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 A WHEEL OF TIME COMMUNITY

Intro to RP (October '12 WT) - Lesson Three

claireducky

By claireducky
in The White Tower & Warders

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claireducky Master

claireducky

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Lesson Three: Developing Your Character Through RP

 

Welcome back! Now that you have a character biography written, it is time to start the fun job of RPing with them! Roleplay is how your character grows, changes, learns from experience, and generally becomes a deeper person over time just as we all do in real life. As time goes on, you will find that your character almost has a life of their own; sometimes they will even surprise you with how they react in a certain situation! There have been lots of cases where a writer has had a character change over time into the complete antithesis of what they started out as.

 

What kinds of RP should I do?

 

There are lots of RP opportunities at DM, and each one will offer you and your character new experience and insight. The main types of RP you will see at DM are:

 

Solo-- This is an RP of just one chararcter. Usually this type of RP is good for reflection, meditation, or deep thought on events in the character's life. Significant events can happen in a solo RP; here is an example: Truth In a Dream

 

Training-- In this type of RP, your character either attends a class or simply RPs out training a particular skill(s). Oftentimes, your character will receive credit for successfully completing this type of RP, in the form of a WS increase or a class completion credit. Note that usually you need to sign up or have permission to take the class first. Here is an example: Intro to Saidar (Lesson One)

 

Informal/OPEN-- Many RPs are started with no specific writing partners in mind. In these RPs, anybody who has a reason to be in that place at that time may feel free to join in. This is an excellent way to build your spur of the moment writing skills, and learn to work without an RP outline. Be sure to note any specifics in the RP title that might exclude your character (Open to Novices Only, etc). Here is an example: Fate Decided: Open at a Safe Distince

 

Planned/Small Group-- In this type of RP, the participants plan out the general outline of what will happen before actually writing out the RP with their characters. This is a useful type of RP for achieving specific goals for your character, like meeting a certain person, doing a task, going on a small quest, etc. Here is an example: A Web of Black Silk (Attn: Kathleen)

 

Planned/Large Group-- This is a major RP with many people participating, sometimes across many threads, from different rp groups, and on different board locations. Usually these types of RPs are excellent adventures of Bill & Ted proportions, and are something every character should experience at least once. Here is an example: Murder in the Yards - Murder #9 (This RP spanned several threads, where a murderer was loose in the Warder’s Yards. Eventually a suspect was caught, the evidence was presented, and the people of DM itself voted on the verdict!)

 

Main Plotline-- This is a major RP with many people, similar to the last category. The difference here is that these RPs directly impact or are part of the main plotline at DM that reflects the books of RJ's world. Usually many different RP groups are involved, and the RPs can span many threads over several months. Here is an example: A Routine Patrol? [Watcher's RP]

 

I am of the opinion that you should participate in each one of these types of RP at least once with your character. Trying out different types of RP is an excellent way to expand your understanding of your character and how they handle different situations. In addition to the types of RP I previously listed, there are certain RP scenarios that are good to play out with your character at one point or another. They all help you learn the depths of your character better, for better or for worse. Some RP groups even require you to do some of these RPs in order to fulfill advancement requirements. Here are the ones I recommend:

 

Meet the Neighbors-- In this type of RP, get your character out there and explore your surroundings. Meet new people, whether it be the Novices in the room next to yours, or by sitting down at a tavern somewhere and chatting with the other patrons. How does your character react to meeting strangers? Are they aloof, shy, gregarious, or overbearing?

 

Longing-- This RP focuses mainly on the adjustment your character goes through getting used to their new life. It could be about homesickness, missing a loved one, reminiscing about an old way of life, or friends that have fallen by the wayside.

 

A Stumble-- Not all of your character's life should be smooth sailing. Use this type of RP to help your character meet and overcome (or fail in the face of) an obstacle standing in their way.

 

Transition-- As your character matures and advances in rank, it takes some getting used to new responsibilities. A RP of this sort expresses your character's difficulties adjusting to being older and wiser.

 

Discovery-- Your character sometimes learns surprising things about themselves. RP out this scenario in which your character figures out something good (or bad) that they never realized about themselves before. How do they react to the discovery? For example, an aspring Darkfriend might find themselves disgusted when they realize they have a soft spot for old women and can't bring themselves to torturing them. They "accidently" kill them instead. *grin*

 

There are many other useful and common scenarios for you to try out with your character, but these few will give you a good start with which to expand your character's horizons. If you are searching for more ideas for RPs, try adapting some of the ideas on THIS PAGE to your RP.

 

How do I make my RP interesting?

 

RP is a fulfilling activity for those who are participating and for those who are reading the thread. I know I enjoy nothing more than seeing the finished product of a carefully crafted RP, regardless of whether I took part or not! The two most important things to make your RP both readable and interesting are: Proper Formatting & Using Details

 

Proper Formatting: As I discussed in the last lesson, the most common narrative style for RP at DM is Multiple Narrative mode. To recap, in this style of writing there is a third person omniscient narrator who describes action, motivation, etc in a detached manner as of one watching it all from above. The narrator will sometimes possess information that the character does not have. For example:

 

Claire didn't realize it yet, but what she really needed was a Cinnamon bun.

 

 

To express thought, the narrative usually switches to first person. Most RPers will put thoughts in Italic text to differentiate it from the rest of the post.

 

 

Oh, Light, I could really use a Cinnamon bun right about now!

 

 

For dialogue, the narrative remains from the character's point of view, and is usually surrounded by quotation marks to separate it from the regular narrative.

 

"I am serious, Elgee. If I don't get a Cinnamon bun right now, I might rip someone's fingernails out!"

 

 

In addition to using the proper mode and tense, proper punctuation, spelling and grammar are also important. Break your post into paragraphs instead of having it as one large block of text.

 

Now, I won't pretend to be perfect with my grammar usage So instead I will refer you to Elgee's wonderful thoughts on these issues, because she knows about them so much better than I. A Few Tips on Grammar & Punctuation

 

Using Details: While simplicity is a virtue, it is more interesting to write (and read!) RPs that use details effectively. This means using good basic detailing of your character's actions and the world around them.

 

Unique words add variety (strolled for walked, etc) to the line. Try using a thesaurus to come up with synonyms for words you find yourself using over and over in your posts.

 

It is important for you to give the other participants something to work off of when they post. You want to be as descriptive as possible in your character's posts so that the other's can make their posts as insightful as possible when it comes to your character's thoughts and motivations. For example, a new novice might post something like this upon entering the WT:

 

She waited outside the door. The Aes Sedai opened the door and looked at her. The girl looked up at her and said,

 

"I have come to be tested to become a Novice."

 

 

This isn't very descriptive, and it leaves a lot of burden on the other player's shoulders to figure out what to write in response. You haven't let them know how your character is feeling, what they look like, or any background information about them.Instead, the writer could give them something to work with by posting like this:

 

Patiently, Egwene waited outside the heavy oak door. Finally, it was pulled open by an Aes Sedai, who stared down at her quizzically. Egwene assumed that the woman regarding her like a hawk regards a mouse must be the Mistress of Novices.

 

Timidly, Egwene curtsied to the woman then followed her inside. After a few minutes left squirming while the Aes Sedai looked over some paper or another on the desk, finally Egwene was allowed to speak.

 

She smoothed her chestnut hair over her shoulder, and tried to collect herself. After traveling this far, she didn't want to be turned away. Her family was counting on her. After what seemed like forever, Egwene felt calm enough to speak what had been on her mind the whole time she was following the Accepted to this room.

 

"I have come to be tested as a Novice, if it please the Light. I have dreamed of nothing else since I met a Blue sister as a child. My family lost our home in a fire recently; everyone survived because an Aes Sedai was in the town and healed the injured. I vowed to serve the Light as an Aes Sedai in thankfulness for that. Please do not turn me away."

 

In this example, the writer gives the other player (in this case the Mistress of Novices) a lot to work with. She now knows that the novice has brown hair, that she is feeling rather insecure, and that she has some traumatic times in her recent past. This will allow her to write a better post in response.

 

Do Your Research!

 

Adding other descriptive details in your RPs will make them enjoyable to read. If your character has a noble upbringing, they might know some of the Old Tongue. Why not use a bit of it in your posts? If your character is skilled with a bow, do a bit of research about archery and perhaps bow making. Here are several sources specific to the WoT world that will be very helpful to you in your RP journeys:

 

– Old Tongue Dictionary: HERE

-- Places In WoT: HERE

– Sword Forms: HERE

– All around WoT info site: HERE

– Our RP boards contain tons of RP threads for those who'd like to see what we've been up to.

– The Concordance contains everything you'll ever need to know about the Wheel of Time.

 

 

Common RP Mistakes

 

In brief, I will just cover a few of the common RP mistakes that people occasionally make at DM. If you have done one of these things in the past, don’t fret…it happens. Just use this as a guideline to make yourself a better RPer.

 

Avoid Godding: Plain and simple, this means don’t RP your character doing anything they should *not* be able to do (cast Balefire, Dreamwalk without the approved Talent, beat impossible odds in a fight, generally be amazing in every way possible).

 

Don’t be a Mary Sue: A Mary Sue (also sometimes called a Betty) is a character who is not quite Godding, but still has it pretty good in every way. Nothing goes wrong for these characters, they always have every hair in place, are never taken aback or unpleasantly surprised. Alternatively, they could be a totally tragic character for whom everything is woeful and never goes right. As we have discussed before, a balance of good and bad in your character’s experiences is a GOOD thing.

 

Hands to yourself!: Don’t RP other character’s actions. Try to remember that the other characters are being played by real people too. If you are RPing that you blew up a house next to an Aes Sedai, don’t put in your post that she ran away screaming like a harridan afterwards. Let the person playing them decide how their character reacts. If it is small things, like somebody nodding or waving hello to you, you generally can go ahead and write that in your plot. Just make sure that you discuss anything else with the people you are RPing with.

 

Enough is enough!: Know when to end a thread. I know it is tempting sometimes to get caught up in endless threads about dancing with women in taverns, or pulling a prank on an Aes Sedai…but use your discretion. At some point, there is no new drama, no new material that can really add anything to a thread, and you are stuck RP spamming about how your dance partner’s bosom bounces or something.

 

Plan it out! We will discuss planning more in the next lesson, but for now be aware that most failed threads (IE those that die out before completion) are due to poor planning on the part of the participants.

 

Lesson Three Wrap Up

 

This concludes Lesson Three. In our next lesson we will talk about planning an RP, and then you will be paired up to plan and execute an RP on the Rev One boards. Homework for this lesson: POP QUIZ! Take this short quiz (it’s only 3 questions!) If you have questions about this lesson, please feel free to post them as well.

Daruya Spam Master

Daruya

Posted
Posted

I'm going to have to do this lesson later. I have a raging headache right now, plus I have a meeting to go to.

 

Something tells me I want/need to read this lesson without the raging headache, anyway! I just wish I could go to the meeting without the raging headache . . . *sigh*

 

Come on, migraine meds, do your thing, please!

_CLOUD Veteran

_CLOUD

Posted
Posted

^ hahaha xD

 

On a more serious note, migraine is horrible, one of my best friend used to have them a lot. I heard it's genetically transferable.

blank Grand Master

blank

Posted
Posted

I submitted la form, managed not to tick the badass box.

 

Hope your migraine gets better Daruya.

 

Hope your moving went well Claire.

 

See y'all lesson four :biggrin:

Daruya Spam Master

Daruya

Posted
Posted

The Old Tongue dictionary link takes me to a blank "Untitled document." :sad:

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