Character Theory What are some of your favorite character archetypes to roleplay with?

[Pikelzz]

I never noticed i had a favorite archetype until a friend pointed out a recurring theme in most of my characters, a way or another.
So apparently i have a thing for workalcoholics. A scientist falling into madness for his project, a policeman using coffee instead of sleep, or a big sibling taking care of everything, my favorite characters have that mighty need to be useful, against their own health if no one takes care of them in return. It's a small trope, so i can bend it in many ways, but i can't help it.
Wonder what that means about me.

 

[The Mad Queen]

Actors. What I mean by this is a character who puts on a mask or pretends to be someone else. This could be a highly intelligent character masquerading as a bumbling fool or a villain pretending to be a friend to a hero.

An example. Contains spoilers for Game of Thrones.

 

[clarinetti]

The two archetypes I seem to gravitate towards are the emotionally repressed, no-nonsense characters who wear a mask to keep up a tough demeanour, or else characters with suave, laid-back exteriors who drift through life after losing their spark/ purpose. Maybe it's the self-contained conflict that intrigues me, or how they can evolve depending on the people around them (Or perhaps it's just the angst). Either way, it's something I'm trying to break away from with my newer characters, as I feel it's important to push past the comfort zone and avoid complacency in one's work.

 

[Necessity4Fun]

You've met my big 4 archetypes before on AEGIS: The nice, naive yet fierce hero type; The rational, logical type; The fun and games type; and the meek, dismayed type. The big 4 are the bases for most of my characters with added twists or a mix between them, but the base elements remain. There's also a more recent 5th archetype: The crazy megalomaniac, which is my go-to for 'villains' (hard to redeem and selfish characters)

The trick is always overshadowing the archetypes, make the character their own whole thing more than just chained pieces of a puzzle. That, is what's my favorite part of character creation ;3

 

[lalas181]

I absolutely love playing Jekyll/Hyde type characters. The Strange Case is my favorite story, and mostly for how compelling I find the dual nature of the titular antagonists. One of my first non-fandom OCs was literally just Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde except Jekyll's a 27-year-old female scientist and Hyde's her supervillain "split personality" (In quotes since the Doc doesn't actually have the disorder that used to be called split personality) who has a healing factor that's only active when she is. Notable examples are the trope namer(s) Dr. Henry Jekyll and Mr. Edward Hyde from either the original Stevenson short story or its many, many adaptations, Nathan/The Repo Man from Repo! The Genetic Opera, and Two-Face/The Judge in the final season of Batman: The Animated Series.

I also really love Superman-type heroes. Not because of how powerful they are, but because of how incredibly emphatic and excessively human they are. A well-written Superman is a wonderful thing, but I won't rail on about it forever since that's not what this is for. Just go read "All-Star Superman" and "A Superman for All Seasons" if you want to know what I mean.

Third (in no particular order, with the exception being that J&H is my first favorite) is the Inspector Javert. Strong convictions against the convicted, until something-something-plot and they see that maybe there is grey in the world, and maybe their intentions weren't translating correctly into practice. The "To Be Lawful or Good" dilemma is built for this character, and whether the resolution is a new ally for the protagonists or the character swan-diving into the Seine, it's bound to be interesting. Notable examples (in my opinion) include Agent/Captain Alexsandir Kallus from Star Wars: Rebels and, of course, Inspector Javert from the Broadway Musical adaptation of Les Miserables.

 

[PhoenixMire]

I have character types I love but that I haven’t had much of a chance to RP. I’ve RPed them before, but a lot of people don’t seem to like those types of characters. For some reason I really enjoy the “character is totally insane but hides it behind a mask of normalcy” kind of trope. I want more chances to RP that kind of character, but I don’t think a lot of people would be very interested in an RP like that.

On the exact opposite end of the spectrum, I love cinnamon rolls, lol. But I’m picky about them. I dislike the annoying “look at me I’m soooo naive and cute and I understand nothing!!!” type, because it just feels like they’re trying way too hard and it’s annoying. What I love are the cinnamon roll types who just have a good heart, and they win over even the most cruel of people with their kindness and perseverance alone. (If anyone’s seen Natsume Yuujinchou, Takashi is the perfect example of this haha)
I haven’t had many RP partners that would be interested in a really nice character like that though. They usually seem to want my characters to have a darker side for some reason.

As for the things that commonly appear in my own characters... sarcasm. For some reason. I feel like all my characters have some element of sarcasm to them.

 

[Panzer]

Mine are always weirdos of the like.
I love the "Grotesque" trope; it covers characters from those who are visually disturbing or in some other internal way. Think of the kind of fella you'd find both peculiar, disturbed, or in some way is an oddity.

I also usually gravitate to making characters who are massively weaker or more of a failure than other characters, as it presents an interesting amount of potential arcs. Some arcs can even be played for humor- if this person was a proxy antagonist or a bumbling fool in an to which requires teamwork. I find it truly tests the patience and moral compass of the other team members.

Also, weirdos are fun to play since the option presents a ton of potential for more interesting interactions, but it can often backfire since I just can't figure out how to make one *just* the right amount of weird.


So, Monsters, Weirdos, and other failures are my fav doods and doodettes.

 

[themagnoliaofutah]

My main is actually one of my favorite types; the quiet, psychotic smol bean that struggles with her inner demons daily.
The character I ship her with is the overly flamboyant, Disney villain type (he's kind of a cross between King George III and Dr. Facilier).

 

[The Omen of Death]

My favorite archetype/trope in terms of characters seems to usually fall into the "cold, calculating and intelligent" type characters. I tend to love playing strategy/tactical games and usually love a good mystery to solve to test my brain so I always find it satisfying when a plan comes together and you achieve victory or do something brilliant that paves the way to future success. This applies to sides on both sides of the spectrum.

I also absolutely love to screw around with moral ambiguity, characters who you cannot easily identify as a villain or hero or black or white, I am all about grey and either a lighter or darker shade of it.

 

[AndPeggy]

I love playing the loud, overconfident, charismatic characters. Most characters in RPs that I have been in have been quiet, intelligent, level-headed, etc. so out of that need I started making these types of characters and totally fell in love with them.