Hey, do you roleplay?

*The tavern door was suddenly pushed open as a woman dashed inside, slamming the door shut as quickly as she had swung it open. Leaning with her back against the door, while sighing with relief to finally be out of the cold, she began looking around the room examining the inhabitants within. Spotting the fireplace, she moved slowly across the room to take a seat near it, all while brushing large snowflakes from her clothes, not paying any mind to those clinging to her mass of orange red curls that was her hair.*

Excerpt from character entrance within @CandyApple’s roleplay story on IMVU.

 

We are excited to share the wonderful world of roleplay enjoyed by thousands of IMVU users in chatrooms everyday. With the help of CandyApple the lead moderator of the Roleplay Discussion Board, here is how to join the myriads of stories that are already taking place, as well as instructions on how to lead your own with your own friends or new ones. In addition to the fun you’ll have based on your own imagination, role-playing games founded under the principles of fair play and cooperation, are an amazing way to cultivate creativity, build your social skills and meet new friends, participate in teamwork-based activities, and hone your problem-solving skills.

And it’s so much more fun to play on IMVU because it’s easier to create the scene in which your story takes place, as well as dress up your character based on where the story leads.  We can’t wait to hear about your story.

What is roleplaying on IMVU?

Roleplay (RP) on IMVU is simply, improv acting. You pick or create a character then you act the role much like you would do for a play. However, since people can’t necessarily see all of the details of what your character is doing, you have to type what your character is saying, and also what they are doing. The fun part on IMVU is that you can dress your character pretty easily to match the storyline.  If you don’t have Credits or the products you need for your character… that’s ok! It’s not a rule that your avatar looks like the character you are playing because you can always describe how you look in a fun, imaginative way to contribute to the group and the story.

Keep in mind that, in a way, roleplay is something we have all already done at one point in our lives. Whether we remember it or not, we were all small children playing pretend at some point, either as a superhero, princess, teacher … or even just pretending the floor was lava.

What you should know about roleplaying on IMVU:
  • Have fun! It is only a game. If you aren’t having fun, then something is wrong. If you gave it a try and it didn’t turn out well, don’t give up. Perhaps you simply need to find the right people to RP with, or maybe try a different kind.
  • There are many different types of roleplay – kingdom, family, anime, canon, fantasy, urban fantasy, historical, steampunk, science fiction, or maybe you’ll create your own!
  • Every roleplay has its own rules. You are not expected to know them upon joining a group. Never be afraid to ask questions out of character (OOC) if you are unsure of the rules of the roleplay you are in.
  • Be respectful of other players and their characters.
  • Always keep yourself and your character separate. What you do in character (IC) and who you are out of character (OOC) are two different things, as is with anyone else roleplaying. Never confuse a person as their character, and never mix yourself with your character.
  • A person’s account name is usually not their character’s name, nor does it have anything to do with their character.
  • Roleplayers can use more than one character on one account, and can use a character in more than one roleplay. Just because you roleplayed with a person in room A, doesn’t mean your character knows them in room B. They might be using a different character or they may not be mixing the story line from A with B. If you are, unsure ask them OOC.
  • No one can force anything on you or your character that you do not agree to. Don’t want to have a fight with that troll in the tavern? Then don’t.  It is your choice what happens with your character. You can choose how you want to avoid a situation – either make it part of the story and respond IC, or let your RP group know OOC that you don’t want that to happen.  As a last resort, just walk away.
  • In roleplay, just as in the rest of IMVU, bullies are not tolerated. Please don’t suffer in silence. There is a huge difference between a character bullying your character and a user bullying another user.  Do not bring OOC issues in game. If some one is bullying, harassing, or threatening you then report it using IMVU’s flagging tools.
Now the fun part! How to great started:
  1. Create your character! Start with something simple based on these important elements: name, age, race, gender, looks, and personality. (You can always change your character later.) Keep in mind that over powered characters are frowned upon. Remember even Superman can be killed by green kryptonite.
  2. Understand commonly used RP symbols and their meanings. These are a universal forms of communication for most roleplayers and below is a handy study guide.
    1. (( )) or [[ ]] or even {{ }} signifies OOC chatter.
    2. ” “ usually signifies spoken words of a character. Often, when ” ” isn’t used, action symbols are employed to break up action from spoken text.
    3. * * , :: :: , – – , — —, signifies an action done by the character. Usually when no symbols are used for actions, ” ” is used for the speech.
    4. ~ ~ is generally used to signify telepathic communications between characters, and should be respected as if other characters can’t hear it (nor see) the conversation. It’s typically treated like a private conversation, unless otherwise stated in said roleplay.
    5. <c> usually means “continued”. This is used when a post becomes too long and requires another post to finish.
    6. <e> typically indicates “end”. This is used for when a continued post is ended so that others know you are finished with the post.
  3. Start your search for a roleplay room or group to join. Just like your other room searches on IMVU, this part will come with some trial and error. You are going to find good and bad rooms/groups for roleplaying. Don’t let the bad ones stop you. Just move on to the next until you find the right one for you. Remember to read the room description before joining, as it might tell you more about the room and help you prepare your character accordingly. For those new to roleplay, you might find that a multiverse room will be the easiest as they allow characters from all worlds/genres to mix. Otherwise, look for one that suits the genre/world for you and your character.
  4. Take a moment to understand the setting, story line, and rules. If the room or group you have just joined doesn’t make it clear what the rules or the setting/story line are, then ask OOC (out of character). Don’t be afraid to say you are new to roleplay. You never know who might offer to help you learn. You can also just observe the roleplay already going on before you make an entrance post to help you understand what is happening when your character enters.
  5. Make an entrance – When you enter a public room, make an entrance rather than simply saying, “Greetings fellow patrons.” Making an entrance is important so that other role players know how to react to your presence. Is your character mad? Sad? Happy? Wounded? Dying? Is your character so wicked that others within can almost or actually sense it?

 

Now that you have learned some basics and started your journey into roleplaying on IMVU, you can start enjoying the process of creating great characters and making great friends.

Sample Roleplay Dialog:

UserA: *Lora looked down at her hand wishing the cards she held were better than they were before looking back up quickly making sure to keep a calm smile across her face.* “So what brought you back to these parts, Roan? You can’t have come to get your butt kicked in cards again so soon.”

UserB:  *Roan let out a laugh as he laid his cards face down on the wooden table. Taking a drink he tried not to focus too long on Lora’s face as he looked for clues as to whether her hand was any good or not.* “Just traveling thru, I imagine you’re doing the same.”    *Picking his hand of cards back up he glanced down at them while debating on the odds of whether Lora’s hand was better than his or not*

UserA: “No, traveling thru for me. I’m just here waiting on someone who wishes to buy something from me. Though they have made me wait too long. Lucky for them, you came along to keep me entertained. Otherwise I would have left by now.”

UserB:  “Glad to be of service.” *Roan joked as he moved the cards around in his hand while wondering what Lora might be selling*

UserA:  *Realizing that Roan wasn’t going to be the first one to put his cards down, she laid her hand out across the table in front of her. Two tens, an eight, a six, and a four. All while knowing that she was about to lose* “Show me what you got.”

UserB: *Roan couldn’t believe it as he laid out his cards to show he had a two, five, seven, nine, and a three. * “ I don’t know how you do it every time.”

 

Helpful links:

Common RP Etiquette – https://help.imvu.com/s/question/0D51L00004wvuAGSAY/common-rp-etiquette

Fighting Styles – https://help.imvu.com/s/question/0D51L00004wvu9NSAQ/fighting-styles

Room Abbreviations and Definitions – https://help.imvu.com/s/question/0D51L00004wvuBdSAI/?t=1524281835146

RP Fighting Etiquette – https://help.imvu.com/s/question/0D51L00004wvu6xSAA/roleplay-fighting-etiquette

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