How often do we see someone cause misery for the sole sake of making others miserable? Rarely, I'd say. With the exception of people like Tom Brady (go Giants), the vast majority of people are human beings, and I, personally, believe that we're all good people. That said, people don't get on with each other all the time, and some more than others. We have people we don't like, people who aggravate us. We have our villains, and they're a sad, if unchanging, part of life. In roleplay, it's the same – can you imagine an Old Republic without the crackling, forboding voice of Darth Malgus? The problem with creating a villain, however, is that quite often they can antagonize players just as much as a character, and when this happens, roleplay falters. In this Datapad Notes, we'll be exploring the ways that players can create memorable villains without antagonizing others.

Do you play a character that irritates, attacks, or doesn't always do what their faction expects? They can be a Jedi Knight, irritatingly superior with harsh morals that often aggravate the people they work with. Perhaps they're an Imperial Agent, willing to side with the enemy to ensure that the greater good survives. Or, alternately, they could be a Sith Inquisitor, determined to make the Republic fall to its knees, so the galaxy can, once again, know true order. If you do, good work. Hopefully, you haven't run into the problems that come with creating an antagonist, counterpart, anti-hero, villain. If you have, perhaps this will help you work on keeping people interested out-of-character, or improve your character. We'll be discussing how a villain can contribute to roleplay, the importance of backstory in making a character, and we'll also touch on how to handle the delicate inticracies between players and characters, and how to keep them happy.

Buckle up, folks, and get ready to fall to the Dark Side.

Everyone knows there's a thin line between In Character and Out of Character interaction; a very clear, and distinct point. You might be Daniel, a married Dispatch operator living on the New York bayshore behind the keyboard. At the same time, however, once you enter the game, an abrupt change occurs: you're now Dinals'otinparki, a savage Inquisitor for the Sith Order, with a compulsive habit to flirt with anything that will let her. And yet, usually, you can log off. The two personas are distinct. At worse, you might get upset at someone's constant harassment of your character, but it's never too distressing.

But as the Jedi might say, attachment messes up with a person's neutrality. Another person's hunt for a boyfriend to compare Star Wars trivia with might lead to them getting overly attached to someone; the person on the other end might be a little bit disturbed at how it affects their marriage. Romances are complicated enough in the Star Wars universe, without dragging how complex real human beings are. After reading through the responses to the recent Force Reflection, I felt obliged to contribute something towards the issue, particularly since a few responses have helped me. In this article, we're going to look at the point where IC and OOC meet in a romance. We're going to look at the points where it's acceptable, even something more, the parts when it gets vaguely odd, and that very distinct line you really shouldn't cross.