These tips were pulled from a post I put together over on EN World called “RP Prompting and Immersion”. Here, I expand upon them further.
Special Character Insight
I will sometimes give players insights into their environment based on their race, or class etc by drawing their attention to something that would not otherwise be noticed (generally because we feel it’s not important enough to). That doesn’t mean it has to be important though – much of my smaller RP interactions like these mean nothing mechanically to the game.
For example, I might tell the group as they enter a clearing in the woods…
“The cluster of trees begins to part just head of you and eventually you step into a clearing”.
It’s a simple descriptive statement aimed at everyone in general, but not very special.
Instead, I might translate the same information to everyone by showing it to them from the eyes of just one of the party members as well. For example, instead of the above descriptive text aimed at everyone, I may instead turn (physically turn my body) and face the Elf of the group…
“This place is as peaceful of an area as you have visited in a while. Your comfort with the natural essence around you allows you a read on the path ahead – you are quickly approaching a clearing”
This puts the player into the head of his character. He knows his character has learned this because of who he is. At this point, I think most players will feel prompted to say something – again, from their characters point of view – maybe warning the players to stop before the clearing, or maybe telling them it would be a good place to rest. Either way, there is a prompt there.
It also had the added bonus of giving that player a connection to an aspect of his character that makes him unique from the others in the group. These are things (unique aspects and attention) that I think players (including myself) really enjoy. They connect you to your character and help pull you into them. It effectively sharpens the image in your mind of your character which is great for prompting more RP from a player.