Whether you’re a wily vet or a role playing noob, you’re here because you want to role play.  I’m going to break down RP into its component parts and explain how you can get involved.  Don’t be afraid, we’re all here to have fun!
I’m trying to make this document as enabling and newbie friendly as possible, so hopefully it doesn’t go over anyone’s head.  Let me define a few abbreviations here:
I’m trying to make this document as enabling and newbie friendly as possible, so hopefully it doesn’t go over anyone’s head.  Let me define a few abbreviations here:
- RP- Role Playing: Â building a community story by interacting with other characters
- PC- Player Character: Â An in-game avatar controlled by another player somewhere in the world.
- NPC- Non-Player Character: Â An in-game avatar controlled by the computer. Â No player is at the other end.Â
- IC- In Character: Â communicating in character to create scenes, like an actor in a play.
- OOC- Out of Character : Â communicating as a player, usually done to set up RP opportunities or resolve RP conflicts. Â Generally this is ((marked with brackets)) or annotated somehow. Â OOC- this is an OOC message.
- IRL- In Real Life:  a phrase used to indicate you’re talking about the real world and not the game.
- What is Role Playing?- A basic description of the hobby for newcomers.
- What Makes a Story?- Explanation of story structure including the nature of conflict and pacing.
- What Makes a Character?- Important character considerations including goals and room for growth.
- Building a Character- Â Techniques to help inspire you and create memorable characters.
- Character Questionnaire- 100+ Questions about your character to help flesh them out.
- RP Etiquette-  A few dos and don’ts of RP that I hope are universal.
- Going OOC- The sometimes overlooked necessity of OOC communication.
- Resolving Conflicts- Â Resolving RP conflicts and having fun with them.
- RP Scheduling-  Can’t find any time to RP?  Why not MAKE the time?
- Conclusion- Â Final Words.
