Smiling River

Oh okay, haha. You can see how without this background info I was like :shock: orly? picking on names?! I agree with Kier to an extent. Sure people will have cliche elements, and cliche in itself shouldn't be perceived as bad. I think we talked about the negative, overdone, badly RP'ed cliche characters. Some people carry them through and actually make it work, while others fail to make it original. If anything it takes more skill to play a cliche/ordinary character than a completely original idea.

I think this is a little too nit picky. I think it's okay that there are a lot of people whose families were/are effected by the history of the world. For example in FFXI: parents died in the war, Orcs attacked family etc. It's actually being realistic according to the lore, although one may also view it as less creative/easy. So yes there are characters that are effected by the Garlian war, and there are the Elezen you mentioned... not just one, whole populations. So I don't mind seeing more than one character with similar background in that way. The eye color is indeed silly, but calling various letters in people's character names is equally so. There are a lot of possibilities indeed. I myself (and most here I think) wouldn't mind characters with the traits you mentioned. It's all in how well they execute these traits. Also, how many times can an extraordinary magical event be done before it becomes way to unrealistic even for a fantasy game? Okay, person A at a certain point transformes into a dragon with great RP to back it up. Then Person B, C and D do the same in the following 2 years. Would all of them be percieved as valid as the first person? How many times can this magical event take place, even in a fantasy setting. To me something like that can happen once or maybe twice with good RP before I go :roll: . Also how many extraordinary magical things can happen to one person? One, two... three? After a while, it's a little unrealistic regardless of RP. Personally nearly everyone that I knew who RP'ed some things that you mentioned did it in a way that made them repulsive to me. Going to tie this point into the following quote... I agree, everyone should be having fun when they RP. I would never pick one someone's RP style and tell them they should change. I can provide suggestions, my point of view if they ask for it but I wouldn't go out of my way to lecture someone. However if I find someone's RP tasteless, or just not interesting to me, in order for -me- to have equal fun I'll withdraw myself from the situation and just not RP with that person. I think this is only fair for both parties. Of course I expect that if my RP style is not fun for some people, I wouldn't mind if they weren't into it. In fact I'd prefer to RP with people who are interested in my stories, and I am interested in theirs. We can all agree that it would make for better RO, regardless of the style of the group. This is why the RP community will obviously have more than one LS/guild, so that players can be with people who have similar RP views.

This actually made me laugh a little on the inside. I believe a lot of people, especially new RPers first made character were often flat, basic "I love my race/nation I hate your opposing race/nation" because the lore they would read at first strongly outlined the national differences and the differences between races. Very Dmitri Martin of me

That's a fairly complete list there. I find it also that many characters tend to start RP somehow related to their family. It's almost a natural place to start a story for a new RP'er but also is a common trend which I don't see being outed as such. I feel like making little sketches to represent each one of those types, Verence EDIT:

It can be hard for those inexperienced with MMOs or RPGs or Role-Playing in MMOs to make their first character. Sometimes new Role-Players have to do a lot of re-introductions and backpedaling because their first character wasn't successful. Perhaps this can turn into a guide of sorts for the new Role-Players. If you have words of wisdom, experience, or encouragement, keep on posting! Might be helpful. found this cool website for generating names and characters. Clicky Do you know of any other sources which may help people set up their character?

To this I'd add character flaws as well. We all have em, it would be quite unrealistic for a character not to. New positive and negative traits can develop and old ones disappear as your character progresses through the world.

Sure thing. Let me know if you need clarification or just have more questions. I'm sure others will add other tips, too.

First off I'd like to suggest that this be put alongside "What is RP" on the main website. To the newbie Role-Player: Role-Playing is a skill which develops over time. Do not feel discouraged if you don't understand all the rules just by reading them for the first time. Most of us would be glad to help open the world of RP to anyone who is interested. This means that we may correct you, especially in the beginning. Of course this should be done constructively, but just know that we are not picking on you, or don't want you to RP. For example when I first started, I typed in shorthand, "How r u guys?" Someone quickly sent me a /tell saying that I should type out every word. At the time I didn't even ask why, I saw others do the same, and figured I should too. If you don't understand why a certain rule is in place, it's alright to ask, but also note that you may not understand it fully until you are more experienced at RP'ing. Now I could tell that typing in shorthand reduces game immersion for most/all RP'ers, hence that rule was in place. Don't be intimidated by other characters or stories. It might be overwhelming to join a Guild/LS which has very thought out characters with deep history and on-going stories which started before you arrived. Don't feel pressured to join until you are comfortable with your own character and background. Some new RP'ers join stories and form bonds with other characters within the first week, for others it may take six months to really start "playing" with other RP'ers. In other words, take your time and go at your own pace. This leads me to character development: Do you have to have an idea for your characters background? No. Is it better to have one? Absolutely. You as a person respond to others based on your views, past experiences, etc. Imagine if you joined some sort of an organization or a club but had total amnesia. How would you interact? What would you say? How would you react to others? This is why even a rough outline of your character is always beneficial. It doesn't have to be set in stone. In fact even seasoned RP'ers change their character's past at times by revealing something new which the character or others didn't know before. For example if you plan to be a good cleric at first, but then decide that you want to change your past- have a different persona... let your character discover something tragic which will steer them away from the clergy into the life of crime. Your character doesn't have to have much depth as you join an Guild/LS, but as you learn about RP, you will also see other fleshed out characters, how they interact with others and the world. Take your time to think about how your character reacts to what's going on around them and why. Think about their background. Just as above, I knew RP'ers who had a clear idea of who their character is within a week, others took longer. When you plan their history, it's okay to leave things out, make gaps. You may get ideas later on and fill them in. I don't advise you to launch any kind of a story arch until your character's history is more or less figured out. How to find your perfect Guild/LS: First I'd like to say that there should be no stigma attached to leaving one Guild for another. People have their differences, whether it's between them and the rules, the RP style, or a specific person. It's juvenile to be mad at someone because they left a Guild to join another or be a freelancer. As a new Role Player, you should never feel trapped or obligated to stay in a Guild which doesn't seem to fit you or your character. That being said I believe that whatever Guild you start in, it's likely going to shape your view of RP and the way you create your character. In this case there is no better guild for you than the one you started in. However this might be outdated (unless you join a guild in-game without any research) because of this Coalition. Now a new Role-Player can look at the list of Guilds and figure out which will suit them. It's easier to know which guild will work for you the more you plan your character ahead of time. Most if not all Guilds will have a website and/or forums where you can check out their style of RP. Again, the more you know about yourself as a RP'er, the faster you will find a Guild which suits you. It's okay if you don't though, some Guilds will simply inspire you. You will see your character having a title within that Guild, or you will begin to imagine a background for your avatar by looking at the environment in which they will be placed. Other Guilds will have like-minded people which you will be drawn to naturally. In my experience, I usually have similar RP preferences with players that I can connect with on an OOC level. If you see that people share your opinions, you like their style of writing, then you might want to check out their Guild. That's all I have to say (write) for now. Hope new Role Players find this info helpful.

I think Castiel is saying that the definition should state that certain emotes aren't RP. We agree that this is relevant info to bring up, however disagree on where it should be located. Stating RP isn't an emote such as "X punts Y" is more relevant than stating that RP isn't a carton of eggs.

I'm just saying, a definition of a word should be a "positive" definition (not sure what the proper word is) instead of describing what said word is not. For example a spoon is a small round object with a longer handle used for eating. A bad definition would be; a spoon has a handle but on the tip it is not a fork. In this case it seems if the definition was longer, perhaps it could have a paragraph describing certain elements of gameplay which could be mistaken for RP, but since it's only a few sentences that part (IMO) seems a bit awkward. Also I didn't mean have a separate discussion/vote (by mentioning "section") on what isn't RP, just a side note within this current version on common practices which may be mistaken for RP. I also think it is important, just as you did here with the definition of RP, to mention what isn't godmode or what isn't meta-gaming. Actually I'm surprised that you are giving a "negative" quality (what isn't RP) in the definition above yet from what I understand don't support the idea of providing the same scope to these other discussions. Creating a contrast between an RP session which uses godmode and the same situation which does not, as an example, will give the reader a clear idea of what godmode is and how it's misused practically. This along with the definition (IMO) gives a new RP'er a better understanding of any idea that we try to define. If I am the only one who sees the current definition this way, I have no problem letting this go for a vote. I've explained my little critique, besides which I have no problems with it. If anything, the members who vote will have read this (hopefully) and can agree or disagree based on the way they vote. As it stands I am not even sure if it's a big enough problem for me to vote no because the rest of the definition is very sound.

I think you can also say something like: Role-Play is seeing the world through the eyes of your character rather than yourself. It doesn't all have to be "dictionary" like, although the terms you have there are needed. Also I would suggest taking out what is NOT RP from the definition. I'd put it in it's own little section, or just mention it else where. If anything it can be rephrased to describe RP (rather than describe the negative; what is not RP). For example: Emotes are a big part of Role-Play and how your character interacts physically with other characters and the environment.

Yes, I think we can all agree that it's more of spectrum.

Adding asterisks to text just makes the action and the words spoken seem connected. Or at least more so than doing an /em, and then typing out what your character wants to say. Rarely is it used (outside of LS) purely to convey an emote. So instead of it being used like this: Most of the time it's used like this: Niami: *yawns* That nap was too short. *looks for coffee* As you can see it's a bit more realistic to read/interpret it in a single line since those actions/words are spoken almost simultaneously. Doing an /em, then a /say, then an /em again breaks it up, makes it seem choppy and unnatural. In Crystalline the LS provided a limited visual around the person carrying it, so we can tell if someone waves or nods. Within the LS chat we'd use the ** to display actions with or w/o words.

Agreed. Actually I think of it like this: in private chat, you can be as IC or OOC as you like. You can be a hardcore RP'er even if you are OOC when you're doing a mission or fighting a boss (in /party chat). If most of your discussions are OOC however, then you are a casual RPer. Technical in-game OOC should be the same across the board. I think on this all of us can agree. (( )) dictates OOC. Okay? Now for less technical meta-gaming aspect of OOC: personally I don't want to know secrets about one's character OOC'ly and not IC because that creates some tension for me as an RP'er. It adds a possibility of meta-gaming, even in a slightest way. When I RP I tend not to reveal things about my character OOC'ly either. There should also be a distinction made either in the definition or just in our mind as we think about this, between the theoretical definition of RP and how it is in practice. For example you can say that you will RP 100% of the time. This actually will limit your RP in the game because you wont be able to talk OOCly with people about their stories and plot lines, plan specific events, etc.. It'd also make it very difficult for others to do missions/quests/fight bosses with you where it's almost required to go OOC to quickly communicate.

All I got to say is "LT style electric glide!" Share some more with us! :lol!:

Tsumi was there a character that was blind? (the Hume female in the sigs) If so, that's really cool cause I also RP'ed a blind guy for a while

The very last line... brilliant. Love how it synced up to the video.

Congratulations you guys! Wow an 11 month old?! That just goes to show we've not caught up in a loooong time.

I do realize that this is all subjective, that it's people's personal opinion. Doesn't mean that one shouldn't listen to other's opinion. Not trying to settle once and for all with scientific accuracy if what we are doing is an art form heh I tend to think that video games in general have artistic elements in them. Some independent games (see Braid) make me view them primarily as art. As for RP, even though the "canvas" is an MMO which isn't by itself art, I'd say most of RP can be classified (in my opinion) as a rough, undefined art form.

No specific reason, like I said above, I think about things like this and I figure it'd be an interesting discussion to have. Also just interested in what you guys think

As someone who dabbles in art (video, drawing, writing, photography, dance) I try to be aware of the abstract idea of art itself. It's good to go back to square one every once in a while and ask yourself what is art? How has it been expressed, how can it be different, have perceptions of a given art form or style changed, why? As I was thinking about TV, movies, books and other forms of entertainment which are also called an art form, I thought of my premier choice of entertainment; video games. I thought I'd pose this question here since we're all interested in gaming and particularly Role-Playing in an MMO. Do you think that RPing in an MMO is more than just entertainment, is it a 'new' art form? Thanks for your responses. :flower:

Level 99? I thought that was a joke. Are there even enough mobs in the game to effectively exp on to reach that level? I feel like SE just through up their hands and went "Oh well, now let's use FFXI as a testing box for XIV" Are they going to add job abilities too? Equipment? Level 99 just sound so ridiculous to me ... that's like, lvl49 SJ. Everyone will go /nin and NIN main is going to be so useless.

I'm guessing that's closed beta.

I'm sure you guys have met RP'ers who you had fun playing with but somehow lost their contact info. Post here if you are searching for someone and we'll see if someone knows someone that knows em! I've simply forgotten a name of the following RP'er which I'll try to describe. He played on The Lights Templar, was one of the core members if I remember correctly. He played a DRK. He rolled a character on Sylph and that's how we met (when I was playing Darkcat). Both of us wanted to server hop and check out other RP communities. We both rolled a brother and sister on the Lost Boys. I believe my chars name was Gisei. Anyone know who I am talking about?

I agree that it shouldn't be required, especially if it goes against RP.