It’s been quite a long time since I sat here and ranted. However, I figured, it’s been far too long since I’ve last given a scathing list of things that piss me right off. I’ve mainly come to this conclusion after reading the roleplays over the last few months and having people ask for title matches here and there. I realize people want titles and while this is a game, titles exist because they act as a method to show someone’s ability. However, there still is a process of earning the title shots and I plan to outright point this out.

But before I go into that, in the last couple of months, I’ve been reading roleplays and hitting my head off the wall occasionally. Now, granted, that’s not the best way to introduce this section, but it seems to me that people don’t really realize what they are doing. Some people do such painfully simple mistakes that just make their roleplays torture at times. I’ve said on countless times what I look for in roleplays: Creativity, Match Relevance, Character Development and Effectiveness. While people often have a decent promo or storyline development, write their character well, they often get murdered on creativity and effectiveness.

So before I move on. I’m going to define a few things.

1) Creativity – This doesn’t mean you have to come up with something new all the time. But look at Breakdown. I’ve sometimes taken storyline ideas that people have done before and just made them my own or better or different enough to be something new. Take an idea and make it your own.

2) Effectiveness – Do your words resonate? Do they actually leave a lasting impression? Does it just sound like the same thing? Does it add anything to the match? Does it feel like you’re cookie-cuttering your promo?

DISCLAIMER: There are always exceptions. I will try to mention them. But just by blindly following this will not guarantee wins. It may help. It may do nothing. It all depends on circumstances and who you’re facing and execution.

So with that said…here are the top five things that make me want to throw myself in front of a bus when I read roleplays!

1) Interviews!

– I’m still quite sad that I have to put this here…but I’ve seen so many roleplays with interviews that it really just ticks me off. Rarely have I seen an interview done well. There are exceptions as always. Sometimes a more realistic radio show can be done well. Sometimes people can do a more sinister method and it works. But nine times out of ten, it’s just difficult to read. Most interviews turn into a cheap way to give a limited promo or a cheap way to give something new about your character. For everyone’s sake, try to do it with an interview. It usually comes off much better and usually it can then be given the spotlight it deserves with the stresses you want to come through. Character wise, it also becomes much more difficult for something significant to turn into a passing comment or conversation.

2) Everyone knows a wrestler!

– Seriously. I know SCW is a big thing by the vibe we give off. But when you’re brand new to the company or haven’t established yourself as something big from somewhere else, who the hell is going to care about you? I’ve seen far too many people have the situation where a fan runs up to them, they either get insulted or complimented before signing their autograph and running along. Since when did everyone know about wrestling? If that was the case, this fed would have six hundred people in it, because wrestling would be THAT cool and ratings would be through the roof. Obviously, wrestling has never been that way, so it doesn’t work like that. It’s just annoying when I see this overplayed out situation that often adds next to nothing to the character and just is a filler if anything at all. Also, please stay away from the autograph sessions. I’ve seen far too many of them and rarely do they show me something new. If you’re an asshole, you should be able to establish that other ways. If you’re a fan favourite, you should be able to establish that other ways.

3) Continuity!

– This one is just hilarious. I say that because it should be natural. Let me put it this way. If you’re in a match and your partner or stablemate have you in their roleplay, wouldn’t your character have some knowledge of it? Sound like an easy question. But many people have messed up with this. I’ve seen tag partners use each other in their roleplays and given clear messages in their roleplay that they didn’t even know what happen. I say this because they mention the main event in their partner’s roleplay, but forget that they were actually there, despite it happening at some point in the seven days previous. Not only does this just scream of poor teamwork, but furthermore it just shows that you don’t even know you’re character. This is the same thing that happens with some people and Breakdown. One of the reasons shows are written is to give you something to build off of. I’ve seen people completely forget that something happened on Breakdown. This should be obvious. If you’re in a stable or tag team, at the very least skim your partner’s roleplays. If people want to use your character, ask them if they could PM you just to let you know what’s going on so you can ensure that you know what happens so you don’t look like an idiot in your roleplay. Search the Breakdown results by your character’s name to ensure you see everything with you involved. It takes five minutes. But it’s worth it. It avoids you possibly losing a close match because you just didn’t care.

4) Broken Records!

– People do this far more often than they intend to. And this one is obvious. Imagine reading Breakdown and ending up reading the same thing over and over and over again. Wouldn’t it get boring? I try to prevent this by making things different by situation, context, etc. But people also should note this when they do their roleplays. I’ve read roleplays where in two months, I swear, I’ve read the same roleplay or promo or backstory over and over again, week after week. I don’t need to hear what you’ve done in the past each week. I don’t need to see you with the exact same people talking about the exact same thing each week. A lot of people have fallen into this trap. They can write it well, but the content is repetitive. They say the same thing over and over again, week after week. I can only hear it so many times before I don’t care. It’s one reason why one of my suggestions is to avoid talking about the past unless it’s relevant. Think about what your backstory is and make sure it’s relevant to the most recent things. Change up the secondary characters in your roleplay. You don’t always have to talk to the same five people. You don’t always have to be in the same place. And you don’t always have to talk about wrestling. And with your promos, re-read them after if you think you’re in that trap. If you’re in that trap, it’s better to get to the point and end it, instead of trying to cover all of the bases. You’re less likely to screw up here. Sometimes, less can be more. A five paragraph promo can be just as good, if not better than a twenty paragraph one. It also has a better chance of avoiding this problem.

5) The Endless Text Blocks

– This one really makes me hate my life. I say this because it’s a basic no-no of writing. You don’t have endless paragraphs. Use this basic grammar skill properly. Look at how I write promos on Breakdown. I break them up into paragraphs. Why? It makes it easier to read, but also, it avoids the problem of rambling. When I read a roleplay, I read it as it is written. If I see a big text box, I read it like a big text box. I don’t stop until it finishes. The problem is that it often gives the impression of rambling and it’s much harder to establish an effective promo as such. Things get lost in it and fail to have their significance.

All of these things seem minor. But all of them wear away at your work. If you’re in a close match, these things often will knock you right out of the win. Try to avoid these things and you keep yourself in the running longer. You do these things, you’re definitely going to end up with a much less favourable win/loss record.

TITLE MATCHES:

Now, surprisingly, that’s a good link to this concept. I’ve had many people ask me about title matches and getting them. I’ve had some people ask me in every MSN conversation I’ve had with them. I’ve had some people try to get into them by focusing on it in their roleplays and hope they’ll force me to take the logical step and give them the match. The problem is that most of these people fall into the trap that since they’ve been for a certain about of time, they deserve something. I’ll put it this way. If you’re with your girlfriend for six months, do you turn to her and say, “So when am I going to be able to get laid?” I doubt most of you have the balls to do that. But what makes things so different.

I tell people that I give the title shots to people who deserve it. The problem is that many people are struggling to reach that point. Most people have the ability to roleplay at the level. That’s hardly an issue. I look at the talent in SCW and see many very solid roleplayers when they are motivated. But here’s the equation when it comes to me granting someone a title shot of significant value:

TALENT + RELIABILITY + OOC ATTITUDE = TITLE SHOT

Seems simple. Most people have the first one down, but the second one is actually, in my opinion, more important. It looks good on a fed to see people roleplaying early and often and regularly. I understand some people have things that come up and prevent people from always roleplaying more than once every week or sometimes prevents people to roleplay on certain weeks. However, if you can only roleplay once, why not roleplay a bit earlier out of respect? It at least opens up the idea that if you can roleplay again, you have the chance that your opponent may roleplay earlier as well and then you can actually build off that roleplay. I also know that sometimes I have a 1 RP limit before pay per views and it may be smart strategy to wait until the last day. But why not roleplay earlier and then focus on your pay per view match?

If I know you can roleplay each week, and roleplay early and give your opponent a chance to roleplay at their best and really propagate competition and even roleplay more than once, you’ll definitely get a better opportunity to get the big shots, because I know you’ll make the best out of the opportunity. And if you win when you’re giving your opponents the best chances to compete, it just make you look better. I will give a great example. Josh Hudson received his title shot at Tactical Terror for these reasons. He never caused any OOC problems. He’s proven that he can beat some solid roleplayers. And best of all, most of his matches, he roleplays early and often at least twice, even against a no-show. He’s a true champion in every sense of the word. When he got his shot, he roleplayed and made good on it and I knew he’d take advantage of it. He’s now the champion and he’s done a great job with the title. There’s no reason why other people can’t follow his lead.

Actions speak louder than words. If you can prove to me that I know you’re going to take advantage of your shot and roleplay with respect, and be reliable, chances are you’ll get that title shot earlier than later. Even if you’re unable to roleplay more than once, try and roleplay earlier. I know people have tough schedules. But I also know many people get frustrated with people roleplaying later in the week on a regular basis. Try to find a few hours earlier in the roleplay week. Then you at least know you’ve roleplayed, don’t need to worry about running out of time and you make me happy as well as I then know you’ve roleplayed and don’t have to worry as much about limited turnouts. And if I’m happy, I traditionally am in a more giving mood.