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A while back, I did a series of posts on type of fighters, which included strength, speed, and tactical. It was this last section (labeled as Counters and Caution) that I had trouble with because I couldn’t put my finger on the best explanation. Strategists still use strength, speed, and agility when they enter the battle. This left me wondering how one writes the tactics of various characters. So, I’m going to look into what I considered the two mental extremes: Thinker and Instinct.
Today is all about the Thinking Fighter/Hero who comes up with a plan before stepping into action and keeps their mind working throughout the event. This would be Delvin Cunningham more than any other champion and it’s his specialty. Because of his skill at coming up with plans, he is able to hold his own and defeat opponents who outclass him in turns of magical and physical power. His equipment shows this too since he is the only champion with a shield, which allows him to block and wait for an opening. All of the others need to move quickly to avoid getting hit or strike first, but Delvin can stay close and take a little more abuse while thinking of a solution. I’m not saying the other characters don’t do this, but it’s certainly more apparent with him.
A Thinker can work great as a solo hero and within a group. With the former situation, this is how such a character would stay alive and build up a serious reputation. Those who don’t think much and just barrel into battle tend to be seen as dangerous, unbalanced, and immature. This is the reason Delvin climbed the ranks of the mercenary world and is treated like the adult in the room more often than his friends. This mentality also shifts to non-combat situations because he is used to thinking before acting. Puzzles, traps, and even commonplace social encounters are made easier because the character has trained themselves to stop and think. It doesn’t always make for the most exciting scenes since they act slower and talk more, but they certainly can have a more stable presence.
Especially when you put them in a group where they can create plans and be the one who keeps the team together. Having everyone work off instinct gets sloppy, but having that one Thinker can forge a formidable group. This character needs to be social too because the others need to listen to him and he needs to learn about them. One reason Delvin is an effective strategist is because he takes the strengths, weaknesses, and habits of the others into account. He also knows not to keep too tight a hold on the reins because that can cause conflict. Thinkers can easily fall into the control freak role, which means they won’t be very effective. A group dynamic needs trust and respect, but that goes double for a character like this.
The one thing I love about the Thinker is the effect it has on me. When writing Delvin, I have to take on his mentality and think many steps ahead. Yes, I outline and write character bios, but that doesn’t mean I have the specifics. Many of the Legends of Windemere battles owe a lot of their details and scenes to me having Delvin come up with a tactic. Even if it isn’t mentioned in the book, I get a sense of what he would have told the others or come up with on his own. That’s only when he’s involved in the fight too. When he isn’t in the scene, I still need to be a Thinker to make sure the flow works out and that every participant has a role to play.
I’m hoping to do more Thinkers in the future. They’re a lot of fun to write, but that might just be the Plotter in me.
Legends of Windemere 
Great quote. And of course I think of The Art of War. A good military tactician is a great character to have. It’s so cool that Delvin causes you to keep thinking several steps ahead. Sounds like a chess master. 🙂
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I never got to have Delvin play chess. He needed to be this kind of hero though. Luke already had swords and speed while Timoran had raw strength. The type of warrior they were missing was one that could join everyone together through strategies. So, thinking ahead helps make him come off as a character with great foresight.
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When I saw the title, I at first thought of Timoran, since he’s a thinking hero. But I see why you chose to write about Delvin.
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Timoran is philosophical, but more instinctual in battle. He doesn’t do a lot of group strategy and does whatever will work. It’s similar to Luke, but not as flashy and simpler.
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I have a copy of The Art of War. It’s been helpful for me in navigating life, which is kind of like a series of battles. Nice work with character development. I want to write blog posts about my characters but I just feel stupid. Hmmm…. I might have develop my own character a bit.
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I’ve never actually read it, but at least one of my friends has. Another has the book and swears he’ll get to it one day. Character development posts are tough because you run the risk of spoilers. I like keeping them vague and just going along with it. More people enjoy the look behind the character than authors realize. Sometimes it only has to be the inspiration behind the character.
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Ah… Thanks for the advice. I’ll have to write some practice posts and see if I can work up the confidence to start posting them.
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Practice posts are always a good thing. I do that with my books to test out characters and plot twists.
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Eh hem…I’m totally interrupting this conversation to say that your characters are never boring, so therefore posts about them couldn’t be boring. You may now return to your regularly scheduled conversation.
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Haha! Thank you for the interruption. I’m going to make a practice post and see if I can do it!! (I think I can, I think I can). I hope things are going well for you, Ionia!
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Interesting idea of a thinking hero.
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Thanks. 😁
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🙂
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Great post. Reed Richards was always one of my favorite characters. The Art of War isn’t a long book and is well worth your time.
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Well, it has a good Amazon rating, so I guess it’s high quality. 😛 I was more of a Spider-Man fan, so I don’t know where Peter Parker falls into this. He was a great thinker, but didn’t always get time to do it. Actually, Forge of the X-Men was a great one too that doesn’t get enough attention. I’m remembering back when I was really into comics there was this joke that Reed Richards was the ‘cheat code’ of the Marvel universe. No problem that he couldn’t solve because his mind was as ‘stretchy’ as his body.
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I like that joke. The fact is a “cheat code” character could be pretty useful. We don’t want things too simple, but a bit of that enhances the brew.
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They have to be used sparingly though. I know people call Superman a ‘cheat code’, but I think the fact that everyone and their goldfish has kryptonite makes that iffy. It does point out that even the heaviest hitter needs a weakness.
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My understanding is that Kryptonite wasn’t planned for. Fading interest brought it as a solution and it makes for a great lesson to writers.
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Not surprised. Superman started in the age where the heroes didn’t show any weakness and were allowed to be truly invulnerable. Over time, audiences probably wanted to feel more like the hero could lose.
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I’m sure it got boring. Superhearing overheard the plot. Superman to the rescue. No plot, no stakes, etc. Nice safe, boring, world.
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Actually, who knows? We seem to want more from our fiction than the older days. I’ve been thinking recently about how the older stuff can be seen as boring by us, but would have been exciting in its day. Just thinking about how I’ve run into younger readers who find Jurassic Park boring, but I still find it exciting.
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Could be true. Times and sensitivities change.
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It’ll be interesting to see if the pendulum ever swings back to the untouchable hero. I’ve seen a few people request heroes that don’t get hurt or show any weakness in recent years, but it’s not very common.
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I guess I came close with Clovis the anti-hero, but he has feelings. Maybe not where you would expect, but he’s the closest I’ve gotten.
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Not sure I have any characters that go through an adventure unscathed. There’s always some injury or beating. Anti-heroes do seem to have many of the unstoppables. Like Wolverine and Deadpool.
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He lost a finger, does that count?
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Sure. He has 9 more.
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I always tend to prefer brains over brute force. Or a combination of both. Muscles only go so far IMO. Thinking characters make a book more interesting because they can problem solve and add to the creativity of a scene.
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The muscle usually works best in a group, but I agree that a combo is ideal for a protagonist. Pure brutes can’t get a story moving as easily as a thinker. Then again, the Incredible Hulk was a brute for the beginning of his existence. So there are some stories that can use a muscle only hero. Depends on their motivation and personality too.
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Reblogged this on Author Don Massenzio and commented:
Check out this great post from the Legends of Windemere blog on the thinking hero. I have used this hero type in my own work and Charles does a great job of discussing this type of character.
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Thanks. 😁
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You’re welcome
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I love Delvin’s example, especially the shield detail! You sure have put a lot of thought into this.
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Thanks. A lot of it is off the cuff too. I seem to create characters and places then add the nuances. Probably a more common way of doing it than I realize.
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It does sound familiar, although I don’t do it half as well as you 🙂
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Jury is still out on how well I do it. 😛
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Not in my mind 🙂
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Yay!
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