Author Topic: I'm a skeptic, so sue me  (Read 21373 times)

Offline Bons

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Re: I'm a skeptic, so sue me
« Reply #25 on: November 22, 2004, 07:17:43 PM »
by what was said in her bio, she is disciplined in that she taught herself to have a lot of self-control.

What part of the bio gave you this impression? I'm certainly not portraying Surayah with a monk's focus. If anything, she's the opposite on the whole, acting more along her instincts than a true, developed discipline, and this causes her some trouble. I would say her skills developed because of 1) curiosity 2) entertainment or 3) class privileges in Calimshan. I gave one example in the early days of this mod that she could be preparing to cast a fireball, then notice a bloodstain on her gown and be thrown off kilter. She can be very impressionable, sometimes foolishly so.

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As for headstrong and strong-willed, I suppose I misinterpreted her bio: it sounds like she has unique beliefs for someone of her class and upbringing, and usually (note the word usage) people like that have to be headstrong to hold onto their ideals in the face of adversity.  So I guess "headstrong" was an assumption, sorry about that. :P

There's some truth here in terms of how I've approached Surayah, but headstrong and strong-willed are more extreme descriptors than how I've written her so far, I'd say. Some relevant issues I discussed in the old FW forum, regarding choosing a CG alignment - I think she had to be chaotic, had to have some streak of rebellion to ever get out of that house. A Calimshite upbringing in her position, most likely she would have been LN or possibly LE, and if she was completely devoted to those values, I would have expected her to not be in Amn, but back in Calimshan, making an advantageous marriage to someone who would bring additional profit, power, and advantages to her family.

The way I'm treating her, she's in a state in between - her upbringing has a very strong influence on her, as does love for her family. At the same time she is curious, and that curiosity led her to worship of Sune, meeting Hessa, and realizing just how cruel life in Calimshan could be. Meeting the PC and the situation with Anomen are added catalysts as Surayah struggles between being the woman she was raised to be and becoming the woman she imagines she could be, and, much to her dismay, it's not all pretty.

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Offline Bronwyn

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Re: I'm a skeptic, so sue me
« Reply #26 on: November 24, 2004, 06:27:36 PM »
Not entirely sure where 'headstrong' comes in, but from the wordplay and jokes in her banters, I'd say she's confident.

I agree. I think it fits just fine though that her banters and wordplay would be confident with party members. She's the spoiled sheltered daughter of a rich merchant. She would be comfortable "flirting" and "talking" to people who she did not perceive as a threat to her. She would not however be confident when threatened in her home, an experience that is I would imagine brand new and previously outside her imagination. So I would agree that Bons description of the character does not conflict with what we know of her pre-existing character. All we really know is that 1. She's the coddled rich mans daugher 2. She gets frightened when her life is threatened. I fail to see the conflict between that and making her a bard or a priestess of Sune.

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Offline neriana

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Re: I'm a skeptic, so sue me
« Reply #27 on: November 24, 2004, 07:33:42 PM »
I would say that we don't even know that she's coddled. But there's certainly room to make her so.
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Offline nurgles_herald

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Re: I'm a skeptic, so sue me
« Reply #28 on: November 29, 2004, 07:12:34 PM »
My take on all this is that it can be explained away by presenting a scenario.  Perhaps, right before Anomen assaults the house, Saerk had been verbally reprimanding Surayah for speaking out against the murder of Moira.  Surayah felt the murder was unjust and cruel.  Saerk wasn't pleased to hear this opinion, and screamed at Surayah.  Yelling commenced, but Surayah was cowed into silence.  In this way, when Anomen storms in, Surayah is a stuttering weakling rather than her headstrong and independent self.

Or you could just go with the "I'm a new Surayah" thing.  Either way works.
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Re: I'm a skeptic, so sue me
« Reply #29 on: May 24, 2005, 05:37:27 PM »
My take on all this is that it can be explained away by presenting a scenario.  Perhaps, right before Anomen assaults the house, Saerk had been verbally reprimanding Surayah for speaking out against the murder of Moira.  Surayah felt the murder was unjust and cruel.  Saerk wasn't pleased to hear this opinion, and screamed at Surayah.  Yelling commenced, but Surayah was cowed into silence.  In this way, when Anomen storms in, Surayah is a stuttering weakling rather than her headstrong and independent self.

Or you could just go with the "I'm a new Surayah" thing.  Either way works.

That might work but the thing is if Anomen DOES kill Surayah then it turns out that Saerk DIDN'T kill Moira but if Anomen doesn't kill Surayah and goes LG then it turns out that Saerk does kill Moira. Sad ending either way.

 

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