Quickstart Guide to the Guild

Work in progress

The Quickstart Guide

All you need to know about roleplaying, RPGuild, and how it works.

Contents:

1. What is Roleplayer Guild?
2. What is Roleplaying?
3. How to use Roleplayer Guild.

What is Roleplayer Guild?

Roleplayer Guild is one of the fastest growing play-by-post roleplaying communities on the internet and we attribute much of this to our simple structure and approachable lack of rigid rules. We try to create a roleplaying community as freeform and user-driven as possible. We like flexibility.

What also makes Roleplayer Guild unique is that our roleplaying forums are divided not by genre, but by level of skill/standards. After three years of experimentation, we believe this is a natural division that is most helpful for roleplayers trying to find like-minded roleplayers.

Free Roleplay: No standards.
Casual Roleplay: Medium standards.
Advanced Roleplay: High standards.

We also offer some niche roleplay forums:

The Arena: Dueling roleplay.
One on One: Roleplaying in pairs.

What is Roleplaying?

Imagine that each thread is a multiplayer online roleplaying game.

• The Game Master (GM) is the one that has created the thread. He or she defines the time and place of the roleplay, establishes the general plot, and introduces the character he or she will be playing. The roleplay premise can range from an academy of sorcerers to a group of bald space marines to some 17-year-old vampires in a highschool romance.
• Each player creates and controls a character in the roleplay.
• The GM and players then take turns posting in the thread. In each post, the player's character interacts with the other characters in the thread and advances the adventure.

Let's look at an example:

Pretend we have a roleplay in the Casual Roleplay forum involving a particularly original storyline: Four hobbits must take the Ring of Power across varied and epic lands, ultimately casting it into the depths of the Eyjafjallajokull Volcano.

There are four roleplayers involved in this journey:

No code has to be inserted here.
Now for the example's roleplay thread:

After the GM and the players discuss the thread and its premise in the Interest Check thread (more on that later), the GM creates the roleplay. In his introductory post, he provides a brief history of the world in which the roleplay takes place. He describes the evil of the Ring of Power, how it came into Sedendegad's possession, and how Sedendegad must recruit a party of hobbits from the local tavern to destroy the Ring and rid the hobbit world of evil.

So, we have post #1 (excerpt):
No code has to be inserted here.Now the other players post, explaining how their characters fit into the storyline. They introduce their own hobbits, develop their characters, interact with the scene that the GM has provided, and most importantly, interact with the actions of eachother.

No code has to be inserted here.And so the quest begins. The roleplayers and the GM set out on their journey, taking turns posting, interacting, fighting, and overcoming outer and inner conflicts. The roleplayers don't need to post in a certain order, but you do want to try and let everyone post. Everyone should contribute to the progression of the roleplay and the GM should keep everyone on task and lead the roleplay.

How to use Roleplayer Guild

Checklist:

• Pick a Roleplaying forum that suits you.
• Head to the Interest Checks to join or make a roleplay.
  
  • This is where members gather a group before they start the roleplay.
  • Either post in or make an Interest Check.
• Note: There's no rule against messaging the GM of an active roleplay or even posting in a roleplay's OOC to explain that you're interested and would like to join.
• If you are the roleplay's GM, make the IC and OOC threads for the roleplay.
  
  • If you're only a roleplay participant, take note of where the GM makes the IC/OOC threads so you can find them when you want to post.
• Begin roleplaying and have fun. :)

Now, here's the checklist with pictures. :unibrow:

Step 1: Pick a Roleplaying Forum that suits you

http://imgur.com/dYB0G.gif

It's easier to find roleplayers that share your style and interests if you can choose a forum most congruent to your interests.

Step 2: Create or post in an Interest Check (Optional)

Interest Checks are used to form a roleplaying group. If you've chosen a forum in Step 1 then you can post in the appropriate Interest Check subforum. If you don't know which one to pick, you can just post in the general Interest Check forum.

In an Interest Check, you brainstorm roleplaying ideas, pitch ideas, and generally see if anybody finds it interesting. Alternatively, you can find Interest Checks that interest you and brainstorn with other interested roleplayers.

http://imgur.com/pUIMI.gif

While it's generally a good idea to create an Interest Check, it's not always necessary. Sometimes you already have a group of people that want to roleplay.

If you're just looking for one person to roleplay with, it might be a good idea to head over to the One on One Interest Checks.

Step 3: Create an In Character (IC) and Out Of Character (OOC) thread for your roleplay

http://imgur.com/SlNLl.gif

What they're for:

No code has to be inserted here.If you're the GM, make sure you link the others to the IC and OOC threads. It's a good idea to post the links in the Interest Check thread and in each IC and OOC thread for easy navigation.

Get out there and roleplay!

The fastest and most effective way to learn how to roleplay is to dig in and start posting. The experience comes quick and the rope is easy to get the hang of.