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How to Write a Credible Genius

Genius is often thought of as synonymous with “intelligent” or “smart” or “eidetic memory and know-it-all.” but that isn’t the case. True genius, or at least in terms of traits and characterization, is the ability to use what you have in ways that others won’t. Some geniuses are obviously smart, and some are geniuses in ways so subtle that the character appears deluded.

This is something I can (and have) talked about for hours at various unfortunate people. “Genius characters” is actually an umbrella term that covers a whole range of character Archetypes, from the Sherlock Holmes to the Tortured Mastermind; each one is different, because the genius of a character is inherently subjective. There are a lot of cross-overs from archetype to archetype, and the overlap can be really interesting to use when creating your genius character, but I’ve broken them up as best I can by defining characteristics for simplicity.

Remember to use the archetype as a base and build on from there, to make your genius characters as interesting as possible; they may be geniuses, but they are also human. Flesh them out, lace nuances into their character, make them hate reading or like videogames.

The Ignorant Intellectual

I.e, the Dirk Gently.

The Gently-esque archetype is a perfect place to start, because it really demonstrates the subjective nature of a genius character. Arguably, Dirk isn’t a genius at all— he simply follows where the universe takes him, acting on the whims and impulses it gives him, so how can he be a genius?—but the genius comes in when he joins the dots together. He hasn’t been made smart by the holistic power that the universe gave him, but he has learned to adapt and survive.

This kind of genius is defined by a lack of large quantities of knowledge, but a certain intellectual capacity. These characters are usually thrown into (or willing walk into) situations, completely ignorant, where their true genius shines through their ability to talk fast, think outside the box and learn as they go along. They are also enablers, which is what sets the Ignorant Intellectual apart from the Holmes-type genius; whereas a Holmes would have the answer before anyone else, a Gently would find an answer by helping others see it first. For example, they might make one connection that is really obscure, and that will allow others to suddenly work out the rest. As such, these types are great survivors, often through luck and clever bullshitting, but they’re at their best with others.

The Naturally Intelligent Intuit

I.e, The Sherlock Holmes

And I mean bookHolmes folks, not BBC Sherlock. The Holmes we see on the BBC TV series is better classified as a Tortured Genius; he has natural intelligence, true, but he’s cold and lacks intuition on the same level as his book counterpart.

The Holmes archtype possesses natural intelligence combined with a depth of warmth and intuition. They may often be arrogant or appear aloof, but only because they are ignorant of the superior speed that their mind can work at, or forgetful of it. The thing here is natural intelligence; anyone can learn to think intelligently, but very few are born with a natural ability to process and store information, and then apply it innovatively. However, this intelligence alone doesn’t make for a genius character: they should also possess very good intuition, which is always backed up by evidence supplied by their intelligent logic.

Holmes was a trailblazer in this area. He practically made the archetype, as a matter of fact, but there are aspects of his character that ought to be kept separate. One of these is his reliance on unhealthy coping mechanisms, and another is his tendency to be erratic or eccentric—both of these are traits that defined him as a person-character, rather than marks of his genius archetype.

The Tortured Genius

I.e, the Victor Frankenstein

Although not inherently evil, these characters are often plain nasty people—but it’s not their fault, obviously! They would say something like “It’s because I’m so smart, nobody understands me, I’m tortured by my own intelligence to the point where I am are alienated from society—!”

No, Victor, sweetie, it’s because you’re an arrogant arsehole. The archtype isn’t quite that simple, but Doctor Frankenstein is a very good example of the fundamental basics.

I like this one for its flexibility. I mentioned that BBC Sherlock is a Tortured Genius and while book Sherlock almost fits the shoe, his saving grace is his humility and warmth. On the other hand, characters like Doctor Frankenstein and BBC Sherlock are arrogant, and either refuse to acknowledge their flaws or, acknowledging them, refuse to better them. Sometimes, a character like this will actively be worse. BBC’s Sherlock is actually a pretty cheap take on the Tortured Genius, but that may also be because he isn’t a very well-substantiated interpretation of the book canon… anyway, I digress. The point here is that these characters are complex to the point where they twist themselves into knots, often shaped by tragedy or trauma.

They see themselves one way, and the world another. A tortured genius could be anything from initially mild-mannered to downright cruel; either way, their internal or first intentions are usually good. They tend to change throughout their story, as their flaws get in the way and they wrestle with the feeling that nobody is ever going to truly understand who they are. The result is a lot of internalised rage or self-hatred, until they explode or start a downwards spiral of unhealthy coping mechanisms. They often have at least three of the following:

A fear of failure that pushes them to extremes

Hubris (excessive pride)

Arrogance, so much so that they think they can do the impossible (solve impossible cases, reverse death, create life etc)

Narcissism designed to cover up serious self-esteem issues

Put too much pressure on themselves; think they can reach unattainable goals and experience a huge drop of self-worth when they fail.

Unhealthy coping mechanisms

Either actively shun others or are shunned because they make no effort to include others that they deem less intelligent.

Equate worth to intelligence (see above point)

Something to be wary of is the mental health aspect of a tortured genius. It’s true that these characters are usually depressed or considered insane, but the poor mental health is always caused by their actions, rather than their mental health issues causing them to be a tortured genius. Remember, this archetype is never a very nice person which leads to them being miserable; however, if you had a person with Schizophrenia and they were also a genius when their plot began, they would struggle, yes, but it isn’t the same thing. Anyone with a pre-existing mental health condition would.

Don’t use mental health issues to drive a character like this, because they never excuse the sort of behaviour that the archetype calls for and this only strengthens the stereotype of people with mental health issues being dangerous.

The Accidental Pedant

I.e, the Spencer Reid.

I like to call this one the soft genius. They’re the most genuine, kind-hearted of the lot. Half of the time, they don’t even realise their own genius until it’s pointed out to them, and the other half of the time they’re aware of it but don’t consider this aspect of their personality as anything other than a cool way to store information. Usually, their genius is a byproduct, or in combination with, an eidetic memory, incredibly high IQ, asperger’s (although this one is a dicy area, as it can perpetuate harmful stereotypes) or savaunt syndrome. In other words, it’s a passive sort of genius that comes naturally to them because of something out of their control.

These types of geniuses have oodles of information stored in their brains, and love to share it. It’s just that… not everyone wants to hear it. They spontaneously blurt out facts, but it doesn’t seperate them from others. Unlike the majority of genius archetypes, the Accidental Pedant is still loveable, kind, thoroughly sincere and usually gets classified as a dork. In short: all round goodness stuffed full of knowledge.

Some things to avoid in this archetype are Autistic Spectrum Condition-coding (if your genius is on the autistic spectrum, then they’re on the autistic spectrum. Make it explicit and don’t try to use the fact to negate the value of their intelligence) and infantilization. Too often, the Accidental Pedant is shown to be like a big baby with adult intelligence. In the case of Spencer Reid, you can be mistaken to think that at first as the other members of his team call him “kid”; but as the seasons continue it becomes clear that he is a valued, equal member of the group respected for more than his eidetic memory.

The Trickster

I.e, the Loki (of Norse mythology)

As with Sherlock Holmes, I’m talking about the archetype seen in mythological figures, like Anansi or Loki, rather than modern popular media. (But I couldn’t resist the marvel Loki gif).

As with the Tortured Genius, the Trickster isn’t inherently evil but is still… questionable. They think first and foremost of themselves before others, and have no problem with causing chaos to meet their ends. Their genius is one of wit and wily charm, a smooth tongue and all the cunning of a high-flying conman. In other words, some might kill or endanger others for their own delight (I’m looking right at you, Loki) but others would steal, cheat and lie but never kill. And sometimes pay back those that they have robbed, in due course.

Usually a jack-of-all-trades, with

They walk the line between evil mastermind and trickster, but they have two defining traits that set them apart:

Often feel remorse and know the limits that they should stay within. Leaving these limits usually leads to their downfall. More often than not, they have no desire to exceed the limits.

Their motivations are skewed, but not truly evil, and usually small. They would endanger their family to get some satisfaction after a petty slight, but wouldn’t harm their family in order to take over the world or exceed their station (mythological Loki being the former and MCU the latter)

The Evil Mastermind

i.e, The Moriarty

Immoral, chaotic, cruel; this genius is one who channels all of their creative energy into wrongdoings. Unlike the Trickster, these wrongdoings are pure horrors; they are intended to cause harm and are based on larger ambitions than brief amusement or emotional satsfaction. They are usually intelligent in all forms, and deeply selfish (or they believe that they are helping their family or a loved one, but actually they’re just hurting a lot of people). The ends will always justify the means, and nothing else matters after that.

Some like to have people do their foul play for them, and others like to get their hands dirty themselves. This is the sort of genius who carries themselves with class, style and sophistication; they are fully aware of their own intelligence, but are usually careful to avoid a downwards spiral. You may want to keep in mind that not every antagonist is an evil mastermind. Macbeth would probably more accurately be described as a tortured genius, as would Theon Greyjoy and Ryzek Noavek. Each of these genius archetypes can fall into the role of either antagonist or protagonist; say, an evil mastermind becomes a highly immoral protagonist for personal gain. It would be heckin awesome to see an Accidental Pedant as an antagonist, if the cards were played right.

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Describing Black Hair in Fantasy (Dreadlocks, Braided Styles, etc)

How do you describe afro hairstyles in a world where the word doesn’t exist? 

My advice for describing afro hairstyles effectively in fantasy is to:

Describe the style

Use words from the term in the description

Have someone read it; do they know what you’re describing?

Describe the style. 

What does this hairstyle look like, exactly? What is a braid? What are dreadlocks? How do you braid, or how do you form this particular type of braid? 

Look up existing descriptions of the term, and use language from the definition. Combine, reword and trim as necessary. There’s no need to be wordy. A well-constructed sentence or two should serve its purpose.

Great sources are everything from hair glossaries (especially those found on Black hair websites) natural hair vlogs, and even the thesaurus.

Here are some word associations to play with:

General Textures & Looks

Tight

Loose

Thick

Thin

Dense

Light

Heavy

Springy

Silky

Sheen

Porous 

Afro Texture and Curls

Afro / Fro

Cloudy

Coils

Corkscrews

Crimped

Curly

Natural 

Poufy

Ringlets

Spirals

Texturized

Wavy 

Braids

Crossed

Folded

Interlaced

Layered

Looped

Plaits/Plaited

Rolled

Woven

These words can help be more specific with the look of their hair/hairstyle. Tight, tiny braids. Cloudy puffs of hair in twin pigtails.

Use words from the term itself in the description.  

Readers should get an “aha” moment when you do this. Twisted hair probably mean twists. Bantu knots resemble knots. 

Cornrows: 

Cornrows get their name from rows of corn with connections to African chattel slavery. Say you have a character with this style, but those historical connotations don’t exist in this world , or corn isn’t something your character would know about. There are still ways to make the connection.

Example: “She wore her hair in neat rows of braids along her scalp.” 

The key word here is rows.

Assuming you can use a part of a word that does exist in your timeline, use it for the strongest connection to its real world counterpart. See the next example:

Dreadlocks: 

Another Black hairstyle with history to its name, it may not make sense to use the term in your setting. However, you likely could still slip the word “lock or locked” into your description to clarify for readers what you’re getting at.

Example: “His skin was the same medium brown as her own and that of her people, but his hair was thick and coarse and pulled into the rough locks that looked like braids but weren’t, like the people to the south whose skin was darker.”

-By Shira Glassman, A Harvest of Ripe Figs, Mangoverse Book 3

What’s particularly great about this description is: 

The use of locks to make the connection to dreadlocks.

Connecting the hairstyle to a certain people. It isn’t just a style anyone can wear, but it has regional roots and is worn by a particular group.

Adding other indications of race such as brown skin, and the nod to him coming from a place where the people have dark skin.

Have someone read it. 

Have more than one person read your description. It would be great if at least one of those people is Black (and/or familiar with the style). Does the reader know what you’re trying to describe? Are you being concise, or over explaining it to the point of confusion? If your readers can name the style or picture it relatively quickly, then you’ve got a winner. 

More reading:

Words to Describe Hair 

Describing Bantu Knots (Fantasy Setting)

Fantasy World and Non-Western Clothes

~Mod Colette

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CHARACTER PSD O7 by Allscallie. download. Fonts I used are Regattia, Roadway and Abril Fatface.

Credits are not necessary but well accepted! Inside the pack you will find both versions, one is 800x601 and one 800x800. Please don’t repost claiming it as your own, but like or reblog if you download!

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NEW DAWN

- knowledge of clipping masks and basic PS shit needed - fonts used are Bourbon Grotesque, moon 2.0, and midnight drive - psd is NOT included (but the psd i used for this example can be found HERE) - credit is greatly appreciated but not required, but please make sure to LIKE AND/OR REBLOG if you intend to use.

download here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/h4gdp12lppsd8fb/NEW_DAWN.psd/file if you like what I do please consider buying me a coffee ☕✨

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-` under the cut you will find 7 dash icons of LYRICA OKANO requested by anonymous! pop out and non - pop out icons are included! please do not take or claim as your own and LIKE or REBLOG if you plan on using them! . ´-

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Wangdron Tso

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Theme #23: Pink Lemonade

Features

300/350/400/450/500px posts

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You may edit this theme as much as you’d like as long as you:

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In order for manual loading to work, infinite scroll must be toggled as well!

Ok so I made this lil theme for fun but its packed with options! If you have any problems send me an ask (please read my FAQ first)! Happy new year everybody!

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。・ template psd ninety seven by templatepsds ゜+.*

-`. info .’-

+ here is a timeline template where you can enter specific dates of events.

+ to include more dates (since there is only one in the file), duplicate the folder titled “pinpoint” and drag it to some other placement on the line and enter the new info.

+ fonts used: Roboto Medium, Florence

+ not for commercial use or anything like that! just for personal use/to have fun.

+ adjust as much as you want to suit your liking.

+ please like or reblog if you download.

+ message if you have any questions/difficulties!

-`. download .’-

+ dropbox || mediafire

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✘ COUPLES GIF HUNT

Under the cut you’ll find a total of #509, both small and medium, hq gifs of Couples. Full credit goes to the original makers. Please like and/or reblog if this helped you in any way! 

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↳ under the cut you will find #006 DASH ICONS of ANNA KENDRICK in STYLE 2 as requested by anonymous. these were all made by me, none of the pictures are mine. like if you like or reblog if you use!

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Hijab- Fun Facts for those who don’t know how to create/write hijabi characters

From your local ex-hijabi and someone who lived in a country that enforced mandatory hijab.

1. Hijab is not just necessary for a woman. Hijab also includes men, who have to wear modest clothing, cover their arms, and grow a beard.

2. No one wears their hijab when they get inside the privacy of their home. Wearing hijab, especially if you wear it tight or its really hot out, can get uncomfortable so often times I would just whip it off.

3. We don’t wake up and put the hijab on, it’s only to be worn around men who are not close-relatives (husband and son) or children. Some people don’t follow this to a T and that’s ok.

5. Being a hijabi doesn’t mean you understand the dynamics and philosophy of islam. It just means you want to wear the hijab and took that step. Hijabs dont make you Holier Than Thou.

4. Hijab is not only a headscarf, but it’s literally a dresscode. You can’t wear a hijab with short shorts and your whole tit hanging out. You need to cover up to your wrists, ankles and neck area— clothes should be baggy and not tight. Once again, some people don’t follow this to a T, that’s fine.

4.5. Hijabs are suppose to cover the ears, hair, and neck.

6. “Can I draw this character without their hijab in the privacy of their own home?” Yeah it’s fine, no one wears hijab in their house unless they have guests.

7. Hijab means different things for different people. They can mean security, they can be a means of achieving confidence. They can also have absolutely No Reason for wearing the hijab besides that they want to.

8. At the end of the day Hijabis are still human beings, and often times they’re treated like aliens and it’s not okay. They’re a human who is wearing a headscarf for religious reasons. There’s nothing “exotic, ethnic” or “mysterious” about that. It’s like considering anyone who wears a hat to be some weird foreign creature.

There’s a bunch of other things but stop treating the hijab as a personality trait for your muslim characters. Hijab has nothing to do with your personality, at all, ever. I’ve seen timid hijabis. I’ve seen hijabis who were starting fights with authority (I being one myself). I’ve seen hijabis skateboarding, drinking, smoking, because guess what; it doesn’t define who we are.

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About Page [09]: Siderea by glenthemes

Sīderea, feminine singular of ‘sidereus’ — luminous; belonging to the stars.

This about page features D.Va from Overwatch 🐰.

This layout is inspired by Overwatch’s career profile screen. The featured idea is inspired by D.Va’s animated short: “Shooting Star”, and from the Women’s March in Seoul 2017, when D.Va’s bunny was used as a symbol of feminism.

► PREVIEW | CODE | MORE INFO | CREDITS

Features:

top bar - left: mini title and navigation links top bar - right: follow button, active status bar, 48px icon, mini title

main square image display section: 100px icon, title, animated EXP bar, number stats

right quote: transparent render image and quote

character/player stats: name, 40px icon, number stat, EXP bar

biography text section: title, bullet point stats, text section

Be sure to follow the terms of use and like/reblog if you’re using this page! Please contact me if you have any questions/problems with the coding and I’ll try to help you as much as I can! ♥

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About Page [07]: Rogue by glenthemes

A dark x neon x cyberpunk-inspired about page featuring Akali from the League of Legends K/DA - POP/STARS music video.

► PREVIEW | CODE | MORE INFO

Features:

top bar: title, decorative gradient bar, navigation links

sidebar image: 270px x 400px

music player: please use a valid audio file URL (e.g.: .mp3)

biography area: small & big titles, quote (1 line), icon image (64px), statistics box, custom links, biography title and text box

Credits:

sidebar art is by ipaanbaa @ DA

quote box icon art is by @guttertongue

navigation icon font: Honeybee by themehive

background gradient from League of Legends’ K/DA page

music is “POP/STARS” by Riot Music Team and Harloe (ft. Madison Beer, (G)I-DLE, Jaira Burns)

Notes:

this code does not come with the artwork images as I do not want to be redistributing the artists’ personal artwork. The artists *do* allow artwork usage on tumblr blogs, so if you’d like to use them, please credit them accordingly.

An editing guide can be found here; instructions can also be found within the code. Be sure to follow the terms of use and like/reblog if you’re using this page! Please contact me if you have any questions/problems with the coding and I’ll try to help you as much as I can! ♥

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theme 197       static preview code: pastebin or google docs

there is a lot of options in the appearance. i wanted to make everything easier for you to customize the theme as you wish. so, read carefully and anything you need you can ask me and i will help

there are 4 links, you can use icons (2 styles) or normal links. also, choose a position for them. if you want to add more icons/links let me know and i will help you

sidebar sizes are 268px for normal sidebar and 70px for the icons

body and description font, size, transform and position, and the colors are all customized in the appearance — you can choose the same settings on posts info too (date, notes, reblog and like, tags)

you can use regular blockquote or unnest captions

posts sizes are 400px, 500px, or 540px

you have to use only one of the sizes of posts available. i recommend you to enable/disable all of them and then enable only the one you desire.

you can add a background to the container posts and outside the container

other options are: posts images black and white, and opacity. also, you can use it or not the title

anything else you need you can send me an ask or message

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VARICTY THEME DUMP - PART TWO !

heya. so, i’ve decided to log out and not log back in again. because of this, i’ve decided to dump EVERY SINGLE CODE i have that has not been released. however, because i don’t care as much, these codes aren’t as user-friendly as themes that i’ve released before. since i won’t be logging in anymore, i will NOT be answering questions about any of the themes that i’ve decided to release in this manner.

you are welcome to:

edit these themes to your hearts content

use these themes as a base code ( literally, no fucks are given )

do whatever the FUCK u want with it ! i dont care anymore lmao

preview can be found here & here is the code !

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page 06 | trialogues ↳ CODE | PREVIEW

Named after my indie multi-muse because I wanted to share the page I made for it with you all the preview is literally the same content because I’m lazy wow! This is an about page for multiple characters that you can navigate by arrow keys, clicking the thumbnails, or clicking the little circles under the container. Hope you all enjoy it! Image dimensions are written into the code and a tutorial on how to change character colors the way the preview does is under the cut. If you have any questions or just want to show me what you’ve done, feel free to @me or send me a message! ( NOTE: there is a glitch in /customize where a section that begins with “window.tumblr_preview_marker” appears in between each slide. Just ignore it. It’s fine when you view the actual page! )

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Advice from an (Amateur) Archer on Writing About Archers and Archery

Admittedly, I don’t have the widest range of experience when it’s come to archery. I’ve only been shooting for a year now, and the time that I do take to shoot have long months between them. Still, I think it’s important to outline the basics for anyone who wants to write an archer in their book and wants to save themselves the embarrassment of having the archer do something that an archer would never do in a million years.

- Archers usually unstring their bow after battle. Unstringing a bow is exactly what it sounds like: removing the string from the bow’s limbs. Usually, archers then wrap the string around the now-straightened bow so they don’t lose it as easily. Archers unstring bows because everytime the limbs are bent by the string, there is a large amount of tension in the limbs. If the string is on too long and the bow has not been shot for a while, the limbs will start to wear down and lose their power, resulting in an archer needing to buy new limbs or an entirely new bow.

- Archers always retrieve their arrows after battle. Arrows are expensive and take a long time to make, so archers want to conserve as many arrows as possible. Sometimes they have a repair kit with them at the ready, in case they find an arrow with a loose arrowhead or broken fletching that can easily be repaired. 

- Training arrows are not the same as battle arrows. Training arrows have thinner shafts and usually blunted tips so they can easily be removed from targets. Thinner shafts break more easily, and the blunted tips – whilst they can pierce skin – usually won’t get very far in the flesh. They’re also easier to make. Battle arrows are thicker, and their heads are pointed at the tip and have two pointed ends at its sides. This arrowhead is designed to easily pierce through flesh, and is incredibly difficult to pull out because its two pointed ends snag onto flesh. If you want to pull it out, you’d have to tear the flesh away with it, which can lead to an even larger wound.

- Arrows are fatal, and one can incapacitate a soldier for the rest of his life. Arrows are not easily snapped off like you see in movies. The draw weight is too strong, and they can sometimes be as strong as bullets. They will pierce through bone and tendons, which do not easily heal. Furthermore, if you want to remove an arrow, you either have to go through surgery, parting the flesh away from the arrowhead so it doesn’t snag onto anything, or you have you push – not pull – it all the way through the body.

- Bows are not designed for hitting people with in close combat. The limbs are specifically made to flex. Imagine hitting someone with a flexing piece of wood. If you hit with the middle of the bow, it still does very little because there is no weight behind the bow, and so you might as well be hitting them with a pillow. It might be annoying to the opponent, but it won’t save you. Archers need a secondary blade in close combat. They cannot strike people with their bows and expect to win.

- Draw weight affects speed, range, and impact. Draw weight is measured in pounds, at least in America, and it is measured in how much weight must be pulled when you draw back the string. A high draw weight means stiffer, thicker limbs that can shoot further and hit harder. But, this is at the cost of speed. A low draw weight means thinner, more flexible limbs that can shoot smaller distances and have low impact, but can be shot faster. Before you acrobatic fanatics immediately seize the smaller bow for its speed, understand that a bow’s advantage is in its range. No one can hit an archer from 300 meters away with their spear or sword. The archer has complete dominance over the battlefield in this way, and their arrows can kill anyone who gets too close. Not hurt. Not annoy. Kill. And a higher draw weight means a better chance of piercing through specific armor, then flesh, then bone. A lower draw weight means less range and, even worse, a lower chance that the arrow would even pierce through armor if the arrow even hits its target. 

- Bows will always be outmatched in close combat against any other weapon. Bows take too long to draw and shoot, and at such close range, the opponent has an easier chance to dodge oncoming arrows. I already explained that the bows themselves cannot be used to take down a foe. 

- Bowmen on horseback are utterly terrifying. Archers usually can’t move from their spot because range is more important than mobility, and at such a long range, you usually don’t need to move from your spot anyways. Bowmen on horses, however, are closer to the battle, and worse, they are faster than almost anyone on the battlefield. Not only are they difficult to hit, you have no way of predicting where they will shoot next because they can circle around you in confusing ways. If you want an interesting archer character, I’d advise trying these guys out.

- Never underestimate armor and padding. Arrows will never be able to pierce through plate armor because its curved surface will always deflect oncoming arrows. Arrows can pierce through maille because maille is made out of metal rings that can be bent and can fall away. However, padding usually lies underneath, which is surprisingly durable and can stop an oncoming arrow, as well as absorb some of its impact. Because of this, make certain that the archer is focusing on gabs in the armor. To know this, you MUST study armor. Gabs usually lie where the joints are because soldiers need those gabs open so they can move. Typical gaps lie in the neck, the armpit, the inner-elbow, the knees, and the palm of the hand. Impact is also an archer’s friend. A war arrow shot by a hundred pound bow, hurtling at incredible speeds and gaining momentum the further it travels, can evoke serious damage. To be hit by one of these arrows will feel more like being hit by a horse than being hit by someone’s fist.