Simple question is simple. What do you look at when you are looking for a RPing partner?
For example, do you only look at their 'Looking for RP' post? Do you look at their characters, see if you can find a certain quality there before contacting the person? Do you look at the post's length and ignore it if it's too long/short or too messily written? Perhaps you look at the name of the user?
Please tell what you look for! I am curious to know how it is to other people.
For example, do you only look at their 'Looking for RP' post? Do you look at their characters, see if you can find a certain quality there before contacting the person? Do you look at the post's length and ignore it if it's too long/short or too messily written? Perhaps you look at the name of the user?
Please tell what you look for! I am curious to know how it is to other people.
It kind of depends what I'm looking for in my RP! 
But in general terms, I tend to look for:
But in general terms, I tend to look for:- People who make a genuine effort to write properly. It's okay to make typos or switch words ('which' or 'witch' for example) but it's easy to tell when someone just doesn't try to do their best.
- Kudos people got. They're a very useful indicator to see what people like about RPing with that person. It also helps me find out what kind of people they RP with, so if someone I know has played with them I know it's usually going to be someone I'll enjoy RPing with too.
- Character profiles with enough info to give me a good idea what kind of stories we can come up with. Blank profiles, or profiles that only describe the physical appearance but not the personality, dreams, goals and interests are not interesting, and usually my roleplays get boring fast when I give them a go.
- Rules or guidelines on character profiles. If they match my own ideas about what makes a roleplay fun, I'm good to go!
- Whether they're a persona RPer or not. My RP is totally separate from myself in 99% of all cases. I don't want someone to think I'm in love with them, or hate them, because my character feels that way. It's just a story to me, so I try not to engage in games with people who feel different about this.
I always read through a person's character(s) to see if there'd be any use in bothering; some characters just won't pair well for one reason or another.
I've been getting a little more into the habit of checking the person's RP posts, too, to look for style, description, grammar and spelling... But even when someone doesn't meet my "standards," I'll usually still play with them if they're willing to do their best, and bonus points if they really want to improve. Ideally though, they already show a firm grasp of English, provide plenty of useful details, and play their character well.
That's something that sometimes bugs me, is people who have what may be an interesting character, but they do a terrible job of playing it. Sometimes it's just the character being forced into actions that make no sense for them, sometimes it's a complete failure on general behavior. One time I remember this "old as the world" vampire-ish dude who met some random human chick who had no reason to even be where they met; she started out afraid of him, but after what was prolly a 10 minute conversation, they decided they were in love and it was the deepest love that had ever been and they'd do anything for each other...! Ugh. And some folks just don't have what it takes to play a given character. I was actually such a person when I tried to play Jewel, my whorish demon, because I just can't do that.
I also try to be sure the person is at least somewhat sane. Same as Sanne, I don't want people to get IC and OOC mixed up. It's happened before. It's frightening.
My ideal, which will make me want to play with a person more:
I've been getting a little more into the habit of checking the person's RP posts, too, to look for style, description, grammar and spelling... But even when someone doesn't meet my "standards," I'll usually still play with them if they're willing to do their best, and bonus points if they really want to improve. Ideally though, they already show a firm grasp of English, provide plenty of useful details, and play their character well.
That's something that sometimes bugs me, is people who have what may be an interesting character, but they do a terrible job of playing it. Sometimes it's just the character being forced into actions that make no sense for them, sometimes it's a complete failure on general behavior. One time I remember this "old as the world" vampire-ish dude who met some random human chick who had no reason to even be where they met; she started out afraid of him, but after what was prolly a 10 minute conversation, they decided they were in love and it was the deepest love that had ever been and they'd do anything for each other...! Ugh. And some folks just don't have what it takes to play a given character. I was actually such a person when I tried to play Jewel, my whorish demon, because I just can't do that.
I also try to be sure the person is at least somewhat sane. Same as Sanne, I don't want people to get IC and OOC mixed up. It's happened before. It's frightening.
My ideal, which will make me want to play with a person more:
- Writes well and with clear description
- Has an interesting character that they play well
- Clearly understands the difference between IC and OOC, and doesn't take things too seriously
- Can come up with fun prompts and ideas
- Understands that there's more than just combat and/or romance
- Doesn't try to make their character the coolest most awesome thing EVAR - really, chill out
Generally a combination of post length and literacy are two main points that draw me to a particular individual for role-play, although generally that is also paired with a sound awareness that IC does not equate to OOC, and perhaps a glimpse into the character's motivations and past. Ideally it is a combination of all of the above, as someone can have a brilliant character but only posts two or three lines all the time, or they can have a lacklustre character and post multiple paragraphs at a time! A balance between the two is pleasant.
Open lines of communication OOC are also something that is important to me; if something comes up IRL, or the RP isn't going well or in the direction they want, or they just don't find it fun, then I appreciate honesty and expect the same courtesy to be extended in return.
I would rather, as well, someone play a character consistently rather than changing their personality depending on who they are role-playing with. While to a degree it makes sense - a scientist would interact more easily with another scientist than he or she would a sportsman, for example - when the two are starkly different, it doesn't make sense so much. There would be at least a little consistency.
And as Sanne said, I avoid Persona RP. My characters are not me, in any way, shape or form.
I also try to avoid people who post in first-person (I, me, you). I don't know why, but it just seems to grate with me for some reason. I guess because the vast majority of the stories I've grown up on and even read now are written exclusively in third-person. But if the character meshes well with mine, then I can likely make an exception.
Open lines of communication OOC are also something that is important to me; if something comes up IRL, or the RP isn't going well or in the direction they want, or they just don't find it fun, then I appreciate honesty and expect the same courtesy to be extended in return.
I would rather, as well, someone play a character consistently rather than changing their personality depending on who they are role-playing with. While to a degree it makes sense - a scientist would interact more easily with another scientist than he or she would a sportsman, for example - when the two are starkly different, it doesn't make sense so much. There would be at least a little consistency.
And as Sanne said, I avoid Persona RP. My characters are not me, in any way, shape or form.
I also try to avoid people who post in first-person (I, me, you). I don't know why, but it just seems to grate with me for some reason. I guess because the vast majority of the stories I've grown up on and even read now are written exclusively in third-person. But if the character meshes well with mine, then I can likely make an exception.
Literacy is a big one for me, but to be clear I mean concise, well-punctuated sentences that convey exactly what the player means.
The player needs to be available a few times a week. I like to play in as close to real-time as prose can get, and I don't want to leave my characters wondering where someone is.
The character has to be more than a gimmick. While a gimmick or hook can get a person started in character-creation, I need the final advertised product to be a developed person with motivations, reasons, and fears.
Player/characters who seem to only be focused on sex, violence, or betrayals bore me quickly and I'll skip over their advertisements with barely a glance.
I have a great fondness for mundane characters; farm hands, maids, stay-at-home parents, fishermen, butchers, bakers and candlestick makers. There's drama in those lives, real and poignant without being over-the-top. They often have problems that are fixable, allowing for character inclusion; people can HELP them or BE helped by them.
In the end, that last bit is what I really look for in a RP partner; can our characters benefit from being put in a story together?
The player needs to be available a few times a week. I like to play in as close to real-time as prose can get, and I don't want to leave my characters wondering where someone is.
The character has to be more than a gimmick. While a gimmick or hook can get a person started in character-creation, I need the final advertised product to be a developed person with motivations, reasons, and fears.
Player/characters who seem to only be focused on sex, violence, or betrayals bore me quickly and I'll skip over their advertisements with barely a glance.
I have a great fondness for mundane characters; farm hands, maids, stay-at-home parents, fishermen, butchers, bakers and candlestick makers. There's drama in those lives, real and poignant without being over-the-top. They often have problems that are fixable, allowing for character inclusion; people can HELP them or BE helped by them.
In the end, that last bit is what I really look for in a RP partner; can our characters benefit from being put in a story together?
Kaji wrote:
I have a great fondness for mundane characters; farm hands, maids, stay-at-home parents, fishermen, butchers, bakers and candlestick makers. There's drama in those lives, real and poignant without being over-the-top. They often have problems that are fixable, allowing for character inclusion; people can HELP them or BE helped by them.
As for me, all I really care about is that a partner strikes a good balance between knowing what they want to do and willing to be flexible with how I want to interpret it. It's no fun setting aside workable ideas because a partner has extremely specific designs about what they want, but neither is having someone who claims to be "up for anything!", and thus forces you to figure out everything. I guess that's why some people call searching for partners roleplay roulette, you win some and you lose some, spread your chips too wide and you'll find a lot of matches that bore you, stack them all on one single thing and you'll be super-excited but probably never get it.
Beyond that I just skim their profiles for any red flags that suggest misplaced creative priorities (excess libido, insistence on minimum post length, face claims, etc), if there's none of that then we're golden.
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