In order to properly play a roleplaying game, the first thing a player should do is shut down Skype, close their instant message programs, and forget about Twitter.
Roleplaying cannot occur outside of the game. Players should not bring their out-of-game relationships into the game without roleplaying them. No course of action should ever be decided outside of the game rather than within it. Making in-game decisions and arranging for your character's success via out-of-game means is called "metagaming" and is against policy. While using Skype and other means of communication to contact other players does not guarantee that a player is a metagamer, the plain fact is that it's a pretty good indication that they are. If most of your in-game interactions are with people you know outside of the game, and you just show a quiet, polite face to everyone else, you are probably a metagamer.
Players are strongly discouraged from sharing out-of-game contact information with others, particularly players they have just met. This information should certainly never be unsolicited. In our long experience, contacting someone whose character you've just met outside of the game tends to mean you will not legitimately roleplay with that person's character ever again. It's natural to read this and believe that you're an exception to this rule, but the reality is, everyone struggles with keeping themselves separate from their character -- you should try not to make it any harder on yourself than it needs to be.
Metagamers don't just harm their own roleplaying. They harm roleplaying across the entire game. Players who habitually share out-of-game contact information with others, or who appear to be metagaming, will tend not to receive any special attention from the staff for special plots or events. This is a roleplaying game, and it is meant for players who wish to immerse themselves in the game world.
For more general tips about roleplaying, read the Roleplaying help file.
