So I'm running a campaign with a group I've been doing games with for quite a while now. We've always had combat oriented games and people have really wanted to branch out into more RP. The problem is that as none of us have a huge amount of experience in doing more in depth role play oriented games, we really don't know where to begin. I could really use some tips for how to start getting the group to be more in character without going out constantly and using meta-knowledge. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
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The GM has a lot of impact through use of their NPCs. I suggest preparing ahead of time by reading up on characters and getting a good image in your head of them. Also, picture the PCs and how the NPC will react to them. I often use literature and film as ideas for how to bring my NPCs to life. The GM really needs to be the leader in a group thats not in the habit of being proactive about RP.
Ask the players to flesh out their PCs. Ask them about desires and goals with general background info. This will help the GM tailor the game to one that interests the players.
One thing I would avoid is RP XP. I find it creates a situation where players will only participate in sessions they feel will net them XP. This makes the whole exercise feel meta-gamey. IMO
What kind of meta-knowledge seems to be the biggest problem? Playing with e6 might have them less blade-jumpy. Inventing your own setting might help with too much lore knowledge on the player side. Adventures with more intrigue than straight out combat might help with..might generally help. Opponents using stealth, lies and guise, places filled with traps and riddles and npcs way out of the partys league whose aid they need to secure are more options.
Generally..talk. A lot of roleplaying is simply about talking.
Reading some good books is good for inspiration if thats not obvious.
With regard to metagaming, the easiest thing to do is to flat out tell your players that the enemies in your campaign are not necessarily exactly as they appear in the published materials (bestiary, etc.). So in other words, just because the bestiary says that a certain monster has a low intelligence, doesn't mean that it is dumb in your game. It will still be hard to completely remove meta-knowledge (after all, most players will refrain from throwing fire at the fire elemental) but it will be a start.
As for roleplaying, I've found that the players almost always take their cues from the GM and will react, at least to an extent, accordingly. Consider the following two examples:
#1 GM: "The guard tells you that the best blacksmith in town is Barnabus Barrelhelm. He gives you directions to his shop. You arrive and find an angry looking dwarf working the forge."
#2 GM: "Ye say ye need a blacksmith? Well, ye be wanting to look up 'ole Barnabus Barrelhelm at his shop the Flamin' Anvil. To git there ya need to head down this here street until ye reach the fountain, then take a left and continue for another three blocks before turning right. The Flamin' Anvil is the third shop on yer right. But you should also know that he's in high demand and doesn't like to be interrupted. Now normally, ye can win over a dwarf by bringin him ale, but in Barnabus' case, ye'd do best to ply him with some of Ma Smith's famous cobbler!"
Both examples convey, more or less the same information. The second one; however, is far more likely to invoke roleplay from your party.