1. Do not use chatspeak when RPing. Most people tend to dislike chatspeak, and, really, is it that hard to write out words?
2. No godmoding. (Godmoding is when you try to take over an RP by shifting its plot to your liking, or by taking control of other characters.) This also means no powergaming, which includes a character being able to dodge every hit 100% of the time, or blow all his enemies away at the snap of his/her fingers.
-The only exception to this rule is when a player cannot be around to control his or her character - for example, if they're going away for a long period of time. And only then, it's better to have the permission of at least one other person - preferably the person that's going away, or the creator of the roleplay.
3. Do not make useless posts. If you've got nothing useful to do, don't do anything. (This means no posts stating that "this is spam" or anything of the sort.) Rather than something like that, try to contribute to the roleplay. There are times when posts like this are what kill or revive an RP.
4. Use parenthesis - [ ], ( ), { }, < >, or anything of that sort - when not speaking in character. If there's no difference between what you say and what your character says, it may mess up the other players.
5. When you make a post, please don't write things like:
John: *walks up to amanda* hi, I'm john.
or
John walks up to amanda "Hi, I'm john"
or
[walks up to amanda] hi I'm John
The above are examples of what could be considered as bad as chat speak under some circumstances. When writing, you want to contribute more to the storyline, in order to make it progress further. A simple "hello", in most cases, won't give the person you're talking to much to say. Detail is always a good thing.
6. When you join an RP, you may think that it would be 'cool' if you were to, say, give your character a foreign weapon, or a dark, overused past. These ideas, however, have been used so many times that using them will most likely make others think that you can't come up with an original character. Another bad example could be making a character whose race is something along the lines of "half demon, half angel", or a cross between multiple creatures that would most likely not ever be seen together.
An example of a 'bad' character:
"John was shunned from society when he was a boy because he looked so similar to a vampire. His family deserted him thinking that he was a bad omen, and he was generally avoided by society. He drifted away from the streets, and began to live on the rooftops of the city."
A 'better' character: "Amanda has always been interested in the magic that the other communities use. She has tried to use magic, but has failed, so she sticks to her rare powers. She has a curious nature and has hurt herself on a few occasions, but has generally maintained a peaceful life."
Remember, the more original you can make a character while still keeping them somewhat realistic (in terms of the plot-line, not real life, of course), the better a chance your character has of working out.
7. Unless there is absolutely no other way to introduce your character, don't introduce them randomly. This would include suddenly being somewhere that you weren't before, and would have had no way of getting to in time to meet another character.
An example of a random appearance: " John jumped out of the trees in front of the girl, Amanda. "Hi," He greeted her. "
A better appearance: " With the girl being held captive by the sorcerer, John decided to come out of hiding to try and help her. "Let go of her!" he shouted as he approached them. "
8. When you try to do something useful in the storyline, check it over in your mind before actually posting it, to be sure that it doesn't fall near the lines of godmoding or unrealistic (story-wise).
9. If the creator of the roleplay introduces rules of their own, it's necessary to follow them.
10. It's usually best not to make 'Mary Sue' or 'Gary Stu' characters. This is a term applied to characters that are totally perfect. One example is;
"Amanda had long, flowing hair the color of gold. Her face was pale and unblemished, and she wore a long white gown. She was the princess of her land, and the sorcerer had kidnapped her because she was so beautiful. She also had the strongest magic in the universe, and was proficient in all forms of combat."
This is a major rp no-no. When a character is totally perfect, other rpers will look at the creature of the character as a 'twink' or 'n00b', and generally avoid that character. Give your character depth - don't make them shallow. A bit of flaws to them is good. Like;
"John was a pathetic shell of a man. He had tried for years to master the katana, but all attempts had failed. He was far to vain and arrogant, and because of that, his master had cut off his left ear."
11. Try to be descriptive. Say you're character is sad. Don't just say "John was sad." Instead, be a bit creative. Try "His soul felt as though it were shattered into a million pieces. Hot tears swam in his vision, and he cried long and hard through out the night."
12. Respect the time period of the roleplay. If it's a medieval rp, don't give your character a gun, or have them wearing jeans and tennis shoes. Likewise, if it's a 'Sci-fi, no magic allowed' rp, don't make your character a mage.
13. If you want to battle someone else's character, the polite thing to do is to send them a PM first and ask them if you can. If they say no, then that's it. If they say yes, then together you can collaborate the fight in PMs, then one of you can put it together into one single post. This cuts down on short, back-and-forth posts. (B-n-Fs are bad, because they not only take up room, but they make it hard for anyone else to join in the conversation. Always leave conversations open for other to join. The ONE EXCEPTION is if you and another character go off to the side, and one of you tells the other a secret or something.)
14. Most rps will have a 'Sign-up' thread. This is NOT the place to rp. This will be were people who want to join in post information on their character. Most times, you will have to fill out a 'bio'. They usually look like this;
Name:
Gender:
Age:
Species:
Weapons/items:
Appearance:
History:
Other:
Many times you will not have to fill out all sections, but it's good to at least let people know what your character looks like, and their name and gender.
15. If you're joining a roleplay that's already in full swing, first, ask the GM (Game Master, the person who started the rp) if you can. Many times you will be able to, other times you will not. If they say yes, then READ THROUGH THE ENTIRE ROLEPLAY to see how or where you should pop-up. Like in our current rp, Sunrise on Golden Wings, it would be bad to do this;
"Hi!" John said, walking up the street towards the group.
because we are currently on a ship. It would be better to do something like this;
The small dingy bobbed gently up and down on the tide, Amanda lay, half-dead, within it. The shipwreck had be tremendous, and she did not know if anyone else had lived. She did not move when she saw the large ship moving towards her, as she was sure it was a hallucination. That is, of course, until her little boat tapped the hull of the larger one.
And then you wait for people to notice you.
16. Plot twists can be fun and a good way to get an rp moving. However, you should always clear your plot twist with the GM, and make sure it's okay. They may already have a twist planned that you may be interfering with.
17. If things in an rp don't go the way you were wanting them to, don't go whining to other players, asking them to change their post. Believe me, they won't, and will only find it very annoying. If you want all the events to happen YOUR way, write a book, don't join an rp. The fun of an rp comes from the fact that you never know what might happen next.
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