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I have clocked in over 400 hours of tabletop RPGs on Roll20 alone, probably over 500 in total. I still have no idea how to roleplay. I am incapable of simulating a character who is not me with peronality traits that are not mine, in particular the exact words that come out of my character's mouth in PC-to-PC conversations. It takes me ten minutes to form a complete sentence that I'm confident my character would say.
OF COURSE I AM GOING TO PRACTICE.
But it's never JUST practice. I am actually playing the game, with other people, who get annoyed when I'm too quiet and will kick me out.
What can I do to improve my roleplaying IN ADDITION TO PRACTICE?
And if you have nothing to tell me besides the single word "practice", please tell me EXACTLY HOW MANY MORE HOURS OF PRACTICE do I need?
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Try taking an acting course? You might luck out and find one at a community center or theater, but you might have to broaden your search and also consider enrolling in a community college.
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>>54061172
>What can I do to improve my roleplaying IN ADDITION TO PRACTICE?
I found that reading related source material helped me a lot. In particular:
>Lovecraft (complete works found here: http://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/)
>Howard (particularly Conan here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks13/1303751h.html)
>and a lot of King Arthur legends, especially the ones by Chretien.
The manual for your roleplaying game of choice most likely has a 'recommended reading/viewing' section, 'takes inspiration from..' or similar which lists some books, movies, or other media relating to its subject matter. The writers put it there for a reason. Consuming the media listed there will help you immerse yourself and understand not only the settings in which you're playing and story structures typical to the genre, but also the manner in which characters might be expected to interact and communicate.
One exercise that might help you roleplay is to consider in advance your character's reaction to common and uncommon situations that are typical in roleplaying games, especially ones that you have the most difficulty responding to. That is, what might your character think, feel, and do, and what prompts your character to respond that way. Think about how your character would try to fit these events into his worldview or ideology (if applicable; remember that most people do not have a coherent ideology). It's almost like a cheat because it can help give you a slightly more detailed outline of your character even when you're not playing them.
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One method I have always found worked was work with the basic idea of a well known character and do what they would do. As time goes on start changing things up until you have a different character totally.
The suggestion of trying more improv is excellent.
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>>54061280
Even more so than just acting classes I'd suggest improvisation classes, the skill set you learn is even more compatible with tabeltop roleplaying.
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