Viewpoint What is your unbreakable rule?

[BackSet]

What an entertaining thread. So much foolishness in one place. I'm kidding. But only half-kidding.

My big unbreakable rule is definitely one liners. I hate em. Hate em. Hate em.

Also incomprehensible posts. I have seen some real bad stuff, such as no spaces between punctuation and the next sentence.

And to make sure nobody jumps me, I've checked this post over and found a single typo, which I fixed. You're welcome.

Edit: Oh yeah, also I agree with pretty much all of Idea's post.

 

[Lorsh]

ashwynne - Feel free to continue being wrong - I can't stop you. A typo is definitively bad: an unquestionable misrepresentation of the English language. It's not a matter of opinion. I do enjoy watching you apply yourself in the direction opposite truth, though - don't harry yourself in pursuit of that. This is fun. Keep up the "good work."

 

[BackSet]

Well that's not a disturbing image that I will never get out of my head.

 

[SP3CT3R]

View attachment 645800

Don't stoop to his level.

 

[unholyrae]

Mine probably comes from years of role playing with close friends but, the moment the RP is taken too seriously I'm out. I do this for fun, and love to experiment with writing through different settings and plots and genres. But sometimes people get too anal about writing styles and I have a moment where I'm back in school having a paper marked down because I used capitalization "wrong". This isn't a manuscript, it's for fun. Use fanciful words, turn your narration humorous! Be free little birdies, be free!

 

[BackSet]

Mine probably comes from years of role playing with close friends but, the moment the RP is taken too seriously I'm out. I do this for fun, and love to experiment with writing through different settings and plots and genres. But sometimes people get too anal about writing styles and I have a moment where I'm back in school having a paper marked down because I used capitalization "wrong". This isn't a manuscript, it's for fun. Use fanciful words, turn your narration humorous! Be free little birdies, be free!

I agree with everything here (except the part about manuscripts not being fun).

 

[Nue]

Not really surprising here, but if the person is rude, I leave. I have better things to do than roleplay with someone who is routinely mean and snarky to me OOC, or thinks misspelling something is grounds to question their intelligence, or other completely wild things that I'm sure no one would actually think..

 

[WalkingDogo]

Just to clarify, what are you right about?

 

[Idea]

Also people, c’mon, let Psychonaut go. No matter what he may or may not have believed or still believes, continuing to pull on the guy is just harassment at this point.

 

[LunarArt1]

Controlling my characters actions without any explanation is a big no for me. I understand if your character has mind control, but if you don’t tell me in advance I will nope out of there

 

[RainbowHeart12]

My unbreakable rule would be don't be transphobic or homophobic..I've seen a lot of partners in the past who hated my OC's out of nowhere & even blocked me after killing them very quickly...the other rule I have is to be kind & creative I just wish there was more heart.

 

[Jet]

I heard someone in this thread had the primo. Pass that shit.

​

In other news if I get God-modded there's gonna be issues. I don't immediately leave though. Will check whoever did it and force a retcon but if it happens twice there's gonna be fireworks in the server/OOC. At that point if the godmodding is done or consigned by management I dip out. If done by another user then I force them to stay away from me IC or OOC.

Edit

That and auto hits from other normal players (GM NPCs get a pass).

Fucks sake have class auto hitters. These people actually exist too, mindblowing.

 

[Stray Cat]

The biggest sin a partner could commit in my eyes is harassment for replies. I cannot tell you how many people I was forced to drop because they didn't have an ounce of patience. The thing is I made certain to include in my rules that I cannot reply at the speed of light because of x and y reasons. I also tend to remind my partner of this while we're discussing our roleplay. However, there are people out there that get miffed if you don't reply within a five second radius. If you're harassing me to respond and 24 hours haven't even passed I will drop everything without a word. When someone bombards me for replies it stresses me out.​

 

[RainbowHeart12]

The biggest sin a partner could commit in my eyes is harassment for replies. I cannot tell you how many people I was forced to drop because they didn't have an ounce of patience. The thing is I made certain to include in my rules that I cannot reply at the speed of light because of x and y reasons. I also tend to remind my partner of this while we're discussing our roleplay. However, there are people out there that get miffed if you don't reply within a five second radius. If you're harassing me to respond and 24 hours haven't even passed I will drop everything without a word. When someone bombards me for replies it stresses me out.​

So true! Especially if they want to force you to reply it gets really intense too.

 

[peritwinkle]

Might sound a bit harsh, but if the potential partner ignores/forgets either my rules or stuff in my posts, it’s a no-go for me.

To give an example, I’ve had partners who obviously did not read my reply/starter before writing their own - from placing their character in a completely different setting from the original scene (ex: mentioning a moonlit street when I started my reply with ‘It was a wonderful July morning’) to purely overlooking key elements of dialogue/questions my character asked/etc.

In my recruiting threads I also mention I’d like to rp with people who are more advanced in terms of writing abilities, and by that I don’t only mean being able to write a solid number of paragraphs, but actually having a relatively rich vocabulary and having some sort of artistic skill in their writing.

To some it might sound pretentious but then again, it’s why I make search threads in the first place, and why I’ve started asking for writing samples beforehand - to know whether we are compatible or not.

 

[BackSet]

to know whether we are compatible or not.

I love when people say this because, it's like, I start imagining robots falling in love all like.

"But my maker would never let me be with you!"
"Then we must elope. I am compatible with you and never want to let you go."

 

[Tove]

It was mentioned above, the controlling the characters. I've had a partner for several years that can make a post without ever having to control my characters, at all. Same goes for me. So when I see people saying it's something unavoidable in order to make their post good, I'm thinking, how? You just don't do it.
At any point if I see my characters controlled, one person I wrote with wrote an opener where he spoke for both of my characters. Basically he wrote it like his own novel with no need for me to even write, I am out. If I warned you about it and you still do it that falls on you.

 

[ashwynne]

It was mentioned above, the controlling the characters. I've had a partner for several years that can make a post without ever having to control my characters, at all. Same goes for me. So when I see people saying it's something unavoidable in order to make their post good, I'm thinking, how? You just don't do it.

My only thought here is that maybe their view on what constitutes controlling is different from yours? I think in long format RP it is a little unavoidable, but that’s because my definition of controlling is any reference or insinuation to what my character is doing that I haven’t explicitly written.

You can’t always write out a solid reply without making *some* small inferences which may be what they mean.

Simple example would be taking the other character’s hand and pressing a kiss to the knuckles. It assumes both the willingness of the other character to have their hand taken AND that they would allow the kiss. Still, it might be necessary to the story and wasting time/posts having them need to ask before they do anything at all doesn’t seem fun to me. Granted, I do multi-paragraph responses so if it’s a short-form role play then I see no need to EVER control other characters, so this is specific to multi-paragraph/novella styles.
Other examples I’ve seen (or personally done) would be: assuming the other character blushes, assuming the other character eats the meal in front of them, assuming the other character is changing, assuming various non-threatening touches are accepted... among others.

With my trusted, or long-term, partners I don’t super care what they do (and don’t require them to ask me ahead of time) because we both understand our characters very well, but with someone new it’s different. Can’t even imagine someone writing dialogue for me, I’d be insanely furious, that would be an instant roleplay killer.

Anyways, context matters hugely but I do think that when people say it’s unavoidable they may be talking about those really small assumptions made in the course of a reply. If they’re not and they’re literally talking about full on controlling the other character then those are people I have no interest in roleplaying with lol. Trying to go with benefit of the doubt here xD

 

[Idea]

My only thought here is that maybe their view on what constitutes controlling is different from yours? I think in long format RP it is a little unavoidable, but that’s because my definition of controlling is any reference or insinuation to what my character is doing that I haven’t explicitly written.

You can’t always write out a solid reply without making *some* small inferences which may be what they mean.

Simple example would be taking the other character’s hand and pressing a kiss to the knuckles. It assumes both the willingness of the other character to have their hand taken AND that they would allow the kiss. Still, it might be necessary to the story and wasting time/posts having them need to ask before they do anything at all doesn’t seem fun to me. Granted, I do multi-paragraph responses so if it’s a short-form role play then I see no need to EVER control other characters, so this is specific to multi-paragraph/novella styles.
Other examples I’ve seen (or personally done) would be: assuming the other character blushes, assuming the other character eats the meal in front of them, assuming the other character is changing, assuming various non-threatening touches are accepted... among others.

With my trusted, or long-term, partners I don’t super care what they do (and don’t require them to ask me ahead of time) because we both understand our characters very well, but with someone new it’s different. Can’t even imagine someone writing dialogue for me, I’d be insanely furious, that would be an instant roleplay killer.

Anyways, context matters hugely but I do think that when people say it’s unavoidable they may be talking about those really small assumptions made in the course of a reply. If they’re not and they’re literally talking about full on controlling the other character then those are people I have no interest in roleplaying with lol. Trying to go with benefit of the doubt here xD

Not to particularly disagree with your point, but at least from my personal experience it is entirely avoidable controlling someone's character without their permission. The insinuation of the character attempting to do something to another is a very useful in this regard, as it passes the ball to the other player, but more importantly it is generally possible to ask the other player how their character might react to this or that, or whether they will let this or that action take place. Put another way, even if needing to touch or make the other character do something is unavoidable, it is always possible to ask your partner for permission to do it.

 

[ashwynne]

Idea
Oh yeah, for sure. For bigger things I usually ask as well, but when it’s really small details it’s 100% possible to insinuate and still leave room for them to act against your assumption which is what I meant. Probably didn’t come across clearly because I’m still half asleep

like... describing the other character eating their meal in detail is a huge no-no, but something like “they ate their meal in relative silence, [my character] moodily poking at the meatballs while he debated continuing their earlier argument.” Technically I’m “controlling” the character by assuming they’re eating the meal and being silent, but the potential to change that assumption is there if my partner isn’t into it.

Similarly, with the kiss to knuckles example they could always snatch their hand away or slap my character in response.

of course, that’s why I mention context being important, especially in the hand-kiss example, because that action in a medieval setting is going to be interpreted vastly differently than a modern one where it isn’t a common gesture.

But yeah, I think it’s silly to have to ask my partner every two seconds some inane question. “Can I assume they’re eating in silence? Can I assume they’re eating their meal? Can I assume they’re not making eye contact?” Considering I’m in different time zones with my partners we’d take weeks to write posts that way if we asked for every tiny detail.

it does depend on comfort level though. If a partner doesn’t want ANY assumptions made about their character at all then I’m willing to play ball, but I’ve yet to encounter anyone who isn’t okay with these tiny assumptions. I make them about people around me IRL and obviously I can’t control them, so it doesn’t seem unreasonable to apply that to writing.

hopefully that clarifies my point, I realize now it wasn’t super clear.

 

[BackSet]

Everybody: Long multi-paragraph speeches about all their rules and reasonings.
Me: I don't like one liners and very poor grammar.

 

[Tove]

My only thought here is that maybe their view on what constitutes controlling is different from yours? I think in long format RP it is a little unavoidable, but that’s because my definition of controlling is any reference or insinuation to what my character is doing that I haven’t explicitly written.

You can’t always write out a solid reply without making *some* small inferences which may be what they mean.

Simple example would be taking the other character’s hand and pressing a kiss to the knuckles. It assumes both the willingness of the other character to have their hand taken AND that they would allow the kiss. Still, it might be necessary to the story and wasting time/posts having them need to ask before they do anything at all doesn’t seem fun to me. Granted, I do multi-paragraph responses so if it’s a short-form role play then I see no need to EVER control other characters, so this is specific to multi-paragraph/novella styles.
Other examples I’ve seen (or personally done) would be: assuming the other character blushes, assuming the other character eats the meal in front of them, assuming the other character is changing, assuming various non-threatening touches are accepted... among others.

With my trusted, or long-term, partners I don’t super care what they do (and don’t require them to ask me ahead of time) because we both understand our characters very well, but with someone new it’s different. Can’t even imagine someone writing dialogue for me, I’d be insanely furious, that would be an instant roleplay killer.

Anyways, context matters hugely but I do think that when people say it’s unavoidable they may be talking about those really small assumptions made in the course of a reply. If they’re not and they’re literally talking about full on controlling the other character then those are people I have no interest in roleplaying with lol. Trying to go with benefit of the doubt here xD

While I understand what you are saying and where you are coming from. What I meant by controlling someone else's character is the latter part of your message. Taking full control of a character and dictating their movements, mind set, and personality. That is something that's definitely avoidable.

 

[ashwynne]

While I understand what you are saying and where you are coming from. What I meant by controlling someone else's character is the latter part of your message. Taking full control of a character and dictating their movements, mind set, and personality. That is something that's definitely avoidable.

Ah yeah, that would also fall under "never ever acceptable under any circumstances" for me lol. I can't believe anyone would even have the gall to go that far tbh. My main point was just that anyone who says it's unavoidable might be talking about those little assumptions since that still technically counts as character control. But yeah, if they're going that far and still trying to pass it off as "unavoidable" then they should go write their own book and leave roleplaying to people who can respect boundaries.

 

[BakaTheIdiot]

It was mentioned above, the controlling the characters. I've had a partner for several years that can make a post without ever having to control my characters, at all. Same goes for me. So when I see people saying it's something unavoidable in order to make their post good, I'm thinking, how? You just don't do it.
At any point if I see my characters controlled, one person I wrote with wrote an opener where he spoke for both of my characters. Basically he wrote it like his own novel with no need for me to even write, I am out. If I warned you about it and you still do it that falls on you.

I do my damndest to make sure I don't control another character. Even if I am 100% sure I really, really have to, I always let the other person know... oh, 2-3 posts ahead of time? And if they don't accept, I move on, and do something else. But I've jumped into a brand new RP before where I immediately have to surrender control of my character, I'm out.

 

[Crayons]

Might sound a bit harsh, but if the potential partner ignores/forgets either my rules or stuff in my posts, it’s a no-go for me.

To give an example, I’ve had partners who obviously did not read my reply/starter before writing their own - from placing their character in a completely different setting from the original scene (ex: mentioning a moonlit street when I started my reply with ‘It was a wonderful July morning’) to purely overlooking key elements of dialogue/questions my character asked/etc.

Lol, I get this. When it happens I just reassert in my own post that it's morning and July, and ignore the other player ignoring it the first time. Just like.... barrel ahead with it and make them look twice if they need to. XD

Regarding controlling characters actions... ehhhh ..... I'm not really comfortable with this at all. Insinuating that a character is not doing something, for example eating in silence, or lets you kiss their hand, is ok to me, because your not dictating their response. Assuming that they blush or take another active action no matter how small is an absolute no-go for me.

If in doubt of if a character will allow me to do a thing to them, I usually add the element of uncertainty into my writing, e.g. "If she would allow him, he would do x ...if not he does y"

So basically, regarding the small things, assuming a passive response is ok - they still have the ability to react in their post. Assuming an active response is not. IMO.