Prettiness Guilt

[nauta]

Think outside the box a little, sure, but I'd beg you not not to do so in ways that simply justify ridiculousness (like ignoring the effects of the sun on your skin just to get away with being "pretty" by modern standards).

That's the point; it's never been established that the Zalanthanian sun would cause sunburns. I'd rather that this be clarified before telling people how to roleplay.

Surely, it's actually the black moon that causes sunburns.

But to answer the question (maybe?) about whether Suk-Krath gives us our amazing tans (from the sample descriptions):

"His skin, obviously dark already, is tanned into an
unnatural, near ebon shade by the rays of Suk-Krath."

http://www.armageddon.org/intro/sampledescs.php

[aeglaeca]

A lot of those sample descs look like they were written by players. The top one is a freckled, blue-eyed redhead, which I assume is precisely the type of description that is being argued about in this thread.

I really seem to recall some blonds being written into the northern nobility's genetics, that said.

Edit: Oh, yep, here we go:

Appearance - The women are notorious for being ample in chest and hip, and the men tend toward a portly build as well, both by nature and their luxurious lifestyles. Hair colors tend toward red or the middle ranges of brown and blonde, with almost all family members having a tint of red in their hair whatever its shade. Nearly all Dasari nobles, regardless of gender, use herbal-based perfumes and cosmetics to enhance their appearance. In short, they are one of the most civilized houses in Gol Krathu by outward appearance.

[nauta]

A lot of those sample descs look like they were written by players. The top one is a freckled, blue-eyed redhead, which I assume is precisely the type of description that is being argued about in this thread.

I really seem to recall some blonds being written into the northern nobility's genetics, that said.

Edit: Oh, yep, here we go:

Appearance - The women are notorious for being ample in chest and hip, and the men tend toward a portly build as well, both by nature and their luxurious lifestyles. Hair colors tend toward red or the middle ranges of brown and blonde, with almost all family members having a tint of red in their hair whatever its shade. Nearly all Dasari nobles, regardless of gender, use herbal-based perfumes and cosmetics to enhance their appearance. In short, they are one of the most civilized houses in Gol Krathu by outward appearance.

Oh, you just edited it - yeah, some of the docs for the northern nobility houses (esp. in the old.armageddon.org site which shouldn't be considered reliable) included physical characteristics.  I love the Dasari one: go fat-bottomed girls!

Anyway, my point was just about the science of sunburns.

[HavokBlue]

Describe your PC the way you want. It's a roleplaying game. I'm not going to hold it against people if they want to be a dirty mercenary who also looks good because it doesn't really affect me in any way.

[Quell]

I believe blond is more broadly a northern thing, with southern tending towards darker hair and skin.

I can't for the life of me find the section they put regional physiological differences on the new web page though. I know back a few years ago people with blond hair in Allanak would sometimes attract extra attention from Tuluk haters because of it though.

[BadSkeelz]

I believe blond is more broadly a northern thing, with southern tending towards darker hair and skin.

I can't for the life of me find the section they put regional physiological differences on the new web page though. I know back a few years ago people with blond hair in Allanak would sometimes attract extra attention from Tuluk haters because of it though.

I'm pretty sure the regional differences thing is a player-created concept with no official documentation supporting it. It's one I like and indulge in, but I don't think it's canon.

[Patuk]

Preeeeeeeetty sure that was just players taking north/south from earth and running with it. Until staff say something about people from either city looking like anything, I think southern redheads or platinum blonde dudes or what have you are fine.

[Quell]

I believe blond is more broadly a northern thing, with southern tending towards darker hair and skin.

I can't for the life of me find the section they put regional physiological differences on the new web page though. I know back a few years ago people with blond hair in Allanak would sometimes attract extra attention from Tuluk haters because of it though.

I'm pretty sure the regional differences thing is a player-created concept with no official documentation supporting it. It's one I like and indulge in, but I don't think it's canon.

I really do remember reading it in the old help files

[HavokBlue]

I think they said those help files were not reproduced on the new website specifically to avoid imposing expectations about things like skin color and appearance?

[Patuk]

I can't find these docs about regional physical characteristics anywhere on the part of the old website still up and running, fwiw

[whitt]

Describe your PC the way you want. It's a roleplaying game. I'm not going to hold it against people if they want to be a dirty mercenary who also looks good because it doesn't really affect me in any way.

I'm good with this except for one caveat... this is a low tech, gritty world.  

So if your character is a dirty mercenary there are a bunch of physical tells that will go along with that.  Flawless teeth, unblemished skin, and a soft complexion are among the things one wouldn't expect to find on a dirty mercenary that has spent the first 'x' dozen years of their lives learning to fight the hard way.  So... if you're presenting your character as a dirty mercenary with a flawless smile, unblemished skin, and a face as soft as a baby's bottom you can bet your butt I'm suspect something odd is going on.  Either you're a full of crap merchant's brat, the luckiest merc alive, or gicked.

Likewise if you're presenting as the pretty-pretty-princess, I'm going to expect there to be a backstory there as to how the shit doesn't manage to stick you.

The way characters present themselves should be huge hooks into their backstory and development, IMO.  It shouldn't just be a case of, yeah.. I wanted to play a dude with a ton of scars and krath-touched skin, but really he's a clerk for kadius and has never been outdoors.

[Eyeball]

If you want to go into the science of sunburns, why expect a red giant star to emit much in the way of UV radiation to start with? Its peak emissions are of a substantially lower wavelength than the Earth's yellow sun.

[AdamBlue]

My characters start plain as day, or maybe even a tad ugly.

Then, they get scars and wounds and ugly horrific bits on them, and then they become beautiful.

[Synthesis]

Describe your PC the way you want. It's a roleplaying game. I'm not going to hold it against people if they want to be a dirty mercenary who also looks good because it doesn't really affect me in any way.

I'm good with this except for one caveat... this is a low tech, gritty world.  

So if your character is a dirty mercenary there are a bunch of physical tells that will go along with that.  Flawless teeth, unblemished skin, and a soft complexion are among the things one wouldn't expect to find on a dirty mercenary that has spent the first 'x' dozen years of their lives learning to fight the hard way.  So... if you're presenting your character as a dirty mercenary with a flawless smile, unblemished skin, and a face as soft as a baby's bottom you can bet your butt I'm suspect something odd is going on.  Either you're a full of crap merchant's brat, the luckiest merc alive, or gicked.

Likewise if you're presenting as the pretty-pretty-princess, I'm going to expect there to be a backstory there as to how the shit doesn't manage to stick you.

The way characters present themselves should be huge hooks into their backstory and development, IMO.  It shouldn't just be a case of, yeah.. I wanted to play a dude with a ton of scars and krath-touched skin, but really he's a clerk for kadius and has never been outdoors.

metagame that shiiiiit

[ibusoe]

Regarding the original post, I don't think anyone should need to apologize for being sexy. 

[BadSkeelz]

I bet that heavily scarred clerk for Kadius has a just as, if not more interesting story for all those scars as your average sellsword.

And if he doesn't, he should.

[hyzhenhok]

I don't think it matters. Maybe if people actually roleplayed around others' appearances, it would matter one way or the other. I think it'd be cool if tall humans were more frequently accused of being breeds, just for being tall.

The only characters' whose appearances I've ever experienced significant RP reactions to are 1) character with unusual hair colors and 2) female dwarves, for some reason (skinny or husky, both get a reaction).

[wizturbo]

Lord Fale, Master of Stealth and Subterfuge, is needed in this thread.  So he comes.

[TheWanderer]

I don't think it matters. Maybe if people actually roleplayed around others' appearances, it would matter one way or the other. I think it'd be cool if tall humans were more frequently accused of being breeds, just for being tall.

The only characters' whose appearances I've ever experienced significant RP reactions to are 1) character with unusual hair colors and 2) female dwarves, for some reason (skinny or husky, both get a reaction).

You've never played with a fat PC?

[hyzhenhok]

I don't think it matters. Maybe if people actually roleplayed around others' appearances, it would matter one way or the other. I think it'd be cool if tall humans were more frequently accused of being breeds, just for being tall.

The only characters' whose appearances I've ever experienced significant RP reactions to are 1) character with unusual hair colors and 2) female dwarves, for some reason (skinny or husky, both get a reaction).

You've never played with a fat PC?

Truly fat PCs are quite rare, right? "Chubby" or "thickset" type descriptions aren't rare though and yeah, not much reaction to those.

The only reaction to fat PC I can recall was with a female dwarf, as mentioned.

[whitt]

I don't think it matters. Maybe if people actually roleplayed around others' appearances, it would matter one way or the other. I think it'd be cool if tall humans were more frequently accused of being breeds, just for being tall.

The only characters' whose appearances I've ever experienced significant RP reactions to are 1) character with unusual hair colors and 2) female dwarves, for some reason (skinny or husky, both get a reaction).

I do this all the time.  It's the second or third thing I think through when I do a look.  First, obvious signs of oddity (scales, glowy eyes, horns), second look for a ring, third read the description and start profiling.  

First impressions are still first impressions.

[KankWhisperer]

I'm not sure if evolution really needs to factor into it. Hispanic people are noticably darker than the Europeans they are descended from.

That's from breeding with darker people. Where I'm from, the 'spaniards' are as pale as any white person until they mix with someone with native american blood more or less.

[Patuk]

That is probably true, if also annoying. I don't think we have any good human examples of an isolated group of humans' physical changes over a period of 2000 years. That said, Zalanthas' sun may well(or it may not) be big enough a factor that paleness is selected against massively altogether.

[Case]

I consistently play people who look like people I've dated, so is it more a prettiness brag?

[Nyr]

I consistently play people who look like people I've dated, so is it more a prettiness brag?

Subtle.  I like it.