A few RP questions, on various matters

[Schanez]

Hi there fellow RPers.

 

I recently encountered a rather frustrating situation, which brought me here in the end. It might be obvious to some, but I failed to sort it out myself. But the situation first:

 

Nexus Cantina in Kaas City. My pureblood Sith Sorcerer, that is loyal to the empire and a fullblooded sith meets with a friend. We talk, we drink a little, normal private RP in a cantina. Somewhere in the process a duo stands next to us at the bar and starts talking, at first I did not pay much attention, but read their RP in case I had to react to it anyhow. And indeed I had, as one of the newcommers was a force sensitive that 'managed to avoid the sith Academy'. So I, as the faithful sith got up and approached them, demanding that he explains his words. He calmly repeated what he said earlier and here comes my issue. I RPed trying to force him into the Academy, as that's what a sith would do, if not kill him at the spot. I used 'attempts' and 'tries' of course, but the emote was clearly stating, that he should follow me and get inducted into the sith ranks. And the player jsut said I should focus on my RP and that I am violating his character and that I have no power over him. I saw it as an IC refusal and attacked, to which the player responed in a lot of laughter and fleeing the scene just like that.

 

So here comes my question. How far does the consent expand? I mean... A normal citizen if asked by a sith to do something, does it or dies. I know one needs the permission of the player to kill the character, but I also belive that this cannot be used as a shield to act in ways that would 'normally' get the person killed on the spot. I mean, if a mercenary starts insulting a darth, he can/should expect a painful and quick death. What are your oppinions on that?

 

 

 

On another matter, is there any valid source on diferent species culture and habits? Like the twi'lek, zabraks and so on. Only recently did I learn about the twi'lek lekku language, or about how violent zabraks can be towards their mates. Is there any source I could look up, or is it mostly fan-based creations?

[Mallaliak]

It is a difficult position, in the sense that ultimately one will never hold the authority to dictate any changes upon the character of another player without their consent. But the other side is that it is generally poor form to move your character into a position that their status would require others to act, and you then brush them off.

 

Very much like the person going as a non-trained force sensitive within the Empire and brushing off the draconic enforcement that force sensitives trains to become -sith-.

 

In the end, you learn from experience which players you can deal with and which will respond "No, I refuse! Stop oppressing my RP!"

 

As for species and cultures. It is a very difficult topic as few cultures are developed to any real extent within Star Wars, in the official source material. And even within that there are cases of blatant contradictions and retcons depending on which author writes at the moment, or era the story takes part in.

 

And the Zabrak example is pure fan-creation from days of Star Wars Galaxies. Only unified, consistent and official cultural aspect to them is their tattoo's are cultural, rather than biological skin patterns.

[Mourkoth]

In regards to the situation you've mentioned above, I can provide an answer that might seem a little....odd, though hopefully prove informative.

 

If you think your actions might negatively (or even in some cases, positively) influence the outcomes for any character besides your own, simply discuss it on the OOC level first, and -then- act. We all follow the simple rule not to godmod, to avoid forcing status change upon others, to avoid committing acts that might be unrealistic, etc. This rule exists for a good reason, as it allows all roleplayers to interact with one-another minus many of the expected issues that might come up later.

 

There's ways around it to satisfy yourself though, without upsetting any of the parties involved. Simply state that it'll be 'handled by the proper authorities' in whatever iteration is appropriate to the people involved, and then go on with your normal roleplay. Are some soldiers being unprofessional and threatening to pick fights on the Fleet Station? Have a word with 'their superiors' in your free time. A Jedi lurking about? 'Notify' the people assigned to handle it.

 

The point is, you leave it to elements that are outside and give the other roleplayer freedom to decide what the outcome is. You should never, ever try to enforce such results with your own character though. Frustrating? Sure, but it keeps everyone friendly and far away from a potentially fractured roleplay community.

 

As for species-related information, you can look that up in the wookapedia pages. There's a lot to be found in there.

[Joachimthbear]

If you think your actions might negatively (or even in some cases, positively) influence the outcomes for any character besides your own, simply discuss it on the OOC level first, and -then- act. We all follow the simple rule not to godmod, to avoid forcing status change upon others, to avoid committing acts that might be unrealistic, etc. This rule exists for a good reason, as it allows all roleplayers to interact with one-another minus many of the expected issues that might come up later.

I'd agree with this. IC-wise you were being true to character, but - especially when dealing with strangers - it might be best to start with a tell to the effect of "((Should my character be hearing what your character is saying IC?))", and (if the answer is yes) to point out what consequences that might have. If they're up for a confrontation, well and good, but it's no good trying to bring one about if they're not interested. The outcome won't be satisfactory for anyone concerned.