[TML] How long can you survive in the vacuum of space?

[Jerry W Barrington]

On 7/2/08 3:58 PM, "Azalais Aranxta" <tiamat at tsoft.com> wrote:

> *looks down at chest, boobs are still there*  Um, not so much.
> 
> Even gender and orientational differences aside...not so much.

This is a very important point.  One person's idea of "everyman" may be
along "Duke Nukem" lines, while another may think "Agent 99".

> If this were true then there'd be no point in having multiple
> "normal human" characters.  In fact roleplaying offers the
> opportunity not just to respond and react to situations you will
> never encounter in real life, it also offers the opportunity to
> be people who do not react and respond to things the way you
> would.  Julissa haut-Baris is much more likely to consider
> sleeping with a man she's just met than I am.  Gwendi Donovan is
> happier dealing with military hierarchies than I would ever be.
> Her brother Tyler...not so much.   (He predates "Irresponsible
> Captain Tyler" by a good 15 years, but the characters are very
> alike, LOL.)  Adlikliepr was not just "me with psychic powers
> that actually worked."  My Irklansa characters, of whom there
> were several, certainly did not think like me!
> 
> Religion, philosophy, education, class status, personal history
> and genetic temperament differ from individual to individual.
> Few of my characters have shared my tendency to depression.
> None of my bisexual or gay Traveller characters had ever lived in
> a place where they were discriminated against based on sexual
> orientation.  Very few of my characters have had a religion that
> currently exists in this world, and fewer still have had either
> of my primary religious identifications, one of which influences
> the way I dress, the food I eat and the things I am willing to
> say about other people.
> 
> For a lot of people (and I hate to generalise gender-wise, but
> this is my personal observation/experience) who roleplay,
> especially guys, your statement may be true:  their characters do
> pretty much think and act and behave the way THEY would, in a
> given situation with a given skill set.

I'd say it's a fair generalization, but then one of the few women I RPed
with did that too.  And all her characters were *very* similar as a result.
Sadly, I haven't got a lot of other female RPer observation to compare her
to.  I'm not saying this is a bad way to play.  There's a lot of fun to be
had in playing a "fantasy me".

I'll even admit I've done it myself, even when playing female characters.
I'm one of those guys who, while firmly heterosexual, have a lot of
behaviors most people tally as "feminine".  I often play support roles like
healers and the grav-tank driver, rather than the lead hero roles.  (No, not
the Sgt Oddball tank driver, although that would be fun if I could pull it
off.)

> But in fact, that's one of the quickest ways to screw yourself up
> in a lot of the games I've run (Traveller and otherwise), which
> tend to revolve around intrigue, social situations and culture
> clashes:  acting like an American middle-class male on the geeky
> side (or, in journal based games, a middle-class college
> girl) usually isn't the best way to approach things.

Depends a whole lot on the campaign you play in.  :)