SilverBones' Guide To Forum Roleplay [Read First! - Updated 03/16/16]

[SilverBones]

[UPDATE: 03/16/16 – Please read the post, dated today at the bottom of this guide.]

RP Forum Guide!

For those of you who may be new to Forum-based RP, or the people here who need help in setting up a new role-play or join an existing one, we have come up with a little guide to help you begin telling your story with your fellow writers.

 

What is Forum RP (Role Play)?

Roleplaying is the act of posting a story (or part of a story) in the mindset of your character (in this case a Tenno, Grineer, Corpus, whatever). When you make these posts, you do so in an effort to tell a story set in the world of Warframe, using your character as your proxy. Your post uses the mindset of your character, their perceptions, history and views, rather than your own. For example, I post for the character Baaral; an impulsive Oberon with a hatred for the Grineer and a penchant for hitting hard over defense and frugal use of energy. Others can join in your thread and post as their characters, creating a story that is written by many people and has no pre-defined end.

RP threads can be short with only a few people involved, or huge sagas that can span multiple people with varying storylines.

 

Some Guidelines for Successful Forum RP

• Follow the Community Rules and Forum Code of Conduct. Although this is an RP forum, the rules of the community still apply. I cannot stress this enough. Please see the last post on this thread for further elaboration.
   
• Keep OOC (Out of Character) and IC (In Character) posts separate. This means that you can have an OOC thread for a game setting for out-of-character discussion, but keep all in character posting to one thread and OOC to another. These threads should be clearly marked; for example:
  • [OOC] Of Ash & Fire – OOC Discussion
  • [iC] Of Ash & Fire – RP Thread
• If you wish to join an already in-play thread, do not simply join in and start posting. Message the Original Poster or post a request in the OOC thread for the game if one exists. Jumping in and hijacking a thread is considered very bad manners for an RP thread and will not make you any friends. It will also give the existing players a chance to give ideas for an entrance without ruining any pretense established by the story.
   
• Do not post on behalf of another character, unless you have their express permission. If you wish to make a post that involves another person’s character, then you may wish to contact them first and be sure that the actions you have planned fit the character concept.
  
  For example, Bob the Grineer enters the room and shouts death-threats at the Tenno present. That in itself is not a problem, but if Bob also posts that all the Tenno cower in fright at his manly voice, you are taking control of that character away from the controlling player.
  
  This process is called God-Moding and is a big no-no in forum-based RP groups.
   
• Have fun. Ask questions. Assume nothing. If you are having a problem with the way things are going, or are having a hard time deciding on what your character should do, PM your fellow RP’ers and get their advice. Post up questions on OOC threads and other players can help you if you write yourself into a corner. In the end, Forum RP is for those creative writing types to really step into their characters, enjoy the world in which the game is based and add a more personal note to a video game world. If you are not having fun, then something is wrong.
   
• Be civil. A person is not their character. If a person is playing a character that is less than cheerful and helpful - that does not mean the player is too. Do not drag IC interactions into the real world, and if you think someone is being needlessly offensive, contact them to see if it is just their character, or send a report on a post for one of the moderators to look over. This also works in reverse. Just because you are playing a character, it does not mean you can spurt racial slurs and needless profanity over the forums. Remember, the community rules apply first and foremost.

 

I hope you all enjoy this little section. It has been a long time coming to see a dedicated RP forum, and It will be my personal pleasure to see you all in the threads!

 

-SilverBones

[SilverBones]

A note on Lore and how it interacts with Warframe RP

There have been some questions about how to RP a Tenno when there is no solid description of what makes up a Tenno or how they are put together as a creature / species. In the case of Forum RP, there may be varying schools of thought. Some people see their characters as nothing more than advanced humans in suits, or may go all the way to say that Tenno are nothing but digital consciousness’ possessing a construct.

These things should all be discussed with your fellow players if you want to join a thread. Sometimes people are more than capable of writing stories that contain various different origin theories, but there may be also those who wish to RP in a certain setting.

This is a way for you to show your creativity, so do so, as long as you are not interfering with another players creative works.
 

[SilverBones]

A Note on Community Interactions:

Some alarming trends have been brought to my attention and I want to make sure that this is addressed before it gets out of hand.

This Forum is for Roleplaying threads, for certain. However sometimes (either by mistake or by simple opinion) a thread is posted in this section incorrectly. That does not give members of the Roleplaying Forum leave to jump onto their threads and treat these posters outside of the Community Rules and Guidelines. They are your fellow players and insults, abusive behavior or attempts to make the person feel unwelcome do not belong here.

If you see a thread in the wrong place, report it as you would any other thread and let the moderation team take care of it.

Be civil, be mature and above all, be respectful of your fellow Tenno.

[SilverBones]

MISCONDUCT ON THE RP FORUMS

THE GOLDEN RULE: The RP Forums are still subject to the Rules and Community Guidelines set by Digital Extremes, and any violation of these rules is considered just as applicable on the RP forums as it is in any other part of it. Once again there has been a disturbing trend of people being uncivil, engaging in inappropriate discussions as well as spamming.

If this behavior is found on the RP Forums, it will be subject to the same disciplinary action as any offense elsewhere on the board. This can range from verbal warnings to full warning points, leading all the way to Post Moderation and potentially a ban from the forums.

The RP Forum is not a white-listed, area of free reign where people can make comments and treat other RP’ers with disrespect. If a member of the forums acts in a way that violates these rules or a topic is inappropriately made (either because of its content or where it is posted), then they should be reported using the Report function on the post itself, much like any other thread.

On a personal note, the RP forums were put up for people to enjoy the world of Warframe, embed themselves deeper into the Lore and even add nuances to the world themselves in a way no videogame can. There is a level of catharsis in writing violent, crude or disturbing material, but you must remember the medium that you write in.

If you want to use excessive bad language, engage in adult situations or write about disturbing, dark and terrible things (outside of horribly dispatching a Crewman or Lancer), then the Warframe Forum is not the place to do it. First and foremost there are more than just Roleplayers here, some new to this, others old hats to RP Posting.

When I see degrees of elitism in these threads, along with stories or mistreatment, excessive vulgarity and inappropriate behavior being seen as ‘just the way things are in the RP forum’ then that is not only disappointing to me, but to the people who make this game – especially those who watch these threads from the shadows, interested in seeing what stories you come up with.

In the coming weeks, I will be watching the posting habits of the RP Forums and if there is an unacceptable level of uncivil behavior, rule breaking or generally inappropriate content, then warnings will be issued and – depending on the level of inappropriate behavior – the thread may be locked or hidden.

I do not want to shut parts of my favorite creative corner of this Forum down, but ultimately if the rules cannot be followed then you may find your stories cut short before they come to an end everyone can enjoy.

In short, this forum is not a free ticket to act in a reprehensible way. I don't want to see this side of the Forum shut down.

Stay civil, stay respectful and conduct yourself in an honorable manner, Tenno.

Game on.