Forum Roleplaying: What to Know Before Diving In

Though it may sound lame at first, roleplaying is a growing hobby found across the internet. People of all styles join to get in on their piece of the action, as well as to join a tight-knit community. As with any hobby, roleplay (often referred to as "RP") has its standards, history, masters, and newbies. It isn't that difficult, however, to jump into roleplaying with a good name. You simply must have the correct tools and fundamentals.

First off, what is roleplaying? Naturally, you can't expect to dive in without even realizing its definition. RP is simply an interactive story. One person writes a piece of the tale, and you pick up where they left off while moving the plot along. Some RPs are based on other pre-written stories while many are creative and original. Either way, many of these communities can be found tucked into forums. Forums with an RP section often include movie, game, or book websites.

There are some terms associated with the RP that are important to harness:

OOC- "Out of Character". This is used before a statement in roleplay that has nothing to do with the story. It is placed at the very beginning or end of the post, ideally. For example:

Story
Story
Story
Story

OOC: Are we going to continue without Fred?

Noob/n00b: This is a new person, usually one who makes a fool of themselves. Avoid being called this term at all costs by following the forum rules and typing correctly (i.e. skate instead of sk8t).

Auto/Autoing: The action of controlling someone else's character. This is acceptable in most cases, just don't do anything without that member's consent.

God character: Any character that is all-powerful/possesses no weaknesses. There are always exceptions, but this is indeed a bad thing.

Metagaming: Using knowledge, as a member, that your character shouldn't know yet. Instead, only use the information that has been revealed within an RP topic; in other words, stay in your character's shoes.