RAGE: the aspect of impulse

Includes: Gamzee, Kurloz, the Highblood

At the core of the Rage player is the idea that something is wrong. There is something inherently fucked about the universe around them. And while that is not unique to Rage certainly as many other players struggle with a pervasive sense of wrongness, what sets the Rage player apart is their reaction to it. They are not here to seek answers, they are not here to try and fix it. The only solution in their eyes is smashing the system into glittering pieces.

They are fiery and empowered and aren’t worried about the small stuff. All the details and problems that other aspected people may struggle with— Rage players cut to the chase and ask, “Alright, how can I throw a wrench in the works? How can I throw a dozen wrenches into the works?” They want to see the machine come the fuck apart and are willing to do what it takes to get there.

That sort of drive is a powerful tool, and the unity between the aspect and the person tends to be more closely entwined. But on the flipside, Rage players can be a bit… Hollywood Anarchists. True Neutral people who know the Man is holding us all back and we’ll all be better if we throw society out and start another one, scorch that fuckin’ earth, baby. But… Rage doesn’t think ahead very well. It can follow immediate impulse and organize short term plans, but there’s not a ton of effort put into figuring out what’s next. What comes after you smash the system? Who’s going to do the work to build something new?

Not the Rage player, that’s for sure. This can cause them a lot of turbulence. When they cannot affect change, all that energy and inertia doesn’t have anywhere to go, and like built-up static, it will lance out and strike those around it. 

Think of Rage like a stone starting to roll down a hill. Once it gets going, it will not stop and the risk of collateral damage is high. The Highblood and his kin may have been devoted to a different belief system that would supplant the imperialism of the empire, but it was capricious (ha) and violent to anyone they deemed even too boring. Kurloz devoted himself to aiding Gamzee to bring about that perceived paradise as well, an indistinct concept of something Else, something Better. But Gamzee’s work was incoherent, indiscriminate, and functioned as a narrative device of pure acceleration. The paradise did not exist. It never would.

All this dourness to say: Rage is an aspect of immense potential, but its players have to work not to be led astray. Anger is a good tool and a powerful weapon. But pure retribution instead of rehabilitation leaves nothing but destruction. Be wary of bystanders. Don’t lose sight of real people in the pursuit of something different. Above all else: make sure that different world is a better world, not simple another hell.

Talismans: Breaking things to feel better, scream therapy, trolling people, mutual aid, arguing with people about what Real Punk is, compassion in the dark.

You may be Rage if… you’ve ever had an argument that, in hindsight, you realized prioritized The Cause over The People. It’s a rough one.