#roleplaying tips

We have all experienced, or will at some point in the future, a thread that feels like it is going nowhere. It's that feeling of reluctance to pull up the draft, of realizing it's the third or so time of experiencing dread when you see that other person respond.

You're bored with the thread. That, or you want to continue and just can't seem to think of what to do next!

There are a number of reasons why this can happen, but one of the most common ones is a lack of an actionable response from your partner. In most cases, deciding to wrap up the thread is the best thing to suggest...but most of us are just too "polite" to do that, huh? 😉But that's a post for another time.

So, what is an actionable response? Simply put, it's a reply to a thread that manages to give direction to your partner. This has NOTHING to do with matching length of post! It's just a matter of being aware that this is a collaborative effort.

Here's an example:

Character A: "I think we should invite our friends out to a party." Character B: "That's a great idea!" Character A: "It'll be a formal party. I'm going to work on the invitations tonight. I'll really go all out and make it fancy!" Character B: "Oh, I can't wait to see what you come up with! I'll be sure to wear the red dress I got over the weekend." Character A: "I'm sure it looks stunning on you. I don't know what I'm going to wear yet. I think I need to figure out the venue and the details first." Character B: "You are going to knock it out of the park! You're always so good at organizing everything!"

So, what happened? The conversation above isn't bad! However, there was "burden" placed on the writer of Character A each time. The writer of B has responded each time in similar length, but gives A little to no idea how to continue the conversation. Each reply made it the responsibility of the writer of A to come up with the direction for the conversation. Here's the breakdown:

A: Starts with the opening prompt (the party)

B: Agrees with idea

A: Elaborates on prompt

B: Enthuses about prompt, brings up new subject (dress)

A: Compliments B, brings up new subject (uncertainty)

B: Reassures A

Sometimes your character requires noncommittal responses, and this is OK to do once in awhile! But think about this in real life: If you met someone who was only this reactive to your comments and never really asked about you or your actions... Wouldn't it get a bit exhausting to talk with them? At the very least, they would appear polite but uninterested, and interactions would tend to be short.

Here's a better example for the above, one with actionable responses from B.

Character A: "I think we should invite our friends out to a party." Character B: "That's a great idea! Which friends, though? The ones from work or school?" Character A: "Why not both? I think it'd be cool to combine our social groups. Unless you think they wouldn't get along…?" Character B: "Well, you know how wild I get around Stacy on the dance floor. I wouldn't want it to reflect bad on my performance review …" Character A: "That's true, you two can get pretty unhinged. But I was thinking of theming it up to be more of a formal party. Like, make fancy invitations and everything!" Character B: "Oh, that sounds amazing! And less likely I'll start twerking, although the possibility isn't zero. Do you need any help with the invitations? Or anything else?" Character A: "I should have the invitations under control, but I'd love it if you could brainstorm the decorations. I want to go for a vintage 1950's vibe." Character B: "I am already making a Pinterest. This is going to be great! Oh, and I just bought the cutest red dress that'll work perfectly for the theme! Do you know what you want to wear? We can go window shopping later if you want!" Character A: "That would be great! Do you have pics of the dress?"

The above interaction isn't just more equal in engagement, its flow and dialogue is far more natural and prompts more detailed responses! Here's the breakdown for this one:

A: Starts with the opening prompt (the party)

B: Responds asking for more details, prompting a new subject (guest list)

A: Answers, asks for B's opinion

B: Answers, brings up a third party that A can comment on

A: Makes a comment, but chooses not to pursue subject at length; brings up new point of discussion (formal party)

B: Gives opinion, offers help

A: Accepts help, provides further prompt details (party theme)

B: Gives opinion, offers up another subject of clothing, offers up potential next direction/goal of thread (shopping)

There is a lot more "work" involved on both sides in the above example. And this is just with dialogue alone -- using descriptors and physical actions (i.e B could pull up their phone and show A the photos of their dress, or A could have started to playfully mock imitate B's dancing) also gives the other character something to respond to. This works great for Muses who canonically don't say much or are generally quiet in certain scenarios!

The ultimate goal of writing Actionable Responses is to share the responsibility of the scene, so that one writer doesn't feel burdened with directing everything and eventually associate your threads with fatigue, even subconsciously. Communication also plays a big part, too! Your responses may be actionable, but if the other writer isn't picking up any of them, it's time to pause the thread and communicate ooc and see what's up!

"Oh no! I realized I don't write a lot of Actionable Responses! Does that mean I'm a bad writer/horrible person? Do all my partners secretly hate me? Is this why I don't get any responses?"

Sure! Here's a couple of neat ideas I've compiled for some of my NPCs that I might run in future Dark Heresy games. Feel free to pick and choose a couple to work into your character if you like them!

1. "Names are confusing" - This character has trouble remembering non-admech names, instead electing to call every non-mechanicus person something along the lines of "Meatbag," "Lapdog," "Biological One," "Fleshling," "Rat," "Annoyance," "Thing," and/or "You."

2. "Varience. of. PITCH! andtiming" - THIS admech has PROblemsspeaking in NORmal ScEnTeNcEs due to beING so UUUUUUuuused to SPEAKING in PROJECTED TEXT via ocular SENsoooors.

3. "Empathy" is an oddity amongst the admech. However, there are some that still cling to the likes of empathy and compassion. Steel may have replaced their hearts biologically, but even a steel heart still yearns for love. Maybe in different ways than the usual biological beings, but love is love.

4. "Strong silent type." Not mute mind you, they just don't have a lot to say. Instead of butting in to conversations, they tend to wait until someone asks them for something or until the perfect moment to say something (sometimes to comedic effect) (skit's note for Anar-kitty or any player that wants to go this route: be sure to discuss this with your party if you want to play a character like this. It helps to keep them in the know as it will allow them to be prepared to interact and bounce dialogue of your character. Also, while being quiet may be part of your personality, going out of your way to stay quiet even if it inconveniences your team may not be wise. Still talk, and be active out of character! Don't let your parry think you yourself are disinterested, make it a point that the character is quiet, either through stoicism, edginess, or even shyness! Describe body language or how your character may communicate non-verbally (examples: shrugging instead of saying "I don't know," giving a thumbs up to say okay, describing nervous fidgeting, describing facial expressions, etc. ))

5. "Know it all." Everyone around you doesn't know how to "properly" use technology, and it's driving you insane. No one is doing morning chants for their weapons' machine spirits blessings! Heck, most of them don't even know any rituals!! And they just. Point these poor machines at things and *hope* they work??? You need to whip these biological beings into shape! They need to start following proper mechanical doctrine, and it's your job to get them on the right path!

6. "Unknowable" You hide beneath a standard admech robe, only small portions of your body are visible, whether that be your eyes, hands, feet, whatever have you, or even none of the above! But whenever you have a need for something, you always seem to reveal it from beneath your cloak, as if it manifested from the void. Extra arms, weapons, tools, a tail, a data port, comms devices, you name it, somehow it all fits beneath your cloak, and nobody has seen your true form beneath it.

7. "Gullible" since you've been raised amongst the socially inept admechs for so long, your knowledge of jokes and saying are... subpar. You take things at face value or struggle to find meaning in the sarcastic or metaphoric. You prefer the literal meaning of what people say.

8. "[Statement]" (skit tip: look up videos of HK-47 from Star Wars: Knights of The Old Republic talking, it'll give you an idea. )

You lack proper means to adjust pitch, leaving you to talk in a constant monotone voice. As such, wanting to show your emotions, you state what they are prior to what you are about to say.

9. "Pets." You find little biological creatures "cute" even if they are meatlings. You may take some with you to places and display them proudly to your compatriots, mayhaps even if they are ugly to them or dangerous. You may take interest in replicating their design into servitors or even converting the creatures themselves.

10. "Machines are friends, not slaves." You find the company of machines to be quite enjoyable, however people seem to view them in a different light. You find this disconcerting, as your machines are your friends, and you treat them with love and repsect! Why do others not treat theirs the same way?

11. "Death is not the end." When we pass, we continue our work for the Omnissiah, either as Servitors or perhaps the Omnissiah may take favor with your devotion and grant you the honor of becoming a machine spirit. Either way, mourn not the dead, friends. We are cogs in the machine, and cogs break from time to time. But we can always repair them so they may continue their work.

12. "Utterances." You mumble odd things beneath your breath or aloud when you think nobody is listening. You constantly seem to be planning your next move, and to others, it may seem worrying. Are you planning a contingency for if they turn on you? Are you plotting a master heist to steal xeno technologies from the inquisition? Did you just insult one of them behind their backs? Are you uttering an ancient prayer beneath your breath that may bless them? The answers could always be yes, but it is more likely that you are planning to construct a new machine from their weapons when they turn their backs to you.

Little tips:

If you are playing online, consider grabbing Voicemod or an equivalent to change your voice to sound more mechanical-y! (Be sure to set up a toggle on and off button for in and out of character, and test the voice with a friend prior to playing to make sure it won't get annoying during long sessions)

Admechs benefit from being chaotic or weird; the classic "I'm crazy or unusual" bit many players want to tap into, but struggle with capturing. My advice? Paradoxically: dont go overboard. Dont try to be the center of attention. Try to be a setup for the other characters' moments instead of the other way around. People enjoy characters like Jester from CR for her chaos, but tend to forget that she largely is used to set up other people to make a joke or to cause a problem for the party to fix, while still having her own character and story that's separate from her "I'm a silly chaotic person." Here's the biggest thing to remember:

Your randomness should be a facet of your character, not your entire personality.

Stay consistent with your randomness. Develop predictable patterns. If you just keep being chaotic without method to your madness, it becomes annoying or difficult to pin down what your character actually is, and that makes it difficult to interact with them. Have boundries your character wouldnt break, and use that to create inner conflict! (Example: I want to pie my friend in the face, but he's sad from his girlfriend breaking up with him. My morals tell me that I love my friend and always try to cheer him up, but uuuuuuugh the prank would be soooo funny to me and potentially everyone else! Ooh, but it'd likely conflict with my want to cheer him up, as it'd make him mad or sadder... How do I feel about this situation and how will it affect my decision and interaction with the other character?)

Developing a pattern to your "I am a chaotic being" helps other players to compliment your character and vice versa! Jester likes pulling pranks, so eventually the Nien figures that out and starts to keep an eye out for it. Does that stop her from trying? No! But its a predictable action that can still be chaotic, while not being uninteractable or disruptful to the enjoyment of the game for everyone at the table. Running gags, pranks or catchphrases are a good place to start, then build on it the farther you go.

My best advice I give for character development, and this goes for any kind of character you run: You aren't just playing a character. You're playing on a team of characters. Try to play to their strengths as much as your own.

I’m a really shy person, to the point where I almost quit DnD a few months ago because I was finding roleplay to be too difficult. While I’m still working on my shyness in the real world, I’ve found some tips that really worked for me with roleplaying and I’m having a lot of fun now. I thought I’d share them and I hope some work for other shy people :)

Come Up With a Character Voice - I know, not everyone in the DnD community is a voice actor. I’m not either but putting some practice into  a certain voice and certain mannerisms works wonders. This helps seperate your character from you and helps you appear more in character to your party. You can even try to find a voice from a pre-existing character and yoink it. The best part is bad accents are totally excuseable, England isn’t even real so why worry? What’s an English acccent? That’s just the way Jeremiah the half-orc talks. 

Talk to Yourself - This helps to practice your character voice. Think of how your character introduces themself and practice it a few times. Talk to yourself a few times throughout the day as your character. Your family will have a lot of questions, but it’ll be worth it.

Make a Character Who Acts Differently Than You - What’s the point of roleplaying if you’re just going to act like yourself? Try out traits you don’t normally show, heck, maybe even traits you wish you had. There’s always one person at the table who uses their character to work through identity issues, why not be that person?

Have a Relationship With Another Character - Find a character who your character would get along with (or really dislike). Form banter with them. It can feel intimidating to talk to an entire party, but this trick makes it feel like you’re only talking to one person or having a one-on-one conversation. This can work even better if it’s someone you’re comfortable talking with in real life. You could even talk with them out of session about how your character and their character interact.

Don’t Fill in Your Character Sheet - Rather finish writing your personality rubric and bio after you've roleplayed a little. Get a better sense of how your character should be and then fill it out.

In the end, you should be fine as long as you try to get out of your comfort zone and your character wasn't raised by wolves. Try to have fun because that's what it's all about :)

And I got a character in the works that I desperately want to use (he’s a toxic asshole because I wanted to make one)

So like if anyone has any tips and tricks for roleplaying on discord that would be amazing.

(I stick to Warrior Cats roleplays cause I’ve been doing them for years but I’ll occasionally drift over to different fandoms to roleplay)

I also made a playlist for this WIP oc, also I need some names for him. (I unfortunately gave him the personality of Sangwoo, Dabi, Shigaraki, and literally every other toxic/manipulative character I could think of.)

So like any help would be amazing.

What’s up everyone? I made a new account for D&D and TTRPG stuff and need people to follow. If you post/reblog memes about D&D, tips for roleplaying, DMing and more reply to this post and I will check out your blog (and most likely follow you)

((It’s been ages since I did one of these - so here’s a link to the first two in this “series” - pt. 1: Backstory and pt.2: Character Look))

One of the most exciting parts of playing d&d is the fact that I get to play a character completely unique to me. Someone I designed from the ground up, determined ever aspect of their personality and being, and I get to experience a wondrous world as that character. 

But it’s hard to really imagine yourself as this character in these situations when you aren’t entirely sure what you look like. Sure, you spent plenty of time developing your appearance and designing the look of your character, but it’s hard to remember those details. And do you really want to take the time to explain to your fellow players in excruciating detail the exact shade of brown your character’s eyes are?

Knowing what your appearance is and your fellow players knowing adds a surprising amount of depth to the roleplaying experience.

Some people can expertly picture their character in full, glorious detail. But plenty of people struggle to imagine their characters, and because of this they either just imagine themselves or they imagine a basic stereotype. There’s nothing innately wrong with this - In fact it can sometimes be fun to just play a fantastical version of yourself or to play a standard rogue/thief elf with daggers that trusts no one. But if you have spent time making a new and unique character, you don’t want that work to go to waste simply because you struggle to picture them.

So we need a visual.

I see ask blogs wanting people to send them asks. Especially asks that help with character development. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to ask for help, but you need to learn how and what to ask yourself. You need to do some research on psychology and find out how people would react to certain events or milestones or traumas in their lives. Then you connect the dots.

Parents got divorced? They might have commitment issues as a result.

Car wreck as a child? They might be afraid of confined spaces. Or even refuse to take necessary risks.