A multi-themed online text adventure

roleplay rp

*********************  The MultiMud Guide To Roleplay  **********************
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

   This is not policy or a set of rules players must follow.  It is just
some guidelines explaining what roleplay is and how it relates to this mud.
How much roleplay an individual does is entirely up to them, however those
that roleplay well are rewarded on occasion.

What is Roleplay?

   To roleplay is to act out a particular character.  Where this character
comes from is entirely up to the player, it may be a real person, a character
from a book or just a character the player made up on the spot.  Obviously
it would be better if the character was appropriate to the mud and fits in
with the style.

How to Roleplay?

   There are a lot of ways in which roleplay can be done.  The first
opportunity a player has is when they are creating the character.  A char's
name can tell alot about a player, they can reflect such things as race and
aggressiveness.  A good start is to try and pick a sensible name, its very
unlikely you'll find many people calling themselves MercedesBenz or something
similarly ridiculous.  Another aspect about names is that choices like
'Killer', 'Death' (unless you want to roleplay Death from Discworld) are
rather uninspiring, try to think of something a bit more original.
   Secondly every player has the opportunity to add a short description of
themselves on the main menu, take advantage of it, its far more interesting
for other players to see something you've written about yourself as well.
You might also consider coming up with a personal history for your character.
   The most important aspect of roleplay is behaviour, which is what defines
a characters and how other characters react to them.  A lot of aspects can
define your character, its race, class/profession, equipment it likes to use
(eg equipment made of gold), how it speaks (eg a Knight or Paladin's speech
might be slightly archaic and formal), a char's general nature
(good/evil/chaotic/neutral) and the character's personal history.  All these
might influence a character's decision/attitude.  It might be a bit
overwhelming to cope with everything mentioned but even doing small things
can make it more fun, as it can provoke a good reaction from other players.
   The point about roleplaying is to behave in a way befitting your char, it
does not mean you behave how you like and try to justify it within the
context of your character later.

When to Roleplay?

   Nobody expects a player to roleplay every second that they are logged on.
Common sense should tell you when roleplay is applicable.  For instance when
using public channels a player should try to keep in character unless they
explicitly state the message is out of character (by perhaps including
<OOC> at the front of the message).  Also when writing messages on boards
concerning discussions about policies, rules, bugs etc. it should be obvious
thar roleplay is not really applicable, in fact it will lessen the value
of your message.  

Roleplay & Immortals

   Some MultiMud Immortals choose to roleplay their character and even may
accept followers.  So if an Immortal chooses to interact with you or your
clan in a roleplaying capacity you are urged to participate.  However it is
important to remember that these beings carry the power of the gods and
invoking their wrath is not really recommended and can carry some unpleasant
repercussions for you or your clan.

Roleplay & Clans

   If your character wishes to join a clan, first consider whether its
appropriate for that character to join, its hardly good roleplay if you
portray your character as being good but go and join an evil clan just
because you think the clan is cool.  Once you have joined a clan, a character
must live (and die) by the ideals that the clan represents.  Your character
should do everything possible to support the clan and its activities.
   Concerning clans themselves.  Whatever a clan's self-appointed task, it
should always be seen to be carrying it out.  It enhances the game world if
clans are seen to be going about their business (A simple thing but you'd be
surprised at how many clans are created but thats about as active as they
get.)

Roleplay & Player Killing/Thieving

   Since MultiMud is not a PK-mud, a character whose only objective is to
kill players or steal from them is not acceptable and certainly cannot
claim to be attempting to roleplay (MultiMud is a world where Psychopathic
Maniacs don't exist).  Those that wish to indulge in PK have various options
open to them such as Outlaw status.  Its suggested that being an Outlaw means
that in extreme circumstances your character might resort to violence against
an enemy (Killing someone just because they are an outlaw is not recommended)
.  For those non-outlaws PK should be a very minor thing (unless your clan
requires you to PK in certain areas).  PK will therefore probably involve
a fair fight in the arena or an unfair fight if you venture into one of the
mud's less friendly areas.  Most importantly killing someone just because
you can is not acceptable and is not really justifiable from a roleplay
perspective.

Roleplay & Second Characters

   You should keep your characters separate regardless of how much roleplay
you do.  (The Policy also demands you do this since only limited multiplaying
is allowed and of course exchanging eq between chars is illegal).  Inevitably
2.chars of other players get found out, if this happens do not treat the
information as though all have a right to hear it, ie don't write the
connections between chars on boards or tell other people, you do not have
the right to spoil the game for the victim.  And it goes without saying keep
the characters separate, do not punish a char for the actions of another char
just because they are owned by the same player.
   Finally most players will have several chars but inevitably players will
have a favourite character that gets used the most.  And consequently some
characters never get used.  Unfortunately some players seem to feel the need
to have a character in every clan.  This can be undesirable because it takes
up valuable clan space, gives the clan a false sense of size and there is
little or no roleplay involved in keeping a character in a clan but never
actually using it.  Before joining a clan please consider whether you are
going to use the char.
Character: Password: