RPing Questions? Ask Here!

[Pergen]

I think I understand the writing side of RPing. I need some advice on the OOC side. How do I get people to join my RP and how do I coordinate that with them?

[The Macabees]

I think I understand the writing side of RPing. I need some advice on the OOC side. How do I get people to join my RP and how do I coordinate that with them?

Along with your IC thread, you can create an OOC thread that's basically designed to coordinate applications to join your RP and then the OOC conversations between you and other players.

A lot of it comes down to networking. Find an active region that fits your values and start to engage with other players on the regional message board or by joining their RPs.

In sales there are 'warm' leads and 'cold' leads. Warm leads are people you know are most likely to buy what you're selling, usually people you have an established relationship with. Cold leads are people who you largely don't know and haven't been introduced to your product.

An OOC sign-up thread targets cold leads and you networking in your region, and joining others' RPs, is part of the process of creating warm leads that you can then invite into your own RPs.

Does this make sense?

[Pergen]

Thanks, that makes sense, I will make an OOC. How do I find a region?

[Rhodevus]

Thanks, that makes sense, I will make an OOC. How do I find a region?

There are plenty of ways to find a region. You can check out the Find a Region Megathread. You can also check out the regions of those you RP with. Or people you talk on NS with.

[Cruxa]

Thanks, that makes sense, I will make an OOC. How do I find a region?

Join mine.

[The Macabees]

Thanks, that makes sense, I will make an OOC. How do I find a region?

Another option is to keep perusing NS, see who's active, see what region they're in, and then test it out to see if it's for you.

[Volkmacht]

I am planning to set up a international court RP. Does that belong in NationStates or International Incidents?

[Sunset]

I am planning to set up a international court RP. Does that belong in NationStates or International Incidents?

II, if the various plaintiffs/litigants/defendants/judges will be played or originate from various other nations. A court case is confrontational and if the participants are international... International Incidents. If the reverse is true and all of the participants in the legal process are from your nation - and thus there will be little outside influence or response - then NationStates.

[Kevtalia]

So I'm planing an RP where a civil war breaks out in my country, do i have to actually make the civil war happen or is it all part of the RP?

[Lamoni]

So I'm planing an RP where a civil war breaks out in my country, do i have to actually make the civil war happen or is it all part of the RP?

Civil wars don't happen out of the blue in real life, so it would be a good idea for you to at least explain why the civil war started, so that any participants in the RP will be able to make their various schemes and plots. It is just all-around better for the RP if you do.

[Pax Cybertronian]

Hello. Am I allowed to create a thread where I can create a newspaper for my nation? Are there any designated threads or am I allowed to create my own? Thanks.

[Kyrusia]

Hello. Am I allowed to create a thread where I can create a newspaper for my nation? Are there any designated threads or am I allowed to create my own? Thanks.

Yes. Domestic newswires/media/newspapers/etc. (as in, say, "Kyrusian Evening News") belong in Factbooks & National Information.

[Azenyanistan]

Hello. I need help separating OOC from IC.

[Olthenia]

Hello. I need help separating OOC from IC.

What's the problem?

[Azenyanistan]

Hello. I need help separating OOC from IC.

What's the problem?

1. People tell me I should separate IC from OOC because of how I act.
2. I'm a very sensitive person and that affects my roleplaying badly at times.
3. I have had bad experience with some people.
4. I only wish to be able to roleplay without having to worry so much about my own wellbeing.

[Sunset]

What's the problem?

1. People tell me I should separate IC from OOC because of how I act.
2. I'm a very sensitive person and that affects my roleplaying badly at times.
3. I have had bad experience with some people.
4. I only wish to be able to roleplay without having to worry so much about my own wellbeing.

Cooperative RP is one of those odd ducks; If you are reading a novel, you should be able to connect with and empathize with the characters. Having that connection puts you in the story and thus makes it more alive to you, the reader. In cooperative RP you'll be expected to take your punches as well as give them whether the character is your nation, a tank crew, or the President. So you as the writer will want to build both empathy for and be able to hurt those characters - you are in the unique position of hurting yourself twice. As are the other writers and so the solution is...

Kill your characters.

Do it yourself - it doesn't need to be someone else doing it, or manipulating them into a situation where they are killed. Kill them yourself and in creative, random, funny, or just unfortunate ways. It will help you deal with the idea of death (even in the concept of a nation as a character) as a thing. The President? Cancer. Unexpected Stage Five, two weeks to live. How do they deal with it? How do -you- deal with it? Not only will you become a better writer but you will also become a better person as you work through in imagination the stages of grief, the notion of death and what might (if anything) come after. That tank crew? The tank slips off the side of the road into a deep lake. Some drown, some escape. How do they deal with a near-death experience and the loss of their comrades in arms? The Nation? A sure-bet election doesn't go the way everyone thinks and suddenly there's a populist demagogue in charge and the very character of the Nation changes. It dies - or at least slips towards death.

As far as dealing with other people goes... Well, hard truth time.

I had a very hard time dealing with other people. I'm so much smarter than them, you see. They are but ants beneath my astounding intellect. I did not understand how they can make all these poor, petty decisions. Then I met a very lovely young woman who was willing to put up with my arrogance, fell in love, got married, had a kid... And suddenly I realize that half the problem wasn't them - it was me. Because a relationship is always a two-way street. You gotta give and take. Sometimes you gotta give them more than you think they need. Some people need to be talked through things a hundred times and it seems like they will never learn. But yet she too will eventually be old enough to meet someone, get married, have kids (or whatever her life path will be - I'm cool). But for her to get there I have to give her a lot more than I thought I would. She's my kid, right? Take her mom's looks, my intelligence, and she will take over the world some day...

But I have to get her there. I have to answer all those weird questions, I have to help her with her homework, I have to tolerate the odd behavior. That doesn't mean I have to bankrupt myself - you don't have to give them the keys to the kingdom - but you do have to work with them and more than you think. And sometimes... Sometimes you have to change your own behavior first. Or at least try.

Now, if I were to make a suggestion?

Get a job. Not in the 'Get a job, you dirty hippy' fashion, but get a job. A dirty job is even better. Go do something outside, something that requires moving your muscles, swinging a hammer, torquing a wrench. Something that will build callouses on your hands, put scars on your legs. Something that will build up your endurance to the little aches and pains in life and just as importantly teach you how to deal with them. You don't need to do it forever, but a few weeks of working on a fishing trawler in Alaska, or swinging a hammer under the mid-summer sun on a construction site, or pumping sewage will give you a whole new perspective on sensitivity and on character - and on the characters you write. That doesn't mean you should lose your sensitivity - sensitivity is a good thing. It helps you connect, to be emphatic, but with some grit to temper it you'll be able to work with and help those you interact with. Those who, in turn, might need some help of their own...

[Azenyanistan]

1. People tell me I should separate IC from OOC because of how I act.
2. I'm a very sensitive person and that affects my roleplaying badly at times.
3. I have had bad experience with some people.
4. I only wish to be able to roleplay without having to worry so much about my own wellbeing.

Cooperative RP is one of those odd ducks; If you are reading a novel, you should be able to connect with and empathize with the characters. Having that connection puts you in the story and thus makes it more alive to you, the reader. In cooperative RP you'll be expected to take your punches as well as give them whether the character is your nation, a tank crew, or the President. So you as the writer will want to build both empathy for and be able to hurt those characters - you are in the unique position of hurting yourself twice. As are the other writers and so the solution is...

Kill your characters.

Do it yourself - it doesn't need to be someone else doing it, or manipulating them into a situation where they are killed. Kill them yourself and in creative, random, funny, or just unfortunate ways. It will help you deal with the idea of death (even in the concept of a nation as a character) as a thing. The President? Cancer. Unexpected Stage Five, two weeks to live. How do they deal with it? How do -you- deal with it? Not only will you become a better writer but you will also become a better person as you work through in imagination the stages of grief, the notion of death and what might (if anything) come after. That tank crew? The tank slips off the side of the road into a deep lake. Some drown, some escape. How do they deal with a near-death experience and the loss of their comrades in arms? The Nation? A sure-bet election doesn't go the way everyone thinks and suddenly there's a populist demagogue in charge and the very character of the Nation changes. It dies - or at least slips towards death.

As far as dealing with other people goes... Well, hard truth time.

I had a very hard time dealing with other people. I'm so much smarter than them, you see. They are but ants beneath my astounding intellect. I did not understand how they can make all these poor, petty decisions. Then I met a very lovely young woman who was willing to put up with my arrogance, fell in love, got married, had a kid... And suddenly I realize that half the problem wasn't them - it was me. Because a relationship is always a two-way street. You gotta give and take. Sometimes you gotta give them more than you think they need. Some people need to be talked through things a hundred times and it seems like they will never learn. But yet she too will eventually be old enough to meet someone, get married, have kids (or whatever her life path will be - I'm cool). But for her to get there I have to give her a lot more than I thought I would. She's my kid, right? Take her mom's looks, my intelligence, and she will take over the world some day...

But I have to get her there. I have to answer all those weird questions, I have to help her with her homework, I have to tolerate the odd behavior. That doesn't mean I have to bankrupt myself - you don't have to give them the keys to the kingdom - but you do have to work with them and more than you think. And sometimes... Sometimes you have to change your own behavior first. Or at least try.

Now, if I were to make a suggestion?

Get a job. Not in the 'Get a job, you dirty hippy' fashion, but get a job. A dirty job is even better. Go do something outside, something that requires moving your muscles, swinging a hammer, torquing a wrench. Something that will build callouses on your hands, put scars on your legs. Something that will build up your endurance to the little aches and pains in life and just as importantly teach you how to deal with them. You don't need to do it forever, but a few weeks of working on a fishing trawler in Alaska, or swinging a hammer under the mid-summer sun on a construction site, or pumping sewage will give you a whole new perspective on sensitivity and on character - and on the characters you write. That doesn't mean you should lose your sensitivity - sensitivity is a good thing. It helps you connect, to be emphatic, but with some grit to temper it you'll be able to work with and help those you interact with. Those who, in turn, might need some help of their own...

I had to spend some time to read all this. But after I did...thank you. I really needed something like this. I am not desperate though and I am okay. But I really needed this.
I have not been in many a good mood lately. And just today, I did something that really upset my RP partner. So now here I am looking for advice.

And you answered my cry. Thank you so much, Sunset.

[Alvaro Republic]

For those new, uncertain, at a rut, or wanting to discuss any sort of topic in between in regards to II Role-Playing, please feel free to posit questions, threads, and topic discussions. This thread is intended to be an open area of general discussion on II Role-playing, for newer and older players and where assistance can be given. Please keep all off-topic chatter to a minimum.

NOTE: II, GE&T, and F&NI RPing questions only, please. NSSports and Gameplay-based RPing questions are not the main focus of this thread.

How do I post a Forum?

[Maltropia]

How do I post a Forum?

You don't post a forum, you post a thread. The forum, or board, is the area where all the threads are posted. "International Incidents" is a forum; "RPing Questions? Ask Here!" is a thread - this thread, specifically. You post a thread (also called a topic) by clicking the New Topic button found at the top of each sub-forum. See this image below for an example:

[Kyrusia]

Players that Use Photobucket!

If any of you are having difficulty displaying your images from Photobucket, you are not the only one. Assuming you are now in the market for a new image host, there are many that are available, but please do NOT use TinyPic. TinyPic recycles its URLs after a time, so your image of a boat, character, flag, etc. may eventually be recycled, turning the image displayed into something obscene. If that happens, you are responsible for what is posted, meaning you can get hit with the Ominous Redtext™ if the image is obscene, gore, pornographic, etc. I would personally recommend using a host such as Imgur.

Thanks for your time!

[The United Artherian Federation]

Whats an MT Thread?

[Morcavo]

Whats an MT Thread?

Modern Tech.
PT-Past Tech
MT-Modern Tech
FT-Future Tech
etc.

[The United Artherian Federation]

Whats an MT Thread?

Modern Tech.
PT-Past Tech
MT-Modern Tech
FT-Future Tech
etc.

Thx.

[Tinhampton]

What is "Nation Maintainance"?

[Castille de Italia]

What is "Nation Maintainance"?

Most of the time, Nation Maintenance refers to a thread in which the owner of said thread uses it as a way of writing short stories about events, characters, war or other things pertaining to their nation. It is a way of maintaining one's nation through writing established lore, and keeping the owner active in roleplaying.