A Guide to RP

[LodeStar 3]

This is basically a slightly altered repost of something I made on another forum. It seemed to help a lot of people there, so I'll share it here as well:


Backstory:

I feel like a lot of people tend to include backstory so they have a starting point for their character and their personalities. While it’s good to go into an RP with at least some idea of what you want your character to be, having a definitive backstory can limit what your character can do from the get-go depending on how detailed it is; this is because it starts defining them before they have even interacted with others. Interacting with others, forming histories, and building on personality is much more important than anything because it defines character in relation to others invested in the story as a whole. If you do wish to incorporate backstory, introduce it in bits within the RP itself. In my experience, backstory isn’t even important in making a fun, intense character.

Jumping in:

I’m not going to lie, jumping into a preexisting RP is hard work. You enter the RP with a character who knows little about what’s going on and generally has no connection to others. Not only that, but the other players may already be in the swing of things. The first RP I “jumped” into basically ignored me at first, but I succeeded in the long run because I played along. Likewise, if you are already in the RP, including new characters is difficult as well. Some people quit trying to RP after the first time because they weren’t included, but persistence will ensure you get in. Lastly, you don’t have to ask to jump into RPs, but be prepared to play yourself in, no one else can do it for you.

Some tips that might help:
1)    If an RP is ongoing, don’t try and pull anyone away from what they are doing.
2)    Play into the RP, introductory stuff can happen later.
3)    As always, watch your spelling and grammar.

Character:

Building a character is super fun. It is hard work, especially since there is no character without interaction with others. Reacting to things is the best way to build on character; this simple concept gives you and others an idea what your character is like. Interaction with others is great for building chemistry that both RPers can use to mutually build their characters, which involves cooperation. Do particular little things that make your character interesting; slipping in details will make your character fun to write.


*A note on “Mary Sue”*

A lot of us already know what “Mary Sue” is, which is kind of like “super-special” character. Personally, I would put the definition as such:

“Extravagance without adequate context”.

Many of the characters (my character in at least two instances)  in the RPs I have been involved in have been in situations where they are “super-powered” and whatnot, but since there was sufficient context for these things to happen, it went over very well. The key is patience, and making others /believe/ what is happening in the story. For instance, if your character is a baker or something benign like that, and all the sudden becomes and Alicorn in Remnant Power Armor and has knowledge of the future, people are going to get annoyed.

You’ll just look like this to everyone:



Don't be that RPer.

Granted, if you eventually want to do something awesome with your character, you are more than welcome to, but just keep in mind, if it does not make sense story-wise, it’s probably best not to do it.

Cooperation:

Cooperation with others in RP is a great way to make awesome stories. Nothing makes an RP exciting when you and other RPer are on the same page; if you are, then run with it. But sometimes you’ll run into issues, and you’ll both want to take the RP in different directions. There are two routes at this point; make a better story than them, or find a compromise. The first method is much more heavy handed, and involves making better story points than the other RPer. Basically, whoever’s story sounds better wins. Compromise is self-explanatory, and involves middle ground. There’s a nebulous quality to a good RPing session with others; although most RPs have some direction, the best way to avoid conflicts is to not be too rigid in terms of what direction you want to try and take the RP. It’s an art, just go with the flow and pull and tug a little as you go.

Even seemingly small actions require some cooperation. For instance, it would probably be bad form for this to happen in a fight scene:

“Pony smashes Bony face with an axe”

Doing something like that doesn’t include the other RPer in any kind of reaction and is kinda douchy. This is something we all tend to do every now and then, though. Ideally, it would go something like this:

“Pony swings at Bony with an axe”

That allows the other RPer to react, and they can get their bit in:

“Bony ducks under the swing and throws a sack of beans in return” or “Bony is hit with a glancing blow”

Compromise. Give and take. Yadda yadda.

I think that covers the important stuff. Feel free to add.

Edited August 27, 2013 by LodeStar

[Starshine 16,333]

This is actually quite informative... I totally lost it on that Twilie hoofy-feet gif

She's missing her horn though.

 

 

 

“Extravagance without adequate context”.

Now this is a Mary Sue definition I can agree with.

 

***

 

I don't think I have anything to add here, other than what I've said somewhere else:

 

 

 

Use different characters for different roleplays, and try to actually BE your characters and do things that they would do in such situations, and not just writing what you would be doing in the RP.
 
Don't spend too much time telling others that your character is awesome and how crazy his or her past is, be awesome instead and rescue that drowning orphan out of the river. Or whatever that suits your fancy.
 
Try not to confuse between what you know and what your character know. You might know that the elder mare is the evil witch, but your character still have not the slightest idea about it.
 
In the end, the best thing you can do is to keep roleplaying with various groups of people until you find a style that suits you well.

[Inactive01 5,299]

I would also add a couple of things to that list.

• In every roleplay, almost everyone just posts to advance the story. It makes a roleplay very boring. If characters are growing together and we see the dynamic nature of your OC, a roleplay becomes much richer.
• There must also be a lot of cooperation with the creator of the RP. Otherwise, it can go downhill really quickly. Every backstory you wish to add must be discussed with the headmaster in order to maintain order and coherence.
• I suggest adding music by linking to Youtube so people can imagine the world the ponies are placed in. Kinda like a soundtrack. For example, let's say you're in the USSR. You'd probably play some Red Army Choir like the Farewell of Slavianka or the USSR national anthem.