Top 100 RPing mistakes?

[Ssussunriyh]

Hello, all. Was just wondering if anyone has some advice on how NOT to roleplay effectively, by pointing out glaring errors that are made repeatedly. This is also an opportunity for us to get various things off our chests, so I would expect some steam to be blown off...

In no particular order...

An assassin or thief admitting his profession openly.

 

[Nevine]

An assassin or thief admitting his profession openly. [/B]

This goes along with yours a little..

The BBEG (Big Bad Evil Guy) telling you that they are going to [insert evil thing here]. Giving you plenty of time to prepare yourself and warn others that may be involved.

 

[Nugan]

An assassin or thief admitting his profession openly.

Not talking about anyone in particular there, I hope.

I'd go into a drawn out explanation of why Nugan lets people know his profession, but I'll keep it short: Thieves Guilds, like street gangs, can actually be helped (in recruiting and building fear/respect in others) by letting people know who they are and what they do. The real reason for secrecy stems from a fear of the law, and not wanting evidence available to tie you to specific events. Think of a mob boss, everyone knows how he gets his money, but he sticks around because he can't be tied to the specific crimes.

Hmmm... That wasn't very short...

Anyway, back on topic. Before I say anything, I just want people to know that I'm not refering to any specif people and my inent is not to insult, but to offer (hopefully) helpful pointers:

Adjectives in Names, Not a Good Idea:
This is a minor quible, really, and something that I try not to judge characters by. That said, having a screen name that's an adjective (or a noun or anything but and actual name) or contains an adjective will probably lead people to judge you as a (I really hate this word) "newbie". I made this mistake with my first two characters (I wonder if anyone still remembers "nugan_the_coward" shiver), and I think it may have negatively affected how people viewed me as a role-player.

Keep Distance Between Your Characters and Other Famous Characters:
Much like having an adjective in your name, this is one of those things that will affect how people view you in spite of what your true role-playing skill is. I'm sure that its believable that Elminster would have a grand-niece or that Wulfgar might have a brother. Opting to play that grand-niece or brother, on the other hand, seems like a ploy to make your character appear more important or simply a lack of originality. That may not be the case at all, but many people will see it that way anyway.

If its in the "Artifacts" Section of the DM Guide, Your Character Probably Shouldn't Own it:
As cool as you may think Kas's Sword is, its best that you stay as far away from it as possible. There's only one copy of each of these items, and chances are if you thought it was so cool that your character had to have it, then someone else probably thought the same thing. That raises problems...

That's all I could think of at the momment. I have a few other common mistakes in my *plug, plug* How Not to be a Power Gamer thread.

EDIT: I thought I'd add one more somewhat related point: A mistake made by a character while role-playing and an Out of Character "Role-Playing Mistake" is not the same thing. If a character has a personality that personality wil lead him/her to make stupid mistakes. These mistakes are actually (IMHO) a sign of good role-playing rather than bad.

Another point: I'm running on five hours of sleep, so feel free to ignore this post if it makes no sense or offends you in some way.

 

[Tharivious_Meliamne]

One problem is a character that always has the easy answer for another character's problem and attempts to impose such a thing on them, thus depriving the player with the problem of a potentially fun and interesting roleplaying opportunity.

I'm not talking about a character who specializes in the task at hand being able to solve the problem, but to those who have nothing to do with the situation at hand in most cases. If someone has spent their lifetime focusing on a certain type of rare lizard and a group is looking for information, and talking about how badly they need the information, offering the information to the players is one thing and I recommend that, but even if the character is an expert on it, that's no liscence to give the characters their goal either.

For example, and if the set up is familiar, it's because this is how I write examples, heh, and I've had this happen to my character, so that might also explain it.
Cleric_01 wants a rare sort of feather for a set of specially made arrows. She's having Rogue_01 make these arrows, and asks for this type of feather. And so, as they're discussing how to obtain the feathers, Snert_01 shows up and says "I've got a ton of those at home, let me go get them.", and walks off to a random portal, only to return a matter of seconds later with a handful of the feathers and says, "Here you go."
Meanwhile, Cleric_01 and Rogue_01 are sitting there still talking about how to get these feathers if Snert_01 doesn't actually have them, in a vain attempt at disuading Snert_01's player to not bring those feathers back, hoping that he will catch on that there is a task at hand that Rogue_01 wanted to undetake himself, and was more than capable of doing on his own. But does Snert_01 realize it? Of course not, and so Rogue_01 is stuck with no reason to go through with the planned RPing, as the goal is already set out for him on the table he sits at.

Amazing how one mistake like having the answer to everything can affect other players' ideas, isn't it?

 

[Ssussunriyh]

Here's another point to remember, especially for newcomers to the site. Tharivious pointed it out in another thread.

Characters do not wear nametags! So there is no way that you could know another character's name, unless you actually approach them and make introductions, or at the very least overhear someone else call them by name. And in the latter case, you can only hear names that are spoken aloud (in blue text) i.e., "Hey So-and-so, what do you think about etc?" You cannot determine names that are merely emoted (in pink text) i.e., Fighter_01 waves to Rogue_01.

 

[WizO_Reesa]

I thought I would add my 2 cents worth as far as things I've seen as a WizO, which would perhaps help out.

Directing your comments to someone

I find this to be one of the most important aspects in the chat room. Pointing out who your character is speaking to. I know that it often helps me if the line in the chat is directed to Reesa. (Example: Reesa> Good day milady.) This way, those in the chat room know your character is speaking to Reesa. I have seen many people asking who someone's talking to because they aren't sure or lose the conversation in the scrolling text.

Out Of Character Comments/Netspeak/Spelling Corrections

This is another annoying habit I see on the site, people constantly talking out of character on the screen, using netspeak, and correcting spelling or typing flubs. Stop it! Hehe.. I find it to be disruptive to the room, and can actually be against the Code of Conduct - depending on how severe. You do not need to post stuff like:

Rogue_01 : wonders why everyone isn't here?
Cleric_01: guesses it's because everyone's away for holidays
Rogue_01: thinks that's true

That's out of character comments... keep them in PMs. If you want to comment about what you wonder (example: Rogue_01 wonders if he connected), PM the person you're wondering about. It looks much nicer to the room, and doesn't get others asking about the actions.

Spelling errors, fluffing an action or say message (example: Typing "Blue!" or "Pink!" or "*spelling correction" in actions) should be ignored. If you goof a word, chances are the people you're talking to figure out what your character means anyhow. If you can do it in character, great! I've seen characters comment "Gee, I've picked up an odd accent" and then say the words again. Same goes with fluffing an action. If you type what appears to be your character saying "goes to the chair" most people will figure you fluffed the command and just know your character has "goes to the chair".

Acknowledging someone BEFORE they actually type their entrance into a room..

Please don't do this! Just because the chat program shows "WizO_Reesa enters the room" doesn't mean WizO Reesa has actually "walked in". Often times, a person is looking to see who's in the room, or had just logged out of the room (rather than going to the lobby) and needs to gain their bearings. Wait until you see the person type their action of entering the room before you wave or greet them.

I think that's all I can suggest for now. Thanks!
Reesa

 

[Nevine]

/think

For those that have the ability to read surface thoughts at will, it irks me when they assume that when the command is used the person has what is consider an "open" mind. So, now patrons use <closed> before the text in the thought bubble. It should be the other way around, if I want you to know what my character is thinking I'll put <open>. Not that I use the /think command much anyway, I just don't like presumptions.

 

[Dontella]

Rants

It seems lately the site is just one big argument after another..

Honestly, there is no fun in forever reading, and hearing arguments, or to be given advice on how you "should" Roleplay.

There is no standard for Roleplaying, only that it must remain within the CoC. So long as it breaks no site rules, I'm always open to new ideas and new suggestions.. and if someone dislikes my ideas.. fine.. by all means, let them ignore me..

but let the rants.. end.

Pleaseeee let the rants end, they simply drain all the fun out of Playing.

 

[Neo_CorpseReliver]

I agree with Dontella. The boards are too full of them. If they would have helped, then the site would have been "fixed" years ago. The only difference is the rants seem even more numerous than they used to be.

 

[Ann Hawkman]

I can't believe I read every post on this board . . . definitely means I'm bored, but, this seems to be a somewhat important thread, and it's getting close to being poofed from the board over here, so I must say bump. :bump: