Character Writing - Blog Posts

How I Would Write Kronika As MK1's Villain?

During the period when the first 20 minutes of gameplay came out, I thought Kronika might be the villain. I was mixed about the idea because I was nervous that the writers might fumble her writing like in MK11, but I had some hope that she could improve. Plus, her new design is a massive improvement compared to her previous one and it kind of sucks that her character is just a disguise. I really wanted MK to have a well-written female main villain.

Overall, I enjoyed the ending we got but the multiverse idea seems a bit too much. I would've preferred Liu Kang's and Shang Tsung's timelines to be the only ones that exist since, in canon, they were in Titan status in MK11 Aftermath. But, MK1's ending does not make me hate the game or the franchise. I'm still invested in it.

Anyway, this is my idea: (I really like the setup/base of the story so most of my changes are minor except for the final battle.)

Instead of MK11 Shang Tsung disguising as Kronika, Kronika would disguise herself as a high priest called Damashi, who is connected to Outworld's royal family. She plots with Shang Tsung and Quan Chi on how to overthrow the kingdom and rule the realms (a lie). To keep Geras convinced that Kronika is dead, Kronika wiped the knowledge of her having a failsafe plan to become a mortal if she is near death. As Damashi, I’d have her appear throughout the story but in the background and for only a few moments, watching the events unfold, to hint that something is wrong. Shang Tsung is still very manipulated and is the cause of General Shao, Rain, and Reiko betraying the royal family.

When Shang Tsung introduces “Damashi,” it will be Kronika in her true form instead of Titan Shang Tsung. She would berate Liu Kang and his timeline, saying that balance is the true way to create a timeline. Liu Kang argues that giving people free will to be good instead of taking away that choice is the right thing to do. Kronika then reveals that she created another failsafe within Geras- if she ever loses her Titan powers then she can steal Geras’. She extracts his powers, reverting him back to his MK 11 self. Geras' corruption causes the Hourglass to break, slowly destroying Liu Kang's timeline. Some of the characters start dissolving/disappearing so this leaves Liu Kang on his own. He travels to the Hourglass and the final fight starts with Kronika as the main fighter and Geras as her Kameo. If Liu Kang does damage to Kronika, it causes her life bar to steadily increase. Instead, Liu Kang would have to hit Geras, who is much weaker since Kronika absorbed most of his powers. The player would have to wait for Geras to appear on stage while avoiding Kronika's attacks. Kronika is defeated and Geras is healed. Out of wanting to properly protect the timeline, Liu Kang decides to reabsorb his Titan powers.

I intended this to be a parallel/comparison between Liu Kang and Kronika’s ideals on how a timeline should be and their treatment of Geras. While Kronika believes balance is the best way to handle a timeline and treats Geras like a servant/tool, Liu Kang believes people are more capable of good and sees Geras as a friend.

I really wanted MK1 to focus more on Liu Kang's struggles with being a Titan and Earthrealm's protector, such as making sure the timeline gives all or at least most people the free will to choose their destiny, his melancholy with not being with his friends like in previous timelines, and seeing them die in the future.

One of my favourite questions for figuring out a character’s motivations is which qualities they most fear being assigned to them. Are they afraid (consciously or unconsciously) of being seen as stupid? Ungrateful? Weak? Incompetent? Lazy? Cowardly? Intimidating? Like they actually care? etc.

It’s such a fun way to explore into who they are, why they do what they do, what they don’t do out of fear, and how they might be affected by the events of the story. And I love when characters have negative motivations—trying to avoid something (in this case, being seen a particular way) as much as they’re trying to achieve a goal.

“Extremely detailed character sheet template”

Character Chart Character’s full name: Reason or meaning of name: Character’s nickname: Reason for nickname: Birth date: Physical appearance Age: How old does he/she appear: Weight: Height: Body build: Shape of face: Eye color: Glasses or contacts: Skin tone: Distinguishing marks: Predominant features: Hair color: Type of hair: Hairstyle: Voice: Overall attractiveness: Physical disabilities: Usual fashion of dress: Favorite outfit: Jewelry or accessories: Personality Good personality traits: Bad personality traits: Mood character is most often in: Sense of humor: Character’s greatest joy in life: Character’s greatest fear: Why? What single event would most throw this character’s life into complete turmoil? Character is most at ease when: Most ill at ease when: Enraged when: Depressed or sad when: Priorities: Life philosophy: If granted one wish, it would be: Why? Character’s soft spot: Is this soft spot obvious to others? Greatest strength: Greatest vulnerability or weakness: Biggest regret: Minor regret: Biggest accomplishment: Minor accomplishment: Past failures he/she would be embarrassed to have people know about: Why? Character’s darkest secret: Does anyone else know? Goals Drives and motivations: Immediate goals: Long term goals: How the character plans to accomplish these goals: How other characters will be affected: Past Hometown: Type of childhood: Pets: First memory: Most important childhood memory: Why: Childhood hero: Dream job: Education: Religion: Finances: Present Current location: Currently living with: Pets: Religion: Occupation: Finances: Family Mother: Relationship with her: Father: Relationship with him: Siblings: Relationship with them: Spouse: Relationship with him/her: Children: Relationship with them: Other important family members: Favorites Color: Least favorite color: Music: Food: Literature: Form of entertainment: Expressions: Mode of transportation: Most prized possession: Habits Hobbies: Plays a musical instrument? Plays a sport? How he/she would spend a rainy day: Spending habits: Smokes: Drinks: Other drugs: What does he/she do too much of? What does he/she do too little of? Extremely skilled at: Extremely unskilled at: Nervous tics: Usual body posture: Mannerisms: Peculiarities: Traits Optimist or pessimist? Introvert or extrovert? Daredevil or cautious? Logical or emotional? Disorderly and messy or methodical and neat? Prefers working or relaxing? Confident or unsure of himself/herself? Animal lover? Self-perception How he/she feels about himself/herself: One word the character would use to describe self: One paragraph description of how the character would describe self: What does the character consider his/her best personality trait? What does the character consider his/her worst personality trait? What does the character consider his/her best physical characteristic? What does the character consider his/her worst physical characteristic? How does the character think others perceive him/her: What would the character most like to change about himself/herself: Relationships with others Opinion of other people in general: Does the character hide his/her true opinions and emotions from others? Person character most hates: Best friend(s): Love interest(s): Person character goes to for advice: Person character feels responsible for or takes care of: Person character feels shy or awkward around: Person character openly admires: Person character secretly admires: Most important person in character’s life before story starts: After story starts:

found here

i made a guide for ppl

Writing Tips Master Post

Character writing/development:

Character Arcs

Making Character Profiles

Character Development

Comic Relief Arc

Internal Conflict

Character Voices

Creating Distinct Characters

Suicidal Urges/Martyr Complex

Creating Likeable Characters

Writing Strong Female Characters

Writing POC Characters

Building Tension

Plot devices/development:

Intrigue in Storytelling

Enemies to Lovers

Alternatives to Killing Characters

Worldbuilding

Misdirection

Consider Before Killing Characters

Foreshadowing

Narrative:

Emphasising the Stakes

Avoid Info-Dumping

Writing Without Dialogue

1st vs. 2nd vs. 3rd Perspective

Fight Scenes (+ More)

Transitions

Pacing

Writing Prologues

Dialogue Tips

Writing War

Writing Cheating

Worldbuilding:

Worldbuilding: Questions to Consider

Creating Laws/Rules in Fantasy Worlds

Book writing:

Connected vs. Stand-Alone Series

A & B Stories

Writer resources:

Writing YouTube Channels, Podcasts, & Blogs

Online Writing Resources

Outlining/Writing/Editing Software

Writer help:

Losing Passion/Burnout

Overcoming Writer's Block

Fantasy terms:

How To Name Fantasy Races (Step-by-Step)

Naming Elemental Races

Naming Fire-Related Races

How To Name Fantasy Places

Ask games:

Character Ask Game #1

Character Ask Game #2

Character Ask Game #3

Miscellaneous:

1000 Follower Post

2000 Follower Poll

Writing Fantasy