500-word posting minimums. Hidden code words in the rules. Only invisionfree {proboards, forumotion, wetpaint, SMF, vbulletin, MyBB} can advertise here.
No n00bs allowed.
Do all these things and you'll have a civilised, intelligent, creative, mature, friendly, and most of all, neat and organised roleplaying game that is part of a larger, equally endowed roleplaying community.
Increasingly, it's also a dying roleplaying community.
I refer primarily to the Invisionfree/Proboards community of RPGs. I've heard people in this community lament that post-based roleplay is dying. These people usually blame other media like Facebook for its declining state. They have obviously not seen the many thriving roleplay circles and sites, such as the Wetpaint and Webs roleplaying community, Roleplayer's Guild and other multigenre sites, even my own Warrior Cats game. All of these and more are post-based, thriving, and not hooked up with Facebook any more than any other play by post community--though Facebook does have a roleplay community, it has not caused the death of play by post.
The people closing their boards off to only IF {or proboards, or any one software} are contributing to a larger problem that is slowly killing this particular roleplaying community. Anyone who was around in this community back in 2005, 2006, even 2007 could tell you it was another world then, a much more active one. Over time these sort of prejudices have sprung up as they often do along with an increased tendency to shut out "n00bs." Fewer people seem to be finding their way in. It can be a hard struggle to get a new site off the ground and keep it there. 20 members on per day is considered highly active.
How did this happen? More importantly, how can it be reversed?
Well, I have seen a general tendency as a roleplaying circle ages, to raise its requirements and expectations and to become more closed in on itself. This stasis cuts off most beginning roleplayers and they fail to come in anymore at a replacement rate. It becomes an inbred, specialised circle that slowly decays. The solution? To drop these prejudices that fracture the community even more. Being as open as possible to other softwares/brands will greatly aid your game as well as the network of roleplays that form this community.
And let those "n00bs" in. We were all n00bs once. Shutting beginners out is the beginning of the end.
Disclaimer: There are still quite a few thriving sites left in this community. It's the overall state of it that this article refers to. Placing this here to respond to the commenters who may come here saying they own/play on several active RPGs there. Yes, I am aware.
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