@CA: That's fine I'm in no rush anyway so just take your time. I know how hard it is to come up with a plot so I won't bother you about it. I still have class for the most part so I still have things to keep me busy, well until next week when I get my incredibly long two day spring break.
@RaN: That's different because you guys are able to respawn immediately in that. A loss really carries no more consequence than a round of Halo. In a tradition RP, a character could potentially die forever because of a loss. This would obviously be a source of some friction.
@CA: Yeah, that's more the sort of thing I'm talking about. When the winners are already determined, you can focus more on flow of the combat and making it an interesting read rather than trying to continually one-up the other guy. Really, anytime character loss is introduced to a roleplay it should be discussed ahead of time, just so no one really has any reason for sore feelings later.
Loss is a powerful tool for drama and character. Without it, characters are just blindly stumbling to victory over impossible odds on a regular basis. However, it requires a degree of separation between the character and the writer since no person would honestly say they enjoy losing.
Romance...that's rocky territory. I've had RP romances in my former days, but I was a hormonal teenager with no concept of good writing. Let's just say that exploring anything beyond base physical interaction was not something that crossed our minds.
I've never attempted a true character romance in an RP that explored both the emotional ramifications and the physical attraction. It just seems like something that would only come off as an intrusive aside without a large amount of restraint and genuinely subtle writing on both sides.
In other words, not against romance. Just think it absolutely has to be handled right.
Bah...all this talk is just making me want to RP again. Where is the fast forward button on my life? :/
@PvP: The first RP I ever did was the Mistborn: The Inquisition RP on the 17th Shard forums. It had a little bit of PvP, because of how the setting is set and characters could be part of the nobility, Steel Ministry or Skaa rebellion. I had a couple characters that I was running in it, and at the climax of the first year/campaign- which was the point that I dropped out because I was starting university- there was a medium-sized raid at a ball.
The nice thing was that we communicated a lot there and so the fights didn't really kill anyone that didn't want their characters killed. The amusing thing was that about half way through this battle(it took about 3 weeks to conclude) I had gotten so busy writing up both my noble and skaa character in the battle that they ended up on opposite sides of the corridor.
Hell, I didn't even realize that it had happened until one of the GMs told me. So I ended up pitting both of my characters against each other. It was actually quite fun, and it allowed me to script out how to kill off both of my characters so I could write myself out of the story on my own terms.
Re: Romance: I kinda know what you mean. Most of my in-character romances have been based on pure guesswork, since I haven't had any personal experience until recently. And there were times when I was a complete idiot, I will admit. But I am both a better writer and a better person now.
I agree that in-character romance does have to be handled carefully, and in a mature way, on both sides. Otherwise it just goes bad, and neither party wants that. I am, however, an advocate of it as long as it's done properly.
@Berenzen: Yeah, that sounds like a pretty sweet setup you had going on there. Pretty much the way you want an RP to be run actually.
I really like the idea of having your characters locked in combat with each other. Allows you to entirely control the pace of the fight and make it exactly as climactic as you need to. Really allows you to flex your multi-character writing chops and sit a little closer to traditional writing.
@CA: Yeah, experience really is a requirement for writing a convincing romance. Between the time I quit writing and the time I started up again, I gained a touch more experience that I alternatively value and regret. If you want a prototypical story of how two people can meet, fall deeply in love, and then burst into flames and hate each other to their very cores, then I can draw you a frickin' road map. >.<
That's one thing I never really see in an RP. We may see characters getting with each other and eventually fall in love, but I can't think of a time where the pair came at odds and ended up splitting. Are RPs generally not long enough to convey such a personal arc? Or do people just want to avoid telling that story because it's too difficult and personal?
@Link: I think people just don't want to tell that side of the story. One pair that I know of has come close to it through a personal problem on one side, but the matter was dealt with and the relationship made even stronger for it. Those two characters have quite possibly the most believable romantic relationship that I have seen in a piece of fiction, and I've said as much to their respective writers.
Perhaps it is best to just focus on one side of romances: characters meeting, getting to know one another, becoming a couple and eventually falling in love. They overcome obstacles along the way to strengthen the bond between them, and if that's done right it can reveal some amazing things about the characters.
Slightly Related: I wish I had the talent of certain people; the ability to convey such things so masterfully using simple words. But I will make do with what I have and hope to someday match their literary prowess.
@RaNDM: Not while there's still discussion to be had. This is quite possibly one of the best conversations I've had with someone outside of my friends on Skype. And perhaps some people could learn a thing or two from what we're talking about. Taking a discussion like this to PMs would be pointless, because there's a good opportunity to inadvertently show someone else a new light.
Edit: As an aside, if you think these posts are long, I can show you a truly long and detailed post of mine.
@CA: That was another joke. But that's okay, because I'm kinda serious with this one.
I actually prefer PvP to PvE when it's spontaneous. Like in Mall Fight where everyone is running around killing each other with increasingly ridiculous crafted weapons.
@Link mentioned the game has no real cost in dying in a game like this since you just respawn after death. That's not true. It leads to escalation, which leads to changing of tactics, which results in alliances, which lead to introductory plot-points, which lead to an overarching main plot wherein the players choose opposing sides in a conflict with the current antagonist, which lead to sub-plots that sew introductory plot points that foreshadow the next arc. Once the story arc is finished, everyone just stops what they're doing and hangs out. The characters joke around or go on some epic adventure to get a sandwich at Subway or something. Then someone flips his shit and the cycle repeats itself.
Is it difficult to coordinate? Hell yeah it is. But it's that random factor that makes it fun. One moment you're chilling out in a book fort. The next moment, Chef Optimus Prime is killing everyone with baked goods. It's a chaotic disaster-piece.
@CA: I understand what you're saying and I agree with your point. Overcoming adversity is a great way to strengthen bonds and having those roadblocks pop up really make for a more entertaining ride. I guess my main frustration with romances are the ones where none of the problems appear and everyone just lives happily ever after no matter how much story remains to be told. It's just stagnant and unrealistic.
And you're right. People don't want to tell the story where lovers fall out of love. It's painful and heartwrenching when it happens. We all want everything to work out alright for the characters we care about.
But there are two sides to every coin. Sometimes the hardest story to tell is the one that will go the furthest. How do either of them respond to losing someone they depended heavily on? Are they crushed by the sudden absence? Are they relieved that they have been freed from a burden that they really didn't realize was negative influence?
What happens when they meet up again? Is it frigid? Hostile? Somewhat amiable and nostalgic? Is there a chance they could get together in the future?
There is a wealth of ideas that could spring from it...but it requires writers who are willing to accept that bad things do happen between good people and want to explore the ramifications.
You are right though. That's a story that no one really wants to be the one telling.
@Link: I just remembered. Neo and I have done something recently, in which we control two somewhat secondary characters who were ex-lovers. We never really went into what happened during the break-up or what happened before the two split up... though we have touched on it, and there were good reasons for the two going their separate ways. One of them almost killed the other through a power they can't control.
While we didn't really tell the story of them falling out of love, it was touched on and we might even go into detail in the future, depending on what happens.
Link_to_Future said:
We all want everything to work out alright for the characters we care about.
This is somewhat true, though there will always be events that don't go their way. Injuries, PTSD, near-death experiences, losing something or someone you care about... one of my characters' parents were killed in-universe as opposed to in a backstory. It was a little difficult to write for her at the time, and even now she can still be highly emotional when the subject comes up.
@RaN: You know, the most fun RP I was ever in basically operated on the same principles of random chance. Some of the random little details that we threw in just for the sake of playing that day ended up having huge world-changing consequences that none of us could have ever predicted when we started out. It was an absolute blast and that a lot of the details of our story have still stuck with me even today.
*nostalgic sigh*
@CA: Ah, but when I say we want everything to work out, I mean that we want it to work out in the end. The difficulties that you have described are very compelling bumps in the road, but most stories don't end when a character is injured. We keep writing them through it, showing how they will overcome this obstacle and continue to thrive. I don't think I have ever seen it implied that a character will suffer from PTSD at the end of the story unless the author was already working with a particularly dark tone. That sort of development is sitting firmly in sequel territory. For the most part, at the end of the day we want to see the characters we like finish on a high note and the characters we hate punished.
But what bugs me about relationships in many stories is that they are treated as the goal rather than a whole new journey. "The hero gets the girl. The end." is an incongruous statement. "The hero gets the girl. A new beginning." is a little more accurate.
Have you ever read the webcomic "Questionable Content"? I have never read anything that covers relationships in a more realistic way than the way that one does. The author seems to have a deft understanding for the arc of most relationships. A couple finally getting together after 800 comics doesn't mean that they won't break up over something seemingly trivial 2000 comics later. He explores the hardships that we face interspersed between the good times. There are a lot of things that annoy me about QC but I will always respect his insight that romance is never as cut and dry as it seems in the movies.
If you had the right writers for it, RPing would also be an excellent platform to explore this since it's dealing with two separate people controlling separate characters. I fully believe that a second person will be able to come up with things an individual would never consider alone.
Ah, that makes sense. I agree that we would all want to see our characters finish in a good light. Overcoming the obstacles on one's way is a large part of character development. Without actually doing something about it, a problem just sits there, and nothing happens to it. It's not entertaining.
Yeah... there's a huge amount of difference between those two. Naturally, I favour the latter. Especially since I know firsthand that there is a lot involved in even getting the girl to begin with.
I've never read Questionable Content, but your description of it and how the writer handles the relationships therein makes sense. Because there will always be new challenges to explore; that's part of building a romance with someone. Movies and TV tend to glamourise the idea of a relationship without really going into details: I feel that that is where the written word is superior to the stage or screen. It is far easier to convey the details in a way that the audience will understand.
I know people who do this sort of thing really well, and have actually discussed the idea of our characters entering a relationship. Mostly it's because I want to become a better writer, but it is also because I want to see how romance can turn out when done by some of the best writers I know.
And yes, people do come up with things that others never consider. I get that a lot, largely because I struggle to look to the future or along alternate routes to ones that I think of.
@TurfWar: That's an intriguing concept for an RP, you have aroused my interest. I'd love another opportunity to RP and improve myself. *Continues lurking.*
@Avatar Adventures: Well, Delta made his a while back (a little before Ramthundar made the new one) and brought in a bunch of different people.
Everything in that thread went to hell, so we decided to start fresh and get in new blood (because it's kinda tricky dropping into it part-way through, which is also why we didn't migrate to Ram's).
Also, I dislike the accusation we aren't Role Players. We just don't create our characters (well, we actually do have some OCs floating around).
@Red Sky: Being sick sucks. My roommate volunteering at a local hospital and I swear that everyone around here has been under the weather constantly ever since she started. :/
@Trilby: I think you can chalk those statements up to people having a different definition of what "role playing" actually constitutes. By its most base meaning, role playing is literally assuming a role other than yourself. By that definition, Avatar Adventures is a role play. However, it seems like others are taking it to also mean that more in-depth creative writing is involved as has been traditional around these parts. Looking at it that way, Avatar Adventures might not fit (though to be honest, I have read very little of what goes on in there; I could be wrong).
As I stated, I basically got my start on RPs in the style of Avatar Adventures. Some truly magnificent things can happen in that sort of environment under the right conditions. However, now I find that sort of thing a little less satisfying for my own creative needs. That isn't a dig at you guys in any way; I just have different tastes these days.
I think that a lot of confusion came from the fact that Avatar Adventures 1 still had people posting in it for quite some time after you guys opened the sequel. It looked like a spinoff rather than a continuation through the eyes of an outside observer.
Point is, Avatar Adventures is a role play in my eyes since people are all playing roles. Others might disagree with that stance but I will stick with it.
@Link Yeah... we get into our 'creative' stuff about 20 pages in. You could skim the old one, but it's a mess.
And the reason we kept posting was so Rosh could do his grand finale and add a conclusion.
@sky: I know the feeling, I had the flu and a stomach virus a while back and I couldn't get out of bed for about a week. I hope your flu is nowhere near as bad as what I had but I hope you feel better
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
