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View Full Version : Player Help Re-using the Same Character for a New Campaign--Thoughts?



Amaril
2014-02-24, 04:51 PM
So my long-running Pathfinder game just fell apart after its 30th session, ending the story before we could reach any sort of satisfying conclusion. A few of my group are still interested in playing together, and we're looking into starting another game. Now, the thing is, over the course of our last game, I got really attached to my character, and I feel like I won't be able to rest until I've played him all the way through a successful campaign that gives his story some form of resolution (something I've been trying to do for years). I'm concerned, though, that if I make my next character too similar, my co-players might cry foul. Assuming we end up playing the game I hope we do, I already have some ideas for how to change the character's personality pretty significantly, but I'm worried they might just not like me wanting to play the same race and class again. Do you guys think it reflects badly on a player if they keep reusing the same basic character? And does the fact that I am actually planning on changing his personality absolve me of any problem that might otherwise be created?

Rhynn
2014-02-24, 05:12 PM
I'm concerned, though, that if I make my next character too similar, my co-players might cry foul.

Talk to them, yo.


Do you guys think it reflects badly on a player if they keep reusing the same basic character?

Who cares what we think, what do the other players at your game think?

mucat
2014-02-24, 05:34 PM
I do have characters who I would love to go back and reawaken someday, and I have sometimes recycled a concept from a PbP game that folded, so I understand where you are coming from.

Speaking just for myself, though...if I wanted to give a character a clear resolution that their original campaign never reached, I would not find it satisfying to change their personality but keep the same race and class. That's not the same character; it's just sticking to familiar game mechanics.

I also don't think I would want to "reboot" the character right away with the same group of players. My inclination would be to play someone very different for the next game, then dust off the old character concept for a future campaign, either with the same group or another one.

Legato Endless
2014-02-24, 05:38 PM
So my long-running Pathfinder game just fell apart after its 30th session, ending the story before we could reach any sort of satisfying conclusion.

Huh. I've never been in a group that counted sessions. That's interesting.


I'm concerned, though, that if I make my next character too similar, my co-players might cry foul. Assuming we end up playing the game I hope we do, I already have some ideas for how to change the character's personality pretty significantly, but I'm worried they might just not like me wanting to play the same race and class again.

I think you should be open about this. Trying to play a suspiciously similar substitute with a modicum of differentiation for plausible deniability probably won't be very effective, unless your fellow players possess a cartoonish lack of conceptual discernment. More importantly, you shouldn't have to hide this.


And does the fact that I am actually planning on changing his personality absolve me of any problem that might otherwise be created?

No. There's nothing to be absolved of, as this isn't a sin in itself unless your group frames it as such. At which point the question is how well can you get away with it. There's nothing directly harmful about it, it's really a question on if your fellow players have some irritation against repetition or if your character wore out his welcome.

Unless something has changed, I wouldn't worry too much. Just talk to the fellow players about your yen to get a complete arc. Hopefully they'll understand.


Who cares what we think, what do the other players at your game think?

Pretty much.

The Oni
2014-02-24, 05:43 PM
Provided that your character is about the same level as the rest of the party, I don't see any problem here (obviously bringing a Level 9 into a group of Level 3s is frowned upon) If your group is of the roleplay-heavy type or has some other motivation for wanting you to play another character, then you should - but otherwise, go for it.

But yeah, that's a Your Group question, not a This Forum question.

Amaril
2014-02-24, 06:43 PM
Who cares what we think, what do the other players at your game think?

I fully intend to talk to them, but I figure if 90 percent of everyone in the Playground agrees it's a Bad Idea, I may as well not bother and just go straight to something different.


Speaking just for myself, though...if I wanted to give a character a clear resolution that their original campaign never reached, I would not find it satisfying to change their personality but keep the same race and class. That's not the same character; it's just sticking to familiar game mechanics.

Well, I guess I'd be playing a different character with the same race and class, then. I guess most of my concern arose from the fear that my co-players might see that I wanted to play another elf wizard and immediately assume he'd be a carbon copy of my previous creation, which would not be the case.

Let me explain my perspective (fair warning, I might be getting slightly personal). All my RP characters, regardless of the game, express a certain amount of my personality. The thing that varies is which parts, and how much of the character those parts comprise compared to how much is them individually. My character from the last campaign was serious, anxious, and haunted by all the killing he'd had to do over the course of his adventuring career. Conversely, the personality of my new character idea is not dissimilar to Twoflower from Discworld. These two fit under the same category to me, because both express mostly my own personality traits rather than invented ones (my understanding of myself has changed somewhat since the first one was created, and the second one is more accurate to how I see myself now), so telling a complete story with either one would bring me the same kind of fulfillment.

Anyway, it sounds to me like this is worth talking to my group about rather than just forgetting altogether. For what it's worth, of the three (or possibly four) players remaining from the previous group: one is my dad, who would be DMing this possible campaign and has already stated he loves my new idea; one is our previous GM, whose reaction I can't predict; and the possible fourth is the guy who skyped to our games and never said or did anything without prompting from us, so I'm not sure if he's even coming back, and I sort of hope he doesn't. We'd probably be getting some new people for this game, and they wouldn't know about my previous character anyway.


Provided that your character is about the same level as the rest of the party, I don't see any problem here (obviously bringing a Level 9 into a group of Level 3s is frowned upon)

Clarification: I'm talking about making a new starting character who's similar to a previous one, not directly bringing back an old character for a new campaign. The games would be in different settings with different DMs anyway.

mucat
2014-02-24, 07:16 PM
Your explanation makes a lot of sense; I understand more now what you are hoping to accomplish. And it doesn't sound to me like your new character would be anything close to an exact reboot of your old one. Serious, anxious, and haunted by seeing and inflicting too much death is a very different vibe from Twoflower the Tourist.

(At least, if you're talking about Twoflower in the early books. When he reappears in Interesting Times, Twoflower has become...well, serious, anxious, and haunted by seeing too much death. :smallwink: While still managing to be quintessentially the same guy as his younger self.)

But yeah, talk openly to your group about character ideas. One of them might object for a simpler reason than we've been discussing -- "I was hoping to play a wizard this time. Any chance you can try another class?" Besides, it's always a good idea to brainstorm character ideas before a campaign; it lets you weave common pasts and goals for the team. But my guess is they won't tell you that you're getting overly typecast.

Axinian
2014-02-24, 08:24 PM
I've never seen anything wrong with playing the same character over and over again, so long as they are re-statted to be in line with the game. If you like a character, why not play them?

But, as others have said, this is about as group-specific as it gets, so just straight up ask if you can play the same character and roll with the answer.