Post by PonyMama on Jan 23, 2009 16:31:18 GMT -5
[glow=white,2,300]As written by Nightfeathers:[/glow]
I am gathering here some hints and things to help out everyone with RPing. Hopefully there will be stuff here to help old and new alike. Feel free to PM me anything you think ought to be added, and if its not already covered then I will.
---
Alright lets see...I guess the first thing to cover would be logic. Yes believe it or not there is some logic required to really RP with style. Now obviously some things are bound to fly in the face of that. Talking animals for example. However there are certain things to keep in mind.
Here in the Orlaya forums, all animals retain their natural size in comparison to one another. For instance aside from the occasional rampant emu, no bird is going to be as big as a horse. Horses can talk, but that doesn't mean they can do anything else a horse cant.
For instance, when faced with...say a pack of wolves. The horse would naturally fight, and some of the wolves would be taken out. However, if there are more than, say 5-6 wolves, the chances of the horse surviving that fight are almost nil. Any less and he might survive if he's lucky, but he would still have some major injuries.
You might say 'But my horse is a unicorn! It has a horn!" Now that is all well and good. However, have you ever seen a wolf or any other creature to just stand there and let something ram it? Of course not! That wolf is going to be jumping around and running and trying to attack. So your unicorn might get lucky, but in a fight such as this its not going to help him a whole lot. Even if he spears one of the wolves, the rest will be on his throat before he can shake that one off.
See what I mean now about logic? You could just say 'Oh, but my unicorn suddenly developed speed like the Flash and ran off", but that would hardly be fair to the players of the wolves now would it? Plus it is just plain silly. Realism should always be the goal whenever possible. not only does it make sure you don't violate the laws of physics, but it makes the RP so much more fun for everyone!
So now you say "Yeah fun for the wolves, but my unicorn is dead!" Well now here we come to another bit of logic. Way back when the unicorn met this pack of wolves, he would know that they can easily kill him wouldn't he? Of course. So do you really think he would go calling them puppies and insulting them? Of course not! He'd have more brains than that! If he didn't like them he would just nod and smile as they walked by, and mutter under his breath after they left. Maybe kick a few trees. Not go inviting a fight that logically he has no chance of winning.
After that he could get together some unicorn buddies, maybe a big cat or two, find the wolves, and as a group they could kick those wolf butts into next Tuesday. Which in the end makes for much more interesting RP anyway right?
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Okay, point number two. Now this can be a difficult one to master at first, but it makes your posts so much better. Say you have a unicorn who is supposed to be particularly nice. Now, which of thee shows off that characteristic better hmm?
"Susan ran over to the little lost foal. She was so nice, she just couldn't let it sit there alone. She sat next to him and smiled."
"Seeing a young foal who was obviously lost, Susan walked softly over to him. Along the way she got some clover, hoping the treat would help make him feel better until his mother returned. Sitting nearby, she held it out to him and smiled softly."
Both of these posts gives you the impression that Susan is a very nice horse. However, the first one comes right out and says it, while the second one shows you it. See the difference? When you have to so bluntly include in every post that Susan is a nice horse, you are obviously not showing that characteristic. It makes for much better RP if you really give her that trait, and let her show it in her actions and her words, rather than just saying it every time which quickly gets repetitive.
----------
Alright, so some of us have trouble with the paragraph rule. We've all done it. You try to type up a post and you can only think of one or two lines. So finally in desperation your unicorn just scratches her ear or something. Anything to fill in that expanse of white nothingness right?
I have the cure!
Really! There is a really simple and easy way to fill in the blank without your unicorn looking like she has fleas. You remember back in your early school years you were taught about how all of us have five senses? Them being hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight?
Put 'em to work! If you just write two sentences on each of these, you will easily two paragraphs. Not only that, but you will really immerse the reader in what you're writing. And remember, details are your friend!
Like in the following examples, watch how it turns boring into really descriptive.
1: "Susan ran through the rain. It was lightening and thundering around her."
2: "The rain was coming down in droves, half blinding Susan as she fled through the huge wet drops. They were cold on her flesh, giving her chills as her hooves splashed through puddle after puddle of chilly water. The scent of wet earth was in the air, making her want to sneeze though she held back.
All around her the air seemed to be filled with the sound of thunder as lightening raced across the skies. At times the noise seemed deafening, so that she could barely hear the splashing she was doing. "
See the difference using the senses can make? Even if you aren't stuck for space this can make the whole thing infinitely more appealing to the reader.
---------
Remember, if it isn't said out loud, your character doesn't know it.
This is sort of part of the logic thing, but I felt it needed a separate section. For instance, say Susan and Bob are characters in an RP. Bob's post is the following:
"Pulling open the stall door, Bob was nervous. He'd never met this mare before, but he had often observed her in the fields. She was a real beauty, and he'd had a crush on her ever since he'd first laid eyes on her.
When finally the door opened however, he appeared totally relaxed. He didn't want to scare her off by looking needy, and he certainly didn't want her to know he had a crush on her. When he finally saw her, his voice came out smooth as silk .
"Hi Susan." "
Now, in this example, all Susan knows is that Bob has come to see her. She can't know why he is there, and she doesn't know he is nervous because the author said he was giving no sign of it. So unless Bob was a total moron and visibly drooled over her while she was watching him, she has no idea he even likes her. She should not look up and say "Oh hi Bob. Finally got up the courage to ask me out?" She would presume he needed something or whatever. She might even be nervous herself because of her own secret crush. But she shouldn't just magically read his thoughts and know he likes her.
------------
Speaking of magically knowing things she shouldn't, here is another very important point.
No one, either here or in fantasy, is perfect. In order to create a character with true depth, he or she must have flaws. If your character is always the prettiest, the smartest, the fastest, never gets touched in battle, never gets rejected by the boys...you have probably created a Mary Sue. What is a Mary Sue you ask? That is a character who is never wrong, never makes a mistake, and is basically perfect in every way. If you cant guess, a Mary Sue is also hated by everyone attempting to RP with her.
Nothing is sure to make people ignore you like making your character without flaw. No one likes to RP with someone who always has to win every fight or their owner whines.
Now this is not to say your character has to be a weakling. Far from it! Your equine can be the Schwarzenegger of equines and that is perfectly fine. But if he is, he needs to have some other flaw. For instance he could be not very bright, or allergic to water, or easily corrupted. These are just a few examples but you get the idea.
If you look at the people around you, all of them have flaws. Yes even that perfect guy/girl you've had a crush on since first grade. It's what makes us human. Even when drawing people, the key to realism is flaws. They are what makes us who we are, what gives us our own unique personality.
In addition, you should remember that no one feels the same way all the time. No one is always happy even if the world is exploding around them, nor are they always emo even if the best looking guy/gal in the universe just proposed marriage. Your characters should experience the full range of emotions just as everyone else does.
Now this isn't saying they cant be normally happy, but if something bad happens don't be afraid to let them cry. It's all part of the realism aspect. Can you imagine anyone who is happy all the time? Everyone would think they were hooked on Prozac or something. XD
----------
Stereotyping. The bane of RPing. This has a bit to do with the Mary Sue crowd. Whenever possible, try to avoid making stereotyped characters. The bad boy with the heart of gold, the kind but dangerous super spy, the orphan out to avenge his parents, the shy guy/girl with the gorgeous bod who doesn't realize he/she is beautiful... all of these are common as dirt.
There is nothing wrong with being a normal guy/girl!
Really! I mean if we all play orphans there is no diversity, and without diversity it gets boring fast. Try to be really creative with them. At the very least if you must do a stereotype, give him/her a twist to make it unique. You want to do an orphan? Great! How about instead of having his parents killed by a thief, they were...kidnapped by aliens? Or maybe they fell into a pit in the earths crust, never to be heard from again? Just something creative to make your character unique in some way.
------------
OK, now we come to another important point. This is where we cover what is called 'God-modding'. Basically what this means is when you make someone else's character do something without his owners permission.
For example, let's say my character is Bob. Yours is Sue. Say I wrote this as a post.
"Bob bit Sue's leg and ran off, laughing as she fell to the ground in shock."
See the problem here? I am only controlling Bob, yet I just made Sue fall over. Now if you are playing Sue that's gonna bug you isn't it? Especially since Sue wouldn't just fall over. She'd chase him and bite back. A much better post would be like this:
"Bob bit Sue's leg and ran off, laughing and hoping she would fall over from the shock."
See how that works? Now if its in character for Sue to do so, she can fall over. But its left up to Sue's RPer to decide.
-------------
Here is another very important point. When you are typing your RP post, use good grammar and spelling. I can't emphasize this enough. As an RPer myself I can tell you, reading a post with lots of spelling mistakes and sentences you cant understand thanks to bad grammar is a major pain. I tend to ignore such posts.
Look at it this way. If someone wants to play a game with you, say Monopoly, but they wasn't to use the houses as money, and add rules you never heard of, you are going to have a hard time playing that game aren't you? You'd probably tell them to jump in a lake if they cant at least play the game in a way you can understand. This is the same kind of thing.
Role-playing is all about words. That's all we have to get a picture of the universe our characters inhabit. Its only right for everyone to make an effort to make that picture as clear as possible. That way the experience is fun for everyone. Remember, spell check is your friend!
And just to help with that, here is a handy dandy online spell checker that works great and is totally free!
orangoo.com/spell/
I am gathering here some hints and things to help out everyone with RPing. Hopefully there will be stuff here to help old and new alike. Feel free to PM me anything you think ought to be added, and if its not already covered then I will.
---
Alright lets see...I guess the first thing to cover would be logic. Yes believe it or not there is some logic required to really RP with style. Now obviously some things are bound to fly in the face of that. Talking animals for example. However there are certain things to keep in mind.
Here in the Orlaya forums, all animals retain their natural size in comparison to one another. For instance aside from the occasional rampant emu, no bird is going to be as big as a horse. Horses can talk, but that doesn't mean they can do anything else a horse cant.
For instance, when faced with...say a pack of wolves. The horse would naturally fight, and some of the wolves would be taken out. However, if there are more than, say 5-6 wolves, the chances of the horse surviving that fight are almost nil. Any less and he might survive if he's lucky, but he would still have some major injuries.
You might say 'But my horse is a unicorn! It has a horn!" Now that is all well and good. However, have you ever seen a wolf or any other creature to just stand there and let something ram it? Of course not! That wolf is going to be jumping around and running and trying to attack. So your unicorn might get lucky, but in a fight such as this its not going to help him a whole lot. Even if he spears one of the wolves, the rest will be on his throat before he can shake that one off.
See what I mean now about logic? You could just say 'Oh, but my unicorn suddenly developed speed like the Flash and ran off", but that would hardly be fair to the players of the wolves now would it? Plus it is just plain silly. Realism should always be the goal whenever possible. not only does it make sure you don't violate the laws of physics, but it makes the RP so much more fun for everyone!
So now you say "Yeah fun for the wolves, but my unicorn is dead!" Well now here we come to another bit of logic. Way back when the unicorn met this pack of wolves, he would know that they can easily kill him wouldn't he? Of course. So do you really think he would go calling them puppies and insulting them? Of course not! He'd have more brains than that! If he didn't like them he would just nod and smile as they walked by, and mutter under his breath after they left. Maybe kick a few trees. Not go inviting a fight that logically he has no chance of winning.
After that he could get together some unicorn buddies, maybe a big cat or two, find the wolves, and as a group they could kick those wolf butts into next Tuesday. Which in the end makes for much more interesting RP anyway right?
----------
Okay, point number two. Now this can be a difficult one to master at first, but it makes your posts so much better. Say you have a unicorn who is supposed to be particularly nice. Now, which of thee shows off that characteristic better hmm?
"Susan ran over to the little lost foal. She was so nice, she just couldn't let it sit there alone. She sat next to him and smiled."
"Seeing a young foal who was obviously lost, Susan walked softly over to him. Along the way she got some clover, hoping the treat would help make him feel better until his mother returned. Sitting nearby, she held it out to him and smiled softly."
Both of these posts gives you the impression that Susan is a very nice horse. However, the first one comes right out and says it, while the second one shows you it. See the difference? When you have to so bluntly include in every post that Susan is a nice horse, you are obviously not showing that characteristic. It makes for much better RP if you really give her that trait, and let her show it in her actions and her words, rather than just saying it every time which quickly gets repetitive.
----------
Alright, so some of us have trouble with the paragraph rule. We've all done it. You try to type up a post and you can only think of one or two lines. So finally in desperation your unicorn just scratches her ear or something. Anything to fill in that expanse of white nothingness right?
I have the cure!
Really! There is a really simple and easy way to fill in the blank without your unicorn looking like she has fleas. You remember back in your early school years you were taught about how all of us have five senses? Them being hearing, taste, touch, smell, and sight?
Put 'em to work! If you just write two sentences on each of these, you will easily two paragraphs. Not only that, but you will really immerse the reader in what you're writing. And remember, details are your friend!
Like in the following examples, watch how it turns boring into really descriptive.
1: "Susan ran through the rain. It was lightening and thundering around her."
2: "The rain was coming down in droves, half blinding Susan as she fled through the huge wet drops. They were cold on her flesh, giving her chills as her hooves splashed through puddle after puddle of chilly water. The scent of wet earth was in the air, making her want to sneeze though she held back.
All around her the air seemed to be filled with the sound of thunder as lightening raced across the skies. At times the noise seemed deafening, so that she could barely hear the splashing she was doing. "
See the difference using the senses can make? Even if you aren't stuck for space this can make the whole thing infinitely more appealing to the reader.
---------
Remember, if it isn't said out loud, your character doesn't know it.
This is sort of part of the logic thing, but I felt it needed a separate section. For instance, say Susan and Bob are characters in an RP. Bob's post is the following:
"Pulling open the stall door, Bob was nervous. He'd never met this mare before, but he had often observed her in the fields. She was a real beauty, and he'd had a crush on her ever since he'd first laid eyes on her.
When finally the door opened however, he appeared totally relaxed. He didn't want to scare her off by looking needy, and he certainly didn't want her to know he had a crush on her. When he finally saw her, his voice came out smooth as silk .
"Hi Susan." "
Now, in this example, all Susan knows is that Bob has come to see her. She can't know why he is there, and she doesn't know he is nervous because the author said he was giving no sign of it. So unless Bob was a total moron and visibly drooled over her while she was watching him, she has no idea he even likes her. She should not look up and say "Oh hi Bob. Finally got up the courage to ask me out?" She would presume he needed something or whatever. She might even be nervous herself because of her own secret crush. But she shouldn't just magically read his thoughts and know he likes her.
------------
Speaking of magically knowing things she shouldn't, here is another very important point.
No one, either here or in fantasy, is perfect. In order to create a character with true depth, he or she must have flaws. If your character is always the prettiest, the smartest, the fastest, never gets touched in battle, never gets rejected by the boys...you have probably created a Mary Sue. What is a Mary Sue you ask? That is a character who is never wrong, never makes a mistake, and is basically perfect in every way. If you cant guess, a Mary Sue is also hated by everyone attempting to RP with her.
Nothing is sure to make people ignore you like making your character without flaw. No one likes to RP with someone who always has to win every fight or their owner whines.
Now this is not to say your character has to be a weakling. Far from it! Your equine can be the Schwarzenegger of equines and that is perfectly fine. But if he is, he needs to have some other flaw. For instance he could be not very bright, or allergic to water, or easily corrupted. These are just a few examples but you get the idea.
If you look at the people around you, all of them have flaws. Yes even that perfect guy/girl you've had a crush on since first grade. It's what makes us human. Even when drawing people, the key to realism is flaws. They are what makes us who we are, what gives us our own unique personality.
In addition, you should remember that no one feels the same way all the time. No one is always happy even if the world is exploding around them, nor are they always emo even if the best looking guy/gal in the universe just proposed marriage. Your characters should experience the full range of emotions just as everyone else does.
Now this isn't saying they cant be normally happy, but if something bad happens don't be afraid to let them cry. It's all part of the realism aspect. Can you imagine anyone who is happy all the time? Everyone would think they were hooked on Prozac or something. XD
----------
Stereotyping. The bane of RPing. This has a bit to do with the Mary Sue crowd. Whenever possible, try to avoid making stereotyped characters. The bad boy with the heart of gold, the kind but dangerous super spy, the orphan out to avenge his parents, the shy guy/girl with the gorgeous bod who doesn't realize he/she is beautiful... all of these are common as dirt.
There is nothing wrong with being a normal guy/girl!
Really! I mean if we all play orphans there is no diversity, and without diversity it gets boring fast. Try to be really creative with them. At the very least if you must do a stereotype, give him/her a twist to make it unique. You want to do an orphan? Great! How about instead of having his parents killed by a thief, they were...kidnapped by aliens? Or maybe they fell into a pit in the earths crust, never to be heard from again? Just something creative to make your character unique in some way.
------------
OK, now we come to another important point. This is where we cover what is called 'God-modding'. Basically what this means is when you make someone else's character do something without his owners permission.
For example, let's say my character is Bob. Yours is Sue. Say I wrote this as a post.
"Bob bit Sue's leg and ran off, laughing as she fell to the ground in shock."
See the problem here? I am only controlling Bob, yet I just made Sue fall over. Now if you are playing Sue that's gonna bug you isn't it? Especially since Sue wouldn't just fall over. She'd chase him and bite back. A much better post would be like this:
"Bob bit Sue's leg and ran off, laughing and hoping she would fall over from the shock."
See how that works? Now if its in character for Sue to do so, she can fall over. But its left up to Sue's RPer to decide.
-------------
Here is another very important point. When you are typing your RP post, use good grammar and spelling. I can't emphasize this enough. As an RPer myself I can tell you, reading a post with lots of spelling mistakes and sentences you cant understand thanks to bad grammar is a major pain. I tend to ignore such posts.
Look at it this way. If someone wants to play a game with you, say Monopoly, but they wasn't to use the houses as money, and add rules you never heard of, you are going to have a hard time playing that game aren't you? You'd probably tell them to jump in a lake if they cant at least play the game in a way you can understand. This is the same kind of thing.
Role-playing is all about words. That's all we have to get a picture of the universe our characters inhabit. Its only right for everyone to make an effort to make that picture as clear as possible. That way the experience is fun for everyone. Remember, spell check is your friend!
And just to help with that, here is a handy dandy online spell checker that works great and is totally free!
orangoo.com/spell/