Zeet's Roleplaying Tips

When it comes to creating a character, it's important that you start off with an idea in your head for what your character is going to look like, what sort of background your character will have had before venturing out as an adventurer in the wide world we call lensmoor, and the sort of personality the character you are creating has. Making a good and detailed description in a way that someone could picture what you look like from reading it, is the first step in the rp experience. From there, creating the background and personality for your character will give it depth, and give others and yourself an idea of what you plan to do with the char, and how your character is likely to interact with the rest of the world.

In the end, roleplay is all about interaction with the world and people around you. Consistency in roleplay is important to help show that you are serious about working with the base that you have created for roleplay with the char, but also be understanding that your character should evolve and grow over time, as your experiences and interactions dictate.

Sometimes it’s the little things that can really make the roleplay with others seem to come alive. Little mannerisms, small movements, acknowledgment of the room you are in, or even the weather or time of day can mean a lot.

Try not to stress about being perfect in your roleplay. It’s a game, so always make sure you are having fun with it. If the game ever becomes or seems more like work than a game, then it's time to change things up a little until you are enjoying yourself again.

When you roleplay, it's important to be flexible. Everyone has their own ideas and plans for their characters, and at times, in the course of interacting with people, you will run into situations to where things will not being going perfectly towards whatever plan you may have. Being willing to alter a plan to help fit the situation and work with those you are roleplaying with, will make the experience more fun for everyone.

If you want to get the full benefit from your roleplay, work at trying to make your character and its roleplay tell a story. Be willing to create a situation through roleplay that will come up again and again over time, each part, like chapters in a story.

You shouldn’t always expect others to come to you when you are wanting to roleplay, you should be willing to come to them. Some people will require a little more work to help get them into the roleplay with you, so it's important that you be willing to go the extra mile at times to get others involved.

When you meet another character for the first time, even though you will be able to see who they are, you should act as though you would in person, as though you don’t know who they are, and introduce yourself and let the other person know your name. It may be a small thing, but this too will help let the person you are roleplaying with know that you are serious about your roleplay.

A huge thing everyone should try to do, but which can be hard at times, is to do your best to keep “In Character” aspects of the game, separate from “Out of Character” aspects. Make sure that the knowledge you use with your character is information that was obtained through “In Character” means.

Though rare, you may find yourself in a position to make choices that will either benefit your character mechanically at the expense of your roleplay, or will benefit your roleplay at the expense of the mechanical aspects of your char. Being willing to make mechanical sacrifices in order to further your roleplay is a choice many people make at some point in the life of their characters, what you decide to do, is up to you.

Be mindful that people cannot obviously be on with their characters 24/7, and as such, you should be willing to make considerations for that fact. Sometimes this will mean putting an rp on hold, or adjusting it if a key player isn’t around. Just make sure that you do not punish someone icly or oocly for not being online all the time. Each of us has things we have to take care of outside of the game, and those things should come first, so just make sure to be considerate of that.