Newcomer in Alllanak.

[Syl]

Ok, it's known now... Sorry again.

[Barsook]

While I will accept it, I really advise that you do read everything and think before you play your next PC.  I would also advise that you do play a human in Allanak, with a mundane guild/subguild, rather than a breed. This file can help you on that http://www.armageddon.org/help/view/Allanak%20Details Think what type/style of play you want to play.  For example, I can't play any combat-based characters because I get bored easily in in clans or get killed by a fall or a beast out in the sands.  Nowadays, I try to play social-political characters where they try to deep into the game world and it's lore. 

I would also suggest that you focus a character on learning on aspect of the game world.  For example, I had one character that focused on learning about the history of Allanak and how it shaped the city.

I do hope you take my advice and become a great player of Arm.  And I do hope this will help you.

[Syl]

I'll try to live my char to the heights of your hopes. But my new char's already entered Zalanthas, for the better, or the worst...

[Syl]

Hey? A lil question, how is the distribution of PCs in Zalanthas? Cause I saw quite a lot of them in Allanak, but with an average of 20 online, I'm wonderin about the chances of socializin elsewhere, travelin in other lands.

[Raptor_Dan]

Syl, I really like your enthusiasm. I can't really answer your last question, but I just wanted to tell you two specific things.

Every once in a while, a player comes around like you that has a great imagination, and a strong desire to really engage in the world. There's one of two things that usually happens. Either they run into obstacles, get disheartened, and leave in short order, OR, they stay, learn a bit more, and become one of the truly awesome players that make the world come alive and typically have unique and memorable chars. I really hope you become the latter, as you've demonstrated a unique perspective, a desire to learn, great imagination, full engagement on these boards, and you didn't even ragequit after your first PC died. Trust me, that happens.

The second thing I wanted to tell you should help you become that second kind of player, or, at least, that is my hope. Near the bottom half of the main website www.armageddon.org, there's a button for 'Get Live Help!' which is the helper chat. It seems you have already used it, and kudos to you for that, but when IG, playing your char, it's an excellent resource for quick questions. For instance, 'Wtf is going on right now', 'why is X harassing my char', and such. I can't speak for the other helpers, but for myself, I'd be completely fine with leaving the chat window open so that you can ask questions at your leisure, swapping back and forth between windows so you play and wait until a question arises.

As long as it's not a busy night for chats, I think that would work well, and give you a hand up on playing. Thank you for joining our community, I appreciate your enthusiasm.

[Miradus]

I second that. Helper chat is a great resource and I abuse heavily utilize it still.

[Syl]

Well, big thanks for your support , my second char died also (a burglar, label of origin, that had to learn the burglar way in the rinth...) , but they are only 'conceptuals phantoms', easily renewables, eh (Not sure I'd say the same with a few months char though...).

I'm usin the live chat quite often, great feature as it is, cause my favorite way to learn a game (or everythin for that matter) is to play it, directly. Not sayin that I like to enter it blindly, but I won't spend the afternoon readin the docs... Now, should I interpret your guidance toward the live chat as a polite way of sayin that I should ask my questions there? Should be so, I know, for quick questions, but I thought my last one deserved the answers of many players, as well as potentiallly informin many.

That, and I got another one... Is RP a skill? Meanin, could I hope to see my expression progress in the inspiration of its forms, with practice, or is it dependin on a restricted literary talent? Askin as I'm barely able to stammer some lil emotes, facin damn good roleplayers...

[Marauder Moe]

People are encouraging you to talk with helpers in help chat because they have a little more leeway dealing with in-character information and helping you out with specific situations.  In here, as has been mentioned, we're not really supposed to talk about your character and what specifically you've been up to.

Anyway, RP is absolutely a skill.  Some of us have been doing it for a decade or two.  Don't worry.  You'll learn game syntax before too long Thought it might be a good idea to print out the emote tag table from http://www.armageddon.org/help/view/Emoting  I've been playing like 14 years and I still keep that handy.

Beyond that you'll learn to think as your character.  To be aware of their movements and speech.  Their thoughts and feelings.  It can actually get a little weird when they take on a life of their own and even you, their creator, somehow can be surprised by them.

[Barsook]

Roleplaying is a player skill, not a character skill.  But don't worry, many players don't mind simple emotes, some just go deeper with their emotes.

[Hauwke]

Roleplaying is definately a skill rather than literary  based, although it does help I notice.
Just simple things mostly, in my first few years here I was a -terrible- writer. But over time I just sort of improved.

As far as the roleplay itself, that too comes with time. I have been roleplaying for years now, though not as long as some folks have been playing Arm.

[Syl]

That's encouragin, thxs, I'll try to master thar RP skill then. Cheers!

Speakin of that, would you know some sites specialized in theatrical, cinematical courses/resources, where one could get words, expressions, slangs of particular roles, such as farmers, nobles, rogues...? Or should I just improve my english culture, delvin into books'n movies?

[a french mans shirt]

I don't think its necessary to start researching olden times and traditional roles, but a few things do hold true.

For example, people couldn't chip very many facets into a gemstone until tools improved, so we don't have very many facets in gemstones, although most (I think all) items of jewelry do not state that they have three, four, five facets. This is in a helpfile somewhere, around the gems and stones section.

Also this is nowhere but in the minds of all the players but there is no sexism on Zalanthas: men are not considered more physically able than women, and are not, and traditional male and female roles do not exist, although you can make them in the game if you want, for yourself.

A few items exist which would imply that technology was once more advanced than it is now, and that is true. Halberds are one example. They could not be re-invented now, but can be copied. Crossbows are another.

There's more and stuff.

[Syl]

  Not sure I got what you said, or that you got what I said, but I found a good exemple to make myself clear:

Check that link: http://www.rinkworks.com/dialect/. Isn'it a wonderful translator tool for several types of characters?? Well, that's the top, and I'm lookin for that kind of tool, without expectin so sophisticated, eh. In any case, that's perfect for my actual char.

[nauta]

That's encouragin, thxs, I'll try to master thar RP skill then. Cheers!

Speakin of that, would you know some sites specialized in theatrical, cinematical courses/resources, where one could get words, expressions, slangs of particular roles, such as farmers, nobles, rogues...? Or should I just improve my english culture, delvin into books'n movies?

Harmless (a player) had a few nice links at the bottom of his/her thing here on tips for RP, storytelling, etc.  I found them useful:

http://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php?action=profile;u=17037

I'll post them here:

Commands: http://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,33156.msg599224.html#msg599224
Storytelling: http://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,43862.msg695230.html#msg695230
Storytelling: http://gdb.armageddon.org/index.php/topic,43604.msg686653.html#msg686653

The setting, while not Dark Sun, is Dark Sun enough that I find inspiration reading Dark Sun related things out there.

I learned through experience since the documentation is vast.  The documentation definitely helps improve the experience by making it richer.  But don't worry so much about messing up -- I still thought dwarves had hair three months into my time here.  We're a friendly bunch, even if we kill you inside the game over and over and over again.

Finally, mentioned above, but I just want to stress how helpful starting as a human warrior or ranger and joining the T'zai Byn is to new players.  There you will learn many of the commands, and be able to passively observe a lot of the geography/lore.  Once you have more familiarity, then you can really roll with breeds and elves and pickpockpets and so on.

[Iiyola]

Just personal curiosity, but what is your actual language?

[Syl]

French, you haven't caught my horrible accent?? And the RP resources from above are intrestin, but not exactly what I'm lookin for. Meanin, how to speak like a redneck, like a scoundrel, and such...

[Riev]

As far as dialects and such, while its rudimentary, you can assume some of that is covered by the language code.

"Northern" accent sounds different from "southern" accent and some people will judge you entirely on your accent.

The "feck" instead of "fuck", or leaving apostraphes in places to evoke a style of speech... that's just per player.



For example, for my "dumber" PCs, I use feck, a'int, th'fuck, krathdamnit, etc. For my "smarter" or refined PCs I might use words like disapproving, disgusted, or discerning.

I've also seen someone do a "tell man (huge flowery emote with lots of adjectives and position decriptions) Fuck."

[Syl]

As far as dialects and such, while its rudimentary, you can assume some of that is covered by the language code.

"Northern" accent sounds different from "southern" accent and some people will judge you entirely on your accent.

The "feck" instead of "fuck", or leaving apostraphes in places to evoke a style of speech... that's just per player.

Yeah, I'd rather use my own style, though, as a french then, I got some failins with the wordin, and a quick reference to slang/patois would help me a lot.

I've also seen someone do a "tell man (huge flowery emote with lots of adjectives and position decriptions) Fuck."

Well, I'm not askin about the niceties of hypocrisy, eh.

[Hauwke]

The thing about the world we play in, is that it changed jusy by virtue of people playing it, when I first started at least half of the populace used an accent in their speech that wasnt just a coded one. Now much less do it, and I have no doubt that given time it will start up again.

To truly learn the game though, you need both the docs and to jump straight in, a good example of why you need to read docs is magicker hate. IG its just they hate them, thats pretty much all Iever perceive from it. But in the docs its not so much hate as it is fear of what people dont understand.

[Syl]

The thing about the world we play in, is that it changed jusy by virtue of people playing it, when I first started at least half of the populace used an accent in their speech that wasnt just a coded one. Now much less do it, and I have no doubt that given time it will start up again.

You gotta have a good grasp in english for that, and that's why I'm tryin to find some assistance from the net.

To truly learn the game though, you need both the docs and to jump straight in, a good example of why you need to read docs is magicker hate. IG its just they hate them, thats pretty much all Iever perceive from it. But in the docs its not so much hate as it is fear of what people dont understand.

But I red some docs, combined yes, with that jump straight in, but to fall flat on my face...

[Barsook]

The thing about the world we play in, is that it changed jusy by virtue of people playing it, when I first started at least half of the populace used an accent in their speech that wasnt just a coded one. Now much less do it, and I have no doubt that given time it will start up again.

You gotta have a good grasp in english for that, and that's why I'm tryin to find some assistance from the net.

Not true!  Our lovely Akaramu has played Arm for 12+ years and her English has really, really improved!  If you work at it, your's can too!

[Lizzie]

Syl see if you can get Malken to give you a hand. He's Quebequois.

[Syl]

Not true!  Our lovely Akaramu has played Arm for 12+ years and her English has really, really improved!  If you work at it, your's can too!

Sure, mudin must be one of the best ways to learn english, though I don't want wait 12 years for a correct role play, eh.

Syl see if you can get Malken to give you a hand. He's Quebequois.

I'll scan for him, Malken as a forum user?

[Lizzie]

Yes, I don't know if he even plays anymore (he often quits and then returns, but says he's quit, but has been playing all along, he's a silly frenchman afterall )

But he's definitely a great person to go to, if you need help with French/Allanak translations.

[Barsook]

Not true!  Our lovely Akaramu has played Arm for 12+ years and her English has really, really improved!  If you work at it, your's can too!

Sure, mudin must be one of the best ways to learn english, though I don't want wait 12 years for a correct role play, eh.

Yes, I know that I'm repeating myself again but I feel like this my best advice right now which is to read the docs, understand them, and go with the flow of the game world.  You will become a great roleplayer if do that, already, and the rest will be easy for you.

Sorry, if this getting annoying, but I'm really trying to help here.

EDIT TO ADD: And it doesn't matter how many PC's it takes you to learn the game.  Arm has a very high learning curve.