Old character backstories

[Quill]

Y'all, I'm going through some of the first iterations of my biography for Quill as a character, and I was wilding out as a twelve-year-old. In one of them, she was born on a ship coming from Valinor AND she later discovers that her father is a half-elf. How...how?

[Reikon Suchi-ru]

Man I wish I could find some of my old in-character RPs for Reikon. They were so angsty, broody, and so typically teenager. XD

[Fairy Nuff]

My wizzie character wore pink and orange polka-dot robes and licked toads...

[Dimcairien Luiniel]

I never got very deep into my characters, but I have a few brief notes for my two main ones, so hopefully I can use those as a starting point and more or less revamp my characters. I also cringe at the thought of how bad some of my high school RPGing was.

[Quill]

Reading through the evolution of her story, I was clearly just trying to fit her to whatever I was super interested in at the time, and also explain how I changed kingdoms all the time while keeping the same character. The last version actually isn't so bad, so I'll probably just tweak it a bit and keep it at that.

[Culfinwen Lihtarwe]

Adult me is pathetically grateful that the internet has eaten that crazy long fanfic I did about my character's backstory, where I posted about two paragraphs at a time because then I got more points (and because I was 14/15 and thought 15k words was a novel). I don't think I could handle the cringe of rereading it.

[Oak]

Oakleaf started out as a small Huorn. Lanthy and Ruinel liked her that way. I never really did play an Ent. I just didn't really fit into that role.

[Oak]

Adult me is pathetically grateful that the internet has eaten that crazy long fanfic I did about my character's backstory, where I posted about two paragraphs at a time because then I got more points (and because I was 14/15 and thought 15k words was a novel). I don't think I could handle the cringe of rereading it.

I wasn't always the nicest person to RP with in the early years, I also am also glad the internet has eaten my history.

[Dincairwen]

I'm planning to make a deep dive into my computer later to find stuff. I remember general details, enough to pull off passable casual RP. There may be a fair amount of of "And then Cair stared blankly at them wondering WTF they were talking about. Her memory was not what it used to be."

[Shivased]

I still have some stuff from Shiva's early story and it was pretty cringy. Thankfully I edited a lot of it as time went on so she made some sense! She started as half Gondorian princess distantly related to the stewards/half Rohirrim distantly related to Eowyn and Eomer who spent her youth living with elves in Lorien because her father was a great friend to them who they owed a favour to.....glad I changed all that, it was spectacularly bad!

[Elvheimdros]

Despite never intentionally deleting anything (well... deleting much) I seem to have lost most of my backstory/fanfic/backstory fanfic somewhere in the transtions between computers. I'm sure the stuff's buried in the WaybackPlaza somewhere but my search-fu isn't turning up much quickly and I don't care enough to try harder!

I do remember the outlines of the backstory - Eastfolder, had to leave the farm (probably got burned or something with the family by Orcs). Tried to play the pretty-boy-but-actually-useful character (I tried this for years across several different RP systems - in retrospect definitely escapist/idealist looking for things I'm not - well I might have gotten somewhat useful IRL eventually), invented a local legend about northern Eastfolders saying they had Elf-blood, implied appearance looked a little different from a "normal" Rider - in short, tried to be handsome, wise, and touchy, but probably mostly just succeeded in the "touchy", at least when trying to do the character thing.

Mostly I didn't do in-character real well, but I did like doing-stuff RP. Cavalry, Adventurous Souls, some big RPG I've forgotten the name of that I joined halfway through (I think playing a different character) that wandered all over southern ME for a while and finally wrapped up with like six people actually trying to keep it going. Fanfic I tried because people I thought were cool did it and I wanted to be cool but knew they did it better... :roll:

I know I tried to get back into in-kingdom RP several years after mostly dropping off the Plaza, playing older-but-wiser-homecoming, but that lasted about a month and didn't really re-establish the character.

These days if I tried to run my character I don't know if I'd want to try to weld onto that background or just ignore it and start over as some dude who happened to have the same name... might depend what, if any, continuity we establish communally.

[Finduilas Faelivrin]

I kept all of mine, but I'm too embarrassed to post any of those early ones now. I was a baby RP'er with high aspirations. Cringeworthy at best!!

[Oro]

Ohh man, all my characters were like paladin white knights out of the stories, amazing at everything with no weaknesses. It was ridiculous. Super cringe.

[Reikon Suchi-ru]

I wish I could make sense of some of the character choices I made in my early years as an RPer. I do know Reikon was very old for an Elf, but was not born in Valinor...I'll have to dig up some old posts and get to the bottom of this!

[Eldrith]

So.. I was a bit older when I found the plaza. All the way in my twenties.. like 23 or 24 or so I think. AND I had several years of roleplay experience under my belt. That means that my story was pretty simple to begin with. Some very unexpected events on the plaza made for a drastic change, but overall.. I wrote it down just a few hours ago in the hall of rohirric histories: https://www ... ?f=12&t=96 and it was surprisingly consistent for being 20 years old by now! LOL

[Veowyn]

I remember much of my character's history, but I think that is because I had to work so hard to adapt it when we switched the old plaza from 4th age to 3rd (or rather got all the areas into the same time frame ). And I also had once hoped to write a whole fan fic book about her. (I never had a specific over all plot and it felt weird writing by myself so I gave up, but I sometimes add to Veo's history) I think I am going to still keep much of that adaptation here now. I wanted to start over, but then I felt like I would lose too many important memories for me and the character.

[Lirimaer]

Since old me was an Istari who became corrupted, I think we'll leave her in the past. There was a brief attempt to create an elf character, but my time on the plaza was greatly reduced by lack of both time and inclination, and she faded into the mists as much as I did.

[Rálindë Fey]

Ugh. I started as a rivvy elf then didn't quite fit in there and moved to KD. Because I really liked my elven name I came up with a "fab" backstory of how my character's parents were killed by Orcs and some passing Elves of Rivendell adopted a small Dwarf. And then they never came around to returning her as, when you're immortal, time has no meaning as it does when you actually age. :D

[Rivvy Elf]

Unfortunately, I did not start out in KD, otherwise this would mesh well with the post above mine.

My first character was a wizard with... no backstory! He was just there zapping things while being a klutz.

Can’t think of any real cringe serious characters I created unfortunately...

[Rohwyn]

Oh man... I had absolutely no idea what RP was, really, when I joined the site back in I think 2002? eeeeep. So I had such a vague idea of how to make a character that I spent so much more time on what she could do rather than who she was, so she was just this herbalist who was super old to my teen self... I think I said she was 35 or so. (SO OLD.) I did get to love Roh through my year or so as a Rider, as she made friends and healed people, but I was nooot good at RP back then at all! Oh and her parents were dead. Possibly a requirement for RP characters created by young teens.

[Istya Alassea]

Whenever I type in my old Plaza name, Google picks up an old database full of character backstories. Dark red background, semi-white text? I had to laugh when I re-read my story. I wouldn't change it even now, but the story does sound a tad farfetched. A hobbit adopted by elves? Apparently, @Ralinde Fey, we were on the same wave length. Oh, well, I am too much of a linguist to want to change my name to something more hobbit-like. Tolkien's Quenya is just too interesting.

[Winddancer]

I think I started the craze of evil elves in Mordor, with red eyes It doesn't really matter if we are canon or not, to some extent, as long as we are being creative. At least that is how I see it now :P Oh and I did rp the whole transition to Mordor from Lorien with an actual minion! :P

[Thalionwen Hunigfolm]

Adult me is pathetically grateful that the internet has eaten that crazy long fanfic I did about my character's backstory, where I posted about two paragraphs at a time because then I got more points (and because I was 14/15 and thought 15k words was a novel). I don't think I could handle the cringe of rereading it.

I beg your pardon, I LOVED that fanfic and lived for updates!!!!!

[Finduilas Faelivrin]

Ugh! I have been searching through my computer files for old info and training posts. Crrrrrrringe!!!! I think my posts were the perfect definition of "pedantic" * !! But then, back in those days we all had a lot of competition and had to make ourselves stand out in some way. These days, I don't feel that and just want Findy to be a "normal" boring person for awhile.

*(thanks Google) Pedantic means "like a pedant," someone who's too concerned with literal accuracy or formality. It's a negative term that implies someone is showing off book learning or trivia, especially in a tiresome way.

[Culfinwen Lihtarwe]

I beg your pardon, I LOVED that fanfic and lived for updates!!!!!

I think that darn thing was 15 threads by the time it was done! It WAS really fun to do. I remember giving people cameos. :smiley8: But I still don't think I could bear to read through all the teenage drama and angst again!

[Karis Ziranphel]

Hiya Quill. I am one of the few who actually liked and still use my backstory, because even when I started it had to have logic and be plausible (to me at least). Granted, with timeline changes I tweaked a few things, but most things largely stayed the same. It has even been useful with trying to decide what on earth happened to my character that makes the current changes plausible. Overall my storytelling has vastly improved in readability, although I think the content was always there, but I am still very stilted when it comes to writing interactions with others; something I can't quite shake. I suppose it helps to go back every now and then to read previous posts and see improvement over the years.

[Quill]

Heyyyy Karis! Nice to see you on our old stomping grounds :)

[Lealnemarr]

Leal's backstory has some plot holes, sure (she weilds a sister-sword of Arwen's?) But I think it's decent enough overall and everyone in it is pretty much dead so..... *Shrug* ;)

It's been a hot minute for us oldies, so, I am sure we can all just know we did our best and continue forward. Also, @Reikon Suchi-ru I have screenshots of your teenage angsty broodiness somewhere, I am sure :p

[Lail]

Leal!!! So good to see you! I like your attitude. We did our best. :)

But looking back, we could all be a bit silly sometimes and I don't think that's a bad thing!

Lailindeiel's backstory was also a bit of a mess. Since she had an elvish name but was from Rohan I decided to make her a half-elf. I'm certain there were probably hundreds of half-elves running around. Later on I think I tried to get more serious about it and modified things, but you know, really, its just for fun right? I sometimes think trying to follow canon too closely is just stifling.

I actually always wanted to play a wizard and an Ent, but could never really get going for some reason.

Culfy - I remember loving your fanfic and cameos! I don't think it was cringe-worthy but we are all our own worst critic and I am certain I feel the same way about what I wrote back then, too!

[Dis]

I've always RP'd Dis and was always in KD. I remember most of her backstory. I was in my 40s when I signed up in 2003. Consequently I had Dis be somewhat more mature. She survived the burning of the Lonely Mountain by Smaug. She lost her sweetheart in the conflagration and so never married. She is at times haunted by his ghost. Now I have her as old and somewhat deranged with strange delusions which might or might not be true.

[Wamba_the_Fool]

One of Blædtunge's first forays was a trip to KD to get a dwarven-forged spearhead. Hardly any development or anything, just popped in a pub, a friendly dwarf (I don't remember his name) RP'd with me a little bit, got my spearhead, and galloped back to Meduseld. (10 to 1 the coming and going wasn't even mentioned; I'm pretty sure it all took place in the pub.) Looking back on it it seems odd and out of place, even for a brash go-getter like Blæd.