Post by Knowledge on Feb 11, 2011 9:24:00 GMT -5
So I thought I'd write a little guide for those of you stuck on the finer points of making a zanpakutō: The spirit, the inner world, etc. Writing your character can be easy enough, and thinking of the zanpakutō's power is usually fairly straightforward, but the devil is in the details. Consistency is king, and it's important that you feel happy with your sword spirit, because as a Shinigami, it's pretty much family.
Now, this isn't the end-all, be-all guide to writing a sword spirit, this is more of a last-ditch attempt. If you have a better idea in any field, go with that. If you're completely stuck, however, keep readin'.
thespirit
So you have a zanpakutō ability, you know what the sword is gonna look like (or you don't), and you might even have a name. That's good. Now comes the fun part: you gotta think if a face and personality to with that name. Due to the supernatural nature of a zanpakutō, the sky is the limit. You can go with animals, mythical beasts, humanoids, whatever. All of these are popular for a variety of reasons, but you should try to steer clear of some of the more popular cliches if only to have a nice, unique sword spirit to call your own. Let's start with the personality.
personality
Keep in mind that shinigami are, by themselves, incomplete beings. They form a symbiotic relationship with their swords, which I like to view as the life of the puzzle that makes them whole. Because of this, consider your shinigami's personality. Are they sly, or are they dumb? Are they lazy or hard-working? Whatever your shinigami is, you could make your spirit the opposite. I do this for two reasons: one, together with the zan, the shinigami becomes a balanced individual. You are manifesting their shortcomings in the sword spirit, thereby completing them. Two, the conversations between the two become more interesting, as they have a personality difference that will encourage dialogue, and as your shinigami learns to see the world from the sword's perspective (a vital part of unlocking more of its power), they are taking a step toward becoming a better person.
You could of course fly in the face of all this and go with the idea that your sword spirit is already complete, becoming a role model of sorts for your shinigami. The spirit would serve as a teacher or mentor to a shinigami that aspires to similar greatness.
Right, now that the personality is out of the way, let's do the appearance, which comes in a variety of flavors, the most popular being animals, mythological creatures and humanoids.
animals
One of the most abundant choices for animal spirits is the wolf. Wolves are for some reason incredibly popular, I guess people see them as smart or brave or strong or something. Know this, however. Your super awesome white wolf is not the first, nor will it be the last. Want to be unique? Pick a fox. Or an elephant. Or a bear. Or a raven. Or a swan. Or an alligator. Or any of the numerous species of animal that is not canis lupus. Maybe try to match an animal to the personality of the spirit. Ravens are traditionally pretty clever, elephants never forget (no but seriously they're pretty dependable), swans are vain, I guess. Alligators are like, mean or maybe they're relaxed. It up to you, really.
mythological creatures
Personally, these are my favorites despite the fact that I've never used one as my own. Naturally, there's a significant amount of crossover between animals and humanoids in this type, but that's to be expected given the source material. The important thing to remember here is that mythological creatures often have personalities or traits already attributed to them, e.g. the Minotaur is an angry motherfucker and sirens like to tempt people. You can ignore the pre-defined traits if you like, but I find that picking an appearance should be done based on personality rather than, say, the zan's ability. One thing to remember is that there are more mythological creatures than those of Greek mythology. Norse mythology, Asian mythology, Egyptian mythology, it's all great stuff. Just because Odysseus didn't meet it on his way home from Troy doesn't mean it isn't a viable choice.
humanoids
Humanoids are without question the easiest to shape simply because we are humanoids ourselves. Facial structure and build to us means something in a human being, but we have difficulty deciphering an animal's features, because they simply don't mean anything to us. Humanoids can betray their personalities with the clothes they wear, their manner of speech, their habits, because humanoids are familiar to us. As such, humanoids can be tailored to a tighter fit than an animal or a mythological creature can. Usually the gender doesn't matter, but you might want to dress them appropriately for their name—a sword spirit with a Japanese name probably wouldn't be wearing 15th century European court clothing, but that's just my opinion. I realize Japanese names are popular given that Bleach is Japanese, but it doesn't have to be that way.
Things to keep in mind for all types of spirits is that reflecting your sword's appearance in the sword spirit can sometimes be beneficial: an extravagantly ornate zanpakutō may have an extravagantly dressed spirit. Markings on a zan may be replicated on the spirit in the form of a fur pattern or tattoo. Food for thought, make it consistent.
theworld
Contrary to the spirit's personality, I like to run with the idea that the inner world of a zanpakutō—that is to say the plane on which a shinigami converses with their sword spirit—is more a reflection of the shinigami's personality than the sword's. I don't base this view on anything particular, it just seems like drawing yourself into a meditative state would put you in a place that represents yourself more than something or someone else.
Remember that you can mess with pretty much anything in the inner world: gravity, color, weather, location, physics, architecture, the landscape. Eternally falling snow that falls upwards on Mars with inverted colors? A little outlandish, but yeah, you can do that. Like I said before, match it with your shinigami's personality. A somber shinigami would have a world with somber colors, maybe some light rain, an abandoned house or something.
The beauty of an inner world should be personal, but remember that not everything in the world has to represent something—in fact, you're highly encouraged to put stuff in there just because it's cool. Ichigo's inner world is starkly beautiful because it makes no sense: an abandoned cityscape with sideways gravity in hues of blue. That's pretty fabulous stuff.
The absurdity of an inner world should be disorienting at first, but ultimately your shinigami should feel at peace there, a safe haven for the soul.
thehollow
While it's debatable if an inner hollow is related to the zanpakutō spirit, its place is in the inner world. Not every inner hollow has to display the characteristics of Ichigo's (inverted colors, etc.) but some traits seem irrevocably hollow-ish: black eyes, the white of a hollow's mask present somewhere, be it hair or clothing. The inner hollow's personality is often the least positive aspects of your character personified—thoughts that both shinigami and zanpakutō spirit alike try to suppress—and it can take the shape of anything, really. I personally like to combine aspects of both shinigami and sword spirit to create the inner hollow's appearance, and then populate their mind with ideas of not only murder and destruction, but also of complete freedom of expression and grandeur. You have to remember that inner hollows are trying to become dominant, so it's only natural that they be self-centered and vain.
That's it from me, hope this helps in removing whatever writer's block you have when it comes to your zanpakutō's finer points.
Now, this isn't the end-all, be-all guide to writing a sword spirit, this is more of a last-ditch attempt. If you have a better idea in any field, go with that. If you're completely stuck, however, keep readin'.
thespirit
So you have a zanpakutō ability, you know what the sword is gonna look like (or you don't), and you might even have a name. That's good. Now comes the fun part: you gotta think if a face and personality to with that name. Due to the supernatural nature of a zanpakutō, the sky is the limit. You can go with animals, mythical beasts, humanoids, whatever. All of these are popular for a variety of reasons, but you should try to steer clear of some of the more popular cliches if only to have a nice, unique sword spirit to call your own. Let's start with the personality.
personality
Keep in mind that shinigami are, by themselves, incomplete beings. They form a symbiotic relationship with their swords, which I like to view as the life of the puzzle that makes them whole. Because of this, consider your shinigami's personality. Are they sly, or are they dumb? Are they lazy or hard-working? Whatever your shinigami is, you could make your spirit the opposite. I do this for two reasons: one, together with the zan, the shinigami becomes a balanced individual. You are manifesting their shortcomings in the sword spirit, thereby completing them. Two, the conversations between the two become more interesting, as they have a personality difference that will encourage dialogue, and as your shinigami learns to see the world from the sword's perspective (a vital part of unlocking more of its power), they are taking a step toward becoming a better person.
You could of course fly in the face of all this and go with the idea that your sword spirit is already complete, becoming a role model of sorts for your shinigami. The spirit would serve as a teacher or mentor to a shinigami that aspires to similar greatness.
Right, now that the personality is out of the way, let's do the appearance, which comes in a variety of flavors, the most popular being animals, mythological creatures and humanoids.
animals
One of the most abundant choices for animal spirits is the wolf. Wolves are for some reason incredibly popular, I guess people see them as smart or brave or strong or something. Know this, however. Your super awesome white wolf is not the first, nor will it be the last. Want to be unique? Pick a fox. Or an elephant. Or a bear. Or a raven. Or a swan. Or an alligator. Or any of the numerous species of animal that is not canis lupus. Maybe try to match an animal to the personality of the spirit. Ravens are traditionally pretty clever, elephants never forget (no but seriously they're pretty dependable), swans are vain, I guess. Alligators are like, mean or maybe they're relaxed. It up to you, really.
mythological creatures
Personally, these are my favorites despite the fact that I've never used one as my own. Naturally, there's a significant amount of crossover between animals and humanoids in this type, but that's to be expected given the source material. The important thing to remember here is that mythological creatures often have personalities or traits already attributed to them, e.g. the Minotaur is an angry motherfucker and sirens like to tempt people. You can ignore the pre-defined traits if you like, but I find that picking an appearance should be done based on personality rather than, say, the zan's ability. One thing to remember is that there are more mythological creatures than those of Greek mythology. Norse mythology, Asian mythology, Egyptian mythology, it's all great stuff. Just because Odysseus didn't meet it on his way home from Troy doesn't mean it isn't a viable choice.
humanoids
Humanoids are without question the easiest to shape simply because we are humanoids ourselves. Facial structure and build to us means something in a human being, but we have difficulty deciphering an animal's features, because they simply don't mean anything to us. Humanoids can betray their personalities with the clothes they wear, their manner of speech, their habits, because humanoids are familiar to us. As such, humanoids can be tailored to a tighter fit than an animal or a mythological creature can. Usually the gender doesn't matter, but you might want to dress them appropriately for their name—a sword spirit with a Japanese name probably wouldn't be wearing 15th century European court clothing, but that's just my opinion. I realize Japanese names are popular given that Bleach is Japanese, but it doesn't have to be that way.
Things to keep in mind for all types of spirits is that reflecting your sword's appearance in the sword spirit can sometimes be beneficial: an extravagantly ornate zanpakutō may have an extravagantly dressed spirit. Markings on a zan may be replicated on the spirit in the form of a fur pattern or tattoo. Food for thought, make it consistent.
theworld
Contrary to the spirit's personality, I like to run with the idea that the inner world of a zanpakutō—that is to say the plane on which a shinigami converses with their sword spirit—is more a reflection of the shinigami's personality than the sword's. I don't base this view on anything particular, it just seems like drawing yourself into a meditative state would put you in a place that represents yourself more than something or someone else.
Remember that you can mess with pretty much anything in the inner world: gravity, color, weather, location, physics, architecture, the landscape. Eternally falling snow that falls upwards on Mars with inverted colors? A little outlandish, but yeah, you can do that. Like I said before, match it with your shinigami's personality. A somber shinigami would have a world with somber colors, maybe some light rain, an abandoned house or something.
The beauty of an inner world should be personal, but remember that not everything in the world has to represent something—in fact, you're highly encouraged to put stuff in there just because it's cool. Ichigo's inner world is starkly beautiful because it makes no sense: an abandoned cityscape with sideways gravity in hues of blue. That's pretty fabulous stuff.
The absurdity of an inner world should be disorienting at first, but ultimately your shinigami should feel at peace there, a safe haven for the soul.
thehollow
While it's debatable if an inner hollow is related to the zanpakutō spirit, its place is in the inner world. Not every inner hollow has to display the characteristics of Ichigo's (inverted colors, etc.) but some traits seem irrevocably hollow-ish: black eyes, the white of a hollow's mask present somewhere, be it hair or clothing. The inner hollow's personality is often the least positive aspects of your character personified—thoughts that both shinigami and zanpakutō spirit alike try to suppress—and it can take the shape of anything, really. I personally like to combine aspects of both shinigami and sword spirit to create the inner hollow's appearance, and then populate their mind with ideas of not only murder and destruction, but also of complete freedom of expression and grandeur. You have to remember that inner hollows are trying to become dominant, so it's only natural that they be self-centered and vain.
That's it from me, hope this helps in removing whatever writer's block you have when it comes to your zanpakutō's finer points.
