What is Free Form Role Play?

Most people have heard of role playing games, the most familiar being Dungeons and Dragons. Refereed role playing games, or RPGs, involve statistical information and dice rolls under the supervision of a gamemaster, who creates a situation and determines the outcome depending on the players choices and rolls. Free form role play, on the other hand, has no set scenario and no gamemaster. Everyone contributes to the storyline in a sort of interactive writing forum, simply responding to other characters and situations as they arise.

How do I start playing?

First, read the forum guidelines. Then write a character. Consider the setting of the game and write your character accordingly. For example, #CyberPunkCafe is set in the Dark Future of CyberPunk 2020™, a RPG from Talsorian Games. The year is 2020, and the rapid advance of technology has resulted the downfall of the government, with huge corporations taking over controlling small city-states and dictating the lives of their employee citizens. Cyberpunks are the rebels against the system, struggling to keep their independance in a violent world. Most of them are "cybered up" with various technological implants. Solos, or hitmen, roam the streets, Netrunners fly the fast paced world of cyberspace, Rockerboys sing their message of rebellion to the wild crowds in the underground clubs, Medias keep the corps on their toes publishing the truth behind the company soundbites, Techs and Medtechs keep the technology going, Fixers make the deals that keep the cyberpunk society functioning, Corps, well, they rule the place. Pick of these roles, or make your own role. For some examples of characters, check out the bios page. Once you have your character, join Delphi by following the link for the Sierra Survival Dataterm and simply start interacting. Read the current storylines going on in the forum and make an introductory post, usually your character walking into the Cyberpunk Cafe and either approaching someone or else behaving in character if they're not the friendly sort. Be patient, play-by-post is done at the convenience and opportunity of each player, so it may be a while before your post is responded to. I recommend checking in at least once a day to see if there are any new messages.

Where do I play?

Currently CPC roleplay is going on on the Delphi Forums at Sierra Survival Dataterm. You have two options for play, either realtime chat when other players are on, or play-by-post on the forum message board. Joining Delphi is free and you can use nicknames for posts if you have more than one character. It's recommended that you post an introduction for yourself and your characters in the introductions and bios folder so other players have a reference point to go from. This can include a character description and any other information you want others to know about your character. Other than what can be seen with normal vision, players are not to use the information in the introuctions and bios unless there is a reason for them to know it already. For example, most people would recognize Delorean Davis and Angel Davis from the televised DeathGames, but wouldn't know the full extent of Delorean's cyberware just by looking at him or know what they've done since then, so a character just meeting them would probably know their names and that they were DeathGames champions, but won't know they work for Sierra Survival or be able to pick up Delorean's cybervision without running a scan on him.

How do I get my character's bio posted on the website?

Email Lyssa with the information and a picture if you have one and your character bio will be posted as soon as she's able to get it up.

Can I contribute to Cyberpunk Central?

Of course. Email any submissions to Lyssa and if they are added to the site you will be credited. Submissions are accepted for any article relating to Cyberpunk, Freeform Roleplay, or the Cyberpunk Cafe, Cyberpunk or Dark Future artwork, fiction, fanfics, or play logs based on Cyberpunk or Dark Future. All submissions remain the property of the creator, so please include copyright information with your submission and permission for it to be posted on Cyberpunk Central.