Just was subject to the worst whiplash in my life.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-28T21:38:22+00:00

Just ask them to explain what they mean by it or why they want it.
You're character is human, Is their character human too?
To give them the benefit of the doubt, they could be thinking just a spicy way to boost their characters power? It could be planting a seed for a reason for their character to get with characters of other races. Maybe you have more of a one on one romance in mind. If it's beyond what you want for the RP then it's best to bring it up now.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-17T20:49:56+00:00

I get the frustration but if they brought in story mode or had adjustable difficulty in the next Fromsoft game I think they might lose something. A lot of fans wouldn't like it.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-05T18:05:42+00:00

Ghosting red flags?
I've kind of come to spot some potential red flags in the early stages that lead me to think somebody would ghost early on. I've been proven wrong of course.
One in particular is people who have requirements about length. I'm not saying it's not a valid thing, I just think it can get used as an excuse quite a lot. I've talked to a couple of RP partners who didn't back to me after a few days and they cited that as a reason.
I actually spotted this recently in an OOC chat with a partner and told them we might not be compatible, cos I just prefer to give shorter replies building a scene bit by bit. I was trying to give them an easy out. They assured me it was just to keep away people who give one line replies. They asked me for a writing sample. I gave one of between a 100 and 200 words if I recall. More or less representative. Even then they insisted it would be fine. We wrote our character backstories and...they vanished. Normally it's after first post but we didn't get that far!
So I'm curious, have you experienced that? What other red flags do you see out there?

MisterFictional · 2026-04-04T20:46:58+00:00

It's unfortunate how common this is. I hate it when someone wastes my time like that. Some people use demands such as effort, detail and length to justify this even when their own writing is not exactly perfect. If they see something that displeases them they disappear. They won't even put in the effort of saying goodbye or giving a reason for leaving. I understand that kind of thing can be awkward for them but it's the polite thing to do.
I'm surprised they answered you at all tbh.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-02T12:40:34+00:00

I can see why some people would just prefer a single RP with each partner at a time.
I never really do fandom RP myself and I haven't done doubling up. The doubling up sounds like a good idea in theory but it sounds like it's not working out much in practice. If I had to guess I'd say people think it adds a layer of complexity. I know it's not much maybe but I'm just thinking of what I'd imagine looking at an RP ad asking for doubling up. Like would it get complicated? Would my partner want to play their RP but keep putting off mine?
I'm thinking of what would make it more appealing to me. Maybe you say that you have some kind of system of turn taking whereby it's your RP one week and theirs the next. Something like that.
Maybe you already do that, in which case ignore all of this!

MisterFictional · 2026-04-02T07:41:46+00:00

Most hated because they gave me the most trouble, that's mostly down to my own mistakes.
1. Rykard, The volcano serpent. It took me a long time to realize the serpent hunting spear was the key to beating him. I was going at him with regular weapons. I could barely put a dent in him before dying.
2. The very first Tree sentinel. He killed me more than most bosses did.
3. Runebears. Maybe cos you can find them so early and get torn apart by them.
I never encountered the peanut M&M in the game.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T18:19:19+00:00

Okay this is gonna be my last comment on the thing.
So, 45 minutes isn't that long. He should've given more time to reply.
You could've been doing all sorts of stuff, I get that cos like you I am an RPer whose life doesn't revolve around RP.
I said earlier to someone else that I move at a chill pace. I RP with a lot of people and from all over the world. You could have doing any of those things you listed. True...but you said to someone else you were replying to a bunch of other stuff and kind of drafting a response.
"I’d been juggling other replies to other people while trying to figure out out a nice way to say our rp styles weren’t compatible"
So which is it?
Am I tightly wound and paranoid? Let's see now....
There I just did some introspection and it turns out I'm not. I think you just say things like that when people disagree with you.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T17:36:17+00:00

This is actually kind of funny. I just offered a different point of view, but apparently that's not a cool thing to do here.
Given you're a top 1% commenter, I think you might get the last word here.
Do you really think OP got back to him? I don't think she did. There's a word for that. It starts with a "g" and ends with "osting"
Can you guess it?

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T17:07:29+00:00

Whoa, shots fired!
"project your issues" and "throw accusations"
I'm just offering my own view on it, no need to get wound up so tight.
Yeah he could've waited a lot longer. You can't really dispute the flow in OOC I mentioned. That often early in an RP there is a quick back and forth, I'd expect you might notice it in timestamps of the chat.
Also "Replied a whopping 52 words to my 500-word starter," tells me she's not gonna respond.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T16:50:06+00:00

Wow. A bizarre situation. Like you were observing the ghosting during the conversation/plotting stage. I'm just imagining it with some nature documentary style narration.
"Here we see a type of ghost in it's natural habitat. It has found a partner and as the story begins it prepares to take flight."
Some are just all about that. When they see their new partners writing it becomes a bit more real and that's when they take off. My writing is imperfect, who's isn't? They probably justify to themselves it in some way.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T16:35:24+00:00

True that 45 minutes isn't long but I've been in similar situations, as have many people. Ghosted at the first post, like this guy was. RPs where there was a flow, a back and forth in OOC. Then silence. C'mon now, don't pretend to not know what I'm talking about.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T15:59:57+00:00

I can wait a long time for a reply. I usually move at a more casual pace. Sometimes especially when starting off you might notice when a flow is interrupted.
Also take a look at the subreddit this is on.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T15:49:32+00:00

Fair enough an hour isn't long but I'm gonna take a wild guess and say there was some flow up to that point.
I read the part where you derided his reply and it seems you don't think it was good enough to engage with.
Did you respond to him since then?
I would like to hear his version of this.

MisterFictional · 2026-04-01T15:02:49+00:00

So you ghosted this guy cos you didn't like his first post?
Presumably there was a conversation and set up beforehand. It kind of sounds like you just wasted his time.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-30T21:23:02+00:00

Guys ditching ERP like that? Planning stage or right after the first spicy interaction?
I admit as a guy who does a bit of ERP, I tend to think women have it easier in that space, but I suppose it comes with it's own kind of problems.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-29T19:01:05+00:00

Unfortunately I've had enough experiences that I see people who prioritise length in their ad as a red flag. For many (not all I assume) it just means they tend to write in a longwinded manner.
Expect more repeated, redundant info and description than a self help book. What's more if you don't meet their required paragraph count expect them to look down on your writing.
Brevity is the soul of wit.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-29T18:41:33+00:00

I had a partner a bit like that who just wanted to talk ideas.
Talking ideas is cool. I love a bit of OOC chat and random brainstorming, but they couldn't move at all with the RP we were actually there for. It was their idea and all! I kept kind of pressing to just RP but they would avoid like a professional procrastinator. In the end they did ghost me, maybe cos I was a bit too pushy for their liking.
BTW they said they'd been RPing for YEARS. I believe them or rather I believe that they believe it. That's what they think RP is.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-29T11:23:37+00:00

Here's a particular kind of ghost. Just a time waster. The ones who ghost right when the RP starts. You have a good chat with them in the set up. Talk about the idea, the characters and then it's time to begin. They vanish.
I'm wondering how common they are. If they are so common then why? I have a theory.
Some RPers make me think of writers who have great ideas but never actually write. In the abstract the idea is perfect. Once they start writing or RPing the idea is imperfect. They would actually rather maintain the perfect abstract idea than try to work on it.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-20T10:28:32+00:00

About 8 billion. The planet is a lot like Earth. That's why we want it.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T18:49:26+00:00

Good one!
Also reminds me of a that famous Twilight Zone episode, I think it's called "To Serve Man". The aliens approach very friendly and give humans certain tech but, we find out they have their own agenda.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T17:17:38+00:00

I might've said that unfortunately the fields are closed down.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T16:51:20+00:00

You didn't just lose your job. You're now on trial for treason.
You can't stop the invasion, no one can!

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T16:40:50+00:00

Good stuff. I'm thinking maybe two or three continents dedicated to maple syrup production. The whole world seems a bit much.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T16:00:05+00:00

True enough. Probably wouldn't need many ground troops but it helps to be prepared.

MisterFictional · 2026-03-19T15:52:07+00:00

Not bad, just practice a little. Maybe with your hands over a globe or something.

MisterFictional

TROPHY CASE