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On a side note, I miss Spook.

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From: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/2228227953

RP Basics: Character Personality
For those who are just starting out with new characters or those of us who sometimes have a hard time flipping from one character to another, there's a bit of a trick to helping flesh this out: Character Diamonds.

Each person and each character has solid traits that are unbending and unyielding. These are qualities that will stick with them at their very core. Some "buzzwords" that could be used are things like "passionate" and "assertive". These are more of the sort of things that won't alter with most moods or situations as easily as others, such as "nervous" or "afraid".

There are a few ways to go through the process. One method is to pick how your character relates to four major things that are important to him/her. An example given by David Bowers in the All The World's a Stage column on WoW Insider was "self, time, work, and others." As well, Bowers went on to mention that it could also be taken from a more WoW-oriented perspective, speaking towards the four areas of race, uniqueness, professional, and quirky.

For those who would be more comfortable just starting with a giant list and weeding through to organize, the website Dramatis Personae advocates just that very method. Write down a list of fifty or so traits you see in your character. Once you have your fifty, begin to organize and separate them, sweeping them into the "corners" of the diamond. An example would be something such as "trustworthy" and "loyal". Once you can separate them into the four areas, go through and remove ones that might seem a bit redundant. Further paring will let you see what the gist of that corner of the diamond is, and gives you one of their core traits.

Regardless of method, your ultimate goal is to get to know your character and what will help breathe life into them. We may all only have a given number of hairstyles, faces, and outfits to choose from in WoW, but what you're really seeking for good roleplay goes beyond game parameters; it goes beyond what you can see, and into what you create in your mind. Working on the core of your creation will help you achieve that goal.


Peace, Love, and Lok'tar,
~Bells




For more information on Character Diamonds, please visit:

Dramatis Personae - Character Diamonds: http://lore.dramatis-personae.com/creation/diamond.php

WoW Insider - All the World's a Stage: Character Diamonds: http://wow.joystiq.com/2008/05/25/all-the-worlds-a-stage-character-diamonds/

There are a couple of mechanical things for RP that I found useful to consider before getting started. Most of this was already covered in the original post, but here it is in video guide format:

Guide to Roleplay - 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNshd44NN0w&feature=related
(Pretty basic visual stuff to get the "look" of your character.)
Guide to Roleplay - 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqTAM9Aej6I
(This is where I first heard about the double-bracket style for speaking out of character. It came in handy the very first time I logged on. Hurray!)
Guide to Roleplay - 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=spjM9RLylMI&feature=related
(Building a profession into your character - both through add-ons as well as the in-game profession leveling system)
Getting a job on a roleplaying server
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_UvtN1-O2k

Especially the last two were fun ideas to consider. Rather than being a mage first with a hobby as a tailor, maybe the character is a tailor. Maybe you roll a warrior, but choose to play it as a master blacksmith. I had not considered this, but these videos at least opened up the possibility.

I'm a brand new RPer to WoW, I've been doing table top games for awhile. Thank you for putting this up, I can't wait to roll a new char!

For more RP info we also have: http://sistersofelune.net geared more towards the RP Community.

Here is the short short version:

This is a guide we used in the previous RPG we played. The basics are still the same, but the application with WoW game mechanics is a bit different. Regardless for getting started it can help quite a bit.

So you want to know how to roleplay, huh? Well it isn't as simple as you might think. Many people think they know how to do it when the really only know how to emote and try to pass it off as roleplay. Here I will "try to explain how I roleplay whenever I go through an average day among the roleplaying community.

Names
Just because you see someone's name on screen DOES NOT mean that your character can automatically assume their name. If you do this, you will have to think up a nutsy reason off the top of your head as to how you know who they are, and tend to tuirn off other RPers. What you want to do, overall, is wait for the character to introduce themselves to you. That is like giving you permission to call them by their name, and the same goes for any title they might have. Your character only knows WHAT HE/SHE HAS BEEN TOLD, so keep that in mind. If you are in close proximity and over hear a person being addressed by name that is another way to learn it, it is recommended you clarify how you found the person name out if you approach the RPer.

Titles
The very same rules apply to character titles as well, you don't know unless you are told, so don't start assuming that about them as well. Please, DO NOT make some idea up like "I read so on your badge" because you read their TRP etc. or saw a title attached to their name above their head. You do not know if they are wearing a badge or not unless it is posted in their description.

Metagaming
You are surrounded by bad guys, and you need help. Calling for help with a whisper or IM or using guild messages shouldn't and isn't a legit reason for help to come find you. You can try and have your character "scream" and then ask anyone in your local area if they "heard" your scream. Other than that, those are your only options. You want to do most of your roleplay in game. Also, you can not use OOC information with your character. So if someone warns you that the enemy is coming over whisper or IM/Guild Chat, your character can't start getting prepared IG.

Godmoding
Someone is horribly hurt and screaming in agony, you cannot just walk up to that person and "heals her/him and he/she feels better" and then just walk away. That is forcing actions upon another and taking control of situations that he cannot have control of. Godmoding, also, is failure to cooperate with fellow roleplayers and having your character do whatever they seem to please. Nobody is a god in this community, and if you want to have fun with roleplay you will respect your fellow roleplayers. If you respect them, they will respect you. Take this for example:

Viloche: *Stands behind you with a great sword to your neck.*
Tefnet: *Holds still, unmoving, and puts her hands in the air where he can see them*
Viloche: Good, now let us head to the prison for questioning.
Tefnet: *Eminates a chilling aura around her*
Viloche: *His palm is caught in it! Stunned, he drops his kryss to the ground*

This also falls into the scenarios where people claim to have arrived even before they enter a building. If you are on the second floor of a citadel and Ithaas blinks to the center of the screen. You cannot just have your character get up and say "Hey, Ithaas is here." You have no idea that they are approaching the location, with you in your secluded location.

Crisis
A little crisis plot around one person never hurts, but to have it happen a lot, tends to get on peoples nerves. If someone has a problem everyday, then others will not tend to care as much as if they were say to have a crisis, say onece every two months. Absence makes the heart grow fonder (please pardon the cliche).

PVP
If you must Roleplay out a confrontation, do so courteously. I would suggest a whisper to agree on terms before engaging in this type of RP and how attacks and counters may work, for example rolls or to just RP it out. Keep in mind that no one is infallable and to realistically engage in battle people will take hits et.c or be able to doge and so on. Keep it fair and if you are new it never hurts to ask about what the other player may find acceptable.

Dropping Guilds/RP's
If everyone threatened to quit a guild or RP if they did not get their own way, than we wouldn't have any guilds or RP. It is more respectable to go to an individual or leadership and explain why you are upset and attempt to work it out. Now, not all situations may be corrected, but hopefully an understanding can be made or people can agree to disagree. Sometimes it is best to walk away and others after discussion things get sorted out. The best thing to do is COMMUNICATE!

And more for the short short version:

Some quick definitions:

RP – roleplaying. Acting out the part of a character who “lives” in Azeroth, rather than behaving as yourself.

ERP - Stands for erotic roleplay, not all players engage in this activity. However, it doesn't hurt to know what it means. An IC version of cybersex. Keep in mind doing this type of RP is a violation of the Terms of Use per Blizzard.

Char/Toon – abbreviation for character/reference to a character.

IG – in game, playing WoW.

RL – real life, also abbreviated IRL for in real life.

IC – in character. The act of RPing your char.

OOC – out of character. Not RPing your char, acting as your normal self

Metagaming – Using OOC knowledge that you personally have, but your char does not have IC, to take action IC. This is highly frowned upon. For example, if you are meeting a character IG for the first time, you do not know their name until introductions are made, you overhear someone speaking of them, or (like Tamz of Rangers of Alterac) because they are well known on the server. Your char can’t actually see their name floating over their head, nor can you tell what guild they are in unless they are wearing a uniform badge or have things in their TRP or MRP does not mean you know them, take the time to start conversation where introductions can be made.

Godmoding – Sometimes used as a synonym for meta-gaming, but it also means RPing in such a way that your char is invincible or invulnerable to check or attack. This is an extremely bad thing to do, and probably one of the worst mistakes one can make in RP. For example, you are not god-like, with all knowing, all seeing, and all powerful abilities. IF you RP this way, especially during a RP fight, this is how you will be perceived. So if someone "Charges at you with his blade" and you sidestep or avoid each time, it could be considered godmoding. A lot of people use rolls to avoid such. So keep that in mind.

Know Your Lore:
WoWPedia
WoWWiki
Dramatis Personae

All the above sites are your friend and a good resource, also pool the community, there is RPChatter on Horde and Alliance for RPers to communicate. When in doubt ask if you do not understand another person's RP.

There is also sistersofelune.net for Roleplayers as well to post stories and network, these abridged version are posted there as well along with guides for RPing various races and classes.

Add Ons:
MRP*
TRP2 (has integrated Gryphen Heart Items and other features)*
Tounges
FlagRSP*
(*Not all of these work together the same way and may not have all the capabilities or share information the way the others do, it boils down to personal preference). Those are just a few add on's that many roleplayers use to connect and identify each other as well as interact.

Add Ons can be found via Curse.com and WowMatrix.com, there are other sites but those two as far as I know are the most used.Basically, don’t act like a jerk and use common sense Again, just use common sense. *grin*

Text or Chat Based Roleplay

This area is where some people get stuck and chat RP's are different depending on the guild or channel used for them. Some may have a setting like a guild hall while others do via a type of communication device. Either way, all the basic RP rules/guides still apply. The big difference is you are not face to face in a sense but in an IC channel and doing more text based RP.

Some add-on's automatically differentiate an emote versus what is said in channels, if you do not have one that does this, a common way of depicting an emote would be something like: *Symeon rummages through his backpack looking for food for his comrades*

By adding the asterisks it separates the emote from normal text, thus getting your message across in the manner to which you intend. You do not have to use an asterisk, some people prefer dashes instead. Both accomplish the same thing. Using parentheses would also show an OOC comment as it would in game.

Here are some examples of chat based RP in a location setting:

Player One: Greeting everyone! *smiling at everyone present as they enter the guild hall* How do all of you fare this fine day.
Player Two: Doing well, it is nice to see you join us, what brings you here so early. *looks at Player One patiently awaiting a response*
Player One: I felt I would get an early start and see who was about to go adventuring with me. I was planning a venture to the Alterac Mountains.
Player Three: *walks in stretching and yawning* Did I overhear a trip to the Alterac Mountains?
Player Two: Yes, Player One was asking if some of us wanted to go. I'm in you should go too.

Here are some examples of chat based RP in a communication setting:

Player One: *taps gnomish com-link to test it* Is anyone out there?
Player Two: I am, are you en route to our rendezvous point?
Player One: Indeed I am. *the rumbling of their mechano-hog can be heard through the com-link* I should arrive shortly I just drove through the Crossroads.
Player Two: Very good, I will see you there all our preparations are already in place for our operation.
Player One: See you soon, let hope this goes smoothly. *turns off com-link as they drive to their destination*

Both of the above examples show how you can RP while questing etc. in a channel and enjoy the game more fully. If anyone else has tips to add please do. This is only a general and basic way to approach this form of RP