[Alaire]

[Kallekins]

I agree somewhat with Marynne here.
I'm all for enforcing certain rules for what it acceptable to RP and what isn't, however, the lines can be blurry. What then stops people from going from saying "Elves never ride horses." to "You shouldn't act serious. Elves are always happy-go-lucky." and eventually, "People who RP mutes annoy me. You should change your RP." ?
A lot of people out there like telling people what to do and how to roleplay, and once you give them a little, they can become very authoritarian. ÊWhat constitutes 'good RP' is subjective, and unless the guildelines are very clear on the website or helpfiles, I don't like people to go around enforcing them.
However, this isn't limited to rp enforced muds. It depends more on the atmosphere, and how laid back people are.

Oh, and mute rps really do annoy me, but I try very hard not to go around telling them that.

[enigma@zebedee]

[Spazmatic]

First, I'd like to state very clearly that I screen descriptions (with the prize on the other end being newbie cash). If someone walks in a fiery demon god into a cyberpunk mu*, I'm going to politely guide them to the background. If they still resist, too bad. If they try, and it takes us an hour of work to get a reasonable description, that's perfectly fine. That's what I will call good RP enforced.

Bad RP enforced is when people decide that something strange and unusual, but only that, not illegal!, is wrong. This is what I see the argument thus far as being. One side sees only the first, the other only the second.

Here's what I will say about it. RP enforced environments are not themselves more conducive to such behavior as bad RP enforcement. In fact, by the very nature of having the boundaries so strictly defined they do the opposite, giving a new player a foundation to defend their character. On the contrary, if a big bad player on an RP enforced mud says you're character is wrong, how are you going to defend yourself? The only reason I see this occuring in RP enforced environments more often (possibly) is that, in RP enforced environments, there is a higher bar for realism. That said, I think this is all a big misunderstanding, and the thread should probably suffer a brutal seizure and never see the light of day again.

But, I would like to say I've had a lot of people say that I'm too strict with newbies, and newbies tell me that I'm a stickler and driving them away. On the other hand, most of those people just aren't wanted (not saying you're not wanted). My primary mud has, amongst other things, medical helpfiles on the aging, common diseases, etc of the "races", if you want to call them that. I've seen people walk in and strut around characters who have all the powers that come with something, but none of the problems. That's just not right, and I think that sort of unbalancing is one of the major things that RP enforced eliminates. Clear rules = reasonable characters.

Oh, and Jazuela... That is the most beautiful post I have ever seen... Feel free to tear apart my analogies any time!

[shadowfyr]

[Spazmatic]

Personally, I prefer humorous incongruences that are still within the realm of rules. If a mud sets rules so draconian that humor is not possible, something's wrong. I have, amongst other things, an eight year old gnomen girl with a beard (a bard), and suffice it to say, it is quite odd and at times amusing, but does not require stepping outside the realms of the world. Why would hippies be better than a tree-hugging race of elves (assuming your elves hug trees)?

The strange is when an apprentice casts "flaming hands" and ends up with two sprays of water. Or when the Saint of Giving, servant of the Goddess of Unity, arrives in the city, distributing needed gifts to those who need it... Why must he be Santa?

The argument isn't that the OOC can't exist, either. But Pokemon invasions are decidedly not IC, because, by golly, they make no sense, and belong in the OOC world, accordingly. RP enforced muds enforce RP, they do not police your minds. The hallmark of RP enforced muds is requiring RP on the IC grid, and regulating that RP to some degree or another, preventing rampant insanity and providing a cohesive backdrop. Nothing you stated has decidedly no place in such a world... Only no place in the IC aspect.

[Fey_Obsession]

[KaVir]

While I agree with those two points, I fail to see what they have to do with "RP enforced" muds - they are simply features that any mud (including non-RP) can have.