the_more_you_know2

Arrens: @greyseer @officergleason But that’s most RP anyways. Talking out one’s ass is pretty par for the course. ;)


Way back in the day, before WiFi really, I wrote a paper on how to bullshit through a class. It was, in short, a discussion on how to talk out of one’s ass but still be vaguely believable. This is an important skill for RP. No matter how much prep work we do–knowing our characters, learning their personalities, learning how they tick–there will come a time when we have to bluff, bluster and bullshit our way through the RP.

Players and Characters may find this difficult for a variety of reasons. Players may run into situations where they should know something (eg a bit of lore) and they either don’t remember it or have never heard of it. Characters will encounter situations where they don’t have all the information and they need to make a decision. This is where talking out of one’s ass, and being believable, is a useful skill.

Of all of my characters, Bricu is by far the best at this. He does spend a lot of time prepping–reading, talking, and learning a variety of things–but he also practices. Frequently. Bricu also has limits to his bluster. For instance, when talking about Stratholme or Threnn, he’s usually pretty damn serious. At Stratholme, Bricu lost everything. He views Threnn as the single most important person in his life. For Bricu, there are some subjects that are not treated lightly. Bricu’s method: Planning, practice and boundary have given me some insight into how best to bluster.

First, there’s planning. Planning, in this case, means more than just learning as much general information as possible. Planning also means getting to know the people around you (let’s call them Marks); specifically, we need to learn what we know the marks know and how they’ll react to our bluster. In a room full of heavy duty Lightbringers ,speaking poorly of Tirion Fordring, Uther or the Crusade might get one into serious trouble. That could also be the reaction one wants. Planning also means taking into account of how one talks. In WoW, the paraverbals (tone of voice, quality of speech, etc) is difficult to get across; therefore, as RPers we have to work overtime to get those qualities right. When blustering, a character would be keenly aware of how they are talking, not just what they are saying.

Practice is much easier than planning. A character can practice by calling other perceived bluster Or by bluffing over minor things. Again, Bricu has a tendency to do both. Bricu calls people out regularly. Half of the time he is just seeing how the character reacts to it. When talking to others, he also has tendency to exaggerate stories. This practice is valuable for a number of reasons. First, it helps Bricu figure out how people will react to him. Second, it helps him learn what his mark knows. Finally, it also helps Bricu to learn how to bluster with a straight face, mock anger or whatever emotion is called for.

Boundaries establish credibility. A person who continuously lies, bluffs and bullshits about every topic has no credibility. While this may work on one mark, eventually, word gets out: This person is not trustworthy. To bluster well, one has to have a degree of trust in the blusterer. Bricu, for all his bluster, still holds a degree of trust with the Riders, the Rose and a few horde side as well (even if that trust is, “he’ll do what’s right for him.”) Bricu has two firm boundaries (Threnn and Stratholme), but there have been other self-imposed limitations on his bluster. These are limitations he has learned through planning and practice. For instance, he doesn’t disparage Wrynn as viciously when in public. Bricu doesn’t bluster about his time in the Army unless he is with other Lordaeron survivors.

Planning, Practice and Boundaries. This makes talking out of your ass just a hint more believable. These are just the examples of what I’ve learned with Bricu. Please, share what you’ve learned on your toon!

Tags: , , , ,