RPG Experience: How much?

[Sara]

I know some of you are in this forum nearly 24/7, and others just stop in once in a while to check on one or two stories. There's a huge range of styles and talent here. I'm sure several of you have had the experience of being surrounded by people on a different writing level than yourself--better or worse, both can be frustrating.

Where do you consider yourself as a writer/role-player? Don't be egotistical or self-deprecating, just honest.

And what do you think is required to be considered a 'good' role-player? What aspects of other's posts drive you nuts? Specific pointers or general advice would both be great.

I'm just curious to see what some of you will say, and it would prolly help some people out.

[Raiha]

[COLOR=seagreen]I consider myself to be a run of the mill, "middle class" roleplayer. I know I've been on the role playing conveyor belt since the old otakuboards was around....but I'm not perfect, and ocasionally, I get a good sized portion of humble pie.

A "good roleplayer" can accept criticism, understands what it takes to develop and carry through with plot development. I know that whole "plot" thing is a foreign concept to many people here....

Things that drive me nuts? ....well, people that type LIKe THis and HaVe NO sPacE betwEEn thEIR perIODS.IT's HeCKa AnnOYing.
Please put two spaces between sentences.
I also don't like it when people write the person who's speaking's name...then have no space between the colin and the dialouge. And also don't have any sense of good punctuation.
Example:

Darker:we should split up.
Joe:Okay!

I could rant about this for another twenty minutes, but I have stories to write...signups to fill out...so I'll leave you with one peice of advice:

[url]www.dictionary.com.[/url]

Go there.[/cOLOR]

[Deedlit]

[color=green]"Middle class?!" Raiha, you're one of the best role-players on here. ^_~

I consider myself an average role-player. I've only been role-playing for about a year, so there's still alot I have to learn.

I'm not a really picky person about how others role-play, but what really aggrivates me, as Raiha said, is when people don't put a space between their sentences. Such as this:

[i]He challenged me to a battle:I moved in for the attack.As I swung my battle axe at him,he dodged to the side.Then he drove the blade in my shoulder.I screamed in pain![/i]

In this example, there's no entusiasm in the post, there's not much detail, if any at all, and the puctuation is awful.

I can't think of anything else that really bothers me, so now that it's been said, I'll go back to role-playing.[/color]

[liamc2]

Like said above, I consider myself average as well, but I believe all of us see ourselves as average anyway ;)

Well what I particularly hate is the absence of grammar in peoples posts. Also when people continue to use the same verbs/adjectives in [i]all[/i] of their posts. I mean, MS Word/Works/Publisher is there, bloody well use it!

It all boils down to grammar and legibility in my case.

[GinnyLyn]

[color=crimson]I am a sort of average role-player. I tend to only participate in RPGs where I understand characters (if it is based off of a show/movie/book), or if I like the concept. Which isn't terribly often. I'm rather lazy, allowing writer's block to be an excuse, but I tend to be impressed with some of the stuff I churn out...I keep wondering, "Who the heck wrote that?!"

A good role player is:
--one who sticks to the plot. This, above all else, is definitely key.
--one who writes legibly and makes sense whilst doing so.
--one who stays in character.
--one who, if using a specific type of format (in play version, novella version, whatever), remains in that version for the RPG s/he is in.
Added plus: --one who uses proper spelling and language. If I can't understand what you are trying to say, how can I use your part of the story as I write my part?
Added plus: --one who writes in an engrossing manner. Instead of just saying, "He attacked the orc with his sword," try "He lunged out with his silver katana, severing the orc's grotesque head from its earth grimed body." Mind, this is an added plus. I know everyone can't write like famous authors.

Things that irk me:
Several have been mentioned already, like:
--not using punctuation...or using it improperly (I've seen way too many ellipses and the like that don't need to be there).
--not using proper grammar. Leaping from past tense to present, then switching back--it's too confusing!
--not staying in the story. "The main character was suddenly filled with god like powers and blew the bad guy away in a fireworks like display of bloody entrails." Nu-uh. If it doesn't fit, don't write it! A good way to stay in the story is to read the other people's posts. That way, it ensures they will use your parts (and not flame you for being OOC).
--not posting simply to say, "Gosh I have writer's block." That's just a plain waste.
--Excessive swearing. Good writers know the difference between using swearing to enhance plot and using it gratuitiously(sp?). If you are in character, fine. But I don't need to be reading swear words every third word.
--using internet slang. It's plain annoying.

Done ranting...for now! :devil: [/color]

[Sara]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Raiha [/i]
[B][COLOR=seagreen][url]www.dictionary.com.[/url]

Go there.[/cOLOR] [/B][/QUOTE] Bless you, Raiha.

Things that bug me:

-when people don't bother to portray other's characters correctly. [Example: 'Tami' has been refusing to do something for three posts. 'Ben' says something, and she immediately complies.] It's one thing if you're doing it with your own character, with maybe a reason behind it, but don't twist other people's personalities around.

-Jumping from tense to tense. [Example: She spins around. He grinned at her. She got up and walked away. He smiles.] Agh! Don't [i]do[/u] that!

Being too brief, espcially when others are putting effort into the story. If you've been on a journey to reach the bad guy's fortress for three weeks, and suddenly in one post you get there, win, and live happily ever after....? Please.

[Muse]

I say I'm an average RPG'r/RPG Maker.

My Posts arent that long,And I can sometimes forget i'm in an RPG and stop:whoops: I dont really like using the,

JImmy:WOW!

Joey:I know!

Stuff.I like,

"Wow!"

cried Jimmy excitedly,

"I know!"

Joey replied,Grinning.

But hey,I used to do that to.

And i dont think people Like my RPGs enough to keep going in them,

Digimon:The Digi-Portals(Its barely hanging on by a Thread!Haha!Get it?Thread?Oh nevermind...-_-)

Pokemon:Wraith Of Mewtwo

Modern Magic(My first RPG...)

Must I go on?Its depressing...

And like most everyone else,I hate these,

WhAtS Up,MAn?

And,who can like this,

I h8 You!And,I did i7 B4 that!

[i]Shudders[/i]

[Juu]

[color=deeppink] [size=1]I consider myself... average..
Not good, not terrible... just... average... @_@
I also consider myself maybe as a lil more ova writer than rpg'er... for some unknown reason...

A good roleplayer is someone that....
-Sticks to the plot
-Creates events that link to other events or situations
-Gives a somewhat good description...
-Is fair to other rp'ers, and doesn't always end up as 'the hero' of the story.
-Tries to use better vocabulary, not using 'said' a million times in a story.

Things that drive me [i]crazy[/i]....
-improper grammar/spelling/punctuation
-godmodding
-a person never including other characters in their posts, especially in important events.
-cussing in sentences that can work well without any cussing - -
-posts that drive the entire story to a dead end
-where everyone says they died.
-When no one ever gets hurt at all in a battle (godmodding..)

That's basically it..... ^^;
And yes, Raiha, you're definately one of the best rpg'ers I've seen around OB! Definately not [i]average[/i]... ^_-[/color] [/size]

[Ugamon]

[COLOR=teal](mind you i am depressed but this needs to come out)Well I would say I am prolly the biggest curse to come to the otaku boards. My grammer is barly able to be read on the worst/ best day ( your choice). The only reason I join these rpgs is cuz i have ideas I may suck at typeing but storylines are something of a knack ( even through no one joins any of mine) =( i have this strange ability to recreate a whole rpg in my mind. Well since i ain't a good rpger you prolly don' want to hear what i really have to say about good things but... i do have a few thing i REALLY HATE!

One or two lined posts ( i have noticed that alot of new and some older rpgers tend to do this without thinking and i used to do it alot i try and try to keep mine like four at the least.

Another is horrid grammer you prolly would scream at some of the stuff i have read. It was so horrid i pmed the person to take it out many times they don't.

and finally i have been seeing some horrid mis postings in the second digimon jourany nerferimon has been driveing me nuts with her 3 bloody digimon she is totally turnign the poor rpg in to a ruin. the first jourany we managed to save when blankio left do to the fact that we ended it but i tend to " destory" my self for others like in that one i made my self kill the booses but in the second i tended to faint and get taking over by the boss in the first


I guess I am done driving you poor people nuts.[/COLOR]

[starlight]

I belive im a so-so role player (I'm under avg) I do have problems with spelling but thanks to a whittle program that I now type my posts in first to check for spelling errors (Hehe MS word you just gotta love it!) My spelling is getting slightly better. Ok I know I do stuff with some of my posts that sometimes irk some of you so I'm making an attempt to fix that. Because of some of my bad habits, a few of the rpgs I had made a weak attempt to start died before they could even get started. Need an example? anyone remember dragons flame? my first try... it bombed -.-(So dont feel bad Lauren ;) )But theres just some things that bug the living daylights out of me such as:

1) 1 or 2 liners. Come on even with writers block anyone can do better!

2) baaed spealing. I have no problems reading most posts but there is a few out there that are reaalllly bad.

3) little/no discription. Ok I am also to blame for this but when someone writes "the guys came and cut his head off" that kinda gets me going ...? it could at least be like this (possibly) "The four men in black armour ran up at an incredible speed across the hard stone floor, one of them drew their sword and in one quick swipe took the victims head off." Ok so maybe not that discriptive but you get the basic point.... right?

3)PEOPLE CHANGING THE STROYLINE!!!! >.< I have one going right now where the characters in it were SUPPOSED to go [u]find[/u] these elemental orbs. Instead I have people just going "Oh I have one right here!" "Oh I fought someone and now I have one" Ok so maybe I'm partially to blame but come on! I dont want any more of mine to fizz out stupidly -.- why do i even bother anymore!? sorry I needed to get that out it was driving me mental.

Anyways thats just a few things that drive me crazy!! ok now I'm gonna go sulk in a corner now Ill be back in a few hours, audios!

[Charles]

I suppose that I'm pretty good.

I actually disagree with using a dictionary though. Reason being, it's better to use your own voice. If you rely on a thesaurus or a dictionary, your writing might sound forced or awkward.

A good role-player has good grammar and spelling, along with imagination. It's important that the writing is real, reasonable and concise. That much allows us to understand it. But, if it's not creative, then what's the point?

As mentioned, people should respect other peoples' characters. Quite simply, I feel that using someone else's character correctly, is as important as using my own correctly.

Length is also an issue. If someone doesn't doesn't find their post important enough to put proper work into, then why should I find it important enough to read?

Also, a good trait is sticking around and partcipating in games that you've signed up for. Building a reputation for dropping out of games is lethal, lol.

Humor is always a useful asset. At least in my opinion it is. But, it's a tricky thing. One can't cross the boundaries and become [I]too[/I] far fetched, or the humor just becomes silly and annoying.

Lastly, using images and varying colors are useful in role-playing. For instance, my Project Gamer sign-up page was pretty long. So, I used images and colors to spice it up. The same goes for certain posts. It makes writing come alive and jump up at you.

[Raiha]

[COLOR=seagreen]My take on the dictionary, my dear CWB, is simply to check your spelling. And it's also a way to learn new words in the process. If you wanted to use your own voice...you might as well spell the words right.[/COLOR]

[liamc2]

I have to agree with CWB there, with extremely long posts, you've got to have something that stands out at the reader, otherwise you'll be sitting there and reading:

'andthenyougoanddosomethingthatisreallycoolandputyourcharactersignuphereandthenwecanbeginsoon'

But I do have to disagree on the dictionary part, but I suppose 'spellcheck' would have been a better choice of words all the same.

Personally, I do like a dictionary/thesaurus, it becomes an extremely useful tool when you're strapped for words. But, to each his own.

[Charles]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Raiha [/i]
[B][COLOR=seagreen]My take on the dictionary, my dear CWB, is simply to check your spelling. And it's also a way to learn new words in the process. If you wanted to use your own voice...you might as well spell the words right.[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE]

:o

Well, yeah, you have a point there, lol. :blushes nervously:

But, I don't think that it's [I]wrong[/I] to use one. It's just kind of wrong to overuse it. Like, some people just try to pull out the craziest words and instead of coming up with good writing, they get nonsense.

Yep, using it to check spelling is cool though. I carry my little Webster around with me in my book bag. ^_^;;;

[Flash]

I guess I'm alright at Roleplaying. Alot of my RPGs don't last, though.. I don't know how that reflects on me as a RPer, but it's probably not good. -.-'

One of the most annoying things that I've seen on my long stay on the Otakuboards Games and Stories/Games and RPGs/Adventure arena forum is probably... Well, I think Heaven's cloud summed it up best;

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Heaven's Cloud [/i]
[B][color=indigo]
"Brock hit billy with his sword and hurted billys arm because he hit billy hardly with his sword."
[/color] [/B][/QUOTE]

Hell, I've seen whole RPGs with posts that have less effort in them than this.

But the most annoying thing? When a brilliant RPG (take James's OAW) goes down the drain, for whatever reason. Especially if It could have turned out to be something really big (which it could've).

[liamc2]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Final Flash [/i]
But the most annoying thing? When a brilliant RPG (take James's OAW) goes down the drain, for whatever reason. Especially if It could have turned out to be something really big (which it could've). [/B][/QUOTE]

I know that feeling, you spend a massive amount of time on your RPG, tweaking and rehashing it until you believe it worthy of praise (or something along those lines..)and then you post it, people sign up and everything seems ok...then suddenly everyone decides not to post and it goes crashing into the ground and smashing into and infinite amount of teardrop shape pieces....

...

[Ugamon]

personally james pickes out the " good" rpgers when i signed up for his starwars one that lasted about a week i try my best to make a great post by in my terms he is too picky. Just i think role playing games need a bit of spice and i am not sure about james oaw what was that it might have been before i came in to rpg section prolly was..(for some reason i just need to warm up to type better spooky) and i used a simalar sign up to do otehr rpgs but i geting over strung al over the place i am more stress then fun right now trying to be a helper to each of the rpgs... what to do what to do... ( checks watch) ahh time for digital spirits rpg.

[DeathKnight]

[color=crimson]I consider myself the God of roleplaying just to be shot down by Flash and Rai. ;P

I dunno how good of an RPGer I am, and I dont care. I just do it because its fun... You dont have to be good at something to love doing it constantly.[/color]

[Raiha]

[COLOr=seagren]*giggle* *snort* *gag* Please don't make me die of laughter Ken.....you aren't a bad RPGer.....but really. God? Real funny.....pardon me while I throw up in the bushes.

You do have a way with words....I'll give you that.[/COLOR]

[DeathKnight]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Raiha [/i]
[B][COLOr=seagren]*giggle* *snort* *gag* Please don't make me die of laughter Ken.....you aren't a bad RPGer.....but really. God? Real funny[/COLOR] [/B][/QUOTE]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Myself[/i]
[b][color=crimson]I consider myself the God of roleplaying just to be [u]shot down[/u] by Flash and [u]Rai[/u][/b].[/quote]

If only I had placed a bet on that.[/color]

[Heartless Me]

Personal opinion here.... I think that I am a great rper, but That's because i have many years of experience online and off. From 1-10 i'd give myself a 7.5. My only weak spot really is the fact that my posts aren't that long and sometimes my grammar is off.

Everyone else basically put it up for what makes a good rper so I don't think i need to get into that.

Some things that really erk me.
1. People playing other persons characters the wrong way. if a person is an anti social ninja he/she's not going to take their mask off and give a half hour speech. just an example, i've not actually seen that.

2. l337 5p34k in character.. that's just stupid.. if you wanna do that, do it someplace else, like on a babble forum. lol

3. people who post a 1-3 line post and actually think they did a good job.

that's about it there.

[Carren Heart]

Personally, I'm a great role player (not online) but tabletop role-playing; I have experience like none other I've met, I have developed game systems that highly rival if not surpass D & D, White Wolf, and many other Role playing games, but my main problem is getting all the information on paper, other then that when it comes to Running games I have people ask if I can run all the time, but as to online experience and just computer experience in general mixed with the fact I'm fairly poor at gammier and spelling. I'm a "Renown" Role-player where I live.


Am sure Arikel would argee....

[Kei]

[color=blue]I don't really consider myself to be a great roleplayer, but I'm not that bad. Too bad I can't say the same for my RPGs. I usually make Pokémon ones that last about a week and then die, but I think the current one is doing well. The thing about RP that makes you a bad gamer is that many times, the quality of your writing is really bad.

[b]Exp.[/b] Tari and Hiriko walked down the road. They saw a demon on the side of the road hurting someone. They both pulled out their swords and attacked it.

This is [i]really[/i] boring. It's not at all descriptive, and it lacks luster. This is one way you can pep it up.

[b]Exp.[/b] As Tari and Hiriko trudged down the dirt path to the next town, they noticed something in the distance just off the path in the woods that surrounded them. A vicious earth demon had ensnared someone in its vines and was preparing to go in for the kill. In a flash of reflected sunlight, Tari and Hiriko both whipped out thier katana and broadsword and raced towards the attacker, ready to add another name to their long list of slain demons.

See? That's much better. There's more description to it, so you can really get a feel for where you are. It's way more exciting than the first one too. How you describe things and how actions are taken can change your writing dramatically.

The other thing that may make you bad at RP is grammar. I mean would you want to read a post like this:

TAriA nd teh oThers weRe WalKinG dOwn teh raod...

*shudder* That makes you want to claw your own eyes out. When your writing, you need to remember that its not a race. Take time out to check what you type for errors and correct them. Believe me, people appreciate it.

The last thing to watch for is that you stick with the plot. I've seen a bunch of people in past RPGs just go off track completely and take the RPG down with them. Posting regularly to keep up with the rest of the people participating helps prevent this. If you sign up for something, make sure you're going to be able to post [i]at least[/i] every two days, otherwise you [i]will[/i] get left behind. *remembers the old Harry Potter RPGs* -__-''

That's all I can think of that would make you a successful RPGer. Besides that, all you need is a good imagination, and you're set.[/color]

[G/S/B Master]

I am an amatuer at RPG.......Yup...I'm.......that.....inexperience.Well to me i'm inexperienced.I wonder what people think about me.


When I create a RPG my full idea doesn't get on it for some reason....

[Mitch]

[color=red] I'd say I'm maybe a little above average, but I've still got lots of kinks to work out in my writing style until I find it. I really enjoy text-based roleplaying. It allows me to be very creative.[/color]