DB

I took an acting workshop relatively recently, and there was a note that was given to another person in that class when they were doing a scene with someone else. It was a scene where the actor had chosen that one of the characters, as informed by the script, was a nerd. The note that was given was something to the effect of: “You don’t have to be funny–the script is already funny. Play the person–the character.”

I want to talk about that a little bit, and how you can apply that to doing your own character work in your favorite tabletop roleplaying game (TTRPG).

The Strength of an Archetype

The three point landing of a superhero. The boy-scout, do-gooder, voice to accompany that. The upright, self-assured posture of someone who’s invincible.

These are the traits of (nearly) every Superman clone. These iconic traits are aspects that you can take on to communicate what the character is capable of, and how it makes them feel. If they’re literally and physically invincible, yeah, for the most part they would be rather self-assured in their stature. They would lead with a confidence in their body that not only are they invincible, but they can be a stalwart shield against the dangers that are coming for you, the civilian!

But, it doesn’t communicate what their favorite food is. Or heck, what they personally think of you. It’s a role, a job, a performance in a performance, and an avatar. It isn’t a complete person.

But, it is a recognizable and strong archetype.

The temptations of leaning into stereotypical and archetypal aspects of a role or a person are great. Like the dark side of the Force, these are powerful aspects. Like doing impressions of a person, you lean into the inflections of voice, the weight of their body, and their choice of words to quickly communicate what an audience and your scene partner should think about the character. A Hero, a Villain, a Fool, a Commander, a Teacher.

But, if you are not careful, you can live only within the archetype and never grow the character beyond it.

The Character

Like life, characters are more than their archetypal role, or their job. They have wants, desires, and fears like anyone else. Where did they grow up? Did they have friends? Who are they? What do they like doing? How do they talk about the things that they love? Do they talk about those things with everyone, or are they secretive about them? Is there anything that they’re ashamed of? People that they’re ashamed of being with?

Who are they?

Sometimes, people are straight shooters and are truly the whole package of what they’re presenting. Often, that’s not the entire case. Sometimes they’re thinking of something, or someone else when they’re talking with you or doing their job. Sometimes, they’re not talking about what the words are saying–they’re implying something else with the way that they’re saying the words, how they’re looking at you, when they choose to speak, how close they choose to stand next to you, and how touchy or not touchy they get.

The character is the whole person, and getting a glimpse of that either in your portrayal of the character through your acting or through your third person narration can provide your scene partners, your fellow players and your GM, with morsels to dig into for further exploration. What’s their relationship with that shopkeeper, and why did they look regretful when they left their store? Why are they so hurried finish this quest, and get to the next one? Why don’t they take a break?

There’s lots of juice that you can provide to your scene partners by thinking about the way that your character, as a person, sees the world, and how they would act according to that. Maybe your portrayal of these things, your acting ability, isn’t up-to-stuff to tell that story. That’s fine! You can always supplement your actions with your words, as you literally tell and narrate what you want to communicate about your character. Roleplaying is about what your character does. Their actions, as informed by their wants, which you may or may not fully understand in the moment, but might figure out later on.

You can do a lot of things as your character–by acting like them, or just by saying what they do. Making choices is what matters. And hey, if you know enough about their wants, desires, and fears, you can break free from the bonds of the archetype as well.