Top 5...Favorite Characters You Created

[Philip Overby]

I'd like to do this "Top 5" series of threads since, hell, everyone likes lists, right?

The idea is to make a list of your Top 5...something, but as it pertains to your own work and not other people's. This first one will deal with your Top 5 Favorite Characters You Created. This can also be a way for you to see how you perceive some of your own characters and how others might see them as well. So list them like a countdown, from 5 to 1, with number 1 being your favorite. Can't pick just one number one? Feel free to do a tie in that case then.

This could be fun!

 

[Noma Galway]

5. Rhea --> Rhea is an assassin of the Ashara de'ro Ghaor, the Shadow of the Moon. She was the leader, but she ran away with an assassin of the Grey Order, who was married to the leader of the Grey Order. She has no magic, which is highly unusual in this world, but she is extremely skilled with most weapons (as compensation for her lack of magic).

4. Mari --> I mentioned Mari on the Silly Questions for Writers thread. She has a special kind of psychic power that causes intense attraction to her, and her favorite pastime is using it to seduce people, letting them get close, then releasing them from her power. She enjoys seeing people react to that situation.

3. Trysala --> Trysala is not in my current WIP. She is in a short story which has the working title of "The Doctor" (I know...the title's crap). She is the crown princess of Lanimir, and the morning of her coronation, she finds out that her little sister has smallpox. Part of the coronation is the little sibling(s) placing the crown on the head of the new ruler, as sort of a formal abdication. She doesn't really care about that, but the sister does. The sister wants to go to the ceremony anyway. The physician treating the sister also treated their mother, and the mother died. Trysala tells him that if the sister dies, he does too. So...the sister dies, and while Trysala is being crowned, the doctor is being beheaded. I just really loved the sister aspect of that story, and Trysala's reaction makes her a favorite.

2. Lara/Rayla/________ --> Lara is also not in my WIP. She is in a short story called "The Elites." She lives in a time where all the women go to war (I don't have a rationale for that yet). She is tested and becomes an assassin for the realm. She abandons her name and infiltrates the opposing country, eventually becoming a handmaid to a noble in the castle. She takes on the name Rayla there, and eventually manages to kill the king. I like her because she kissed the king while she was strangling him. She said:

A kiss I gave, and a life I took. The world is a remarkable place.

I really liked that line.

1. Briahna --> Mind-controlling, insane genius. She used to be the antagonist in my WIP, but she's turning into the antihero now that I'm writing from her perspective and she's human. I love her because her perspective is really fun to get into, and I do relate to her.

 

[Philip Overby]

1. Briahna --> Mind-controlling, insane genius. She used to be the antagonist in my WIP, but she's turning into the antihero now that I'm writing from her perspective and she's human. I love her because her perspective is really fun to get into, and I do relate to her.

I find I really enjoy insane villains with massive powers as well. It would be fun to write a story using a character like this as a kind of anti-hero. Sounds cool!

OK, here's my list:

5. Acid: A iron creature created from stomach acid (yeah...), he's a typical smartass sidekick that proves more than what he appears as he grows and becomes stronger and stronger. (From my novel The Sword Eater, currently being edited)

4. Pedro Carina: A character I came up with most recently for a blog exclusive series, I call him the Jack-of-No-Trades. He virtually has no skills, but manages to get out of the situations he's put in by luck and a little charm. He's a fun character to write because he's so utterly clueless, even when he pretends not to be. (From a series of short stories)

3. Bathbrady: A hulking, elderly, broken down hunter. I like him a lot because he's haunted by the memory of his dead wife and unborn child, yet he believes he can bring them back somehow. His compassion for other people makes him a rare type in the world he's in. (From a series of short stories)

2. Prawn Langley: A kind of con artist playing at hero. I really enjoy writing him just because he's an arrogant blowhard with all bark and no bite. However, when things really start to get hairy, he steps up now and again. (From an aborted novel Road of Guts, which will be restructured in the near future)

1. Marla Askerma: The heroine of my most recent novel, she's the kind of person that rather die than fail at something, which I find a lot of me in. She also kills all sorts of horrifying, nightmarish creatures for a living, so that's uber-cool in my book (not my literal book, but MY book) as well. (From my novel tentatively titled Hunt of Fools)

 

[Nagash]

Great idea for a thread ! Here's my two cents !

5. She-la-Zad the damned : Arguably the greatest magi to have ever lived, She-la-Zad was once a respected priest amongst his kin, a prominent member of the now-forgotten cult of Nephra in the lost desert kingdom of Unashen. While his life, he traveled considerably and gathered a tremendous amount of knowledge, avidly seeking the superior truth hiding behind the religious dogma. Through great effort and dedication, he achieved what none other had before him, and tore off the mask the gods wore when addressing their zealots - he found out "the truth", what entity was behind the march of history and the fate of the people of Zael. Such truth and higher knowledge though, cannot be learned without a cost, and the ruling entities of the world drove She-la-Zad into complete and utter madness. For many years, he became the earthly puppet of the higher spirit, Yazj, "he who hides behind the moon", and worked for the completion of it's goals. Betraying his brethren, betraying his kingdom, She-la-Zad built the Cabal, a deeply occult organization, worshipping Yazj and plotting in the very ground of Unashen, against the theocracy of the Nephrats... Growing increasingly mad with the years, She-la-Zad alienated himself from the Cabal, talking gibberish half the time and searching mythical beings unheard off... He spent a year in exile in "the fallen city", and when he came out, he was said to be changed forever, as if his very humanity had been compromised. Completely transformed, his sanity washed away by the whispers of the higher-one, She-la-Zad emerged once again from the darkness with the secret of necromancy... He became a harbinger of doom, spreading havoc on his path, and raising legions he used to enslave Unashen, and face the rival kingdom of Antha. His armies of undead crushed the enemy, and darkness went deep within the solar kingdom, but when all seemed lost, he was finally defeated by Arseth, the firebird, and his kin. Both kingdom in ruin, his armies burned to ashes, She-la-Zad fled back to the fallen city, where it is believed he was killed in a final face-off... Today, more than a millennium later, few remember the legend of She-la-Zad the priest, and She-la-Zad the damned, but rumors tend to say he shall awake from the other world, someday...

4. Zayla Leiv : A simple lieutenant in the army of the human of Koshan, Zayla Leiv was appointed main ambassador of men within the Sehras empire. A strong willed woman and a veteran of three wars, she has been devoured by her memories of the field of blood, and seeks for redemption through whatever religion she may find, sometimes more desperately than she's proud to admit. Amid the fierce and violence-driven Sehras, she hopes to find this worship of war as an absolute state of purity anyone should envy. I compare Zayla to Tolkien's Eowyn, and I find her incredibly strong minded, and somewhat of an avatar for human pride but also worth.

3. Yagan : Passionate and obsessive, Yagan is a lycan whose insane desire for revolution drives him off the limits of rationality, making him an excessively violent character, especially in the first act of the story. Having lived in an empire falling apart in bloodshed and civil war, Yagan is the incarnation of this youth exalted by violence, but also driven by some higher purpose... Though impulsive and rash, Yagan is actually a very sophisticated and cultured individual, eaten away by his dreams of grandeur and hate for the enemy. His unlimited willingness to triumph, associated with his general wit and ruse, may give him the traits of a machiavellian character, but as his companions come to learn, his very rough appearance hides the personality of a dreamer and a poet. I see a lot of myself in Yagan, especially in how dangerously passionate I am, conviction-wise. His personality and excessive ability to hope gives him the background spirit of a Gatsby - a trait of character I always cherished.

2. Sanekh Ash-tongue : As the high-priest of the temple of fire, Sanekh Ash-tongue has been an invaluable asset in the political game within the Northern empire of the Sehras. A incredibly skilled warrior and magi, he has fought with unbridled passion the enemies of his beloved people, going to great length in order to defend the values of his kindred. Most recently, Sanekh has fought in the war-turned-slaughter against the Khalaani people, and felt disgusted when it was revealed to have been a detestable political scam. Alongside acquaintances of the Southern Empire, Sanekh has been digging with the toxic corruption of the political system, rooting out the seemingly undying evil. Strong as a warrior and an enduring character, Sanekh is one of this unfailing characters you come to love for their general toughness and ability to face whatever stands in their way. Armed with a strong faith in his gods, and the primordial fire, Sanekh is one of the major characters as the story closes to an end. Often acting as a right-hand-man figure, I associated him - not so weirdly - to Walking Dead's Daryl.

1. Najek/Sath-Rash/Nakask/Zalek : I tied these four together mainly because they act most of the time together, taking an important part in the same storyline. The four of them are acclaimed generals of the southern empire of the Sehras, the epitome of strength and skill condensed in the proud figures of warriors. They are all Sehras, a fierce people possessed with the tough love of violence, and driven by the fury of the melee. Although they resemble each other in this regard, they all have their very own personality and "perks" making them so unique. Sath-Rash, for example, is the perfect incarnation of blinding hate for the Khalaani people, to the point of near madness; Nakash is a veteran of countless wars, and a being of such intelligence and self-reflection, he is driven to depression by the general ugliness of the world and his Sehras nature; etc, etc... I've loved these characters ever since I created them - while their general might is an aspect one easily comes to admire and respect, I've come to find that it was their evolution in a world far beyond their grasp, that made them so compelling. Plunged into seemingly unending and painful wars, the four Sehras are driven to the end of the world, and to the brink of mortal conception of the universe, as they embark on a journey, disclosing the darkest secrets of mortal condition, the fate of the Zael, and the nature of the Gods ruling them.

All these characters are from the same series. It mostly focusses in a fairly detailed fantasy world, on human sanity when contemplating our nature, rage and wrath, faith and willingness to triumph, passion and dreams, violence and desolation, grief and death...

 

[The Blue Lotus]

Tamari- slightly goofy and self conscious. Ends up marrying the guy who had a secret crush on her, he was also her teacher.

Nitesh- Crush guy, marries the girl of his dreams. Everyone thinks he and his family are pretty bottom rung, but is he?

Ari- Bad guy. Half demon half human, sometimes he allows a bit of humanity to show through.

Moksha- Crass, impatient know it all with little time for pleasantries.

Xing- Tough as nails, with a soft gooey center. There is a lot of pressure put on her to perform miracles, does she eventually crack?

 

[A. E. Lowan]

Good grief! This is like trying to choose a favorite child... but here goes.

Mikhail - The Dragon King of Moscow. Only one word can truly describe him: Fabulous. He is a Western dragon who has overcome great adversity in his thousand years, but overcome it he has and he is now king of his own dragon court. He loves color, shades of blue especially, and often dyes his blond hair to match his clothes. His wardrobe is expansive and expensive and he loves shopping with his favorite human companion, Irena. Life has taught him to be ruthless in politics, but at heart he is compassionate and fun-living. Mikhail is a dragon and therefore has a treasure which he adds to obsessively, but his favorite things to acquire are Happy Meal toys.

Graylyn - Demon Lord. One of identical twin Demon Lords, Graylyn is the more reckless of the two. He also has an affection for eating people. However, circumstances, including an unexpected housemate in the form of an Angel General, have forced him to limit his menu options, so he focuses on those humans who prey on innocent victims. Since they live near a major college campus he prefers frat boys with a habit of dosing girls' drinks. To amuse himself around the house, Graylyn has developed what he calls his hunting call. He adopts a Valley Girl voice and says, within the hearing of the angel, "Oh my gawd, I am SO drunk!" He swears it really works.

Matsuya Kyo - God of Death and Vengeance. A sociopath and a murderer, Kyo was abandoned by his shamed mother at birth and raised in an orphanage where he was brutally abused and exploited from the time he was a small child until he was 17 when his father, the Old God Belial, came to claim him. Kyo finally ended up turning against his father and his destructive plots, but only after falling in love and becoming a father himself. As a sociopath Kyo does not feel or understand emotion like "normal" people, but he loves his family in his own unique way and he works hard to be the person he feels they deserve.

Winter Mulcahy - Wizard. Potion master and physician, Winter is a gifted healer and the backbone of law for the city of Seahaven, Washington, the city with the highest per-capita preternatural population in the world. Once the Mulcahy family numbered in the dozens, and it was said you couldn't swing your arm in that town without smacking one. But that was twenty years ago, and over the course of Winter's young life her family has been decimated by an enemy they could never find. Now she stands alone. She is cracking under the pressure, she has turned to stimulant addiction to cope, but she refuses to give in - as long as the city still stands, so will she. The addiction will kill her in the end. She is a physician and knows exactly what she is doing. But she will not stand by and watch her city burn.

Joanna O'Brien and Niki Von Meyers - Two Sides of the Same Coin. Without Jo there is no Niki and vice versa. Jo and Niki have been thick as thieves since the moment they met when she was 18 and a incoming college freshman and he was 11 and a semester ahead of her. Niki is a linguistic prodigy and a powerful telepath. Jo is a force mage of incredible power. They exist permanently intertwined in each other's minds, like holding hands, and over time have learned to use each other's abilities.

But Jo and Niki are best explained in their own words...



Niki looked positively delighted, and Jo could feel it in his mind. Her eyes widened in exasperation. No. No. No. Niki, we have to go home.

As usual, he ignored her. "We are strangers, exploring - "

If you say "strange new worlds" I'm going to strangle you.

" - our options. We would love a native guide, if you are available."

Wolf is going to kill me.

Live a little.

She raised her hands in preparation to smack Niki's head, and then remembered their audience, so she ran them through her hair in frustration instead. "Fine, you win," she muttered. She looked at this Lucien and smiled. It was a crappy smile and she knew it. She didn't fake smile well. "Take us to your leader, I guess."

"Am I translating that?" Niki asked with a cheeky grin.

"Do it and I'm telling Wolf I dropped you in transit. I don't care."

 

[Caged Maiden]

My top five. They're from different books, but I could only pick five:

5. Cedrick- “She told me that I ought to keep her blindfold! She said I had more need of it than she did.”

Raised by a soldier and a priestess, Cedrick always knew what he wanted to be... a paladin. So what if they're only in children's stories. He sets out on a quest to vanquish an undead foe, with a blind priestess and a wildman hunter in tow, only to discover his companions have a list of secrets that could ruin his quest.

A fanatical young knight, Cedrick judges everyone and views himself as righteous, much to the dismay of everyone around him. While his journey begins as a boy's quest to grow into a man through victory over an enemy... it ends with him realizing so much more of being a man is admitting your mistakes and caring for the ones you love.

​

4. Ren- “I kissed her once, which I have already admitted to, and some things were said, some feelings confessed, but I never touched her again!”

The son of a werewolf and a mage, he's always felt a bit on the fringe of polite society. More powerful than anyone he knows, he keeps to himself and does his best to be normal, but it's a lonely existence. When a woman he was once engaged to returns home after a long journey, he finds himself as her personal guard. Old feelings surface and secrets come out that never should have been spoken about. While their love can never be, Ren cannot change his heart and though years later, he's married to another woman, and raising his own family, he still pines for the woman who he never forgot. And it's no wonder why... he's raising her daughter as his own.
​

Trying to be the best father he knows how to be, while balancing his responsibilities to his werewolf clan, fighting a war on the western fringe of civilization, he's tormented by the life he wanted to lead. Fulfilling his promise to the woman he loves and her royal husband, Ren brings their daughter to court to meet her true parents. But with the king's death, the door is opened and he's not sure he can deny his heart what it's longed for so long.
​

3. Aethan-“All fathers have a duty to their children, to keep them safe, to love them, and teach them as they grow. Your father was a miserable failure, but you can’t hold yourself responsible for that.”

His father brought peace to a torn land. As the king's second son, Aethan never planned on being king, but when his older brother was killed by a violent madman and his fierce army, Aethan gathered his men together to aid his father in a terrible war. The king and queen both died at the hands of their friend, a betrayal that haunts Aethan and makes trust difficult. Before he was crowned king, his keep was assaulted by the madman's army and his wife and son thrown to their deaths while he was made to watch. The commander demanded the return of an ancient relic and Aethan couldn't produce it, so they left him tied to a stake to die... not even enough chain with which to hang himself. BUt a mysterious woman came to his rescue on the second day of his torment, bearing a cryptic message: "Go to the port city and wait for the dragon-headed boat."

Aethan left his broken homeland and did as the woman said. Problem was, four years later, having assumed a new name and identity as a mercenary, he still hadn't seen the dragon-headed boat. His adventure brings him into contact with a demure girl with a closet full of skeletons and through helping her, he learns the truth about his past and even gains hope for the future. With a new set of allies, werewolves and mages, he sets out to reclaim his legacy, finally ready to accept who he is... but knowing he's not a king's son anymore.
​

2. Raven-“I’m not the sort to throw away the chamber pot just because it has a turd in it.”

Orphaned at a young age, Raven fled to the city as a child, making her way any way she could and promising to do whatever it took to survive. When a madman decides she's the long-lost heir of a powerful mage, he kidnaps her to use her for his twisted plots. Only by a slim chance, was she able to escape confinement, when her nemesis reveals he's a werewolf with a vested interest in her survival, and they run together on a journey sure to bring her world to a screeching halt.

Secrets about her past reveal more than she ever thought possible and the true identity of her parentsonly cause more problems, but Raven perseveres with her werewolf allies, hoping in the end she can live up to her ancestors' reputations.
​

1. Aarin- “My life is spelled out. It’s not so different from those letters in your books—unchanging, and almost as meaningless to me.”

Kidnapped form his home at the age of fifteen, he is taken by a band of knights on black war horses to a neighboring kingdom, and forced to the feet of the king. Not knowing what crime he's committed, being a serf boy who's never left his village, he's given a choice... return to his old life and remain a serf forever or join the king's army and learn the skills of a soldier. It isn't an easy choice, never having touched a weapon other than a bow, but Aarin remains in the king's service and proves his mettle, becoming the Captain of the archers in a few short years. It isn't an easy life, though. Werewolves creep across the borders and ever toward the king's city and a cult grows in popularity, making life hard for the king and his soldiers.
​

1. Ayleth-“You and I will never meet a princess or see a dragon or climb a mountain or slay a giant. That’s why we tell stories about such things. Not every tale has a tidy happy ending.”

Tied with Aarin for my favorite, is his childhood love, Ayleth. A poet and storyteller at heart, Ayleth grows up in a village, planning to marry her best friend and find happiness. But when her young lover is kidnapped in broad daylight, her world is turned upside down. She knows her father had a hand in Aarin's disappearance, but her family remain tight-lipped about the boy's fate.

When a mysterious woman arrives in the mid of night, a babe in her arms, Ren, Alyeth's father, rushes his family off to the far east, where they assume new identities and try to forget past tragedies.

It's hard enough knowing your father isn't your father, but Ayleth's problems only get worse when she meets her true parents, the king and queen of a neighboring kingdom. Secrets all out on the table, Ayleth has to decide whether to embrace a legacy she didn't ask for, or run from everything she knows. It's Aarin's return that gives her the strength she needs to become who she was meant to be, but time has changed them both and they soon find themselves on opposing sides of a brutal war.

After the death of her father, Ayleth knows what she must do and she accepts her inheritance, a magical power she now solely holds. With a dragon under her control, she leaves her homeland and family, to avenge the death of the king... a man who gave her his looks but was never her father.
​

 

[Smith]

This thread is fun!

5. Milo. Born on a human-dominated trade world, a coup d'etat in his first year of life saw most of the alien population, including his parents, rounded up at work and at home and exiled off-world, leaving behind a surprising number of 'orphaned' alien children to be raised in human foster homes. Deeply resentful of both his own species who he feels abandoned him, and the human society in which he grew up, Milo was conscripted into a human war against his own people in his teens and served for several years until, shortly before the end of the war, he was gravely injured and his life was saved by cybernetic implants. Ever since, he's been searching for a way to go home, trying to reconcile the human-raised parts of himself with his desire for his people, which he feels cut off from forever. I very much like writing his confusion in dealing with humans (particularly the only person he could remotely call friend, his co-pilot Esau) and his own human-instilled values, whilst simultaneously dealing with ingrained hatred for what they've done to him.

4. Calamus. Another character without a surname, this name was actually given to him by his patron god and he was born Albina Mordace, daughter of a very powerful banker and close personal friend of the Empress. In his teens, he used magic to assume a male body and life, joining a military order of the church, but once the door to magic-use is opened, it's hard to stop, and he somehow finds himself the poster boy for heretics. Calamus is a shark, and I find it a lot of fun to integrate shark-like traits into his humanshape behaviour. He's also a devious little so-and-so, and everyone who's ever tried to hunt him finds themselves with him hiding among their number, impersonating someone else.

3. Lyndon Reed. Born in the mid 1800s in Boston, Lyndon was his father's bastard offspring from a non-consensual encounter with his wife's sister. As a teenager he ran away, but invariably nearly got himself killed, until he fell in with a gang out west who took him in, taught him how to steal, and eventually betrayed him. Now in his thirties, he's a well-known outlaw, has amassed a significant bounty on his head and dodged a few nooses, but since befriending a curious preacher, he's started on a path to some kind of redemption. He's a character of mine that's undergone the most dramatic change, from a headstrong, drunken loner to a friend, an honourable man and, eventually, a loving father figure.

2. Amrin. Thanks to the elven diaspora, Amrin has lost much of his connection to his culture, and as a troubled soul, once made an easy target for a vampire. This triggered a long and complicated battle with an addiction to vampirism, which brings him blessings many, and curses, too. As a skilled assassin from an exclusive order, he tries to be enigmatic, but in the end he only ends up being cool to a 9-year-old slave boy.

1. Tigre Pallido. Tigre Pallido is a lot of fun to write because he takes himself just a bit too seriously. He's a talented witch hunter, but he has a sadistic streak, hidden by many layers of false civility and propriety. A strong leader and an adept fighter, he also has an interest in the latest fashions, wears only the finest clothes and loathes getting blood on them. His pride and vanity even lead him to pay a personal tailor/seamstress to travel with his band of mercenaries, so his outfits remain up-to-date. Despite his fashion and work focused lifestyle, he also feels very strongly for his niece, whom he has taken as an apprentice. Tigre's grey rivalry with his white whale (or should I say shark), Calamus, make their dynamic a fun one to explore.

Calamus and Tigre belong in the same story, whereas Amrin exists elsewhere in the same world. Milo comes from a sci-fi yarn that yearns to be told, but I have yet to summon the courage to confront it, and Lyndon exists in my western.

 

[Rinzei]

Oh geeze... Let's see if I can muster up five that I still like enough for this. In no particular order:

Laen Fayr: A young, seemingly-omniscient half-elf woman with an air of enigma to her. Laen is a difficult one to pin down. She's that sort of person that seems approachable, yet most tend not to unless necessary. She is pleasant, but overall a low-key individual. And the main character just can't stop staring at her...

Laen's cool and collected demeanour comes from being reincarnated countless times and the foreknowledge of her previous lives which most do not possess. In her universe, souls are recycled - they are wiped clean in the ether and return to mortality as a new life, free of it's previous burdens and impressions. Laen's soul was forced from her/his body by a means another than death and never reached the ether - it was never wiped clean and his/her previous memories will always travel with her. In the life that started this chain, Laen was a knight named Aeax, known by the large populace as The Patron. He was personal guard and lover to the sovereign of a nation, whom he was unable to protect. Determined to find her and keep her safe, he had his soul removed so he could search for her reincarnation. From these past lives, she has knowledge beyond her years - but the procedure and her heartbreak take a toll on her emotionally at times.

Laen is one of my favourites because she deals a lot with complex gender identities and sexualities. As someone who has lived multiple times as a man and a woman (perhaps even as a both on occasion), she does not see gender as black/white or sexuality as physical attraction to someone's anatomy. But when faced with her feelings her reincarnated love, she can't help but wonder if her new feelings are different because she is a woman now, but she was a man when they were together. Who knows?


Phoenix: Born in a world of humans blessed by dragons, Phoenix was both the cursed and blessed of his land all at once, unknown to any but his closest family. By family line, he was destined to be the High Swordsman, whom would slay The Demon when he appeared. Of course, his family has hidden for years that he is in fact the next Demon. When his family is slain for their betrayal to the land and Phoenix is jailed, sympathetic knights smuggle him away to another world where they hope he can live safely.

I've always liked Phoenix because despite everything that happens to him, he manages to keep a sweetness and innocence to him. Everything is foreign in this new world, and it's only by those that take him in that he survives. He still has a lot of growing to do, but it seems that the darkness surrounding his life hasn't infected him yet. For a part of the story, he also doesn't speak due to a wound on his neck - which makes writing about his interaction with other people interesting.


Core Dominic: Why one of the main characters from Saint and Sinner isn't my favourite, I'll never know. Okay, I do - the main character was as vanilla as you can get. But I digress. Core was one of those characters that meant to start out one way and went another. He's the closest thing to a male tsundere as it gets in my stories. His initial character was brash, rude, and downright unpleasant, whereas his twin brother was friendly, outgoing and charismatic. Somewhere along the line, those roles changed - Core began to realise how his behaviour pushed others away and that he just wanted his friend-crush to be happy, whereas Isak took losing his ex to the new guy as a personal insult and had angry drunken fights until ending up hospitalised. Core wins here for being the bigger man, even more than the main character who ended up getting the girl.


Anneliese Auldre and Lothaire Saeger: I put these two together because they are from the same story and are a duo, really.

Anneliese went to the Mage Academy, but graduated without a specialisation. She just never seemed to find her niche and found many different topics interesting. In the end, she became the epitome of "jack of all trades, master of none". Without a major, she wound up doing busy work in a small town's doctor's office, using simple healing spells on bar-fight bruises and farmyard accidents. To top it all off, she had a large amount of debt - it wasn't cheap being a mage, or even just studying to be one. She might have once had a shy, girl-next-door demeanour, but she's all but lost it through financial stress and a general displeasure with her situation in life. It's only through events that led her and Lothaire on a quest that she began to find what might be her calling - of course, it's forbidden in human society. So does she stay with her human fellows and keep a life of mediocrity, or does she leave it all to stay with the dark elves and learn magic she was never meant to touch?

Lothaire is on the other end of the spectrum. She is a loud, boisterous, confident swordsman for hire whom befriended Anneliese - and by that, I mean she rents a room from her and likes to hang around. She considers Anneliese her best friend and is saddened by how unhappy Anneliese is, so she constantly tries to figure out ways for to take Anneliese somewhere else. Lothaire grew up in a village of mages, and turned out to have very little magic ability of her own. Her taller stature and prowess with swords left her largely ridiculed, so she left and hasn't looked back. She's determined to find her place in the world, though she has no idea where that could be. She is incredibly distraught when it appears that Anneliese may leave humans to live with the dark elves, feeling abandoned by her closest companion.

 

[ThinkerX]

Hard to choose. I've created so many down through the decades. But still...

Titus Maximus: One of the MC's of 'Labyrinth', minor scion of the Maximus clan, second most powerful family in the Solarian Empire - the Maximus have held the imperial throne more than once in the past and want it back bad. Titus isn't as polished as the rest of his family, having spent most of a decade on the front lines of a grueling war. He came away from that conflict with assorted buried phobia's, a fondness for the 'direct approach', and more sympathy than the norm for the ordinary soldiers, making him stand out from the rest of the clan. But he is still a dutiful son, and puts the family first.

Tia Samos: Tia is one of the protagonists of the 'Empire' series of novellas. She's an attractive woman in her late teens who left the University at Solace under a cloud of scandal, and has been sent on a 'boring' tour of various fiefs, partly to look for investment prospects, and partly to check out eligible male nobles...but what with old feuds, bandits, monsters, and more, well...things get complicated. She can come across as a bit of a tramp...with the mind of a powerful calculator. I might change her last name before the end of the series.

Dael: Dael is an old character, adopted from an AD&D game as a character in Aquas (my 'other world'). He is a half elf warrior, wizard, and rogue with a chip on both shoulders. He's been a lifelong outcast, playing the part of mercenary and thief with his brother Breen (another half elf). After they separated, Dael began slowly cracking up from the isolation and number of people he's killed - a list including dozens of humans, scores of goblins, and members of other races. He keeps trying to fit in, but either gets rejected or screws things up on his own.

Dael was inspired by a conversation I had with a gaming buddy, who made the observation that one would have to 'kill a lot of kobolds to advance in level' and that such a person would be 'really messed up'.

Toki and Hock-Nar: These two are bound together at the soul as a result of a spell cast in desperation. Toki is human, as petty thief and outcast apprentice mage; while Hock-Nar is a hobgoblin warrior and monk. Toki is impulsive, frequently not considering the consequences of his actions; while Hock-Nar is all about discipline and honor. Toki has little skill with personal combat and abhors killing; Hock-Nar lives to fight, and kills when honorably acceptable. They get along because they have to, not because they want to.

Adam Gardner: Adam Gardner is the oldest of my characters still in use. Alas, most of the early tales he featured in are long gone. Adam is a earth human who came of age at the end of the Cold War. He helped create a sort of dimensional gate to another world (actually Dael's world), passing through it with several thousand other earth humans. He got into problems, got outcast, learned some magic of sorts, and bounced around a number of other places for a while. Mostly, he's a tinkerer and petty magician. He has this knack for being mistaken for a maintenance man regardless of where he ends up.

When I created Adam, 'Urban Fantasy' as it exists now pretty much didn't exist apart from vampire stories.

 

[Philip Overby]

Wow, lots of cool characters and it's nice to see how many different kinds we have here.

For those that have posted so far, why did you choose your number one? I mean what is the main reason you think?

Also, I'm thinking of doing other Top 5...something something threads so keep a look out for them and share some of your various creations.

 

[Smith]

It was difficult picking an order for them, so I didn't place too much emphasis on who was number one vs number five, but Tigre is a lot of fun to write, so I guess that's what clinched it. He's a ruthless man when he needs to be, but he has unexpected soft spots with the right people, and when I get to write about his entire world being turned upside down as he becomes the thing he hates... that's going to be immensely fun indeed. He's always surprising me, so who knows what I might discover then?

 

[The Blue Lotus]

Wow, lots of cool characters and it's nice to see how many different kinds we have here.

For those that have posted so far, why did you choose your number one? I mean what is the main reason you think?

Also, I'm thinking of doing other Top 5...something something threads so keep a look out for them and share some of your various creations.

Xing is the MC for the series. Was as simple as that. She is not my fav. But she is the most important plot wise.

My fav to write is Moksha, but he is gone after book 2.

 

[Noma Galway]

I chose Briahna because she's a genius whose mental abilities drove her insane. Her perspective is my favorite to write. I typically just write in my stream-of-consciousness because that's how I picture her thinking. Also, writing mind-control fight scenes is oddly rewarding, even though I needed some major help with it.

 

[Caged Maiden]

I did put them in order, but really, i like them all. I love Cedrick (5) because he's an arrogant young man who thinks the world is one way, and it takes a blind priestess to open his eyes to the other side of the world.

Ren and Aethan (4 and 3) are both suitors of the same woman and both earned a place in my top five because though they are very different, they're both great people and ones I would enjoy writing for a long time. Ren is a werewolf mage and has a load of personal issues, but he's sensitive deep-down and always tries to do the right thing (including saving Aethan's life once when he had the chance to let him die and therefore take him out of the love triangle picture. But he didn't). Aethan is a homeless prince who is about thirty years old and feeling past his prime in a few ways. I had a lot of fun writing that, because I wrote him when he was older than I was, but now I've caught up to him and I have a lot of the same feelings.

Raven was a no-brainer for me, because she is simply the most challenging character I've ever written. Her story was the first one I deemed worth seeking representation on (book 7) and as such, she holds a special place in my heart (though her book is still sorely in need of rewrites).

Aarin and Ayleth are my favorite. Their story is also my favorite. What could be more fun than writing two teenagers in love? The one is a budding mage and being raised by a werewolf, the other is a serf who gets kidnapped and told to join the army. It was my beginning archery that inspired me to write an archer, and Aarin was what resulted. It was so much fun to shape their journey as they grew from children into adults and eventually ended up on opposing sides of a major conflict, calling into question their entire history together, their feelings for each other, and their learned beliefs, based upon the lives they'd led apart.

 

[A. E. Lowan]

We chose Jo and Niki because off all our characters, they are the ones who are the closest to us. Personality-wise, no, not exactly, but their relationship dynamic matches that which my writing partner and I share. We really are two sides of the same coin, and the humor, the rapid-fire conversation, the perfect timing and coordination that they have, came from our relationship. In these ways Jo and Niki are us.

 

[Ophiucha]

I'll just pick two, since they stand out.

Molly, main character of my '13 NaNo, because she was just such a righteously angry character wrapped up in a petticoat and a flower crown. She was petite, physically quite weak, blind, and very feminine. But she also does something horrific enough that it could probably be qualified as terrorism. On top of that, she's one half of my favourite romance in any of my stories. So I'm fond of her.

And Skôpasis, who is a transgender thief king. He's not a major character, but he's the father figure for one of my mains, and he's just... he's kind of like the charming rogue gone powerful. He rules the underground of a city he practically funded himself, a city he bribed the planners into building with narrow alleys and close roof tops. Plus, he wears a pair of 'antlers' made from whale bone and iron (which are sort of luxury commodities in this world) as his crown - which is part of the whole trans bit of his character, since he's kind of a deer!faun and doesn't grow any himself.

 

[Jabrosky]

I will just name one this time: Strongjaw the Tyrannosaurus rex.

One of my earliest story ideas, conceived late in junior high, featured a T. Rex as the hero. I thought it would be totally awesome to have my favorite dinosaur---hell, my favorite animal of all time---as a good guy instead of the usual antagonistic monster. As I grew older my interest shifted more towards human characters, especially action heroines, but there was one time I briefly revisited my heroic T. Rex concept. Here he was protecting a decimated Egyptian population from invading Aztecs. I never got far into the project, but I remember my Strongjaw character had a noble yet ferocious personality that I felt fitting for his species.

Come to think of it, I should revive him again...

 

[Chessie]

Um...I'll go with Svetlana, the sultry sorceress. She was the bad guy's girl and willing to give her life (and that of others) for him. They were part of a bandit crew of which she carried weight because of her position as the boss's consort. Saved by the bandits when they happened across her on the road being beaten by her husband, you could say she had a bad case of Stockholm Syndrome.

She's one of my favorite characters because she was clever, rather brave and--of course, her weapon of choice was a crystal ball which did some naughty things. On the exterior, Svetlana seemed to have it held together. But on the inside, she suffered from insecurity deep enough to swim in. Used by her lover, she desperately tried to please him but he never thought her good enough. She went crazy, the poor thing. Excess baggage.

 

[Fyri]

Hmm. This could be difficult.

1) Akiro: Heavy burdened man that always ends up feeling the burn for the mistakes of those he tries to protect. He was chosen at a young age to abandon his normal life and begin training to become the leader of the Fire Domain, a life he never wanted. Without complaint, he trains under the current leader who is secretly evil and working for the rising Dark Lord. Akiro rebels, secretly joining the Light Army and getting put into worse and worse situations, where he ends up killing himself to save his unknowing daughter. Although through his whole life, he meets the worst trails and tribulations, he always find a way to help anyone else that needs help, even though he might need more help than them.

2)Riley: Snotty little prince from a sorcery planet. He is selfish, rude and way too full of himself. At first I created him to be a love interest for the MC, but as he took on his own personality, I realized that the MC loved someone else, and Riley was just a sleazebag. Idk why, but he has quickly become a very fun character to write.

3)Esu: Classic nerdy boywonder. Favorite catchphrase is "Never fear! The Yellow Haired Defender is here!" He acts tough until something truly scary comes to visit. Instantly he chooses to run away. But as the story progresses, Esu learns how to be brave and stand up to foes that all the others are afraid of. Of course, there is that thin line between bravery and stupidity, and Esu sometimes is able to be the epitome of such a line.

2) Soriko: Why are all my favorite characters male?! Soriko is the love interest of the MC. The first time the MC actually met him, he was trying to kill her, yet he found that something stopped him. Later, after spending time on the good side, he finds out that it was love that stopped him that day. Further into the future, he is tortured for his time on the dark side and forced to serve the Dark Lord once more, causing the MC to hate him and love him in her greatest confusion of emotions. Through all his torturing, he manages to somehow keep the Dark Lord away from the MC. In the end, he sacrifices himself to save her life.

1) Kaelin: Whoo! Girl character! Riley's older sister. She is the one that got everything, from attention to magic teachings. Kaelin come in near the end of the third book to wreak her havoc on the little defenseless world of Elemental Earth. Being an extremely powerful witch, Kaelin is able to change her appearance daily. She usually keeps the same body form, but her outfit and hairstyle is her most favorite hobby, aside from slaughtering new civilizations in order to win more prizes to decorate her outfits. Having a great dislike for people and small regard for what happens to them, she tends to be reckless and ruthless with her battles.


I chose Akiro as my top favorite because he became the father figure for the MC. Giving sarcastic remarks here and there and teasing, he showed his fun side. At the same time, he gave her invaluable advice and comfort in her darkest moments. I guess I like him most because he shows that even though darkness may take hold of every room, light can be found just around the corner. He also gives me comfort and advice, along with sarcastic remarks about how I should probably not put him in the danger I'm about to put him in at the time.