[2023] The Raptor: Dialogue Notes

This isn't a full character guide for the Raptor (because the basics like "always wears armour" and "stoic badass" are pretty obvious) but it goes into a bit more nuance about how to write him consistently. We wrote these during Unwelcome Guests to try to explore what does and doesn't make sense for the character and why, since even within "stoic badass" there can be a lot of interpretations.

The Raptor (he/him)

• "The Raptor" is an awkward name to work with. If absolutely necessary, he should be addressed as "Raptor" (as in Batman) rather than "The Raptor" (as in The Rock), but avoid having characters address him directly as "The Raptor" or "Raptor" by just not structuring the sentence in this way. Indirectly he should be referred to as "the Raptor", but the 'the' should not be capitalised.
  • Bad - "Hello, The Raptor, how are you?" / "Hello Raptor, how are you?"
  • Good - (speaking to the Raptor) "How are you?"
  • Good - (speaking to a third party) "I don't really like the Raptor, he's very brusque."
• The Raptor speaks in short, declarative sentences avoiding unnecessary words. They are grammatically correct, so do not write sentence fragments like Mordin or Rorschach.
• The Raptor speaks with absolute certainty. He does not prevaricate or question himself. He does not provide explanations, justifications, additional clarification or framing.
• The Raptor speaks in a monotone manner - words would not be emphasised, and there is little cadence to his voice.
• The Raptor does not ask questions, except when absolutely necessary or to ensure compliance.
• The Raptor isn't interested in the opinions of others unless they are tactically critical, and may just ignore extraneous input or questions, moving on to the next topic without comment.
• The Raptor no sells (ignores) jokes and wisecracks.
• The Raptor does not use slang, euphemisms, idioms or turns of phrase, especially when they are used to de-emphasise violence. This is hard to do - most "cool guy" dialogue is littered with these euphemisms.
  • Good - "Kill those zombies."
  • Bad - "Take out that trash." / "We have work to do."
• The Raptor does not make goofy asides, use onomatopoieas, emote in text, etc. These are acceptable in Runescape for certain characters but inappropriate for the Raptor. (For example, he would not say "ahem")
• The Raptor is not unnecessarily rude for no reason. This is a waste of words and irrelevant opinion. He also does not praise strength - again opinions and wasted words are irrelevant. (These are a change from some past dialogue.)
• Despite these characterisation rules, the dialogue does still need to clearly include all necessary information for the player. Clarity must come before characterisation, although it is our job to do both at the same time.

This isn't a full character guide for the Raptor (because the basics like "always wears armour" and "stoic badass" are pretty obvious) but it goes into a bit more nuance about how to write him consistently. We wrote these during Unwelcome Guests to try to explore what does and doesn't make sense for the character and why, since even within "stoic badass" there can be a lot of interpretations.

The Raptor (he/him)

• "The Raptor" is an awkward name to work with. If absolutely necessary, he should be addressed as "Raptor" (as in Batman) rather than "The Raptor" (as in The Rock), but avoid having characters address him directly as "The Raptor" or "Raptor" by just not structuring the sentence in this way. Indirectly he should be referred to as "the Raptor", but the 'the' should not be capitalised.
  • Bad - "Hello, The Raptor, how are you?" / "Hello Raptor, how are you?"
  • Good - (speaking to the Raptor) "How are you?"
  • Good - (speaking to a third party) "I don't really like the Raptor, he's very brusque."
• The Raptor speaks in short, declarative sentences avoiding unnecessary words. They are grammatically correct, so do not write sentence fragments like Mordin or Rorschach.
• The Raptor speaks with absolute certainty. He does not prevaricate or question himself. He does not provide explanations, justifications, additional clarification or framing.
• The Raptor speaks in a monotone manner - words would not be emphasised, and there is little cadence to his voice.
• The Raptor does not ask questions, except when absolutely necessary or to ensure compliance.
• The Raptor isn't interested in the opinions of others unless they are tactically critical, and may just ignore extraneous input or questions, moving on to the next topic without comment.
• The Raptor no sells (ignores) jokes and wisecracks.
• The Raptor does not use slang, euphemisms, idioms or turns of phrase, especially when they are used to de-emphasise violence. This is hard to do - most "cool guy" dialogue is littered with these euphemisms.
  • Good - "Kill those zombies."
  • Bad - "Take out that trash." / "We have work to do."
• The Raptor does not make goofy asides, use onomatopoieas, emote in text, etc. These are acceptable in Runescape for certain characters but inappropriate for the Raptor. (For example, he would not say "ahem")
• The Raptor is not unnecessarily rude for no reason. This is a waste of words and irrelevant opinion. He also does not praise strength - again opinions and wasted words are irrelevant. (These are a change from some past dialogue.)
• Despite these characterisation rules, the dialogue does still need to clearly include all necessary information for the player. Clarity must come before characterisation, although it is our job to do both at the same time.