Your guide to creating a monster of an RPG

[Asilynne]

“Its ALIVE.....ITS ALIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!!!!!”
So said Dr. Frankenstein as his monstor came to life! But mad scientists arent the only ones that are happy to see their creations take on a life of their own. For Dr. Frankenstein, patching together a living man out of parts from dead people tickles his fancy. But for us here in the RPG community, RPGs are our thing. We like nothing better than to see an RPG with a great plot and interesting characters, and we LOVE to see that RPG take off and just get better and better as time goes on. “But how can we get that RPG to live and survive? Wheres that bolt of lightning thatll come down and jolt life into my creation??!”
That bolt of lightning is YOU! No, really, it is. The creators are responsible for attracting players but the cast make up a good part of the success of an RPG. But like Frankensteins monstor, a number of things together make a good RPG what it is. What are those components then? Ill name a few that Ive noticed in....

The Recipe for a Long Living RPG!!!!!!!!
*thunder crashes*

First of all, when creating an RPG, just like creating or building anything really, you have to start with a base. What interests you? What makes you happy? The first step in making a creation you can be proud of is...
:::CHOOSING A THEME!!:::
Its easy really, just pick something you like a lot, something you know a lot about, or, if your at a loss for ideas, Rudy and Bulbie have a section in the RPG news that gives suggestions for RPG ideas. If the theme you choose means something to you, then youll be more likely to want to keep it alive. Once you have the initial idea, let it grow. What kind of setting would fit well with it? What kind of events would unfold in that setting? How can you tie those events, setting, and idea together into a working plot?

:::DID SOMEONE SAY PLOT?!:::
If the idea is the backbone, and the setting and events are the bones and muscles, then the plot would have to be the brain, the nervecenter for your RPG. It sets the stage, providing a window into the general past of your RPGs world, the present state of affairs, and provides a reference for your potential cast to write its future. The plot can be long or short, open or rather closed, illustrating in detail events of the past or mysterious and hinting at things to come. Long doesnt always equal better, but if its short, make sure it gives enough information for the cast to be able to post accurately and well. Example: If your making an RPG based around creatures of the undead, it would be best to start your plot out at night. Many undead creatures are vunerable to sunlight, and if the first person who posts sets the time during the day, it might be possible that half your cast would be unable to do much more than describe the lining of their coffins!
It works both ways though. If your plot is extremely long and detailed, your cast may find it hard to post at all. A certain amount of creative freedom is needed for an RPG to really take off, and if your plot is too restricting, the cast will find they cant get out a good post without stepping on other peoples toes. When a cast is afraid to post something that might get in the way of anything else, nobody posts and the lifeblood of the RPG runs out, causing it to die.... A plot should be in the middle, it should be detailed enough to guide without choking other peoples creativity.
Once youve found that happy balance between chaos and suffocation, youre ready to post it! POST that wonderful piece of literature youve crafted and show the world! But OH NO why isnt anyone even looking at it?!? ;.;

::: DESIGN IS FUNDIMENTAL!!!!:::
Got an awesome plot but the number of views is lower than an idiots IQ? Maybe you need to spruce it up a little! A great idea doesnt do any good if it doesnt catch anyones attention. For example, I couldve come right out and said, “A successful RPG is made up of many components, these components shall be listed as such in reverse alphabetical order starting from most important to least important..blah blah blah” but if I did that would you still be reading it? HELL NO!
With design, it all starts with the title. Thats the first thing people will see of your RPG so make it eye catching. Make people want to click on your RPG, just to find out what the heck is up with it! Something creative, interesting, unique or even poetic will spark the interests and imaginations of your potential casts. Make sure you have something in your title that says its for sign-ups, so people will know its availiable. Once youve got their attention with the title, keep their attention! TAKE that wonderful plot of yours, shine it up reaaaalllll nice, and maybe add some colors to it! Like in a work of art, colors help set mood, so choose colors that would fit your RPG. If your RPG is about Lord of the Rings, greens, browns, and deep blues would give it that Middle Earth feel, while an RPG based on Vampires would have a red/black/dark blue color scheme. Bold, italics, and different sizes and fonts help with making your RPGs plot look awesome. Give your plot a makeover, it does wonders! And just look at all those views now! We should be getting sign-ups any minute now....any minute......

:::WHERES THE SIGN UP FORM!!?:::
AHHH! After concentrating on picking a good idea, forming a great plot and thinking up an attention grabbing title, dont forget one of the most important but easily neglectable parts of a new RPG: The sign up form. I personally find writing up the reference form very tedious, but its nesiccary for your cast to have a guideline of the information that will be needed about their characters. While some things in the forms may vary depending on what kind of RPG it is, a few things like Name, Age, Gender, Personality, Appearance, and History are a must in just about every RPG. And of course, there is the infamous OTHER that no one seems to like very much. But Other isnt evil, its just misunderstood! This is where youd put any special features about your character that wouldnt fit anywhere else. Does your character have a hatred for water that borders on ridiculous? Is he/she inclined to steal other peoples things just for fun? Or maybe your character has a thing for dRiNkInG bLoOd.....Whatever little quirk your character has, it will be sure to make your character and the role it plays in the RPG unique and interesting. And when remembering to add the sign up form, dont forget your own sign up! Give your future cast an example of the kinds of characters they might be interacting with! And wow, look how many sign ups you have now!

:::THE SCREENING ROOM!:::

But dont get too excited, it might be possible that a few things on other peoples forms contradict parts of your plot or character types. If so, be sure to promptly tell them what needs to be changed, and once the changes have been made, let them know theyve been approved. Dont be afraid to deny a character if its too farfetched based on your story. (Ex: Having a character thats half vampire and half werewolf in an RPG based on something with very few of either is WAY too out-there, and may even risk power Rping if it turns out its stronger than either one.) But dont go overboard, if there is nothing majorly wrong with the basic outline of the character, let it be. If your too much of a control freak on their characters, people will get irritated, and if they have to change too much of their characters, they may start to dislike them. ITS VERY IMPORTANT FOR A CAST TO LIKE THEIR CHARACTERS, BECAUSE IF YOU LIKE YOUR CHARACTER YOU ARE MORE LIKELY TO KEEP POSTING AS THEM!
Once you feel you have enough sign ups to be able to carry the story, its time for the show to bEgIn....

:::LET THERE BE RPGs!!!!!:::

So now your RPG has begun to take on a life of its own. The cast is posting, the storys moving along at a great pace, and certainly nothing can kill it now, right? WRONG! The mistake a lot of people make when making an RPG is not maintaining it. Think of an RPG like a small child, it cant live and grow if its just created and then thrown into the world to survive on its own! It needs nurturing! And if the story starts to slack off and people run out of ideas and stop posting, throw a twist into the mix! Create a fire, a flood, a rainstorm! Engineer a natural disaster to hit the area! Just like in real life unexpected things happen, so hit your RPG with them! Bring in a new enemy, and create a new ally to come to your aid, or introduce an item or treasure people can find. Sideplots and sidequests bring flavor to your RPG, and help keep it interesting. The fastest way to kill an RPG is for the creator to lose interest, so if you start an RPG, follow through with it. And if you want to start another RPG at the same time as your first one, make sure you show equal attention to both! If people signed up for your first one theyd expect it to not die as soon as another idea sparks your fancy, or people will come to realise your RPGs only last as long as it takes you to make another. If your RPGs arent important enough to keep alive to you then they wont want to join something thats going to die as soon as you make another. If you keep the reputation for not giving up on your RPGs, people will want to join them and that makes for quality storys that you can see the end of!

Now you know how to create a monstor and keep wrecking havoc with it for months to come! Remember, your ‘monstor’ needs your attention, and if you create it with the right pieces, itll be something to be proud of. Start creating! ^-~
~*~*~*~

Experienced RPers are welcome to add tips and tricks for doing any of the RPG related things well, like character creating, plot format, presentation, how to create original ideas for RPGs, how to keep the cast involved and interested, and so on.
Everyone has something to teach, and everyone has something to learn ^-~

[Ultimate Charizard]

Ok, since the amount of closed Threads is on the rise i think im going to restick this and give the new members something to go by and learn from.

My little Pearls of Wisdom....

1. Join and participate in a few rpgs before making your own. Get a feel for what a succesful RPG is before u try to go it alone.

2. Dont try to make RPG's based on something currently popular just because u like it so much. These type rarely work and ive tried a few myself. All usually Die within at most a month.

*Current Example* Final Fantasy Tactics Advance.
Ive seen a couple of new rpg'ers come in and immediately try to make thier first rpg based on the game simply because they like it expecting everyone else to know what the game is about, what your supposed to do and the charachter u need. RPGs need to be thought about to be able to work.
Alot of the really successful rpg's are in 'production' from idea to finished plot for weeks before theyre posted, although im not saying u need to spend that long on it.

[Mewtwo-D2]

Another handy tip is watch the names and descriptions of your character. I like Japanese names too, but not all games take place in Japan or even in the real world. Some are fine, but some just don't fit in at all. Watch for that. Also watch for English names that just don't seem to fit (for example, what kind of Saiyan warrior would be named Brian? Who in Star Wars could possibly be named Brittany?)

And for descriptions, try throwing some variety in. Even if you want all your characters to look basically the same, throw in something different each time- a scar, a different haircut, a tattoo, a third arm, something. And read other people's descriptions. If everyone else has black hair, black eyes, and wears black leather, then pick something different. It's also your responsibility to make sure their costume fits the genre. A mideval RPG with everyone dressed like Matrix extras won't hack it.

Forgive the rant, but lack of imagination in characters, out of place names and descriptions, or too many of the same type really kills an RPG in my opinion.

[VirtualPlay]

Well, since Asi said that we could put our own suggestions down in her topic, here's mine:

Something I've noticed that irks me a bit is the layout of people's posts. A lot people combine their posts into one huge paragraph, and everything gets jumbled together and makes it hard to read. I know we don't have a "tab" or "indent" here, but at least start on a new line (if not skipping a line) when going from thought to thought. Long paragraphs get annoying to read after a while, and even more annoying if there's only one paragraph and it's a huge (page-long or more) post.

[The Muffin Man]

Originally posted by Ultimate Charizard
Ok, since the amount of closed Threads is on the rise i think im going to restick this and give the new members something to go by and learn from.

The rules do alot more than this topic. If people would read THOSE, we'd be alto better off.

My suggestions:

If your RPG involves the following to a heavy degree:
Vampires
Monsters
Elements
FFTA
Anime crossovers
Schools of anykind

I suggest SERIOUSLY rethinking your ideas. These RPGs are overdone, a dime a dozen, etc. etc. Chances are there are 300 other RPGs with the same idea. Also make sure they're not relatively full OR empty. Yeah that leaves a very thin margin, but if the RPG has 10 members, it'll be harder to join. But if they're empty, there's plenty of time to pick the spot they want! It may be hard, but at least try.

[Heald]

I'd also like to add to this rather interesting post...

Spelling

First of all, please learn to spell basic words, such as 'the'. I don't know how many times I've come across 'teh' (when not used in satire, obviously).

Second of all, if you are not sure, try running your post through MS Word Spellcheck.

Thirdly, if there is a big word, use dictionary.com. It is an excellent resource for words.

Why does this help? Well, let's take two exaggerated examples:

Example A: Once upon a time there lived an old and wise Pokémon Master who owned four Pokémon, one of each base element (Earth, Wind, Fire and Water) and they each had great talent. When the time came for his retirement, he gave a Pokémon to each of his four grandchildren...

Example B: Ther woz an old dude who had 4 PKMN and tey all had powers of teh elemnts earth fire wind water and he gav tem 2 his grandchildren...

Which one looks more appealing? Which one would you join? Personally, I wouldn't join at all, the idea's crap, but if I had a gun by my head I'd pick A, for it looks good. B just looks childish, and do you want your fellow forumites looking upon you as a subordinate? I don't think so.

Grammar

Full stops (.) - Used to denote the end of a sentence. These are almost always followed by a new sentence starting with a capital letter.

Right - I am a fish. Look at me swim.

WRONG - I am a fish. look at me swim.

Of course, the only instance when a full stop is not followed by a new sentence is when the sentence in question is the last sentence you intend to write.

Commas (,) - Used to divide sentences into clauses, such as if more information is being added (but not limited to).

Right - Haddocks can jump really high, almost as high as salmon.

WRONG - Haddocks can jump, really high.

Also WRONG - Haddocks can jump really high almost as high as salmon.

Lets look at the sentence again:

Haddocks can jump really high, almost as high as salmon.

The part in bold is the main clause. This can stand as a sentence on its own. The italics represent the subordinate clause. This should come with a main clause, otherwise it won't make much sense.

Apostrophes (') - Can be used to donate possession.

Right - Andy's bag is red.

WRONG - Andys bag is red.

Pronoun equivalents of this are:

My, your, his, her, its, our, your, their.

The exception to this rule is it's and its. It's is short for 'it is':

Right - It's not fair!

WRONG - Its not fair!

Right - The dog bit its tail.

WRONG - The dog bit it's tail.

Apostrophes are used to shorten other words, such as:

should've, shouldn't, could've, couldn't, won't, shan't, would've etc

Apostrophes can be used to quote passages as well.

Example - 'Apostrophes can be used to quote passages as well.'

Exclamation Mark (!) - These should be used like a full stop. The difference is that it is used to represent feeling in words, such as anger or fear. Only one should be used at the end of the sentence.

Right - Look, it's Bob!

WRONG - Look, it's Bob!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Question Mark (?) - Used like a full stop but represents a direct question. Like the exclamation mark, only one should be used at the end of a sentence.

Right - Where is Bob?

WRONG - Where is Bob????????????????????

Exclamation Question (?!/!?) - Officially, this is incorrect English, but nonetheless many people use it anyway. It is a perfectly acceptable way of exclaiming a question.

Example - Where in the world are we going?!

Quotation Marks (") - Used in pairs to show speech.

Right - "Where is Bob?" they asked.

WRONG - Where is Bob they asked.

Colon (:) - Also a part of the digestive system, the symbol represents the beginning of a list or a result.

Right - In his bag he had: chocolate, paper, scissors and a jock-strap.

Also Right - There was only place he could hide: the closet.

WRONG - I had: a pencil in my bag.

Semi-Colon (;) - This is probably the most difficult of the common symbols to use correctly and so I do not recommend using it at all if you are not taught properly. It is like a colon but a clause rather than a list or a result follows it. I may not be describing this correctly so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

Example - He was running out of time; perhaps next time he would take a bomb threat seriously.

Brackets (()) - Used to add extra information to a sentence that is not essential.

Example - There was a boy who loved the pond (he was fascinated by the tadpoles) and everyday he would go down to the lake.

That is all I can think of at the moment. Until next time, this has been HealdPK, bringing you what school can't teach you!

[The Muffin Man]

Actually I believe the semi-colon is most commonly used to add information not directly related. I can't think of an example though.

[VirtualPlay]

On the subject of semicolons, while it's true that you shouldn't use them if you haven't been properly taught, here are a couple general guidelines.

A semicolon can help combine two related sentences into one sentence. It can also take the place of "and" or "because" (rarely "but") in a sentence. For example:

Two sentences - We took our dog to the vet. He was sweating profusely.

One sentence - We took our dog to the vet because he was sweating profusely.

Semicolon sentence - We took our dog to the vet; he was sweating profusely.

Hope that helps!

EDIT: Heald fixed his, I no longer need to correct it.

[Heald]

Heh, I knew if I kept typing I'd make a mistake. Thanks, I'll edit it.

[Sheila Rae]

Aww, I wanted to give the grammar lesson! I hope I'm experienced enough to give some tips here...

On Creating Characters~
I really agree with what M-D2 mentioned about using Japanese vs. English names. My best advice is to be creative with names. Use some from cultures other than Japanese or English, combine various cultures, or best yet, make up your own. Combining different types of names can give an interesting affect. I'll use my most recent character as an example, Michiru Lumieré. Michiru=Japanese; Lumieré=somewhat french. Making up your own names and combining cultures works well with made-up worlds/dimensions especially. An Okinawan named Marta Johnson doesn't really sound right...

When creating your characters appearance, be very detailed oriented! Provinding a picture is sometimes okay, but can lead to some pretty saddening downfalls: One, if it a character from a semi-popular+ series, a lot of people will recognize that character and then think of YOUR character as that person, although your character may have nothing in common except for appearance. Also, if it's fanart (especially if it's not very good) or an abstract artstyle, people may not like the pic and might be put off by your character. Not to mention it's pretty unoriginal. :p The best scenario actually is to provide a picture that you drew (only if you are good at drawing and the picture's colored well) and also write up a description of the pictured character. I don't know specifically, but it helps me and a lot of other people to have that information presented in two ways, and I'm definitely more likely to remember your character. When writing a description, it should be at least a pretty chunky paragraph; not because length alone is important, but because you will probably need that much content to describe your character well. "Brown eyes, black hair. Tall for his age with a nice build" doesn't cut it. Make sure you include these things: Hair length, hair styling, hair color(s), eye color (and possibly eye size), skin tone, perhaps any out-of-the-ordinary face features (ex. a jagan eye or high cheekbones), height, build/petiteness, clothes (especially be creative here: your character could have a robe, a skirt, just a jeans and t-shirt, but what your character wears is also an expression of the character), footwear, jewelry, body markings (scars, tattoes, etc), and anything else unique about your character.

For personality, be very creative! If your character is a loner/depressed, they better frickin' be for a good reason. I cannot emphasize this enough.
IF your character is a LONER, make it for a GOOD REASON.
I've seen waaaaay to many "He's a loner. Simply doesn't like to talk to others." From experience, I know that a loner can be a difficult character to play, since RPGs are all about interacting. You'll probably soon see your character dropping the depressed act just for you to be able to play. If you give reasons WHY your character is so aloof, it makes it more interesting and him/her more unique. Maybe you could describe one of your character's weaknesses that will make them more friendly. Hats off to those who play interesting depressed loners. *takes off invisible hat* When describing any kind of personality, be very detailed! Like appearance, this should be a long section of your sign up, especially since you can't have a picture. DO NOT put "Basically Inuyasha's personality, but he's nicer to strangers," or anything of already made characters!! Regardless of appearance, a lot of people with think of your character as Inuyasha, not to say that it's also really lazy. That's fine if you want to base your character's personality off of Inuyasha, but then describe without direct links. "He's appears as a loner, but it's just a tough act. He acts so cold to outsiders because of his childhood and other things that happened in his past (see history). When you get to know him, he has a really soft spot, although he denies it..." etcetera etcetera. Whether making it an original personality or based off a series character, don't only describe your character in general, but also what they're like in certain situations common to the RPG. If you just describe a little, you'll find yourself trying to expand what you've written to fit what's happening, going outside of your character! Some things to consider would be how your character is around the opposite gender, when something happens to one of their loved ones, if they are in public or private, when chaos occurs, etc. Think about yourself of another real person, and how multi-dimensional you or they really are. Fill in all the cracks of your characters personality.

The last major section, possibly the longest and most deatiled, would be your character's history or past. I must get out of the way the matter of TBR (to be revealed/released) histories. If the 'R' is for 'release,' stop right there! DO NOT, and I repeat DO NOT put TBR in the history field just because you are too lazy/can't think of one! Not only does this show the lack of creativity, but laziness and also that you didn't put much thought before joining. You might have to hold clicking the 'submit reply' button and think of a history people won't forget! If the 'R' means 'revealed,' asked yourself why the character's history will be revealed later? Just because you post your character's history doesn't mean that the other player's character's autmatically know about in their eyes. 99 times out of a 100, you can create a history but just leave a single event TBR. If any amount of the history is TBR, be sure to release it, in some due time before the RPG dies. Also, keep in mind that the character's history DOES affect the character. Although one event might not, such as a sibling's death, the majority of the parts should. I've seen great, well-written histories, but then the people play their characters as if it didn't exist. Incorporate unique things into your character's history: things that would/could never happen to you, but you'd love/hate it if they did. Think about using elements such as a past life that your character remembers, a life-threatening disease they had to experience, or something they saw that will haunt them forever.

Another touchy subject is using the same character for every RPG you join. I'm proud to say I've used a totally different character for every RPG I've been in, although I don't know if that's a good thing, a bad thing, or a who cares thing. This can immedeately present a problem, considering the different plots and settings of each individual RPG. I know some people who make a similar character, but change to fit the RPG, and do this quite smoothly and well. The downfall to this is not necessarily lack of creativity, but you don't get to practice and thus improve your writing (although some people don't need to practice their writing:p). Some people can even get bored of their character doing it this way. Another thing that can cause you havoc is that if you use the same character, but change one of two aspects of your character, people who are already familiar with that character may becme extremely confused. See one of the next sections of how to avoid this.

If you aren't ready to put your best work into any of those three sections, you probably shouldn't join just yet. If you really want to participate in that RPG and spots are going quick, remember that you can always just reserve a position. I know that most people (including I) think a lot when they are in their bed before they go to sleep, and I've come up with some of my best characters then.

On Managing an RPG~
All GMs should include the following components in both the sign-up and main topics of their RPG, not necessarily in this order:
-Title: should be centered at the very least, but it would be even more appealing if you use color, a different size and face, and maybe even those symboly things (± ¬ etc.)
-The plot in its entirety, preferably in a spiffy colour
-any references, such as different areas in your world or weapon types to choose from
-a list of the registered players, which would look like something along these lines:
GameMaster23: Furio Nanagata~fire (me)
Lil_Angel: Lily Miona~water
Dark-Duelist: reserved spot for lightning
like that.
-a blank sign up form
-your sign up form
-your post (main topic only)
-any other suggestions, guildlines, or comments

Also, GMs should keep in mind that RPGs often die when the group "rests for the night." I know from experience. It would be best to avoid leaving a post at this point, perhaps saying that the group is resting but then moving on to the next morning. If you do leave your post at the night, specifically give your players permission to move on. A skill of GMing is being able to recognize similat 'red flag' points and either moving past them or the players the word to do so.

On Posting~
Listen to HealdPK's words. They are very good. I must add that, every time a new person talks, you start a new paragraph. It may make sense to you, as being that you are the writer, but it probably won't to every else. It's pretty simple, as long as you know to do it, I don't think I need to show an example.

Part of being a good RPGer is to actually read the posts that other people took time to write. Don't just read the ends. You don't have to read it thouroughly over three times, just reading normally once will do. I you just read the ends, or none at all, your post will more than likely end up being inaccurate to what has already happened, and causes mass confusion. This could easily kill and RPG. Also IMO, it's just good etiquette (sp?) to read others' posts.

Otherwise, be creative! Playing posting is only limited by the guildlines of the RPG and plot and yourself.

On the Technicalities of Posting~
There are some simple things you can do that don't have to do with your writing that can greatly add to the presentation and neatness of your post.

One thing you can do to help the other players learn your character is to head your posts. This simply consists of your character's name, and any other disinguishing character, such as their element or weapon, and special symbols for eye-candy. An example:
~{Jun Castilla-wind}~

It's also a cool thing if you make your sign-up and posts (but not OOC stuff) in a certain color, the same color in that RPG. A color that reflects that character. Using colors can also define your similar-but-different characters. Most people don't use the default skin on TPM, so the background is black or dark gray. Therefore, don't pick a dark color.

In Closing~
If, no matter how hard you try, you can't seem to write a sufficent sign-up and grammatical and/or interesting posts, keep in mind that roleplaying may not be the thing for you. It should come easily and fun, so if posting seems like too much of a task, your talented and hobbies might lay someplace else. You should never force yourself to roleplay just because a lot of other people are! If you really do want to roleplay, then keep at it, and be open to advice from others!

That's all I can thik of now....there'll probably be tons more later...

[Heald]

I was thinking. To avoid any topics such as Rudy's popping up and having Asilynne spam every RPG she was in to say she was leaving, we should have an Absence Topic, like there was in the old ASB. Basically, if people need to go away (like I am tomorrow for a week), then they just post in the topic and don't spam up the forum. Seem reasonable?

[Bear]

Most of what you need has been said, but I'd like to put an extra emphasis on grammar and actual use of the language - Punctuate properly, use challenging but not pretentious words, and keep your post organized. It may not seem like much, but it helps a TON in making your RPG more appealing. It makes an especially big difference these days, since original ideas are harder and harder to conceive. That's just my two cents, hope it helps.

[Heald]

Sorry for going off-topic but...

YAY! Bear is back!

[Bear]

I am? *looks around* WHERE AM I!?! THIS ISN'T WEST VIRGINIA!

[Bulbasaur4]

That's a good idea Heald... *ponders* *ponders* I think I'll make a topic like that, but we'll not have it stickied. We have too many stickies to begin with... *needs to do some thinking and SUmmer cleaning*


OOOOOOOO! BEAR IS BACK!!! *noticed but didn't officially say hi*
*backs up about a mile*
*starts running towards Bear*
*tackles*
=^^= Yaaaay!
*dances*

[Chris Watarimono]

Damn Sheila, with your rules, now it's only semi-fun to RP now.

...

...no, actually, I am a bit serious on this. Most people just want to jump into the action right away, using their favorite characters, or at least something that's related to it. Another reason against this is that people don't want to think for a week and a half trying to make up a new original story when the same ideas are being recycled over and over, and this is the problem with me - I have a hard time setting up my characters backstories when I RP (not here, but another MB BTW) simply I don't want to be melodramatic with sappy pasts of their families being nuked or losing their innocence when they kill for the first time, and there's not many other ideas that fit my characters properly. Putting it blunt, I don't want to make RP into a chore rather than a hobby. But yeah, I agree with your overall idea of making RPing characters original, its just that there is very few ideas left, otherwise the characters would be recycled renditions of themselves over and over. =\

-Chris R.

[Hatake Kakashi]

Huge rule:
MAKE YOUR PLOT READABLE. I cannot count the number of times I have ignored an RPG because I didn't feel like highlight a terribly colored first post.

It's funny because the people who do it do it ALL THE TIME. Like, literally. Every post or plot seems to have terrible color schemes.