General Roleplay Advice Thread

[Sarai Flysse]

Hi everyone. Warning, gonna be a long one.

So I've recently returned to Illa, mostly because I heard about the VBU. And the game definitely has massive improvements, I'm actually enjoying myself.

However, if I'm honest (and I feel like any old hands might agree with me on this), the standard of roleplay has fallen in Illarion. Its still decent and better than most games, but its not what it was. Why is that? Well, probably a few reasons, but the most obvious one is an influx of new players with fewer old hands to guide them. People copy others, and it creates a cycle. That being said, this thread isn't aimed at anyone in particular. There are definitely still good rpers here, this is just a help thread aimed at improving the community! Oh, and I don't pretend to be a genius either. I've been roleplaying for a while though, and these are some (small and big) tips which I've picked up over the years. And I'd love it if other players posted here with advice or questions to add, and maybe we can get a discussion going?

1) The big one. A Characters 'voice'. What I mean by this, is that the vast, vast majority people who roleplay, have trouble creating a distinctive personality, attitude and what I call 'voice' which isn't basically 'themselves with benefits'. Now there's nothing wrong with adding parts of yourself to a character. Its inescapable, I don't care who you are. However, there are ways to make yourself more distinctive than just 'Me as a buff badass warrior in generic fantasy land', or 'me as a sexy pointy eared immortal who can cast spells and stuff'. We kinda want to avoid that.

So how do we avoid it? Well its actually really simple. Do the basics. Come up with a backstory (more on that later), give them at least one primary goal/aspect which would be alien to you IRL. Give them a weakness too. So yeah, the basics. Once they are over with, things get a bit more complicated. I've noticed that a lot of new roleplayers make one major mistake when creating a character. They make that character abstract in their head, which ironically prevents the character from getting an identity and just ends up being them. You should always base your character of someone, or aspects of multiple people. It could be someone you know IRL, it could be a character you read about, etc. Obviously don't just copy something, but always use someone for inspiration. Trust me, its how writers do it.

2) The small stuff. Punctuation. This isn't a big deal, but use punctuation. Adding fullstops and capital letters isn't hard, and it makes things easier to read plus helps prevent laziness. And new players will copy you.

3) Give your character a unique habit, or quirk. I've always found this super helpful. Everyone has personal quirks or habits. It could be something like cracking your knuckles, an odd laugh, a cough, doing something with your hair, shifting from foot to foot, a saying or greeting. Literally anything will do. The reasons this helps are several: It makes you stand out, not massively but it helps. People will remember it and associate it with the character. It helps you get into character. Everytime I have Sarai do one of her habits, it reminds me that I'm playing her, not me! Oh, and give them a weakness too! Everyone has weaknesses. Anything else is weird.

4) Backstory. Most important thing, don't write a novel. There's no need! In my experience, backstories develop naturally while we are playing the character. Of course you start of with something, an idea, a motivation, etc. But that backstory will change organically over the first few weeks. Let it happen. You are learning about this person as you play them, and thats the way its supposed to be. It really doesn't have to be more than, my character was X, and she/he arrived due to X. That sentence alone has unlimited potential which can go in any direction.

There's more, but I think thats enough for an OP. Like I said, hope we can get a discussion going and help any new players. Thanks guys! <3

Edit: Oh yeah, most important. Roleplay what you enjoy. If you aren't enjoying it, your roleplay will suck. That's all!

[Annabeth]

Add on to point 2) Use quotation marks " " if your character says something in an emote, e.g:

#me parts her lips to speak. "Hello, there."

5) Don't be perfect. Characters with no weakness, who are "perfect" in every way and have the most beautiful bodies and etc. are often looked down upon. These characters are also seldom perceived as "realistic". Your character is its own person, and not an avatar of you. Allow your character to "fail" every now and then. If someone attempts to mug you or wound you, allow them to succeed every now and then rather than being some kind of super-hero dodging everything with super senses and reactions.

6) Emotes. Emotes are for things people perceive your character doing. There are a few things that do not belong in emotes.

1. Peoples reactions to your emotes. Rather than going "#me stabs the man", the more appropriate would be "#me attempts to stab the man" allowing the other player to react with something like "#me is stabbed, falling to the ground unless caught, while groaning with pain." or "#me sees the attempt in time, dodging it before drawing a dagger for counter-attack". Of course there are hundreds of different scenarios that could happen, the point is that it is up to a player what happens to their character and you should not try to force things onto others with your own emotes.

2. Thoughts. Thoughts are not heard, seen or felt and do not belong in emotes. Other characters can not read your characters mind, nor sense your characters opinions about things.

3. Forcing traits upon people. Doing emotes like "#me seems annoyed by the sound of X's high pitched, annoying voice.". This forces a trait upon a person, as it states it as if it was true. The characters owner may actually have designed a character with a pleasant voice, and while you have the right to allow your character to perceive it in a different manner, using emotes like this is as if you are stating it as a fact. Again, opinions do not belong in emotes. Rather emote how you imagine your own characters voice sounds like, than intruding into the description of someone else's character.

4. If people have connection issues, don't make up some story for them or emote something like them fainting and you taking care of them. (I actually checked my log once after having connection issues, and found something like that.). Instead, be patient. Wait a few minutes, or as long as you feel is appropriate. If they do not return by then, continue on with the RP. Get creative, then if they return you can always resume the RP as if nothing happened, or by allowing them to come up with a story of what happened by themselves, so that they are in control of their own characters fate. Chances are the player will notify you through the forum, explaining why they disappeared.

[Djironnyma]

Hi,
its great that you want to help other players to improve there Roleplay, the best way do it is to "live"/to play it. Anyway please keep in mind that Illarion is indeed a "true" RPG but also a game for casual gamers. Not anyone will have the same idea of RP or the same focus on special aspects of RP, but the most important point is that everyone play together (and not against) and have fun. Follow links give you a good picture the kind of gaming/roleplay Illarion would like to see by his players

RPG-Guide
Game Rules
The Vision of Illarion

Best thanks, dji

[Sarai Flysse]

Hi,
its great that you want to help other players to improve there Roleplay, the best way do it is to "live"/to play it. Anyway please keep in mind that Illarion is indeed a "true" RPG but also a game for casual gamers. Not anyone will have the same idea of RP or the same focus on special aspects of RP, but the most important point is that everyone play together (and not against) and have fun. Follow links give you a good picture the kind of gaming/roleplay Illarion would like to see by his players

RPG-Guide
Game Rules
The Vision of Illarion

Best thanks, dji

This is true but there are tons of threads out there to help people with questions related to the game engine, I just thought talking about the roleplay part might be helpful too. I know it can be a touchy subject, but I also think not talking about it is counter-productive.

[rakust dorenstkzul]

7) It's OK to lose

I know this might seem obvious. But Illa is as much cooperative storytelling as it is a game, but you're still going to lose engine fights. What marks you as a good roleplayer is how you can work the situation to be fun for everyone.

[Arvemor]

My first thoughts were "Oh god, someone complaining about someone else." But I was pleasantly surprised.

Maybe this is a really good idea. I agree fully with those tips above. Learning to lose and have weaknesses are important. I guess something I could add is maybe:

Don't speak (in-character) about in-game features. It's a little immersion-breaking when someone refers to "getting sent to the cross" or "training on skeletons".

And maybe also:

9) Role-play your combats. You'll find it much more rewarding.

[Jupiter]

Don't speak (in-character) about in-game features. It's a little immersion-breaking when someone refers to "getting sent to the cross" or "training on skeletons"

I don't agree with that. I see ntohing wrong with those examples you gave. Getting sent to the cross is exactly what happens. Not only for us but also for the characters. You got badly beaten up but Cherga didn't take you with her yet but sent you back to this world, to the cross. And why not saying that you beat the hell out of some skeletons to get a better fighter? If you wanna be the very best like no one ever was, you need to train!
Since I don't see what would be necessairly wrong with those examples, I am not sure what you understand as immersion-beraking. To me it would be something like talking about skill or weapon levels without any proper ingame description or real life reference jokes (I hate those.).

[Sarai Flysse]

Yeah I don't have a problem with being sent to the cross either, that one is fine for me. It would be silly to ignore it in rp terms.

Sometimes people get a bit too specific talking about weapon values, thats the only one I can think of.

Roleplaying combat is fun but I would usually do it so the more skilled player wins anyway, unless there is some kind of unusual circumstance in the fight and agreed on by the players. Definitely more fun than right clicking each other. The skill is there for a reason and sometimes people try to use roleplay as a means to get around it, suggesting they just want to 'win'. Not seen it done since coming back though, would be cool.

[Mr.Oldie]

there is the talk about attributes too.
As a person one shouldnt be knowing his own attributes in the form of a number. OR skils for that matter when discussing battle gear.
and dont come asking like " does Essence help you from getting more magic resistance."
Atlest not IC. come to IRC if you have to. or at the very least ask in OOC.

[Pendar]

Just a few tips from my years of rping here and there, its not really aimed at this community or anyone in it. I do not think I have been around long enough for any real issues to raise their head, or I am just lucky and keep running into great players. Some of these are so simple or generic that most of us are familiar or the players are already seeming to follow them, but you never know who may read this so onward;

Embrace conflict and trials.
Every single person playing Illarion, should be here to build a story. Whether that is the story of the master crafter who became the richest man alive or the lowly stable hand who became a knight and killed Moshran himself. Thankfully there are hundreds of unique stories busy being told in game but one constant we all share is; there are no good stories without victories and loss. Ultimately being arrested and jailed will one day be as much as the fabric of your character as the time you killed the GM quest character. It will certainly make for a more interesting fireside story than retelling our back stories for the hundredth time. This does not mean seek out PVP needlessly or just be a disruptive influence, thats simply pointless. However if the opportunity comes around to get your arse kicked by that Ork or lose some coins to a mugging. Jump at the chance, the reality is you will have a richer character.

A few things are certain in a virtual game world, friends come and go, lovers are wayward and Gms spawn dragons. Thats how we make characters worthy of the armored soap opera we are all partaking in. All my favorite characters in any game are the ones who have built themselves around what happened to them in game, unplanned and unscripted events making them into a character worth being in one of my favorite books.

Its a persistent world manned by people with inconsistent lives.

Just because you have not seen a player in game for a week, does not mean they have been GONE a month. I live in a town with a number of friends and acquaintances, I can think of many I have not seen for weeks. Further more if we assume that in a persistent world one of my character is busy taking a dump at this moment, while another is out stabbing a bear. We could also say we get to play their highlight reel, skipping a lot of tedium of day to day life.
A way to make this easier for everyone is to approach situations as if the player was around:

A: "You been gone for weeks, you owe a gold coin!"
B: "I know your a busy man, but when you have time? We need to speak of that coin you owe me"

A: "You missed the battle! Where were you?"
B: "Our defenses were light during that last attack, I am glad you alright"

A: "You have been ignoring me, no one sees you and you promised to teach me the art of sheep shearing!"
B: "We need to find time to have a drink soon, you still owe me that lesson"

In each instance the difference is so subtle it may seem unimportant, but each time option B makes it easier to continue with seamless role play. Instead of having to concoct an excuse for a character not being where theoretically they were meant to be. As unless someone posts on a downtime thread, they are still part of the world even when not logged in.

Embrace change
Hang around a game long enough and your focus will shift. I have seen supposed pure role players, with zero skill discover skill grinding can be fun and a welcome relief from small talk. I have watched people labeled power gamers, leap in and embrace some fantastic RP once the opportunity presented itself. Eventually you'll need to make new acquaintances in game and do something different. As ultimately one can only make so much small talk with imaginary characters about imaginary events in an imaginary world. Try new things rp with new people, role new characters to seek out rp with your usual enemy. Its only through variation we can ever hope to experience all the world has to offer, it also combats burn out.

It would be too simple to say do not take things personally in game, people invest countless hours, develop emotional attachments to characters and places in game. The world does becomes ones favorite book in many ways. Cultivate a backup plan though, play a second character in a different town or have a character idea like rolling someones brother or sister in mind. That way when the changes become unpleasant or a chore to rp through, you can walk away without feeling you need to cut yourself off from the game.

I may add more later, but in reality I am sure this is boring enough, first rule enjoy playing!

[Jeisa]

You're all lovely, and I've roleplayed with at least the majority of you and enjoyed it, but I'd also like to leave this comment here: In the past, I've seen a few people volunteer advice on how to roleplay...when realistically, their own roleplay wasn't up to par, as far as I was concerned. In the past, there was some advice given for people new to roleplaying which I thought was unhelpful and even just bad advice. I think anyone and everyone should consider themselves works in progress, working to better their roleplaying skills. No one here's a master, no matter how epic they are. So keep learning, and have fun with it.

Also, for clarification: Most of the advice in this thread is pretty good.

[Caldarion]

You dont get paid on "lines of text".

Give others a chance to reply, because interesting RP works best in a dialog.Try not to break the cadence of anwer and reply.
Things like telling a story, saying a prayer or singing a song are of course exceptions, although some emotes of the audience never hurt.

If you are not interested in the answers of the one you talk to (i mean, you dont even wait for an answer your counterpart might type in), then maybe another concept of communication is in order, like writing a book.
Your character can always ignore the answers of the other's character nevertheless (/me talks so fast and loud that he barely listens..., /me excitedly brings his ideas forward, whatever).

The most important thing was said already:

the most important point is that everyone play together (and not against) and have fun

[S'rrt]

Take your time writing but don't overdo it.

It's better to have simple one/two-line emotes and dialogue rather than write a mini-novel to describe your character's actions and words. Of course you can do that sometimes if the time is right and there is no urgency but most of the time it's better to keep it short and simple, especially when you know there are others waiting for you to advance the situation.

EDIT: I just realised I said pretty much the same thing Caldarion did.