Serious vs Casual RP Threads?

[PsychotixxFoxx]

I'm usually a pretty serious RPer and I was wondering if maybe we can get 2 seperate threads under the RP thread for casual RPs and serious RPs? I think we'd enjoy the options of choosing RPs that are 1-liners with spelling/grammar flexibility, or some serious dedicated RP with intense storylines, paragraphs and whatnot. Just a suggestion!!

[Kael]

I second this motion!

[Kobuk]

So if I understand correctly, you'd like to see two different RP styles for the same RP?

For example:
A serious "The Dark Side of Furry" thread currently here:
http://forums.furtopia.org/index.php?topic=42751.0

But also a secondary "The Dark Side of Furry" thread, but dedicated to lighter grammar and other restrictions, correct?

I'm not exactly keen on this suggestion as it would flood the RP forum with a lot of duplicate threads.

Good grammar and punctuation, while not necessarily a rule, should be considered out of "common courtesy" to other players so that everyone knows what people are trying to talk about, describe, how to respond to others, etc.  If members don't understand what another member is talking about and trying to convey, then that is going to make the RP that much more difficult to handle and moderate, etc. not just for the Gamemaster, but also for the Furtopian staff.

[Kael]

No, more like a sub-forum, one for serious role-playing, and one for casual... She said wrong word, i believe.

[Kobuk]

This is an issue I will have to discuss with the other staff. Because of the holiday season here, it may take a long time to discuss this issue as everyone is busy from time to time.

[PsychotixxFoxx]

Like Kael corrected, that's what I asked about, 2 seperate subforums for serious/casual RP. Thanks Kobuk!! I appreciate it.

[Kobuk]

I've been doing some more thinking on this issue and here are the thoughts I had:

While having 2 RP forums (One for Serious RP's, and one for Casual RP's) may sound like a good idea, Having another forum for the staff to watch/moderate just makes our jobs that much more stressful and complicated with the extra "workload", know what I mean?

Secondly, Why have a second RP forum when Furtopia already has a main RP forum located here:
http://forums.furtopia.org/index.php?board=32.0
In other words, there's no need to create a "duplicate" RP forum when this site already has one to use.

I think the easier solution on this whole issue is that when members create an RP, they list in the thread title whether the RP is "Serious" or "Casual". This would give members the option of which RP they wanted to play in. An example might be: "The Fallowbrook Inn." (Casual RP)

Although the Gamemaster of the RP can recommend that the RP be played seriously or casually, How that RP is played is also determined by the individual players. Some people can play seriously, while others can't, and vice versa. One reason why this may be might be the devices people use to make their posts from. People using desktop or laptop comps can play either way and will show moderate/good grammar and punctuation, as well as longer posts, etc. But people using iPods/smart phones or other smaller similar devices where the keypads are smaller and it's more difficult to type proper posts are going to want to play more casually.

The better recommendation, at least from my POV, is for members to post in the RP thread title whether the RP is Serious or Casual. BUT........It would be preferable not to see two threads of the same story, etc. as I had earlier mentioned here:

For example:
A serious "The Dark Side of Furry" thread currently here:
http://forums.furtopia.org/index.php?topic=42751.0

But also a secondary "The Dark Side of Furry" thread, but dedicated to lighter grammar and other restrictions, correct?

I'm not exactly keen on this suggestion as it would flood the RP forum with a lot of duplicate threads.

PsychotixxFoxx:  I have another question for you. When you say "Serious" or "Casual", then exactly how serious or casual do you mean? Can you give more descriptions/details. How "intense" did you mean in your opening post? The Gamemaster of an RP does have "some" flexibility in how the RP is played, controlled, etc. so long as there is no conflict with the main Furtopian site rules and/or the Furtopia RP Forum rules.

[PsychotixxFoxx]

My definitions of casual and serious are pretty simple, really. When played casual, the RP is usually kind of fast-paced, each person posting 1 or 2 lines, the story line is generally vague and open for any to join in at any time. A serious RP would be more concrete, with an established story line, each person posting several sentences - paragraphs, and being very involved and dedicated, although the RP would move along a bit slower. I understand the reasoning behind keeping it to one forum, it was just a matter of organization, and maybe making it a little easier for serious RPers to find a stable place to settle in at. Although I agree with you about the multiple threads for each RP, I was wondering if it would be acceptable to have an OOC (out of character) thread to accompany the more serious RP's? It makes it easier to clarify the storyline and character's places if there is any confusion or miscommunication in the actual RP, and allows the gamemaster to inform players about the world and background and whatnot in more depth.

[Kobuk]

I was wondering if it would be acceptable to have an OOC (out of character) thread to accompany the more serious RP's? It makes it easier to clarify the storyline and character's places if there is any confusion or miscommunication in the actual RP, and allows the gamemaster to inform players about the world and background and whatnot in more depth.

We used to have a OOC pinned Guidelines here:
http://forums.furtopia.org/index.php?topic=34601.0
........that was pinned at the top of the Role Playing forum. It was an "experiment" if I remember correctly by a member named Draconium to have OOC discussion seperate from the actual RP thread. However, in the two years that we had that pinned thread, Nobody ever used those guidelines. So the thread was unpinned and discarded.
From most of my observations of the RP forum as an Administrator, Most members still tend to post OOC comments in their posts in the actual RP thread inside of ( ) or [ }. Or members will send PM's to each other.

A Gamemaster could still have a seperate OOC thread if they wished. It is optional. Not mandatory. If a seperate OOC thread is created by the Gamemaster, then the GM must state clearly what the OOC thread is for and what can be discussed in it. From my understanding, OOC threads are generally for members of the RP to discuss RP issues related to the game that is being played. OOC threads are not a RP itself. If an OOC thread is created for an RP, then the GM should put a link to the OOC thread in the opening post of the actual RP game thread so members know where to go for OOC discussion, and the GM should do vice versa: Put a link to the actual RP game thread in the opening post of the OOC thread so members know where the actual game is being played and don't mistake the OOC thread as the actual RP itself.

As I said before, OOC threads are optional. They are not mandatory. The GM and/or members can continue OOC comments within ( ) in the RP game thread in their posts or not.
Another option to "hide" OOC comments in a post when they are being posted in an RP thread is for members to use the Spoiler tag as described here:
http://forums.furtopia.org/index.php?topic=39242.0

[ObliviousAlly]

My definitions of casual and serious are pretty simple, really. When played casual, the RP is usually kind of fast-paced, each person posting 1 or 2 lines, the story line is generally vague and open for any to join in at any time. A serious RP would be more concrete, with an established story line, each person posting several sentences - paragraphs, and being very involved and dedicated, although the RP would move along a bit slower. I understand the reasoning behind keeping it to one forum, it was just a matter of organization, and maybe making it a little easier for serious RPers to find a stable place to settle in at. Although I agree with you about the multiple threads for each RP, I was wondering if it would be acceptable to have an OOC (out of character) thread to accompany the more serious RP's? It makes it easier to clarify the storyline and character's places if there is any confusion or miscommunication in the actual RP, and allows the gamemaster to inform players about the world and background and whatnot in more depth.

I actually know what you're getting at here~ I'm actually in the process of working on a forum for anthro roleplay, with an established world and stuff like board-wide events and small plots and stuff like that. I just wasn't sure if anyone else would be interested in something like that, because most furries tend to one-on-one RP or stick to places like IRC or MU*s.

[PsychotixxFoxx]

I would very much be interested in that, and I can think of a few other RPers here on the forum who would enjoy that just as well. Would you share the whereabouts of such a forum?

[ObliviousAlly]

I would very much be interested in that, and I can think of a few other RPers here on the forum who would enjoy that just as well. Would you share the whereabouts of such a forum?

I sent you a PM, but I also added the link to my signature, if others are interested~

[Alexandre]

You know, I would love to see some more serious RPs here.  I'd be tempted to jump in, but I also know that I get distracted easily when it comes to longer RPs.  If you do it, I'll watch and maybe even join (if it opens to others.)