I was talking to a newbie a few weeks back who was going from tabletop to text based games. He wanted to know what sort of character to create and said he had mostly played the “knight in shining armor” type in the past. The more we talked, the more it seemed like he was using specific characteristics for his characters that match who he sees himself as in real life. But I’ve also talked with others, perhaps not as new but also not in the realm of “been rping since I was born, thank you”, who prefer to find one tiny element of who they are but not something they really let out normally, and turn that into a character. Or the folks who make characters who are 180 degrees different from themselves.

My question is what tends to come most naturally to folks. Is playing the character who is like you easiest? Or do you find it easier to move as far away from your day to day self as possible? What do you see your roleplay talents as? And how can you apply your experience to aiding new roleplayers when you have a chance to answer their questions and provide guidance?

Sapphar