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KatfishKaos
2009-07-03, 04:58 AM
Hello Playgrounders,

I have a slight problem when it comes to roleplaying. Whenever I start to talk like my character or roleplay a scene with my DM my eyes start to water up and I also start to blush. Then, then I just get quiet and let someone else do the talking. I'm very good at hiding it most of the time but this is getting ridiculous! I want to roleplay for many years of my life and i'm not sure I can be bothered if I can't enjoy it.

So the question I pose to you all is... What is wrong with me? ;_; and have any of you had similar problems? If so how did you get around it?

Any and all advice will be awesome and thanks!

Ianuagonde
2009-07-03, 05:31 AM
I've been roleplaying with a lot of different people over the years, and in my experienc, everyone feels this way in the beginning. My advice would be to relax. Roleplaying games are just games after all. It's not something important like an exam or a job interview. It's just a game.

I felt just like you the first times. What really helped me was playing very stereotypical characters: the grey-bearded wizard who rarely makes sense, the elf ranger, etcetera. This made it easier to identify with the character. The reaction of the other group members also helped: they had a much better idea of what to expect of my character, and how to react to him/her.

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-07-03, 05:32 AM
Hello Playgrounders,

So the question I pose to you all is... What is wrong with me? ;_; and have any of you had similar problems? If so how did you get around it?


By psyching myself. "I am an AWESOME bard and I now is the time to kick ass and sing songs. And I'm all out of songs."

Tyrmatt
2009-07-03, 07:08 AM
If you're of the appropriate age, I recommend having a measure of your preferred spirit or a beer. You're just nervous and it'll help relax you a bit. We do a podcast where one of the hosts is useless until we've given him a stiff double of Jack Daniels. After that, he's great but without it, it's painful to film him.
If you're not old enough to legally drink or don't wish to but around 15-16 (I have qualms about recommending this to younger people, it can have consequences) you can take an aspirin tablet before you play. It thins the blood and calms you down, making it easier to deal with the situation.
Once you get used to RPing, you won't need these aids as you'll be having too much fun to care. If it feels like it's too much to come up with stuff on the fly, get one of the other players to help you write some notes down beforehand to inspire you. You'll be surprised how quickly you get into it. I've went from silent player to party face before and on one occasion, a rhyming bard/fool who spoke all his lines in rhyme in front of a group of people I barely knew.

Oh and come up with a few witty catchphrases to shout when you score a nat. 20 or land a blow with your signature attack. It breaks the tension and helps you get into it.

Best of luck :)

KillianHawkeye
2009-07-03, 07:09 AM
I used to listen to music to get myself into character before a session. I eventually collected a pretty long playlist for each of my characters. I don't listen to much music anymore, but I don't need it for roleplaying anymore, either.

magellan
2009-07-03, 07:16 AM
An angle for your consideration:

If you are embarassed by it/don't enjoy it, don't do it.
Use your normal voice, say what you would say, not what your character would say. Forget all that fancy pretentios roleplaying stuff. It's not important. you are playing "lets pretend being wizards and knights". You are not playing "lets pretend being method actors pretending to be wizards and knights" :)

AslanCross
2009-07-03, 07:29 AM
An angle for your consideration:

If you are embarassed by it/don't enjoy it, don't do it.
Use your normal voice, say what you would say, not what your character would say. Forget all that fancy pretentios roleplaying stuff. It's not important. you are playing "lets pretend being wizards and knights". You are not playing "lets pretend being method actors pretending to be wizards and knights" :)

Somewhat QFT, but I take it to mean he doesn't have to literally act like his character. I think he should still say what the character would say, just not necessarily how the character would say it. (ie, he doesn't have to put on a Scottish accent or a squeaky voice.)

hewhosaysfish
2009-07-03, 08:33 AM
Are you using the first- or third-person? Direct or indirect speech?
I know that when one of my characters is in a scene which I find awkward to role-play (e.g. a romantic situation with an NPC) then I tend to drop into the third-person rather than my habitual first-person.

Examples, in case you're unsure about the terminology:



First-person, direct: Stepping up before the throne, I bow before the Queen and ask her "Then, if it is not to deal with the orcs, what is it that you wish of us?"

First-person, indirect: Stepping up before the throne, I bow before the Queen and ask her why she has summoned us, if it's not to deal with the orcs.

Third-person: direct: Stepping up before the throne, Bob the Fighter bows before the Queen and asks her "Then, if it is not to deal with the orcs, what is it that you wish of us?"

Third-person, indirect: Stepping up before the throne, Bob the Fighter bows before the Queen and asks her why she has summoned us, if it's not to deal with the orcs.


Maybe just stick to third-person indirect speech until you think nothing of it, then think about shifting to third-person direct speech, then eventually to the first-person direct?

I know at least on role-player who takes an odd middle-ground between the first- and third-person options: she refers to herself and her character collectively (i.e. using the first-person plural).


Stepping up before the throne, we bow before the Queen and ask her "Then, if it is not to deal with the orcs, what is it that you wish of us?"

When she first joined the group there was often a bit of confusion (and occasionally there still is) when other players thought she was referring to the whole group...

Fitz10019
2009-07-03, 09:08 AM
In my opinion, acting like you are in-the-moment is much more important than acting out a specific personality. I've seen players declare the ol' "My character wouldn't be in awe of this diety's manifestation" card, really breaking the moment, when a simple "holy mackeral" would have contributed more to the suspension of disbelief and kept the group in the moment. So, be Katfish, react to everything like it's really happening, get comfortable with that, and let the deeper roleplaying evolve naturally without forcing it.

Asheram
2009-07-03, 09:58 AM
If you're of the appropriate age, I recommend having a measure of your preferred spirit or a beer. You're just nervous and it'll help relax you a bit. We do a podcast where one of the hosts is useless until we've given him a stiff double of Jack Daniels. After that, he's great but without it, it's painful to film him.
If you're not old enough to legally drink or don't wish to but around 15-16 (I have qualms about recommending this to younger people, it can have consequences) you can take an aspirin tablet before you play. It thins the blood and calms you down, making it easier to deal with the situation.

(I'm sorry, I really can't help myself.)

"Performance-enhancing drugs? In a tabletop game?! What is the world coming to?!"

(If you're not driving to the session, take a couple of beers or a glass of wine to dinner before going there. Tyrmatt is quite right, alcohol loosens the tongue in all situations)

Vargtass
2009-07-03, 12:40 PM
How to avoid the stage-fright - yet another angle.
Careful preparation can help. In this case, I would advise you to write down situations that you think your character may have or wish to react to during the sesion. Brainstorm up between 50 and 100 situations like: I need to talk myself past the guard of the castle, or The king asks what we stole from Baron Pineapple, or whatever. Then prepare your answers, in charcter, beforehand on you own. Even though exactly the same situation will most likely not occur, you will have a well of prepared responses or initiatives that you can more readily adapt to the situation at hand.

Basically, this advice tries to counter nervousness with preparation. If you find and prefer another concrete method to prepare, that is obviously also fine. I do think this one may help you, though. Once you've gained more experience, the need for preparation will grow smaller.

In my experience, the most important elements of this method is the sufficient number of situations, and that you concretely write it out.

Good luck!

CharPixie
2009-07-03, 05:15 PM
I find it helps to practice doing the character in the hour or two before the game. Especially in public. I don't mean go to the store as your character, but go for a walk and talk to yourself as your character. Also try using an article of clothing to remind you to be the character. A shirt/jacket, a pendant, or whatever can help you focus on putting forth the character. Don't worry too much about the quality of your roleplay; just let your character come out.

It's a lot of fun once you can let go.

(And if you use alcohol, don't use too much. You get over the shyness but it's harder to do your character. *grins*)

Venerable
2009-07-03, 05:48 PM
Ask an understanding friend for help. Explain your problem. Then try one-on-one interaction, with you speaking in character. Role-play some basic two-person scenes like those Vargtass mentioned. It might be difficult at first, but keep at it. Humor is easy -- start with some humorous scenes, like ribbing a fellow character during a bar brawl ("Did you come here to fight or to practice missing?"). Once you've got that down, add a little drama to the mix.

What helped me RP was realizing that whatever mistakes I made didn't matter in the long run. Sometimes I'd flub a line, or be less than effective in an encounter. So what? The only person judging me was me. Everyone else was in the game to have fun, not to criticize my performance. Once I realized that, it was easier to relax and get into character.

Mando Knight
2009-07-03, 05:56 PM
An angle for your consideration:

If you are embarassed by it/don't enjoy it, don't do it.
Use your normal voice, say what you would say, not what your character would say. Forget all that fancy pretentios roleplaying stuff. It's not important. you are playing "lets pretend being wizards and knights". You are not playing "lets pretend being method actors pretending to be wizards and knights" :)

Then there's the alternate method: The Refuge in Audacious (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RefugeInAudacity) HAM (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LargeHam). The more ridiculous, the better. It is possible that you forget to be self conscious and end up going off the deep end. :smalltongue:

Haven
2009-07-03, 06:32 PM
Something that helps me get into it is picking a character from a movie or book to base my PC on. If it's one you're familiar with, that might give you a little more confidence.

But you don't always have to talk like your character if it's not natural or uncomfortable, that's not the only way to role play. You can describe your words indirectly, like saying "I growl out an intimidating threat" or "I go over to the children and reassure them we'll find their parents".

Or maybe you just need to try playing a different kind of character.

Anyway, lots of luck. If nothing else: it definitely gets easier as time goes by, and I'm sure your friends will be understanding. Don't let it discourage you too much, it's a great hobby and a very fulfilling one.

Olo Demonsbane
2009-07-03, 07:10 PM
Heres the solution that worked for me...call now and you will receive a free character sheet...

ANYWAY, start by playing a character who's personality closely mirrors your own. You can go through a couple of characters that way, and you should slowly become comfortable talking in front of the other people.

Then, you start applying personality shifts. Pretend that you just had a really bad day, and play your character like that. Pretend that you always feel concerned about everything that happens to the other characters. Pretend that you hate orcs with a firey passion. Etc.

Then, start applying multiple shifts at the same time. You are a grumpy, concerned, orc-hating dwarf fighter. Or whatever.

This is what I did...and it worked (I think :smalltongue:)

herrhauptmann
2009-07-04, 12:57 AM
Perhaps just use some one-shot characters, make them as over-the-top as you can.
That's how I first got comfortable actually roleplaying. The DM printed out some pre-gen character sheets and we selected our characters blindly. At the end of the night, we put the sheets away, never to use them again.
I had three: the most obnoxious bard (think of Elan in the opening comic, I played a bard like that), Lawful-stupid paladins (Miko), and elf barbarian with serious temper issues (Even though I was enjoying the game, I actually was getting so into it, I was getting angry.)

Even now, I still have difficulties. I tend to stammer during my lines, but the DM usually gives me a break and assumes my character doesn't stutter.

Darkfire
2009-07-04, 01:31 PM
Just remember you don't need to be too elaborate: there's no need to affect an accent or use language you wouldn't normally (although you'll want to avoid anything that'll jar with the setting). Save that sort of thing for when you're more comfortable with it.

You may also want to consider playing a few games over the net. Removing the face-to-face aspect can help and, if you opt for PBP, there's far less pressure to come up with a fast response.

The Glyphstone
2009-07-04, 01:36 PM
(And if you use alcohol, don't use too much. You get over the shyness but it's harder to do your character. *grins*)

Unless you're playing a dwarf, in which case it becomes easier to do the character.:smallwink:

Korivan
2009-07-04, 02:00 PM
Don't listen the the booze experts. My group is 21-25+ and many of us do drink...every time we play. That can lead to a very bad path. Nor do I suggest using anyform of pills, overcounter or non. Because in time, if you have an addictive personality, you'll come to depend on them all the time. Furthermore, don't do what I used to incidently do. Since I worked all the time, and still played, I would be tired, and a friend introduced me to energy drinks. Sleep deprivation in early stages can lead to a mild ephoria, which coupled with caffine and stimulats will increase your (seratonin or melatonin, forget which is which, either way they dont balance well). The overall effect is a near drunken state that has no memory loss, hangover, less delayed reaction time and less motor and cognitive penalties. The drawback, harder on your heart.

If ya gotta do anything, ease into role-playing, start with the occasional statment in character. Slowly work your way up to dressing up. Then finish off by gluing elf ears on ya and wearing sword and mail to the mall......:smallcool:

I kid, but i'm serious about the easing into it. Over time, it'll get better, your probably just a shy guy like I used to be:smallsmile: (forced myself into doing school plays and broke the shyness right out.) Hope I helped.

valadil
2009-07-04, 02:34 PM
It depends who you RP with. I'm one of the more active RPers in my group, but get cold feet every time certain players are around. I never figured out why.

Why don't you try getting some one on one time with the GM? Make your audience as small as possible. Get used to RPing in a comfortable setting, then add a player or two until you're comfortable doing it in front of the whole group.

JadedDM
2009-07-04, 06:22 PM
Have you considered roleplaying online? That way you don't have to see the faces of your fellow players and DM, which makes it easier to not get so embarrassed.