Hiya. I've been playing d&d for maybe a year now, nothing rigorous, just some campaigns with friends. Recently I've started a new campaign with another group, and we're experimenting with role playing.

For context, most of the other players are new and I'm probably the most experienced, so it's a learning curve for all of us. Also, I've never really played with role playing before. I've mainly just been learning the game and how to dm and stuff.

So now that we're actually role playing I've realised I have no idea how to go about it. I don't think I've helped myself by making a slightly complicated character personality-wise - she's a half-orc bloodhunter (level 2) who is usually pretty chill, confident and cool with those around her. But if she fights too many battles/encounters in a row without rest she becomes increasingly more aggressive, reckless and bloodthirsty due to a past addiction to monster-slaying. 

Anyway, I'd really appreciate any tips on how to role-play effectively, and how to have fun with it! Or even ideas for my character 😁

So, one simple thing to do is to speak in a "character voice" when speaking as your character. It doesn't have to be complicated... if you can fake an accent that might help, but just having a distinction between when you're speaking as yourself and when it's your character speaking helps to get everyone else more comfortable with speaking in-character as well. Don't feel pressured to push yourself too far... I assume nobody at your table is a professional actor or anything.

I'd also recommend doing some character prep by something simple like taking a personality quiz. They have some for character building in D&D... an alignment quiz could be helpful. But really it doesn't matter what it is... it could be a "Which Superhero are You" quiz, the important thing is you answer it the way you think your character would. You'll find yourself with questions that you hadn't considered for your character, and figuring out which way they would go will help you to nail down their personality.

Speaking of personality, on your character sheet you'll see the "Personalty/Ideal/Bond/Flaw" portion... a lot of people don't bother to fill that out because it doesn't have any mechanical relevance, but it's a great way to figure out a character and have a quick reference sheet for how they're meant to act. Even if you don't actually reference it regularly, like the personality quiz... just filling it out will help you to nail down the broad strokes of your character's personality and how it differs from your own.

I play in a very heavy RP campaign; we have had 4 hour sessions where there was not a single combat.  Roleplaying is acting at its core.  You are taking on the persona of a fictional person.  The part that I hold to is what are this PC's motivations?  That will dictate alot in interacting with NPC's and the other player characters.  The next thing to consider is how this person speaks.  Do they use slang terms or short answers?  Are they socially aware to avoid coming off rude?  And if they do act very different, how have they managed in established areas?  Playing a character as being a bully or a jerk can be fun and make sense for that character.  But plenty of times that will land them in jail or worse! 

Alignment matters, but try not to be rigid. I play an evil PC and I would be my fellow players would say I'm one of the best teammates they have.  The bonds/ideals/flaws also come into play, and weave them in along with your backstory.

Main point is when roleplaying to consider who the person is that you are pretending to be, and converse the way you would think they would.  In games where RP is a strong element, I find it makes those characters more endearing, and a better story for all at the table.

Many people might wonder what role-playing is, but I suspect most (if not all) did it as a kid.

It is just acting.

Thanks! The does help alot. I'm not great at voices, but it can never hurt to try 😅

I think my biggest issue is that may character isn't necessarily evil/mean. But I think figuring out her motivation will help

Great opinions so far, I would like to add since you are playing an orc character one of my go to tricks for roleplaying orcs is to puff out your mouth when talking (almost as if you have cotton stuffed between your teeth and lips). This gives you a bit of the sound of talking around tusks to help differentiate your voice from normal speech. Then adding either a drop in octave from your normal speech or a bit of gravel to your voice can go a long way. Also volume is a good differentiator too. If you're a normally reserved person make sure to talk louder and more boisterous than you normally do.

People tend to focus on the acting aspects of roleplaying a character, but a lot of flavor of your character can come from simple manipulations of your lips, voice, and throat while talking. There are numerous videos on youtube that can give a bit more advice, but honestly spend an hour in front of the bathroom mirror trying things and see what you like. As it's your character the only person who will know you did something "wrong" is you, so have confidence!

When thinking of role-playing, bear in mind that D&D is called a "role-playing game" for a reason. Social interaction isn't the only time when you are roleplaying. You are roleplaying in all three pillars of D&D.

In combat, think of how your character fights. If your group likes describing combat, this can be fun. Does your character leap around excitedly as they fight, or are they serious, using only necessary movements? Do they taunt foes, cheer on their companions, or yell loudly to intimidate the enemy? Think about what your character looks like in combat to bring a little life to the table during what is often considered a very mechanical tier of play!

Even if you aren't ready to describe, be in-character when choosing how to act. Are you reckless in combat, for example, or do you play it safe and retreat when badly injured? Similarly, whether your character stops fighting to stabilize or heal a downed ally shows a lot about your character.

Whether you are reckless or cautious, enthusiastic or stoic, calculating or going with your gut also applies to exploration. How your character goes about exploring and how careful they are inclined to be says something about them.

To start role playing, just imagine what your character would do and then describe it.

The party walks into a tavern ... I touch a serving girl on the arm and ask her to bring me an ale.  Then I go sit at an empty table and bid my friends join me.

The party enters a nobles house after being bidden for a meeting ... As I step into the home, I remove my helmet and look for an attendant.  I ask him to bring me a wet cloth and a comb.

The party enters the next room.  After a moment and large figure drops from above landing deftly on his feet straightens and turns to face us ... I draw my sword and step to the front of the group ready to face him saying, "Are you ready to talk or preparing to die?"

The party dismounts at the bridge to let their horses drink and have a break.  A group with a cart is crossing the bridge from the other side and the driver yells out, "Please mind the way.  Any trouble on the road ahead to the city?"  I reply, "Aye, no trouble fer us, but then we're not to be trifled with as any man, be he bandit, soldier or merchant can see. So why ye, call to us?"

Just try to respond to the small events and then you'll get the hang of it to develop your own style.

Also keep in mind that unless you all agreed to do inter party conflict at the start, people probably won't be psyched about that side of roleplaying. Your character can be as mean and aggressive as you want, but at the end of the day you're there to play as a member of a party (again, unless you guys are cool with conflict/pvp). I'd suggest thinking of or finding ways to temper your character's emotions; maybe some of the other characters know how to calm them down? Just as a thought. 

You actually explain your character really well to be able to roleplay.

First, don't worry about voice.

Be that chill calm person most of the time. If your mean chill as in nice and friendly be that. If cold and distant be that.
Then as you get angry then be that. Change your attitude. Start blowing up at NPC and players for no reason. Not in a kill them all but just in a way that they wonder what is wrong.

Thanks, that helps alot!

As everyone says, it's a lot simpler that people make out.

If you are playing a half-orc barbarian who was raised in a monastery:

In every situation the GM gives you, think "what would a half-orc barbarian who was raised in a monastery do here?" and do that.

So...this is one of the things that is sort of odd about D&D; it is the foundational role-playing game, but it doesn't actually have much within the game itself to help you roleplay. (It just sort of assumes you more or less know how.)

I'm part of a group that has been playing together, more or less, for about 30 years, with some members playing together for 40. A couple of our players are nice guys but not really prone to roleplaying much. And that's fine...as long as they're having fun with the basic game. But there was one campaign in particular where these two guys became standout roleplayers, and it was entirely because the system we were playing at the time encouraged it by mechanics. (The system was Burning Wheel, and it requires players to really get explicit about what sort of situations they want to face, which really helps with the roleplay. It, like anything does have flaws.)

In short, I would recommend that maybe even reading some other systems might also give you some clues about how to work on roleplay.

Roleplaying is just acting, but acting can be tough to get across if you're not a pro, and it may not always be clear if it's the player or the character who is agitated. A character voice (as suggested) will help with that too.

On another note, you've picked some character traits that I think will lend themselves to roleplay, but they could also maybe be too subtle and require a lot of "shading" as it were. The premise makes sense, but it may be tough to get across the gentle gradations as she grows more agitated. One cheat you can do is take quick moments as a narrator to help frame your character's moods. "You can see a gleam in Mizuke's eyes as she stares overly-long at the corpses, and she says, ' <insert your line here>.' "