A Character's Greatest Regret

[Diana]

REGRET is something that is in almost every character, but it's not often you see someone really use that to their advantage in the plot. The choices a character makes might backfire, or some cases the lack of making a choice leaves a character wishing they had done something. How a character handles these regrets (or lack there of) can open your mind to the complexity of their personality!

For Example: A character saw a fight and could have stepped in to help, but choice not to, and something bad happened. That regret lingers.

Second Example: A character loved someone, but never told them. They always wonder what might have been.

What moments or decisions does your Character regret? Is there something that has stuck with them all this time? What choices DON'T they regret? Has that character ever been able to make up for it?

 

[Asmodeus]

Hopefully regret is something I portray quite well with Asmodeus in Iwaku World, though it could be argued that he's now tipped himself out the other side and into crazytown central. >__>


The first man he ever betrayed was Chopsticks, who now exists as a ghost who haunts Asmodeus's conscience. This shows how the angel has never truly gotten over his first and smallest misdeed, which begs the question of how he could possibly deal with all the more terrible stuff he's done.

For a short while in the Admin War, after JackShade redeemed Asmodeus, regret was the angel's defining feature and he went out of his way to make amends with the Shapeshifters and Lord Zeon, and to reward his followers with power.

But still he had to make decisions that he deeply regretted. He had to eliminate the radicals within his own faction, including Razilin and JackShade, who in many ways were his mentors. He also regretted how misunderstandings had led Palonis and Warmaster Death to turn against him. This whole episode was defined by the regrets and difficult decisions of a political leader seeking peace.

But then Paorou came along and blew up the Towers, and in that moment regret and all other sane thoughts were pushed out of Asmodeus's head. From then until the moment that Grumpy cursed him, Asmodeus lost all shred of regret, and became a true villain.

It was only after the resolution of the Admin War and the witnessing of the Legacy cross-over that he returned to normal, and then regret for the genocide he had unleashed was to haunt him for the next 18 years.

I think the post-war Asmodeus was a HUGE ball of regret, reduced to an uncertain and whimpering shadow of himself, haunted by Chopsticks and Grumpy's curse and Paorou's legacy and the betrayals of Palonis and JackShade and WMD.

Whether he has made up for the things he regrets is up to the audience. Asmodeus has reformed the Knights of Iwaku and saved the people from the first Elder attack. But now that his curse has been lifted, Asmodeus has become a threat to his own redemption.

Whether he truly makes amends or unleashes yet more tragedy remains to be seen...