Post by Emilee Jonson on Jun 24, 2010 23:27:56 GMT -6
GODMODING EXPLAINED
What it is and why it's not a good thing.
Have you ever heard the term 'godmoding'? If you haven't, you've come to the right place. I'm going to explain a little about the act of godmoding and why most roleplayers do not appreciate others doing it.
Let's start by looking at the word itself: Godmoding.
The first part is obviously God, which should make you think of the big man in the sky who watches us all from above. Even if you don't believe in him, you should be familiar with what a "God" is.
The second part is from the term "mode".
Put those two together and you get "godmoding," which is the word we use to describe the act of someone writing their character in such a way that their character sees all, knows all, and controls all. Like a God. Get it?
Why is that a bad thing?
Well, for the person doing it, it isn't really. They can do whatever they want with their character, even make their character win every fight, every argument, etc. You get the picture.
For you, however, it means that anything they decide to have their character do to your character is automatically going to succeed because they aren't going to give you a chance to block it.
Example:
John saw Jack walking down the hall, a large wad of bills in his hand. Needing some money, John ran over to Jack and forcefully punched him in the head. Jack fell backwards onto the sidewalk and laid there unconscious while John grabbed the wad of money from his limp hands and ran all the way back to his dorm.
Now John just knocked your character completely unconscious, stole all of your money, and ran away from the scene without you being able to do a single thing about it. So what are you going to write for your next post? That you wake up with a horrible headache and realize all your money is gone? Well, I suppose you can do that, but wouldn't it have been more fun for you have a chance at defending yourself? Not to mention that the thread would likely last a lot longer that way.
The worst part of Godmoding, however, is when someone makes your character do something that you don't feel they would do. What if John had written that Jack had laid in the hall and sucked his thumb while crying about losing all of his money? What if you, Jack's creator, think Jack is a masculine guy who would never cry or suck his thumb? What if you would have had Jack jump up and kick John's booty instead? Well, unfortunately, you're not gonna get the chance to do that because John just wrote the entire scene out for you.
A milder form of this would be mentioning the other character doing something that they haven't done. Seeing them starting to cry, watching them go sit down, etc. Unless the person playing that character has told you that the character is crying, then you shouldn't write that they are. The person playing that character might not think the character would cry at that point in time.
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Another form of godmoding, one that can be just as irritating, is having your character know things that they wouldn't know. Just because you can read the other character's thoughts in their post doesn't mean your character would have heard those thoughts. Unless, of course, you're on a Twilight forum and you're playing Edward or Alice Cullen. But this is not a Twilight forum and, as far as we know, there are no mind readers at Rosehurst. So therefore, you would not have your character know what someone else's character is thinking or feeling or is planning to do unless they actually speak and tell your character.
Example:
Post 1: Jane walked down the hallway, minding her own business until she heard someone yelp. She quickly looked over to find Jill trying to pull the hem of her shirt out of the door of her locker. 'What a loser,' Jane thought to herself as she continued down the hall.
Post 2: "I am not a loser!" Jill yelled at Jane as she watched the other girl walk past.
Jill should not have known what Jane was thinking about her because Jane didn't actually say it.
All of this can be avoided by simply taking care to control your own character only. If your character asks the other character a question, then give them a chance to answer it in their own post. Or, if your two characters are fighting, throw a punch at them but then let them decide whether or not your punch was successful or if they blocked or dodged it. Then they will do the same for you in return.
Avoiding Godmoding will make the thread much more enjoyable for everyone.
What it is and why it's not a good thing.
Have you ever heard the term 'godmoding'? If you haven't, you've come to the right place. I'm going to explain a little about the act of godmoding and why most roleplayers do not appreciate others doing it.
Let's start by looking at the word itself: Godmoding.
The first part is obviously God, which should make you think of the big man in the sky who watches us all from above. Even if you don't believe in him, you should be familiar with what a "God" is.
The second part is from the term "mode".
Put those two together and you get "godmoding," which is the word we use to describe the act of someone writing their character in such a way that their character sees all, knows all, and controls all. Like a God. Get it?
Why is that a bad thing?
Well, for the person doing it, it isn't really. They can do whatever they want with their character, even make their character win every fight, every argument, etc. You get the picture.
For you, however, it means that anything they decide to have their character do to your character is automatically going to succeed because they aren't going to give you a chance to block it.
Example:
John saw Jack walking down the hall, a large wad of bills in his hand. Needing some money, John ran over to Jack and forcefully punched him in the head. Jack fell backwards onto the sidewalk and laid there unconscious while John grabbed the wad of money from his limp hands and ran all the way back to his dorm.
Now John just knocked your character completely unconscious, stole all of your money, and ran away from the scene without you being able to do a single thing about it. So what are you going to write for your next post? That you wake up with a horrible headache and realize all your money is gone? Well, I suppose you can do that, but wouldn't it have been more fun for you have a chance at defending yourself? Not to mention that the thread would likely last a lot longer that way.
The worst part of Godmoding, however, is when someone makes your character do something that you don't feel they would do. What if John had written that Jack had laid in the hall and sucked his thumb while crying about losing all of his money? What if you, Jack's creator, think Jack is a masculine guy who would never cry or suck his thumb? What if you would have had Jack jump up and kick John's booty instead? Well, unfortunately, you're not gonna get the chance to do that because John just wrote the entire scene out for you.
A milder form of this would be mentioning the other character doing something that they haven't done. Seeing them starting to cry, watching them go sit down, etc. Unless the person playing that character has told you that the character is crying, then you shouldn't write that they are. The person playing that character might not think the character would cry at that point in time.
-
Another form of godmoding, one that can be just as irritating, is having your character know things that they wouldn't know. Just because you can read the other character's thoughts in their post doesn't mean your character would have heard those thoughts. Unless, of course, you're on a Twilight forum and you're playing Edward or Alice Cullen. But this is not a Twilight forum and, as far as we know, there are no mind readers at Rosehurst. So therefore, you would not have your character know what someone else's character is thinking or feeling or is planning to do unless they actually speak and tell your character.
Example:
Post 1: Jane walked down the hallway, minding her own business until she heard someone yelp. She quickly looked over to find Jill trying to pull the hem of her shirt out of the door of her locker. 'What a loser,' Jane thought to herself as she continued down the hall.
Post 2: "I am not a loser!" Jill yelled at Jane as she watched the other girl walk past.
Jill should not have known what Jane was thinking about her because Jane didn't actually say it.
All of this can be avoided by simply taking care to control your own character only. If your character asks the other character a question, then give them a chance to answer it in their own post. Or, if your two characters are fighting, throw a punch at them but then let them decide whether or not your punch was successful or if they blocked or dodged it. Then they will do the same for you in return.
Avoiding Godmoding will make the thread much more enjoyable for everyone.
