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Date Posted: 00:55:17 03/27/03 Thu
Author: Ariana Aislinn
Subject: About online roleplaying
In reply to: Mercuria 's message, "Just a little amusing PR tidbit" on 13:08:45 03/22/03 Sat

As a frequent online roleplayer, I have several things to say about this.

First of all, etiquette and rules vary greatly. It depends largely on the audience and the style. For example, there's format- forums, IRC chat, email lists, instant messenger (yes, it does happen), MUDs, HTML chat (that's where I started out- an image-heavy, HTML-based webchat location), and just about every other method of communicating online that there is. The different formats can largely affect roleplaying style. Let me give an example.

I started out roleplaying in Rivendell, also known as RavensDale, a medieval fantasy roleplaying complex on the TTR networks. (This was the webchat place I mentioned above.) The main room where everyone congregated was the inn, and there was a site rule that there could be no fighting or combat in the inn. Thus, a lot of people would have their characters sit around drinking or whatever until someone noticed them, or they struck up a conversation with another character. Both characters would then tell each other their life stories (which almost always involved much angst) and either take a liking or a disliking to each other. Relationships would form, and sooner or later, half of the roleplaying in the inn (if not more) became a medieval-fantasy style of soap opera. The OOC politics got to be quite stupid, and people argued a lot over what should be allowed and what shouldn't. For example, there was a lot of hatred for the anime-style pictures I favored (almost everyone used a picture there that appeared with every post they made), even if they were medieval fantasy style anime. There were good parts of the roleplay, too, but godmoders were all too common. There were a LOT of characters who were über-powerful, gorgeous (or handsome), and just plain ridiculously lacking in flaws.

Oh, that's not to say there wasn't angst. But the angst really served to enhance the melodrama and the focus on the character, giving them an even bigger ego trip. Now, I won't say I didn't join in with this angsting and melodrama. I did, quite often, in fact. The difference was, we had FUN. Sure, there were arguments, and some people were terrible roleplayers. But the group of friends I usually played with had fun, even when we were being quite stupid and roleplaying overly powerful characters. As the years went by, our characters became far more realistic, and their personalities fleshed out. Old ones were dropped and new characters and storylines were introduced. Our roleplaying matured as we did, much as a person's writing matures.

I admit it, I was a terrible roleplayer when I first started. I almost left and never came back because someone was rude to me in character, and I didn't entirely understand that it wasn't because he didn't want to roleplay with me, it was just because his character was a jerk. ;) The guy has since become one of my online friends, and he came to visit me while he was on leave from the navy last month. I've known him for about five years now. You never can tell, can you?

These days, I run an RPG on IRC. It's a vastly different format because of the speed and size of the posting, and also the complete lack of images. More is left to the imagination, yet play is quicker and involves more dialogue than descriptions (post size is limited, whereas in Rivendell there were some people who typically wrote about four paragraphs or more with every post). IRC is far better suited to using an actual system, so we have rules and stats and character sheets. In Rivendell, it's all freeform, and combat is done on the honor system. It lends itself to godmoding in a way my IRC game really doesn't, but both styles have their advantages and drawbacks.

My point? Two things. First, not all roleplaying can be judged by the same standards because of the differences between players, GMs, formats, etc. Secondly, most people tended to start out as bad roleplayers, and they gradually get better. Some never do. But as long as those involved in the game don't mind and everyone is having fun, it doesn't really matter so much, I'd say. If a bunch of people have ridiculously powerful characters and roleplay extremely badly and overdramatically, but everyone in their game is having tons of fun...does it really matter? :)

Not really arguing with any of you exactly, just trying to put out a different viewpoint.

In case anyone wonders, my favorite roleplaying character is a Mary Sue (kind of...I hope she's not as bad as most Mary Sues) in that she was a character based on myself, inserted into an original fantasy world and story. I once received criticism from a neighbor in my college dorm about my stories, and although he was an abrasive person who never learned the meaning of tact, I took far more offense when he criticized my character than I should have. :P I have since realized this symptom of Mary Sue-ness and hope to remedy the problem. I'm very attached to my character, yes, but that doesn't mean I can't be objective about her and make her a good character. I've tried from the beginning to give her faults as well as virtues, and to make her interesting to others, not just me. From what my friends and the few visitors to my website have said, so far I've been successful. But at least now that I know what a Mary Sue truly is, I can try all the harder to make my character NOT like that!

Oh yes, and my first online roleplaying character ever? ;) The Labyrinthian. Based on Sarah, from the movie Labyrinth. It was quite scary. ;) I've definitely improved from THOSE days, I should hope.

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