PERSONALITY TYPE

I can't say this any better than my friend over at twilightvisions.com did, so here's a direct quote, "A distinct personality is perhaps the most important factor in the long run. The more aspects a character has for me to explore, the more intricate their psychology, the more complicated their motivations, the more interesting they become."

That said, there are certain character archetypes which I will gravitate towards first and foremost.  It may be because experience has taught me they will often display the most intricate, complicated personalities.  But if a character doesn't fit into the mold they're given and goes beyond it to become more human, I will love them all the more.

As a bonus, here are four types of characters who will attract my attention:

Smiling Trickster: They display a cheerful, humorous face to the world, while hiding their true nature underneath.  Their goals vary; some are looking for strong opponents, others like to watch & pull pranks.  But whatever agenda they have, you don't want to get in the way!  By far the most dangerous and unpredictable personality type.

Ice Prince(ss): These are the loners who hide their emotions deep within. They have their own idea of justice, and nothing will deter them from their set course.  In their spare time, they like to train and angst over their goals.  It's very hard to get to know these characters, but well worth the effort!

Split Personality: By virtue of emotional trauma, a past life, or having more than one type of blood running their veins (ie, half-human & half-demon), this character has a split personality.  Usually one side is cheerful, sweet, and good, while the other is cold, cruel, and dangerous as hell.  Don't get these characters pissed off!

SKILL

I'm always impressed by characters who have honed their skills to razor-sharp levels.  This can range from super intelligence to Go playing skills to swordsmanship to bread-making to magic.  The actual skill which they acquire matters very little, as long as they have taken the time to master an ability.  It's even better if they take pride in their accomplishments.

Characters do not have to begin the series being extremely good at their chosen skill, although I admit I tend to latch onto the characters who kick butt from the very beginning. ^_^  I like watching characters hone their skills during the series and struggle to get better... or find opponents who are worthy of them.

PROTECTIVE

I am a romantic by nature.  My favorite parts in series are inevitably the romantic moments between characters, or the parts where a character is protective of another (thus leading to romantic thoughts).

A character who doesn't give a damn about anyone else, and who will only save his or her own butt, won't interest me.  However, a character who usually doesn't give a damn about anyone else, but protects another character despite it, is almost guaranteed to become a focus.  This includes the sociopaths who protect another character just because they want to kill that character later themselves.

DANGEROUS

Give me a character with a dangerous aura!  Often, the characters who grab me are the ones who give an impression of carefully controlled power.  Getting on their bad side means a slow, painful death.  Annoying them means you may wish you were dead once they take their revenge.

The greater the sense of controlled power surrounding a character, the more I tend to like them.  Whatever abilities they have, they're fully willing to use them if pissed off.  Only stupid characters disregard the threat they pose. (...although it can be fun watching the results!)