>One of the things I was thinking
>about doing was having the NPC actually be active, rather than reactive.
Most
>NPCs in most games are purely reactive. They don't seem to have any
lives of
>their own, they take no initiative, they have no curiousity about the
world,
>they have no apparent goals that they work to achieve, and (in worst
cases)
>they don't even seem to have a reason for being in the adventure. This
>doesn't do much for my suspension of disbelief.
Wow, there must be a meme going around. I have been working on an article
on NPC personality design. Here is a (very) short abstract.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A number of concepts can be used classify personality traits in Real
People (tm). One familiar concept is Introverted v. Extroverted. A less
familiar dialectic is Stabile v. Labile. Stabiles are generally on an
even keel, almost nothing upsets them; they are "inner directed."
Labiles, on the other hand, are jumpy, excitable, and emotional; they are
more affected by outside events. Each of these can be thought of as a
continuum instead of a dichotomy.
When you combine the two concepts, you get the following:
Introvert Extrovert
Stabile Phlegmatic Sanguine
Labile Melancholic Choleric
Sound familiar?
The theory of bodily humors (Br.: humours) comes from Galen, hundreds of
years ago. However, Introversion and Extroversion have a biological
foundation, as do Stability and Lability.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
--- There is a lot more detail in my article-in-progress. I just wanted to throw these ideas into the mix.-Jeff
"Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stranger." - Trevor Goodbody, _Aeon Flux_