Arrogance and You

[Darth Vaildra]

When you play a video game, watch a movie or tv show you know them characters you love to hate. That character that is so full of him or herself that it is unbearable, they are down right arrogant. Now, this brings us to Rp, how does one make those loveable, but hateable characters with making just a hateable character?

 

[Aithne Charr]

Not sure what about arrogant characters in games you find loveable to be honest. Im of the thinking that arrogant characters are annoying to high heaven.

 

[Captain Jordan]

Every character needs a drive. Why do they do what they do? Even the most twistedly evil characters have a knack for believing their actions to be anything but evil.

If your character believes they're not evil, why? What motivation do they have for acting as they do? What code or creed allows them to rationalize their actions, or perhaps even keep them constrained?

If your character embraces their evil-ness, why? What made them this way? What keeps them from acting selflessly toward others, and the focus on their own ambitions/goals?

 

[Fabula Caromed]

The thing about characters you "love to hate" compared to characters you just plain hate is that it's entirely subjective. What one person thinks is deliciously evil, the next person thinks is obnoxious. If you were to give a list of characters who were enjoyably evil, there's no guarantee that it would match or even compare to the list of characters I think are enjoyably evil.

There's no "secret trick" to writing an nerf herder who people love, because for every person who loves that character for their assholeness, another person hates them for being an insufferable douche, and a third has no strong opinion and finds them boring. Subjectivity applies as much to RP characters as it does to pop culture characters. There's no one way to bottle that reaction, because it's a reaction from the audience, not a quality of the character.

So my advice, if you're looking to have a character with the perfect blend of "love to hate," is to learn mass mind control and implant the suggestion to everyone who reads your writing that they're supposed to love your character. Otherwise, you'll get mixed reviews at best.

 

[Kadala Kotyc]

Fabs pretty much got it down pat. But one should also note that opinion's change. For example I used to hate Shorn (the character, not the writer) because, well, he came off as an arrogant prick. Over time, however, he turned into that character who I loved seeing around. Especially when he was dishing out sass. Of course, he was also one of those guys who had the skills to back up his ego.
Just my $0.02.

 

[Ellie Mors]

When you play a video game, watch a movie or tv show you know them characters you love to hate. That character that is so full of him or herself that it is unbearable, they are down right arrogant. Now, this brings us to Rp, how does one make those loveable, but hateable characters with making just a hateable character?

Be the most sarcastic arse you can be. Be smart, reveal little but always allude to more. Make it appear you know everything about what you talk about, even in narrative prose. The only way you'll have people love to hate you is if everyone hates you. And you need to stop and think about every little thing you go to post to ensure you are consistent with how you act.

Of course there will be people who don't like your character, so my suggestion is to always play towards the Magnificent Bastard trope, which requires a lot of proper buildup before you can become that lovable villain. And then there are those weird people who don't like villains in general, those you can ignore. (Those people generally have some sort of agenda that has absolutely no impact on your character at all.)

 

[Darth Vaildra]

[member="Silara Kuhn"]

What is this website you linked?!

 

[Jsc]

[member="Darth Valdra"]

Different characters appeal to different people. That said, you can aim for a specific demographic to increase your chances of a successful advert.

To explore. Age is one such category. For instance? Teenagers like things that are powerful, sudden, flavorful, and sexy. Adults like things that are dangerous, wealthy, detailed, and original. Seniors like classics, longevity, authenticity, and the intuitive. You can expand and contract around this idea forever too. Entertainment industries around the world love to use it. Probably too much. Lol.

Personally. Most of my characters are developed with myself as the target demographic. I'm the audience and the play write. I simply build with the knowledge and tools I have at this point in time. If it's entertaining to me? Welp. It's good enough. Now? Seeing how my characters are received, (or simply perceived), is always a delight. Some people like it. Some people don't.