I don't understand RPing at all!

I don't understand RPing at all! :( This is a short message but I'm sending it anyway! It didn't look like the mentor people were online. And I went to the chat thing and that didn't help either.

Maybe if you were a bit more specific and explained what your problem actually is?

Hmmm... I didn't know I created this... But I think I have it down pat. I don't really get fighting though and spells if you use them...

?

Ignoring MoonMan for a minute, I think I can help you out.

The most common problem with learning fighting is that there are almost as many favored sets of rules as there are fighters. However, a few patterns can be observed by reading fight after fight after fight, much like one can improve their chess game by reading transcriptions of games between masters. The main difference is, of course, the playing pieces that each fighter brings to the table. For example, some people prefer no powers and no weapons, others like being able to throw galaxies at their foes with sheer force of will, and some people are partial towards something in between.

I think the main trait behind all successful fighters, though, is an ability to mentally outmaneuver their chosen foe. If you're good at chess and have taken some self-defense courses, you're probably better off than 50% of the fighters out there in that you have a decent mental game and a knowledge of how to take down opponents in real life that you can apply towards your text-based fights.

It's true that there are many, many styles of fighting and spells amongst roleplayers. As qbsuperstar03 points out, it would probably help if you were to read over some examples. I believe there are some threads here in the Academy that you can look at, and you could also go look at roleplays that are going on. Of course, in the latter case, it can be hard to tell whether or not the fight scene you're reading is a good one. Still, you can learn just as much from a bad scene as you can from a good one - you learn what not to do. The key is being able to tell the difference, and that can take some time.

If you're new to roleplaying, let explain a rule of etiquette that pertains to fights. That may be a bit basic, but your post sounded like you have little or no background in roleplaying. That may be wrong, and I apologize if it is, but I figured it would be better to go ahead and detail this in case you don't know it. If you do, feel free to ignore it entirely. Often, this will be detailed in any given roleplay's rules, but it may not be. When it's not, it may be that the gamemaster assumes that it is simply an unspoken rule that everyone should know, and so it's good to apply it whether or not it's been stated. It's very seldom tolerated amongst roleplayers.

Now, onto the point: you should not godmode. The name godmode comes from the "god mode" cheats in video games (though some people refer to it as godmod and say it comes from the term "godmodeling"). In the games, a god mode makes the player invincible. This is basically the same as godmoding in a roleplay, though the term has a fairly broad scope. The most important thing regarding fighting is that your character should neither hit every time nor dodge every time. Characters should not be perfect and infallible; they should not win every single fighte. You also should not decide someone else's character's reaction to your action or control someone else's character in any way; this is often referred to as powerplaying, though that term, as well as powermoding, can be synonymous with the term godmoding. You should also stick to your character's stated abilities. It's okay to have some secrets up your sleeve in some roleplays, some roleplays allow for characters to gain new abilities as they grow, and you may not be required to state every single power or ability, but a character should not pull out a new, better weapon or power every time things start to get rough for him or her.

An example:

Godmoding: Jenny pulled back her fist and threw a punch at Chris, hitting her target dead on and smashing in his face.

Not godmoding: Jenny pulled back her fist and threw a punch at Chris.

In the first example, not only did Jenny's player decide whether or not the blow would land, the player decided the extent of the damage to Chris. In the second example, Jenny's player stated what Jenny did, but left the reaction up to Chris's player.