People who've earned 30 or 40 RPR... How?

[Nevrus]

This is not a criticism of the current RPR system.

It's been a while since this system has been discussed, and typically information relating to this is usually tangential as part of criticisms of it.

I want to ask a very direct question to our high-RPR brethren:

How do you think you did it?
How long were you playing on the server how long had you been playing the character you earned it on?
What do you think are the actual standards you were held to that you managed to meet to improve your RPR?
How often were you playing at the time?

I think the answers to these questions can inform all of us how we can push to be a little better at what we do.

Pre-emptive please don't post unless you are answering the proposed questions because this could easily yikes and I, Nevrus, am pleading with you not to yikes it.

[The Rambling Midget]

Stop trying. Let yourself enjoy the game, and especially focus on making sure that everyone around you is enjoying it too, by supporting their RP both in the ways that you prefer and in the ways that they prefer. Put in some time outside of the game, if you can, to deepen your RP, and also to prepare yourself to understand others' RP.

Forget about the system. Writs have made the XP output far less important than it used to be. Once you've figured out a way to ignore it, you'll feel less pressured by it, and be more free to act as you would, rather than as you think you're supposed to.

[Borin Drakkmurl]

Copy pasted from an older thread:

(Warning, wall of text).

Since I haven't been and won't be active for a good long while, this wont matter much, but perhaps it can shed some light on how the whole rpr thing has worked for at least one person:

I started playing in 2006. There was only one server, the max player cap was around 50 (maybe 55?), and the game world was much smaller.

- It took around 5 or 6 months to get a 10 rpr, which I did during a small dm event. Up until this point, I had spent most of my time killing monsters (or more accurately, getting killed by them), playing a good 5 hours a day, from monday to friday, and easily 14+ on saturdays and sundays. My roleplay was little more than me speaking like myself through my character and mimicking other people's emotes.

- About another 6 months later, I got bumped to a 20 rpr. By this point, I had a much clearer idea of the server rules, what roleplay was actually about, and I had taken a greater interest in the setting. I was also learning a whole lot by watching how other, much better players than me did things. This bump also happened after a slightly more complex dm event, in which my character was actually marginal. What I recall of it was that, for some reason, Daedin and Erik Silverarms had chased a dracolich to the ruins of Stonehold. Once there, they got their asses handed to them, and were just running around, screaming and crying, which the DM (I think it was Anne of Arelith), found endlessly amusing. I remember her telling me that it was not often she saw people roleplay weaknesses and failure like that,so boop, I got a 20 rpr.
By this point, I was also spending considerably less time in dungeons, and got involved into "spy" rp and was constantly involved in other players' plots and storylines.

- I got bumped up to a 30 rpr when I had been on Arelith close to two years. By then I had played a few months in the UD, got involved a little bit in Grond, experienced the different sort of rp the UD had these days, which I learned a lot from, and then came back to the surface and got very involved in Myon. I ended up leading a minor faction within the city, the Scouts. I never organized very large events, or was one for overly complex machinations and plots, but that role did allow me to do one thing, which was to do small scale stuff on a near daily basis. Patrols, small meetings, "military" style stuff around the forest, ranger stuff, again spy stuff,and I was always on the borders of the city's politics as well. I was always busy and rarely alone. I also became very, very slow at leveling up, because most of my time was spent in the same few areas (Myon, the forest around Myon, other settlements). That 20 xp, and later 30, was a godsend in a way. At this point I had also come to realize that the more I focused on trying to entertain and do fun stuff for those immediatly around me, the more that fun would come full circle back to me. And the quantity of people I interacted with on a daily basis grew because of it.

- The 40 rpr came when I had been around for about four years. I played in the UD for several months, and then made another elf, Urebriwyn, that I played for close to two years. This was a character based mostly on stealth and being skittish and isolationist. However, with him I spent a whoooole lot of time wandering around, mostly the Forest but not just, and taking advantage of his high stealth to interact with people in ways that made it feel like the environment was alive. In a way, what I wanted other players to feel when they randomly met my character, was that they were interacting with a very well written npc in a singler player rpg.
I'd drop out of stealth to help people about to get killed by monsters, I'd go hostile and threaten and harass others that were threatening "the balance", I'd guide people who were lost back to safety, all the while trying my best to, through rp, maintain the feeling that we were suddenly inside a book, a story, and something special was happening, even it was just three characters walking from point A to point B.
Then suddenly, out of nowhere, boop, a DM sent me a tell saying something along the lines of: "Hey, so a few of us have been talking, and seeing what you were doing, and we decided to raise you up to a 40 rpr. Congrats!"

And that was it.

From that point until today, my rpr has stayed at 40.

I have played a Knight of the Road, an orog warlord, a one eyed shaundakulite dwarf and a wandering bard since then. You will notice on my signature that all of these characters are either unknown or meaningless now. However, the base notion behind what I have tried to do with my roleplay, through them, was always pretty much the same: to add to the world. To be a plus in the other players' experience of the game when they log in. That when they run into a character of mine, they
don't feel like they are just playing another mmorpg, but something different. Because that is what makes Arelith special.

Now, an important question:

What has a 40 rpr done for me?

The greatest boon I got out of it, was that it eased the burden of getting xp. It made it so I did not feel I'd be stuck at the same level forever, or lagging too much behind, because I had spent most of my time heavily involved in roleplay that involved more than killing stuff. Add the Mark of Destiny to it, and that rpr became a real blessing.
And in my head, I always thought that was what the RPB was for. If someone spent less time in dungeons getting xp because they were too busy generating roleplay for others elsewhere, than at least they got a little reward for it. And if you did go exploring and kill stuff, WHILE making an effort to continue that level of rp...than you'd get the best of two worlds.

On the other end of the spectrum, a 40 rpr has also always felt like a responsability. Like I can not slip up. That I have to stay on my tip toes. That if I am not doing something AMAZING every single time I log in, that I am somehow failing that rpr. But a 40 rpr is also a good thing. It is a reminder that, on Arelith, a very big part of what makes the Roleplay on this server great, is that most of it rests on our shoulders. And, to be honest, not only the roleplay, but the general ooc attitude towards the server and each other. Even though I have never been a DM or part of the Dev team (which is a good thing, because I lack the qualities to do either thing well), I do feel a sense of ownership towards this game.

The thing is, that ownership does not, and can not, translate into entitlement, or feeling like I am owed something. For me, it has always been about what I can give back to it.
Many times I have not been at my best. Failed, even. Been overzealous or full of myself. I tried to learn though, and to always stay true to that sentiment.

So, to conclude a silly long rant: The rpr is only as important as you want it to be. From my experience, the more you do cool stuff without even thinking of it, the more likely you are to see it go up. The less you worry about what others are doing or have, the more you are bound to enjoy this game and see the benefits of it.

*Disappears back into the void of Real Life*

[Nevrus]

This is the good stuff. Keep it coming.

[Echohawk]

How do you think you did it?

Playing some leaders in various settlements (two to date) and just generally getting involved, and supporting other people's roleplay.

How long were you playing on the server how long had you been playing the character you earned it on?

Uhhh 2-3 years? It's getting foggy now. But the character I think I earned it on I had for maybe six months. So it's not about having one character for a reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally long time.

What do you think are the actual standards you were held to that you managed to meet to improve your RPR?

I stayed in, and established prominent characters with flaws, weaknesses, and adaptive reasoning. I also made sure to either involve others as much as possible, or play along with others and actually ensure I lowered my presence in any given situation. Not just being a spotlight hogger.

How often were you playing at the time?

I try to everyday, but I never try to overdo it. That's just silly, try harding to get an increase is like.. weird. Not possible.

Really though, I'm self hating enough, I'm not sure if I'll be able to keep it forever, not that I'm trying to lose it or anything but just. It happened, wasn't really trying for it.

[Royal Blood]

I was just playing my character. I wasn't playing for a 30. I was just having fun and doing my best to make sure others had fun to. I don't think there's any secret formula to it in my opinion. The usual arguments that the system has flaws I think all hold true so i'd just say really just play your character and do your best and you'll find your way to it. And if not? No worries. It's not a super accurate reflection of peoples RP talent. There's circumstance and luck I guess. So don't let it weigh too much on you.

Edit:

Some advice for being recognized though:

Do something that shakes things up
Constantly look for ways to draw in new characters
Hold onto rp values. For example, maybe you allow something to happen that OOC you could have tottally stopped by you allow it to happen anyways because it's good for the story.

[Zavandar]

i got it playing rick snyder

i wasn't trying to get it. i was just trying to create rp and play a realistic character. played a part in running cordor for nearly half a year before it was given to me.

EDIT: i'd been here for a few years before it happened, too, with characters of varying renown

[Dreams]

無為

Let it happen.

[The GrumpyCat]

*Points up* Everything everyone else said. Especialy in reguards to just having fun and letting it flow.
Ultimatly the 30/40 rpr style is... a style. And it's not for everyone. It involves being very 'giving' I guess, and if you find yourself trying to do that and miserable - then even if you /DO/ get that higher rpr, you're effectivly 'stuck' playing in a style you don't like, which isn't worth that extra 10xp tick.
Personaly I find that style more fun that being said - and it's definatly worth a go. But I'd be a fool if I thought it was for everyone.

LIke others, I gained my rpr just through playing and having fun - and trying to... read other players. Work out what they wanted from an interaction and (where possible) giving it to them, or at least meeting half way though. But mostly through shamlessly using them to try and tell an interesting story with my character! And hoping my character would add to their story too.

I think it took me two or three years to get it

What do you think are the actual standards you were held to that you managed to meet to improve your RPR?
I think that I tried to make fun for others. That I did bombastic and fun things - with little care of whether I won or lost (because even loosing makes good story!) And that mostly I tried to be fairly mindful of the setting and my situation. To roleplay opinions or... personality traits or... actions that may not actually be the smart/wise/cool thing - but rather are something that a character in that situaiton might do - but none the less makes more rp and fun for those around.
To give an example - let's say there's a plauge event going. Instead of saying 'Oh yeah, well the plauge is caused by tiny things called germs, so we must all wash our hands and cast many 'Cure Disease' spells.' - instead saying something like, 'Ok so the plauge is caused by melevolent Odors in the air, which exite the blood humour. We must burn much incense and carry poses of roses around. Anyone with the plauge must be bled to get rid of the bad blood humour.'
It's not -right-, but it makes more rp, is more thematically appropriate, and presents something other characters can either go with, or rail against.

How often were you playing at the time?
I can't remember. I think I was playing a fair bit. Maybe three or four hours per day? Give or take?

[Xerah]

There are some good answers here. I don't think the "don't think about it" answer is that helpful though, so I'll add in my thoughts. You shouldn't dwell on it though, which is more so what I think the intent is.

Getting to 20 happened in like 2011 when I was just dropping in occasionally. I was playing my character Lissa Whitehorn at the time, who was a gnomish artificer. She didn't get past level 6 or 7.

In 2017 I decided I really wanted to play through with Lissa, so I started her up again and swapped her into a Wild Mage. Even though I had played in the past, it was basically a new character. I got involved with Bendir (eventually becoming Mayor) and the arcane tower. At this time, an event known as the Sprigian war was going on and I ended up leaving by resigning and moved focus to the Tower. She eventually became one of the Archmages and we grew the faction into probably the largest on the server. During that time, there was lots of events to organize both with Bendir and duties as a faction leader and I was eventually given the 30 within a year.

I played a few other characters since then until eventually "taking over" the Radiant Heart with the help of some people (this was well before writs and such). A big focus was how to work together with a bunch of LG paladins who had different approaches with valor, justice, good, etc. I made her a someone who was very middle of the road in attempts to appeal to both sides and be able to work with the group as a whole. The downfall of that character game from allowing a harper into the group (which I was pretty OOCly sure but had no reason to suspect ICly) who then assassinated the Chancellor. I left that character, passed off leadership and moved on to the next one.

The next was creating a minor merchant drow house of redcap pacted fey. That wasn't a huge group, but I was getting involved in various aspects of the UD from the Table to also becoming a Keeper in the Arcanum (unfortunately the character was finished before I got to involved).

After the UD, I moved on to my LE Savras follower. The original intent was to use divination as a proxy for True Name magic, but during the leveling process I came up with a new idea that she would work to take over Cordor and start a magocracy police state. This ended up going on for 2.5 months and was an extremely demanding role given it involved basically everyone in some capacity on the island and below. We often had OOC meeting talking about what do to next to stir up more things for people to react to. It was a ton of fun, but I was getting worried that I was dominating not just Cordor narrative but the server narrative as whole too much and moved on again. This is when I got put up to 40.

I did skip some character in there because not everyone is going to go the way to you want or vision it. One of the negatives of being high is the worries that you have when you ask yourself "is this really rpr40 worthy" and a lot of times you say no and feel bad. I know I can't always expect my level 15 character who's been around for a few weeks is going to move mountains, but you do feel this deep seeded expectation and worry that you could be docked for it. You also worry about being a background character is going to end up docking you. I don't think these are legit worries, but they do stick in your head. There is always a personal push from myself to live up and do what is expected with that sort of rating.

That's my story. Hopefully some find it useful.

[PEST CONTROL]

I had it on my old account before the switch. I don't care about it anymore, once you get there you will do the same. Rp'ing is an art form. Something one needs to learn by watching others who you find entertaining to be around. Just like painting, or writing, you learn the basics from others then go on your own.

RPR is about losing, basically. If you don't care about your character being stomped on, crushed, killed, and loosing everything you begin to understand. The hardships what a character goes through is what makes its special. It's what makes its story. Anyone can play a god, not many can play a loser who can't catch a break.

Start a new PC with this idea in mind. That it will never be important, it will fail again and again. Purposely do this, this will put you into the mind frame of how to play so others enjoy it. In the end you will have way more fun by allowing others have fun before you.

[Seven Sons of Sin]

Biggest shift in mindset is to stop seeing your character as the protagonist in their own story, but rather a supporting character in everyone else's story.

I think a lot of the intricacies and mechanics of roleplaying "well" is very hard and very subjective. It's basically asking - what makes a good character?

But solely answering that question will get you a 30, and never anything above it.

What makes a good player? is when you start getting into the headspace of someone with a 40.

[Baron Saturday]

I don't remember when I hit 30. I don't remember who I was playing at the time or what I was doing. What I DO know is what I didn't do.

I didn't play for a ton of hours every day. I didn't get involved in any government in any impactful way. I didn't lead any influential factions, nor did I play a major character in one. I actively avoided events. In fact, I doubt there's any in-game record of any of the characters I had played up to getting 30.

If I had to guess, I would say that it had as much to do with OOC/forum behavior as as it did with RP. I think (I hope!) that I have generally been a positive force in Arelith's community over the years. And that's also considered.

[Shadowy Reality]

I am much like Baron Saturday in this. I never really played a faction leader, I wasn't involved in many governments, and I was not actively a main figure in any major event going on. You don't need to be in the spotlight all the time, just create a character that is consistent and interesting to interact with, a character that people will remember, even if they only interacted once with you. Don't break rules, be nice.

I think I got mine when I was playing Tamarie. She was a Faithless by conviction and hated the Deities, so she went around hunting clerics of all faiths and just being overall a very hard person to be around, super sour and abrasive. It should be noted that during her lifetime I think I only actually killed a single cleric PC, it was more about the actual hunting, the threats, the tension.

And overall I think this is the big step that many people are afraid to take. Let your characters fail, on purpose. Just because you can kill that animator now does not mean you should. It would have been very easy for this character to kill clerics left and right but that is not fun for everyone, and so she failed many times in her tasks. Don't cast True Seeing each time you know there is a sneak around, don't do everything in your power to get ahead, to win. Don't try to be perfect, it tends to be dull.

[theCountofMonteCristo]

Biggest shift in mindset is to stop seeing your character as the protagonist in their own story, but rather a supporting character in everyone else's story.

Bingo. Sure, I like recognition, who doesn't? But when the DM does some big storyline, I'm not the first to go rushing in with cool fixtures and items to solve it. I'm happily on the sideline pushing others along, helping make said items/fixtures, asking ethical questions to stir the pot a bit. When I started doing this, is when I went up. I found I actually enjoy this more than being the valiant knight in the thick of it. Most characters I play are mechanically inferior, usually done out of choice to be that person quietly moving things along.

[Drowble Oh Seven]

I forget who wrote it, but the best summary of all of this (which really comes down to being inclusive and putting fun for everyone ahead of victory for a few) came down to:

'Poke at other PCs, and figure out what their Thing is. Then give them opportunities to do the Thing.'

EDIT: IT WAS XERAH.

[Skibbles]

Thoughts
---
I've been thinking about this exact question for quite a while now. I thought, "If someone asked how I got it, what can I say in the fewest possible words?"

The best I came up with is: Just say yes.

I'll explain in a moment.

I got the 40 about a year and a half ago, maybe two years, and I remember thinking "Why now?" because in my opinion I had already hit my 'peak'. Now I don't have as much time to play, and the time I do have is in such a hideous hour that the player list often doesn't have a scrollbar.

While also being caught off guard I did feel like I reached a milestone in the community. I felt like the team noticed the time and effort I spent over the years.

Like many have said so far - I had stopped thinking about it. To be honest I thought it was just never to come, but it didn't really bother me that much and I settled into 30 for years.

I don't want to my piece of advice to be, "Eh just don't think about it." Not thinking about RPR is a byproduct of Arelith-veteran status, in my opinion, and not a required part of getting to 30-40.

In fact I would add that the -recommend feature, as awesome as it is in theory, probably doesn't get used as much as it should because those who can use it also think about it the least. The funny story I have for this is that I told a fellow long time player (also a 40) about it on discord, the day I got it, and they said "Oh I thought you were 40 all this time."

I guess that's how little I talk to people OOC, but still I found it funny.

Instead I'll say the opposite: Think about it. Don't let it destroy/discourage you as a person, because it is a glacially slow process and not worth aggressively pursuing, but you can usually just kind of 'know' when someone has a high RPR.

So watch what they do. I don't mean you need to be nailing high level English grammar or meticulously describe every movement of your character, but watch how they react to things and how they interact with people. Do those things.

It is okay to want a high RPR. It is okay to try and get a high RPR. It is okay to have role models you look up to in order to learn how to get it, because it will require you to not only to respect other players but to earn their respect too.

It is not okay to be a jerk about it if you think it's taking longer than you 'deserve.'

How do you think you did it?
---
Just saying Yes.

Don't physically say yes to everything, but go with the flow. Bend your character to the breaking point and facilitate everyone you possibly can while trying to stay at least a little true to your concept.

It took a long time to pick up the habit that breaking character to facilitate another can be more important than staying in character at the cost of everything else.

Of course it's okay to say no sometimes. Sometimes drawing a line is the best answer, and more productive.

To the actual question though, on specifics, I'd say a lot of it has to do with my first character's story: paladin falling from grace, founding House Xun'viir, creating the highly contentious goddess La'laskra, and the tens of thousands of hours of cumulative RP that those two things have spawned since they came into being around 2015.

On a second character, during the earliest days of the Arcanum (2018ish I think? I have an awful sense of time) and just after the Boreal Keep was added, the faction was handed down to me by players I barely knew. I am thankful they entrusted it to me. Running that for about a year was an immense pleasure and had countless interest from tons of characters. If you could breath you could join: part of my Just Say Yes policy.

The most important message from these two things is thus: I didn't do it alone.

I had help. Lots of it and from many people. These aren't just 'my' accomplishments. In fact by now, especially for House Xun'viir, it's been so far out of my hands for so long that I rarely bother even telling anyone I had something to do with it five years ago. It's an irrelevant funfact now.

I remember coming back from an extended break, over a full year long, to see people I didn't even know taking hold of these ideas and just running with them. That one realization was a greater sense of accomplishment than getting 40 ever could be.

The point is: You aren't going to get 30-40 alone.

How long were you playing on the server how long had you been playing the character you earned it on?
---
Seven years thereabouts, and easily over ten thousand hours of playtime across nwn in general since the game came out.

The character I was playing had been around for close to five years at the time.

What do you think are the actual standards you were held to that you managed to meet to improve your RPR?
---
Just Say Yes (or maybe Keep Saying Yes was the message).

How often were you playing at the time?
---
Not as often as I used to which was 8-10 hours every day at some points until I landed my career. As I mentioned earlier it came to me after what I personally imagine was my peak. I can't play as much as I used to.

I almost have three thousand hours in EE, and almost double that pre-EE for Steam. I don't even know how many I had before I picked it up on steam for convenience.

Since I'd been playing since the game came out (not always Arelith mind you) I imagine I could have over ten thousand hours if not twenty.

[The GrumpyCat]

Actually the 'Just say Yes' thing is especially good advice for Faction leaders (or leaders of all sorts.) Say 'Yes' as much as possible, and where you can't say 'Yes' say 'Yes but'. And where you really can't say 'Yes but...' then make your 'No' count.

Just popping up to add another thought. With 30/40 rprs, these guys (esp the 40 rprs) almost work as 'Mini DM's'
They're the players who do stuff. Who push forward plots. They don't tend to get worked up about whether their plot works or not, about whether or not they 'win' or 'loose'. But they push story line and roll with the punches and try to make story that is fun not just for them, but hopefully other players involved too. Being as inclusive and open as possible.

40 rprs are very valuble to us, as a DM team, because effectivly they take a bit of weight off us by encouraging cool player plots.

I won't lie - it's actually this aspect that makes me love Arelith the most. That players can run their own things and make their own interesting, dynamic stories without having to depend on DMs being around all the time. And for me it's the fact we reward this type of rp that helps with that.

So yeah uh, another tip thing.

[Queen Titania]

Pretty much what everyone else said is how I got my 40 over six years ago. I think it's more of a style of being a mover/shaker, introducing something new, while allowing others to contribute and to affect your stories, and being completely willing to lose. On top of that, being a good person, well behaved on the forums and in game, all definitely help.

If it's not your style, just focus on having fun. And if you want to develop that style, then don't see your character as an extension of yourself, but as one of many smaller characters in a book. I find it's easier to view your character as an Antagonist rather than a protagonist, because the antagonist has to lose. (Though even a good protagonist loses on occasion.)

Although I think Grumpy is tricking us about her rating, when we all log in to the DM Client it says RP Rating zero, clearly she's a notorious rulebreaker with that grumpy mood they have.

[malcolm_mountainslayer]

This mean same shallow/cynical, but type/write well.

I once had RPR 40 before what I call "the purge" (DMs in the spirirt of rpr supposed to be dynamic were handing it out generously. I lost it one day and wrote about it on our bioware forum (thiz was way way way back) and JJj let me knew ot sas rp of certain character (they didnt let you know at the moment it happened back them and it felt very taboo to even bring up your RPR). I knew in that moment he must have noticed some lame emotes of mine when a bunch of us gaurds were prisoners at Stonehold. Who knows, maybe it was some other non lore friendly concept i was RPing that the DMs just never addressed me with, all I know is I been RPR 20 since then and I find most of the higher RPR people i know tend to be better writers than me.

I don't actaully like writing or reading, I like acting live in person, i can probably speak goblin better than most of you could write it. But I am rambling.

Obviously if I was a player that help create stories for others more (which requires more paly time) that will also greatly help my.chances and probably be much much more important, but I know also from experience and observation that being a good writer will also help.

Thankfully there isnt major RPR gates anymore so I don't feel judged.

[Theter]

Just passing here (I have been playing on Arelith for very few time) to say that this thread is amazing, even without the rpr part. I mean for roleplay in general, these are good advices for pen and paper as well, especially in open campaigns. So please continue, I love it.

[Hazard]

I get asked pretty frequently how I got to 30/40 RPR, how long it took me and if I have any tips.
It's nice that people think I'm someone to ask about that, but I'm not. I've been at 20RPR since Myon's leader had wings.
I honestly forget all about RPR even existing, until it's brought up.

Because I can't give advice on what to do, maybe I can give advice on what NOT to do.
In the past, for a little while, I struggled with keeping to the PG-13 rule. I've had a colourful life, far removed from American values or even the first-world. A refugee who learned a lot about speaking, reading and writing English by playing video games. Things I had experienced and already been very familiar with at a young age, are not at all acceptable in this 'new world'. In my mind I deluded myself into thinking if I didn't specifically mention anything too crude, gorey, brutal, or rude in other ways.. then it somehow didn't count. I was also way off on what was considered too far even if not mentioned.

I've grown since then, thanks to a certain DM who was very patient with me, and I'm grateful for that every time I log in. Now I'm pretty comfortable with knowing where the line is and not crossing it.

So I would sum up my first tip by saying (and these are not meant to be examples of things I did)..
1. You don't need to be descriptive with torture or violence or romance or any other adult themes. Fade to black early. Everyone here should be well aware, for example, of the horrors Drow are capable of and you don't need to prove yourself able to describe those horrors.
2. Don't swear. I see this one a lot more these days than I used to. Throwing swears in comes across as both crude and just lazy. Most especially modern-day Earth swears. If the PG-13 rule doesn't deter you, then at least consider the setting. Would characters from this world even know what those words mean? They have their own words for these things, and they're way cooler! Use those
3. Do not take agency away from another player. If they don't want something to happen, don't do it. If they don't want to be held prisoner, just let them go. Let them escape somehow. Let them have fun and if their behaviour is disruptive to others' fun, report it.

Another trap I see players of all tiers and qualities fall into is wanting to 'win'. Easily justifiable in all cases because your character also wants to win, and you're just being in character, right? Well, yes- but this is collaborative storytelling. Sometimes you need to lose on purpose because it will be more fun for everyone involved.

Take for example that fresh necromancer. You could effortlessly have one of the many people in your faction spy on them in some way, reveal them to the isle at large, and hunt them mercilessly. It would be in character. It would be something your character SHOULD do, but .. Is that fun for the victim? It might be, but chances are it's going to suck for them. They're going to be going up against factions of well-established, max level, pvp-built, fully geared individuals with connections all over the server ... Go easy. Make sure they're okay with what's going on, and if there's even the slightest chance that they're not, bend your RP to make it more fun for them. Did you see them with mummies off in the distance? ... Are you sure? Maybe your character "didn't notice" .. Lose on purpose every once in a while and let someone get away with things so they can have their fun too.

There's too much boasting and pride of who can beat who, but when it really comes down to it .. We can all beat each other. The game is old. Most of us could roll up a PvP meta build and cheese on each other all day and all night. That's not a great story though.

Do you have a huge connection of OOC friends and you all end up in the same faction? Maybe don't. Maybe play -against- your friends, despite them being your friend. If your characters have unbreakable bonds, consider whether what you're doing is fair and quality roleplay. Make it more fair for the server, and more fun for others who are playing alone without OOC connections. Try to include others who aren't your OOC friend group, and try to include them in ways that don't involve just assimilating them into those OOC communications. Keep it all in-game. Keep everything in-game at all times. Do not organise things only in tells, or on discord, it's metagaming (cheating), organise only in game where others can spy on you, interrupt you, and in general just have the ability to interact with it in some way. If it didn't happen in game, it didn't happen. If it didn't happen in game, it's metagaming. Metagaming is cheating.

Always leave an out, in case someone doesn't want to PvP. A real out, not something that's even worse than dying. Don't demand huge sums of gold or some valuable item as an out, that's even worse! Give them a real, honest out. Like if they RP accordingly (apologise, bow, flee) then you let them go. Do it even if it requires bending RP to make it work. Are you a druid and you bump into a leveling necromancer? Demand they dismiss their undead/leave the area and let your character decide that's enough. You don't 'need' to chase them to the ends of the isle and kill them.

Do not be relentless. Do not strive to delete your opponent. Far too often do I see characters show no mercy to other characters. They are the enemy and we're going to gang up and kill them until they stop coming back. That is rarely going to be fun for the other person, if ever. If your goal is to keep bullying someone until they -delete_character, then stop. And this goes both ways, do not be relentless in revenge too! If you were killed, don't come back swinging as soon as you're technically allowed to. Let time pass. Let things settle. Let people move on to other stories for a while, so that this one can have a conclusion. There will be other chances in the future.

Take the win, or take the loss. If you won, consider forgetting about that enemy for now .. they've paid with their life and some miracle brought them back. If you lost, consider forgetting about revenge for now .. you were defeated and you need to let the winner have their moment. Avoid them, act scared around them. If they do keep hunting you repeatedly, and you feel it's getting in the way of you being able to play/enjoy your character at all, try just telling them. 99% of the people here are really genuinely nice when you talk to them. Let them know how you feel, or let a DM talk to them for you. DMs are capable of more than just punishing, they're also very good at taking someone aside and just talking to them. That's what they're here for. They're here for facilitate us having fun. DMs are your friends.

From my perspective, ego is what separates the great roleplayers from the good roleplayers. The great roleplayers aren't humiliated by a loss. They don't feel shame if their character is scared. They don't feel insecure if others don't fear/respect their character. They have built a barrier between their own ego and their character. Their character is not them. Your character is not you. We're storytellers.

Woah. It's 9:20am, and I haven't slept yet. That was a bit of stream of consciousness. Hopefully something useful for someone in there and I'm not just humiliating myself. If I am, then hopefully at least it's funny for someone.

[Dovesong]

I was playing a drow matron. I took in all the weirdoes and malcontents that nobody wanted. We had a BIG group. It was great fun. People got to Be Something because they Had A Name, and that was a big deal for them.

There were sermons and mercantiling and we lost fights and we were the outcasts and it was cool.

I still enjoy that. I enjoy someone else gaining because I helped. It gives me the warm fuzzles.

[Shadowy Reality]

I was playing a drow matron. I took in all the weirdoes and malcontents that nobody wanted. We had a BIG group. It was great fun. People got to Be Something because they Had A Name, and that was a big deal for them.

There were sermons and mercantiling and we lost fights and we were the outcasts and it was cool.

I still enjoy that. I enjoy someone else gaining because I helped. It gives me the warm fuzzles.

If there's anything to take out of this thread, I think this is it. It is very common for people that are newer to RP, or that just aren't very good or comfortable yet to be shunned and outright ignored. Involve everyone, no matter RP level.

I started like one of those players, I think many of us did. With semi-shattered english, only a vague notion of what being IC was and not very developed RP skills. I remember looking up to certain players and try to learn from their characters. It was extremely enjoyable for me to just watch and be involved in what they did and it was absolutely great when they gave my characters silly and menial tasks.

Big kudos to that.

[CNS]

Im not rpr 40 or anything but would like to add something I've learnt to help make everything more fun for everyone.

I used to be very much a keep it all IC person, don't join discord, don't send many tells.

Then I started chatting with IC friends and joining discords and that was great, but I noticed I ended up in a us v them mindset as people who had become friends and myself formed little echo chambers. Each slight, action or defeat kind of got echoed, I've never minded things happening against myself but I did mind if it seemed to affect my friends, and that's not healthy.

What I've learnt is when things start getting serious or conflict happens in any way, it's really helpful to just talk to the other side ooc. Even if it's just to check they are ok and happy with what's happening. It's made the biggest differnece to me and if you are clearly starting a conversation from a good place and a place of wanting everyone to have fun people are receptive when you want to talk about areas that aren't working for you or your friends, 9/10 The other side had absolutely no idea and are very happy to adapt and change.