CHAT BOARDS - Despite what you believed before, that chat board in the Neopian
chat section entitled "Role-playing" does serve a purpose. What purpose? Why
it's for role-playing! That answer doesn't help you say? Sorry, well
let me start by explaining what Role-playing is.
Now role-playing, commonly shortened as "Rping", is a word with a definition
that is controversial; one that has a different meaning for each individual,
like "hero", for instance. Some people may say that a hero saves lives, while
others simply see them as a role model. The same way goes with role-playing.
For me role-playing is a way to become anything you've ever wanted to be, and
interact with what other people would like to be.
This sounds interesting! How do I start?
Well it's very simple. First you decide what type of character you would like
to pretend to be. Pretty easy right? Well the whole concept is fairly simple.
There are many types of characters to choose from and the most common are listed
below:
- Wolf/Fox/Coyote
- Fantasy
- Medieval
- Everyday People
- Japanese Anime
- TV Show, Movie, or Book Character
I've decided to choose a wolf-type character for guideline purposes. Now that
I know I want to make a wolf, I have to think up an appearance. For human characters,
this would not only include facial features, but clothing as well. Since a wolf
exists in nature, I'd have to give it some reasonable colors of course. I've
decided to make my wolf black, with brown eyes.
Now that I know what my wolf looks like, I need to give it a gender. Since
I'm a girl, I will make it a female wolf. Note: Just because you are of one
gender does NOT mean that you cannot play a character of the opposite gender,
however, this topic is highly debated and some role-players are uncomfortable
with a boy playing a female character or a girl playing a male one. I don't
see why these people feel this way, I think all role-payers should be open-minded,
but that may not be how you feel.
Okay, now time for a name! The name of your character will imprint upon others
minds as you role-play so make it a meaningful one! Many people look to other
languages and select words that describe their character. I find that clever
and insightful. Others choose already existent names from pets or people, such
as Mary Jane or Fluffy. While still others use derivations of
words, for example LightningStreak would probably describe an agile character.
Finally some just take a name from the top of their head; whatever comes to
mind, for example Tolcet, which has no meaning at all. For my wolf I
will call her Cheyenne, after a famous Native-American tribe.
Now that you've chosen what type of character you'd like to play, their gender
and their name, you must give them a personality! This is my favorite part.
Sometimes the personality depends upon the look and type of character itself.
Unoriginal characters, such as ones taken out of movies have personalities that
are previously set. However if you've just created an original one, things can
get complicated. Say if I were to play my black wolf; the most probable personality
would be dark and sinister because of her sable coat. Unless I wanted to go
wild and make her friendly despite her looks for a colorful role-play, which
is allowed as well.
You might think you're done, but be patient. Many people, with their character,
invent them a past, this is optional of course. They think-up a life story for
the character, one that of course had happened up until the character interacts
with others on the board. For my wolf her history would include the pack she
was born in, how she was raised, who her parents were, who her pack-mates were,
and what she has been doing since she was born. For a human character this will
include their parents, where they grew up, how they were raised, who their friends
were/are and what they've been doing since they were born. I'll pretend she
was banished from her pack and is now a loner, this is called her history. Mine
is fairly short and simple. You may choose to make yours long and descriptive,
sometimes even multiple paragraphs.
The last step, optional as well, is finding them a picture. This is the hardest
part. A handful of people draw their characters themselves. If you not artistically
inclined, you may want to search the web for a photo that fits your character's
description. If you do choose a photo from the web or any other source other
than your own, credit where you had found it! This is very important, especially
if you don't want to get in trouble for plagiarism. I've chosen a simple picture
of a black wolf from a website, and I will credit that website, and the photographer
if possible, as near to the picture as I can.
Okay! My character is created! Now I'm ready to role-play!
Hold your horses! You have your character, now what types of role-play are
you going to join? What other characters are you going to interact with? Since
you already know what type your character is, this is self-explanatory. I've
made a wolf, so I will role-play on wolf role-play boards, and interact with
other wolf characters. Here is a list and a short description of the most prominent
role-plays:
Wolf: Become part of a pack, make friendships with others, and howl
to the moon. There are regular and "advanced" types of wolf role-play. "Advanced"
players have their own sort of pig Latin and use it in place of tangible English
words. Sometimes elements and magic are involved.
Medieval: A flashback to medieval times. Your character is either extremely
poor or extremely rich, or a thief. Deal with old world technologies, sometimes
sword fighting and magic are involved. Best of all, the age of knights and princesses!
Fantasy: Always has magic involved, with some fighting techniques and
sword play. This just might be the most exciting. From an elf to a mortal human,
this role-play has perhaps the largest assortment of characters.
Everyday life: Be an average person, and play with the kid down the
block or go to the park. Make friends and establish relationships the way we
do in the real world, this role-play is of course, in modern time.
Japanese Anime: Be a character from a popular action cartoon! Invent
a new episode with people playing the remaining characters of the show. Make-up
new baddies and storylines!
TV Show/Movie/Books: Take your character straight out of a book, or
create new characters for the book. This is like Japanese Anime role-play, without
the Japanese part. Also create a new storyline with other characters from the
show book or movie.
Now that you know your character, and who your going to interact with, go right
ahead and embrace the role-play board, acknowledge that it's there! Remember
that this is all just a game so go out and have fun! =D (oh and thanks to leb388
for the pointers
on how to write an article, they helped a lot ;) thank you)
Disclaimer: Any views of the user, sedus88, do not necessarily reflect the
views of other role-players or the Neopet administration on the topic of "role-playing."
Thank you.
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