Plotline-help and encouragement

90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
Hello WET readers. I have an idea and I need a bit of help and encouragement. I have a warlock here who is probably a typical warlock in that she is seeking power. I can see this is a well worn and typical plotline and I want to make it interesting and fun for my guildmates.

This is my idea and I am trying to keep it fairly simple. I found an in game item, its a Libram of Rumination. It sparked an idea with the wording on the tool tip: "Dark runes skitter across the surface". On the inside it showed a few pictures of some odd looking lava pits and the opening of the Dark Portal, I think, its hard to tell. Anyway I thought of a crazy idea for this warlock to seek a way of making a small Portal to the Nether on her own. Will she succeed? Highly doubtful, and I sincerely hope the Fellowship will try and stop her.

What is the Portal you ask? I am simply using that as a generalisation of some way for her to make a Gate similar to the ones the Legion uses to call forth minions. So I had in mind to have her find this huge tome. I will describe it as I see it in my mind:
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The book, if one could call it that, was found in a musty old chest buried in the ruins of an ancient Temple. The ruins were nestled in Eldre'Thelas, many broken buildings and hidden cellars hide treasures for those who seek them.

Vira used the power of her Shadow magic and the strength of her Felguard and the chittering cryptic advice of her imp to open the chest. There it was, a heavy tome of what looked to be leather for the cover, but it was bound in felsteel straps and locked shut with nine runic locks. The Felguard was impassive as he hefted the book and hoisted it to his shoulders. The imp chittered and scolded and teased Vira with verses of cryptic puzzles.

"The tome of Sin is what you found,
the mischief maker makes his sound.
The locks are nine the sins are divine.
The meaning is clear, to open my dear.
To find the runes of dark intent,
to open locks of demons scent.
Each lock a rune with counterpart,
to find the runes is just a start.

Rune of Vex is where you begin,
to unlock secrets hidden within.
The rune itself is on a bell,
Rung in shattered courtyard fell.
Secrets dark and a yearning heart,
Must clash to bring the glowing start.
Jealousy may vex the soul,
Words of lust will make it fall.

The imp fell silent when Vira glared at him and they took the tome back to her Keep. She spent months trying to decipher the meaning of the imps verses. It did not help he often mixed up the lines and contradicted his own words many times.

Her final straw came one day while trying to insert a rune into the slot of the first binding and it threw her across the room. After finding the imp and nearly strangling him with her bare hands and then threatening to feed him to the Undercity Moat monster, he told her she had to find the runes in their respective places and actually activate them somehow before she could use them to unlock the bindings.

So now she is sending various people on missions and collecting the runes. In hopes of unlocking the Tomes secrets.
Edited by Viragona on 7/15/2012 1:40 PM PDT
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1 Human Rogue
0
07/14/2012 02:55 PMPosted by Viragona
What is the Portal you ask? I am simply using that as a generalisation of some way for her to make a Gate similar to the ones the Legion uses to call forth minions. So I had in mind to have her find this huge tome. I will describe it as I see it in my mind:


I hate to be that guy, but is your warlock.. like... I donno.. The equal to Frostjob in intellect?

Assuming she's not actually Legion -aligned- then opening a portal to the Nether is basically the same as setting yourself on fire irl because you think it's a bit too cold at the moment. Not only is it very easily damning the world, or at least everyone in the immediate area, but her !@# is going to get sucked into it and be tortured / enslaved / murdered by demons for her transgressions against them.

07/14/2012 02:55 PMPosted by Viragona
The book, if one could call it that, was found in a musty old chest buried in the ruins of an ancient Temple. The ruins were far underground in a deep cave off the coast of Tanaris. It was obviously a secretive Cult and the remains of humans and possibly elves were mostly skeletal and broken apart after centuries of being buried here.


Zzz, lore is hard. It's been less than ten years since any playable races other than Tauren and Night Elves set foot on Kalimdor. Next?

07/14/2012 02:55 PMPosted by Viragona
This is my idea and I am trying to keep it fairly simple. I found an in game item, its a Libram of Rumination. It sparked an idea with the wording on the tool tip: "Dark runes skitter across the surface". On the inside it showed a few pictures of some odd looking lava pits and the opening of the Dark Portal, I think


You mean the book which explicitly says stuff about killing for the glory of Quel'thalas, restoring the Sunwell, and serving lord Illidan?

Yeah.. That sounds like insane demon cultists too me...

07/14/2012 02:55 PMPosted by Viragona
Her final straw came one day while trying to insert a rune into the slot of the first binding and it threw her across the room. After finding the imp and nearly strangling him with her bare hands and then threatening to feed him to the Undercity Moat monster, he told her she had to find the runes in their respective places and actually activate them somehow before she could use them to unlock the bindings.


So her imp just happens to know exactly how to open and use this gigantic ancient tome. K, where do I pick up my imp version of Dumbledore?

07/14/2012 02:55 PMPosted by Viragona
I can see this is a well worn and typical plotline and I want to make it interesting and fun for my guildmates.


There's nothing wrong with a well-worn and typical plot line if you execute it well.

Having your character be a moron who should die due to forgetting to breath, giving her a minion which is apparently the most intelligent of its entire race, creating a time-line paradox, and giving said character an item of unfathomable power which could end the world is not the way to do it.
Edited by Hallinton on 7/14/2012 4:31 PM PDT
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
Well hello Hal, how nice of you to drop by. I hate to tell you, but I am not worried about following the lore exactly. I use the lore to spark ideas. What I have done is create an evil warlock. Is she going to die? Of course she is! I only create evil characters to die.

As to the imp knowing things? I take that from the books and from in game that the imps are the instigators and tricksters. Do they have knowledge? Yes they do, they are from the Nether and know the secrets of gaining power and using it. But they are to weak and scattered in their thoughts to act on the knowledge so they tease their masters constantly with insane chatter.

I actually have some wonderful rpers who are enjoying the game with me. So telling me others will not play along with my ideas is kind of pointless. I respect your opinion and thank you for your advice.

This character is slightly crazy, yes. Does she have any idea what will happen when she opens the final rune? Not really, I don't either, but thanks for giving me some more ideas. I think someone will try and stop me. In fact I have a guild full of rpers and they are working diligently to stop her no matter what it takes. I would invite you to join us and play along, but you are stuck in Goldshire and enjoying the nonsense that dwells therein.

Have fun in your little corner of Azeroth Hal, and I will have fun exploring the rest of it and encouraging others to do the same.
Edited by Viragona on 7/15/2012 1:02 PM PDT
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1 Human Rogue
0
07/15/2012 12:54 PMPosted by Viragona
Well hello Hal, how nice of you to drop by. I hate to tell you, but I am not worried about following the lore exactly. I use the lore to spark ideas.


The lore is the letter of the law. This is not your fantasy universe. This is not your friends fantasy universe. This is not a fantasy universe which has been made open to the whims of any individuals who wish to write stories in it. This is a fantasy universe which is very much being led, directed, and written by a group of people who are uncompromising with their lore.

With that said, there are some grey areas in lore in which we, as responsible RPers, need to navigate as best we can using logic and common sense. You, unfortunately, are neither treated on any of those grey-areas, nor are you applying much logic or common sense with regards to the deviations you're trying to justify. The absolute end-all be-all here is that you're trying to take some cool ideas from warcraft and make them dance and do what you will in ways that they're not supposed to, while still hiding under the guise of warcraft and its cannon.


I would invite you to join us and play along, but you are stuck in Goldshire and enjoying the none sense that dwells therein.


We've moved onto ignorant little cheap shots I see.

07/15/2012 12:54 PMPosted by Viragona
Have fun in your little corner of Azeroth Hal, and I will have fun exploring the rest of it and encouraging others to do the same.


So, basically, you're exactly the type of person we generally call out on these boards as the paragon of what not to be?

The ones who post a thread saying "Feedback please!" but then do nothing but whine, cry foul, and tell people that there's a great big world out there and they're doing it the right way then?
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
I am not going to trade insults with you Hal, I really am not that kind of person. I am following the lore as I see it in game. Does my idea seem far fetched? Of course it is! I never said Vira was the smartest in the world. She is crazy, interprets things from an imp who chatters riddles.

I intend her to be stopped, I want her to be the most insane character she can be. I am giving my guildmates fun and involved stories to play out. I can see some good points in your advice and I intend on changing a few things. I thank you again for your advice.

Thanks Frostglare. You are more than welcome to join us anytime and add to the plot.
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100 Human Mage
20185
Viragona, I would potentially suggest changing the location of the discovered tome. Not for Halinton's reason but simply because there are other areas in the game world with ruins that more naturally lend themselves to the secreting away of dangerous tomes.

Eldre'Thalas, for instance, is an entire city that was once inhabited by the Highborne. Yeah, the people who helped the Legion invade Azeroth. I would assume that treasure hunters are always trying to dig out more valuables from that city. One of the Shen'drelar even makes mention of how regularly books are stolen from their library, only to be retrieved again later.

Rather than inventing a structure (your ancient temple) in a region that shows no in-game evidence of such structures, how about adopt a location that's already steeped in lore revolving around demonic magic and ancient tomes of knowledge?

While I am in no way of the "you can't do it unless the lore specifically ok's it" mindset that Halinton is, I still find it important to tie the stories I create as much to existing lore as possible. By moving your tome from Tanaris to Eldre'thalas (or even the Highborne ruins in Stonetalon) you connect your tome of knowledge to lore-based tomes of knowledge, your ancient ruins to in-game ancient ruins, your idea for a portal to people who've attempted such things in the past and very likely your character's fate to the fate of people who've tried the same thing in the past.
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
Thanks Imperon I will do just that!! I know the place as well. I recently did some questing there. Highborne will likely be the kind who would harbor such a tome. I appreciate helpful advice given in the tone you convey.
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
Hello Cadros. I appreciate all the advice that is given in a helpful and constructive way without being insulting. The way you and Hallinton do it makes me cringe. But I will do as Imperon suggested and changed the location of where she found the tome. Mainly because I have a great deal of respect for Imperon and his ideas.
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
@ Frostglare, and anyone else who is interested. We are a strictly rp guild and have a lot of fun exploring the world of Azeroth and love to have you join us. There is no rule on actually doing the challenge to be in the guild.

http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/5912661507
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100 Human Mage
20185
Frankly, I don't care which reason you came here for, all I would like to see is that this thread dies quickly and we can move on to helping people who actually want/need/deserve it.


This, Cadros, was unneeded. Viragona asked for advice on a story line that definitely needed some help. Most of my "version 1" stories aren't amazing either. Hallinton's response to her story line was needlessly abrasive, regardless of how much of it might need work. People have a tendency to get defensive when you treat them like that.

Responses without the bile will get much more positive results.
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
I tried to start threads in here and have some storylines going, but the atmosphere has been kind of dull and lacking in participation lately. Besides I have far more fun in game with rp than I do on forums.
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100 Undead Rogue
10430
It sounds like it might be fun to play out. Especially hunting for the runes, which could lead to all sorts of misadventures. I do think having her succeed in opening a portal would be pushing the envelope too far, but the attempt could be interesting. Possibly the key to her own demise? You did say you created her to die, so who knows? /shrug

Anyway, you've got the plot and you've got the players. I say run with it and see where it leads you. Not that you need anyone's permission to do it, of course.
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90 Blood Elf Warlock
7240
It seems funny to me that someone who insists they want a thread to die keeps coming back to post in it.

I do follow lore as best as I can, I never claimed to be perfect. I said I use the lore to spark ideas for stories. Perhaps I was not explicit enough. I want the plotline to be as correct as I can make it. Given the lore I follow is in game and in the canon books, which I have and read and refer to. There are books everywhere. I love finding them and I use them as idea generators.

I am constantly correcting the rpers I have in the guild to be better at following the lore and avoiding the "Mary Sue" or elitest attitude and the creation of overpowered characters. However I try to be gentle about it and offer them sources on creating their characters and making them believable and fun to play.

What I have issue with most of the time is the attitude of the "lore police" who insist we are all capable of making totally lore consistent and interesting characters and still have fun. Guess what? The amount of people playing things exactly in that manner are VERY few! Not everyone is capable of being a Tolkien or even a George Lucas and making characters who meet your standards.

That does not mean they are stupid or ignorant or unable to improve. Calling people names and insulting their intelligence makes them turn away from the very thing you are trying to get them to do. I say let them have fun and keep trying to improve. That is all we can do as rpers.

As for Blizzard forcing people to comply? They won't do anything about it because it is in their best interests from a business perspective to make the game as fun and open as they can so they can attract and keep subscribers.

Yes I would like to see realms that are strictly for rpers, and more in game things specifically for rpers. But it won't happen because most of the people who play the game, and I mean a HUGE number of them, do not care about rp. This is why most of those who do care congregate on the popular rp realms.
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