The Interview
1. Ashka is described in her CS as being an unmarked Svefra. How has that impacted her? Does she want a mark from Laviku? Or has it turned into a very pivotal RP point for your PC?Ashka is a Svefra-Drykas mix. Though she has spent time with her Drykas father, her main attitude is that of the Svefra she's spent more time with. Her lack of a mark is one of the major aspects that's shaped her. It's a very old, deeply buried hurt and one of the rp reasons behind being in Syka in the first place. She both wants to have grown up as a normal marked Svefra and to give Laviku a very sharp piece of her mind for "rejecting" her. At this moment in time I'm not looking to get her a gnosis of any kind, though she may look for ways to adapt around the lack of a mark.
2. You use NPCs in a fascinating way. More specifically, Chaya is constantly with you and your PC is responsible for her. How does using an NPC change your RP or impact it? I honestly see you playing two PCs when you play Ashka because of Chaya… do you feel this way as well?Chaya was deliberately created to give Ashka someone to react to and interact with even in solos. In bigger cities, I'd be more likely to use random, nameless, one-use NPCs, but I knew going in that there weren't any of those in Syka, so - enter Chaya.
Chaya's existance means that Ashka doesn't get to go wandering off to explore the jungle, or heading into the unknown on quests and adventures, because that would mean either abandoning Chaya, or taking a child into danger. Instead, she works, and builds, and goes fishing, and hangs out with people. Her adventures are smaller ones, but no less fun to write.
3. Describe what you get out of roleplaying? Be specific? What does it give you back or do for you?I get to try out other lives - those of my characters. It's just fun, most of the time.
4. What has been one of your favorite threads to date? Why was it your favorite? This could be something you wrote or something someone else wrote. Just tell us about it.
I think it would be A Trickle of Knowledge. It's a flashback thread where Ashka is learning a bit of basic Wilderness Survival, and also a glimpse of her life among the Svefra. It was fun to write, but it was also a challenge of writing skill, staying in character while packing in a flood of information and at the same time trying not to bore any readers.
5. What is your favorite part of Mizahar? What keeps you coming back numerous years?I get to write things here that I wouldn't elsewhere, and see progress in both my character's skills and my ability to write them.
6. Does Ashka have any long term goals or dreams? Tell us about them. If she doesn’t, why not?Ashka's deepest wish is to find a way to go home to the sea without being a burden on anyone else. She doesn't believe it's possible, so she tries not to think about it. If she can't go home, she wants to run a cloth business that does everything from growing the raw fibre-plants to producing finished clothes.
7. What is the worst thing your PC has ever done in a thread? What’s the best thing that’s ever happened to her?I think the worst thing was running head first into a giant bat. Best thing though, was finding a set of magic ice-cubes. Cold drinks forever!
8. I love that your PC is a weaver. Did you go into writing about this knowing about weaving or has it been something you’ve had to learn along the way? I feel like in reading and grading your threads, I’ve learned a lot about weaving as well. Tell us a bit about this and how you research or put your real life experience to work on Mizahar.Mostly I learned it along the way. I've had a mild interest in spinning and weaving for some time, but no hands on experience. I don't set out to research a particular thread, I just devour everything vaguely relevant, from tutorials to books to documentries, digest it thoroughly, and it come out reshaped into something that fits the thread and character.
9. Everyone is always fascinated by the inspiration for character creation. Do you remember, even though it was several years ago, what your inspiration for Ashka was and what gave you the idea for the pc in the first place?It was just under a year ago, actually. I decided to make a character specifically for Syka, so I began by running my eye down the crafts that would fit there and choosing weaving. I prefer to play characters that have lost something in their pasts, so I took Ashka out of her home setting on a ship , dropped her in the jungle, and gave her the basic skills to survive there. The rest developed as I played her.
10. Ashka lives very simply. She doesn’t seem to covet things so much as she covets experiences. Can you talk about this aspect of Ashka and how it plays into your roleplay?Ashka's spent almost the whole of her life packing everything she owns into something she can either carry on her back or cram into a tiny cabin. It hasn't been a life that encouraged collecting things - but she does gather up pretty things from mother of pearl to glittering crystals. In addition, experiences are something that can't be taken away, unlike items. It isn't so much that she doesn't covet things, more that she hasn't yet adapted to the idea that she can have things and keep them!
11. Here’s your soap box question! Is there anything you want to talk about in regards to your character and or the game itself? You have an audience so feel free to jump on the soapbox and talk a bit about anything you want!Play in a way that's fun for you. If you enjoy writing something, chances are that it will shine through and the reader or rp partner will enjoy it too. If a city isn't fun for you, don't feel you have to rp there, no matter how much people try to "persuade" you to join it. Same with thread partners and styles. No matter what you may hear, there is no one true way to write. If someone's style clashes badly with yours and makes things less than fun - go have fun with someone else instead.
That is all.