Absymal solo rp

[QuillDipper]

I love solo RP. It lets me introspect about recent events without doing bios, which ARE something I dislike. I suppose it's mostly just what my character is though, since some just aren't 3D enough to be alone while some even prefer loneliness

Idk. I use it as a time to give my character opinions on things. My characters are their own worst enemy because they can't decide if they like or hate something and being alone is good for making that definitive choice.

[Saellyn]

Thank you all very much for this. Even you RGS

I'm going to try to use some of this to improve myself. This is all greatly appreciated and soon I will control Zalanth-I mean be a better RPer for it.

[Barzalene]

I'm not so great at solo rp, but I can spend days in the company of the NPCs in my pc's life.

[chuci]

To me, roleplay is about consistency of character, and not necessarily about verbosity of emotes, thinks, and feels.

If your character acts the same when you're playing by yourself as they do when you're playing around other player characters (or staff), then you're doing fine.

If not, then examine why.

[James de Monet]

To me, roleplay is about consistency of character, and not necessarily about verbosity of emotes, thinks, and feels.

If your character acts the same when you're playing by yourself as they do when you're playing around other player characters (or staff), then you're doing fine.

If not, then examine why.

I'm not sure I agree with that.  What real person is the same person at work that they are at home, around their grandparents and around their friends, at the bar and at a museum?

Real people (and characters) are seldom the same in situations that have differing requirements.

If you're saying their motivations should be the same, that I probably agree with.  But their actions and their demeanor will probably be quite different.

[chuci]

Sorry, I don't mean that the character should always act the same. I mean that you should portray them the same way.

For example, if you always emote around other PCs, don't just stop emoting because you think you're alone.

[Reiloth]

And also, don't react to something differently because there is OOC benefit to it.

[slvrmoontiger]

I really hate solo RP. However, there have been many times that I either do it out of share boredom of nothing else to do or because I have to do it. I think the most important thing to make it interesting for you is always have something to do or a persona to your character that you can develop more when alone.

Having some sort of crafting skill helps when solo RPing. You can sit there and act upset, frustrated, angry, et all when you fail to craft something correctly. Foraging also helps with solo RP. Don't just stand there spamming that your foraging, but move around act like your kicking up dirt or looking behind a bush or under a rock and move your mount around (if you've brought one with you).

Having a persona for your character. He/she could be a drunk that drinks when they are alone. They could be scared of being alone and think they see things or hear things when no one else is around. If your character is a fighter or hunter he/she could act out hunting to try and get better or better understand game/enemy.

The other thing I do is I talk to NPC's. Sure they don't respond back, but you can pretend they are responding to you. Or there's been times in the past that I just sit at a bar telling stories with NPCs and no PCs around. I had a character that one time took a VPNC back to his apartment for the night (Yes I was extremely bored, and couldn't sleep that night, and nothing else to do, but I made it fun.)

Whatever you do, have fun with it. If/when it stops being fun log out and take a break, as the point of a game is for it to be fun. If staff are asking you to do more Solo RP ask them for suggestions. Also, I don't think a staff member would expect you to carry on with Solo RP if you aren't enjoying it, but they may want you to just try it out to get a better feel for your character. I wouldn't read too much into it and like I said I would log and take a break the moment I'm not enjoying it. It's a game and not a job.

[Orin]

I've played several characters that primarily had solo rp time.  One only saw three other people in a real month.  It can get boring, so here is what I end up doing:

That npc you always see? Wish up to have it animated.  Ask their name and a few other little things.  Now when you walk by them, wave.  Or maybe scowl at them.  If you don't like them, try to avoid them on the street.  "Fuck, it's Amos.   I'll take the alley instead."

Notice something about your environment.  Hmm, looks like someone has been throwing trash in front of your apartment.  Fuckin neckers! Maybe the pile gets bigger as time goes on.  A small thing becomes a big thing, and now you have an hour of rp to find a way to get rid of the garbage.

I won't rant, but basically you need to be creative in your environment.  Yes, it is a static game world sometimes.  Just remember, for solo rp to succeed, sometimes a random vnpc needs to dump a chamber pot on you from a second story building, and your tdesc needs to change.

[Fujikoma]

I've played several characters that primarily had solo rp time.  One only saw three other people in a real month.  It can get boring, so here is what I end up doing:

That npc you always see? Wish up to have it animated.  Ask their name and a few other little things.  Now when you walk by them, wave.  Or maybe scowl at them.  If you don't like them, try to avoid them on the street.  "Fuck, it's Amos.   I'll take the alley instead."

Notice something about your environment.  Hmm, looks like someone has been throwing trash in front of your apartment.  Fuckin neckers! Maybe the pile gets bigger as time goes on.  A small thing becomes a big thing, and now you have an hour of rp to find a way to get rid of the garbage.

I won't rant, but basically you need to be creative in your environment.  Yes, it is a static game world sometimes.  Just remember, for solo rp to succeed, sometimes a random vnpc needs to dump a chamber pot on you from a second story building, and your tdesc needs to change.

Yeah, but if you emote about neckers throwing trash outside your apartment, and you go tell the wrong person, the Militia will start combing the streets for elves to torment and murder over trash outside your apartment, and it was probably a stump with a strange focus anyway, if it's persistent.

[MeTekillot]

I fail to see the problem with that, Fujikoma.

[Evoru]

I try to pretend that someone is always watching me (because they might be). I suddenly feel compelled to be as realistic as possible for that Staffer/thief/pervert so that they're not just looking at a character that sits on their hands and does nothing but wait for someone else to come along. Sometimes you can even attract the attention of someone who was just passing through and would have kept on going normally, but sees that you're up to something.

Sometimes people just stare at you and go about your business, but hey, you might get some kudos out of it.

[Orin]

I've played several characters that primarily had solo rp time.  One only saw three other people in a real month.  It can get boring, so here is what I end up doing:

That npc you always see? Wish up to have it animated.  Ask their name and a few other little things.  Now when you walk by them, wave.  Or maybe scowl at them.  If you don't like them, try to avoid them on the street.  "Fuck, it's Amos.   I'll take the alley instead."

Notice something about your environment.  Hmm, looks like someone has been throwing trash in front of your apartment.  Fuckin neckers! Maybe the pile gets bigger as time goes on.  A small thing becomes a big thing, and now you have an hour of rp to find a way to get rid of the garbage.

I won't rant, but basically you need to be creative in your environment.  Yes, it is a static game world sometimes.  Just remember, for solo rp to succeed, sometimes a random vnpc needs to dump a chamber pot on you from a second story building, and your tdesc needs to change.

Yeah, but if you emote about neckers throwing trash outside your apartment, and you go tell the wrong person, the Militia will start combing the streets for elves to torment and murder over trash outside your apartment, and it was probably a stump with a strange focus anyway, if it's persistent.

It was just an example.  There are many things you can do to spice up your rp, or enhance the game world around you.

Arranging items in rooms can change whether someone passes by a room entirely or if they stop and look at something.  I really like seeing a well crafted arrange item in a room, and this can be done with throwaway items! Empty bottles, broken potshards, bones, intestines... the ideas are endless here.

Using the scribble code can be fun sometimes.  Rumors begin to spread about the chalk penises up and down Stonecarver's road, and your PC had zero interaction with other PC's while doing it.  Maybe your dwarf's focus is to show everyone he's the most badass dwarf of all time.  One morning everyone wakes up to find a chalk mural of a stumpy looking dwarf, muscles bulging, one foot resting on top of a dead carru.

Even writing to the in game boards can be something that helps solo rp.  Put out a call looking for someone to teach you how to juggle, or better yet, to juggle swords on fire. 

tl;dr bring your world alive.  breathe life into it.

[Dakota]

tl;dr bring your world alive.  breathe life into it.

Spot on.

[Fujikoma]

Oh, I'm trying to do my part Orin, trust me on that.

[Kol]

I have problems with solo RP. It's not that I can't do it, it's that I literally despise having to do it. I hate it. It's hard to make it interesting - I'm a player that thrives around players. Being alone gimps me in that I have a hard time defining myself when I'm not around people.

This may even be an actual me trait issue that I just need to work through, but what are some tips to just -break the dullness- of solo rping? Wishing up for staff to animate is something I do occasionally when I'm dying for interaction, but this is a touch and go sort of thing and I'm looking for a response that doesn't rely on that.

I like solo RP, sure it can get boring and monotonous at times, however, I look at it from the view of I'm not always around people in RL (in fact, I actively avoid people whenever possible) and when I'm alone, I don't just sit there inanimately. I think, hell, I hold whole conversations with myself (Yes, I'm mad, but I get me.) I move when seated, scratch, talk to inanimate objects just in case they have something to add to the conversation.

In short, think about what you do when alone, from scratching your chin, to stroking the wo/manbeast. You may not actively think about every small detail of your day, but somewhere (at least for me) There's a constant conversation with yourself about -everything-. Does that chair look right in that spot? Did that bloke look at me like that because he knows me, finds my beard attractive, or thinks I look like an idiot? Do I still have bacon in my fridge, or do I need to get some more? (I think about this one a lot)

[deskoft]

Thanks to this thread, and some others regarding feeling and thinking, I've been certainly doing some solo role-play. From my own experience, it really helps developing a consistent character. Specially for characters that are forced to have a certain type of personality, motivation or controlled reaction within their guild. I've been able to note down a lot of new things about my character, like making more consistent details about his past (after trying to figure out why my character would have the emotions he's having while thinking or feeling). In my honest opinion, if the solo RP is simply to do some solo RP, it will feel boring (it is in the human nature to share, in the end), but if you atleast take something out of each solo RP (like new ideas about your character, maybe taking notes about what your character feels about the latest events), it will probably become something that really helps RP a lot.

I probably need solo RP because I use ConnectedText (a personal wiki) to take notes out of everything as if it was a brain. With solo RP, my character is able to develop more the "ideas" he has about each character, after meeting them, or several days after meeting them. It's like RL. You socialize with a new person... A few hours later, and sometimes a few days later, you start reflecting things like "Do I like this person?", "Why did he do that?" or you simply laugh about what happened. All of this is done within your character's style. It's cool, considering you're the only one who knows what your character really thinks, regardless of his outwards behaviour (apart from immortals).

[cnemus]

I can solo RP in my own imagination at work. If I play armageddon or any game that requires an internet connection it is to interact with other players.

I log out instead of Solo-RP and try again later.

No offense in a online game solo anything is stupid.

If I want a solo game I'll play tetris.

I fully support anyone avoiding parts they don't like and focusing on the parts they do. For me personally, however, solo Armageddon is an opportunity to set up and link together the not-solo stories. I can go off and write a short story by myself (I do that a lot), but no one will come along and read that story and suddenly try to kill one of my characters for it. If I sit in Armageddon and initiate a solo story, there are plenty of chances for someone to come along and do just that. Very recently that very thing happened. I was sitting alone, doing one of my repetitive solo-activities, someone came along, saw me, and joined in! Woot! New friend-that-maybe-will-kill-me-someday! Bam! Story-gold.