roleplayers

Roleplayers are individuals who engage in role-playing, adopting fictional identities and acting within imagined settings. They participate across a spectrum of formats, including tabletop role-playing games, live-action role-playing, and online communities, with the common goal of collaborative storytelling and character exploration.

In tabletop role-playing games, players work with a game master to guide a shared narrative. They create original characters, complete with backstories and goals, and use dice and rules to determine outcomes. Emphasis is on cooperation, improvisation, and consistent characterization within the game world.

In live-action role-playing, participants physically portray their characters, often in dedicated events or venues. Costumes, props, and scripted or improvised scenes are common. Safety and consent are important, with organizers providing guidelines and tools to manage intensity and boundary violations.

In online roleplaying, participants write and interact through forums, chat, or roleplay servers in games. Etiquette emphasizes avoiding metagaming and god-moding, respecting boundaries, and maintaining coherent, collaborative narratives. Long-running plotlines and world-building are common features.

Roleplaying communities are diverse, drawing participants of many ages and backgrounds. Benefits cited include creative development, social connection, and problem-solving skills, while criticisms focus on gatekeeping, exclusion, and burnout from intensive schedules or obsessive pacing.