I'm working in a transformers fan fiction and I'm struggling in deciding who should be in the main cast of robots. I have characters but I'm feeling that there are too many of them. The idea for them is that they won't be soldiers precisely but instead janitors who are often mocked by the people and the story it's about that they are stranded on Earth with a full decepticon warship. Currently I have this guys: The ones who I want to have on the team: -Optimus Prime: During his youth he was a Prime (a special category of high ranked autobots). He's currently a janitor but needs to return to action once more. People would know him as a no-one. -Hot Rod: A clumsy and naive autobot who dreams to become a Prime (a big hero). -Bumblebee: He was once a thief who ended with the other autobots by accident. Now he needs to learn to stop being a selfish jerk and to collaborate with the others. -Redshot (I don't decide the official name yet): A human-sized transformer capable of using a human disguise. He will live among the humans as a some sort of spy. He was once the partner of a high ranked autobot but the circumstances obligated them to separate. The ones I doubt about having on the team: -Ironhide: The badass guy who won't doubt to put in his place to any jerk. He will be that friend that will always give you an advice... or a punch if you deserve it. -Ratchet: A medic with a dark past. He would be grumpy but I don't have too many ideas for his personality. He wouldn't fight to often but instead he would remain in the base to help with other things. -Hoist: A big fat guy with a good heart. He wouldn't like the idea of hurting others but he will need to learn to defend the innocent people. -Grimlock: He is a Dinobot (a transformer who transform into a dinosaur. Here the Dinobots are a "racially" discriminated minority). He will be a solitary guy who won't get along with Optimus due to their opposite ways of leading. He appreciates more the power rather than the mercy. It's like having a villain in the house. He will be a later addition to the team. I have plans for each of them but I feel that having 8 is too much, especially because I want this to be a trilogy and a 9th autobot will join them in part 3.
How many points of view do you want? I’d focus on Opitmus prime and at most two others. You can have as many sidekicks and fillar characters as you want. Maybe take a look at my progress journal: Evergreen as an example of how many characters I have in my story. Some authers have many dozens of characters and others have only a handful or only one. Tailor it to your story and find what fits. What matters is the characters voice. Quality is almost always better than quantity.
Spirit of seasons has good points which I agree, however, I will suggest this. Write your story first, all the ideas you have with all the characters. After you finish, see which ones you don't have a dialogue or just have one or two dialogue speech. If this happens, which usually does, means those characters are doing nothing in the story so you can cut them. Ask yourself, who is or are my MC's? Who is going to be their sidekick, if you have any? Just remember, all your characters must have a purpose, even their sidekick. Maybe they are to your MC their antagonist? And when I mean this is not about they become a villain or enemy, but someone that opposes theirs believes. In the book of John Truby, The Anatomy of Story, he says if not what I said, or something similar. I will recommend you read his book.
