Come one, come all...

A place for role played stories and other creative writings

Come one, come all...

Postby Damien Kilcannon » Fri Nov 11, 2011 12:04 am

To role play or not to role play?...That is the question...

Many people are intrigued by the idea. Some people want to try it but do not know how to do it. Still others are afraid they won't "do it right."

Wait a minute! You mean there is a "right" way to do it? Really?

Yes, there is a correct way and an incorrect way to role play! I promise you it is easier than you may think.

Kaylor, a new member to PAS, at least I think she is new as I have just returned myself, would like to add some spice to our rather boring and ho-hum existence. I wanted to take a moment and encourage Kaylor in her efforts. I would also like to encourage my fellow PAS members to let our inner children out to play.

The following few posts are going to be about my experience with role play and how I have come to love it. I will explain my views on how to "do it right" as it were. WARNING! These will be MY views and are not meant to be any type of rules or requirements. Role play is best done with the fewest amount of rules which gives folks free reign to use their imaginations.

Keep tuned for my first post on Role Play tomorrow night titled "Role Play, Even a Dummy Like Me Can Do It!"

FIRST ROLE PLAY LESSON:

Above post was done in what is called Out of Character tense. It was written using my own "voice." The abbreviation often used to let people know when you are talking "out of character" is OOC. Keep an eye out for this as it can be very confusing if someone is constantly talking in and out of character without warning.

Before anyone runs screaming away from me because I have already confused them about talking "in" and "out" of character come back tomorrow night as the next lesson will focus on what exactly those terms mean.
Damien Kilcannon
PAS Elder
PAS Elder
 
Posts: 1397
Joined: Thu Oct 19, 2006 2:19 pm
Location: IA
Medals: 1
Seth Medal of Compassion (1)

Postby Damien Kilcannon » Sun Nov 13, 2011 3:42 pm

First off, I apologize that this post is a couple of days late. I got distracted which is quite easy for me.

So, you want to know what OOC means? No? Well I will tell you anyway. To understand what it means I think it would be easier to explain what being "in character" means. Quite simply, being in character means to act and talk how you imagine your character would if it were a real being. The key here is to use your imagination. Being in character does not mean walking around and spitting out 'thees' and 'thous' and 'forsooths' unless you want to. It is in no way required.

Did anyone catch what I said above? Did you catch the most improtant word there? That is right, the most important word up there is "YOU!" That is the first and most important thing to learn if you want to have fun while roleplaying. Some people will try and tell you "Hey, that 'type' of character would not do that!" or "Why would your character say that?" My answer is always to tell them to stuff it because I play my characters how I want them to be played.

Think about it, in real life how many people are truly 100% evil or good? We are all a mix of both to one degree or another. So if my paladin wants to stab someone in the back in the heat of battle or ambush an enemy from a hidden position then it is my right to do so. If my evil mage wants to spare the life of an enemy or give gold to the poor then he can do so.

So, being OOC would mean you are doing something or saying something that is coming from YOU and not your character. If I type in game that "My damn computer keeps losing connection" that would be OOC. An experienced roleplayer can convey this information while still remaining in charater. For example after I get logged back in my character could say something along the lines of " I am very sorry, I seem to be more tired than I thought and keep falling asleep on you."

That is just one example and a further lesson will focus on ideas for conveying a message ingame and in character about something going on OOC without having to actually go OOC. One of the keys to really good roleplay is to go OOC as little as possible or not at all if possible. With that said we are very lucky in UO. We have two great ways to communicate OOC. Ally/Guild chat and ventrilo. Both of those means of communication could be used to let someone know something that is difficult to convey in character. Anything your character says and does on the screen can then be in character only.

Next lesson is going to focus on the effective use of *emotes* in roleplay.
Damien Kilcannon
PAS Elder
PAS Elder
 
Posts: 1397
Joined: Thu Oct 19, 2006 2:19 pm
Location: IA
Medals: 1
Seth Medal of Compassion (1)


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