There are some general guidelines that you should know for all of the roleplay forums here. First off, there will be absolutely NO OoC talking in the roleplays. If you need to talk out of character, then take it to that place. You know, that one place.
Disclaimer: Some stuff below might not be my own words. Don't complain about it.
Moderators, feel free to add to this post some do's and don't's here. Please do not make your own topic here without asking me first.
Do:
-Post in character in the roleplay forum
-Make wonderful posts with details that are easy to understand
-Have fun roleplaying with your fellow roleplayers
-Help others become better roleplayers
-Make fun roleplays for everyone
Don't:
-Post out of character in the roleplay forum
-Godmod (Controlling other person's character without their permission)
-Powerplay (Making a character who can destroy the world with their pinky)
-Make perfect characters, a.k.a. Mary-Sues/Gary-Stus
-Be afraid to RP! If you make a mistake, people will kindly point it out so you can learn and get better!
Useful Acronyms and Words
Rping = Role Playing
Mun = The "mundane" or the person playing the character
OOC = Out of Character
IC = In Character
Hit = An attack that damages or "hits" the character
Mun Bubbles/Brackets = Used when OOC; Are these ( ) Or (( )) Or [ ] (where it doesn't mess with the BBcode)
Mary-sue/Gary-stu = A character that is "perfect"
Thread = The grouping of several posts that are related to one topic or idea
Post = In a forum, it is the complete entry you make on a thread. In a chat, it's each paragraph you enter. Sometimes I accidentally switch, Post and paragraph, it's because I started with chats and moved to forums. Please excuse me if I confuse you, I don't me to do so on purpose.
Oldbie = A role player who has role plays for many years and has mastered several skills and has been role playing in a variety of ways.
Newbie = A role player who has just started role playing. They don't usually have many role playing skills and need a little bit of guidance and encouragement to grow as role players.
N00b = A role player who has role playing for many years but still hasn't mastered any skills, or doesn't care about role playing style or quality.
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Godmoding
(I liked the Definition Rei got. The rule against Godmoding applies to all Roleplays. ^_^)
in essence when someone’s character has the ability to do practically anything without limits or boundaries. And example is when they simply cannot be harmed by any and all means other RPers try.
-It can be killing or injuring a character without the player's express permission.
-It can be when they simply can’t be hit and dodge all attacks or anything for this matter aimed at them.
-It can also be using other characters that other people RP with. In other words, if you do not RP as
Legolas, then you cannot have Legolas say anything, or do anything, without the player's express permission.
The absolute worst is when they make out another character to be what they’re not, just to make their own character seem superior. They make others seem weak, screaming for help, when they’ve made it quite clear about their advantages and strengths. This is called power-play. It’s a strain of God-Modding, but instead of just being irritating, it’s offensive to boot.
This is a prime example of God Modding:
Player A: Punches Player B
Player B: Dodges attack, grabs Player A and throws him.
Player A flies at Player B, who warps behind him and slashes Player A in the back.
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Character Design
Are you a simple person? Are you two dimensional? Do you not have a personality?
These are questions you should know immediately the answers to, likewise you should ask yourself these questions in reference to the characters that you create. Each character has it's own personality, traits, habits, style, and a wider variety of things that make up that character's whole being.
Background/History/Bio are also important since something has bound to have happened to your character in his or her life. So, give us the details. We want to know them, plus it gives them more depth. The background of a character can really shape them as to how they act and such in the present time.
As for appearances, you can use a picture or describe them. The owner of the RP will tell you what they want generally. If you do describe (or have to) then make sure you cover every detail about them. Maybe the best thing to do is to start from the head, and work your way down, covering every detail you can think of. This will give others a good idea of what they look like.
On homosexuality, your characters can be gay or lesbian, and others must respect that. So, if a character is gay, it means they don't like women, so don't force a female character on them. Same goes with a lesbian character. Please, respect that and if you are not comfortable with homosexuality, they don't join that RP, or get over it. Really, these are just fictional characters and we're not going to scar your innocent mind with any yaoi. Anything more than just light kissing, holding hands, etc. must be taken to PMs.
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Yay for long posts!
While some may find this intimidating, I bottom you, they are not as bad as they seem. Do not be jealous or fear those who can whip out those super long posts. I bottom you, they are very nice and smart people! At least, I hope they are. If they're not, I would seriously have to sit them down for a chat .
Something tips for making long posts:
-Surroundings
Obviously your character is in some location with objects around them like buildings, trees and other characters possibly. Describe this in as much detail as you can, down to the dog barking off in the distance. Think of the five sense to help you; sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch. These are all very important for interacting with your surroundings, and it's the same for an RP.
-Expressions
I'm sure as you go through your day, you don't have one stoic face throughout it all. You smile, frown, glare, roll your eyes, look at others with puzzlement, etc. and so your characters do as well.
-Movements
This is beyond the standard walking from point A to point B. Think of whatever little gesture your character might do, from a slight lowering of their head, to waving their arms through the air as they jump up and down.
-Thoughts and Spoken Words
I think that thoughts (as is spoken within the character's mind) should be italicized in order to make it easier to realize, so that's what you must do.
Words spoken out loud must be in quotation marks. "Like this," she declared.
Basic Tips
1)Try to write 'expressions' through body language or facial movements
2)Don't be overly descriptive about the surroundings. It is the same as writing too much detail about clothing or appearance. If it really doesn't have too much to do with the plot, don't spend seven paragraphs talking about what is on the left of the character to then write seven more paragraphs about what is on the right of the character.
Character Profiles are not your introduction post. Your first post will consist of a paragraph describing the first acts and words of your character.
Fighting
Hoo boy, this is a tough one. My advice, if you're going to have a fight, plan it out first. Maybe bring in a third neutral party to referee what should happen. Make sure to take into consideration all the skills of each character, all their experience and weaknesses. If you can't come to some agreement, then let it end in a draw/tie or have the fight be interrupted like what Team Rocket always does to Ash. lol
Also, since this is a forum, we use turns. So, character A posts, then their opponent, character B, does. Then character A can post again, followed again by character B and so on.
Well, that's all I have to say for now~
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