Interacting with Your Fellow Roleplayers

Everyone has their own way of responding to what a character may say or do. Yours might be to growl at those you don't like. Whatever it is, the following are tips and strategies to employ when taking the role of an adventurer. (More will be added as time goes by.)

Alignment
Like the sides of a coin there are good and evil within the world. That is to say one can always choose to be between the line, neutral.

* A character aligned with light would be far more considerate of others, likely a holy person with strong ties to religion and Altana. They at times do what is right and not what they want to do. A holy character would look to spare another's life than take it. They look at authoritative figures with respect always carrying a sense of justice.

* Dark characters tend to be far more sinister than others. They might only care about what they could get for themselves, taking advantage of others and not caring about the consequences. An evil person takes what they want and will do anything to achieve that. Selfish is a key trait in this type. Killing another may not even cross their minds twice.

* Neutral characters are smack dab in the center. There are varying ranges of neutrality from borderline good or mildly dark. They would carry some belief in Altana but perhaps do not worship Her in the same manner. They just might care a less about her in fact. Again this varies from person to person. Some may be a tad selfish, taking not what belongs to them however in the end will do what is right only if the price is right. They might not be above taking advantage of others, and murder of another may be acceptable under strict circumstances if it were in self-defense.

Pearl Usage
There are varying methods characters will employ when inserting/removing a pearl. For some a pearl has a seemingly magical on and off switch, activated by being inserted in one's ear. This might be in the form of a "click" sound indicating the pearl has been activated. Others will employ a different method whereas the pearl has an "always on" connection therefore frequently transmitting everything the user says/hears. In a case like this an individual may use a cloth or burlap pouch to secure the pearl within, canceling all noise. Which method you use is purely up to you.

As just a reminder, pearls are considered audio-only objects so physical actions (Like waving, dancing, nodding.) cannot be recognized by the receiving party. Descriptions might be used like the sound of pages being flipped in a book, heavy footsteps, or ragged breathing. Consider it like a radio show, but only more entertaining!

Body Language
When talking to someone surely you don't just stand there like a mannequin, at least we hope not! This would apply in roleplay too. Using emotes and special gestures when you roleplay face-to-face can breathe more life into a character. Try using a waving gesture when greeting someone! If a character says something you disagree with, shake your head. Maybe something sounds too ridiculous, a sighing motion or staggering back a step might get the point across. Mixing emotion with your words is a wonderful way to spice up any RP session!

Handling OOC
When wandering the world you may accidentally run into someone from the linkshell and try to initate an RP session. They might respond that they're not in IC mode, in a case like this you would want to respect that and simply "pretend" they're not there. This works the same way too. If a character is not meant to be there "physically" in an RP session try to make an entrance before just "popping" in. Run out a door and casually walk back in take notice of the RP session going on and join in. You'll find many times this will be greatly appreciated.

In the same manner try to respect those who are around you. Not everyone in FFXI takes to RP as we might and could be less than favorable if you spam the say channel with your session. Instead, make a private party or alliance and keep the chat limited to the party channel. Emotes are fine as they are however you could always consider taking these to party chat too. *sits down and looks over at Bob* is an example of this.

First Encounters
When first encountering a new character for the first time keep in mind charcters do not have a giant name tag to tell what their name is. So it's a good idea to introduce yourself and ask their name. A method you might employ for introductions over the pearl is identifying the person by the tone of their voice. "Hmm, a new voice? Greetings, I am <insert name>!" "I hear a new voice, you sound Mithran." are examples. Add in ways you might identify a charcter's gender or race. "Your voice is a little deep, are you by chance a Galka?" "Ah! Another Tarutaru like myself! Pleased to meet you!"