How do I get started in RP?

Here's my problem:

Let's say I've ported into your sim, read the notecards available, donned appropriate clothing, equipped any HUDs that are required, etc. I join the group and wander out into the sim, marvelling at the architecture. The lag is bad these days, and I'm walking at half-speed or bouncing a block ahead at a time.

At this point, I want to get involved in the RP game. The ideas of the notecards are percolating in my head and I have a character idea help in my mind. In short, I am primed. Two players run past me, ignoring me entirely. Another stands motionless on the street and don't respond to my greetings.

I look for a clump of players on the mini-map and head towards the green dots. I see three people attacking each other, while two others talk in leet speak. Nearby, I wonder how the hell do I get involved in this?

How as a new player do I get involved? Do I walk up to someone at random and introduce myself, see where it goes? Am I supposed to IM someone in the sim and get slotted into an existing story? Am I expected to lurk about until someone decides to talk to me?

I'm excited about getting involved in this community, but the first step seems to be a doozy. What did you do to get started?

For some communities it may be a simple as bending over…LOL…sorry,
Uhumm….seems you’ve taken the right first steps. It may take bumping into the right friendly person. Or if its a Group try IMing the owner or an officer. If you don’t get a response soon then maybe its just the wrong community for you and you should look at other similar communities.
Good luck

be sure to try at a time where many people are online, in a full area is rather easy to get involved.

Warren,
well, at Darkrose we have three or four administrators who keep an eye on the map and make sure to greet anyone who comes along. We give tours, answer questions, and try to get folks right into rp if thats what they are there looking for. (some folks are just looking for the shops). I have had the same experience at some sims, its like pulling teeth to get anyone to notice you are there. At Darkrose, just walk up and say hi. The group is friendly and everyone takes an interest in getting new players started. The Admin group is:
Krsna Hare
Sara Winger
Caden Vilas
Gabriel Solzhenitsyn
you can stop and say hi, you can IM ahead and say "I am on my way," you can drop in and say "avast ye landlubbers I am the pirate Dastardly Dan and all your bases are belonging to us!" or you can just stand around and watch until you feel comfortable. The one thing we ask that you dont do is grief or be intentionally disruptive to the rp that is going on.

oh, did I mention, the sim runs on Eastern Standard Time for the most part. Some of us live in the GMT and Mountain, but for the most part, if you come before 3pm SL time the sim is usually empty.

On the Island Navora you can play DarkLife, there are always players online playing the game (in contrast to a lot of other RP sims, this sim has a real game, with real monsters/loot/magic etc.)

Hope to see you soon!

Find someone who is walking around. If it's an urban RP sim, talk to a police officer, doctor or fire fighter. There are many people to talk to.

The best thing to do is to apply to do a certain RP post: Criminal, Gang Member, Police officer, etc.


I recommend you visit the City of Bodhisena (Bodhisena Region). The Second Life Fire Department is situated there, where you can fight fires and generally RP around the city.

Come to the Empire of Rome. Look me up. Everyone is very friendly there and will generally always take the time to talk to any new people. You can reach out to me tonight if you like. My name is Enrich Halasy and we are always looking for new people that want to RP. Hope to see you soon.

Another way to get involved is to join a RP sim that has recently started. If you're there in the beginning you're more likely to be interacted with with little work on your part.

The counter argument to such a suggestion, is that a recently started RP may have little or no backstory, history, or established continuity to provide a new player with information from which to make informed decisions. It is even more frustrating for a new player to get involved in a roleplaying sim only to discover after a period of days, or weeks, or perhaps even a month, that the direction, intent, or 'substance' of the stories is not to their preference, than a new player to struggle with established stories in a long running sim.

It is really up to each individual to decide what appeals to them; some distain sexual situations, some dislike combat sims, some prefer elves and fairies and others prefer dark situations, or submission, or violence, or anything else one could imagine. It is, after all, the playground for what many of us could never do in our mundane, real existence.

The point is - truly- find something you are interested in, and go to the RP.

First and foremost, dress for the roleplay you are entering. Read any provided information; click on profiles of people engaged there, right click the land and IM the owner (generally speaking the owner has the most invested in the RP and will be more than willing to help a new player - very seldom are roleplaying groups so insulated or well stocked they would not enjoy some new blood), and step into the story by asking someone who seems to be emoting frequently, if you might be able to join. Most new people are far more afraid of rejection than actually experiencing it at the hands of a roleplaying group.

Be humble upon entering, even if your idea for your new character is an arrogant lout or a highborn princess (you are coming into a new group and do not yet know the dynamics of the characters - often the players are really kind, but the characters themselves can be real asses - especially in a well run, immersive setting- ).

Lastly, give it a chance. Secondlife is crack for the Attention Deficit Disorder crowd. Many many new people drop into a roleplaying sim, play for one evening, and then never return. It is a frustration to the regular group to accomodate a player that does not really care to join, but is simply blowing off an evening roleplaying something different. Commit to a regular attendance of at least a few sessions. It is a courtesy to the new group, and often it takes more than one or two nights to learn anything of substance about the other players. By the third or fourth session, you will know if the group is 'cliche-ish' and does not really welcome new players, or if those two who were ignoring you were just really involved in the story, and you will meet enough players to make an informed decision.

Prince Gabriel of Darkrose

Thank you for all of the great responses.

Either me or my alt will definitely stop by Darkrose, Darklife and Empire of Rome to see what they are like. I did drop by Darkrose earlier, but I think it was 1am SL time and it was empty except for one tired-looking camper. I'll try again during better hours.

I've explored Toxian, CoLA, Midian and a few other sims and have had very mixed experiences. I'm sure once you are established in the storylines they are great fun, but that initial step seems nigh-impossible right now. I politely approached people in IMs and was typically either ignored, treated coolly or told in so many words that I was a newb who should leave them alone.

I'm starting to understand the differences between the sims more, not just in the superficial terms of story and flavor, but also how it seems that the popularity of a sim can sink it a bit. I understand why they don't want a dozen new players a day trying to jump into their stories. I stumbled into a fantastic group of players that do one three-hour session per week in an out of the way sim. It was amazingly fun. I'd like more of that please.

I see the value in a smaller, personal story over the more general tone-stories of the larger, more popular sims. I'm finding that I prefer the former.

Hi Warren,
Sorry we missed you. The sim runs on EST, keep that in mind. That is two hours later than SL time. There are a few days of the week that our schedules dont mesh very well, but if you pop in on a sunday or a monday those are always great days to meet people and catch rp. Sunday all day, and monday after about 4pm SL time. We have some big things going on right now, lots of scheming and intrigue and such, come on over and join in.