If you're new to forum roleplay, or roleplay in general, don't stress it. This article will help get you up-to-speed and, hopefully, help you decide if what we do is a good fit for you or not.

The majority of the roleplay we do takes place on our forums. Players make characters and then stories together, taking turns to tell their part of the story from the perspective of their character. For the most part, we take care not to describe how other characters act or how they respond to actions our characters are taking. We also make sure that our characters, and the actions they take, are appropriate for the story being told.

If you've told stories around a campfire or are familiar with the idea, forum roleplay is kind of like that. Each player takes turns telling a shared story, responding to what has happened before in a way that feels right for the character/s they brought into the story.

It can sometimes be a challenge to write only from one character's perspective without writing for all the other characters involved, but not knowing what comes next is part of the fun.

Here's an example. Each bubble is a different post.

Bob walks into the bar and looks around, trying to see who else might be there.

Jill looks up from behind the bar as Bob walks in. “Can I get you a drink?”

He walked up to the bar and found a place to sit before saying anything. “Yeah,” he replied. “I'll take a water. On the rocks.”

The bartender blinked at the request. It wasn't what she was used to, but she'd been at the job long enough to not ask questions. She fixed up the drink as requested and slid it to him.

Taking the drink in hand, Bob took a sip. It didn't really matter what was in the glass. He wasn't here for that. “Been trying to find you for a while, Jill. Lotta money on your head.”

Jill tensed up. She'd changed her name, moved.. everything to put her past behind her. It looked like she'd be at it again, but first she had to deal with this guy. She casually slid a hand under the bar and found the handle of the shotgun there. She pulled the trigger, blowing up the front of the bar and maybe this asshole's legs.

Fortunately for Bob, it wasn't his first rodeo. The moment her hand went under the table he was already moving. Shards from the bar tore at his jacket and pants, drawing blood but not injuring him. His heart raced as he dug in his coat for his own weapon. He pointed it towards Jill and let loose. He'd wanted to take her in alive, but if she was going to make it hard…

The “posts” in this example are likely shorter than actual posts you might find. You can see how neither player shies away from conflict and keeps the action moving, but is careful not to take away the other player's ability to say what happens to their character.

While not strictly necessarily, a lot of our roleplay has a player called a Game Master in charge. If you're familiar with tabletop RPGs, such as D&D, then you have a good idea of what's expected from this role.

This player comes up with the bones of the story, keeps it moving, and responds to the actions the players take. They often don't have one of their own characters in the story - or, if they do, they're careful not to treat their characters as de factor main characters. They certainly roleplay all/most of the non-player characters (“NPCs”) that the players will interact with.

It's important to know that GMs often will describe what happens to players' characters if it's appropriate for the story. They should avoid railroading or forcing decisions, but sometimes its necessary to say that someone gets hit by an attack or fails whatever they were trying to do.

A GM can be anyone who wants to lead a story! If you can get other people interested in your story idea and motivated to post, then all it takes to be a Game Master is to start the story and keep it going. There's no formal approval process needed, though you should discuss your ideas with anyone who manages the parts of the setting that you'll be telling your story in.

Should a player want to stir up interest or make a common place for their players to chat, we encourage them to use threads in our #plot-threads channel on Discord.

We (the staff and the community) expect GMs to uphold our rules and create an enjoyable playing experience for everyone involved. When they're not leading a story, GMs are no different than any other player.

To put it simply - characters should fit the story being told. It's important for everyone's shared enjoyment.

Bugs Bunny wouldn't fit in the classic Star Wars story, but he might fit into a spin-off. Know what you're getting into and how your character can fit into a story that's compelling for everyone involved.

We've got a whole section on fairness in our rules. Feel free to check that out when/if you want to know more about our thoughts.

• Player Whisper created this on 2022/10/20 21:03.

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