Experiences Character ages

[weldherwings]

So I've noticed something about myself. When I was 13, my characters were always around my age. Fairly normal, right? When I was 20, my character range was 16 years being my youngest and 21 being my oldest. I once thought about creating a 23 year old character and my brain did that thing where it said are you an effing idiot, that is so old.

Now that I'm 26, I'm developing a character who is 25 and my brain has gone crazy and told me he's way too young! No Steph, he's 25 in normal age - he's 26 in Korean years! That doesn't matter! Make him older - HELL, MAKE HIM 40. 40 IS STILL YOUNG.

Has anyone else experienced moments like these? Hahah

 

[Strawberry Ink]

Yeeeep, I went through a similar stage! I remember trying to write a teenager while I was still a preteen and that character, in retrospect, was super immature for their age, so I guess there's a reason why our brains tell us not to write for a character older than us at the time. At least until we become adults and have a greater perspective on what that means, I guess. Lol

 

[rae2nerdy]

Yeah I think it’s pretty common to age your characters similarly to yourself. It’s a reflection of where you are in life. Teens are more likely to relate to the life experience and interests of teen characters.

Adults will relate more to the life experience and interests of adult characters.

 

[Shuusuke]

I usually try to give my characters a wider backstory which encompasses more than just one age range, so it's difficult to speak as if I only ever imagined them in a certain age.

Despite being older than that myself, I start thinking of most of my characters' stories when they're on their mid-to-late-teens most of the time, and when some of that is established, then I expand their past and future. It may be because most anime I've watched up to now had teenage characters composing most of the cast, or maybe because the RP setting makes teenage characters more appealing, or maybe because I unconsciously think teenage years are the most decisive in a person's personality/life, or maybe because that was the age when I was the most inspired to think of characters...I don't really know the reason, but that's how the creative process usually starts for me.

Creation aside, the same thing happens for actual playing or expanding into their backstory, as in I play them as if they were in their mid-to-late-teens most of the time, just to a lesser extent. The youngest one I've played as was 14, and the (realistically) older one was probably in his late 40s, but I also played one that's been around (whether he's actually alive is subjective/a mystery) for at least a century, magic and whatnot.

Anyway, despite the focus of my writing and creation seeming to be around teenage characters, I don't exactly feel anything against playing as character at other ages. It just feels like that's the more interesting one to base the story on.

 

[Umbrie]

i base my characters real age on the complexity of the feats i want them to have achieved, and i base their apparent age on the aesthetic i want to portray. this generally means i can play small statured characters who are extremely over the hill but can pass for extremely young. this generally makes it easier on me to play long lived species such as elves and faeries because i can play an 110 year old elf as a spoiled 11 year old brat due to the way elven culture treats younger elves or treat an 1805 year old faerie as a fresh 18 year old.

 

[Idea]

While I can't say I've ever experienced not technically being a teenager, I have my serious doubts it will be that different from 19 to 20. So I suppose my weighing in on this discussion won't be totally useless.

I am that one oddball that likes playing really young characters. In fact, I think I've gone by the exact opposite path the opening post did as the character I liked to roleplay became younger and younger. When I was jut starting I was adamant about playing an old man sort of character. Later on I began playing older teens and later younger teens. Now half my characters are children physically or mentally at least.

Still, it's not like I exclusively play children. There are plenty of other character types I like and as I matured so did the range and depth of characters I made. I feel like my transition was also very tied to my outlook on characters in general and what was cool about them. I wanted the power and wisdom and respect of the old man when I was just beggining. Later I wanted characters I could place myself on. Nowadays I make characters value in of themselves and I making them develop and struggle, and showing off the depth I made for them and having them interact in New and interesting ways with all sorts of characters.


I could go on and on, but I think the point is made, if there was one to begin with.

 

[Goinggoinggone]

I've always written characters from 17-21; it's just where I feel the most comfortable designing RP interactions. That being said, I have played an 80-year-old hobo and a few kiddos. Age is more of an afterthought for me tbh

 

[Onmyoji]

most characters I play fall into late teens - early twenties. Due to the fact it's a 'standard' age for most anime protagonists XD And I often play anime fandoms or originals inspired by anime fandoms.

Although I have a 300+ year old character that I portray as a woman in her 40s. I'm tired of 'immortal children' archetype that I see everywhere (and was guilty of doing myself at some point, I will not deny that) xD

 

[Genkai]

As someone in her mid to late twenties, I can't really play anyone under 18 these days, it's just strange to think that far back but I also feel really creepy for RPing anyone underage when I'm an adult myself. But I do try to stick to the 21+ age range if I can just because characters are expected to be a bit more dynamic and fleshed out. And I like that. They're easier to write as and against.

 

[Winter_Wolf]

Lol, I'm 23 (soonish to be 24)--I have a character who's a 46 year old, though most I submit for RPs are younger.

 

[Chimney Swift]

I like to play a wide range of ages! While I myself am in my late teens, I find that I'm really good at playing characters who are young teens or even older kids (like, 10-15). So, even though that isn't my age group, for writing I find that's my "comfort zone" because those tend to be my most diverse and interesting characters.

Other than that, I do tend to favor characters around my age. I've also played characters as old as 33, but honestly I'd like to have a go at older characters at some point, if I ever feel like stretching out.

I think the real deciding factor for my character's age is the setting of the RP. I wouldn't have a 20 year old character for a game about experienced surgeons, and likewise I wouldn't have a character under 18 for anything that has a focus on adult topics like violence or romance.

 

[AnimeGenork]

I tend to do characters that are mostly around the 18-22 range a lot. Not sure why, but that age range really works for me. At first, they were all 15/16/17, but now I really can't imagine making any 15-year-olds, probably because I'm almost 18.

I guess it depends on the face claim I'm using, to be honest. The face claim decides age for me.
Also the age range of the other characters in the RP.
That's important, too.

 

[Sleek]

my characters that I have written generally fluctuate from 14-70, biologically. I have a few exceptions in that their stories involve some form of suspended animation or longevity because of their species or technology that has chronologically expanded this lifespan, but I always go by biological age.

though I usually gravitate to the younger teens usually because it affords more options in an roleplay.

 

[KindOfStupid]

I try to age my characters with me, since I’ve no idea what comes in the next stages of life.

 

[Caligula]

For some reason, when I was around 13, I was slightly obsessed with the age 15. I might've seen it on some TV show, I'm not sure, but I would seriously make nearly all my characters that age. Now I just write any age, though I tend to stick to the high school-young adult range because it's all I've experienced first-hand. It really depends on the setting though. Sometimes I play a lot older or younger (the latter being particularly fun for cutesy fodder, especially if they're the child of another character).

 

[Saccharine Cyanide]

I used to mostly write characters in their early 20s when I was a teenager, but now that I'm in my mid-20s I write mostly characters in their late 20s and teenagers.

I dunno. It's weird.

 

[adrian_]

I write pretty much exclusively twenty to fourty year olds.

and the odd billion year old

*cough*