Let's all congratulate Dani on the award and, as usual, feel free to ask additional questions not covered in the interview.Tarot: Tell us about yourself as a roleplayer. How were you pulled into it and how did you find Mizahar, specifically? Hadrian: Well, when I was young, one had to pay for the internet by the minute, so my freeforming was highly circumscribed. Eventually, though, I started playing text-based MUDs, and in August 1999, I started playing Black Bayou which was hosted by AOL and run by Antagonist, Inc. So my formative years were spent in chat-based role-play, though I still think some of my best writing was on their forums. There wasn't play-by-post, but we did a lot of background writing and other character development stuff that wasn't dependent on other players. I met Nate (Jaeden) in a sci-fi spin off of that game where we played off and on for a few years. He invited a bunch of people from that group to Mizahar and so here I am. Blame him. Tarot: We know Hadrian as a neutral scholarly mage who won't miss any opportunity for learning, no matter how crazy! How did you come up with the concept and what do you like the most about the character? Hadrian: My best characters are the ones who develop a mind of their own and then defy me right and left, constantly upsetting me, but then I don't have the heart to kill them off unless it makes for good storytelling... Anyway, with Hadrian I wanted to balance certain ideas within him and then see what threw him off balance and see where he went from there. So there's the ivory tower intellectual and the humble self-educator in him, and other fun ambiguities. I don't know yet whether he'll sell his soul for knowledge or follow a more traditionally "Light" path. He's also convinced that there's something above the gods... He's got sort of a gnostic spin on the general Mizaharan religion, which effectively means that he's searching for some primal absolute from whence comes everything. What I like most about him is that he's walking a tightrope between disparate things, and while he's not the nicest or most personable character, he hasn't given up his humanity, or stopped questioning what that essential humanity is. Tarot: Most PCs in Mizahar come from poor to middle-class backgrounds. Hadrian hails from relatively high bourgeoisie (as high as the setting allows). Do you find that hard to play, especially with the limits placed on starting funds and equipment? Hadrian: I have had to tweak my idea of his background to fit Mizahar as I become more aware of the subtleties. Basically, his relationship with his family suffered more than I originally intended it to. So his education was paid for, but he was in his last term at the University of Zeltiva when I started playing him so it would not be inconceivable for a rich kid to be stuck with his wits to get him by from now on. He also developed a more independent spirit that way. His father might be able to float him the funds to start a magecrafting workshop, but this way he has to earn the capital to work on magecrafting wonders, but this will also probably bump up his skill level so he's capable of great things by the time he can afford them. Like most limitations, I try to view it not as a reason to get upset, but as a challenge to my ingenuity. For instance, now he's got a contract from the Syliran Knights, which means that while he can't keep what he makes, the R&D is paid for. So I'm indebted to Dusk for working with me on that account. Tarot: Have you already planned where Hadrian's moral meanderings will lead him or are you leaving that up to chance and writing partners? Do you hear the character's "voice" telling you to write him in a certain way, like other players do? Hadrian: I do not know where he will end up. I leave it mostly up to his interactions with others, though I suppose I do have some control over his reactions to what happens (when he lets me). He is starting to develop a desire to converse with the gods, though. He wants to transcend humanity somehow, and I know he's intrigued with Tallshade's Anvil of Souls. He's young, though, so I'm not sure if he will have time to be pushed to the point where he gives up on any sort of morality and decides that the ends justify the means. Hopefully some Founders will decide to throw some crazy events his way, which would raise the stakes and probably speed him along his path. Ahem. Cough-cough. Tarot: So, if you will let me say it, here comes another weakling. 7 pts Reimancy and 1 pt Unarmed Combat. How does Hadrian survive in this hostile world and do you hesitate to send him into potentially dangerous quests? Hadrian: One of the balances I set up for him was physical weakness to counter his mental agility. And while he wanted to be a pyromancer more than anything, I gave him water as his element (because he's a Scorpio in my head) to disappoint him, but also to make him think more creatively and be clever with what he has. Hadrian has to work around his weaknesses. Hence he's having to be a bit of a coward in Sahova, because running away means living to fight another day. Wits are his weapons and his armor. And he would, I think, try to arrange some sort of protection if he were to go on some physically dangerous quest. But he is young and voracious about learning, so he might take stupid risks sometimes if the potential payoff is high enough. Also, he has been learning a bit of smithing because he feels like he should be able to do some sort of crafting if he's going to be a magecrafter. I don't know how far he'll go with that, but he's getting some exercise! Tarot: We award a world mage this month. Most people are put off by Magecraft's huge material costs, but Hadrian still rises up the ladder. How do you do it and what's your advice to others? Hadrian: I think because I've played so many characters and so many games, it has become more interesting for me to take the road less traveled and the more difficult paths. Sure, I could have given him 30 points in fire reimancy and 30 points in flux at generation, but then all he's good for is setting things on fire and breaking his bones on things. Good things come to those who wait, right? Also, Liminal helped me set up magecrafting projects within the University, and, as I mentioned before, he's got a similar gig going in Syliras now (once I actually write it up). So other, richer folks are covering the overhead, which helps me build his magecrafting skill, but he doesn't get to keep what he makes. I am hoping the Knights will pay him handsomely, but... we shall see. Tarot: You play several PCs. As Hadrian has had his fair share of glory, mind telling us about your other creatures and what you like best about them? Hadrian: Sama'el is the anti-Drykas. He's the innocent that I torture. Long story short, he lost his pavilion and his Strider when he was a green seven year old, and spent eight years as a slave in Sunberth, and two years wandering with a stolen horse before arriving in Syliras. Now he's back in Endrykas learning how to be a Drykas again. I love him because he's a pure soul and, I hope, an example of self-redemption and learning to create one's own identity. Ifran is my spider. He's disgustingly perfect: looks, riches, connections. He's a performer, but his ambitions lie in politics. He has been put on the back burner for the time being since a lot of people have stopped playing in Ahnatep and because Colombina went and got engaged, got a new job, and all. So he is keeping busy looking slick all day, but we shall see what happens with him. He was created to play politics. I haven't yet figured out a way to work around his nobility / wealth background yet, though. Tarot: On a related note, you do post a lot both as a PC and a mod despite a busy life. What's your secret as a "posting machine"? Hadrian: I think a lot of this has to do with my time spent doing chat-based role-play, actually. I'm capable of sitting back and writing a really long post, but that's generally just for myself, for character development rather than skill- or relationship-building. But I'm still used to chat-based, which I feel is akin to improv acting. One learns to get into the head-space of one's character and, knowing their character, reacting as they would. So I think that makes me quicker to respond. Also, I have been doing this for too long. I just have to stay out of chat sometimes and not log into AIM or else I get distracted. It's easier to slip into a character's head without switching back to Daniel for a while. Tarot: You have been with us for a long time. You signed up during the "Mizahar in a garage" era. What's your take on the way Mizahar has been evolving since you joined? Hadrian: To be honest, I think Mizahar jumped the gun on opening, but everyone has done a good job of rolling with the parts of Mizahar that haven't been completely developed yet. And I know how anxious one gets to get a game going already. The excitement level is high! I was always impressed by how well the Founders managed to develop different things, areas, etc. and still keep everything within the framework of the basic idea of Mizahar. I just hope that development continues, and that I don't drop the ball on the parts I've agreed to develop! Three jobs is killing me a little! My biggest upset is getting excited about a new player/character and then having them disappear mid-thread. I know it happens, but it's horrible to invest time, effort, and creativity in something to have it peter out. Of course, I keep doing it, because if one doesn't invest in new players, they won't have any reason to stay. And if people hadn't invested in me, I might never have stuck around in the world of online RPGs. I'd've stuck to console gaming. Or... degenerated into a LARPer! Tarot: Where do you see yourself in 12 months? What's your secret Mizaharian dream that you don't mind becoming not-so-secret? Hadrian: Well, with regard to Hadrian, I'm hoping he gets gnosis for Eyris this season. Then in a year, I will be trying to get him his second mark. I don't really have a 12-month plan, but I hope to have Denval bustling and my characters still undergoing interesting development. Otherwise I will kill them and start anew! Hadrian doesn't realize it yet, but he wants to become a god. Apotheosis is his underlying superobjective. He'll realize that he wants to transcend humanity or, depending on one's perspective, completing it and then moving on to a new challenge. I doubt he'll ever follow in Sagallius' footsteps or, if he does, I'd make him an NPC and stop playing him because that's just too powerful for a game. But would he rip out a god's heart to take his place, or would he try to find a more honorable path? We'll see, I guess. |
