Now, do not get me wrong, they do not allow people to write others' thoughts without permission, and they do not allow metagaming, but enforcement on godmoding is not so strict, and I personally see more freedom in that type of roleplay from what I've seen on the many sites advertised here where it goes like this:

"Oh, hi," says Sue.

Sue walked over to the window while waiting for Mary to react. I'm not allowed to post what Mary does without her permission so I'm just going to sit here and purple prose explaining my character's thoughts rather too deeply to where it can get droll and my reader wants to skip over them.

--next post--

"Hi," Mary says.

Repeat above paragraph.

Now, don't get me wrong, oftentimes that can be great writing and can really get into the character but... it doesn't move the story along, which oftentimes can get overly... boring. Sure, some thoughts here and there, but how about something else for the time being?

Now, over my past few months on these two RPGs that I know to do this, I've grown used to it, and I don't think I could ever get used to writing how I used to on all of these RPGs again. It's just so much more freeform and you don't really have to worry about the story going into a hole which you can't write in unless you're literally just not a good writer. To give an example of that type of writing, I'm going to post a short tidbit of a post I had in a competition that was going on on the website.

That post takes place between me (the Joker) and another player (Richard, from the Looking For Group comic).

So, I want to know your opinion: Would you ever join an RP like this? Why or why not? Is godmoding blasphemy (AKA the most horrid thing in the world that you would pitch a fit if it ever happened) or neccessity (something that you could probably get into if it helped move the story along).

I'm starting a supervillain-based RPG using this system, and I basically wanted to know if it would be worth my time to post the link here.

My thing with Godmodding, is that to a certain extent, it is necessary. I am pretty sure that in some aspects (as with the "hi Mary" post) it is ok to assume that the other character will greet you back, therefore you can go ahead and perhaps start in a conversation with that character. However in more battle type instances, I believe it is a strong recomendation to wait to see how the other player responds. You can't always assume a character will fight back.

There is also a politeness thing. You have to be willing to tell your partner, "Hey, if you thing I NPCd your character too much, shoot me a PM and I'll be willing to edit it." I believe that that is the skill to great threads, and a way around the whole godmodding thing.

As for the Joker/Richard post...as an admin, I'd probably keep a close eye on it, and be wouldn't be surprised if the player of Richard came to me crying Godmod, however also as an admin, my theory is if the other player is ok with it, then let it be.

Hope that helped a bit?... :)

It's actually really funny, because in the character of Richard's next post, he overdid the godmoding thing just a bit, went outside of the boundaries and included some people (along with their characters' thoughts and plans) into the story without asking them... he doesn't do it anymore, though.

You see, my opinion is that there is an extent, but that extent should be pushed to its limit. Usually, on this RPG, the story is planned out by participants beforehand, so everything that happens in it -- unless it is so drastic that it gets people riled up -- is usually a means to an end.

Like, in a storyline I'm doing with another player, it is basically an improv'd storyline, with the only requirement being that we somehow defeat these space pirates and get the treasure. I thought I'd add a bit into it to give it a bit more depth and explore our characters' relationships, and he was fine with it. He didn't care that I RP'ed his character flirting with one of the more attractive members of my spaceship's crew (on this site, I'm a female former space pirate), because that's his character. I didn't mind that he RP'ed my character having to listen in on his conversation with a contact because my charrie knew that he probably wouldn't get anything out of what she was saying.

I can’t speak for anyone else, but I have to say that if it were me playing Richard's character in that scene, and a prearranged agreement about playing each other’s character’s were not in place, then I would not be comfortable with the level of assumptions made on your part and the actions written for the other character. In fact, I’d probably be upset if that kind if post was made by another player with my characters, and I have been when it's happened in games. For me, if you want that much control over every character in a scene, then you should be writing fiction, not roleplaying with a partner, because you aren’t giving them a chance to reply. A good part of the fun for me is seeing how the other person will react to what I’ve written. While the scene might have an ultimate goal, how we get there is a collaborative process, and if I wanted to guide it (and everyone/thing) in the scene in a certain manner, then I’d just write a story by myself. The other player(s)'s input provides me with obstacles to overcome and challenges to face, and that’s what makes it fun for me personally.

That being said, if all players in a scene have agreed to write in the manner shown in your example, then I see no problem with it. It’s just not for me.

Depends what the plot is and how well I know the other player. For something like your post, I would probably have had an MSN convo with them prior to sort out all the details ahead of time. Usually if I'm godding another character, I keep descriptions of them very nebulous and from my character's point of view so they have room to move in their reply.

I would not join a game like this if this kind of Godmoding was a 'given' and took place right from the get-go. I am all for Godmoding, but I have to know the people who I am letting do it, and moreover, they have to know my character--not just what is written down on the application, either. I would kick up a royal stink if it happened within my first couple of threads with a player I've never encountered before. However, if Pathe-thingy did it, or WildeThing, I'd be more inclined to shrug it off because they are not about to commit character-rape.

I think so long as the players agree the level of control they want between themselves, then it's a-okay. Whatever, right? I generally don't bat an eyelid at godmoding on board ASMM unless someone contacts me about it and wants me to do something. Otherwise, I'm going to assume they gave their consent. Once a player gives that consent, I don't consider it for me to decide whether or not they should be allowed--provided they're not taking canon characters and destroying their canon-foundations.

I enjoy talking out scenes in advance with certain RP partners, so sometimes we end up with posts where we seem to godmod each other all over the place, but it's really all choreographed. If I don't know the person I'm with very well or if they aren't around to OK it with, though, I strictly avoid controlling their character - just as I wouldn't want them butchering my character's personality or whatnot, I doubt they'd want me to butcher theirs.

You have some valid points that made me rething my ideas on Roleplaying. I can see what you mean about how dull it can be having to just talk about weather and scenes and clothes to make the post longer than a few sentences. It is awkward to get a plot going when you have to constantly cut short what you are doing so the other person can join in...

But, my personal opinion is still stuck on my original idea. If I logged on and saw that much detail written about my character I don't think I'd be overly happy. I have been GM'd a lot and each time it happens I contact the person and tell them to change it. I like to play my own characters, I hate reading other peoples opinions on how my character would react, because they don't know what I am going to say or do, most of the time nor do I, I just write and see where it gets me...
If its all planned and everyone on all sides is agreeing on it, I probably wouldn't mind, but I'd make sure there was an OoC comment on the first page telling other readers that everything is done with consent, else you'll have everyone godmodding.

I wouldn't let people do this on any site of mine though. If you are just going to be controlling other characters, wouldn't it be much easier to write a fanfiction? Because IMO if you have already presumed the other characters actions and comments what is the point in them replying?

But otherwise, I can see how this could move a plot along, I can see in some instances where it could help... But I think most people would see it as a chance to play God over everyone else, if you are letting people do this on your own forum, then I'd suggest you just keep a close eye on things and make sure it doesn't go over board. I have seen a site similar and people were deciding what characters were killed of injured, it is probably best you give warnings too everyone joining, so they don't get upset/annoyed when they are controlled...

Good topic. Hope that helped a little.

I wouldn't play on a game where this was a given and expected. If people want to write like that and consent by both parties is given, excellent. People can play as they like! <3 But if that's the norm and how everyone does it...it wouldn't be for me.

I played on an LJ game once where this was the norm (I didn't realize it in advance; it said nothing in the info about that xD). It was a really fun game and the players were awesome and the story was good, so I rolled with it (even if I couldn't do the same to other characters; I'm not comfortable with that) but I eventually quit because it just wasn't for me. :\ Even though they were all excellent writers who managed to grasp my character really well and never screwed up his characterization, after someone made a post writing my character reacting to theirs I would just sorta sit there going, "...Alright. So...what can I, the actual writer and creator of this character, do now?" My character had already reacted. It really sapped the fun out of it for me because I RP to write my characters, not other peoples', so it was just like collaborative fiction writing to me instead of RPing.

I'm really laid back on godmoding/powerplaying. People can grab my characters, pick them up, punch them, etc. and I don't mind a bit. x3 I don't mind assuming actions, either, and people I RP with regularly can get away with a lot because I trust them and they know my characters. We'll often be talking on MSN and ask, "Hey, is it okay if I assume this?" or "Hey, feel free to beat the unholy crud out of him," and so on. All I really ask is that my characters get a chance to react, and that I get to play said reactions and actions.

My character may not always react in an expected way, after all! And I want to RP, not write collaborative fiction. :3 All the same, I see the benefit of godmoding. I don't always want to see "he reached out to grab her wrist" and stuff like that. Just grab her wrist! xD Or when two characters are crossing a street. Unless something dire's gonna happen during the crossing, I think it's safe to powerplay both characters getting across for the sake of sanity. :B

That said, my own games have a "Player Limits" form everyone can fill out so everyone knows where everyone else stands on issues like powerplay, etc. in advance. ^^ My games are very consent-based, so I don't have any hard and fast rules on powerplay and all that. The players moderate themselves on those issues. So if people wanna write like how you presented, they're perfectly allowed.

The problems that everyone has presented so far, mostly, are thoroughly explained on the RPG. I'll address each one of them briefly:

Not playing my character right
Usually, a character is asked to put up a 'bio' or 'character vault' explaining what their character looks like, what their character acts like, and how people should assume to have their character react to this situation. Unless an RP'er is just bad or specifically out to get the other character, these vaults usually halt any problem of rping the character incorrectly.

RPing my own character, not others
Because of this system, most people are inclined to actually post what are known as 'personal rps', which are basically stories of fiction where all of the characters, besides your own, are NPCs created by you -- it is mostly just you writing, no one else. Usually, many people attempt this when huge group RPs have just ended. They also use it to delve into their character's backgrounds.

Killing/Injuring Other characters
Usually, if two characters are going to fight, you must state in the topic that they are going to fight. The fight, most likely, on boards such as this would last longer than one or two posts, seeing as most characters on these boards are superpowered, and at the end, they call in a staff member to declare the winner. If the players wanted a fight to the death, the loser dies and goes to an area of the board called the afterlife, which has some bonuses on it.

See, that's working on the assumption that the character begins and ends with the bio. There are occasions when this character may evolve from the application immediately, or the situation calls for aspects of the character that are not covered in the application but hey, the admin isn't psychic so they were accepted anyway. What about when things are misinterpreted or the player finds out something about their character they hadn't planned. Bios are not something that are regularly updated and you're left with characters that have outgrown their applications but the player has not gotten around to putting this into the edits. You should not have to rely upon masturbatory roleplay in order to dig deeper into a character or just seize the opportunity to play your character for yourself.

Characters are more than just what is written down for them in an application--or at least, any character with the potential to be developed is--and as such, it can be commonly seen as 'treading on toes' if you go ahead and assume various things about a character and take the learning experience away from the player. You may as well collectively create characters for everyone to play; a vat of NPCs. That's not fun for me. I enjoy being surprised by reactions, I like seeing a player do their own character discoveries with me occasionally chipping in where appropriate. But that's it. I don't create a character for someone else to play. They may borrow but they may not rent, nor assume that just because my character is in the same thread, that they have the right to do my roleplaying for me.

Personally, I find what you wrote in the sample to be massive overkill. I'm perfectly fine with godmodding and powerplaying, just not to that extent. It looks like it defeats the purpose of RPing in the first place. I'm going to have to agree with Panda and Rhi-Rhi here. I wouldn't join a game set up like that.

*is confused*

You don't like reading the writer's opinions of what your character would say or do (ie, out-and-out godmodding) or you don't like reading the character's opinions?

Cos I've been accused of godmodding before after writing my character's opinions about another character's motives. And that's not godmodding, that's just me writing a not-particularly-nice character.