The Role-Play Resource

I'm going to start this new column with a controversial statement: You can Role-Play anything you want. Anything you want. You want to Role-Play a half-demon, half-troll, who also happens to be the second cousin of Dunker? Go for it. You want to Role-Play as the leader of a nation or a kingdom that doesn't exist? Go for it. You want to Role-Play a warlock whose demons are less "enslaved," more "gang of adventuring friends?" Go for it. Role-Play at its core, is all about creativity. The only limitations that exist are really the ones that lie inside your mind.
But. (There's always a but, isn't there?)
There are ten items that I like to call the golden rules for Role-Playing, particularly when you're Role-Playing in the Yomi-no-kuni Role-Play Community (YRPC). You can't just take one of these ten rules without keeping the other nine in mind -- all ten have to work together in order to get that amazing Role-Play experience you're looking for. This not only counts for Wizard101, but for pretty much any other MMORPG you happen to be playing.
The Ten Golden Rules
# This really shouldn't need saying, but it seems like one of the more common problems . . . Stay In-Character (IC) at all times. Do not drop Out-Of-Character (OOC).
# Never assume someone will react in a certain way just because you think they should. Always give others the chance to react in their own way, and don't get upset if the reaction isn't what you expected.
# Any action you perform on someone else's character, no matter what the action might be, should be phrased as an attempt. By making an attempt instead of just outright doing it, you give the other Role-Player the chance to consent to the action, or avoid it if it's something they'd rather not have happen to their character(s).
# Be considerate of the Role-Playing context of others. If you come across a situation where other Role-Players are already engaged in some kind of Role-Play, don't just leap in with a radically different mindset, unless you get permission (either IC or OOC, depending on the situation).
# Don't try to be the center of attention all the time. Be polite and share attention with other Role-Players. You aren't the only one there to have fun, give everyone their turn in the spotlight.
# Give others time to react to you (adding onto Rule No. 3). One of the strangest things I've noticed in several Role-Play Communities is impatience. People will walk up, say something, wait about 0.0001 seconds and then run off. The person they talked to would barely have had enough time to read what they said, let alone respond to it.
# Avoid god-like abilities for your characters. Role-Playing isn't about who can make up the best super powers for their characters, it's about the personalities of the characters. Any character that is ridiculously powerful or has a perfect personality is going to be fairly boring to Role-Play with, and will end up being ignored by others.
# It is generally considered rude to just up and attack someone out of the blue. If you and your "target" are not part of some planned combat event, get OOC consent from the Role-Player before you attack their character.
# Never include someone else's character in a written story that didn't actually happen exactly as you wrote it without letting that Role-Player proofread and approve the story before you post it.
# When writing up a story about combat that happened in-game, don't be literal. Invariably, the loser of a fight is almost always going to "die." Since no one likes building characters over and over, there's always some way to get raised from the dead. But just because you killed someone's character and chopped up their body in-game doesn't give you the right to write this up exactly as it happened.