Forums » RP Discussion » Coping

I've been RPing for about three years now, all online. I love RPing online because you can pretty much access the site/application anytime, as long as the other person is online.

However, I have come to a bit of a predicament. I had an RP going for a year that had a core group of about four people. Our characters all had relationships with one another, whether it be love, hatred, or otherwise. Characters' entire backstories stemmed from interactions with one another in-RP; we didn't have to make much up before hand (it was a romance/adventure RP, and we pretty much had 3rd gen charries grow up with our 2nd gen and original charries to help create amazing background histories). But, as a lot of RPs tend to do, this one faded away because our core group just stopped coming online, one by one. That left characters with incomplete plot lines and amazing backstories based on the world we had all created together. It really hurts me because I can't bare to just erase those characters' histories and plot lines and start anew; their experiences made them who they are. Now, romances are left without closure, dreams are put on permanent stand-by, and tragedies just vanish.

So I have two questions.

1) How is one to cope with RP partners disappearing forever without any previous notice? I know I shouldn't be so attached to my characters as to feel so strongly about continuing their storyline with just one particular person, but it is very difficult for me to move on when an RP partner (with three or four charries connected to mine) just... leaves. I can't continue using that character because the most important people in their lives have been lost. One of my characters here on RPR--Jonquil--is one such character. I made the excuse that those people in her life before have been killed or have gone into hiding (long story). However, this makes it feel incomplete, and sometimes RPers don't particularly care to hear your character drag on about lost family or lost loves, so I try to avoid putting in anything like that when I RP her.

2) How is one to integrate a character from a made-up world into a new RP? Again, I will be using Jonquil as my example. I have an entire world created for some of my characters. There are countries and oceans and religions and cultures. Jonquil, for instance, is from Morvia, a kingdom of humans. Because of various circumstances (I won't drag into the whole thing) she isn't trusted because she is a wizard/witch/magic-user/whatever you want to call her. The reason is very detailed and long, so I usually just say that in her country there is a law against magic, for whatever reason. Much of her backstory is planted in what led up to the outlawing of magic, but I can't use it because people usually don't want me rambling on about the culture I've made up for Morvia. Do I just forget her past? Do I give her a new past and try to not let experiences in past RP influence her, as I wish I could?

Honestly, I don't know. It just makes me feel sad when I have to deem a character unusable because I'm so stuck on their plotline with a character that is no longer being RPed. I know, I know... It sounds silly to be so attached to that single storyline. //sigh//

So if you can offer any advice (or if you've had a similar situation happen) feel free to post it here, or even PM me so that we can reminisce together on the good ol' days.

You aren't the only one who's gone through this, trust me. I've had situations like this before where an RP just died out and there was no closure. It really is a bummer and I agree, it makes the player really sad! This character is a representation of a part of them, because we can't make a character without putting part of ourselves into it, whether we realize or not. We put our time and imagination and efforts into these characters, they become connected to us.


The only closure I've found with stuff like this is basically having to make up your own ending. The player for my one character's fiance just decided to up and quit, so I had to find out a way to close that relationship so I could keep playing her. So, since he was a traveling swordsman, I had him killed off and she was alerted by a letter. This was actually a pretty good development because it led to a lot of new things in the storyline. Her depression over the loss of the man led her closer to her best friend, who eventually became her husband.

So, doing it that way can actually add a lot to a plotline, and can definitely further a story if you think it through and just ask yourself 'how can I make this into some drama?' because let's face it, drama = good and interesting RP. (ICly drama, not OOCly xD).

Second question:
Absolutely DO NOT forget her past! That is the entire basis of the character! I think it would be interesting for her to travel from this land of outlawed magic into a kingdom (aka new RP/new setting) where magic wasn't hated! It would be a culture shock and would make for a lot of neat RP. When you have a world made up for a character, just condense it into a country or even a continent, if you'd like. Then have the person travel from that continent to the area that you want to RP her in now. The world is huge; there is probably not an RP that is going to have rules for 'each continent in the whole world is like this, this and this'. Even in Furcadia, the dream that I RP in is only concerned with the one continent. Sure we don't allow some character types, but those are more for practical/continuity reasons, to keep the time period 'pure'.
So I'd say just try to find a setting where a wizard like your character is accepted, and make it a new continent that she travels to!

I hope this helped! Sorry you have to deal with that, it's never fun

The way that I have adjusted characters for use elsewhere is actually really simple. Either continue using the backstory that you had, or change minor placement details, Like if This person belonged to so and so world, keep using that, maybe say that it's another part of the world that everyone else inhabits, or perhaps they were taken from that world. I have 5 characters who are like that. Mysteriously pulled from their world and plopped in a similar one [From their homeworld of Zaccai to Earth or it's equivalent.] Had to go about learning the common tongue and everything ALLL over again and it created new stories for them. I rp, or had at one point [still plan to] used one of these characters with Celestina. My character is one of her characters husband. She mentions this as well.

Some characters are quite old. I've been rping for 10 years. I use maybe.. one character from at least 7 years ago that I keep active from time to time. Don't change too much of their past if you feel that you have to, but like Celestina said, their past is what makes them. It's what gave them most of what they had. Revamping is sometimes needed though, or slight changes.

Tl;dr version: Basically everything Celestina said.

Heehee yes. And that made for some really good RP, wouldn't you say? It is always interesting to have your character with his 'oh right this world isn't like home ' thing.


So yeah, there are many ways to help 'fix' the problem of getting a character ditched.

Yes! It did

There is a lot of interesting stuff that comes from it, for your character and for others. Cultural and other significant things of that nature. That they can share.

The character that I mentioned is Ees!

Thanks guys! I shall keep this in mind for future RPing and character revival x3. //gives out thank-you pies//

It's happened to me too, though not on this site. I had all these ideas forming in my head about the awesomeness that could be our RP when my partner just deleted his character. It was really sad. I also felt as if it shouldn't affect me that much and be so attached to my character, but now I realize it affected me that much because no matter how simple or in progress my character is, I still consider him/her/it a living thing that should have his/her/its history and dreams fullfilled or at least reach some kind of closure.

But definetely DON'T delete your character. You CAN use it. With a part of the background, you can make up the rest and voila! Character ready for another adventure