question 101 - Why Should The Audience Care About Your Character?
Haha! This is a character I made for a tabletop game, so I get to circumvent this question. But, let me think... He's pretty human, I guess. And, a character at odds with his culture always makes a good protagonist in a setting where the culture's pretty foreign to the reader.
