Yuku free message boards

(Food...Who needs it?)

That's actually quite interesting. As you said, they're not alwyas covered very well, and in fact, if they are they're only mentioned in briefing the majority of the time... but what I've found is that, during the course of the RP, they do eventually happen.

For instance, in the Roleplays I've been in, Forest of the Future and Shadow's Revenge, instances when food and bathing were mentioned and did occur, sometimes in great detail, yet these only happened quite far into the story, around the 40 page mark. o.o

A reason why I think these are hardly mentioned is, in fact, that they're quite boring, and makes the RP become quite slow. If it's well written, I certainly wouldn't mind reading about a character eating a meal, but even then, its hardly the most exciting thing to read, is it? Especially compared to the rest of the story, notably one of great importance and the world threatened and such.

However, stuff like food being eaten, coffee being drunk and the characters bathing usually happen later when there's a lull in the story, a break for the characters. And its usually later when in actually gone quite in depth because of character building... strangely enough, instances like this do help to build and develop a character already gotten up to that point. It's at this point where a bit more fleshing out of the character is done, after we've learned, from a lot of excitement and such, a little bit more about some of the characters personal preferrences and such. For instance, in Forest of the Future, in a particular bit of a break for the group of characters, they would be having breakfast. One character, Suzie, who was only briefly mentioned to be a glutton in a bio, was actually displaying this in the roleplay. Another character, Alex, who had never experienced food like it before, didn't eat it and was hardly fond of it.

In short, details like eating food, and bathing and such... they can be good in adding little details to established characters, and if written well, can be very interesting to read. But I should imagine it doesn't happen much because parts of this are hardly exciting to read, and after we've experienced them for so long our entire lives, we want to read something and write something a bit more new, interesting and exciting, eh?

In which case, stuff like this would happen during breaks of the more important parts of the roleplay. But it may only recieve a passing mention, because really, reading about a character eat a meal, or wash themself really isn't that exciting especially compared to world saving, or fighting undead zombies etc. If it's well written, that's great, but then again writing a breakfast eating scene IS particularly difficult, and hard to make it appear particularly interesting. Again, details like this can make the RP move a bit more slowly, and again compared to usual RP fare, isn't that interesting.

Which is why I guess it's hardly ever really expanded upon, other then in later parts of the RP when a bit more fleshing out of the characters occurs and when there's a lull in the main action.