Every so often you see a post about how people just 'roleplay' themselves, or how people show through in their characters, or how people take 'OOC' issues 'IC'

Today I was thinking about starting up an alt that was a lot of things that I wasn't, just for the RP challenge.

Now, I try to be a lot of things that I think are good things to be, and I started to ponder: If I started a character that was irritible, didn't mind hurting other people (or even enjoyed it), or was nasty, violent and insulting, or any of those things that some people RP, even though they themselves may not be that way, would it start to rub off on me?

I wonder if people have had this experience when they play characters that are really different than they are. Do your characters start to rub off on you at all, take on a life of their own, just a little bit?

Yes, If I ever roleplay a mean person for too long my family asks me if I'm feeling ok or not.

My theory (I'm sure someone else thought of it first, so it's not really mine) is that everyone has the ability, or there is the possibility for anyone, to be both the best and the worst a person can be. Just as I volunteer my time with charities, I don't doubt that under different circumstances and with a different past I could be someone who steals from charities.

The same with characters I create. I have an alt that is manipulative, sneaky, underhanded and insanely power hungry. He uses deception and cunning guises to get what he wants.

That is nothing like me, but I don't see how I could play that role if I didn't have the possibility within me.

EDIT: So to answer your question, yes, roles I play can bring certain characteristics out in me.

I'm more snuggly than I used to be, I suppose. I hugged a policeman I knew infront of his partner, called him a "Snuggy darling" and walked off.

. . . you're queer .

No, just bored.

When I role play a character, even before I begin to roleplay, I sit down and try to think of their history. Then I look at the social behaviors they might have. Then I look at their likes and dislikes. Then I go into their past and try to ask as many questions about that specific character as I can. "Do they like the color green or red? What does the adverse color project to them?"

I think pursueing a career in the medical field has made me extremely analytical. Almost to the point that I'm always analyzing and trying to see one specific subject/thing/idea/place/et cetera from every point of view. So role playing, to me personally, is more about trying to achieve the ability of becoming that specific person for a while as I role play. It makes the experience real and solid. And it allows me to see how a situation would occur to me if I were really that person.

Believe it or not, psychologists studied a group of role playing people, young to old. The study took place in 1994, which was funded by the Vermont State University and took place in that same college. They wanted to see exactly how well role players can accustom themselves to a different situation and how well role playing contributed to their ability to become mercurial in their behaviors. (What I mean by mercurial is the ability to go from one situation to another with a small or nonexistent frustation, stress, or agony as possible. This is usually termed Psychological Adaptability, though it also takes place in social circles of any sorts) It was interesting what was found. It was found that role players of fantasy and nonfantasy games and/or actors were able to adapt easily to many given situations that generated high amounts of stress to those who did not role play or take part in some sort of acting.

So to sum this all up, I find that if I distance myself from my character and look at her in a third person perspective, I won't take on the traits that I give to her. But if I don't, the traits surface easily.

My theory is like this, the more you act a certain way, either pretend or in real life, the more you will act that way.

Just like when you stare at a bright light for a long time, you close your eyes and you still see the image.


Its a metaphor.

Odd. I'm definitely not psychologically adaptive.

Please refer to the post made by Auseklis about "bashing" another person's post. Thank you.

I've tried the whole, think of a background, figure out my character thing before creating. I have even had a character I wrote a beautiful background story for. Guess what? It never went anywhere. I find that my roleplay comes best after creating a character, becoming immersed in the world, and allowing my character to grow from the experiences they have. This is one thing I liked about Lusternia in comparison to the other IRE games. The whole Portal of Fate and memories thing. It was real easy to start by saying "I don't remember a thing." and not have to worry about some made-up background that may or may not suit what my character becomes in 6 months or a year down the road.



Please, that's hardly bashing. And I have to admit, knowing your roleplay and how you couldn't even separate rl wiccan lore from Lusternia wiccan lore, it's pretty damn funny. Not only this, but I also recall your wonderful ingame post insulting another person's PLAYER in regards to parenthood. Bad form, bad rp. Get off your pedestal.

I don't act as nice in real life. I'm not as cuddly either and if someone randomly came up and snuggled me I'd probably make a noise you've never heard before and hurt you or run away.

I'm afraid of men in real life...

Number 1. If you please recall my post of not being able to seperate Wiccan Lore from IRL and IC, I rewrote alot of things the religion stood for, yes. And I gave them to a few gods and to the Serenwilde/Moondancer public when the game FIRST opened. In fact, if you scroll back on the Moondancers Message board to the 16 or 14 post, you'll still find it there. No one knew what the Moondancers were about at that point. The game was just starting, so I gave my two cents to help it mature. Please get your information straight before going on a bashing trip.

Number 2. That was IC, when I told what's his face (I can't remember his name), Marina (as in the character) is extremely motherly. Almost to the point that she's over possessive, which I wanted her to be. She believes that the family comes first. When I posted my rant, it was totally meant to be IC, not OOC. I apologize if it seems otherwise. And I'm sorry if it stroked a few fires. Hopefully, those fires have been put out.

But in either sense, this is an old topic, not even relevant to this topic. Keep your anger in proportion to the given topic.

Thank you.

Said post was made on February 2nd. That is not the very first part of the game and we were way beyond not knowing what we were. And yes, you did insult the player, not the character as I quote "I can sense you are not a parent, neither in this world nor any other."

I'll drop it now.

Who is angry? I found what you posted to be the best laugh I have had in the last few days. Rhayni, apparently found it quite funny too. Considering I have witnessed your RP, and have seen your posts both here and in game, I find it to be funny that you claim what you do. That isn't anger at all, and it is relevant to the topic, as it is relevant to your post in the topic. Just because you dislike being contradicted doesn't make it less true.

Edited for spelling errors

I've found I've started saying 'Nuts' a lot in RL. Damn you, Elryn!

Many people are quite good at keeping a distinction between IC/OOC thinking. In terms of playing an evil, sadistic character, I think that as long as you ensure that you construct them in such a way that they are totally opposed to your own opinion about everything, then you'll find it easy to maintain a character/player boundary. If that's what worries you.

Personally, I don't like roleplay much. I far and away prefer immersion, so I myself can't stand playing nasty, sadistic characters because it is so jolting to any depth of experience.

Hmm... I've played both types of Roleplay character persona's... Evil, and good(Priest *twitch*) I've also done the neutralish thing, basically the ordinary forestal, though forestals on Lusternia are about as neutral as a fanatical army... So that was a new experience...

Anyways, I prefer using at least some of my own personality because I acctually tend to enjoy it when I am connected intimately with the descisions my character makes... I can play an evil ass, whi enjoys stealing killing, and destroying anything thats important to people... The problem was, I never really immersed myself in it because I just didn't Want that to be a part of me...

Pretty much the same thing with the 'Good' Character... Which I acctually hated more than the evil character because it seemed almost like their whole philosophy was utterly hypocritical... Oh, we're good but we will kill all the bad people because they live somewhere evil... Yeah... I never liked that... And I refused to be a hypocrit, so that character didn't last long...

Forestals were my preference because they were closest to what I am in RL... Mostly neutral to good and evil, believing all beings capable of both... But in real life, I'm no philosopher, or leader, etc... Suhnaye though has become at least a Philosopher, and enjoys leading people because he seems to be capable of it... Grudgingly though he may be about it...

I enjoy playing Suhnaye because he's just a match for me, it lets my personality do things I couldn't do in RL...

Anyways... Thats my two cents, as for the question, I let what traits I want to rub off on me rub off... I would love to be as self confident in RL as Suhnaye is IC... But it'll prolly never happen...

I don't know when the game started. And when was it opened to the public? In the middle of january of this year? Meaning 2005. So with all that, yes. Unless you were in the Alpha stage, then the game was just starting. Neither guild hall had even a door on their guild buildings or halls. And as for that quote you put up, she was being assumptive. Which, I agree, wasn't the best way to go about it, but as they say, "Emotions make the mind befuddled".

As for Gregori's post, you make assumptions that really have no warrent. What you think you may know and what really is are two different things. Refrain from combining them please.

No, the game started in the middle of SEPTEMBER, LAST year.