As I observe the community over time and read applications daily, it's become apparent that people (both old and new) have a difficult time understanding the concept of "immersive roleplay", which really is the core and fundamental activity that occurs in Hathian. There are a lot of things to consider with this concept, but I will address three common topics for the community to ponder and discuss.

Immersion

Let's start with the definition:

Immersion is the state of consciousness where an immersant's awareness of physical self is diminished or lost by being surrounded in an engrossing total environment; often artificial.

To put into context, we have Hathian and its adjacent regions which have been designed to depict an aged and decaying modern-day city. From the crumbling low-rise to the filth smeared on windows, the mashup of prims and textures is meant to help residents visualize the life and despair the city's story represents.

More often than not, people tend to work on their avatar too, adding gear, AOs, clothing, accessories, skins, hair, etc. etc. While this is all optional of course, it is another part of the immersive experience that people tend to divulge in. Afterall, it is the visual depiction of a character they are trying to portray.

"A picture is worth a thousand words."

You then have your backstory; created and summarized initially in the application process when you first join the community. This initial writeup gives basis to the strengths and weaknesses your character brings into Hathian. The details of this backstory grows as you learn more about the way your character experiences life and how they end up responding to it. Hell, my character, Captain Taov, has had updates made to his pre-Hathian backstory more than 2 years into the role-play! I'm sure many others can relate.

Finally, the most exciting and captivating part in this whole mix is the spontaneous interactions which form as you play your character in CD. This is the gist of our role-play; the day-to-day happenings that occur randomly and unpredictably, creating a more rich and dynamic story as time during RP progresses. Some occurrences in role-play impact your story greatly, while others not so much. There's actually a term used commonly to describe this primary aspect of the Den. It's called "character development".

Tools Today

The community is empowered with many tools that weren't available (or popular) to role-players several years ago. Are we using them properly? Blogs, wikis, forums, newspapers, titlers, and such were created to enhance the immersive experience; not become a detriment to it. I will discuss a few to get you thinking in the right direction.

In-Character Blogs. The stories and scenes that unfold in Hathian are amazing. Whether it's a simple conversation with a stranger or witness to an event involving others, everyone has their own unique perspective on things. This perspective can be captured and showcased using blogs. For those who are interested in tracking character development, offer a glimpse into the character's psyche, or to just showcase a story for those who missed it in-world, keeping the character's diary or journal in the form of an IC blog is something to consider.

Discussion forums should be used to enhance communication within the community. With broken group notices and group chats, it has become increasingly necessary to collaborate here. Our forums have fostered some great discussions and will continue to do so. If you have something on your mind, speak up!

Though I have only touched on two, there are many other tools that I will leave the community to discuss. However, I would like to conclude this topic with this important note: if you find yourself constantly collaborating on scenes or scripting stories, then you are taking away from the role-play experience for yourself and everyone involved. What's the point of role-play if the unpredictability and social interactions are diminished?

Consent

Do the crime, pay the time.

If you are caught by HPD, expect the worse. If you're outnumbered by an enemy gang, you better hope you've got medical insurance. I can go on, but I think you get the point. You are FAIR GAME. The result of every scene will only lead to more RP opportunities. If you begin to influence the outcome under the guise of consent, then you are not playing fair. This will not be tolerated in our community.

The only scenarios which requires consent is forced fantasy, permanent injuries, or death. If you pay attention in a scene and to your personal limits, you will find that there is always an appropriate out at some point - if you don't take it, then expect to play it.

In Summary...

Ask yourself this question:

"Are there others in the city familiar with my character and his or her personality?"

If the answer is no, then you have not been spending enough time playing the more intricate parts of role-play. There are new faces in the city every day and plenty of opportunity for you to do so. It's necessary. It's what immersion and the Crack Den is all about.

Discuss here.