Roleplaying the elements

[Surain]

Right. First discussion thread. Can't mess this up.


Crap, was I typing out loud? Welp, there goes that goal.


So this is for the planning of an Avatar: The Last Airbender roleplay that @ShalRavenne and I were talking about. Absolutely nothing has been decided yet, so this should be fun.


There are many, many ways where this rp will go. What characters are we going to use? How are they going to interact? How do they fit into the plot?


Do you have any ideas?

 

[ShalRavenne]

Well if it is the Last Airbender, we could set it to just before or just after he was discovered in the ice. We could have separate stories until they merge, say water tribe to a fire nation ship, or earth kingdom settlements, etc.


I am thinking of making a fire bender character that is not all that happy with the current rule but doesn't show it (as of course it would mean death), either that or a water bending healer. Depends on how we want to set this up.

 

[Surain]

We could do that. Would our characters eventually join with the Avatar for his (mis)adventures? Or would they go off having their own adventure, do you think?


As for characters, I think we should have two from different nations, and I'm okay with whatever you want your character to be. Both of them could have their own reasons for helping the Avatar, (A firebender from a noble family... for one reason or another, has free thought and manages to get out of the Fire Nation incognito; An Earthbender who had barely escaped from his village when the fire nation was rallying up all benders; etc) Either or both character(s) could also be a non-bender to make things interesting.


So, both of them wanting to help the fight against the Fire Nation, either by traveling with or indirectly helping the Avatar (by going off and starting rebellions/fighting the fire nation/evacuating refugees/something else)? It really depends on a character's personal history. It might be better to establish characters first, actually, and then find out how they would meet and what they would do.


If you want a firebender, I could make the healer you suggested. Or, maybe an Earthbender, if it works better.

 

[ShalRavenne]

Its all up to you what character you want to make. I think I'll be going with the firebender, you had the right idea with the noble family, yet she was a third child so she would have been sent to the Two Dragons, to live the way of the Sun Warriors, if she could manage to find them or they find her. She was cut off from said family. She didn't know that the dragons exist or that she actually found the Sun Warriors. She is 17 but still has the rights and training to finish as a firebender and in general knowledge before she can take the test to allow her into the community, since she was not born to it. The Sun Warriors have their eye on her in the shadows but she is still wandering.


I would help the Avatar but she would be traveling to find her way to honor her family. She is a bit angry and lonely as one could imagine, therefore she has a bit of a bitter way of things.

 

[Surain]

Hmm. Mine would be a water bender, aged 17, who is the son of a well-known waterbending warrior in the Northern Water tribe. His mother is much less known. He, at a young age, was interested in both fighting and healing, but his father would hear none of it—his son had to live up to his father's legacy, after all, and men couldn't be healers. The very notion is absurd. He remained confused, however, throughout his childhood. Why couldn't he learn both? If anything, he would be a better warrior for it.


This came to a head during a particularly bad argument between his father and him at the age thirteen, which ended in the decision that he would be allowed to learn how to heal, if he gave up any hopes of being a warrior. His father was utterly shocked when he agreed, and promptly tried to smooth the situation over. It didn't work, as within the month, my character began training with the female waterbenders. This led to several things: my character began to be teased immensely for 'being a woman', and soon learned not to care about social norms; the relationship between him and his father became tense and distant; and my character still expressed an interest in combative waterbending.


His interest in fighting led to yet another argument with his father. This time, his father said that if he wanted to learn how to fight, he would have to leave the tribe and find a teacher somewhere else. In a moment of anger, the father remarked, 'you won't find anyone willing to teach a woman anyway.' You would think the father would have learned from making 'ridiculous' offers to angry, pubescent teenagers but no, apparently not.


That was the anvil that broke the camel's back, and it took two weeks for him to get out of the Tribe. Was it an irrational decision? Yes. Does he care? No. He is now determined to prove his father wrong, find a teacher, learn how to fight, and maybe one day going back and kicking his father's figurative ass. In his travels, he heard of a rumour of waterbending swamp people. He's working on tracking them down when he meets either your character or the gaang.


So... yeah. Now, how do they meet?


Perhaps both of them can be visiting the same town, and end up in the same tavern/bar building. Some drunk guys begin harassing yours, and mine gets involved. He slowly gets his ass handed to him in the fight, as it becomes obvious that he wasn't trained to fight combatively (even though he tried to learn by himself) and yours comes in and beats the proverbial snot out of them. (whether or not yours bends to do this is important... they are in the earth kingdom while it is at war.)


Since yours doesn't know where to go, and mine only has a faint idea, they decide to travel together. Yours probably pities mine's inability to fight, and so yours tries to teach mine to defend himself. Not with bending, of course, but more physical. We go from there or somewhere else,


What do you think?

 

[ShalRavenne]

I like your idea on how we meet up. We could also use something similar with meeting with the Avatar later on after we journey for a while, get to know each other. Perhaps with the Rough Rhinos or something similar causing ruckus.


I probably wouldn't use firebending in the Earth Kingdom while it is at war simply because she would have been taught some politics, grew up with it until she was sent on her 'journey'. She would would be strong in fighting but restraint isn't her best suit. She has a temper as hot as her flames. She never showed her family her blue flames, etc. She is a powerful firebender but her control isn't solid for keeping it in check.


Did you wish to start?

 

[Surain]

Mmm, okay. If the gaang finds out about her firebending, what do you think would happen first: Sokka freaking out or Aang begging her to teach him? And if her temper is as hot as you say, I wonder how she and my character—who jokes and sarcastically flirts as a defense mechanism—would get along? This seems like it can be fun. And the Rough Rhinos idea is pretty good, actually. They'd both know that it's the Avatar due to the village that they were in, and would decide to travel with him for different reasons. *Adjusts monocle* Yes... this is good...


Two things before we start. First, who is going to roleplay the ganng when we get there? Both of us share everyone? Either of us are assigned people? How do you think we should go about that? I'm asking just to avoid confusion later on.


Second, do you think it's a good idea to make/exchange bios so that we both know what we're working with before we begin? To both define our own character and get a better understanding of each other's to give the roleplay a bit of a firmer foundation? We can skip this if you'd like.

 

[ShalRavenne]

We can both do it, and we can always use this thread to discuss actions before one posts if they want input or help to enrich a scene or a subplot/plot idea.


Also how do you feel on others controlling yours for small things? I don't mind (as long as you don't do something completely out of character or whatnot which then it would be discussed and changed to better suit)


If you don't want to make bios we don't need to, we can build and rp out the finer character details as we go. lol, if you prefer to as your style then I will.

 

[Surain]

Yeah, that seems fair. It shouldn't be too much of a problem, really, but it's good to have a back-up(I'm going to start re-watching a few of the episodes to get the vibe of the characters again). That reminds me, we're progressing like the show, right? Just with our characters tagging along?


Define, 'small'. I don't mind if you place my character in certain locations, or doing small actions that would make sense (ie: "She saw him practicing with Katara by the river." or something like that) but, dialogue and things from my character's perspective, like thoughts and feelings (ie: "He felt betrayed" or "He wanted to jump into the lake and pretend to be a drunk penguin.") should probably be left to me to express, at least initially. Now, if you want to post something 'small-ish' (like a reaction to something yours does, or dialogue... "His glare answered her question." for example), we could discuss it either here or in a conversation like you said. (Although, the discussion probably should happen before the post.)


Bios: I think it's a good idea. They don't even have to be that detailed—the most important bit is the personality. While it would be nice to have them, History and Appearance can both be revealed in the rp. (And the name, come to think of it... that also seems important xD )


I think I'll make one for myself regardless, just so I can keep track.

 

[ShalRavenne]

Alright, cool. I'll work on one after I make myself some dinner. No worries, we'll have discussions before the post is set up. That is cool with me. It won't be like the rp between Twisted Merlin and myself. He and I know each other's characters and therefore take over each other's chars because we know them haha. I did mean small things like that. Or a simple yes to a question like 'Are we stopping here?' or asking where we're going (if we've discussed it)

 

[Surain]

Yeah, that's fine. To be honest, I've have this fear of people rping my characters in general... it's like trusting someone to take care of my baby for a day. Not that I have a baby, but still. It's no offense to you, I'm just uncomfortable people in general controlling mah babies. Although, later on, maybe? If it gets to a point in the rp, wherever it is. But, yeah, until that, small things like you described are fine. Everything else will be dealt with when we get there.


I'm probably going to start working on mine tonight, after I finish some errands.

 

[ShalRavenne]

Name: Ran Sengemo


Nation: Fire


Bender: Yes; Fire


Age: 17


Sex: Female


Personality: She is quiet and bitter on the outside and refuses to let anyone pierce the shell she's created for herself. She feels outcasted, betrayed and lost. She doesn't like to rely on others but doesn't like to see others be bullied so she occasionally will step into fights that she could have walked away from. She is a lonely character and many can see it with some time even if she refuses to acknowledge the fact. She has a short temper and doesn't like to be the center of attention.


Bios: She grew up in a strict household, she was considered to be a liability and teachers had little patience for the third child of the family. She became ignored unless she was being bullied by her two older siblings or if her mother was home from her long diplomatic trips. She almost never interacted with her father unless it was to be scolded by something her siblings have done or if he was angry that she wasn't doing well in her bending studies. Because of her mother's love when she was able to be around she learned to hide more often than not and created a strong wall around her of figurative flames, she learned to be strong and angry on the outside while protecting herself on the inside. Her mother being held randsom in a far away Earth kingdom village made her father be very rash in his anger one night. Lashed out at Ran, sending her to find the Sun Warriors and learn from them or never dare return home. She was exiled, much like Prince Zuko, she had liked the prince on the rare occassion they met as children while their parents had discussions or meetings. So there is how she ended up on her own, wandering the world.


(Anything else? I'll describe her looks in my intro post)

 

[Surain]

I, er, got a bit carried away in the original bio. Here is a summary:


Name: Hiro Iha


Nation:Water


Bender: Yes; Water


Age: 17


Sex: Male


Personality: Hiro is a very... odd person. Some might call him a living contradiction. On the outside, he is a hilariously happy, funny, and kind-hearted person. He loves to help people, tries to smile at everyone who meets his eyes, and has an uncanny ability to find humour in absolutely anything. He genuinely seems to care for people, and wants to see them healthy and happy. Although this is noticed by very few people, he's also very secretive; any queries made into his history or personal thoughts will typically be deflected, again, usually by humour. Most people assume that he is a very open person by the way he acts, loud and confident, smiling at everything which bothers to look at him, until they actually pause and consider what they actually know about him. Do they know where he comes from? When they asked, he told them, "I'm the bastard child of a penguin and a noble, who left me in the forest to be raised by wolves. Bark." This was hilarious, or so it had seemed at the time. His straight-faced ability to flat-out lie about even the most basic of things doesn't seem to worry people either—after all, why would ever-smiling and ever-helping Hiro ever hurt anyone? Exactly. He's fine with making people laugh at his faux-arrogance and flamboyant humour to keep them at an arm's distance.


On the inside, if one manages to get to properly know him, she would realise just how fragile this outward persona was. Hiro is a very sensitive person, and even though he outwardly shrugs off insults with the arrogance of a king, or rejects compliments with the humility of a beggar, anything said to him affects him to an extent. His humour and outward mask help protect him, though. Making people smile helps him cope, for one, and sometimes Hiro's act of confidence is so convincing that he manages to even convince himself. It is, simply put, a game of balance. He can't appear too weak, and has too look confident—however, he must also be warm and willing to help people. Sensitive and callous. Arrogant and humble. All to hold a face to protect what's inside. Walking around is normally is like wearing a masquerade mask.


All of this goes out the proverbial window when someone it hurt, however; unless he jokes to calm a patient, he is cold and efficient. He unflinchingly does what needs to be done to help people, and everything else is secondary.


History: Hiro was born to a warrior father, who wanted him to be a combative waterbender as well. While Hiro had no problem with this as a child, he also wanted to learn how to heal. It was, after all, useful and, to him, just another form of waterbending. Why not? His father certaintly didn't explain why not when he was terrified and infuriated when Hiro asked after learning how to heal; no, that conversation revolved around the, 'you're not a woman' argument and much, much shouting. In the end, Hiro was offered to learn how to heal in exchange for forfeiting his right to learn combative waterbending. Angry, pubescent, and confused Hiro accepted the offer to the surprise and horror of his father, who had not expected his foolish son to take it. So, for the next four years, Hiro studied healing until he was seventeen. At this point, he was soon to be declared an official healer. Hiro was left with a problem; we finished learning what could be taught in the field of healing, but he wanted to learn how to fight too. He approached his father a few days before he was to receive his scroll of approval to become a healer.


That ended poorly. The notion that he now wanted to be a warrior was ridiculous. The years of shame from his son had not been kind to his father, it seemed, who called him some of the rudest things he'd ever heard. The conversation ended with the following: "...If you want to learn how to be a warrior waterbender, you're going to have to find a teacher outside of the tribe! Although, spirits help you—no one you find is going to want to teach a woman!"


That was the anvil that broke the camelbear's back. He had heard enough. A few days later, he accepted his scroll and officially became a healer. That night, he boarded a boat and left his tribe and a note at his parents home. The note completely ignored his father, and instead apologized to his mother for his sudden leaving. He landed and began to travel, following rumours of waterbending swamp people. Maybe they could teach him? Along the way, he stopped at various towns and villages, healing and helping those that he could. It paid to be a healer, it seemed, and he managed to gain enough money to live off of. He was also unassuming in crowds, and, while he traveled alone, he managed not to attract attention from thieves or pirates. This is how he ended up traveling the world.


--


No, that's good! It's only to get an idea, really, and the appearance can be described later like you said. Now, we're starting in the tavern, right? Do you want to make the thread, or shall I?

 

[Deadkool]

Could I join?

 

[White Masquerade]

Well, I was going to start one myself about a month ago, but decided to can it and flake out. If you want the ideas I had for it, just let me know.


Anyway, I'll be honest with ya; it'll be tough. With fandoms, there's a certain reason people liked the show. You have to incorporate that into the role-play. With Avatar, it was the story-telling, and the elements. Those are the two most important things that should be focused.


As far as elements, I'm sure you know how that goes, so I won't explain too much of it here. I will say, surprise people; make a new form of an old element. Have more than one Avatar. Instead of human and spiritual, have a completely new and different world to add into the mix.


Now onto what makes it tricky. The story-telling will be the main draw; at least that's what it was for the first series. Your plot is going to have to be moving and top-notch to mirror that same kind of magic. To make things easy, focus on the struggle of the Avatar, and how his friends help him/her overcome. Also, there are four nations, so you want to include their relationship in things as well.

 

[ShalRavenne]

Thank you for the advice White! I appreciate the kindness, since we're both trying to figure out each others writing style so it helps to know what the hardships were in a past Avatar roleplay. On that note, Deadkool, I'm sorry but I think we're going to limit this to just us, at least until we find a rhythm and get ourselves a roleplay happening. Perhaps you can join in at a later date if this roleplay succeeds it's initial push and foundation to get it going? We would have to see.


I am sorry if that is mean, I am not trying to be. I'm just wary of adding too much in the mix too fast for this sort of roleplay.

 

[Surain]

Shal is right; this is just both of us testing the waters. Once things get going it might be different, but for now, I think it's best to keep this to ourselves.


And, White, thanks for the post! I don't presume to be able to match the level of story-telling that the show did—especially on this platform—in this rp, but we'll definitely take this into consideration. Although, as Shal said, the primary goal of this is to figure out each other's style, followed by 'to have fun', and possibly 'to devour much cake'. That last one is undecided, though. Either way, we'll keep what you said in mind.

 

[White Masquerade]

Haha. Okay. Don't go crazy with the cake now. Good luck ya'll.