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 Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 1:55 pm
If you're tired of being excluded from role plays because you're not considered Literate, this is where you belong! This is a crash course into How To Become Literate. ( Please keep in mind that these are just the basics and this is no way a complete and thorough guide. If you have comments or suggestions, please feel free to post/PM me. ) ___________________________________________________ Quote: Definition of Literate Quote: LITERATE means using correct punctuation- periods, question marks, commas, quotations, etc. It also means using very FEW one-liners and being descriptive. That's the short of it! As it's already stated, you must use periods at the end of your sentences, quotations to denote when someone is speaking, italics to denote private thoughts, and so on. But being literate means a bit more. Being literate means creating a new paragraph for a different speaker, (for instance if you have two characters who are speaking together), and it also includes spelling words out. This means that " chat speak" is NOT allowed! Chat speak is what you would use in an e-mail or instant message: Quote: Example of Chat Speak:yo, waz up? R u like, ok? brb ... ttyl ... lol ..., etc. Chat speak is only acceptable in ooc, (out of character). - Some people put more emphasis on spelling than others. Spelling is certainly very important. Some people accept occasional typos or misspellings, while others won't tolerate it at all. It depends on who's RP you are joining. Either way it's a good idea to type up your posts in word and use the spell check before you post it on Gaia. Quote: Abbreviations ooc - out of character. Always denote when you are speaking in ooc! The most common way is by putting your ooc comments in between double parentheses, (( )), though some prefer to post "OOC:" before their comments. In addition, OOC should be kept to an absolute minimum! It's better to PM someone or take it an OOC thread rather than post OOC in a RP thread/forum.RP - role play. That should be obvious to anyone.npc - non-playable character. Npc's are characters that have relatively no use. Sometimes an npc boils down to someone who would rarely get a chance to post, or someone who is mentioned, but not involved in the plot, (such as parents of a character who live somewhere else, or a missing princess that no one can find.) Those are the most often used abbreviations.
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Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 2:02 pm
Quote: Creating Your Characters Believe it or not, how you build your character has a lot to do with being literate, and there are several things you should take into consideration when putting together your profiles. For instance, age. Often people enjoy choosing an age for their character near to their own age, or the age they would like to be. However, keep in mind that mastering certain skills such as archery, swordsmanship, marital arts, magic, etc. would take years. So if you want your character to be an expert swordsman, try making him/her 25+ years instead of 16, 17, or 18. Also there are races that age slowly, such as elves. If your character can be classified as a "slow ager", post what age your character really is and how old they look. My elf may look 18, but she could really be 215 years old. See what I mean? Powers. Powers are very important! Literate role players understand that their characters have to have weaknesses, as well as strengths. A character should always have JUST AS MANY weaknesses, or MORE as they do strengths. Literate role players also limit the number and magnitude of powers they give their characters. They understand the need for other role players and characters, and that their character cannot fix or solve or save everyone, every time or everywhere. This is where god-moding and auto-hits come in. Quote: God-moding - playing your character as though he or she can never die, never get hurt, manages to save or destroy something every time, has all knowledge, etc. You must realize that you are in a role play, not creating your own short story. Thus, each member of the role play must be allowed to be the hero/heroine, or villain/villainess at times as well. Auto-hits - An auto-hit is where when two or more characters are fighting, the attacking character doesn’t give the other character a chance to block, strike back, or avoid the attack. More specifically, I could state: Athaele swung low while Drualt was distracted and she cut off his legs. Unless Drault is your character, you cannot state the fate of the other character, (cutting off his legs). If the blow is deserved, and if the other role player is literate, they will recognize your swing and take injury, but the extent of the injury is up to them. (I hope this isn’t confusing.)God-moding and auto-hits are never tolerated! You must respect the genre, (setting, topic, and era), of the RP. If you are in a medieval RP, you cannot waltz in wearing jeans and carrying a gun. If you’re not sure what the genre includes, either stick to the basics or don’t be afraid to ask. Being literate doesn’t always mean knowing the smaller details. And most often you can pick up the assortment of clothing and weaponry after a few posts.
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Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 2:03 pm
Quote: Creating Your Own Rp Title is a very important aspect of your very own role play. Often your title is what attracts people to your role play. Titles such as Forest Rp, aren't sufficient. Give it a name; a name that has to do with your setting, plot, or character(s.) Another thing when setting up your role play: there are certain settings that are considered cliche, over done, such as forests, taverns, and castles. You can in fact have a great literate role play in one of those settings, but often literate role players shy away from those. So what else is there? Think outside of the box! Try the markets of a crowded town or village, or down a street in a town, a ruined castle or city, the shore of a lake or a creek, perhaps a cavern? Most importantly, be descriptive! Let people know exactly what you see when imagine this place. ______________________
In A Role Play exclaim Never fail to read the rules! Never! It doesn't matter if you join on page one, or page 15. READ THE RULES! Often each role play has specific rules of their own, besides the basics. exclaim Something to keep in mind in a role play is that they can often move fast. Don't let the speed keep your from spending sufficient time on reading each and every post. In fact, if after your post you realize you have proceeded to the next page, go back to be sure you didn't miss someone's post. It can become very confusing and frustrating if you're not sure where you are or what the others are talking about. And for those that may be separated from the "group" in the rp, it becomes frustrating because his/her posts may be overlooked, or ignored. exclaim No body likes being ignored or left out. If you see a character that is a having a rough time getting involved, try to find a way to involve that person yourself. Sometimes you have to be the one to take charge. exclaim BE PATIENT! It can take a while to post, especially if your post is long. And if someone has to step out for a while, try not to over-write their character, leave their character behind, or act irrationally while that person is away. For example, imagine that you are part of hunting group, on the trail of a beautiful and rare stag and someone has to leave just as the group gets a glimpse of the stag. In context, would you all sit around and chat randomly, or continue after the stag? You would continue after the stag. So if someone had to leave right when you got a glimpse of the stag, don't post things about sitting around and chatting and waiting. Either be silent and wait for the leader or whomever to return, or find something useful to post.
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Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 2:04 pm
Introducing Your Character This is short, but very important! There are good ways to introduce your character, and then there are bad ways. Quote: john doe A man shrouded in his pitch black cloak stood leaning against the wall in the dark corner of the tavern. His face is covered in shadow and only a pair of cold, pale grey eyes are visible. idiot A tall, dark, and handsome, expert archer walked into the tavern and noticed the dark figure in the corner. "Hi! Why are you standing alone in the dark?" I have seen this done over and over again, and it can be one of the most annoying things to encounter in a role play. Why do you think he's standing all alone, in the dark, dressed in black??! If you want to talk to him, wait. Let him/her make a couple more posts; wait to see if they announce through narrative why their character is in the corner. Besides, people like that are often in dark corners because they want to be left alone or try to remain unseen, unnoticed. Here's how you could go about it: Quote: john doe A man shrouded in his pitch black cloak stood leaning against the wall in the dark corner of the tavern. His face is covered in shadow and only a pair of cold, pale grey eyes are visible. literate role player Drault entered through the heavy tavern door shivering, letting a small flurry of snow waft in with him. He peers over the room and its occupants closely and chooses a seat by the warm hearth, rubbing his hands together fervently. After ordering his dinner, Drault took another look around the tavern and was able to discern a dark figure standing in the back corner. His curiosity peaked, but he remembered the phrase his mother used to tell him, "Curiosity killed the cat," a prophecy that he had barely escaped several times before. And then after a few more posts between the both of you, you may find your chance to directly introduce yourself.
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Posted: Thu Feb 15, 2007 2:05 pm
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Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2007 1:27 pm
Interesting..but I've seen this in so many places.
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