Thanks!

@DarknessLord – Cool! Hope you have several fun conversations.

@Rafe – It can fall through and often does when it’s not supported by the system or eager fellow players. Still, I remember roleplaying for many years before I encountered a system that rewarded it at all, and I still enjoy it even when we remove differential XP rewards for “best roleplaying” and the like.

That’s the key. By definition, a GM who ignores background, personality, goals, etc., is not committing to it, which is my point of contention with systems in/for which roleplaying/backstory/etc there is no mechanical or system-driven role.

I agree that doing the act for yourself and for its own sake does help, but again… if it isn’t being endorsed and encouraged by the other players and GM, it can be a lot of effort for no reward. I’m not talking about XP or other game rewards — I’m talking about the satisfaction of great interaction at the table, in character. You can’t roleplay in a vacuum and, when you do, it’s not much fun.

But yeah, I really like the idea of PC to PC idle-not-important-to-the-plot-unless-the-GM-hears-and-uses-a-hook-in-there conversations, and while they are harder to start up from behind the screen, I might try to get a few going as a player in this D&D 3.5 game I’m gonna play in. I think it might help make my Paladin seem more sociable and can help on both sides of the equation with the problem with Paladins in 3.5. ^.^

Even systems that are prone to being encounter based for combat experience can be enhanced with character depth and roleplaying opportunites.

There is very little difference in how I try to prepare NPCs and encourage PC depth, no matter what system I am working with. I like combat just as much as the next D&D player, but there is so much more to the game than that, if people want there to be.

@Rafe – I have lived the “bitterness and resentment” when I pour effort into a character that the GM then ignores. Even so, I got to know my character better and enjoyed roleplaying around the table from a more solid viewpoint. If everyone commits to interesting characters, you can create a different kind of fun (roleplaying) to enjoy.

@Nicholas – I love writing about an event from the character’s point of view– it really highlights the absurd dangers characters face every week. While I kept a diary for an Amber game, my favorite entry was written by my bard Alanora after a near death experience with green slime.

While we’re heaping love on Burning Wheel, I have to join in and say that the lifepath system is a thing of beauty. It sometimes forces you to make hard choices but you come out at the end with a full, rich back story.

That isn’t to say other games lacking those elements can’t have fully fleshed out characters but, again, I agree that there’s a lot of “Who cares? You’ve got the campaign idea and story arcs already. My background won’t have any relevant effect, so let’s just get started with the fun!” Hell, there have been times when I (and my players, in 4e) have done up backgrounds with hooks and such… and nothing. It never comes up. The only thing that matters is that you’re a Wizard, he’s a Fighter, she’s a Cleric and the other guy’s a Warlord. That’s where the onus is.

Creating complex characters and backgrounds can actually cause bitterness and resentment when such efforts go completely unheeded and the game progresses as though nothing had even been attempted, depending on the system being played and the person playing it.

I love D&D4, and I’ve heard many folk say that you don’t need rules for roleplaying, but D&D4 rewards you primarily for killing things and – to a lesser degree – for making successful skill checks. It doesn’t care about your character’s back story or personality. So why should the players?

I’m all for more rounded, more interesting characters but I think a game should reward players for it, simply to make it worth their while. There should be mechanical benefits not only for developing their characters but for also playing in character. This is something a lot of indie games do (and I’m thinking specifically of Mouse Guard) and some mainstream games (particularly D&D4) could learn from them.