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iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 06:34 AM
Hi Folks,

I'm new, not only to the forums, but also to Pen and Paper Roleplaying in General, and was hoping you folks might be willing to help a fellow out.

A friend of mine, who's currently taking the same graduate studies class I'm taking, is actually a Game Master, and so I asked him if I could join in the fun of playing an actual D&D game. He agreed, and is planning to set me up with his regular group eventually.

Thing is, I don't know a damned thing about the system. He's using D&D 3.5, Set in Eberron. I was hoping to buy the books in my country, but unfortunately, I don't think the basic books are being sold here in the Philippines anymore. I do want to invest something into playing the game, but I don't know where to get the source material other than downloading it off the internet or something to that effect. Does anyone happen to know where I can pick up the said materials for download?

Anyway, he was really nice earlier, and we spent some time using his books to create a character for me. As I remember it, it was a human Sword Sage using unarmed strikes. :) More importantly, he said that, because I wasn't actually in any game at the moment, he would craft an single-player module of sorts for me, with me being able to use an NPC of my own to supplement my roleplaying.

Again, some additional questions:
1. You wouldn't happen to be able to recommend some single-player adventures for a newbie character, would you?
2. How do I roleplay, exactly? I mean, I play computer RPGs, but I'm assuming that there's a difference here compared to the computer one.

Anyway, thanks a lot for any help you might be able to offer me. I do hope you'll be kind and send some +1 Gloves of Anti-Noobishness or something, because I could definitely use them.

Thanks again!
-Victor Stillwater

AslanCross
2010-04-12, 06:43 AM
Hey. Good to see you've signed up.

Roleplaying a character is really just limited by your character concept. What would your character do? What wouldn't he do even at the peril of his own life? How does he solve problems? Those are usually the questions that come up in the course of a game.

Now for those who want to help and be specific, we're going to be playing D&D 3.5 Eberron. Since Stillwater here has had his share of D&D CRPGs, he does get the basic game mechanic and understands the basics of Tome of Battle, so I didn't hesitate to help him put a Swordsage together.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 06:45 AM
Hi Aslan.

Thanks for the comment. :)

Was hoping the fine folks here had ideas to make my roleplay extra interesting, but heck, I'm not even sure how I want my Sword Sage to act like, as I wonder how bad you can be when you're chaotic good. :D

Gralamin
2010-04-12, 06:59 AM
I don't know about other languages, but most of the core books are available online for free (http://www.d20srd.org/) in English.

I unfortunately do not know of any 3.5 single player modules, so I cannot be of help there.

As for the Roleplay question, I'd put it like this: There are two major ways I've seen to role play, and it can be a lot easier to get into one or another based on the medium you are using. The first way is First person, this is just like being the main character of a book. You say "I do this." And when speaking to an NPC, you just talk. This can be hard to get into in Real Life games, but its worth a shot. It is however, very natural in online games.

The second way is using a third person approach. Instead of saying "I do this", you say "My character does that" and "My character asks this". It is a bit easier to do in real life when you are new, but it can be hard to break out of.

Other then that, the major questions are related to your characters backstory, his motivations, his personality, etc. It can be quite challenging at first to keep all of this straight, but keep trying.

One other important note is don't be afraid to play a character concept multiple times, but do keep trying to try new things. As you become more familiar with the game, you tend to settle into types of characters you like. I, for example, usually play characters with high intelligence scores and many knowledge skills. As a player, I like having a sense of control based on the knowledge my character has.

And a final thing to get used to: Separating In-character knowledge from out-of-character knowledge. Sometimes you, as a player, will know something your character doesn't. In some cases it is reasonable to use this (IE: Trolls regeneration is stopped by fire and acid). At other times, it may not be.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 07:03 AM
Hmm... I should ask Aslan then to put up my level 1 character or something.

Maybe I can add a backstory to it or something and create a repository of information on that character's adventures somewhere?

Anyway, thanks for the link Gralamin. I'll check it out. :D

GolemsVoice
2010-04-12, 07:04 AM
Well, as far as mechanics go, you seem to have learned quite a bit this far, judging from your post. At least you know the lingo. So that's good.

Well, how do you roleplay? It's actually not very complicated. First thing: Never be afraid to act. Of course, you might imagine your character stoic and mostly silent, but if not, act! Say something, describe how your character reacts, even if nonverbally.

Pick a character conecpt. Imagine situations most likely to come up during roleplay, and how your character would react in such a situation. Is he easily frightenend? Is he determined? Reckless? How does he get along with authority? Does he talk much, or does he like to stay silent? What are his views on bravery and heroism?

Also, think about where he comes from. Does he cling to what his family taught him, or does he want to seperate himself from them? How was his childhood? Was he brought up in an aristocratic mansion, or with a tribe of roaming barbarians?

Of course, you don't need to create an entire psychoanalysis for your character, but a few highlights that you think shape your character and make him react the way he does. So if he had a nice and problemfree upbringing, you likely won't need to record every day of that. But if he lived on the streets, hated by his parents, you could pick some special moments from that live.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 07:06 AM
Hi Golemsvoice.

I just posted right before you made your post. Was thinking of adding a tab on my blog now that you mention it, once I get my ideas in order.

Do I need to know Eberron's history for this to really work out?

AslanCross
2010-04-12, 07:09 AM
Well, I can give you a more detailed primer on Eberron when we meet again. You don't need to know the entire history; in fact sometimes it's more interesting to discover the world as you play. That's part of the hook of Eberron anyway.

Gralamin
2010-04-12, 07:09 AM
Not really. You just need to understand the basics of Eberron's History, and its basic tone (Especially as AslanCross, as your DM, is planning on using it). If you wanted to feel more connected to the setting, reading the books would definitely help.

Forever Curious
2010-04-12, 07:10 AM
Hi Golemsvoice.

I just posted right before you made your post. Was thinking of adding a tab on my blog now that you mention it, once I get my ideas in order.

Do I need to know Eberron's history for this to really work out?

Personally, I've played Ebberon games with a very loose knowledge of the setting. Unless your character would otherwise know the detailed history, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Major events (The War, etc.) should be known, but otherwise talk to your DM about what is going to be relevant.

/double ninja'd

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 07:14 AM
I was just wondering because I decided to get Knowledge (Local) and Knowledge (History) as skills for my swordsage and I feel more comfortable if I knew all the things my character would know. He's got average intelligence, but he apparently knows that's it's wise to know things.

GolemsVoice
2010-04-12, 07:17 AM
Tying his character into the history of the gameworld can be fun, but it is in no way necessary. How many of us can say that they were part of very important moments in our country? Of course, if you want your character to be a war refugee, you should pick a country where there has recently been a war and read up on it, and if you want your character to be a man of politics, you should know something about the factions he likes and the factions he dislikes.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 07:30 AM
Well... hmm...

Here's what I was thinking.

Victor Stillwater is a guy who basically decided to take a pilgrimage to learn about other fighting arts in order to acquire knowledge on those fighting styles and write about their history, much like a traveling scribe would be, except his fists can kill.

I suggested this next bit to Aslan, but i don't know how much he'll use: basically, my first adventure would start off in a dungeon cell, mostly because I looked at someone funny and also because of low charisma - I essentially pissed the person off and was taken into the dungeon for no actual reason.

I get freed by a secondary character who assists me in my escape from dungeon (I like to call him Sancho Panza, from Don Quixote) and we work together to get out and back onto the city streets so I can engage in more learning or other adventures. :D

Riffington
2010-04-12, 07:51 AM
Hi Aslan.

Thanks for the comment. :)

Was hoping the fine folks here had ideas to make my roleplay extra interesting, but heck, I'm not even sure how I want my Sword Sage to act like, as I wonder how bad you can be when you're chaotic good. :D

So, do that in the other order. Figure out your personality and how you want to behave. Don't worry at all about alignment yet. You could leave it blank or fill it in - doesn't even matter. When something comes up that actually depends on your alignment, at that point ask the DM what alignment your character has been.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 07:57 AM
Thanks for the info. I didn't know I could do that. I thought I had to set things in stone, you see. :D

Riffington
2010-04-12, 08:04 AM
Thanks for the info. I didn't know I could do that. I thought I had to set things in stone, you see. :D

Well, there are two answers to that:
The first is... well, it's like a tv show. A lot of times, during the first couple episodes the show hasn't hit its stride yet. The personalities of the main characters (and sometimes their talents) haven't been fully developed, and so they tweak that until they settle down later in the season.
The second is... well, even if you did set stuff in stone to start with, alignment can always change based on your actions. If you start with a Good character, but do lots of naughty things, you'll stop being Good.

iamstillwater
2010-04-12, 08:19 AM
I like that tv show idea. I'll try to craft a good character for this adventure with the TV show idea in mind. :D

Thanks again!

If anyone else has tips for roleplaying or playing a Swordsage, let me know! :D