Roleplay and examples
Metagaming examples: using Discord information in a scene
Learning something as a player does not mean your character learned it too. Three everyday situations help show the MG boundary.
Vice Roleplay · Sources checked:
Metagaming is more than putting an OOC message in IC chat. The origin of information and the decisions you make with it matter. Vice rule A.4 requires role information to come through IC means; these examples explain the idea without replacing the rule.
A friend gives an address in Discord
A friend tells you their location OOC during a scene. If your character has no other knowledge, the message cannot become an IC call for help. An actual in-story message and a conversation between players are different things.
Saying you happened to pass by after learning about the scene does not change the source. A useful check is whether you would have made the same decision without seeing the OOC message.
You see a name on screen
A displayed name or forum profile does not by itself prove your character recognises someone. Think about an introduction or how the name was learned in the story. Do not treat every label as an IC identity document.
Likewise, do not carry a former character’s relationships into a new character. What matters is that character’s own history and knowledge, not the account they share.
Distinguish a post from character knowledge
Where and under which identity something was shared matters. An IC post, an OOC screenshot and a private player conversation are not interchangeable sources. Public visibility also does not mean every character automatically read it.
If confusion arises, explain the information source. When reporting a suspected breach, follow the rules instead of interrupting the scene with an OOC argument. Staff need the source, time and context together.
Sources and scope
This article was prepared with AI assistance after checking the sources and Vice rules. Example scenes were written for explanation and do not describe actual player incidents. Current server rules and on-screen requirements take precedence.