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Caspar · **09-21-2015, 10:34 AM**

I don't know if it's the same for others, but even in casual rp, I occasionally drop hints about things that will potentially happen later. Sometimes in the dialog of the character, because it actually involves a secret they know about, or in the events that occur without their actions, and even sometimes just in my emote text or narration text, if it's an event I'm running.

This however is more to make myself happy as I find I do it unconsciously a lot of the time. The format does not seem to favor this kind of rp unless you play with the same people continuously. I had an important plot event happen with a set group of people, but a large number of them are not available or haven't played with me in a while. I am concerned that my efforts to set up a big payoff later might never see fruition. I'm not too bothered by it, as like I said, it's just my style to do it, but it's a bit of a shame. I've been very successful in encouraging other players to do their thing in such a way as to move both our plots in the direction we want, even in in unscripted rp, and I still foreshadow events.

I wonder if anyone else has had success trying to essentially call the pocket they're going to sink the ball into, so to speak. A situation where you basically hinted at the events to come, independently of the character's knowledge or awareness (It wasn't a conscious hinting by the character IC.) and it actually came about. The payoff is worth it to me, and since I do it all the time anyway, no big deal when it never comes to be, but I dream of seeing it happen and watching other rper's look back and say "Whoa, you had it planned even as far back as that dinner our characters had? No way..."

Dante Abigor · **09-21-2015, 10:56 AM**

I generally give a very vague foreshadowing through the character's continuous actions and reactions. When I made my character he had a very defined background that helps to flesh out who he is, but he is defined and changed by the characters he encounters in game.

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So OT, yes, I do and have used foreshadowing.

Warren Castille · **09-21-2015, 10:59 AM**

Less foreshadowing, more inviting danger? Most of my roleplay tends to be live stuff, so I don't know what the future holds. What I will do, however, is intentionally word things so that when DRAMA happens, I could technically get away with winking at the home audience.

"Well, at least no one's been kidnapped lately."

I try to get in as many Famous Last Words as I can.

Hammersmith · **09-21-2015, 11:43 AM**

When I have Hammer dedicate to a course of action, I foreshadow, heavily. Â It'll show in on and off screen actions, since he has all the subtly of a brick. Â

Working a grudge? Â He might not tell you, but things like wanted posters with the face on them are going to go missing. Â Have a tracker out in the field literally head hunting for you? Â He'll have them treated in house at the infirmary, even have them meet other people in the FC.

There's always warning signs things are about to get very very ugly.

But being live RP and a mixed, non fixed audience it often means a lot of people end up with separate peices and never put them together/have no reason to.

Work with what you got!

Caspar · **09-21-2015, 12:11 PM**

Admittedly, a lot of this is more of a "i hope this happens" sort of thing. In a few instances though, people noticed when I ran events that some things said by notable NPCs sounded rather familiar...

Sylentmana · **09-21-2015, 12:19 PM**

I sometimes do foreshadowing, though admittedly, it largely for my own benefit. For the most part though, I don't bother, as often times I haven't actually fully written a character's plot or simply can't make up my mind.

Mia Moui · **09-21-2015, 02:33 PM**

I tend for foreshadow a lot, more than is strictly necessary. Â I don't know that anyone ever gets it but I've had some success here and there. Â I find myself doing it a lot more on my character's blog. Â She's been complaining about doing anything for money, realizing that's what led to the downfall of her family. Â She's not acting especially different. Â So one would imagine that's going to play out.

It's mostly for my own benefit though. Â I need to be highly engaged in my character's arch or I'll lose the plot or lose interest.

Jana · **09-21-2015, 08:43 PM**

I've been joking about Jana planting her death flags left and right lately, but I don't leave anything set in stone. Nothing's out of the picture either, though.

Faye · **09-21-2015, 08:52 PM**

Foreshadowing is fun. I enjoy it. I do it liberally. As you've said in the OP, foreshadowing often cannot pay off unless you role-play with the same people regularly. I really just do it for personal gratification, so I'll drop hints at events to come even when role-playing with some stranger in the Quicksand I/my character may never see again. But if you're foreshadowing with the intent for others to pick up on clues and not just for personal enjoyment, I find it helps to take things out of the RP/game. Post a story here on the RPC. Write up a report of some incident for your FC's forums. That way, people can have a better idea of what details to focus on, even if they haven't RPed with you recently and were not present for the actual events.

Caspar · **09-21-2015, 11:52 PM**

You know, that's a good suggestion. I should doll up the story I have in my FC page and bring it here. It's incomplete but w/e.

A few NPCs from my side stories will appear in events I run. So I think it might be good to place the stories where everyone can see them. I want to try a method where, given the PCs wouldn't reasonably ever know some of the NPCs' backgrounds, the player has a different emotional reaction to events surrounding them knowing what they do OOC than what the character does IC. It will be an interesting experiment.

The way I see it, unless you had sufficient motivation to investigate, some antagonistic or neutral NPCs would never divulge their background to you if they didn't have the proper personality to do so. They would live and die without telling participant PCs anything. This might be a good way to get a better idea of what their motivations are.

Kellach Woods · **09-22-2015, 12:39 AM**

I do it all the time. I troll for plotlines hard.

Cato · **09-22-2015, 12:40 AM**

I absolutely adore foreshadowing, especially if it's subtle and doesn't truly hit someone until after something big has happened. I love dropping little hints here and there about what may occur in the future - though as others have said it only really works when you're interacting with the same individual or bunch of role-players on a regular basis.

FFXIV uses it quite often to tell a good story - especially in Heavensward.

Allister Dedrick · **09-22-2015, 11:45 AM**

I had it happen without realizing it a couple months back. Allister finally got a ladyfriend in Ishgard, and he was just visiting so he decided to spend the night in the inn, which just so happens to be called Cloud Nine.

I never really thought about it much, though. I'd like to try it sometime.

Diskwrite · **09-22-2015, 12:27 PM**

I don't tend to use foreshadowing in ongoing plots just because it's not always easy for me to know where my characters will take something. Especially not the one I've played for the last 3ish years. She's got one hell of a mind of her own, and the inputs of others can make her go a drastically different direction than I thought she would.

What I do tend to do is,Â examine what's going on and where it's probably going, and then come up with satisfying ways for the plot to turn. The last huge plot I RPed through, 2 years of roleplay all came together in what turned out to be a truly amazing experience. Looking back on it all, I could point to things and say "oh, this played a role! and this played a role!" But I didn't know that's where it was going to go, at the time.