Creating a new thread for brainstorming Cameos. A continuation of the one found here, as that one has grown rather long and hard to follow. As a foreword, there are some general things to consider when making a good cameo. These are not hard and fast rules, mind you. Just general tips. For reference, here is the news feed for the most recent cameo role-call.
The first and foremost of these is to remember they are replacing otherwise nameless background characters.
You want them to add to the depth of the story, but you should not be aiming to have them take center stage. The focus of the story will always be on the main cast. Even the most prominent of cameos remain supporting roles. And of those that were prominent, many of them were not expected to have such a key role. It just happened that they filled a niche in the story.
What you do not want to do is try and sponsor cameos to "fish" for a specific role. We have little idea what will transpire in a given chapter. Trying to land a specific "needed" role will of course fail if that role doesn't happen to exist! Flexibility and being able to fill multiple roles is key.
Secondly, Kern has to fit these cameos into the story somehow.
If you focus overmuch on narrow personality traits or quirks, Kern is extremely handicapped in writing your cameo. He either has a very limited manner of ways to show those traits, or he has to ignore them altogether. As a general rule, try to design your cameo's personalty and quirks in a way that is more general and multifaceted. This allows Kern to display these traits in different ways, depending on the needs of the story.
One of the better examples I can list is Jak'iaah. Note the quirk on that concept art: "Believe without fault in the Sarghress Hierarchy." That makes it a personality trait with good and bad aspects Kern can use. He can play up the good in that she's extremely dedicated and professional. Or play up the bad in that she's rigid and inflexible. And over the course if the story, Kern has done *both*. Traits like these with positive and negative aspects create a character with some depth. All in a single quirk.
Contrast this with a quirk like "Master Swordsman". In addition to having a narrow focus and very little depth, it can only be shown in the story if Kern has the character appear in a battle scene. Which makes the quirk one that has no chance to appear at all if it so happens that there isn't such a scene the character can fit in. Additionally, this quirk creates the expectation that the character not only uses their sword, but dominates the fights they are in.
Defining a few talents and weaknesses your cameo has are good, but avoid the mistake of trying qualify them explicitly. And ideally, you'll want quirks that can been drawn or shown while the character does/says other things. My cameo is a heavy drinker, for example. Kern can show this by simply drawing him with some form of alcohol on his person, which doesn't keep him from doing something more relevant to the plot.
Thirdly, and this also an example where Jak'iaah shines, recurring cameos are always preferable over new cameos.
Recurring cameos already have appeared in the story. This means both Kern and the reader are somewhat familiar with them, and they have prior interactions in the story that can be developed further. This adds to story cohesion. Do not let this dissuade you from creating a new cameo or persuade you to try and force a cameo to appear in a chapter you don't think suits them.... but, if possible, stick with a cameo you have already begun to develop.
Fourth, and touching on that last point: Develop your cameos if you sponsor them multiple times.
This is not to say that you should try to re-imagine your cameo every chapter they appear in. But take prior appearances into account. Did what happened them or what they see in prior chapters have an effect on their personality or personal relationships?
Focus here on general personality growth, not specific quirks. Going off previous examples, Kern can more easily show how the story is affecting a character if say "Believe without fault in the Sarghress Hierarchy" has shifted to "Now has doubts in the Sarghress Hierarchy", because this again a trait that is general and flexible. Kern can interpret it in many ways, depending on story needs. Meanwhile, "Became a Master Archer" is a trait that, again, is narrow and has very limited ways Kern can display it.
Next, when designing a cameo's appearance, remember Kern and Kite must draw it.
You of course want your character to have a unique and distinctive appearance. But a character with too complicated or exotic an appearance is creating a lot of extra work for Kern. This is also partly why Kern tries to insist on concept art for a cameo. You can draw it yourself or have someone else draw it instead of commissioning Kern, but it helps Kern immensely to have something to go off of.
Consider a design from Darksiders. Sure, the character has a lot of detail, but so much so that it is almost noise. And if Kern had to draw something like that every page, he would spend hours on that one character. Inevitably the character would either show up less, or would be simplified. When designing a cameo's physical appearance, less is more. If there are one or two specific parts of their design you want to make sure he draws, explicitly mention those.
From personal experience, my cameo has a neck-badge bearing the mark of the Imperial Guard. The rest of his appearance I have a general design for that Kern follows, but he varies the exact details. That is the one part of his costume that I have made explicit I want to show up. And Kern has been very accommodating of that.
Also very important, consider what cameos others are sponsoring.
For every given chapter, there are a number of story roles that need to be filled. Kern will either find a cameo that fits that role, or place in a character of his own. However, some types of cameo are more popular than others. Namely Sarghress. In a chapter that will feature every clan, Sarghress cameos tend to greatly outnumber the other clans.
On a personal level, this means Sarghress cameos have much more competition with each other for the Sarghress "roles" within the story. As such, each cameo is less likely to get one of those roles, and is more likely to get a generic "background filler" role.
On a less personal level, this means Kern has to draw more pages of Sarghress cameos than others. This means the story focus is forced somewhat more onto the Sarghress than it may otherwise be, as Kern will run out of key story roles for Sarghress characters and have to write/draw additional content to make sure each cameo has screentime.
It is healthier for the story and more likely to allow your cameo to get a prominent role if the cameos are more evenly spread over the given clans or factions.
Finally, make sure you fact-check the character to make sure it fits established lore.
As an example, there are no "former tainted" in the story. A character, once tainted, remains tainted until they die. There is no known cure.
As subtler example, there are very few old characters on the surface. The older a fae (elven) character gets, the more mana they need to remain healthy and avoid aging. The surface simply does not have enough ambient mana to sustain truly old fae. As such, fae on the surface are either relatively young, or begin to suffer the effects of mana deprivation. With the speed and severity increasing with the fae's age.
There are many people on both this forum and on the community Discord server who will be happy to check your character for consistency. If in doubt, ask.
PS: While Kern will rarely include any details from a concept's backstory, as that would necessitate on-screen exposition, it is an excellent way to brainstorm and refine a concept.
While a short backstory isn't required for a cameo, nor is it likely to appear on-screen, you can really get a lot of mileage in developing a cameo by including a small overview of their background. It can help other people chip in with ideas for quirks or personality traits, and often refine a concept by starting to link traits together in a way that forms a cohesive personality.
As an example, when initially designing my cameo, I had meant to make him a retired guard and bartender, hence the focus on alcohol. I kept the alcohol focus and removed the bartender aspect, which left that trait a little isolated. When thinking on why he would be such a heavy drinker, being a veteran of the Nidraa'chal war seemed a natural fit. Which led to the development of a more serious and embittered personality, making the drinking less of a random quirk, and a specific sign of the character's unhappy and depressed nature. Traits which have developed further into the completely jaded individual now appearing.
I wouldn't go so far as to include more than a paragraph or two of backstory, but having a little bit of history in mind can really spark ideas, especially for linking cameos together via shared past or familial ties. As an added bonus, while the wiki does not include cameo backstories in depth (instead noting on-screen appearances), Dalvy and I are usually quite willing to note minor aspects of their past on their wiki pages at the sponsors' requests (Such as Nehleanee and Ischa being half-sisters through their father.
Now, with that out of the way, here is a generic character template for cameos to use when being designed. Kern may use a different template in a given chapter's cameo call. In that case, that template takes precedence over this generic one.
-Name:
-Race:
-Eye Color:
-Hair Colour:
-Age: (Kern typically limits this to around 200ish, but has allowed occasional exceptions for solid concepts).
-Clan/Faction: (These are not always the same, as recent chapters show the decay of the clan system).
-Profession:
-Martial ability:
-Mana affinity:
-Physical Appearance: (General traits. Tall/short, lean/muscular, buxom/petite, etc)
-Equipment: (Keep it simple and generalized. A general type of gear, one or two specific items at most).
Appearance Reference: (If you have one, such as a prior concept art).
-Personality traits: (A few general traits. Such as stubborn, patient, easygoing, depressed, optimistic, etc. This is the core of your cameo, and the most vital. Keep it relatively short. Less is more, and flexibility is king.)
-Favourite sayings: (This is not likely to be shown in the story, it just gives Kern a small tidbit to base how your character talks).
-Favourite activity: (As above).
-Favourite expression: (The facial expression you want them drawn with, often the one they default to. Such as a broad smile, permanent scowl, etc).
-Quirks: (A few traits of character that are more specific than general personality, but avoid making it too narrow.)
-One Sentence: (Summarize your character in a single sentence. This lets Kern know what you view to be the most important to the overall character.)
-Paired with: (If they have a mate. Kern often draws mated pairs together. Such as Nergui and Wa'sila.
With that out of the way, good luck! Keep feedback on other people's ideas and concepts polite and constructive.
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