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Are GMs allowed to have their player characters participate in events? While I can see reasons why maybe they shouldn't, I've often thought that it wouldn't be a bad thing to have some 'player side undercover GMPCs' among the throngs of PCs to both set an example and to help nudge a story or event this way or that. Course, I guess an outsider in such a small community would be pretty easy to spot. :)
I think it's ok if they do one or the other, but they probably can't be running a GMPC and planting their private character as talking plotpoints.
J'Lo, I'm a ranger.. I'd believe anything.....
The Manipulation List -- http://symphaena.com/index.html
J'Lo, I'm a ranger.. I'd believe anything.....
The Manipulation List -- http://symphaena.com/index.html
Just got into an interesting debate.
Does RPing all the time make someone a good RPer or is being pretty good every once in a while fine?
Disruptive and OOC behavior aside I mean. Can't go around talking about your Spongebob jams and then swear to abstain from raisins until Lyras is defeated.
But generally.
What is your idea of a good RPer? A bad one (without stating the obvious of, "He talks about Spongebob jams.")?
Redeth---Claiming good girl status since 09'
Does RPing all the time make someone a good RPer or is being pretty good every once in a while fine?
Disruptive and OOC behavior aside I mean. Can't go around talking about your Spongebob jams and then swear to abstain from raisins until Lyras is defeated.
But generally.
What is your idea of a good RPer? A bad one (without stating the obvious of, "He talks about Spongebob jams.")?
Redeth---Claiming good girl status since 09'
Personally, I think a good RPer is someone who stays in character at all times in game, even if their personality is the complete opposite via AIM, boards, or what have you. If you must be OOC in game, do it via an OOC whisper.
Otherwise, it's a roleplaying game, roleplay whatever you please, good, bad, lazy, focused, etc.
Otherwise, it's a roleplaying game, roleplay whatever you please, good, bad, lazy, focused, etc.
Know your character and be consistent. Those are the two big things for me. (Barring of course, blatant OOC stuff as you said.)
I also appreciate people who do not play cartoonish characters. RP doesn't have to be over the top. Stuff that I find more irritating than entertaining:
I'm sure there are more. But I basically wonder, especially for weird accents or verbal tics, "How could the character possibly have come by that?" A lot of times, there is no IC way. It's just something annoying the player came up with.
I think a lot of people also equate over the top stuff to RP. People often use accents as their only real RP concession, doing basically nothing else. My character Lorzelophia, my first, who breaks many of these rules (Annoying accent, over the top drunken personality) gets RPAs for picking her nose and talking about how her mother was a prostitute. I try to RP just as consistently with Szrael, but Szrael's RP is more subtle so it gets much less recognition.
I really appreciate subtle, consistent RP much more than annoying, over the top cartoonish behavior.
Madigan and his constant armor adjustment. He takes his helm off indoors. Caelumia and her ear-yanking. Her predilection for seedy taverns when upset. Yseelt's subtle uppitiness and constant ladylike behavior. Traim's craziness breaks one of my rules, but he does it well and very consistently. And Tyrun, of course, making you like him even while he's killing your character with his HAX and MECH ABUSE.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
I also appreciate people who do not play cartoonish characters. RP doesn't have to be over the top. Stuff that I find more irritating than entertaining:
| 1. Badly done "medieval" accents. (He hath beheldeth ye greatest fist yea and he doeth weepeth upon the breast of ye weordl.) |
| 2. Ridiculous over the top verbal weirdness. (Happiest happy, hiwhatareyoudoing, hay thar what're ya doin' over thar'n'stuff.) |
| 3. Cartoonish characters. (Orphans, former slaves, mute, split personalities, supar-emo, kidnapped as a youth, etc) |
| 4. Stereotypes. (Dragonpriest S'Kra, stupid 'Togs, Thieves who wear all black, Necroz who wear only ghoulskin, blah blah) |
| 5. Inconsistency. (Shoots a GMPC and expects no one to bother them about it after a month. Openly wears Veyne ring, can't handle mild persecution. Friends/family all killed by outcasts repeatedly, now kisses up to Raenilar without qualm.) |
I'm sure there are more. But I basically wonder, especially for weird accents or verbal tics, "How could the character possibly have come by that?" A lot of times, there is no IC way. It's just something annoying the player came up with.
I think a lot of people also equate over the top stuff to RP. People often use accents as their only real RP concession, doing basically nothing else. My character Lorzelophia, my first, who breaks many of these rules (Annoying accent, over the top drunken personality) gets RPAs for picking her nose and talking about how her mother was a prostitute. I try to RP just as consistently with Szrael, but Szrael's RP is more subtle so it gets much less recognition.
I really appreciate subtle, consistent RP much more than annoying, over the top cartoonish behavior.
Madigan and his constant armor adjustment. He takes his helm off indoors. Caelumia and her ear-yanking. Her predilection for seedy taverns when upset. Yseelt's subtle uppitiness and constant ladylike behavior. Traim's craziness breaks one of my rules, but he does it well and very consistently. And Tyrun, of course, making you like him even while he's killing your character with his HAX and MECH ABUSE.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
Two notes to make.
>> Stereotypes.
Stereotypes are generally negative things to have. However, archetypes can be very well done. Somebody has to play the snooty Elothean Moon Mage, the frazzled but patient Elven Empath, and the the power-hungry Human Warrior Mage. Stereotypes are what happen when people fail to play an archetype gracefully though, and turn it into a caricature; instead of feeling like a natural extension of a natural character, it feels forced and unnatural.
>> Inconsistency.
This is a big one. Consistency is absolutely key, but consistency does not mean staying the same all of the time, and it does not mean stagnation with your character; it means that there is an internal logic to why your character does what they do. A lot of people lately have commented that Cael is like a different person lately, but there's a good reason for why she's acting differently. It's consistent for the character even though it's different from the norm.
>> Caelumia and her ear-yanking. Her predilection for seedy taverns when upset.
Aww. Someone notices this stuff? :D
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
>> Stereotypes.
Stereotypes are generally negative things to have. However, archetypes can be very well done. Somebody has to play the snooty Elothean Moon Mage, the frazzled but patient Elven Empath, and the the power-hungry Human Warrior Mage. Stereotypes are what happen when people fail to play an archetype gracefully though, and turn it into a caricature; instead of feeling like a natural extension of a natural character, it feels forced and unnatural.
>> Inconsistency.
This is a big one. Consistency is absolutely key, but consistency does not mean staying the same all of the time, and it does not mean stagnation with your character; it means that there is an internal logic to why your character does what they do. A lot of people lately have commented that Cael is like a different person lately, but there's a good reason for why she's acting differently. It's consistent for the character even though it's different from the norm.
>> Caelumia and her ear-yanking. Her predilection for seedy taverns when upset.
Aww. Someone notices this stuff? :D
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
Quality of roleplay has little to do with how often you roleplay. In Prime, it is presumed you are either always IC or, at the very least, quiet enough not to disrupt people roleplaying. This is not a scale: you are either doing this right, or you are not.
For actual quality of performance, I look at the following in rough order of importance:
1: Does the player understand he is not in total control of the scene? This is a pretty fundamental element of our medium and failure here makes anything else worthless. Does the roleplayer react to cues he is given? Does he roll with the punches when a negative event happens -- negative for the character, but for the player yet another roleplaying opportunity -- or is he so wrapped up in his wish-fulfillment fantasy that he cannot play with others except on his own terms?
2: Is the character in sync with the setting? All the roleplaying in the world won't save you if you're trying to portray a space marine or an elf with wings. Finer granularity of the point touches on the previous posts' idea of archetypes and stereotypes. A lot of novice roleplayers create outrageous characters in an attempt to embrace individuality, only to find they have non-conformed exactly the same way as their peers ("Wow, you're an orphan too?!"). My highest regard goes to players who are capable of doing an interesting twist on a known archetype.
3: Does he bring the setting to life? Does he react to the fact the weather is current set to "monsoon?" Is he wearing his armor and a bundle of uncured hides to a bar? Is he wearing pants?
4: Is the character's behavior realistic, modified by #2? Does he react in a way that I expect a human(-equivalent) to, or did he just step out of a Saturday morning cartoon? If his behavior is exaggerated, is there some hint at depth and literary skill, or is it a poor understanding of how humans work?
-Armifer
<Kvlt> Step 1: Want stuff! Step 2: Be ambitious! Step 3: Believe in the ability of your fellow man to carry you to heights you are too incompetent to reach alone.
For actual quality of performance, I look at the following in rough order of importance:
1: Does the player understand he is not in total control of the scene? This is a pretty fundamental element of our medium and failure here makes anything else worthless. Does the roleplayer react to cues he is given? Does he roll with the punches when a negative event happens -- negative for the character, but for the player yet another roleplaying opportunity -- or is he so wrapped up in his wish-fulfillment fantasy that he cannot play with others except on his own terms?
2: Is the character in sync with the setting? All the roleplaying in the world won't save you if you're trying to portray a space marine or an elf with wings. Finer granularity of the point touches on the previous posts' idea of archetypes and stereotypes. A lot of novice roleplayers create outrageous characters in an attempt to embrace individuality, only to find they have non-conformed exactly the same way as their peers ("Wow, you're an orphan too?!"). My highest regard goes to players who are capable of doing an interesting twist on a known archetype.
3: Does he bring the setting to life? Does he react to the fact the weather is current set to "monsoon?" Is he wearing his armor and a bundle of uncured hides to a bar? Is he wearing pants?
4: Is the character's behavior realistic, modified by #2? Does he react in a way that I expect a human(-equivalent) to, or did he just step out of a Saturday morning cartoon? If his behavior is exaggerated, is there some hint at depth and literary skill, or is it a poor understanding of how humans work?
-Armifer
<Kvlt> Step 1: Want stuff! Step 2: Be ambitious! Step 3: Believe in the ability of your fellow man to carry you to heights you are too incompetent to reach alone.
<<Madigan and his constant armor adjustment.>>
Someone else does this too? Nice! I admit I've been slacking recently though... one too many trips to the local empath/cleric after forgetting to put my helmet back on after a quick hunting break.
<<Is he wearing pants?>>
My first character rarely did. I didn't like him much.
<<Orphans>>
This one's usually tricky - either you have someone lined up to RP the parent or you don't, and if you don't you usually gotta come up with a reason why your friend(s)/spouse(s) can't meet this person. Most of these reasons end up being some form of orphan-ish story, even if the parents aren't actually dead.
I usually judge instead by how original or fitting the story is. My first character used a kinda thrown-together story that I thought was passable at the time, which worked well enough for his low-level RP. With my second I claimed that the parents were still alive, which went pretty well until I ended up on Ratha where they were supposed to live and had friends wanting to meet them. I tried ACTing them out, which was a bit of a pain with the way ACT and SMILE work.
For my current character I decided to come up with a story that gets the parents out of the picture in ways that helped to shape his personality, which has worked much better.
<<elf with wings>>
Ha, I remember that guy.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
Someone else does this too? Nice! I admit I've been slacking recently though... one too many trips to the local empath/cleric after forgetting to put my helmet back on after a quick hunting break.
<<Is he wearing pants?>>
My first character rarely did. I didn't like him much.
<<Orphans>>
This one's usually tricky - either you have someone lined up to RP the parent or you don't, and if you don't you usually gotta come up with a reason why your friend(s)/spouse(s) can't meet this person. Most of these reasons end up being some form of orphan-ish story, even if the parents aren't actually dead.
I usually judge instead by how original or fitting the story is. My first character used a kinda thrown-together story that I thought was passable at the time, which worked well enough for his low-level RP. With my second I claimed that the parents were still alive, which went pretty well until I ended up on Ratha where they were supposed to live and had friends wanting to meet them. I tried ACTing them out, which was a bit of a pain with the way ACT and SMILE work.
For my current character I decided to come up with a story that gets the parents out of the picture in ways that helped to shape his personality, which has worked much better.
<<elf with wings>>
Ha, I remember that guy.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
Your character's parents really don't HAVE to be present. Why don't you just handwave them as random people in the background that aren't the adventuring type? The only thing I can figure is that people are either very lazy, love having quasi-tragic backgrounds or both.
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
>>This one's usually tricky - either you have someone lined up to RP the parent or you don't, and if you don't you usually gotta come up with a reason why your friend(s)/spouse(s) can't meet this person. Most of these reasons end up being some form of orphan-ish story, even if the parents aren't actually dead.
You can RP that your spouse/friends have met your family. I mean. That's something you both control and can agree happened, or not. It would be easy enough to agree on via OOC whispers or IM's or e-mail or what-have-you.
Szrael's entire clan is still alive, but they also tend to be in Muspar'i, so that makes it a little easier.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
You can RP that your spouse/friends have met your family. I mean. That's something you both control and can agree happened, or not. It would be easy enough to agree on via OOC whispers or IM's or e-mail or what-have-you.
Szrael's entire clan is still alive, but they also tend to be in Muspar'i, so that makes it a little easier.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
<<Why don't you just handwave them as random people in the background that aren't the adventuring type?>>
That's what I did with the second character, but people still wanted to meet them, boring as I made them sound. It went something like "Wow, you have parents?!? No one has parents! I have to meet them." Heh.
<<It would be easy enough to agree on via OOC whispers or IM's or e-mail or what-have-you.>>
That's always an option, but I usually try to avoid the 'just say it happened' approach with other players when I can.
I figure as long as some effort went into making it unique and staying realistic (in DR terms), it's okay by me.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
That's what I did with the second character, but people still wanted to meet them, boring as I made them sound. It went something like "Wow, you have parents?!? No one has parents! I have to meet them." Heh.
<<It would be easy enough to agree on via OOC whispers or IM's or e-mail or what-have-you.>>
That's always an option, but I usually try to avoid the 'just say it happened' approach with other players when I can.
I figure as long as some effort went into making it unique and staying realistic (in DR terms), it's okay by me.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
On the few occasions people have asked Caelane about her mother, I've said either she's busy attending to her duties as a cleric or too ill to do much traveling outside of her home. Both are consistent with my idea for my character's parent. If people don't get that the parent isn't a real PC, then I'd just shrug it off and change the subject (no one has a long attention span anyway) or ooc whisper that the parent is just part of the backstory. The OOC takes the fun out of it, but hopefully it will slowly convince people they don't have to be orphans to be adventurers.
~Player of "One of the Caels."
Queen of Non-Sequitors
~Player of "One of the Caels."
Queen of Non-Sequitors
Red doesn't like her parents or questions. Makes it short and sweet.
"What about your parents?"
"I sprouted full grown from a bog. Anything else? Want a hug? Beat it."
I like competent Rpers but I run into people that want to quiz you too. Checking your knowledge of what you're chosen niche is. Seems pretentious and it's double annoying but a working knowledge of the stuff you're trying to immerse yourself in is good.
Do elotheans have royalty? If I play one I should know but unfortunately I don't. So I invariably change the topic. It's something I gotta work on.
We need Cliff's Notes for racial histories. Pouring through IG books on Elanthipedia is double boring.
Redeth---Claiming good girl status since 09'
"What about your parents?"
"I sprouted full grown from a bog. Anything else? Want a hug? Beat it."
I like competent Rpers but I run into people that want to quiz you too. Checking your knowledge of what you're chosen niche is. Seems pretentious and it's double annoying but a working knowledge of the stuff you're trying to immerse yourself in is good.
Do elotheans have royalty? If I play one I should know but unfortunately I don't. So I invariably change the topic. It's something I gotta work on.
We need Cliff's Notes for racial histories. Pouring through IG books on Elanthipedia is double boring.
Redeth---Claiming good girl status since 09'
>>Stereotypes are generally negative things to have. However, archetypes can be very well done.<<
This.
>>A lot of people lately have commented that Cael is like a different person lately, but there's a good reason for why she's acting differently.<<
It does make sense for the character. It's a war and she is acting accordingly to unite together and put aside differences. I enjoy the way you've been playing her lately, although I've always considered you a good roleplayer despite differences we've had.
>>orphans<<
I don't even know if this is the same thread that people were talking about orphans or not, but I guess I see the point of why some people want to say their RP makes them parentless. They need some tragic event that drives their character to be the brave adventurer that they are. Personally, I just RP that my parents are both devotees at the Abbey of Tamsine south of Leth Deriel.
- Terra
This.
>>A lot of people lately have commented that Cael is like a different person lately, but there's a good reason for why she's acting differently.<<
It does make sense for the character. It's a war and she is acting accordingly to unite together and put aside differences. I enjoy the way you've been playing her lately, although I've always considered you a good roleplayer despite differences we've had.
>>orphans<<
I don't even know if this is the same thread that people were talking about orphans or not, but I guess I see the point of why some people want to say their RP makes them parentless. They need some tragic event that drives their character to be the brave adventurer that they are. Personally, I just RP that my parents are both devotees at the Abbey of Tamsine south of Leth Deriel.
- Terra
i'm not opposed to the "orphan" story.
having decided to roll a thief, I wanted an interesting backstory. I didn't know too much about S'Kra Mur back in '96, but I had read quite a bit of Dickens, and Oliver Twist immediately came to mind. I figured more on making it sort of a combination of background of a Fagin, but a bit of Robin Hood thrown in for good measure. I figured that would be the motivation. Afterwards, reading a bit more of the backhistory of togs and s'kra, and having already rolled up a female Tog Barbarian, the rest of the story just came together. When the family expanded gradually, I made it into sort of a godfather story, the rise of a crime "family", and the various interactions. Different races, different guilds, all coming together for a common purpose.
It's a number, it gets bigger. That's the whole DR experience right there
having decided to roll a thief, I wanted an interesting backstory. I didn't know too much about S'Kra Mur back in '96, but I had read quite a bit of Dickens, and Oliver Twist immediately came to mind. I figured more on making it sort of a combination of background of a Fagin, but a bit of Robin Hood thrown in for good measure. I figured that would be the motivation. Afterwards, reading a bit more of the backhistory of togs and s'kra, and having already rolled up a female Tog Barbarian, the rest of the story just came together. When the family expanded gradually, I made it into sort of a godfather story, the rise of a crime "family", and the various interactions. Different races, different guilds, all coming together for a common purpose.
It's a number, it gets bigger. That's the whole DR experience right there
<<"orphan" story>>
I did this with my first character. Because it was the easy solution rather than trying to remember a vast and detaileed family history.
Yet for my other character. One is a son of a Wealthy Merchant Family, who tried to disown him when he decided to join the bard guild because they had a dislike for story tellers because of an incident with a great grandfather who made a pertty nasty name for himself, and the story was as they say unjustified and exaggerated. Such as, "He did not murder fifty children to prove the village wasn't safe!.".. "It was fourty nine and a half."
It's fun to play bothways.
"So like I said, don't take it personally. All cultures have their share of fools. It's just that we always felt yours had a lot more than ours."
~~Warrior Mage Guild Leader Senfrislor, The Prydaen in Their Own Words~~
I did this with my first character. Because it was the easy solution rather than trying to remember a vast and detaileed family history.
Yet for my other character. One is a son of a Wealthy Merchant Family, who tried to disown him when he decided to join the bard guild because they had a dislike for story tellers because of an incident with a great grandfather who made a pertty nasty name for himself, and the story was as they say unjustified and exaggerated. Such as, "He did not murder fifty children to prove the village wasn't safe!.".. "It was fourty nine and a half."
It's fun to play bothways.
"So like I said, don't take it personally. All cultures have their share of fools. It's just that we always felt yours had a lot more than ours."
~~Warrior Mage Guild Leader Senfrislor, The Prydaen in Their Own Words~~
>They need some tragic event that drives their character to be the brave adventurer that they are.
Ehh.... not necessarily.. one might argue IRL most adventurerers come from rich families and are simply too bored that they go on adventurers, explorations, expeditions, etc. to seek out fun or glory.
If you weren't already content at home you'd be busy making ends meet than worried about excitement in your life.
Valient deeds of Heroism however, is a different matter and does not necessary tie in with adventuring.
"When I grow up, I want to be a soulless monster trapped in a suit of enchanted armor and compelled into violent service for a commercial institution through torturous psychic conditioning." -- Armifer
Ehh.... not necessarily.. one might argue IRL most adventurerers come from rich families and are simply too bored that they go on adventurers, explorations, expeditions, etc. to seek out fun or glory.
If you weren't already content at home you'd be busy making ends meet than worried about excitement in your life.
Valient deeds of Heroism however, is a different matter and does not necessary tie in with adventuring.
"When I grow up, I want to be a soulless monster trapped in a suit of enchanted armor and compelled into violent service for a commercial institution through torturous psychic conditioning." -- Armifer
>>Ehh.... not necessarily.. one might argue IRL most adventurerers come from rich families and are simply too bored that they go on adventurers, explorations, expeditions, etc. to seek out fun or glory.
Tragic doesn't have to equate to death or serious mayhem. It could be a good opportunity that simply makes you leave family behind. A good example of this is the wizard's apprentice who was given a chance to study under the local hedgewizard, and then reached a point where he had to go find a better teacher (and the hedgewizard had a good recommendation).
Ultimately, however, it's this conflict of tragedy that sends us out on the road and this is what Armifer was referring to. Normal people aren't interested in that sort of thing.
DISCLAIMER: THIS POSTER IS NOT A MEMBER OF STAFF AND HIS INFORMATION IS/MIGHT BE WRONG.
Tragic doesn't have to equate to death or serious mayhem. It could be a good opportunity that simply makes you leave family behind. A good example of this is the wizard's apprentice who was given a chance to study under the local hedgewizard, and then reached a point where he had to go find a better teacher (and the hedgewizard had a good recommendation).
Ultimately, however, it's this conflict of tragedy that sends us out on the road and this is what Armifer was referring to. Normal people aren't interested in that sort of thing.
DISCLAIMER: THIS POSTER IS NOT A MEMBER OF STAFF AND HIS INFORMATION IS/MIGHT BE WRONG.
>>We need Cliff's Notes for racial histories. Pouring through IG books on Elanthipedia is double boring.
I recommend this:
http://web.archive.org/web/20031225020021/www.bakshiloa.com/elotheanguide.html
I recommend this:
http://web.archive.org/web/20031225020021/www.bakshiloa.com/elotheanguide.html
>>4. Stereotypes. (Dragonpriest S'Kra, stupid 'Togs, Thieves who wear all black, Necroz who wear only ghoulskin, blah blah)
Thanks...
Crusader Taghz
DFA = DISC + AGIL + TM > Evasion + Reflex
"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...for he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother...", William Shakespeare.
Thanks...
Crusader Taghz
DFA = DISC + AGIL + TM > Evasion + Reflex
"We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...for he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother...", William Shakespeare.
>>Thanks...
Some of you are OG, but it seems like every other S'Kra I run across is a DP these days. Maybe you guys made it seem too cool. It's sort of disproportionate and weird. I can tell most of these are low level alts who will never amount to anything. But not all S'Kra are crazy religious fundamentalists. I never run across anyone playing a member of the Ru'atin Peri'el, for instance.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
Some of you are OG, but it seems like every other S'Kra I run across is a DP these days. Maybe you guys made it seem too cool. It's sort of disproportionate and weird. I can tell most of these are low level alts who will never amount to anything. But not all S'Kra are crazy religious fundamentalists. I never run across anyone playing a member of the Ru'atin Peri'el, for instance.
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
>orphans
Okay, define orphans for me. Orphaned at a young age might be stereotypical, but you don't call a middle-aged human without parents an orphan. As a human, unless you're able to afford an Empath to cure everything for you, you can't be living all that long as a non-adventurer. Opieus is a 31 year old human. His parents died of old age, peacefully, in their sleep years ago.
Elemancer Opieus, Warrior Mage of Elanthia
I blame Bubba:
http://the-emu.mybrute.com
Okay, define orphans for me. Orphaned at a young age might be stereotypical, but you don't call a middle-aged human without parents an orphan. As a human, unless you're able to afford an Empath to cure everything for you, you can't be living all that long as a non-adventurer. Opieus is a 31 year old human. His parents died of old age, peacefully, in their sleep years ago.
Elemancer Opieus, Warrior Mage of Elanthia
I blame Bubba:
http://the-emu.mybrute.com
>> I never run across anyone playing a member of the Ru'atin Peri'el, for instance.
I did/do with my Cleric.
>> His parents died of old age, peacefully, in their sleep years ago.
That's thoughtful, I think.
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
I did/do with my Cleric.
>> His parents died of old age, peacefully, in their sleep years ago.
That's thoughtful, I think.
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
>>define orphan
Okay.
a. A child whose parents are dead.
b. A child who has been deprived of parental care and has not been adopted.
Basically, someone who fit either a. or b. as a child. There are probably ways to do this reasonably ...
"My parents died in a mining accident, but I was raised by my aunt from when I was 3 and love her like a mother..."
but most people don't...
"My parents and their entire village was "decimated" by the Gorbesh and my mother was pregnant so the people who found her body clawed me out of her uterus but I was in moonskin so they thought I was a dog so they raised me like a dog." (Yes, seriously. That's the character history someone actually posted on a forum elsewhere.)
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
Okay.
a. A child whose parents are dead.
b. A child who has been deprived of parental care and has not been adopted.
Basically, someone who fit either a. or b. as a child. There are probably ways to do this reasonably ...
"My parents died in a mining accident, but I was raised by my aunt from when I was 3 and love her like a mother..."
but most people don't...
"My parents and their entire village was "decimated" by the Gorbesh and my mother was pregnant so the people who found her body clawed me out of her uterus but I was in moonskin so they thought I was a dog so they raised me like a dog." (Yes, seriously. That's the character history someone actually posted on a forum elsewhere.)
-- Player of Szrael --
"The Empath spellbook is a riddle trapped in an enigma hidden inside a lot of suck." (Armifer)
>Basically, someone who fit either a. or b. as a child.
My point is that people don't have to be an orphan for their parents to be dead. I think the youngest you can start is 15 years old. So most people will be plenty old enough that their parents could be dead without them necessarily being an orphan... At least for the short lived races. Anybody who isn't an adult until they've outlived a generation of humans might have different issues.
Elemancer Opieus, Warrior Mage of Elanthia
I blame Bubba:
http://the-emu.mybrute.com
My point is that people don't have to be an orphan for their parents to be dead. I think the youngest you can start is 15 years old. So most people will be plenty old enough that their parents could be dead without them necessarily being an orphan... At least for the short lived races. Anybody who isn't an adult until they've outlived a generation of humans might have different issues.
Elemancer Opieus, Warrior Mage of Elanthia
I blame Bubba:
http://the-emu.mybrute.com
For me it is about consistency. You can RP basically whatever you want, as long as you are consistent. I stay away from characters that change their demeanor/actions like a change of clothes.
On a more advanced note, I love flawed characters. For me, the flaws create the most interesting aspects of learning about characters. I am not talking about big, glaring flaws...but the subtle ones.
Madigan
Free the Paladin Guild in 2009.
On a more advanced note, I love flawed characters. For me, the flaws create the most interesting aspects of learning about characters. I am not talking about big, glaring flaws...but the subtle ones.
Madigan
Free the Paladin Guild in 2009.
<<So most people will be plenty old enough that their parents could be dead without them necessarily being an orphan>>
That's basically what I did with Vash. The short version is that he was raised by a single parent who died shortly before I started playing him. I like this approach because it also leaves the father open to future development, since he's mostly an unknown.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
That's basically what I did with Vash. The short version is that he was raised by a single parent who died shortly before I started playing him. I like this approach because it also leaves the father open to future development, since he's mostly an unknown.
You hear the voice of Rmel exclaim, "Holy jeeperth!"
Gene Police! You, outta the pool!
i like everything armfer said.
from the beginning, the challenge is getting ppl to develop their characters moment to moment ig, not just on the character profile they post on elanthipedia.
Besides actually reacting to weather (which i was never consistent doing and now seems like a detail i robbed myself of by ignoring) RP is providing informative that explains something about your character every moment you can.
Folks complain about mary sues for good reason. the paradigm is boring. but mostly, en masse, the first issue is getting people to TRY something...the first things they try will probably end up being mary sues. Its part of the process.
I think im saying GO MARY SUE...in lieu of the vanilla text that generally goes on.
from the beginning, the challenge is getting ppl to develop their characters moment to moment ig, not just on the character profile they post on elanthipedia.
Besides actually reacting to weather (which i was never consistent doing and now seems like a detail i robbed myself of by ignoring) RP is providing informative that explains something about your character every moment you can.
Folks complain about mary sues for good reason. the paradigm is boring. but mostly, en masse, the first issue is getting people to TRY something...the first things they try will probably end up being mary sues. Its part of the process.
I think im saying GO MARY SUE...in lieu of the vanilla text that generally goes on.
>Folks complain about mary sues for good reason. the paradigm is boring. but mostly, en masse, the first issue is getting people to TRY something...the first things they try will probably end up being mary sues. Its part of the process.
I think this is something important to realize, especially for Prime players.
We might find "Prettiest pretty" or "Thoust speaketh in strageth dialect" or Bob the mute annoying and stereotypical, but at least they're TRYING. Doesn't meet up to your standards? Give them tips, or just look the other way. Dont' smash them, don't thump them, because they are TRYING, and chances are they might even want to IMPROVE and COMPETE with you in a sportsman manner someday.
You smack a child down as he is learning to draw lines, he will never get the chance to grow up and become an artist. Do you really prefer that they stop trying because they aren't good enough now, and give up a chance to sow the seeds for better roleplay later, having them give up on themselves and just go script script script all day in combat?
"When I grow up, I want to be a soulless monster trapped in a suit of enchanted armor and compelled into violent service for a commercial institution through torturous psychic conditioning." -- Armifer
I think this is something important to realize, especially for Prime players.
We might find "Prettiest pretty" or "Thoust speaketh in strageth dialect" or Bob the mute annoying and stereotypical, but at least they're TRYING. Doesn't meet up to your standards? Give them tips, or just look the other way. Dont' smash them, don't thump them, because they are TRYING, and chances are they might even want to IMPROVE and COMPETE with you in a sportsman manner someday.
You smack a child down as he is learning to draw lines, he will never get the chance to grow up and become an artist. Do you really prefer that they stop trying because they aren't good enough now, and give up a chance to sow the seeds for better roleplay later, having them give up on themselves and just go script script script all day in combat?
"When I grow up, I want to be a soulless monster trapped in a suit of enchanted armor and compelled into violent service for a commercial institution through torturous psychic conditioning." -- Armifer
>> Nobody, anywhere, ever, would memorize things to that degree
um hi
<--
>> Do you really prefer that they stop trying because they aren't good enough now, and give up a chance to sow the seeds for better roleplay later, having them give up on themselves and just go script script script all day in combat?
I don't think challenging them or their character is the same thing as smacking them personally, since you lumped gwethsmashing and thumping into it too. My character is responding to their character. Either they can handle it or they can't; either way, a harsh lesson in the nature of cooperative storytelling (which is what roleplaying actually is, not wish fulfillment or fantasy projection like most people might treat it) is occasionally necessary and can be a positive thing. Hell, I've met a lot of people that are currently friends by smashing their gweths, thumping them, or otherwise abusing their characters in some fashion. Such is the curious nature of the beast.
But yes, occasionally you do need to smack somebody upside the head and tell them that they are Doin' It Wrong. Mr. Elf-with-wings was trying his best too, after all. That doesn't make it correct behavior, and that doesn't mean we should give them a gold star for trying, because that only reinforces the wrong behavior. It means their incorrect behavior should be corrected, and if subtle suggestions don't do it the first time, force might just do it the second or third time.
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
um hi
<--
>> Do you really prefer that they stop trying because they aren't good enough now, and give up a chance to sow the seeds for better roleplay later, having them give up on themselves and just go script script script all day in combat?
I don't think challenging them or their character is the same thing as smacking them personally, since you lumped gwethsmashing and thumping into it too. My character is responding to their character. Either they can handle it or they can't; either way, a harsh lesson in the nature of cooperative storytelling (which is what roleplaying actually is, not wish fulfillment or fantasy projection like most people might treat it) is occasionally necessary and can be a positive thing. Hell, I've met a lot of people that are currently friends by smashing their gweths, thumping them, or otherwise abusing their characters in some fashion. Such is the curious nature of the beast.
But yes, occasionally you do need to smack somebody upside the head and tell them that they are Doin' It Wrong. Mr. Elf-with-wings was trying his best too, after all. That doesn't make it correct behavior, and that doesn't mean we should give them a gold star for trying, because that only reinforces the wrong behavior. It means their incorrect behavior should be corrected, and if subtle suggestions don't do it the first time, force might just do it the second or third time.
Rev. Reene
Jhime whispers, "OOC: You're the biggest nerd i've ever known, but good job"
