Useful Characters are Likeable Characters.
They’re useful because they possess a specific set of Skills.
And they are willing to use them.
Which Skills would these be?
Summary – 4 steps to a Useful Character
- Define the Theme translating your Character’s Motivation.
- Define which Skills are useful in your Story.
- Define the Character’s Skills.
- Display how the Character can be of Use.
Your Character is an Individual.
The more you draw your character, the more memorable she becomes.
Combat Skills
Combat Skills are essential for the Protector, the Leader & the Rival.
- Specialization
- How many type of Weapon can the Character use?
- Can she use Blades?
- Can she use Blunt?
- Can she use Fire weapons?
- How good is her Marksmanship?
- Which Technology has her favor?
- Does she have Unique Skills?
- Did she learn to use certain weapons others can’t?
- How’s is her Finesse?
- How’s is her Prowess?
- Which kind of weapons does she favor?
- Training
- How does she Train?
- What are her Habits?
- Where does she go to train?
- How long does she train on a daily basis?
- Does she train with others?
- Does she train alone?
- How does she Train others?
- Does she force her principles on to them?
- Does she allow them to develop their fighting peculiarities?
- Which Techniques does she favor?
- Which Techniques can she teach?
- How goes she Teaching?
- Is she comfortable with training someone else?
- Can she care for someone else’s development?
- Conflicts
- How Relentless is she?
- Does she fear Crisis?
- Does she Compromise?
- Does she Forgive?
- How Reliable is she?
- Does she Cower?
- Does she Abandon others?
Relationships Skills
Relationships Skills are essential for the Advisor, the Arbiter & the Sponsor.
- Empathetic
- How Benevolent is she?
- Does she care for her team members?
- Does she care for people outside of her team?
- Does she care for her Relatives?
- How Encouraging is she?
- When does she encourage people?
- How Supportive is she?
- Does she push people to pursue their Reasoning?
- Does she allow them to develop their Skills?
- Does she Share resources?
- How does she Share resources?
- Does she show her Interest in others?
- Does she listen to them?
- Is she focused onto them?
- Is she answering their Questions?
- Proactivity
- How Resilient is she?
- Does she try to Solve problems?
- How fast does she Solve them?
- How Reactive is she?
- How Communicative is she?
- Is she Asking for Input?
- Is she Asking for Inquiry?
- Is she offering Services?
- Is she offering Gifts?
- To whom?
- To which occasion?
- Strategy
- How Measured is she?
- How Determined is she?
- How is she Planning?
- Does she make Plan on a daily basis?
- Does she make Plan in preparation of a Crisis?
- Does she have a Journal?
- Which use does she make of it?
- How does she Anticipate?
- How Inclusive is she?
- Does she know how to Capitalize on strengths?
- Does she know how to Attribute suitable Roles?
- Does she Ensure team members satisfaction through appropriate functions?
Crafting Skills
Crafting Skills are essential for the Supplier, the Solver & the Builder.
- Commercial Skills
- Does the Character have Crafting skills?
- Which kind of good can she Craft?
- Is she good at Grooming/Hairstyling/Styling?
- Is she good at Cloth/Shoes making?
- Is she good at Tailoring?
- Is she good at Smithing?
- Can she Smith Weapons?
- Can she Smith Armors?
- Can she Smith Tools?
- Which kind of Tools?
- Is she good at Cooking?
- For how many people can she cook?
- Is she an Efficient Cook?
- Can she build other types of Goods?
- Can she sell them?
- Where can she sell them?
- Does she find customers easily?
- Survival
- How does she Hunt?
- Does she Hunt alone?
- Can she teach tracking & hunting to others?
- How developed is her Environmental Knowledge?
- How easily can she use the Materials she found?
- Can she make Weapons out of them?
- How can she Use her own environment?
- How does she Modify her Environment?
- Can she build Shelters?
- Which kind of Shelters?
- Out of which kind of goods?
- Where is she Building them?
- Where is the Safest location?
- Where is the Optimal location to find information?
- How is she Building them?
- How does she gather Resources?
- How Energy efficient is she?
- Engineering
- Does she enjoy Deconstructing items?
- How Focused is she?
- Does she understand Procedural generation?
- Does she write Procedures?
- How Patient is she?
- How Calm is she?
- Does she favor Processes over Results?
- How does she Improvise?
- What are her strategies of improvisation?
- Does she invent new products?
- What’s her definition of Innovation?
Entertainment Skills
Entertainment Skills are essential for the Enticer, the Guide & the Soul.
- Improvisation
- How does she Entertain her team mates?
- How does she Entertain other people?
- Does she create Games?
- Which sort of Games?
- What is their purpose?
- How does she make the Public Participate?
- Do they enjoy their Participation to their performance?
- How does she prepare her performances?
- How does she improvise?
- Do they feel Rewarding?
- Fun & Performances
- How does she Amuse herself?
- When is she Satisfied?
- How is she Satisfied?
- How Imaginative is she?
- How valuable is Knowledge to her?
- How does she make learning amusing?
- How does she Transmit Knowledge?
- How does she turn Information into Fun?
- How valuable is Intelligence to her?
- Teaching
- How Enticing is she?
- Do other Emulate her?
- Does she encourage others to Experiments?
- How go her own Experimentations?
- What is she looking for?
- Which Postulates does she establish?
- How does she Test them?
- How does she formulate Conclusions?
- Does she go on Adventures?
- Does she bring others with her?
- What’s her view on the World?
- What is she interested by?
- What Focalizes her?
- What is her Journey?
- Is she Long-Term oriented?