Pioneering Your Imagination #2 - "Why?"

Role-playing is a mind-boggling activity. Spending time in a game, but not actually playing it? Why would anyone one do it?

It's quite simple. To role-play is to descend deeper into immersion. You're investing the time to communicate with your peers in a fresh, unpredictable way and you're taking active steps to appreciate the world you're surrounded by. Granted, Granado Espada might not have the richest back-story, but it is nonetheless unique to the retail role-playing scene. There's plenty of interesting ideas and concepts embedded within the New World, bits of yummy intrigue and depth scattered throughout this relatively small MMO.

There is also incentive besides being a cognitive conquistador. On occasion, IAH hosts the "Dark Lord" events, which are basically RP events with a small judging staff. From what I could gather, what deters most people from participating in the contest is simply being unaccustomed to thinking, acting and ultimately being a roleplayer. If greed motivates you, the Dark Lord event prizes should encourage you to at least attempt at understanding roleplay. The competition isn't particularly fierce, and as long as you command the English language with reasonable proficiency, you can entertain the thoughts of winning.

But really, RPing is rarely about winning. Competition can be healthy or monstrously destructive to role-playing in general simply because it's a pastime that promotes group harmony. In-character conflict is good, but in all honesty, evaluation of style and form isn't necessary. As long as you're fleshing out your characters and contributing to the flavor and feel of a session, you're role-playing correctly. Still, putting up prizes for play is an acceptable practice in GE simply because the RP-community has no motivation to engage except for some form of reward.

Pioneering Your Imagination #1 - GE RP Explorations.

As my other factionmates will tell you, I leave games because of a lack of role-play. I would go as far to say that computer games that have no role-play or immersive potential are the easiest to abandon. Granado Espada was no exception. During my spring break, I opted to check out Second Life and effectively "played" a game that had zero combat substance. The interaction wasn't exceptional either, save for a few folk, but it was there and I thoughoughly enjoyed it.

I was recently roped back into Granado Espada because of a role-play contest, the third part of the Return of the Dark Lord. However, I expect to lose this time around. Polarbearz is a better writer than myself, and I couldn't survive the arduous trek to Deprimav to display any worthwhile character development inside of the game.

sGE has near-zero RP. This is partly because GE is a Korean-style MMO, which does not encourage interaction nor does it cater to individuals that nitpick about plot details. Role-playing is primarily an American and European activity from my experience, mainly due to having a larger-than-necessary English vocabulary as a general prerequisite.

Anyhow, let's skip to the basis of this posting-sequence: "What is Role-Play?"

The basic definition of pole-play is better described in a list, so here goes!

• Role-playing is like acting without a script. You play your character's personality as if you were that character. Putting your feet in another's shoes is the essence of Role-Play.
• Role-Playing is forgetting the interface even exists. The only additional medium you should be concerned with is the text-box. When acting out your character, you don't see people's names floating above their head or their health-bars.
• Role-playing is describing what the game cannot display or represent with its given models. For example, a gash on the face or a bird-plop on your shield.
• Role-playing is subjecting yourself to issues that the game doesn't force you to consider, such as needing to eat or, heaven-forbid, having a bowel movement.
• Role-playing is involving yourself with more than one individual, whether just for a chat or engaging in long-term relationships. Although the definition can be interpreted to be an activity for a single individual, the term generally implies it as a group activity. Role-play that concerns only its writer might be considered fan-fiction by extension.

Next up, I'll embelish on the reasons why someone would waste their time doing the above!

Sinwhat? - The everything post!

I didn't quit GE - Isle of Sacred Sins just, well, has priority on the stack.

Alright, you all might have noticed that I have taken a hiatus from GE since a couple weeks ago. At the moment, role-playing is taking top priority and, unfortunately, the Granado Espadan role-play base is not up to my standards. Don't worry, I'll be back! Especially since I really want to win some Divine Angel wings for the art-pick of the week.

As GE's momentary replacement, I'm enjoying Isle of Sacred Sins, a fresh, new Neverwinter Nights 'social' server with a level 5 cap, small but functional map and a dead sexy premise. I was one of the beta testers back in the day, but the module fell out of grace after experiencing miserably low attendance and, well, me as an failing advertiser. ((I'm frequently tired and laconic, so I usually don't give the best impressions.)) Anyhow, Isle has acquired a strong and friendly player base that, if you're not into Sacred Kingdoms, RoR, Eternal Beauty, Phoenix Rising, you better go check out. It's very hak light and has a body-modder in the OOC areas, so you never, ever have to worry about head overrides. The module is minimalist but does not cut out the fun, but instead concentrates all the aspects of a strong module into efficient clusters. Hey, just like GE at times?

Creative Aurvana DJ - Day 2

Concerning my Aurvana headphones, I took them out in public and enjoyed every second of it. For the first time in a quite a while, I experienced a full-on portable aural experience, losing myself in a large happy hardcore compilation while walking to class. After it concluded, I went to the school arcade to test how much sound I could ignore within the cacophonous cage of body odor, watered-down testosterone and electical noise-makers. Not only did I block out most of the sound of the room, but I even got absorbed in a near-cinematic experience in Gundam Battle Chronicle, which has an excellent soundtrack to accompany the good ol' mech action. My positive opinion toward the Aurvana still stands firmly, grounded in today's exceptional experience.

Lorwyn - Yowch.

I've had the rare pleasure to talk some serious meta with other people in my school. We centralized on Doran, he being lukewarm toward it while I find the GWB legend to be explosive outside of aggro. His points concerning Doran focused on his weakness as an aggro card because you cannot drop him on third turn on a consistent basis, which I wholly agree upon. I merely shed some positive light on our favorite tree by noting how explosive he is as a creature, making Forbidding Watchtowers win-conditions and whatnot.

Card draw became a nice central topic as well. Blue lost a lot of exceptional card-drawing power with the loss of Ravnica block, ditching staples like Compulsive Research and Perilous Research. Viable replacements, given the environment, are Jace, Ponder, and MAYBE clash style decks with Sylvan Echoes. (Okay, I jest, clash as a card engine is not entirely wise.) However, he did bring up that Howling Mine is an exceptional way to draw cards, especially when ramping for turn-walking spells and drawing like a beast with Jace to lessen the repercussions of letting your opponent draw like mad. I like his deck idea very, very much to be honest. Creative and very playable indeed.

I'll be rolling a few decks soon, I might post them if my play testing goes, well, wanky.

Music - Celebraiting 'core.

I love all variants of break beat. If it has 'core in the name, I probably listen and lust after the sound. It's unfortunate that modern music has no place in the fantasy role-play settings that I frequent, but I'm working on justifying the use of 'magical synths' and whatnot in order to convey the gripping euphoria to other characters. I'm in the process of creating a 'core-based bard too.

Of course, what does music matter? I've labeled myself a drug-factory. Not because I do any substances, but I'm exceptionally comfortable and euphoric when I have music thudding in my ears. Luckily, my brain gets that essential 'high' without killing itself.

My ears are currently turned toward di.fm's DnB and Hard Core channel. Ever since I started looking into buying a pair of Creative Aurvana DJ headphones, the desire to act like a disciple of rhythm was pounding. Granted, I've read reviews and they say the bass isn't too great, but I'm certain they're better than Sony MDR-V150s. Granted, I really want a pair of Shure earbuds or Sennheiser 595's, but since I'm head-phone fashion whore and a guy who likes going on a limb for $60, Aurvana's will be getting my bills. Yes, I can get new Aurvana DJs for $60. I'll be looking forward to breaking them in, experiencing the thrill of new, unchartered merchandise and writing about it.

Dark Lord 2, again.

Alright staff, here's the low-down.

You took an event that previously failed and made it monstrously appealing to me. Unfortunately, Dark Lord 2 did not affect others as strongly or as favorably. A good job, but I think server-raids should take a rest for a bit until a sure and rewarding formula is discovered to benefit the entirety of the GE player core.

The staff successfully took measures to optimize playing experience with simple placement decisions. Splaying the conflict across three channels was something I would have done. Granted, the graphic lag was frightening to a number of clients, but I still managed to click through the chaos and land a good number of strikes on the gigantic horses. Deciding to have players explore for monsters was a good idea as well. Having the monsters come to the players would probably lead to another lag massacre.

However, graphical lag will always be apparent despite the measures taken to avoid it. Although the staff is not to blame for the playerbase's lack of decent computing equipment, graphical slowdowns do lead to a diminishing in fun-factor. It was difficult to move, use skills and effectively micromanage with a mere five-to-ten frames per second. Regardless, it would be nice to have in-game events that are not as brutally affected by low-midrange computer specifications. I can't think of one off the top of my head, but I will reserve a positive review for such an activity.

I personally felt the raid was monstrously exciting until the last creature fell, but its lack of rewards soured the aftermath. The loot was dismal for my faction and me, managing to scavenge a single 68 +5 from the entire endeavor. It was hinted that Amethy was being particularly generous post-victory, but none of my faction's inventories reflected it. While I am vying for the RP reward, my friends were not and conveyed their disappointment with the event with frankness and spite. They had worked hard despite the overwhelming odds and oppressive graphic lag for practically nothing. I happen to be an optimist and an appreciative goon, but I suspect other players are not so forgiving.

However, there is a negative pit in my stomach. I'm under the impression that I was the only role-player actively playing my character's emotions in Doriane's army, if not the entire Cervantes server. I do know NineMoons and other Cervantes-based RP advocates from the RP thread do exist, but reports from a few friends in other channels reported zero literary activity. While I'm not entirely surprised, I'm somewhat disappointed in the GE community for being so frighteningly cold to RP in general. "Personally" engaging with other characters' personalities was something I looked forward to.

The incorporation of the forum was a nice gesture, but I do not believe judging role-play is an appropriate contest. As I voiced in my previous posts, it isn't an activity that should be put under the competitive banner. Role-play is not about winning, it's about expressing your creativity through an emotional avenue without fear of being judged. Although I do approve of rewarding RPers for their efforts over not at all, I would prefer that all fiction writers/role-players should be commended for their unrewarded contributions to the flavor of Granado Espada. Also, it appears that very few members of sGE actively participate in RP, as evidenced by the frequent "confused-fellow" post in every thread.

Either way, I had a good deal of fun. My emotions are still clutching the event, a clear indicator that it was a success on a small, individual scale. On a larger, more unkind platform, it appears lukewarm and slightly out of touch with the general sGE player.

Granado Espada and Me.

Alright, I've been sucked into sGE. It might explain why I haven't been talking to anybody but my GE partners in crime. I won't go into what the game in great depth. The only thing that you need to know is that it's addictive, beautiful and offering a role-play contest until Friday.

I play extensively, devoting most of my CPU to running GE day and night. Most of my conversations are about GE, whether it concerns general gameplay, the exciting grind, my ridiculous loot luck or making a huge deal about Granado Espada history. I can't say that GE has exclusively grabbed my heart in terms of MMOs, but the mixture of flavor and excellent game design keeps me devoted.

The only problem at the moment is the lack of serious, if not beautiful, role-play, an issue I constantly encounter in MMOs that my friends drag me into. In GE's case, I'm surprised and not surprised simultaneously. When I first came upon GE's interface and chatting system, I noticed that local chat had the customary limited range, could be applied above the heads of any of your three characters and there were plenty of emotes to work with for the textually-challenged. However, after I saw the pros, I was reminded that GE doesn't have the most eloquent or thought-provoking player core and the background story is vague at best.

I chose a humorous name for my family, figuring I would never see another delicious personality on Cervantes, the server that I send and receive packets from on a daily basis. Futanari. Yes, Futanari. On occasion, people notice that my family title is plain insidious and I relish in the positive OOC attention. My character names all have some sort of Futanari/Quasi-sexual reference, such as Reika, Undine (From Claymore, whom I love with all my heart), Trapalicious, New1/2, etc.

So what am I? A hardcore standard gamer or the frighteningly devoted role-player that some remember me as? Unfortunately, more of the former than the latter. I don't have anyone to play with, nobody to express my obsession with. A good 75% of the server doesn't understand what I say, and those who seem to actively engage in the craft are on different servers. Besides, my style is monstrously libidinous and I'll probably be banned for sexual harassment after I start engaging in a deeper, erotic plot. As it stands, I am left with the forums and the recent roleplay contest to sate my desire to be deep, thoughtful and exceptional among others.

However, the contest is not a true avenue of role-play. The second the craft is put into a competitive environment, the true essence wanes. I, frankly, do not enjoy the contest. The damned competition has brought me nothing but stress, ego and apprehension for the future if I should lose (A very likely prospect, I'm afraid. Esme/NineMoons/Presea/EonOmega/DeusAngeles will probably go away with Doriane's favor.) It has been my obsession, it keeps my lids peeled and my nose constantly in a book or hovering over my keyboard. This experience has turned role-play into a vicious monster. Part of me wants to boycott the event, but another demands I acquire the prize for the sake of my own self.

I don't have much to work on, unfortunately. There are a number of holes in the background of GE and I'm unsure if it is entirely appropriate to role-play a RNPC. I'm trying to develop my stock class characters, Reika and Undine, into memorable souls, but I have only a few more days and perhaps three more posts maximum before the event comes to its climax and its ultimate conclusion. Even so, I feel hopeless and nervous in the same stroke. I've been outclassed by so many other writers in my lifetime. If there is an opportunity to escape that grim shadow, the time is now. (GE players will appreciate that line.)

. . . I want to crush my hopes desperately. I want my expectations to be set to the soil before the day they christen the dramatic royalty. This worry resembles the worst role-play related catastrophe I've suffered, the wedding of Lokasenna, where I screamed into the nothingness. I won't kill myself over it, but my pillows will suffer salt and screams like I did before.

My mattress frightens me. If I go to sleep, I will dream of failure.

-Sinborn