New

[Thartis]

I have been playing for a while. The game started to loose some luster. Hack,slach Bash. Keep healers safe... etc. I was wondering where should one start if they have not done RP before. Do you all really type that fast when you talk?

[Vilmah]

The short answer is yes. Yes we do.

[Maegannon]

This is an awesome place to start!


An easy beginners roleplaying guide: By Mae-mae's insanity, Crystal:

Write up a little backround on your character, even if its just for your own person. It helps tremendously to know a little about this person your portraying before you jump in!

Do not forget to work your characters race into your story, and make sure to include their class, and a reason for it.


Other then that? Its an open book, with everyone writnig a page! Let the world influence your character.

[Hifazat]

Its simple really. First few simple rules:

1. Type in full words. Proper english on an MMORPG is the sign of a roleplayer oddly enough.
2. Develop a character that you can play well.
3. Make sure it has one major character flaw, ie an racist, or a meglomaniac.
4. Start off simple.

More after lunch.

[Maegannon]

[quote="Hifazat"]
3. Make sure it has one major character flaw, ie an racist, or a meglomaniac.
quote]

It doesn't have to be major, just something to make your character a person. A quirk.

Mine's got a thing for dwarves >.<

[Dhurandal]

If you're asking about our typing speed, I know some people can get particularly verbose when they're simply playing in town or in a safe area. It helps to type quickly and accurately in order to keep the play at a good pace. People have limited playtime so it helps to move things along to be considerate.

Some people do fight in character, but think of it like a real fight. Most people don't bark out sentences in the midst of a melee, it's usually short direct orders to get the point across to their allies. Of course, if you have trouble typing messages and working hotkeys at the same time, roleplay becomes less of an option until you get the hang of it.

[Ylisaxa]

And everyone has a different slant on how they RP. This is all good. Don't feel obliged to RP constantly in every situation if that is not what you are comfortable with. RP all the time if that is what you want. Nobody will judge you for how you manifest your RP and there are no hard and fast rules.

For example, I RP in all public channels, even LFG (except when I am getting severly butchered, I will use ICPVP in local defense to simply convey maximum information). Tells are out of character mostly. These boundaries help me control the balance between IC and OOC better for me. Experimenting with accent can be a fun way to find your character's voice. Always type out full, coherent sentences though if possible. And in my opinion, RP addons and macros are perfectly acceptable. I personally hate to see abbreviations when people are in character. I have an add on to deal with that to keep me sane.

There will be people that disagree with me. As I said, we are all different. :)

[Hifazat]

Ah the reason i said major is because i hate seeing or playing characters that are "perfect" or they have very small annoying faults like "my character laughs too much" or something.

I don't want to run into a paladin who is the son of some famous war general and has never lost a battle and is beautiful to boot. If i see a character like that - one that seems to be just perfect - the first idea in my head is can i camp this guy?

I am in no way saying quirks are not good. They are. But generally create an original character. An elf like a dwarf is a quirk people rarely play.

Just please don't play the good guy that never does anything wrong.

[Malebrignon]

I wrote this for my guild. I direct anyone who is new to RP to this post. Maybe you'll find some of it helpful, too. Just some RP basics peppered with the pet peeves of someone who's been called an "elitist RPer" more than a few times.

----------------------

Everyone has their own definition of roleplaying. It gets defined even more specific when your RP is limited to text and emotes. So, here's a guide to RP do's and don'ts. This is not intended to be a set of "rules", RP how ya want. These are just some guidelines.

*Spelling/Grammar - Use whole words. "u" "ur" "k" "kk" "gg" "plz" These are not words, they are internet short-hand. As an "elitist" RP-type personality, I immediately make assumptions about someone's intelligence and their ability to RP when I see these. Especially in /say or /yell.

*Use Emotes - try "/e sticks out her tongue." instead of " :P " Every emoticon can be converted to text. "=)" or "smiles with joy." Which sounds more RP to you?

*LOL - /laugh /cackle /chuckle etc... When you're not close enough for emotes, try *laughs heartily* or *guffaw* or even just *laughs*

IF THE ONLY THING YOU HAVE TO SAY IS "LOL", JUST DON'T SAY IT. (Granted, this is my personal pet peeve. I'm sure almost everyone in the guild has typed "LOL" at some point playing WoW. Just remember that I feed a kitten to the anaconda in my basement every time you do it. Do the kittens really deserve this? It's on your heads to make it stop.)

"In-Character" - This is the true gray area. How much does your character know? Does he really know his DPS? Do game mechanics exist for our characters? There's no good answer for this. I consider any discussion of game mechanics to be at least partially in-character. It can be difficult and time-consuming to make it sound "RPish" when you're comparing stats on items.

"Out of character" (OOC): Talking about your character on another server, what music you're listening to, or how much you hate lag, well, those are things for the OOC channel and you'll probably get a friendly "nudge" from one of us Elder types if we notice it in /g. Use the OOC channel freely; it's what it's there for.

I'm sure there's more, but I should probably get back to work. Remember, these aren't rules. You won't get kicked out for this stuff. You WILL lose the interest of the die-hard RPers. If it seems like some of us don't pay much attention to you, you probably aren't one of our favorite communicators. Yep, we're all human behind the keyboard and we WILL play favorites sometimes. I'm here to help anyone in the guild, but the folks that RP with me will get more attention because they're more involved than just saying "will you run me through: (RFC, WC, VC, RFK, SFK, etc.)".

[Thartis]

Thanks for all the information.

[Syreena]

RP can be as involved as you want it to be. All of the advice given here is good. On the other hand, if this is your first time with it, you might want to take the simple route.

The only thing you really need to remember is that you are playing a fictional character in a fictional setting. Have him talk about things that would make sense for someone in his world to talk about, and act in a way someone of that setting would act. Type his speech in a way he would speak (no internet shorthand). He might have an accent, or he might not.

If you have a habit of typing "lol," just put a slash in front of it in game. /lol does the same thing as /laugh.

For me, sometimes it helps to think about who my character is and where she came from (backstory) before I start playing a new one. Other times, I just start playing and get to know her and later develop a past that explains her personality. Sometimes characters take on an interesting personality of their own when one isn't forced on them.

Character development traits like flaws are a great way to make a character feel more real. But if you can't think of something right away, don't let it stop you from starting to play. You can always work something in later, or use an event that happens in game to change something about your character.

As for typing speed, don't worry too much about that. In instances and battles, as someone else said, short commands work best. "Patrol" is just as IC and effective as "There is a foe approaching from the south tunnel!"

Just start role-playing. The rest will come. Have fun with it! :)