Roleplaying

What is Roleplaying? There are at least as many different answers to this question as there are people who'd attempt to answer it (you'll find two such answers in the links at the bottom of this page). As a result, giving a definitive answer to this question is difficult. All we can really do is answer it from our own perspectives. In this post, I try to present my own.

Roleplay is a word used to represent many different things. What I'm referring to in this post is roleplay in games. My perspective on the subject is rooted in my own personal experiences. Nearly 30 years ago I met some kids at my school who were playing Dungeons and Dragons, the "Basic" version of the game that came in a red boxed set (before Advanced Dungeons and Dragons). I believe it was about the 11th printing or so for those who are interested.

We would get together semi-frequently to play the game. One of my friends was our "Dungeon Master" (AKA the DM), the person who runs the game. The rest of us were players in the game. The DM created and ran the adventures we played, the world it took place in, and assumed the roles of all the NPCs (Non-player characters) we'd encounter along the way. The PCs (Player Characters) assumed the role of individual heroes. Usually each person played a different class. I was fond of the Cleric (a kind of warrior-priest) early on, but came to love the Ranger (similar to the hunter in LOTRO). In an online game like LOTRO the game itself takes on the role of the DM, allowing everyone who logs in to play within that world.

When it came to table top gaming and the like I've participated in several variations of D&D, and a host of other games including Shadowrun, ConspiracyX, Vampire the Masquerade, Top Secret, and many more. But somewhere along the line I got away from RPGs around a table and only played on my computer both on and offline. For the most part I lost the roleplay feel in the process and I've come to miss it.

Roleplaying is the act of assuming roles, in this case the roles of heroes in the story (your character). Doing this is similar to acting, only in a free-form kind of way that's similar to improv. There are no scripts, only motivations, backgrounds, character histories and similar information to guide you when trying to decide what the character would do in a given situation.
That's Roleplay in a nutshell to me. Using the information you have about what makes up the character you've created to interact with other player's characters (with their own individual motives, hangups, etc) and the world around you.

Role-playing can certainly get more complicated than that, though it doesn't have to. It means different things to different people. For some it's a competition of knowledge. Always challenging those who don't get this or that piece of Lore perfect, or don't quite use language appropriately for the time period / setting. For others it's can be an excuse to act badly, incite conflict and be generally rude. For most however, it is far more relaxed with the goal being simply to have fun and enjoy portraying their character the way they see them to the best of their ability at whatever level of imersion they choose.

For the most part, how you choose to roleplay doesn't matter so long as those you roleplay with appreciate it. Ultimately, roleplay is about social interaction, so whatever works for you and your social circle is all that should matter.

I've not Roleplayed in years, but I have a hankering to do it again. So I'm beginning to look into ways to roleplay in LOTRO with Vigilo. I've taken the first step by working out who I think he is and what his motivations are. The next step I imagine would be to turn on my roleplaying flag (/rp on) in game. For there I'll have to see what develops and what I can find. I don't claim to be a excellent roleplayer. I just want to find some casual players who enjoy interacting in game as their characters. It's a wonderful form of escapeism thats great for relieving stress, inspiring laughter, and just plain having a good time.