Roleplay

Role playing (RP) is the act of assuming the attitudes, actions, and discourse of a character in a particular setting.

In a role-playing game, the player takes on the role of a character. However, this does not mean that the player gets to create the character in the way that traditional "Role Playing" suggests. Role playing is the act of giving life to the character. Usually by creating a back story for the character, or acting/typing in a particular way. Many Guilds are dedicated solely to role playing. Their requirements may be relaxed to strict, most often requiring you to have an in-depth back story on the character you wish to portray.

Where do people RP?
People can RP anywhere in Guild Wars, or even outside of Guild Wars (ie. in a forum). Typically, however, RP is common in international districts that are easily accessible by beginning players and new characters, in explorable areas connected to easily reached outposts, or in guild halls.

IC/OOC
IC (In Character) is the designation given to a conversation or action which is meant to be in a role-playing situation between characters in the Guild Wars universe. OOC (Out Of Character) is the designation given to a conversation that is between real-life individuals playing Guild Wars. IC and OOC are usually distinguished by using different chat channels, surrounding OOC text with brackets, or placing similar noticeable punctuation before a line of text. It is extremely uncommon for the local, or all, channel to be used for IC conversations outside of guild halls and explorable areas.

Role Playing Etiquette
Most role play communities require their members to abide by a set of rules they will have laid out specifically for their groups. Popular topics covered in a community's rules often include, but are not limited to;
 * Killing of other player's characters (PK's) are often discouraged.
 * Meta-gaming is usually not allowed. In RP meta-gaming is the use of OOC knowledge either to farther a character's plot or means OOCly, or to use OOC knowledge ICly. (ex. Knowing about the Sylvari in GW1 would be considered a meta-game, and thus disallowed.)
 * Plagiarism, or use of another's work as your own, is strongly disallowed in some communities.
 * The time which one is required to spend IC is usually stated in a community's rules; from casually to full time.
 * Many communities also outline or state the expectation that players are to use common sense while interacting with others.

As with all online gaming, it is considered good etiquette to be polite and considerate of other players, and their ideas, interests, and stories.

What do people RP about?
Anything. There are many RP styles, including story-driven, relaxed or casual, strict or purist, etc. Depending on how you prefer to craft your character, you may find yourself in an RP situation involving just about anything. Typical conversations center around Guild Wars lore (Prince Rurik was just what Ascalon needed! Such a tragedy. *shakes head sadly*) or character plots (My friend,  once defeated twelve charr by herself!).

Are there RP events, where I can meet people?
There are many various player-organized events every year in Guild Wars. Most role play and role play events in Guild Wars are organized through role play based guilds, though some is organized via community fan sites. To find and join a role play based guild it is advised to browse fan sites or forums with guild recruiting sections, such as Guild Wars Guru, or you can browse the recruiting RP guilds category here.