We’ve talked a lot about epic storylines here — both ones that are part of player lore and ones that are direct from the minds of Blizzard’s storytellers.  We’ve delved into how not to make a Mary Sue, and how to handle character abilities and stories that can’t be resolved with in-game mechanics.

But what about characters that don’t have anything super-special about them? Is it possible, in a world filled with so many powerful PCs and NPCs, to play someone who is just… normal?

(I think you can guess my answer.)

Why, of course it is!

Understand, first of all, that “normal” and “average” don’t have to mean “boring.” It’s all in your story and your RP.

We should, I suppose, define “normal” in terms of WoW itself first.  Our characters are, by default, heroes. They have abilities far beyond those of the common man. They survive events that would kill your average person, see more of the world than most farmers from Westfall ever will.  So right from the start, after you create your character’s look and give him or her a name, as your level 1 avatar hears the voiceover that leads you into the starting zone, you’re one of a handful of survivors, no matter your race.  Your character has lived through plague, war, attacks by the Burning Legion, the fury of the Lich King… all the sundry things the Warcraft stories have covered.

Does that mean they’re a witness to each and every one of those events?  Not at all!  But some are a bit unavoidable — if you’re playing a Draenei, you were on the Exodar; you lived through the crash.  If you’re playing a Forsaken, guess what, the plague got you, in the end, or you died another way and Arthas made your corpse do his bidding for a while.  By the simple fact of being alive, your character has beaten the odds.

So what happens if, from that point forward, you want to play a farmer, or a baker?  What if your character decides adventuring isn’t the way to go?  Or maybe they’re a paladin, but they’re just a paladin — or just a mage, just a hunter, just an <insert class here>?  Can you do that and still have fun?

Ohmy, yes.

Within the Riders, we have Fells — a country bumpkin, a former pickpocket, a slip of a girl.  She’s absolutely had adventures.  She’s fallen in love, she’s killed a man and sat in jail for it, and has even, believe it or not, slain a dragon.  But when her family went haring off to fight at Angrathar, Fells stayed home, worrying for them.  It wasn’t her place to go and fight.  That doesn’t mean that her experience — staying home, caring for the children — was any less poignant than the rest of ours.  As a matter of fact, it grounds them all.

I also consider Threnn to be my average character.  She’s a paladin, but her healing abilities aren’t stronger than anyone else’s.  She’s a decent swordswoman, a decent rider, but her greatest attribute is probably simple cleverness.  Nothing preternatural about it; she’s just a quick thinker.  She’s definitely had experiences over the last few years that have stretched her limits, but even when she’s off doing the impossible (or helping others do it), I keep her limits in mind.

There are times that I think I’ve been too stringent about it, pulled her back from the brink of something keen that I’d let other characters of mine do, but I don’t have any regrets about the way I’ve played her.  She’s surrounded by the extraordinary, by friends and family who so amazing things on a regular basis; I think it balances out.

Things to keep in mind if you’re giving it a try:

  • Like I said above, average doesn’t have to mean boring.  It’s the way your character handles situations that matters.
  • Neither are normal and epic mutually exclusive. Life and literature are full of stories of regular people overcoming incredible odds, of finding themselves in situations that push them to extremes and test their limits.  Quite often, these situations herald a…
  • Change, or character growth. The sign of a good character, whether they’re average, above-average or superhuman, is their ability to change over the course of a story.  Story in this case could mean one particular arc or years and years of roleplaying.  Their experiences should have some kind of effect on them, so that when you look at where they are now compared to who they were at the start, something’s different. It doesn’t have to be a positive change, or even a major personality overhaul.
  • Don’t be afraid to let them shine. It could be as big as a plot that centers on that character, or as small as a simple (yet significant) conversation with someone in another storyline.
  • This is sort of a corollary to the previous: push their limits. Physically, mentally, emotionally, however makes sense for the characters.  Their nemesis don’t have to be Malygos or Sargeras.  It doesn’t even have to be Hogger.  It could be a rival apothecary making trouble.  Or they might go out into Elwynn to make a delivery and find themselves waylaid by the Defias.  Moments of Badass can happen anywhere.
  • It’s okay to change your mind. During the course of a character’s life, opportunities might come up for him or her to get a little more uber, and you might be tempted to give in.  As long as it makes sense story-wise, there’s no reason not to!  Give it a try, see if it feels right for the character.  If it’s a sudden new ability, or a position of unfamiliar power, RPing out how he or she gets used to those things would be incredibly interesting.  And if you don’t like it, you can take it away again.
  • Most importantly, of course, have fun.

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