What do you want to play?

[Jon Larson]

Hello Everyone!

The first game is still a ways out but it is coming quick. I was wondering what character archetypes were you thinking of playing? I am pretty flexible in what I want to do so I was thinking filling the gaps would be a good place to start. Post details down below if you want to nerd out (we all know you want to).

[Matt Oostman]

I for one am interested in seeing how some of the dynamics play out in game.

Also keep in mind that some groups may have more focus on some things than others, and there's no reason that we shouldn't see a lot of people with somewhat similar archetypes. For example, I expect that there will be more Firearms folk in the Military and probably even several people with the same sets of skills, but they can all be useful in a group like that. Hands for the Future will probably have more Healers, but healers will almost certainly be welcome in every group.

[Deanne Naylor]

I am really excited about playing an andoid (healer) and exploring the ideas of no emotions/ feigned emotions and Asimov's laws during war. Isn't augmenting a human (as described in this game) doing harm? Can an android consider the concept of "greater good"?
At the same time I just got a new NERF gun... I am wondering if I am going to get to to use it "on patrol"... How is that going to work with my make-up.

[Matt Oostman]

Those are some awesome questions! Out of Game, the answers are "kinda." Not every android needs to interpret the 3 Laws in exactly the same way, but they still need to be followed. An Android Surgeon is clearly OK with cutting a person open to repair other damage, but another Android may consider cutting into someone to be 'doing harm' under a more strict interpretation. From a game perspective, both are fine, and could lead to some really interesting RP, which is really what we're here to do.

"Going on Patrol" can be handled in a number of different ways. Not everyone who goes to NPC for a bit necessarily needs to get out of their makeup or remove their prosthetics. We're trying to build the Dromanae costumes so that they're easy to get on and off, and will include masks. The masks should be comfortable and large enough that they will prevent the need for removing makeup, but it's possible that you might need to do a little touch up from smudging. Not everyone who NPCs will need to play a bug, either. There will be opportunities to play NPCs in camp and in nearby areas on missions that aren't bugs as well.

[Ron Leota]

We just ask that people don't play an NPC that closely resembles their PC. If you are playing an android, we probably won't assign you an android NPC, for instance.

[Andrew Bexell]

Yeah, definitely want to play a gun-lugger. Leaning towards human. I was reading through the fluff and saw that Brazil has been almost completely overrun. Being Brazilian myself, I think it'd be fun to play a soldier who barely escaped, but still lost everything. Now all he has is his hatred of the invaders, along with a determination to see them all burn. So having said that, playing an Exim might be a characterful choice too.

[Natalya Haner]

I'm going for a mechanic that works in salvage. I really like the idea of cyberware so I'm going to start out with a cyber-arm, which I am excited to create the costume for. I can't wait for the bug hunt!

[Holly Lynn Fisher]

I'm planning out a surgeon, which looks like it'll be very interesting in the earliest games do to the Path mechanics. She'd be someone fully dedicated to what she does, thus why she would be willing to come to a quarantine zone despite her very narrow and specific skill-set. I'm gathering a few friends to form a Keep-The-Surgeon-Alive protective ring. : P

[Martyn Hill]

I'm actually kind of torn between either being a field medic or military chaplain (counselor route), as I've had trouble remembering combat mechanics in the heat of the moment. Alternatively just being the crazy Russian guy who takes on Hive enemies without enhancements beyond heavy weapons could be fun. Possibly interested in pursuing the idea of being any number of other nationalities to give the UEF an international flavor - Russian, Irish, Israeli or possibly Korean (not sure if North or South) are running through my mind at the moment.

[Matt Oostman]

The UEF was intentionally designed to give you the freedom to play members from other nationalities or groups, so go for it!

I would like to encourage people who are interested in playing both "low/non-fighter" as well as "fighter" characters to consider playing the character that doesn't primarily revolve around combat. There will definitely be combat in Spite, but we're a role playing game before anything else. "I'm here to shoot some bugs" is a concept that we'll probably see from quite a few people, so if you're got a unique idea or are interested in playing something that looks like it might be underrepresented, please do it!

That said, don't feel that you have to play something else just because someone is already making a character that is mechanically similar (or identical) to yours. How the character is played and their history and interactions will make them unique (see Hawkeye and Hunnicutt).