Tips on how to roleplay well!
1). Pick a universe you know well. Try to avoid joining a universe you've never heard about or don't like, and do some general research before joining unless it’s a made-up storyline, then just learn as much as you can!
2.) Avoid appearing power hungry. It's not fun if you get people to join only to declare supreme power over them, because that'll make you look like a control freak and it'll cause people to leave. Let the members of the group be independent and if they don't want to participate sometimes then let them be. Only talk to them if they turn down opportunities consistently.
3.) Create good characters. Try to come up with a decent character before you post what they’re like. You don’t want your character’s personality to flip-flop or their backstory to be full of unexplained holes. Try to give lots of details on their looks.
4.) Avoid powerplaying. Many roleplayers hate seeing godmodders. god mod is basically creating a character that can't ever be defeated, and is more powerful than anything in the universe. They usually never allow their characters to get hit or hurt, and can basically go anywhere and do anything. godmodding can also be controlling another player's character, which is NOT allowed without their permission. Remember if your character gets killed off in a storyline you don't have to remove the character completely, unless you were playing for permanent death of whoever lost.
5.) Be flexible. Obviously, the story isn’t going to go your way, only your characters are going to be able to do what you want, unless you communicate your plans. The story can go absolutely anywhere with so many different people planning what they’re going to do, but once you communicate between characters and with other RPers, the storyline will begin to develop.
6.) Give your character flaws. You have flaws, I have flaws, we all have flaws. And they’re not all physical. Flaws can develop your character in interesting different ways, and sometimes it takes another character to bring a flaw out. Remember if a character has a flaw, sometimes the other person won’t want it fixed cause it makes their character who they are. Don’t alway try to fix another character’s disabilities.
7.) Be the nice guy/girl. Accept constructive criticism, be nice, don't take things said in roleplay personally, make friends, chat up, etc. Be easy to get along with, and great roleplaying opportunities shall come your way.
8.) Be a responsible owner. If you own an RP, don't go mad with power. If you want to assign moderators of the group, don't let them try to control anyone, and make sure that they have a good knowledge of the universe. Don’t try to control other people’s characters, but make sure to confront them if it seems like they’re going too far off of the general storyline or powerplaying.
9.) Dont plan too far ahead. With so many different minds working towards separate goals for the story, you can’t expect it to always go your way. Plan at least two steps ahead, and even then those are just optional. You have to be willing to let the story play itself out and see where it goes. Sometimes your character will only need to play along, and sometimes you’ll be the one leading it forward- or in a different direction.
10.) Make a character form and archives. A character form is good for people who have never RPed before or don’t know all the options for their characters. For instance:
Name:
Age:
Gender:
(What they are. Optional, for an animal RP or RP with different tribes or groups or alligances):
Appearance:
Personality:
Backstory (it’s good to make this optional):
You can use an article to make a character archive. It’s important to make the character archives first so that you can put the link in the first introductory post of the RP. A good example layout is to have a basic story recap on the first page, and then add a page for each member that joins, adding each character they make to their page. A good character minimum is 5.
2.) Avoid appearing power hungry. It's not fun if you get people to join only to declare supreme power over them, because that'll make you look like a control freak and it'll cause people to leave. Let the members of the group be independent and if they don't want to participate sometimes then let them be. Only talk to them if they turn down opportunities consistently.
3.) Create good characters. Try to come up with a decent character before you post what they’re like. You don’t want your character’s personality to flip-flop or their backstory to be full of unexplained holes. Try to give lots of details on their looks.
4.) Avoid powerplaying. Many roleplayers hate seeing godmodders. god mod is basically creating a character that can't ever be defeated, and is more powerful than anything in the universe. They usually never allow their characters to get hit or hurt, and can basically go anywhere and do anything. godmodding can also be controlling another player's character, which is NOT allowed without their permission. Remember if your character gets killed off in a storyline you don't have to remove the character completely, unless you were playing for permanent death of whoever lost.
5.) Be flexible. Obviously, the story isn’t going to go your way, only your characters are going to be able to do what you want, unless you communicate your plans. The story can go absolutely anywhere with so many different people planning what they’re going to do, but once you communicate between characters and with other RPers, the storyline will begin to develop.
6.) Give your character flaws. You have flaws, I have flaws, we all have flaws. And they’re not all physical. Flaws can develop your character in interesting different ways, and sometimes it takes another character to bring a flaw out. Remember if a character has a flaw, sometimes the other person won’t want it fixed cause it makes their character who they are. Don’t alway try to fix another character’s disabilities.
7.) Be the nice guy/girl. Accept constructive criticism, be nice, don't take things said in roleplay personally, make friends, chat up, etc. Be easy to get along with, and great roleplaying opportunities shall come your way.
8.) Be a responsible owner. If you own an RP, don't go mad with power. If you want to assign moderators of the group, don't let them try to control anyone, and make sure that they have a good knowledge of the universe. Don’t try to control other people’s characters, but make sure to confront them if it seems like they’re going too far off of the general storyline or powerplaying.
9.) Dont plan too far ahead. With so many different minds working towards separate goals for the story, you can’t expect it to always go your way. Plan at least two steps ahead, and even then those are just optional. You have to be willing to let the story play itself out and see where it goes. Sometimes your character will only need to play along, and sometimes you’ll be the one leading it forward- or in a different direction.
10.) Make a character form and archives. A character form is good for people who have never RPed before or don’t know all the options for their characters. For instance:
Name:
Age:
Gender:
(What they are. Optional, for an animal RP or RP with different tribes or groups or alligances):
Appearance:
Personality:
Backstory (it’s good to make this optional):
You can use an article to make a character archive. It’s important to make the character archives first so that you can put the link in the first introductory post of the RP. A good example layout is to have a basic story recap on the first page, and then add a page for each member that joins, adding each character they make to their page. A good character minimum is 5.
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