Character Development: Dwellings
by Marinda Darnell
All players in SWG have bank storage, and a personal inventory, and some do not mind living
out of their pack. Others on the other hand, build palaces for their characters and take
great pride in their homes and places of business. Standard items such as beds, chairs,
couches, chests, and rugs can be crafted for character in a variety of different styles.
This allows some customization of the houses to occur. An Imperial colonel can have an
office and an entire house decorated in official Imperial furniture for meetings and
dignitaries. Dwellings often play a large part in role playing and being a merchant. One character on the Valcyn server has created an entire hospital in his home, so he can role play a doctor, with a full staff of nurses and medics. Most of the character made furniture is not appropriate for items such as a hot tub, chandelier, or a merchant counter. So players must become very creative in using different craftable and non craftable items to make the different unique furnishings for their home.
Yu'Shu Lien is a Master Interior Decorator. Even though there is no such actual profession
in SWG, she has earned the right to this title by furnishing several homes, malls, and
guild halls in game. One example of her handy work is in the Theed Trade Emporium (TTE).
TTE is located right outside of Theed, Naboo on the Valcyn server. At the request of the
owners of this mall, she created a chandelier and other articles using different items that
can be crafted by architects. Yu'Shu discussed her experiences with decorating the mall
in a recent interview. "The mall was my biggest challenge. The chandalier was difficult
and took 2 hours to complete. I used an idea I had seen else where in game and expanded
on it to make it an original piece. I also wanted to make the mall comfortable without
being cluttered, as well as areas decorated to theme the Vendors currently there. All in
all the mall took me over 6 hours to do with intervals and add ons as more vendors moved
in." As can be seen from the picture, Yu'Shu has an artistic flair that showcases a place
of business nicely. She went on to comment, "Decorating is one of my secondary past times.
If I have time and feel the urge to create I do. After seeing what some others could do
with articles of furniture I decided to begin my own "thinking outside the box". I try to
make an eye pleasing area as well as an area that suits the idea behind the house. For
example, I decorated a house for a RP'er who was a bachelor, therefore I decorated it
so... manly and kind of plain but with the air of importance as well (he rp'd a General)."
Asthma, a self styled playboy type character, has decided to expand upon his character's
personality and create a fun discussion topic by creating hot tubs, dancer cages, and other
articles in his dwelling, turning them into wonderful party pads reminiscent of the playboy
mansion of old. By taking individual furniture objects, and with a lot of time, patience,
and manipulation, he has created objects just as wondrous as Yu'Shu, just in a different
style. Player cities are also customizable with trainers, city decorations, and lighting that can be added to create the atmosphere desired. The city decorations include statues, fountains, and gardens, each unique to the planet they are developed on.
Many people wonder why players take the time to develop player houses and cities that are fantastically decorated. The answer is simple; the players take great pride in managing and maintaining the quality of the persona and roleplay aspect of their character as they can. By creating a hospital in your home as your office for a doctor, this just adds another facet to the character background and makes for a much richer experience while playing a role playing game. If you have not tried it before, develop the way and how that made your character the persona they are today. You might be surprised on how this will enhance the enjoyment you receive from the game you have chosen.