What is Roleplaying?

Roleplaying, as you might imagine, is playing at a role. That's perhaps the simplest definition.

The idea behind roleplaying is that you, as a player, assume the role of the character you play. Essentially, you're building a story with your character that goes beyond the limitations of the stories supplied by the game. More importantly, perhaps, you are building a story with others, whether in a simple conversation between two characters or in a more elaborate storyline spanning many different characters and guilds.

There are all sorts of roleplayers out there, from people who just prefer to hold a conversation as their character once in a while to people who stay in character at all times, in all chats and build elaborate storylines for others to participate in. This site is intended to cater to all of those folks, regardless of their tastes.

One important factor in roleplaying, particularly in an MMORPG like WoW, is that it is cooperative in nature. This means that while you are building your own story, others in the game are reacting to that story as their characters would and adding to that story, either by simple conversation or actually getting involved in the storyline and making it part of their own story. Because of this cooperative nature, roleplaying can get a bit tricky at times. But with a little empathy and willingness to cooperate, it can be a very rewarding endeavor for everyone involved.

Obviously, if you are here, chances are you enjoy roleplaying already and have a decent handle on what its all about. But it never hurts to start a FAQ like this out with a bit of a definition.