Oldschool RPer chiming in. I need to get away from holiday nonsense for a moment, and whats more sobering then a thread about the dreaded three letter word?
Part of the stigma is simply the general stigma against sexuality in general. Some people do not want to read anything resembling that, especially in an entertainment product that isn't rated Mature.
That's only a small piece of it, though.
The ERP stigma is born of an aversion to two types of parasites that most role playing communities would simply rather not have around. They are both quite destructive in their own way.
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1. The Cyber-er (Forgive me, I'm terrible at making labels for things.
)
This particular breed of miscreant isn't a Role Player at all. Rather this is an individual with little-to-no writing ability who seeks to use the graphical nature of the MMORPG to hide the fact. They have but one goal, to infiltrate role playing communities in their eternal quest for really bad cyber sex.
When players talk about ERP, most of the time they are thinking of these people.
The good news? They can never hide their true nature for very long. They usually can't write very well, even in the form of a one-liner and have a habit of making level 1 alts.
The bad news? The role playing community will nevertheless be blamed for their actions when they become too prolific on a particular server. A prime example of this would be the Moon guard server in World of Warcraft. A situation where there is legitimate strife between entire role playing communities because this type of ERPer was allowed to run amok.
You could be the best role player to ever type a descriptive paragraph and be a masterful weaver of tales... but if you just happened to make a character on Moon Guard, guess what. You suck. And you're a perverted scumbag swimming in a digital cesspool.Â
Hm? What's that you say? You have no control over the ERPers in Goldshire and Blizzard refuses to listen to the year-long pleas from the *real* RP community to police the place? Ha! A likely story. We know how you Moon Guardians are. Keep your freaky bloodelf-catgirl-draenei-vampire sex away from Wrymrest Accord!
Â
2. The Chameleon! (I'm horrible today, horrible. I blame holiday hangovers.)
These people are far more insidious because they usually *can* write and even impress with their descriptive prowess. They have little trouble fitting into the community and can be very good storytellers.
The problem? They are only interested in writing smut fiction.
The issue isn't so much that they engage in a little literary titillation behind imaginary closed doors, no. It's the sociopathic, single-mindedness with which they pursue this goal and the drama that results from it.
They will entangle themselves in well established groups and sow discord. They will draw your character into an intense relationship, only to disappear when they grow bored. They happily derail storylines and break apart relationships. If you're foolish enough to leave the door open, they will even bring their brand of manipulation to the realm of OOC.
This person is akin to the Mary Sue who is always, ALWAYS in danger. You know, the one who's always either being chased or stumbling into the tavern bleeding?
Â
Both types are repellent for the same base reason. Role playing, GOOD role playing demands a level of give and take. It's a collaboration, a work in mutual storytelling. These people, on the other hand, are only out to take.
Â
All that being said, there's something far more damaging then both of these groups put together, and that's everyone else's gross over-reaction to them. I have been accused of being an ERPer simply for having a character stand next-to another's while they were involved in open conversation.
Sexual escapades out in public is bad and against TOS just as it's against the law to have sex in a public park, but only in the realm of Role playing are people made to feel uncomfortable because their characters, who were in a relationship, shared a brief kiss in public. The witch-hunt mentality will ruin a community and sow mistrust faster than anything else.
So, in closing, the best advice I can give is really quite simple.
Â
"Mind your own business."
Part of the stigma is simply the general stigma against sexuality in general. Some people do not want to read anything resembling that, especially in an entertainment product that isn't rated Mature.
That's only a small piece of it, though.
The ERP stigma is born of an aversion to two types of parasites that most role playing communities would simply rather not have around. They are both quite destructive in their own way.
Â
1. The Cyber-er (Forgive me, I'm terrible at making labels for things.
)This particular breed of miscreant isn't a Role Player at all. Rather this is an individual with little-to-no writing ability who seeks to use the graphical nature of the MMORPG to hide the fact. They have but one goal, to infiltrate role playing communities in their eternal quest for really bad cyber sex.
When players talk about ERP, most of the time they are thinking of these people.
The good news? They can never hide their true nature for very long. They usually can't write very well, even in the form of a one-liner and have a habit of making level 1 alts.
The bad news? The role playing community will nevertheless be blamed for their actions when they become too prolific on a particular server. A prime example of this would be the Moon guard server in World of Warcraft. A situation where there is legitimate strife between entire role playing communities because this type of ERPer was allowed to run amok.
You could be the best role player to ever type a descriptive paragraph and be a masterful weaver of tales... but if you just happened to make a character on Moon Guard, guess what. You suck. And you're a perverted scumbag swimming in a digital cesspool.Â
Hm? What's that you say? You have no control over the ERPers in Goldshire and Blizzard refuses to listen to the year-long pleas from the *real* RP community to police the place? Ha! A likely story. We know how you Moon Guardians are. Keep your freaky bloodelf-catgirl-draenei-vampire sex away from Wrymrest Accord!
Â
2. The Chameleon! (I'm horrible today, horrible. I blame holiday hangovers.)
These people are far more insidious because they usually *can* write and even impress with their descriptive prowess. They have little trouble fitting into the community and can be very good storytellers.
The problem? They are only interested in writing smut fiction.
The issue isn't so much that they engage in a little literary titillation behind imaginary closed doors, no. It's the sociopathic, single-mindedness with which they pursue this goal and the drama that results from it.
They will entangle themselves in well established groups and sow discord. They will draw your character into an intense relationship, only to disappear when they grow bored. They happily derail storylines and break apart relationships. If you're foolish enough to leave the door open, they will even bring their brand of manipulation to the realm of OOC.
This person is akin to the Mary Sue who is always, ALWAYS in danger. You know, the one who's always either being chased or stumbling into the tavern bleeding?
Â
Both types are repellent for the same base reason. Role playing, GOOD role playing demands a level of give and take. It's a collaboration, a work in mutual storytelling. These people, on the other hand, are only out to take.
Â
All that being said, there's something far more damaging then both of these groups put together, and that's everyone else's gross over-reaction to them. I have been accused of being an ERPer simply for having a character stand next-to another's while they were involved in open conversation.
Sexual escapades out in public is bad and against TOS just as it's against the law to have sex in a public park, but only in the realm of Role playing are people made to feel uncomfortable because their characters, who were in a relationship, shared a brief kiss in public. The witch-hunt mentality will ruin a community and sow mistrust faster than anything else.
So, in closing, the best advice I can give is really quite simple.
Â
"Mind your own business."
![[Image: tumblr_n92fndN0EH1rujdn8o1_500.gif]](https://33.media.tumblr.com/449e130ac31106ec8aeda3d0f121d76b/tumblr_n92fndN0EH1rujdn8o1_500.gif)
