Roleplay is acting, in a way. You act (or in this case, write) as you believe the character would. RP is beneficial to you as long as you take it seriously. Typing speed, keyboard awareness (skill in touch typing), literacy, vocabulary, grammar and spelling all improve if you write consistently and look for new ways to express yourself. That's how it's been for me; I never really did well in typing class, but after I tried my hand at an online RP game, I improved my abilities greatly.
Roleplay sharpens the imagination, bolsters creativity, and helps you communicate effectively. It's something that you can do to improve yourself while having fun!
Now that I've said why it's good that you're interested, here's the first piece of advice:
Know Thyself.
RP has several forms. Not all of them may appeal to you because of your abilities as a writer or desires as a person. Below, I've given a summary of the three major types of RP around the City of Heroes board. There are more, but let's keep it simple.
Roleplay can take several forms. The Whitmoore Apartments thread is an example of 'open RP', where the story develops through contributions of several writers. It's not a good idea to just jump into an established open RP without a good deal of dedication to the story, as you might not be able to keep up with some of the posters, and if you can't participate for a few days, you might end up well behind the times... but I worry about that sort of thing too much. It's likely that I'm the one who makes that a big issue.
Also, there are some matters of judgement that you need to be aware of; This thread covers some unofficial rules for open role play.
Open RP can be fun if you don't mind sharing the spotlight and enjoy being part of a highly active and social story. It can also be frustrating if you have a specific story to tell, but the group's attention is focused elsewhere.
Another form of RP is story writing. This is also called 'Fan fictions' or 'fanfics' for short. They use the CoH setting to launch a story.
Sibling's "Ladies of the Lake" story is a good example.
This form of RP is mainly solo, but there are instances of collaborative stories.
It's good because it develops at a pace you set, covers all the details you think are important, and allows you absolute control over the plot and direction.
It's bad because of writer's block, a potential feeling of rejection if no one responds to your work, deadlines that you might set for yourself and miss, and it's very possible to make a boring story without other people to contribute ideas.
Worse still is if you have a grand idea of what you want to happen, but not a good plan on how to portray that plan.
I'm suffering from this right now, and I feel rather guilty about it, as I generated interest by asking for others to contribute heroes for use in the story. I don't reccomend trying it unless you are very sure of your ability to write out a large amount of work in a short amount of time.
A third kind of RP is 'in game', where you actually play your CoH hero as you imagine they would act. Not just playing the game and talking to contacts, running missions, and sweeping the street, but making those features of the game as part of a story for your character.
This is a good way to RP because:
1. Highly visual, especially for setting a scene and showing a character's outfit.
2. Emotes (like dance) are available to let you provide a visual reaction.
3. In-game events (like missions) are easy setups to RP; complaining about the smell of the sewers, swearing vengence against a villain faction that defeats your friend/mentor/sidekick/significant other/parents/etc., all made easy because of the graphics.
4. Good RP experiences should lead to forming good friendships in the game.
This is a bad way to RP because:
1. The way you want your powers to work isn't the same as how they appear in the game
2. It requires people willing to RP with you to be present when you RP.
3. RPing during combat is difficult and dangerous
4. Your ability to convey emotion is limited.
5. Your costume choices are also limited, so you might not be exactly what you're looking for.
If you want an RP server (that is, a game server where RP is encouraged by the players), Virtue and Champion are good places to make a character.
Think about what you want to do. Do you want to be part of a story, control a story, or work a story out in game?
If you just want to RP without a set direction and have fun, go with open. You don't need as many original ideas when there are others around to inspire you, and once you're in, you can develop your character rather quickly.
If you have a bajillion ideas and can link them together cohesively in a way that makes you really happy, write a story. It's tough to walk alone, but if you know where you're going, you'll get there eventually.
Also: Have fun. If it's not fun, there is very little point to roleplaying.
My last piece of advice: Know thy character.
Before you do any RP, figure out your character. What is their history? Why do they act the way they do? What is their purpose in being heroic?
If you go in without any ideas, you'll probably be frustrated in coming up with responses and reactions to your fellow role players. You don't need a great amount of detail, just a basic description, history, and motivations.
Can anyone else suggest anything?
(For the record, I'm a storywriter. I'm not suited to open RP because I don't have the time to devote to it, and my desire to control the direction of a story gets in the way. I speak from experience, but my view is biased based on my own abilities.)
Welcome to RPing, iwinforprep. It's one of the most rewarding experiences the internet generates, and if you stick with it, you will only get better.
My Motto: "Debt is merely another Goal."
"Wow Abalest--you manage to start a discussion even when you ain't given a topic" -Ghostman
Abalests on Infinity:
Miss Fulcrum
Dark Soul Golem
Power Drain
Yeah.
Rollplaying and Roleplaying are two different things. Be careful. Rollplay is used more often in reference to tabletop games, like the World of Darkness games or Dungeons & Dragons, and is generally used [distastefully] as an insult towards players who make characters with the biggest numbers and neglect story/character.
how do you roleplay? its Wierd? i dont get it? i'm interested in it, just dont know how? any advice would be great