I just recently tipped my toes into english RP for the very first time and while it certainly didnt went badly, i couldnt help but leave with a feeling of insecurity when it comes to my speech. (Or my written text, i assume). As i would consider myself an experienced roleplayer who is well versed in my native tongue, i am well aware about the impact made by sentence structure and choice of words. Which leads to my problem, since i noticed that i lack the understanding whether or not my choice of words and how i presented them made me sound like some sly trickster, some humble commoner, a well mannered aristocrat or simply someone straight out of real world 2023. (With broken english, at worst).
Since im certainly not the first non native speaker experiencing something alike, i was wondering if others have felt the same and how they tried to deal with it. Did people let you know? Did you yourself notice in how others reacted to you, IC or OOC?
And for those who happen to be native speakers, how is it? Do you frown upon some lack of quality of writing? Are you understanding, or do you even nudge something struggeling into the right direction? Should you do so, how do you do it? Or is a complete non issue and im worrying for nothing?
There has to be room for us all, after all. If you feel like it is needed, then some people do write in their TRP that they are not native English speakers. I donāt really frown upon peopleās ability to write in English, it is more the method of doing so, like the use of smilies in the text.
Then again, I am not really a native English speaker either but I have been roleplaying in English mainly since 2001 (Through other media until World of Warcraft launched, and then up until now).
Though. If there is something that stalls them a bit, I do try to give some advice, a little nudge, it is more commonly with simple things as I find it rude to keep prodding at peopleās āspeechā.
Then again, as mentioned, I am a non-native speaker as well, so maybe why I donāt judge as much.
Happy New Year to you too, and hope you will get many great adventures!
As a non native speaker, when I first started to get into rp, I just made a simple bouncer/bartender character. That way I didnāt have to really pull a dictionary for most of my emotes as everything was simple enough.
Though the more I roleplayed the more I improved, and also kept an eye out for words that I did not know, in other peopleās emotes.
So donāt worry about it and take it easy, also a tip I can give. Either have google translate open or simple google search bar, on the side. So you can quickly check for words you do not know or not sure how they are written.
I certainly try not to. I was fortunate enough to learn a long time ago that there are a lot of excellent roleplayers whose written English isnāt perfect. Command of language is important but itās far from the only thing that a compelling OC needs.
Besides, English is my first and only language, which is the case for most British players. If itās someoneās second language and theyāre able to RP in it, theyāre already beating me lmao.
If someone asks me for feedback on their writing (or on anything else) Iām always happy to give what advice I can, but Iād never do it unprompted. Unsolicited advice isnāt really good RP etiquette imo.
There will always be judgemental players ā if itās not command of the language, itās something else. The important thing is to not pay them any mind because there are countless players on the server who arenāt needlessly critical of others.
I will chime in from here. - Aslong as there is someone who is passionate about their Roleplay, trying to get into things and trying their best then it should never matter about any of it.
If I know youāre trying your best to RP then I will work with it and if I have any misunderstandings I would ask you in whispers directly about what youāre trying to say and I would try my best to explain things through simple english without any ye oleā words or any of the sorts like some people may.
The fact you want to try is more than enough reason for anyone to never frown and you should never let Anyone make you feel insecure or uncomfortable about your RP. If there are people who try to complain about it then theyāre simply not worth your time.
Keep it up and welcome to AD and welcome to our side of RP! Feel free to interact with me or my group anytime IC!
You can make it a part of your character. Maybe your char is learning the language because it isnāt their native language. Maybe your char has been trough something that influences their speach and needs to relearn. Maybe youāre an Orc and donāt care much for talking.
I think itās important not to stress too much about your level of English. A simple sentence or emote is perfectly reasonable and it is not a requirement to have a flowery or poetic emote.
As long as what is said can be read and understood, nobody will kick up a fuss.
At the same time, you are able to speak TWO (or more) languages. Thatās a great thing when most people, including myself; can barely even speak the one.
I play a Highborne, and hell if I know most of those fancy english words other Highborne/Noble/scholarly players sling around.
I just donāt worry about it!
They still sling around words I never heard about before, and I just keep talking in my peasant english
My biggest flaw in english is not knowing the difference between (un)dead and (un)death. And when to use one or the other, but eh, I have never heard somebody complain about my english, yet!
Anyways as stated above, not being a native-speaker is a is not an issue. Aslong as you donāt randomly start speaking x langauge ICly, we all very oke with people speaking ābrokenā english!
There generally isnt much need to worry about what other people think about your level of english.
Most people are very laid back and understanding when it comes to that sort of thing in the RP community, and anyone who makes a problem out of it isnt someone whoās going to be worth RPing with anyway.
Ive seen plenty of folks who just pop a little note about their english in their TRP/MRP etc just to let people know. Youāll be fine ^^
English is my 3rd language and I definitely make mistakes here and there. The biggest struggle I found when I started to RP in English is how to properly emote and make description for items/characters/locations.
However, you just have to tank that through imo. You have to continue RPing, surround yourself with native speakers, be welcoming to correction of mistakes and just all-together be willing to make said mistakes, cause you will inevitably. Damn, I still confuse when to put āaā and ātheā because it is still such a foreign concept to me; but it isnāt something many will shun you for, or declare witch hunts. Far from it.
What I do recommend, however, is using specific apps, like Grammarly, to help you out in writing/proof-checking your things, or āmisspelledā in-game addon that highlights any spelling mistakes for complicated (or even basic) words.
If some go absolutely hard on you for making 1-2 mistakes here and there - you have full obligation to just full-out ignore them. This is a European realm, not an English one, and there is no justification to right-out go ballistic on a learning and trying gamer.
I think most roleplayers donāt ultimately care about it that much, although the way of your characterās communication plays a part in creating immersion. But usually when a roleplayer notices whether thereās difference between how you spell words and how your char speaks, they can tell apart which is intended IC, and which is your level of english OOC, and how it influences your characterās IC interactions.
Iāve met many roleplayers who donāt speak english as their native language (and Iām also one myself), and Iāve had just as good experiences with them as with natives! I usually pay attention to other factors while determining whether RP encounter with someone is enjoyable or not.
As someone who is also non-native, I deffo make mistakes and can be slow typing emotes sometimes. Especially in larger crowds or hectic situations, before Iāve managed to emote a proper response to one thing, the conversation may have already moved on, but other times it can be a breeze. Ultimately it hasnāt caused me much more than mild annoyance though, nobody really cares if I make a minor mistake and if thereās a misunderstanding and I learn of it later, Iād try to correct it.
Sometimes language/culture barrier can cause more struggle (usually more for myself than others), as in my native country, the communications are usually more straightforward. So I may not be convincingly be able to play an aristocrat, or suffice well in situations with a lot of tact, euphemisms and social formalities at play, unless I follow a script. Then being slightly neurodiverse (which none could still guess on the surface of things), I may come across rude or aggressive, when Iām trying to be firm or honest (and without any rudeness or ill will intended) - but thatās usually something I hear more in OOC communications rather than IC.
Iāve got a personal pita with punctuation. I donāt mind people not being the best at English, I mean, neither am I, but I do think not using caps and full stops in RP looks messy and, dare I say it, unprofessional.
Yes! This is more important to me than perfect grammar. A lack of punctuation and using caps at the start of a sentence or name comes across as a lack of trying to me, and thatās a bigger problem than the odd spelling or grammar mistake, or a ārustyā sentence.
A LOT of people who RP arenāt British. Iād say most friends I made in RP communities are not native speakers. Youāll get better the more you write.
But I will say that Iāve been roleplaying for over a decade and I donāt think Iāll ever be able to write as easily as a native speaker does. My brain just doesnāt function in English, it will always think of my native language first and then translate the idea.
