Storyline vs. Actual in game events/politics -- why is only one RP?

[Thelcia]

So I must say, I do not consider myself in any way a RPer. That seems to be exemplefied by the fact that when I come to this forum, I rarely see anything that affects me in the least.

However, I can be relatively active in politics in game from time to time and I pay a lot of attention to who is in power, what specific groups are plotting, who is influencing them etc. There is quite a bit of subterfuge and drama that goes on in Rimor and well being a gossip hound I am fond of tracking it down.

I actually do feel like there is a bigger picture in Rimor politics and with NW, a lot of room for growth and peer inflicted punishment for wrong doers.

Ninjaing, for example, is something that FC seems to frown upon as something that should not be discussed in these forums. However, stealing from an opposing force something of value is definately a reason to begin discussion of war. Notum wars has placed guilds and individuals accountable, and so ninjaing takes on all new importance in the context of NW, where reputation and honor mean much more than they ever did before.

There is also issues of arms dealing (rimor has few very good tradeskillers), non aggression pacts, deals with the opposing faction to target specific guilds, as well as peace talks and potential peace treaties etc. All sorts of interesting news that actually affects my day to day life on Rimor.

However, none of this ever reaches the board. If it does, it is not appropriate.

I dont call myself a role player. I am friends with people that I fight against tho and I have to put myself in "character" whenever I actually do spy/battle/etc. But it doesn't seem to be role playing....at least how it is described here. So then what is it?

[____________Fakonamo]

I suppose that the reason it doesnt make it to this board is that the people doing it dont consider it to be Roleplaying, but rather just playing a game. A Rper may indeed consider trade skills to be "armsdealing" but the average gamer simply just trade skills to make something, as a game mechanic, not as a RPing device.

Sometimes the things you describe do show up here, but only when someone tries to put a RP spin on normal game play/mechanics. Yes, people may ninja loot, but few people try to RP it as actually thievery. MOst are content to simply ninja something, then go on without worrying about RP consequences.

To me RPing is anything that is done or thought of or explained from the characters perspective, not the players. If someone ninja loots and actually takes the time to RP it, that RP (it may still be di****able and RPing ninja looting doesnt give it any more merit than not RPing it). If you do some tradeskills assembly and take the time to actually explain it in character or RP while doing it, thats RP.

Putting an "in character" spin on everyday gameplay events to me makes it RP. I prefer that sort of rp so very much over the lame pie eating, silly crap more often posted here.

[Kithraks]

The folks that mourn the loss of the pvp and social forums when they restructured needed somewhere to vent.

[Thelcia]

Originally posted by Charles
The folks that mourn the loss of the pvp and social forums when they restructured needed somewhere to vent.

Well yes hehe, perhaps what drives me in the end to post this.

However, I just seem to find myself needing to put myself in some sort of character more and more due to NW. Granted this isnt a specific char that I have developed and has some story etc. It is something that I must do to actually play the game and not feel bad about what I am doing, or let others get to me when all they are doing is playing the game.

This is a RPG after all yes? It feels to me that some aspects have actually graduated from a game to a simulation of actual war/community dynamics. Ninjaing doesn't need to have a storyline build into it anymore in order for people to actually take action against it. The repercutions are too strong.

[_________Lexusstreak]

OOC: the things you are describing that you like sound to me as just another form of rp, believe it or not, it is. The "political" struggles you see on rubi ka are not real, therefor when you submerge yourself in them, that in itself is roleplaying. Most who take part in the things you mention don't put it here because for some reason, a large number of folk despise roleplaying in it's many forms. I really don't know why, in fact I was going to start a thread asking why exactly. Always seemed silly to me that people who don't roleplay..hmm play roleplaying games. This is by no means a flame, just a question I had often pondered over, which is why play an rpg if you don't roleplay and how come if you roleplay, you try to pass it off as something it's not?

[_________YumYum Crow]

Thelcia,
pretty much everything you describe sounds like RP to me. If you act "in character" in a situation, then as far as I am concerned, you are roleplaying that situation.
I agree with much of what Akudama says on this point, although I admit I am behind at least some of the "lame pie eating" stuff too...
The moment you begin to view things from your character's perspective, or put a spin to ocver over simple game mechanics and express that to those around you, then you are, in fact, RPing.
Thumbs up for the armsdealers of Rimor

[stromm]

I don't rp, for several reasons, mostly because it betrays your own self and causes people to do stupid things like 'not talk to omnis because im clan' or people sending pages of hate tells to others because they killed a guard of the same side with a weapon they were testing.

Besides that though..You get a lot more done in this game if you don't exaggerate and pretend.

[____________Fakonamo]

Originally posted by Stromm
I don't rp, for several reasons, mostly because it betrays your own self....

Dont you think your taking it a bit too seriously? How can you betray yourself by playing a game? When I RP, I dont actually think I am my character, nor do I think that anyone else believes that I am my character. I'm still me sitting here in a chair.

I dont try to project myself into a game, just as I dont try to project a game into myself. I play a game, and I live my life.


p.s. why bother telling people not to RP on a RP forum?