What gives one character privilege over another? What sets them apart? Did they earn it, or was it bestowed upon them? Are they even aware of it?

In our all-for-one regime diabolique campaign, it was a privilege to be a musketeer. We were able to do things most others were not, but it was more of an honor than anything else. Some people were impressed, and others, like the Cardinal’s Guards, were likely to bite their thumb at us.

In Circle of Hands, once you ask an NPC their name, they become a named character and have stats and are elevated from being just a regular background character. To a certain extent, they come alive. The player has bestowed upon them the privilege of becoming real, and this is an interesting thing to see happen.

In a curious sense, our characters have a privilege or a status over most of the other denizens of their world because of our attention. They act with an agency and independence outside of the run-of-the-mill people around them. This doesn’t mean that they’re protagonists, nor does it mean that all the non-player characters are simply lifeless background.

However, our attention has turned them into something else. Regardless of the game, at any moment a non-player character can be afforded this same level of privilege and realness.

What would our characters be doing without our attention? Would they just be another one of the sheep? That’s a strange question.

I wonder, do they consider it a privilege?