Archaic English

[Ezor Edwickton]

What if that is just the way there character talks, using improper archaic english.

[Bjorn Baleyg]

That seems like a bit of a cop-out to me - "I can't speak archaic so I'll come up with an excuse for my character's bad grammar" - If you want to roleplay a character with 'lower class' language skills there are better dialects to choose from, Cockney slang springs to mind as an English example, and I'm sure there are German equivalents.

On a side note - is there an equivalent to archaic english used by German roleplayers? I'm planning to learn German but don't have time at the moment, and I was just wondering.

[paul laffing]

I'm no expert, but I've read of Middle German and Old German and stuff of the sort. So, I believe there is. And there's slang for every language, but I don't think you could use that ingame.

"Yo, yo, yo, dude. Wazzup?"

[Nyntar Beliothiel]

Ezor, if there is a roleplaying reason for the character speaking improper Archaic English then of course it's acceptable, just as it is acceptable and welcome to have a roleplaying speech impediment or any other such quirk, oddity, or imperfection about a character as these make each character more realistic. After all, nobody is perfect. The only restriction is that the character must maintain this trait throughout their life unless there is a roleplaying event or circumstance that allows them to stop, such as being tutored in the correct form of the language, and once learned they should not return to their older ways of speaking unless explained through, yes, roleplaying. It is not acceptable if the reason for the improper use is due to the player behind the screen being incompetent or negligent in the use of this language. If this is the case they should just stick to what they know how to do in order to make the experience more enjoyable for all involved. It is also not acceptable to switch between using Archaic English in one circumstance and modern English in another because the player is bored with one form of speaking, these forms of language could be considered dialects. One character should not speak with the dialect of many different areas unless there is a reason to explain it, such as speaking Archaic English in a courtly environment and the more common form elsewhere, as a more rural from of the local dialect.

The whole premiss of roleplaying is that you may do anything you so desire, as long as it is explained in some way through roleplaying and the thing you wish to do conforms to the natural laws of the environment you are in. Meaning that one cannot just enter the land and act God-like, flying over mountains while juggling flaming underwear shouting at the top of their lungs that all must bow down to them and worship their mighty savior. You have to understand the natural laws of the land, what would be too extreme and what would be plausible under those conditions and act within those simple restrictions. In the realm of illarion, magic, fantastic creatures, a multitude of old and new Gods exist. It is, of course, fantasy. Yet this does not give the player free reign to act out any and all situations that are not possible in real life and chalk it up to this being a fantasy game. There are still restrictions, as the Illarion world is meant to be thought of as another reality, one with restrictions just as our own, yet obviously different.

[Bjorn Baleyg]

Slang was probably the wrong word to use, I didn't mean modern slang I meant versions of english which are associated with the lower classes but which have been around for a fair amount of time, certainly a better rp alternative to simply getting your thee's and thou's mixed up.