Due to a recent event, I wanted to start a discussion on those two terms listed in the title - plagiarism and roleplaying. Is plagiarism even a valid term to use when roleplaying? Or are all rights wavered when engaging in roleplaying?

I have some samples I would like to share. Let me know your thoughts on them. What would you do? How would you handle it?

SAMPLE ONE
You poured your heart and soul into making a roleplay. Although the idea is not new, the concept, theme, and location were your own creations. One day, while visiting another roleplay site, you notice that your story, the whole gist of your roleplay, is being used by someone else. Not only did they steal your idea, but they also stole your paragraphs, layout, and setup!

How would you go about handling this situation? Does it bother you that someone blatantly stole your idea?


SAMPLE TWO
You recently finished making a roleplay and really like how it came out. It had its own twist, which made it all yours. Your best friend happens to google your username and discovers it is on some site he/she knows you are not on. Being a good friend, he/she enrolls on the site and discovers that they stole your roleplay. They did change some things up, but the idea was taken from you. However, they did give you credit for making it, but they never asked for your permission. In fact, you don't even know who they are or how they found your roleplay.

What do you do? How do you feel?


SAMPLE THREE
You've just spent several hours designing a character for a roleplay. You come up with a name, a history, and even a personality. You spend hours looking for a piece to match your character's physical appearance (or you draw one yourself), and you finally settle on this one image. You enroll in the roleplay, but, soon after it has started, you realize you cannot commit to said roleplay. Seeing as you hadn't posted, you figure pulling from it would be easy. You ask to be removed and go about your life. A few weeks later, you return to the site and notice that someone has completely taken over your character. They are using the same name, the same character, and hell, the same exact layout you made. The only thing different is... the name of the person controlling them.

Who's at fault? The GM or the person that stole the character? Or is the original creator of the character (you) at fault?