I NEED TO MAKE AN OC AND I'M LOST

Warning: this contains 90% personal anxiety.

OC making is an interesting process for me. I usually don't make characters tied to a fandom. Last time I did I was in fifth grade and looking back I made OCs that put some of the worst Mary Sues on a platform of fine diamonds. Granted I was young, I swore I wouldn't mix OCs and fandom again.

Flash forward? Everyone here has Sonic OCs but me. Yikes! What do I do?

Then it dawned in me: if I make a Robian I might be able to trick my own brain into thinking it isn't a Sonic OC. Yeah... Saying it out loud doesn't make much sense but, trust me, when robots are involved I tend to lose sight of my surroundings. I REALLY love robots.


The first things that came to me were names and personalities. I use a plural tense here 'cause I had not one, but two inklings of characters waiting to be brought to life.

Cryla and Dax.

Cryla is very private and uncomfortable around people but has a vicious competitive spirit when pushed. She appears mild mannered yet is obsesive and compulsive. She's a secretary.

Dax has rotten luck (that only applies to himself) but he's a real go getter with style in the way that he talks. He can be a bit melodramatic but in a lighthearted way that can't be taken seriously. He's unemployed but he takes on odd jobs.



Most of the problem is what animal I want to base them off.

At first I wanted to do a species of hedgehog or an echidna... then Vietnam flashbacks of my old sues made me stop cold. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with hedgehog OCs, it's just... trauma.

My first fursona took me weeks of planning because I couldn't settle on an animal. I'm really paticular and I can't just go by favorites. Even if I wanted, my favorite animals are massive. I'd feel weird trying to put them in a Sonic style. Then theres the fact I have to make them a robot?  

I'm no zoo-tech major. The only animals I know well are animals I've liked since I was small. I want to branch out but I'm lost. Some animals I've already considered were bats, rabbits, and rats... tiny fuzzy things seem fitting, but I want something obscure that actually fits the characters. Black beady eyes are a plus. 



Now I know... I probably could have started the post to the point asking for a unique species. I'm just really scared of making characters I'll regret later in any little way. My brain isn't conditioned to make OCs for a fandom. Even if I can write semi decently I have doubts about presentation and design especially for a fandom.
 
I don't have a clue as to what kind of pallet I want or even... how to design a Robian that looks like it could be canon.

I NEED advice and opinions. And please no "you don't have to do this" 'cause I've pretty much already started.

Unfortunately I'm not too familiar with Robians (Played the games and read Fleetway, but the American brands such as Archie have rather slipped me by), so forgive me if I seem oblivious to certain matters, but aren't they peeps who used to be normal Mobians before they got roboticized? In which case, when picking a species, it may be more interesting to consider who they were rather than who they are now.
Also a thing to think about is whether or not you want your characters to have any extraneous abilities which may tie into a species. Flight for example, would lean you more towards birds and bats. If you want the characters to have natural weapons, there's things with big claws like moles and such that could leave an impression - or if you want use of a more mobile tail, lizards or a scorpion could provide that.
Essentially, it's good to define what you'd find interesting in a character and in what you want to write, and intertwine it with what species would fit that best. It's also good to consider certain species are almost automatically... associated with different traits - it's not always the case, but you can find common traits where mammals are represented as more emotive or gruff, whilst lizards and reptiles come off as more cool and collected - birds meanwhile often fall more into the role of bookishness. Obviously you don't HAVE to go by those stereotypes, but sometimes as a writer it's easier to visualise characters of certain species behaving certain ways.

I'll also say as one final little thing - I'd say don't get TOO worried about stylisation of the characters. In official terms, the main Sonic cast doesn't really have that much in terms of variation, especially the male characters. Naked bean body of certain colour, slightly modified gloves and shoes, some kind of chest ornament, and then a head that vaguely resembles the correct species popped on top.
The fandom - and hell, even a lot of the external media outside the games - have a lot looser approach to the style. Gloves and shoes aren't neccesarily a 'must' and clothing comes in a greater variety. Body builds too, vary a lot more - you have characters of all sorts of different cartoonish proportions in the external media and the fandoms which you simply don't see in the 'primary Sonic style'. Hell, I have to admit, my own characters are essentially just Anthros-by-any-other-name. Try not to let the standards of the style restrict you too much from what you WANT to do. The fandom is fast and loose, so feel free to think outside the box!

I could perhaps help.

Okay, as I offered before, I'm gonna try and help you as best I can. Firstly, just have fun! I know this is a really generic piece of advice, but seriously, go wild making what you feel is an entertaining character. You want a robot triceratops? DO IT. You want a mad scientist ferret? DO IT. Seriously, noone will judge you around here. Hell, as I've said before, my main OC, Caen, started off as the most generic good-guy I could create, but did anyone judge me for it? Nope!

Don't worry about fitting the 'sonic style', either. From what I've seen, a lot of OCs on here started life as anthros, and hell, Caen started life as a human kingdom hearts oc, before I developed him into the oc I have today!

The other stuff I'd say is basically what Dregan has already said, so, I'd follow his advice as well!

Anyway, I hope you have fun making your Robian!
All the best,
~Red