New Player Roleplay Guide

New Player Roleplay Guide​

This guide is provided to help users new to roleplay or who are not familiar with Discord-based roleplay acquaint themselves with our systems. Experienced players may want to skim the document to get an understanding of how things are done here, since some items may be new or non-standard.

Do not bring past characters with character development from other servers. We prefer you start a fresh character to begin your development.

Getting Started​

Welcome to World of Balaria! We're glad you've decided to join our community. We understand that getting started in an established community is never easy, but don't let that deter you from getting involved. We've provided these guides to help make your onboarding process easier. Staff and players are always willing to help newcomers, so don't be afraid to reach out and ask! Browsing our forums to get familiar with the current factions and houses is a great way to find more organized places for RP.

Please note that whilst research does assist in some roleplay, make sure to use words that most people would understand. Using armor or weapons during combat roleplay should not get overly complicated with details. Try focusing more on how your character moves rather than what they wear. If your character has or does something obscure that's not well known, please describe it to the nearby participants in the roleplay so they may understand what you are trying to do.

Character Creation​

• Character Sheets: Once you have been approved, making a character sheet is an important tool to help yourself and others become more acquainted with your character. Several templates have been provided, but you are welcome to build your own too! If you would like to submit a template for use, post the blank template and then ask staff to pin it.
• Playable Races: Please review our lore for a list of approved playable species. If you would like to play a species that's not on this list, select "Other" in your application and fill in the text field that appears with the name of the species. Use the More Info box at the bottom to describe the species in further detail, if necessary. Please note that we cannot accommodate all requests.

Magic​

• Magic is not known for new characters. It must be explored in roleplay. You may not start off with magic.

Basics of Chat​

• Using ( ) for OOC chat: During roleplay, if you need to say something OOC (Out of Character) and are posting as a character with Tupper, please use ( ) so as not to confuse the other roleplayers and keep it separate. Try not to spam roleplays with too much (OOC) and instead use the OOC channels if need be.
• Roleplay Style: Two styles of roleplay are generally accepted: script style and writing style. While you may choose between these, be sure to remain consistent so as not to add confusion.
  • In Script style, use * * for actions and do not decorate speech. Example: *He drinks his ale noisily* Just like mother used to make!
  • In writing style, use " " for speech and do not decorate actions. Example: He drinks his ale noisily. "Just like mother used to make!"
• Use { } for thoughts: Like actions, thoughts help make roleplay more in depth and interesting. However, it is important to remember that you cannot hear the thoughts of other players and expressing thoughts is more for OOC character development. Acting on the unspoken thoughts of others is considered metagaming. Example: {I wonder who ate all the donuts....}
• General Roleplay Chat: Be thoughtful of what type of language you use for roleplay chat. Things like modern slang, "c u laterz," and smilies are heavily discouraged. Characters may speak differently in regards to their education, race, and socialization. Adding these details keeps roleplay immersed and detailed.
• Using Languages: The Lands of the Old Faith are home to many different races and cultures, some that come with their own language. While a new character can start out with a reasonable knowledge of language, taking time in game to learn them legitimately is always encouraged. When speaking with a different language in roleplay chat, please use <language: text>. This informs people nearby that you are speaking a different language and they can react appropriately with their character. Some will understand what you say and others won't.
  • Common (English) does not need a language tag. Feel free to omit it. All characters start with fluency in Common.
  • Some species have a native language. Members of that species start with fluency in that language.
  • If your character does not legitimately know a language, you cannot use the information to your advantage. This is considered metagaming.

Basics of Roleplay​

Most of this is general knowledge, but the following needs to be kept in consideration whether roleplaying among a large group of people or in small private roleplays.

First and foremost is respect for the other. Whether it's respect for the other person(s) or event you're participating in, this aspect cannot be ignored. This includes a variety of things such as waiting for a response after an action, keeping roleplays realistic and reasonable, discussing vital points in OOC beforehand, and even joining into certain roleplays going on around you. Other important aspects of respectful roleplay behavior are the following two points: being OP and metagaming.

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Section 1: Quality of Roleplay
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Your quality of roleplay will make you unique as a roleplayer by stating that you can provide an immersive, interesting experience and that you take care in the quality and effort you put into your emotes.

Part 1: Being Descriptive​

Being descriptive is extremely important to good RP. It immerses you more than simple, vague sentences and allows you to see the situation in a clearer light. This applies for CRP and normal RP.

• Example of a non-descriptive emote: They walked into the clearing on a sunny day.
• Example of a descriptive emote: As they entered the clearing, the group could note that it was a bright, clear day. The sun shone down between the trees, casting rays of light around them. The grass was a bright, healthy green.
• Example of a non descriptive combat emote: He saw the man who made him angry and walked up, swinging at him.
• Example of a descriptive combat emote: Spotting the man who had caused so much harm, Linus straightened his back and approached the figure. Weapon already drawn, he held the grip two-handedly, before suddenly turning into a horizontal cleave with the sword, aiming to hit his torso!

It makes quite a bit of difference to add detail and context to your emotes. Stating their expression, body language, and detailed descriptions of what they’re doing. It is the difference between lower and higher quality of roleplay.

Part 2: RP Etiquette​

When in roleplay, you want to make sure you’re contributing to an immersive environment for yourself and those around you. Here are some things to look out for.

• Paying Attention - It is important to watch and read over each emote that is sent and respond accordingly. Much of the time it is noted that people do not read every emote, or respond to every emote; and it is good etiquette to make sure you’re responding - whether it be a GM or another player.
• Ask Questions - If you’re new at roleplay and/or CRP, it’s okay! There is nothing wrong with being new or not understanding. The best course of action is to simply ask how to do something, whether it be the person you’re roleplaying with or a staff member. Simply message them or talk in local chat and say “Hey, I don’t understand (so and so) can you tell me how to do it?” or “Hey, I’m new and don’t understand what that means or how to do that.” I know for certain that the vast majority would be willing to teach and aid you!
• Stop moving! - Another part of RP etiquette is to remain still whilst RP is happening and stand as your character would stand. I understand that it may be tempting to sprint or jump around, but it can be very distracting and not immersive to others. Whilst RP is in session, I recommend staying still and RPing, or going elsewhere if you’re unable to stay still. This is referred to as “Moving OOCly” which means moving your character around whilst RP is happening. This is VERY important not to do when in a situation with a GM, an event - or combat in general with another player. It can make things upsetting or unfair to others if you’re moving around without emoting it, or run away without emoting it. If you want to move, emote, and allow the other players or the GM time to reply to it accordingly. Otherwise stay still unless you emote!

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Section 2: Understanding Metagaming, Powergaming and Over-Powered Characters
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OP (Over-powered) Characters:​

These are never fun for anyone, including the roleplayer of the OP character. Nothing will keep good RP away from you quicker than playing a character who always has to win or take center stage. While it's always a good feeling to have your character be victorious over someone or something, keep in mind that everyone generally wants that, but we don't always get it. Just like in real life, characters have limitations, and they make the roleplay more interesting in the end.

That doesn't mean you lose every time, but that you can take hits and damage as well as dole it out. On the opposite end, playing a non-powerful character can often bring unexpectedly amazing roleplay that you would have missed out on otherwise.

Examples of Powergaming:

• Having imaginary guards/followers/friends that protect or give information to you is a form of powergaming (and metagaming in some cases).
• Using "power phrases", like he bashed his shield forward flinging his opponent's sword away from them and into the grass. This removes the other player's choice of what would happen when the power-gamer thrusts his shield forward.

Metagaming in Roleplay:​

While it's hard to know something in OOC and not have your character know it in RP, nothing is more frustrating than a metagamer. This means not incorporating information you know to your character's advantage. Some people prefer not to know things OOC to prevent temptation, and if you feel equally tempted, then we suggest the same route. If you can handle it, great! But keep the two separate in an effort to keep roleplay realistic and unspoiled.

Hearing about an attack on a town or a planned secret event over Discord, on the forums, or anything other than in roleplay and reacting in roleplay is metagaming. The one exception is the organized events section. Any event posted there unless stated otherwise is common knowledge.

Examples of Metagaming:

• Knowing someone when their appearance has changed to mask their character, such as calling someone out or attacking someone who is wearing a disguise. They must be treated as a stranger until some other information or identifying mark becomes known in RP.
• Knowing a character by the name next to their post. That name isn't there in roleplay. You need to meet the character before knowing them. An exception would be that they are famous, like a Bishop, a legendary warrior, or someone oft spoken of and described.
• Being aware of who killed someone when no one witnessed it. The same goes for remembering your own murderer. You might remember them as a friend from before they double-crossed you or as a shady guy in a bar, but you would have no knowledge of their killing you.
• Knowing about a dangerous person or pathway from someone telling you OOCly is also metagaming. You might get attacked or even die, but avoiding the RP is metagaming.
• Got caught in a fight? Don't call on your friends to save you. This is metagaming and will completely ruin the roleplay if your friends appear for no reason to save the day.

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Section 3: Combat RP Rules
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Firstly, if you have not and are interested in learning about CRP and how it works, where to start, and how to become better at it, go read my Comprehensive CRP Guide. The Guide has almost everything you will need to know about CRP!

Points to Remember:​

You are not invincible! The title of this one may sound odd - but it is true! You are not invincible. No character played is actually invincible or unable to be hurt entirely, as that would make things quite unbalanced and unfair, along with not being realistic. You’ll need to understand that your character was not born knowing how to fight, wield weapons, or magic. They do not suddenly enter the world and understand how to fight as a brand new character. These things should be exclusively learned through RP! Anything is achievable by simply working on it and practicing in RP. It is highly recommended to start your character as not knowing how to fight and build and gain experience as you go through RP. When you create your character, you may state their backstory as you wish, though, in my personal opinion you shouldn’t add combat to your backstory unless you are actually experienced OOC! It is much more fun to start out new and gain experience and learn as you go, whether this be by yourself or from a mentor in RP. Another crucial part of learning CRP, and RP in general, is understanding that your character is not invincible. Your character can be hit, harmed, wounded, and should be! These are all parts of gaining experience and an interesting story. These all become part of who your character is. This leads us to my next section.

The Importance of Balance - Within roleplay, especially CRP, it is very important that balance is maintained and kept for the fairness of yourself and other players. This means understanding that your character will and should get hit when applicable and you shouldn’t brush off the consequences of your actions. It also means you should react accordingly when hit.

Learning about your weapon - When you are participating in CRP, and you are not familiar with your weapon, a good way to improve your quality and learn - is just to google it! Look up and research a little about how your weapon works, stances for it, and other related information. Even if you do not spend much time on it, you can still learn and improve.

The rest of what you need to know is covered in depth in my CRP Guide as listed above. Please be sure to look through it!

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Section 4: Roleplay DO’s and DO-NOT’s!
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There are some things to avoid doing, or to ensure you do correctly as you hop into the world of roleplay. These things have been learned over time by more experienced roleplayers. If you are concerned about doing these things by accident, have no fear! I will list a few things to do, and to not do during and around roleplay.

Part 1: Roleplay DO-NOT’s​

Backstory: Part of making an interesting character is the backstory. You can make an interesting and unique personality for your character based on backstory, and then grow and develop your character from there. Something commonly seen with newer roleplayers is a very genetic backstory. An example of another type of unacceptable backstory is one that doesn’t make sense with the setting.

Prompt: A character in a medieval fantasy setting.

• Example of a good backstory:

Elistre is a High Elf who was born quite far from any town or city, far from the nations that are in place. She was born in a small cottage, and spent most of her time outdoors. None of her family were nobility, as such, she found herself simply enjoying the outdoors as she grew up…. (and so on)

• Example of a not so good backstory:

Bill Nye the fourth was a scientist from outer space. He enjoyed frolicking on the moon at times, and arrived in his spaceship, crashing straight into the High Elven city.

• Example of a generic backstory:

Jane was born in a small village. Her father was a blacksmith. One day, a horde of Orcs invaded the village and burned it down. Jane ran away into the forest. She later grew up training to get revenge on the Orcs that killed her family.

As you can tell, the second backstory does not make sense to the setting whatsoever, and the third backstory is very generic and low effort.

Not being thoughtful of others: When it comes to roleplay, behind each character is an actual person. It is important to be thoughtful of others when you roleplay and not be unnecessarily harsh with your decisions, even if it is in roleplay. If, over an argument, you decide to kill off someone’s character permanently that they’ve had for years, this could be an example of not being respectful of others feelings. Another example would be say, if someone was attempting to learn CRP, and instead of helping them move forward and teaching them while you are in combat with them, being demeaning or talking down to them. This also could mean things such as caring more about “winning” in combat scenarios rather than keeping others in mind.
Fail RP: Fail RP is when a person fails to roleplay properly, whether that be through going down an unrealistic route in history or intentionally disrupting the roleplay by trolling. This is something you want to avoid in order to provide a better experience for those around you.
Taking IC into OOC: Taking roleplay into OOC or out of character means for example, getting angry at someone out of character for something they did in character. Starting drama, making comments or so on because of an action that happened, or invoking an argument out of character for it can be considered taking IC into OOC. This is unnecessary and tends to cause unneeded drama - the best course is to keep roleplay in roleplay.

Part 2: Roleplay DO’s​

• Be Welcoming: Try to be kind to other new roleplayers, or any people in general you interact with. It provides a much nicer, happier atmosphere for roleplay rather than excluding others from your RP if you do not have a good reason for it.
• Respect Boundaries: If someone tells you they are uncomfortable with something happening, even if it is in RP, the correct thing to do is change course. Allow them to either change up the roleplay, or walk away from it all together with no hard feelings.
• Be Creative: Don’t be afraid to be creative! While you need to stick to the guidelines/setting of the server you’ve joined, you should set out to make your character and actions unique and engaging. Be creative with what you do and your character's goals.
• Communicate: Be sure to communicate situations rather than assuming. If you’re confused about what someone meant, how they are speaking, or what they are trying to do - especially in combat scenarios, be sure to communicate and ask! This also applies if you feel something is unfair or overpowered. Ask if that is how they meant it, and discuss your feelings with them. This is a much better way to solve a situation and make it go smoothly rather than arguing or later stating they were unfair.

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Section 5: Conclusion
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All in all the best way to become a more experienced roleplayer is, well, experience! Hop into roleplay and be creative, have fun, while keeping others in mind. Regardless of type of roleplay, you will learn as you go and improve. Practice makes perfect; so don’t worry about being perfect right away!

- Guide by Coffee