Bleach Character Lifespans

How Fast Do Bleach Characters Age?

I was doing a bit of musing today about the lifespans of Bleach characters: specifically, Rukongai citizens and shinigami. We know that it's possible to grow old in Soul Society, since Rukia and Renji both went from kids to adults, and Yamamoto is an old man. However, how long someone can actually live in Soul Society is rather ambiguous, since certain character so less signs of aging than others. For example, Hiyori Sarugaki had the appearance of an early teen (13-14 years old) in the Pendulum flashback arc, but she has almost the exact same appearance 110 years later. By contrast, Nanao Ise was a small child during the flashback chapters, but is a grown woman today. And then we have Yachiru, who's never seemed to mature beyond than five years old.

So what's the deal? Exactly how long does it take for souls to live their natural lifespan?

Well, I Googled the question and was quickly prompted with this forum discussion, in which the topic creator estimates that the average human soul lives about 800 - 900 years old. That sounds pretty good so far, and he also states that shinigami live somewhere around 2000 years. That sounds pretty close to what I estimated, since Yamamoto has been a shinigami for a millennium or two.

However, my ultimate guess is that most characters' lifespans are dependent upon their Reiryoku (spiritual power) level. Rukongai citizens, the bottom of the reiryoku barrel (aside from ordinary mortal beings), live roughly 800 - 900 years, but shinigami tend to twice that time. A bankai-level individual (such as old man Yama) would live between 2000 - 3000 years, if not longer.

Okay, so now we know how long they live, but how do they age? Yamamoto's been old forever, and there's still the Hiyori/Nanao puzzle I posited a while back. Well, it seems to me that shinigami age in a manner similar to trees--that is to say, they mature from childhood to adulthood relatively quickly, but they remain at peak maturation for a long time afterward. Once again, let's look at the Pendulum arc. The characters who were children at the time (Hisagi Shuhei, Akon, and Nanao) have all grown to adulthood within a century, while the characters who were already Adults (Kisuke Urahara, Juushiro Ukitake, Sousuke Aizen) hardly show any signs of aging. But again, part of the problem is that these are bankai-users, so they could be exceptions rather than the rule. Soifon, it seems, was a late teenager during the Pendulum arc, but now she's a fully mature woman.

I can't find a concrete answer to the question, and what we've got to work with is horribly confusing, so I suppose all I can do is give my own estimation. As far as Hiyori/Nanao, I believe the simple answer is the fact that Hiyori became a Vizard during the Pendulum arc, and thus halted all further aging. Like Claudia from Interview with the Vampire, Hiyori seems to be stuck in the body of a child forever, no matter how grown up she actually is. This would also make sense considering that Lilynette states that Arrancar don't age (this also implies that their physical forms don't reflect the souls' actual age). It would make sense that Hollow don't age either, and thus, a shinigami with an inner Hollow (a Vizard) would possess the same effect.

So, what does this mean for Substitute Shini like Ichigo? Who knows. Ichigo breaks all of the rules: he's still mortal, and his shinigami body is separate from his physical body. Therefore, it's possible that his physical body will age while his soul will remain that of a teen forever. (Kind of interesting when you think about it, hm? That would mean that Ichigo would still be a force to be reckoned with even after he's become an old man stuck in Depends diapers.)

As for Yachiru, I honestly have no clue, since we don't know exactly how much time has passed since she and Kenpachi met up. That makes any speculation kind of pointless. Yes, I'm aware that the Pendulum arc hints that Zaraki became the Kenpachi just shy of a century ago, but he's never shown during that arc. So, until I know for sure, I can't make that call.

So, let's recap. Time for an official Bleach Channel ruling:

• Pluses (wandering, earth-bound spirits) don't "age" so much as they deteriorate into Hollow.
• Hollow, in any form, do not age or possess a level of maturity to begin with.
• Rukongai citizens live between 800 - 900 years, showing gradual age during this time.
• Shingami live approximately 2000 years, although adulthood and middle age last for a very long time.
• Bankai-level shinigami live for 3000 years or more, depending on their level of strength.
• Vizard do not age. However, a Sub Vizard 's mortal body will age as normal.

I think that pretty much sums it up for now. Whew. I need a bit of a breather.

http://www.bleachchannel.com

On Intelligence

There's an enemy hidden amongst RP writers. A vile fiend who pretends to be their closest friend, but all the while sucking the very life from them and everybody who they collab with. This friend is someone you all know, and you all want, but must be avoided at all costs.

This enemy is named Intelligence.

Did you know that in Bleach canon, the captains (and presumably all shingami) are ranked by six stats from a scale of 0 to 100? These six stats are as follows: Offense, Defense, Strength, Kidou, Agility and Intelligence. Here at Bleach Channel, we're doing our best to emulate this. Offense and Strength are pretty much incorporated into the Hakuda and Zan stats. Defense and Agility tend to go hand in hand, so those have been all but combined and Footwork has been separated to distinguish it. And Kidou is a no-brainer.

So, what of Intelligence? Why is there no intelligence stat?

Well, the simple answer is that most people don't feel obligated to post their character as "unintelligent". In fact, exactly how do you rank intelligence anyway? Captain Kurotsuchi and Kisuke Urahara are obviously smart guys, but most of their intelligence shows in the form of plot devices such as the Hougyoku or Mayuri conveniently having a deus ex machina for anything Szayel Aporro Granz can throw at him. They're smart, but only because the writer has bothered to withhold information from us and then spring it at the last second as a big reveal. Before Aizen mentioned it, did you know that the Hougyoku existed? And before he said so, did you know that Kurotsuchi could take out his own organs and replace them with "dummies"? If not, revealing these as proof of "intelligence" doesn't count; if we'd known about it beforehand and got surprised by later, that's when it would count.

So, does this mean that you can't have your character be "smart"? Absolutely not...but you may not want to. As I said before, Intelligence is your enemy...not your friend. You'll find yourself having a lot more fun writing a character of average (or below-average) intelligence than one who's supposed to be smart all of the time.

When you describe your character as "smart", that puts a lot of pressure on you to constantly prove it. You'll write your character introspecting and thinking more than actually doing things. You'll make your character analyze everything everyone says with a fine-toothd comb, and he or she will fail to trust 70% of the people they meet. After all, smart people tend to be curious and suspicious, so your character will question everything. And so will you.

Not only does this make writing a chore, since you want to make your character deeply ponder every single thing that happens, but your collab partners will wonder just when the heck you'll just shut up and throw a punch. And, speaking of punches, that brings me to my next point: Intelligence in fights.

Most people fight to win. After all, isn't the very nature of a fight to crush someone violently? Well, yes and no. Here at Bleach Channel, there's no threat of PC death (NPCs are a different story of course, but we frown upon doing so without the RPer's permission), so there's no pressure for your character to always win a battle. If your shinigami finds himself face-to-face with an Arrancar of higher power, you don't have to crap your pants and worry that Johnny won't make it home to his orphaned brothers in Rukongai. Johnny will be just fine, so just enjoy the ride.

However, when you RP an "intelligent" character, this character will also be driven to win. Or, at the very least, to succeed. You'll instinctively want your character to do the smartest, most tactical thing in order to win or gain an advantage. There is nothing inherently wrong with this--everybody should fight with a game plan. However, you DON'T have to make your character do everything right. Have you ever seen a boxing or a mixed martial arts match where both fighters did the smart thing? Even someone who's considered to be a fighting genius can do something stupid in the heat of battle. Your character should be no exception.

When I RP in a fight, what I want more than anything is for both myself and my opponent to have fun. So, I don't mind having my character do something utterly brainless or ignorant every now and again. This takes pressure off of me to always try and be one step ahead of the other opponent, and it keeps the fight rolling. Who cares whether I win or not? It's just a game.

Intelligence, people, is not your friend.

On Turn Structure

Collab writing is fun, but it's also quite challenging . . . especially when it comes to fighting. Most people new to RPing do remarkably well within their own chapters, but not so well when collabing with others. It's easy to pace, remember the details of your own characters, and work out your PC's reaction to any situation you can think of, but it becomes quite challenging when there's another person with their own ideas and characters to work alongside. Some people adapt to collabing right away and do remarkably well, and some get frustrated by the ordeal. Regardless of which category you fit into, it's my hope that this article will assist you to become a better turn writer.

In my experience, turns are comprised of three parts: Reaction, Action, and Response.

Reaction is the what your character(s) does based on the events of the previous turn. Did your character think it was funny? Was he or she shocked? Surprised? Unimpressed? Did your opponent take damage or skillfully avoid it? The first part of your turn should address these points.

Because of this, most people begin the timeframe of their turn immediately after the last action taken. However, some also like to write their character's reaction to the entire turn, from beginning to end. This idea should only be used when necessary.

Here is an example of a necessary instance: If a team of shinigami are fighting a hollow, and the hollow attacked with some sort of fireball, the first member of the shinigami team would typically write his reaction to the fireball at the beginning of the turn, then he would write the rest of his turn. Then, his teammate would post his reaction to the fireball, and then to whatever the other shinigami did before writing out the rest of his turn. And the next person would do the same. You see? Here, it's necessary because almost no one wouldn't have any reaction to a gigantic fireball coming at them.

However, this tends to ruin the flow of a collab if it's done every turn, or if the events reacted upon were mundane. If someone is speaking to another character and begins their turn by insulting their mother before going on to talk about other matters, it might be tempting for the responding writer to begin his turn by writing a response to the wisecrack. But, tends not to be a good idea, either because it amounts to a minor form of modding.

How is it modding, you ask? Well, let's look at what "modding" is in general: taking control of someone else's character without their consent. So, in this case, you're reacting to an insult. Okay, that's understandable. But, you have to remember that the previous writer elected to have his character continue speaking or acting once he or she said the insult. Would that person really let you get the last word like that and go off onto a completely unrelated subject? Wouldn't it be better to save your response until near the end of the turn, so that they can react, too?

Action is rather obvious. After your character reacts, what else did they do? In fights, this would be the time for your character to quickly shift strategies, or try to get a new positioning, or maybe unveil their secret weapon. This part of the turn can be as short as long as needed, but it should once again be about pacing. If a fight is too wordy or has too many long pauses, it can be boring to read. So, sometimes, it might be a good idea just to have your character simply use the Reaction portion of the turn to dodge, then quickly shift to offense and prepare to attack. Short, simple and to the point.

Outside of fights, though, this is usually the part of the turn that keeps the story rolling. Now that your character's reacted to the previous one, how is he/she going to contribute to what's happening? It's usually a good idea to be as proactive as you can, as that keeps the collab from stagnating for a really long time.

Response is the part of your turn where you give your partner(s) something worth reacting to. Did your character throw out an attack? Tell a joke? Introduce something new? Attempt to escape? What?

In my opinion, of all of the components of a turn, this is the least necessary but the most crucial to good collabing. If I read a turn that's nothing but a Reaction and Action, it's hard for me to figure out what to do next. If your character just sneers at my joke and walks away, what do you want me to do? Chase after him/her? Apologize? Continue laughing? WHAT?!

On top of this, a response should be short and simple. Don't complicate your counterattack with a lot of unnecessary details that will only confuse your opponent. If all you did was throw a punch, then just describe the punch and post the turn. If you convolute the resoponse with too much information, you force my Reaction to be that much longer and specific, and that hurts my creativity.


Well, that's it for now. Stay tuned for the next article!

The Bleach Channel Blog

Hello and welcome to the all-new Bleach Channel blog. This is Vyse, your administrator and Game Master for the site. This blog is designed for myself (and other Administrators) to write general columns and thoughts about not just the RP, but any other related topic that crosses their mind, such as Bleach canon or anime, manga, and comics as a whole. Really, anything can be talked about and shared with our members. The idea is to give you guys an insight on how our thought processes and operations go. Hopefully, this will help you become better integrated with the site, as well as become a better writer an RPer.

Thanks for reading, and I hope you have fun. Bye!