Insane Characters

[Dalenger]

Didn't read the whole thread, but my advice is just not to snowflake. Its okay to not have it all together-- imo, some of the best character don't. But anything that says "hey, look at me because my character is ____!" is a sign that you're crutching your RP with a gimmick. And gimmicks get old.

[Xerah]

I once made a character who was a professor of occult magic, objects and other history. He was given something that pushed him in the direction to learn about Tharizdun. I never took him too far into his story, but the plan was for him to decend into madness. I still think it's got some good potential and may revisit the idea again in the future.

[Ambigue]

I've always enjoyed a well-played madman. Especially if his madness isn't immediately apparent, giving you time time to 'get to know' the guy. Maybe even be friends. Until, one day, you realize that the guy was a horrible monster this whole time.

Like. You and him are just sitting down together, eating a meal like you do sometimes, and discussing architecture or whatever and he straight up pulls a smoked baby-leg out of his pack and starts to munch.

"What...Is that a baby leg?" Your character might sputter.

"Well. Yes. But not a HUMAN baby leg. I am not a monster, you know." He would say, chuckling, slightly baffled why it is at all important, certain that he has proved his moral uprightness.

"Eating babies is just about the most evil thing you could do!"

"Intriguing. I wonder why you did not say this before you ate all of that stew I made for us last week. I did not take you for an evil man."

And you'd look down at the bowl of stew he handed you just now, back at his face, and he'd just smile, cheerful as always.

THAT is the kind of madman I enjoy interacting with.

[Aodh Lazuli]

This thread has problems. More than any potentially "insane" character.

If you want to roleplay "insanity", then basically be specific, be tasteful, and do your research.

[Child of Maragaram]

As someone who roleplayed an insane character for an extended period of time, I'd like to share the story of my take on the concept. If you don't feel like reading the whole thing, just skip to the bolded parts below.

My character started off as an experiment in playing Arelith in "survival mode." I wanted to see if it was possible to play a character who survived completely on their own, totally cut off from normal society. There was already an Arelith precedent (the Lunatic and Vagrant spawns in the sewers), but I was mainly inspired by Gollum from Tolkein's Middle-Earth. I realized that, like Gollum, the only way someone would live like that is if they were severely psychologically disturbed, so I came up with a reason for my character to be that way, and went from there.

So, going by my experiences playing that character, here are my suggestions:
- Think deeply about how your character's mental illness affects their behavior. Get specific. Don't just have them do random "crazy" things. Real mentally ill people have reasons for the way they act, even if those reasons usually don't make sense to mentally stable people.
- Be open to your character concept and their mental illness changing over time. As I said, my character just started off as "lunatic who lives in the sewers." But over time he grew and developed into something more than that. He was still very much mentally ill, but the way that affected him changed.
- Make it interesting for other players. Part of the fun of my character was that he was surrounded by mystery. No one could figure out why he was so messed up and what had happened to him, and they were very eager to find out. There actually was an answer, and I allowed other characters to get closer and closer to the truth over time.
- Give your character a goal of some kind related to their mental illness. The goal shouldn't be just to become healthy again. Instead, it should be something that your character wants that plays into their illness. For my character, it was simply "find a way home." And later on, near the end of it all, it became "find my Master."

It sounds like you already have a solid idea of what you want to do, and there are already plenty of good suggestions in this thread. I hope it all helps. I'm looking forward to possibly seeing your character in game.

[Wytchee]

Also keep in mind that while insane characters can be great, caricatures of people with mental illnesses are not. It's a fine line to walk. Try not to romanticize mental illness too much.

[Individual Thought Patterns]

Just make whatever you do have a "reason" and play it out in a serious manner.

[Romeo and Jubilex]

Judith was the only good insane character I saw the whole time I've been here, but good luck

[OverTheSeaToSkye]

Lucia and Vivian. Top tier.