Forum Info: The Starting Pad [Rules, Guides, Q&A]

Mana1

Mana1

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    [PokeCommunity.com] The Starting Pad [Rules, Guides, Q&A]
    So, you've heard about this 'roleplaying' nonsense and want to give it a go yourself, eh? Or perhaps you're already a member of our little Roleplaying community and just want to refresh your memory on the rules and guidelines. Roleplaying is a good way to practice one's skills in writing and literature and also a great way to meet new people and make friends!

    A roleplay (otherwise known as a 'Role-Playing Game' or RP) is a kind of writing game in which members of the community create and assume the role of characters in a fictional environment created by another member, known as a Game Master (GM). Participating members sign up to RPs with said characters and if they are successful in being accepted, take responsibility for acting out these roles within certain guidelines and in a certain setting, previously outlined by the GM.​



    Where do I post my new roleplay?! Where can I find cool roleplays to join?!

    Okay, calm down. The RP area is separated into three different boards. Each board plays a vital part in our little community and if you are new to the boards, you may need a helping hand to know where to post what!


    Roleplay Theatre

    This is the main board, the place you come to when you click 'Roleplay Theatre' from PokéCommunity's index. Here, you can chitchat or deeply discuss RP related topics as well as post threads asking for help with questions or feedback on ideas. No question is too stupid, no new member is unwelcome. Be sure to post in this very thread and say hello, the first thing you do!​

    Roleplay Stage

    This subforum is where the In-Character (IC) threads live. This is where most of the magic happens and where you'll most likely be spending a lot of time writing out your adventures and shenanigans. Note that IC threads should not be created until you have a decent amount of players accepted in the associated OOC thread! So always create a thread in Roleplay Casting before you make one here.​

    Roleplay Casting

    This subforum is for the Out-Of-Character (OOC) threads. This is where you should go if you want to sign up for a RP, and the OOC is the first thread you should post if you want to recruit players for a new RP. An OOC thread should include enough info to give you an idea of what the RP is about. Once you are accepted into a RP, you may come to Roleplay Casting to get to know your fellow players and discuss plotlines, characters and other things, always out of character. Remember that all discussion here is about specific roleplays, so stay on topic!​



    Why doesn't my new thread show up?

    In Roleplay Casting (RPC) and Roleplay Stage (RPS), all threads must be manually reviewed and approved by the moderator before they are actually viewable and accessible to all members.

    Submitted RPs are usually reviewed and then either approved or denied at least once every few days. If you're curious on what has happened to your thread, you can view the "Check to see if your roleplay has been accepted v2". If you feel it has taken a rather long time since you submitted your RP, don't be afraid to send the moderator a polite PM or VM asking what has happened with it.​



    The Rules

    1. Stay on topic. It is okay to chit-chat in discussion threads and chit-chat with your fellow RPers in OOC threads, but don't sway too far from the main topic (which in OOC threads is any stuff pertaining to the roleplay in question).

    2. Advertising other roleplay forums or sites is a big no-no! You may do so in your signature, but keep them out of your posts. Unsolicited advertising of other sites on PokéCommunity can give you an infraction.

    3. Double posting in Casting/Stage threads is only permitted if you are the GM or if you are a player and have received permission from your GM to post several times in a row. This goes for both IC and OOC threads. Double posting is not permitted in discussion threads.

    4. Inactive Casting/Stage threads (no posts for over a month) can only be revived by the GM, unless the GM has given special permission to someone else and informed a moderator of the situation. If the time has been over two months GMs probably want to remake their threads instead, as old players may no longer be available, etc.

    5. Theatre threads (threads made in the main forum, as opposed to RP threads made in Casting/Stage subforums) can be posted in for up to 2 months after the last post! Meaning, the usual PokéCommunity guideline of threads being dead after 1 month is extended to 2 months in the Theatre.

    6. All submitted RPs must have a decent plot and an explanation of how the roleplay will work. Usually this means at least a few paragraphs of background story, setting description and other things that prepare players for what they can expect from the RP. RPs that don't explain enough will be declined.

    7. Stealing another person's plot is not tolerated. If you want to revamp an old RP, you must do so with the old GM's permission. Blatantly stealing a plot will give you an infraction on the forums.

    8. All active roleplays need a list of players. As soon as the IC thread becomes active, there should be a players list somewhere, but it does not matter if you put it in the IC or OOC thread.

    9. All RPs that seek to recruit players in Roleplay Casting, need a sign-up sheet for the players to fill in. The sheet should be designed so that the GM can get a good grasp of whether or not the applicant will fit into the RP. Generally, a RP with 3 players or less will not be accepted. Such small RPs are more suited for a private medium than a forum.

    10. All submitted RPs must have a rating! Either posted in the title, in the rules section or just somewhere where everyone can see it, the rating has to be there somewhere! Rating RPs is the same way you would rate a movie or a video game. Who do you think the target audience is?

      Ratings from different parts of the globe are all accepted, but the most common are:
      • K or K+ - For general audiences. For kids. For everybody. These roleplays contain no adult themes and are suitable for all people of all ages! K+ are still for all ages, but contain very mild themes.
      • T - For the slightly mature audience, for teens (thirteen and older!) These roleplays contain slightly more mature content, including mild themes! Mild violence, mild romance, mild everything! Your players can handle a little... but not a lot!
      • M - For the mature! These roleplays are the higher spectrum and may contain gore, romance, violence, adult themes and coarse language. PokéCommunity has a swearing filter that can be disabled or enabled from your options - never try to bypass the filter. Remember that even though some gore, romance and violence is alright, there is a limit to what's acceptable on a well behaved forum. Sexual stuff will be deleted.

      If you find your roleplay hard to rate, please ask a moderator for help!

    11. In general, you are not allowed to use script posting or abbreviated text. Here, we prefer to roleplay like we are writing a novel together.
      Bobby: *Pushes Tim* Don't do that!
      should be written as:
      "Don't do that!" Bobby said, pushing Tim.

      We also require you to try and write in proper English, meaning it is not acceptable to use "133t $p34k" in IC posts. For example, "hi do u wnt 2 go 2 da movis w/ me" should be written as "Hi, do you want to go to the movies with me?"​

    12. All IC Posts must be at least 100 words long in length. In order to keep this the best RP forum in existence (totally!), there is a no tolerance rule for one-liner posts. Don't know how to count your words? Copy and paste into Microsoft Word, if you've got it. If not, WordCounterTool.com is a helpful website.




    Moderators

    Currently, the forum is modded by gimmepie and Ice and Fire. If there is anything you wonder about roleplaying, or PokéCommunity, or the meaning of life, or just anything in general, feel free to VM or PM.​


    Any other questions or queries, feel free to PM the moderators or post a reply to this thread!​

    ​
     
    Last edited by a moderator:

    Useful threads!

    The most important thread, you have already found. It's this thread! The Starting Pad [Rules, Guides, Q&A], where you can read up on the rules should you ever need it, as well as find useful guides and hints. Stop by to greet new players once in a while, will ya?

    The "We'll interview your character!" thread is where you can have your characters reviewed more in detail by answering questions and asking the characters of other players your own questions.

    If you feel like spiffing up your posts is fun but you don't know how, stop by the Roleplay Templates thread and grab some pre-made styles!

    It's also a good idea to subscribe to the Check to see if your roleplay has been accepted v2 to keep up to date with on new roleplays coming out. A short list of the most recently accepted roleplays will also be in the Roleplay Theater's header!​



    Hints for your roleplaying!

    Creating a character: This is basically your resumé or CV into this roleplay and usually your first impression on a game master. Make it a good one! Put loads of effort into your character and try to make them interesting and unique. Also, make sure to follow their sign-up template, but don't be afraid to add extra things if you think you can!

    Creating a plot: Plots are never something that you think up in 5 minutes. No, you need days to fully develop a plot. Think it through, take your time. Ask yourself these questions: What? When? Where? Who? Why? How? If you've answered these questions to your fullest capabilities, then you should almost be set to post your roleplay. Make it original as well. If you like a plot line of another series, why don't you put your own spin on it?

    Controlling a character: When writing as your character and interacting with others, you have to make sure you think about everything around you. Will your interactions affect the other characters? And in what way? Controlling other's characters however, is not tolerated. Even when it comes to attacking in battle situations, it's common courtesy to post about how you attacked, ending just before you hit, leaving the other player to react. Always ask permission if you need to push another character (unless you are GM, but to an extent. Some players are very finicky on how their players act).

    Controlling a roleplay: As a Game Master, it's your job to keep the roleplay running smoothly. For one, you must be active, even if other's aren't. If somebody's not posting, it's your job to chase them up. And if there are disputes, it's your job to clear them up. Make sure that you are fair and unbiased otherwise things can get nasty. When things start to go out of hand though, don't hesitate to talk to the moderator.

    Waiting for a roleplay: If you've joined and the roleplay hasn't started yet, don't pester the Game Master. Be patient and wait for the Game Master to be ready to start. If you must ask, make sure you do so polietly.

    Waiting for a player: If a player you have been interacting with suddenly goes inactive, don't freak out yet. Send them a PM or try and get in contact with them. If that fails, contact the Game Master. Never resort to taking control of another's character unless you have the proper permission.​



    Useful Terms You May Need To Know

    • Godmodding means to 'play god' and either take control of events or characters that only the GM should, or to make your character unreasonably lucky or strong. It's really boring, ok.
    • Powerplaying means to control other characters that are not your own. This is unacceptable unless you have got permission beforehand.
    • Bunnying is basically the same as powerplaying, only that it's usually milder such as pulling a person along. Again, permission is always needed before you bunny a character.
    • Mary Sue/Gary Stu is a term used to describe the perfect character; they get everything, know everyone, win everything and are basically no fun to play with at all. There are variations to this, including an Anti-Sue, which all bad things happen to that character. Mary-Sues are universally unliked and demonstrates poor character development. Don't know if your character is a Sue? Take this test!
    • Metagaming means using OOC knowledge for IC behaviour. For example if Person A writes their character is lying or hiding something from Person B, and then Person B in his post suddenly knows somehow and calls Person A out on it. (Thanks to Nagi!)
    • Retconning is acting as if a previous IC event never occurred. Like when Person A's character got wounded badly, and the next day he's completely healed. Or when Person A and B were in an ugly fight, but then the next day they're all buddy-buddy again. (Thanks to Nagi!)
    • RP Samples are a detail that can be asked for when signing up for a roleplay. It's to show you understand how roleplaying on PC works. If you've been in an RP before, you can link an old post there, if this is your first time RPing, you can either write a short piece for the character you are signing up as, or show another piece of writing you've done.



    Helpful Guides & Posts


    If you want to write a guide yourself and have it put up here, please PM the moderator and we will talk about it.​
     
    Last edited by a moderator:
    Hello, new rules thread! So exciting :D

    Yes, it is okay to post here and talk about changes around the forums, or give suggestions or post questions you have etc. Or say hello if you're new! Just keep topics related to roleplaying and characters in other threads.
     
    Nauje said:
    Roleplay Theatre haha that's cute.
    Loving the new changes!
    Click to expand...
    Haha thanks! You spell it Theatre too hmm. We went with the Theater spelling because this is, when it all comes down to it, an American site. Theater still looks a bit weird to me though, haha, but it doesn't matter much I guess.
     
    Adventure said:
    Haha thanks! You spell it Theatre too hmm. We went with the Theater spelling because this is, when it all comes down to it, an American site. Theater still looks a bit weird to me though, haha, but it doesn't matter much I guess.
    Click to expand...

    Sod the bloody yanks love, spell it the right way ;;
     
    I've noticed many new roleplayers being ambushed and die from the many threats that surround our wonderful RPT, such as the nefarious gimmepie and the ever-prowling badumtitser MorallyIncorrect. For this, I have assembled a few necessary items for your survival in the RPC (batteries not included).

    [PokeCommunity.com] The Starting Pad [Rules, Guides, Q&A]
     
    Foxrally said:
    I've noticed many new roleplayers being ambushed and die from the many threats that surround our wonderful RPT, such as the nefarious gimmepie and the ever-prowling badumtitser MorallyIncorrect. For this, I have assembled a few necessary items for your survival in the RPC (batteries not included).

    [PokeCommunity.com] The Starting Pad [Rules, Guides, Q&A]
    Click to expand...
    Aw yiss, I can just feel the mic drop!
     
    Adventure said:
    Haha thanks! You spell it Theatre too hmm. We went with the Theater spelling because this is, when it all comes down to it, an American site. Theater still looks a bit weird to me though, haha, but it doesn't matter much I guess.
    Click to expand...

    oh, I consider stage performances to be theatre and cinema to be theater. since this would be more equated to stage performing, I'd spell it theatre. c:
     
    gimmepie said:
    VISA made the bad joke list :')
    I feel bizarrely proud.

    Anyone else notice that this turned into a DCC almost immediately?
    Click to expand...
    I only noticed Ikeaballs was there now >:I

    Haha that's quite alright, oooh this is like... The OOC for the Theater threads. So meta you can get. We didn't just break the 4th wall, we shattered it.

    Nakuzami said:
    oh, I consider stage performances to be theatre and cinema to be theater. since this would be more equated to stage performing, I'd spell it theatre. c:
    Click to expand...
    Hm. I need to speak with an admin. And Pete. Hmmm.
     
    Calm ur ba dum tits before I take out my banhammer. It's like Thor's hammer. But sparkly.

    ... Why hasn't there ever been a viking/asgard RP?
     
    gimmepie said:
    It seems like a difficult concept to work with to me in all honesty.

    Also, I see what you did there.
    Click to expand...

    I don't think it would be too hard. If nothing else, you could always just make it like Percy Jackson and the Olympians and just have the gods and stuff start making babies with vikings for the heck of it. It would take a couple of days to read up on the lore that you don't know, but that's one of the funnest parts.
     
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