Looking for help (forum-rping, FCs, finding a roleplay)

[JetBlack]

Hello! Newb looking for help here.

I've written with people before, but never in an online forum style (more than one-on-one writing). What kind of rules/etiquette are expected in forums, where you're dealing with more than one other person? And how can I ease myself into this setting without stepping on people's toes or undermining someone's hard work?

Also, I've looked at a few roleplays on here, though I only just came to the RPG. I've noticed "FCs", or animated gifs of actors in some character listings; what does FC stand for, what are their functions/why are they needed, and how common are they in the forums?

And finally, how do you find a roleplay that suits your needs? Is there a way to search multiple tags at once to find a thread or forum right for you?

[LawOfTheLand]

FC stands for Face Claim, and what I believe they are is a picture of an actor or other famous person that superficially resembles a certain character. While it certainly is less of a challenge to find a picture of your favorite actor than one that more closely resembles your character, I maintain that words should be used to properly describe your character--or better yet, you should draw them yourself! And if you don't have the talent for drawing, remember, drawing isn't so much a talent as it is a skill.

Forum roleplaying etiquette varies from forum to forum, but the basics really aren't much different from the "rules" for chat roleplaying: You can't post again until everyone else has had a turn to post, for example. This rule is often relaxed in situations where the group is split up. To take a classic example, say Freddy and Daphne go one way and Shaggy, Scooby and Velma go the other. Freddy and Daphne would take turns posting while they're in their section of the spooky mansion in a one-on-one fashion, while Shaggy, Velma and Scooby would take turns posting while investigating the other parts. When the gang gets back together, turn order is re-established between the five based on who's found what. It's just a different medium; indeed, forum roleplaying is preferred if getting together in the same chat room at the same time proves difficult. Maybe you have a large group, or one or more of your players is in a different time zone or has a previous commitment such as a job.

As for stepping on people's toes, that can easily be avoided by staying in touch with the other players and making sure something's within the boundaries BEFORE you do it. In the eventuality that a fight breaks out, there's a simple, intuitive method of resolution: People take turns launching attacks at each other, and attacks only find their target when the targeted character doesn't see a way to avoid the damage. It's worth noting that you never say "I hit" unless the targeted player or an agreed-upon mediator says you can. This is simply common courtesy.

As for searching for multiple tags, what I usually do is I enter one tag based on fandom or genre (Pokemon for fandom, or fantasy for genre, for example) and then see what turns up that fits my other tastes. And if something looks good save for some minor details, it's probably worth trying out. (Do the community a favor, though...PLEASE don't make a roleplay about a school or the shenanigans therein. There's several dozen of those bouncing around already, go join one of those.)

[JetBlack]

Thank you very much QB, you've helped me quite a lot! I'm glad I was able to get my questions answered in one go. Don't worry, high school stories are boring as dirt for me most days so starting one is HIGHLY unlikely. I appreciate the heads-up though.

[Marionette]

Well, in terms of etiquette, a lot of things vary from player to player and group to group. There really aren't a lot of hard and fast standards. For example, I actually never have a "can't post again until everyone else has posted" expectation in my games, and I haven't played a whole lot of other people's games that did either... but some do! Because of that, the most important thing is to read an RP's rules. If they're written well, they should give you a basic understanding of the RP's expectations.

There are a few other things you can extend beyond the scope of one game, though -- basics, really. Let the group know if you can't post for an extended period of time or if you have to withdraw your character. Don't metagame (use out-of-character information in-character). Don't control another player's character without permission from the player. Don't godmode (which can be lots of things and vary slightly in its definition, as discussed in this thread, but my basic definition is "acting in a way that makes your character not subject to rules and logic that should apply to everyone in order to get an unfair advantage"). Those are the most universal things I can think of.

In terms of searching, I usually change the post order to newest and browse the most recently-added games to see if anything catches my eye; if I'm using tags, I find setting the post order to newest or activity is even more important. Nothing is less fun than finding an RP you think would be just perfect and realizing it never got off the ground and hasn't been touched in half a year. xD You can also filter out tags you don't like. If there's anything you're looking to avoid, go to the roleplay tab. Click on the link to manage your filters and sort method. Type what you want to ignore in the ignore box, and you won't see those games. There's also a highlight box where you can put tags you're especially interested in, and it'll highlight those games for you.

(As an aside, every time I see someone on this site complain about high school RPs, I get the urge to go make one. :P)