Hi,
I've just started to play this game and decided to take an estate to see what happens.
Now I need to message the lord and introduce myself but...
Well, I'm not sure if I should RP the message or if I can just say "Hi" OOCly
RP. Avoid OOC for anything you can possibly say IC--it's more fun that way.
You should RP it. You can ask your lord questions OOCly if you don't understand something about the game. Just tell your lord you would like to pledge to serve him.
That depends on just what you mean by "RP".
All messages not sent using the "Out-of-Character" message type are supposed to be sent from the perspective of your character, not you. But that doesn't mean that every message has to be full of flowery speech and fancy stuff. It's perfectly acceptable to speak relatively plainly. The only thing to watch out for is if you're on Dwilight, you are expected to adhere to the Serious Medieval Atmosphere (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/index.php/Serious_Medieval_Atmosphere), which, in this context, basically means "talk like a noble, not a commoner or a 21st century person at a computer, and use people's appropriate titles when you address them."
If you want to introduce yourself OOCly, that's also more than acceptable. Just do so with a message sent with the "Out-of-Character" message type, and you should also have your character introduce himself IC once you feel comfortable doing so.
First of all, welcome to Battlemaster. The place where we plot to rise up the Noble ranks, betray and backstab our allies, caught attacking our enemy in dead of the nights, bring wars and battles to the Peacemaster :P
RP is not a requisite for IG messages. We need to understand what is RolePlay, RP used for and in what situation. In RP heavily flavor island, Dwilight, RP is a requirement. This is island for RPers. In other islands, this is not strictly enforced. However we still like to hear your introduction in the realm. Of course we wanna get to know you better, didn't we? 8)
Example of Introduction RP. See below ::)
http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/Introduction (http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/Introduction)
You can do both. ;)
You can see here a few examples of introductory letters and roleplays.
http://wiki.battlemaster.org/wiki/BattleMaster_Basics