Those of us that have been around for a while have often seen it... The
new player that just isn't used to free-form RP on games like this. They
aren't used to an environment where the fate of characters isn't decided
by the roll of dice, combat code, or strict RP judges. Since they aren't
used to this kind of RP, they tend to end up abusing the openness of the
system. Which gets them labeled as twinks and generally ignored. They
end up fighting an up-hill battle for acceptance.
And that is a genuine shame... Since the vast majority of the new players
are more than willing to learn. They just need some guidance, a little
help, and some advice. So here's the challenge to old players: Before
assuming that someone is abusing consent, first see if they are just new
to the concept. If they are, help them out. Give them advice. Help them
so that the next time they're in a scene others will enjoy their presence.
Which is much better than having players end up ignoring someone... since
then they'll only learn by experimenting. And chances are that by the
time they do learn, they will have moved onto another game since they've
ended up with a 'reputation' for being a bad player (or, worse, a twink).
And that's not something that does anyone any good.
The thing to remember for those that have been around for a while is that
new people are usually eager to learn to represent their characters
better. They just need good examples and experience. Be open and honest
with new players. But try not to be judgmental. Demonstrating by example
has always been more effective than telling someone they are wrong. Be
willing to show what is right. Hey. We all started somewhere, right?
When asked a question, remember that the new player has gathered the
courage to ask the question and treat them nicely. A little patience now
can mean plentiful rewards later with a newly forged good RPer, if not a
friend. If the questions come at a bad time, just let them know politely
so they can continue looking for help.
And while pointing at published logs can be helpful, the new player misses
out on an important element. The logs on the lists are usually edited to
remove the OOC communication that helped the scene flow along. Thus, it's
often helpful to allow a new player to sit in and observe a scene, or be
willing to show them a raw log with the OOC commentary.
A channel has been created called 'Style' that is meant to help out new
players with most any sort of question. "addcom <alias>=Style" to join.
The "On Roleplaying" chapter of the Care and Feeding of MUSHes" also has
some great advice and tips. Two links are provided below:
http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Corridor/1815/role4.html
http://www.visi.com/~gyles19/homer/role4.html
NewsRolePlay
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