Roleplay Pet Peeves

[Ranix Aurus]

basing a character on an idealized version of whom you wish you were isn't a bad thing. as long as the character isn't completely stealing the spotlight.

Self-insertion itself is not a bad thing. Heck, most tropes aren't bad actually. It's the usage which easily got corrupted, because when you start self-inserting, you feel a personal relation to it. You become invested. So you started to feel personal on anything the character do or receive, which shouldn't be happening when making story or doing roleplay. It's a roleplay after all. You're playing a role. It's never you in real life, even if you make a perfect copy of yourself it's considered a separate clone, not the you who's playing the character. I don't even know if that makes sense or not hahaha.


Everyone inserted a piece of their own in the world or characters that they create anyway, we can't suppress that perfectly. (Me also guilty of doing it)

 

[Umbrie]

Self-insertion itself is not a bad thing. Heck, most tropes aren't bad actually. It's the usage which easily got corrupted, because when you start self-inserting, you feel a personal relation to it. You become invested. So you started to feel personal on anything the character do or receive, which shouldn't be happening when making story or doing roleplay. It's a roleplay after all. You're playing a role. It's never you in real life, even if you make a perfect copy of yourself it's considered a separate clone, not the you who's playing the character. I don't even know if that makes sense or not hahaha.


Everyone inserted a piece of their own in the world or characters that they create anyway, we can't suppress that perfectly. (Me also guilty of doing it)

i inserted massive pieces of myself into Umbrie and she is like a daughter to me. but i know she is just a roleplay persona, a role, even if i do get defensive because of the amount of work i put into her, most of which came from using her species and her family circumstances as a crutch as well as borrowing a few cliches, most people don't hold onto a character for over 23 years like i did.

 

[call me rae]

i inserted massive pieces of myself into Umbrie and she is like a daughter to me. but i know she is just a roleplay persona, a role, even if i do get defensive because of the amount of work i put into her, most of which came from using her species and her family circumstances as a crutch as well as borrowing a few cliches, most people don't hold onto a character for over 23 years like i did.

Which if you don't mind me saying pretty much illustrates to a Tee where self-inserts can go wrong. You are so tied into Umbrie as a character that you spend most of your time defending her from any perceived slight. Even when people aren't actually addressing Umbrie specifically, if they mention a peeve that is similar you automatically feel the need to defend your character as if you yourself are in trial.


now it's fine to be fond of a character or proud of something you put effort into. But when it becomes a compulsion to talk about them or defend them you might want to look into maybe retiring them from roleplay and moving them to more private projects. Just because they are obviously a very intricate part of you as a person and should perhaps be kept to more private and meaningful projects rather than thrown into the harsh public forums where people might inadvertently hurt your feelings or step on your toes by accidentally criticizing the character.

 

[ApfelSeine]

I think I might(?) know what is being referred to by "author intrusion". Now correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it's when the rper makes unrelated comments that don't really fit with what is going on and which refer directly to themselves. It doesn't really bother me, but I've got a couple of rpers in one of my rps who will say things like "the author didn't know how to make this post any longer" or "I don't know what it's actually called" within the content of the post itself. I can see how people would dislike things like that, even though I'm indifferent myself.

 

[rae2nerdy]

I think I might(?) know what is being referred to by "author intrusion". Now correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it's when the rper makes unrelated comments that don't really fit with what is going on and which refer directly to themselves. It doesn't really bother me, but I've got a couple of rpers in one of my rps who will say things like "the author didn't know how to make this post any longer" or "I don't know what it's actually called" within the content of the post itself. I can see how people would dislike things like that, even though I'm indifferent myself.

Aaaah that explains it perfectly thank you. Yes I can definitely see why that would be annoying.

 

[Rosex]

Grammar issues aren't too bad if they are Minor or if a Certain type of Grammar issue is a Quirk of the Author. Authors with Quirks Lure you into the Story. I use Capitalization as a form of Emphasis because i am used to chats that lack the functionality to use Bolding or Italics.

That's why I said it can depend on the grammar issues. Some readers can be picky though. I hear comments about people coming across grammar issues or loop holes all the time with professional books. 

 

[Rosex]

If you google the word "author intrusion" there's a lot of articles on it to help you guys.  It can explain it better than I can. There's different ways an author can be intrusive in a story. 

 

[Everyone]

One of my pet peeves is when people use the Everyone tag. Then I made this account.

 

[Ariamant]

I can confidently say that when people ignore an entire part of the response and instead, pretend something else happened (ex. my chara has now begun crying instead of the action stated by me). That, and when they just never respond to me after planning the plot out(once I've sent the starter).

 

[Destiny7]

I'm sure things like grammar and spelling have been brought up a thousand times in here, so I won't touch on those. My absolute biggest two are (1) not being honest and open with me and (2) bailing without notice. For the first, it's hard to get a read on some people over text, so I make sure to ask if people are still enjoying the role play and such. Don't lie. Tell me if you're not enjoying something or want to stop. Don't be afraid to offend me or whatever, I genuinely want to know. That's why I ask. I care about how much the other person is enjoying it.

For the second, it's self-explanatory. It's selfish, rude, and makes me feel like I did something wrong. If I did, that plays back into the first thing. Tell me. Heck, if you want to end things, do it, but just let me know and maybe tell me why so I can improve in the future.

Those two points have been the reason I've taken breaks from role playing and I might stop all together now. I'm only posting now to get to the post count before I probably go silent again. This is just a hobby for me, so it sucks when people make it a lot less fun.

 

[rae2nerdy]

I'm sure things like grammar and spelling have been brought up a thousand times in here, so I won't touch on those. My absolute biggest two are (1) not being honest and open with me and (2) bailing without notice. For the first, it's hard to get a read on some people over text, so I make sure to ask if people are still enjoying the role play and such. Don't lie. Tell me if you're not enjoying something or want to stop. Don't be afraid to offend me or whatever, I genuinely want to know. That's why I ask. I care about how much the other person is enjoying it.

For the second, it's self-explanatory. It's selfish, rude, and makes me feel like I did something wrong. If I did, that plays back into the first thing. Tell me. Heck, if you want to end things, do it, but just let me know and maybe tell me why so I can improve in the future.

Those two points have been the reason I've taken breaks from role playing and I might stop all together now. I'm only posting now to get to the post count before I probably go silent again. This is just a hobby for me, so it sucks when people make it a lot less fun.

dude finally figured out how to quote again.. woot woot. yeah i am one of those people i sometimes bail but that's usually just cuz I have the memory of a goldfish. So I always tell people - you haven't heard from me give me a tap I probably just forgot we were doing something or whatever.

But yeah I hate it when people are like expecting me to be mind reader and then get pissy when they don't get their way. Like I can't fix a problem I don't know exists.

 

[EtherPillows]

Whenever I spectate a roleplay and spot a character that is so obviously uncooperative, I honestly feel for the people RPing with him/her.

I remember reading a romance roleplay where all the characters were essentially geniuses in an elite school. Insert Muse A, who is an egotistic a-hole with "Never EVER Say I'm Wrong" syndrome and apparently runs the most elite club in that school. Muse B is also a genius, with an author that actually does some scientific research before posting (fact-checked their chemistry and was pleasantly impressed).

Muse A asks for Muse B to prove himself in electrodynamics and Muse B does. ONLY WAIT, he doesn't, because Muse A comes up with a ridiculous unscientific reason for why Muse B is wrong.

Yes, I get it, your character is a butt-wipe and quote genius end-quote, but you can't just ignore facts. It's unsportsmanlike.

 

[rae2nerdy]

Whenever I spectate a roleplay and spot a character that is so obviously uncooperative, I honestly feel for the people RPing with him/her.

I remember reading a romance roleplay where all the characters were essentially geniuses in an elite school. Insert Muse A, who is an egotistic a-hole with "Never EVER Say I'm Wrong" syndrome and apparently runs the most elite club in that school. Muse B is also a genius, with an author that actually does some scientific research before posting (fact-checked their chemistry and was pleasantly impressed).

Muse A asks for Muse B to prove himself in electrodynamics and Muse B does. ONLY WAIT, he doesn't, because Muse A comes up with a ridiculous unscientific reason for why Muse B is wrong.

Yes, I get it, your character is a butt-wipe and quote genius end-quote, but you can't just ignore facts. It's unsportsmanlike.

I go back and forth on this. On the one hand I feel like school roleplays on a whole are probably the least realistic genre of roleplay. And I'm not even talking about the obviously unrealistic ones either ( your magic schools, mutant schools, fantasy schools, military academies teaching ten year olds to operate death machines to fight robot zombies led by vampire sharks or whatever )

I'm talking about the simple school/academy rp taking place in some variation of the real world dealing with no futuristic/fantastical elements.

I like to think of all of these roleplays as taking place in a version of the real world that is more similar to say a TV show or an Anime's version of "real". In that it's somewhat realistic but it's usually heavily dramatized for entertainment and centered around either a loose plot or romance ( the really good ones have both ).

So in that case I don't really mind if someone's character isn't exactly "accurate" as well most TV/Anime schools are hardly the most accurate portrayals of life anyway.

Now what does bother me is when people make a character that is obviously only around so that the player can make everything about them and can bully other people into doing whatever they want. That is rude and shouldn't be encouraged or allowed in any way.

 

[Whisker]

Newest addition to petpeeves now that I am semi-waking from hiatus.

When your partners don't respond to cues well at all. I hate when I make posts emphasizing that this certain thing, item, or person is important to the plot and you should probably pay attention, but they ignore it or otherwise don't respond with any kind of interest whatsoever. It makes me want to reach for the belt.

 

[WilliamDeen]

Biggest peeve: When someone blatantly uses bad grammar or bland words, and does a full fight by themselves, then seeing how the group reacts. It's childish in my opinion. Just read more/write more.

 

[FlyingDemon]

What i dislike, is: i said that i don't do *a genre*, i can be forced to change my mind about it,
a partner i had was kinda creepy, her responses was "slap you and kiss you", repeated, kinda creepy,
so now, i reserve romance for a few, i won't be opened for this genre entirely.

Rules like: "if i saw you on, but you don't respond, you will be blocked", when someone log on, you can't expect them to reply to you immediately, satisfying this exigeance.

 

[Aster Sapphire]

Anyone ever have an RP that just seems like there's TOO much angst in it? Like don't get me wrong, I love angsty. Tragedy and trauma and what not to flesh out my characters. That being said, can too much if it be a bad thing?

Like if you have a character who's constantly stuck in a loop of bad shit happening to them with no sort of levity, what room does that leave for development? It's like you're forced to either play them as the same broken, depressed mess to the point where you're sure they're broken beyond repair, or you have to have them "brush" it off and move for the sake being able to do something different even though you know it'd take time for them to heal.

Is this just me?

 

[Umbrie]

the character whose sole major drawback isn't even truly a drawback for the character and doesn't impact them in their intended role or the character whom overcame their only major drawback as part of their backstory before the roleplay started.

 

[Britt-21]

The rp dying before it even started. Lovely way to join a rp.

 

[semperfidelis]

I think the worst is probably when they write and control your character. And doing random time skips without asking your permission. The latter is not as bad, though

 

[Aster Sapphire]

I think the worst is probably when they write and control your character. And doing random time skips without asking your permission. The latter is not as bad, though

Oh my god, YES. And then they end up doing something they would never do and in order to just keep with continuity of the storyline you have you have to atone for their actions and somehow think of a reason they did this thing they would never do.

Time skips on the other hand I can deal with so long as I know what went down during the time we skipped over. Don't just do a time skip and and leave me to assume stuff.

 

[semperfidelis]

Exactly! And I especially hate it when they center everything around their character. Or when the character changes completely just to make the RP focus on them.

 

[Aster Sapphire]

Exactly! And I especially hate it when they center everything around their character. Or when the character changes completely just to make the RP focus on them.

Seriously, all of the characters should get their time in the spotlight. Like it's totally cool to have them with their own story line going on but if it A) brings everything else to a halt or B) no one else can be incorporated into it then that becomes an issue.

Can we also talk about characters that outright refuse to interact with anyone outside their s/o and stuff like that? Like you try to have banter to or interactions and it's like pulling teeth.

 

[Shugoki]

Characters who use a scythe as a weapon.

 

[Umbrie]

Characters who use a scythe as a weapon.

is that because most scythe wielding characters are wannabe grim reaper necromancer types?