#fantasy character arc

[joncronshawauthor]

The Dark Mentor: How Tough Teachers Shape Fantasy Heroes

The wise, benevolent mentor figure is a fantasy staple. Think Gandalf or Dumbledore. But modern fantasy increasingly embraces darker mentors, those who shape protagonists through trauma rather than wisdom. These harsh teachers don’t guide heroes toward the light. They push them into darkness to forge them into something new. Dark Mentorship in Guild of Assassins My novel Guild of Assassins…

[gods-favorite-autistic]

To me there’s like a line between the Bad Kids who were always themselves extremely authentically and that fucked them up socially (Riz, Adaine, Gorgug) and the Bad Kids who spent a good portion of their lives playing a part and that fucked them up mentally (Fabian, Kristen, Fig)

[jellisdraws]

“Now, what I want more than anything is to soothe you.”

Some softer Shad’zel

[thelesbianluthor]

I know some people think that Emily's desire to play another character instead of Fig was the reason why she was so all over the place and lost, especially in the first half of JY.

But I honestly feel like her arc was actually incredibly needed and necessary to close her character evolution in a satisfying way. (While still leaving open doors for possible future plots with the Dawn and Sandra Lynn stuff)

Fig has been struggling to find herself since the first moment. She has had to come to terms with being a completely different race than what she thought before and deal with all the consequences of that. She had to grow out of the toxic habits that were born out of her deeply rooted insecurities that finding out about her identity and lineage caused. She had to learn to be kinder to herself. I love sophomore year, it's my favorite season for so many reasons, but I feel like Fig's arc in JY was actually her best one.

Fig being so lonely at the start of the show and her innate devotion made her becoming so focused on holding others' needs over her own an inevitability. She was always aimlessly moving through life, so talented and gifted in many ways but with no real purpose outside of being the protector.

The way JY explored her struggles with introspection and her need to devote herself to others to such an extent that she ignored a curse on herself for far too long was beautiful.

Finding Ankarna, becoming a paladin of dawn and justice and coming to a point where she could let herself choose what felt right instead of what her friends needed was incredible to watch.

I feel like Junior Year gets a lot of criticism because the overall vibe from the IH was lighter and they were having a lot of fun throughout, but the story of the season was actually beautiful to me and the overall character work was so interesting.

[anthurak]

So latest in the long line of ways that Jaune represents a massive, brutal and scathing subversion of so many typical shounen/fantasy-hero protagonist tropes that a sizable chunk of the fandom seems to have ENTIRELY missed the memo on, let’s talk about his time at Beacon.

Specifically, how we see Jaune struggle so much in classes and seemingly has to put in much more work and training than his peers.

Now this is a pretty standard ‘main character’ trope in so many fantasy adventure school stories. The idea that the hero works so much harder than all of his peers because they’re all elitists who were ‘handed’ everything while our plucky underdog hero has to get by on gumption and good work ethic (and also plot armor, higher-power favoritism and narrative cheat codes but they don’t like it when you say that out loud). And on the surface, like so many other things in RWBY, it might seem at first like Jaune’s story is playing that trope straight.

But of course if we actually THINK about Jaune’s situation for a second, it becomes clear that the context of his situation actually represents a pretty scathing takedown of this trope.

The reason why Jaune seemingly has to work so much harder than all his peers in the present is because all those peers ALREADY DID all that hard work and training before they even came to Beacon. The same hard work and training that Jaune DIDN’T do because he thought he could proverbially ‘skip the line’ and CHEAT his way into Beacon.

Ruby, Yang, Blake, even resident rich-kid Weiss, they ALL put in YEARS of work and training to become huntresses. EVERYONE at Beacon did.

Everyone except Jaune.

He seems to have never even so much as attended a combat school, and NOTHING we’ve seen or heard indicates that he otherwise wanted to and was prevented by his family or some other factor. Instead, he clearly seems to have thought that he could just skip all of that and just cheat his way into Beacon.

Really, the fact that Jaune got as far as he did thanks just as much if not more so to having friends who would help and cover for him, as well as him lucking out and having a particularly naturally large aura reserves, rather than any kind of hard work he put in. And with ALL of that, he’s still only has basic ability as a fighter and is FAR more effective at simply supporting his friends and allies.

If anything, it does in fact show that Jaune had some pretty impressive potential.

Potential that he completely SQUANDERED.

Imagine if Jaune HAD actually attended a combat school. Actually put in all the same years of work, training and effort that all his peers did. Learned how to be a fighter, trained his aura and unlocked his semblance. Think about where he would have been at the start of the series when arriving at Beacon.

Jaune would almost certainly be on the same level as Ruby, Weiss and the rest. Hell, he might even have been on a similar level to Pyrrha, albeit most likely with very different strengths. Given his semblance, Jaune was always going to be a support-focused fighter. Still, he would still have been one of THE most capable support huntsmen of his year.

But Jaune DIDN’T do any of that. Instead he was forced to effectively burn through all of his potential just playing catchup to all his peers. Having to cram years’ worth of training into a scant few months. Which in turn has left his abilities invariably stunted and lagging behind everyone else.

All of this through no one’s fault but his own.

Unlike what I imagine is literally EVERY OTHER ‘underdog’ at a fantasy adventure school, Jaune being this ‘underdog’ who has to play catchup to all his peers is one hundred percent HIS OWN DAMN FAULT.

Which of course all makes Jaune a FAR more complex and interesting character than 99.999% of the typical fantasy-protag characters who play this trope ‘straight’.

[satisfactuality]

I have always loved the paladin!riz headcanons regardless, but this season actually sets up SUCH a funny reasoning for it,,

please, just, riz multiclassing as a paladin of cassandra just so kristen will fucking pass

[zhoras-bitch]

Riz Gukgak will forever be my special little guy, because in a world where aspec characters are borderline non-existent, he was not just a cool character who happened to be aroace. He also had an incredibly compelling character arc unique to him as an aspec, and the character arc was so iconic it birthed one of the most memed moments in the entire series.

[lunarsvertigo]

had to get off twitter bc of the amount of hate being directed towards the bad kids AND the cast was driving me insane so i’m posting on here.

i will say that i have developed sympathy for the rat grinders and i hate how they are being manipulated. it’s gross to groom kids the way jace and/but especially porter has.

HOWEVER, i fully defend the bad kids. they are acting how traumatized kids would react to being put into another life and death situation. i get that they were impulsive and that they could spend actions trying to turn trg but that would just waste time bc there is no guarantee that it’ll work.

[lingrimmart]

We’ve been asked this question so many times—it seems like everyone’s curious about what Roui loves to eat.

Oh, and fun fact: Roui loves cooking just as much as eating. When he’s in the mood, he doesn’t mind spending extra on good ingredients. He always makes huge portions, like he’s feeding an entire family, even if it’s just for himself.

And when he has people over, you can bet no one leaves hungry.

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[graceshouldwrite]

How to Write Corruption Arcs

We'll be using Walter White from Breaking Bad as a case study!

The Core:

THIS ARC is when your character...

KNOWS the TRUTH

REJECTS the TRUTH

EMBRACES the LIE

Their FATAL FLAW often drives the change

Usually, acting on the truth is always an easy option. In Breaking Bad, Walter White could simply accept his friends’ money to help fund his cancer treatments, but he doesn’t.

TRUTH: help is accessible, there’s a loving community around him, and accepting help doesn’t make him “less of a man”

LIE: accepting help makes him weak, incompetent, and “less of a man”

FATAL FLAW: Pride, amplified by constant feelings of emasculation and self-dissatisfaction after seeing close friends and family around him find success in places he has not

Act One

here, your character...

understands the TRUTH

but is TEMPTED by the LIE

and begins ENTERTAINING the LIE

Ask: what does the character think the LIE can get them that the TRUTH can’t?

The LIE can get your character something that satisfies their FATAL FLAW. Here, Walt begins 𝒸𝑜𝑜𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 the blue stuff because it proves that he is capable of providing for his family and funding his own treatments.

He lives by the LIE that accepting help makes him weak. Making and selling exceptional-quality drugs satisfy his PRIDE.

Even though he initially rejects certain aspects of the drug industry like killing, he’s now set foot into the World of the Lie and will not return. This will cause all the moral backsliding, character change, etc. that happens after.

Act Two

your character becomes...

conflicted between the TEMPTING LIE and the TRUTH they know to be correct

but realizes that only the LIE has what they want

so they EMBRACE the LIE

Ask: why is the LIE so hard to give up on?

Now that your character has tasted the LIE’s rewards, the TRUTH becomes less and less appealing to them. Where there was conflict at first, there’s now grim determination to continue down the path of the LIE.

In a sequence of events, Walt CAN reject the lie, but he chooses to embrace it. He could’ve stuck to his decision to walk away from drug-making after killing his first victim, but he returns. He could’ve saved Jane, who was innocent and just influencing his work partner to quit the industry, but he lets her die.

Each choice is the result of him realizing that his only other option is accepting help (the TRUTH he now rejects).

Act Three

your character...

EMBRACES the LIE

GETS/LOSES what they want at the CLIMAX: if they GET it, there’s a HIGH COST

lives in the AFTERMATH (or dies lol)

Ask: what makes the LIE so destructive?

Now, the LIE has been fully ingrained in your character. They feel less and less remorse each time they choose the LIE over the TRUTH. They may get what they want, but there’s a HIGH COST.

Walt slowly becomes a cornerstone of the drug industry and a high-priority target for authorities, getting the money and self-gratification he’s always wanted. But, when the truth comes out, he loses his FAMILY, who he’s claimed to be making all this money for.

However, a large part of him revels in the fact that they now see him as someone capable, vicious, and a force to be reckoned with. The LIE satisfied his PRIDE, but it cost him everything.

The AFTERMATH shows Walt living with the cost: his community and family have abandoned him and he lives in exile after living the LIE and embracing his PRIDE.

When he eventually dies to protect his work partner Jesse, we could interpret it as Walt returning to the original TRUTH: doing something out of self-sacrifice.

Or, the more pessimistic interpretation: Walt refuses to die of cancer, and wants to die on his own terms (PRIDE). Jesse also happens to be a living testimony to Walt’s rise to greatness and eventual domination—a living legacy. This death just maximizes his egotistical benefit, so, the arc concludes with the LIE swallowing him.

Final Notes

IN THIS SPECIFIC study of Breaking Bad, I deliberately avoided the typical commentary of “oh this is the moment Walt became Heisenberg and was truly corrupted”.

I believe this show demonstrates how humans are often inconsistent, even after we’ve chosen to embrace a certain path. There usually isn’t one specific choice that marks a further downturn (aside from the first time we engage in the lie): after the catalyst, each choice is an opportunity to diverge or continue down a path, and the arc is a sum of these choices. The monster isn’t a sudden creation, but a metamorphosized creature that reaches its full form at the end.

Thus, the most interesting corruption arcs feature similarly inconsistent and conflicted characters. Other good examples include Anakin Skywalker from Star Wars, Viktor from Arcane, Coriolanus Snow from The Hunger Games, and so many more you can find in media.

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instagram: @ grace_should_write

Hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated :)

Happy writing, and have a great day!

- grace <3

[bobellafofella]

though you do not know how or why it works like this, your realm is doubt. it works.

how about that miracle scene, huh.

[momentov1vere]

Concept for an arc 3 version of Rayla!

I really hope we get to actually see her older (netflix please greenlight arc 3) but for now I’m having fun imagining what the characters could look like when they’re older :)

[lunarifie]

I love her shes such a little freak

[babybells123]

(ASOS, Sansa II)

(ASOS, Jon XII)

[misslovelyillustration]

Like everyone else I literally couldn't help myself and had to hop on the art train.

Not expecting much since I was playing around, but here is Roan of Arc! Her first VMA fit has been living in my head rent free for about a week

[fromtheseventhhell]

Very funny to me how Stansas present her character as being so interesting and complex because of her vulnerabilities, while simultaneously ignoring those same vulnerabilities in other characters. Dany is sold as a bridal slave and lacks agency throughout AGOT and after. Her dragons are either too young/small to utilize effectively or locked away for the majority of the story. They aren't some all-powerful trump card that protects her from harm. Arya is captured as a prisoner of war, forced to watch countless people tortured and murdered, and then essentially enslaved in Harrenhal with no way to fight back. She has an entire arc of feeling powerless, of being a "mouse", during ACOK. She doesn't have "kung-fu" or the ability to magically fight her way out of every situation, she's a young child lacking physical strength with only the most basic sword training.

Sansa isn't the only female character, she isn't the only young character, she isn't the only character who suffered, and no one is obligated to prioritize her. I'm so tired of Dany and Arya being mischaracterized and having their stories erased to prop Sansa up. "Sansa has kept her dignity" In other words, let's praise her for having a level of security that Dany and Arya don't have access to. She hasn't ever been forced to make a hard decision which of course means that she's morally superior to them. They can't even admit to themselves that her lack of action is due to her own passivity. If it doesn't fit their delusion, they erase it from the story and expect the rest of us to play along. Ask one of them what they like about her character without bringing up her being the ultimate victim, and I genuinely don't believe they'd be able to give you an answer. They belittle other characters more than they talk about her and these takes just scream insecurity/jealousy at the content and development other characters have in their POVs.