World of Warcraft®

Salutations, CC!

I’ve been lurking around the AOOC channel for a while now (occasionally interjecting myself into the conversation) but I still consider myself new to the server. I’m also really new to role play, but I’d like to do more. I currently have three characters here: Azheira, Kundalini and Xeiri. I haven’t yet decided which will be the main, but I’m leaning towards Azzy.

I’ve been playing WoW since WotLK. I’ve always been intrigued by the idea of role playing and have finally decided to give it a go. I really am a “noob”, though, and I would prefer to not make an in-character mistake (I already witnessed a minor lore disagreement and I would like to not be the cause of that myself). So don't be too hard on me. Please. :)

You seem like a very friendly bunch and I hope to get to know more of you soon.

Azzy

P.S. I have a few (maybe more than a few) questions about role play. Would it be best to post them here or would the AOOC channel be better?

Welcome to our community :D

AOOC's good for short questions and back and forth discussions, but it does have a tendency to get easily sidetracked into other tangents and you're limited to who's online and in channel. But you'll get immediate information and have a chance to ask any follow up questions right away. There's some good people in the channel who are excellent at giving advice.

The forum's more likely to give you thought out replies with fewer distractions, but you won't get the immediate feedback and may end up waiting a long time. However, you'll also be able to get replies from people who are online at different times, or are primarily Horde players and might have a different perspective.

Honestly, if's it something you'd really like to know about, I doubt anyone would give you grief if you did both. You'll get a wider spectrum of replies and a better chance of finding out what you want to know!

edit: Also, forgot to mention that some people hang out in the channel /RPNewbies for the expressed purpose of being available to answer questions. You can give them a poke!

Well, greetings! We'll have to RP sometime!

The noise in the bar was causing a headache. Izby was already weary to the point that she had to wash the dishes by hand and now the bellows and laughter from the inebriated patrons grated her mind. A woman with shoulder length brown hair entered and walked up to the counter and introduced herself extending a hand by way of greeting. She was cute, young by comparison to the Draenei and eager to make a good first impression, but Izby's hands were full of soapy water and filthy mugs. She wiped them on a towel during the woman's introduction.

Azzy, Izby recalled her saying.

Izby, the magi responded with a worn smile. The woman glanced around the bar looking for a seat, but to her dismay they were all filled.

You must be new to this tavern and its patrons. I will find you a place for some solace and get you a meal if you are so inclined although it might take me a few minutes since I am too weary to conjure it for you.

((Welcome Azxeirikund. If you have any delicious RP questions and want to get into a longer discussion about it like Derscha described, you can also ask people directly. I'm always inclined to respond if asked specific questions and you know now so the invitation is available to you. Although I'm more of the persuasion, go do it. People will let you know their opinion and you can often take it or leave it. So long as you follow basic etiquette there will never be a problem.

If you're inclined to read a few things, rpmadesimple.com might help give you a basic primer. And any lore questions you may have can probably be answered with a short perusal of wowpedia.org.

Again welcome, and I look forward to bumping into you around these parts.))

Welcome to CC!

Ooh! More fresh mea--I MEAN New RPers!

Welcome to the wonderful world of CC. Feel free to prod anyone (Especially me, I can tell you about all the best staircases) about any RP questions you may have!

Thanks, everyone, for offering to help me! I took a quick glance at that website you suggested, Izby. It looks helpful so I will have a more in depth look when I can.

So here are few off the top of my head:

1. I'm really confused about the timeline. That's not really a question, I know. I have actually done some research on this, but the more I read the more muddled things get. I would like to have this particular character be somewhere in her mid-twenties. What sorts of things (e.g. wars) might she have known about or been part of? I realize this question may require a huge answer so if anyone would prefer to just direct me to a book or website that would be fine.

2. What compels Ragefang to swipe pants?

3. Obviously, Azzy is a paladin and a holy one at that. Most of what I've read states she must be full of virtue and honor. Is that an absolute? I would rather have her be a conflicted character. I'm having a lot of fun developing my ideas for that, but I want it to work with what a paladin should be. If it won't work I might have to switch to another character for my main.

4. Does the Light have to be a religious thing?

5. Are there any tattoo parlors in Azeroth? Some of the ideas I have for Azzy's history would give her some ink.

6. I noticed the RP event directory thread has been updated recently, but is it accurate? I've been to some of the locations for events and nothing was happening at the designated time.

7. Why does Piroth feel no one DESERVES anything?

8. I had originally thought I would not join a guild. (Nothing against the guilds here - I've just had a bad experience in the past). However, it seems that I would have more opportunity for RP if I joined one. Thoughts?

9. For those of you that have more than one RP character - do you keep them all in the same guild? The personalities I am developing for mine indicate to me that they would probably not fit in with the same groups of people. In fact, I'm fairly certain Azzy and Xeiri would not get along if they were to meet.

That's it for now. I suspect there will be more to follow. :)

I'll do my best to answer some of your questions, though I'm pretty tired so my answers may be sort of garbled. Apologies.

1. Blizzard has often waffled back and forth on the timeline stating that x was 5 years apart or was 1 year apart. Right now we have the unnofficial timelines to go by: http://www.wowpedia.org/Timeline_(unofficial)

2. Another Worgen stole his lunch money when he was a pup.

3. There are many paladin archetypes and there is no one end all be all mold that all paladins must fit into. I used to know of a forum thread (on another RP realm) that had it all broken down into typical and atypical types. I'll try and hunt that down for you. In the meantime, just like there are members of any religion that are not "perfect" so too are their paladins that are questionable.

4. The Light as we know it in the World of Warcraft IS a religious thing if you are referring to it from a human standpoint. Draenei, Dwarves, and Gnomes (from the alliance side) all perceive the Light differently. This toon actually hosts a weekly rp event that helps to discuss and address these vary issues. Because you use the Light does that mean your character has to be religious? No.

5. I'm not sure.

6. There are events on various days, personally I haven't checked that thread. I know that Conclave does have The Light and You on Weds at 6, Feathers has a tavern in Booty Bay on Tues, and I think there's some other events that I'm spacing right now (again tired)

7. Why not

8. A lot of RP is guild based and many guilds (mine included) do extend the RP to other non members (can't keep everything locked away -- it's bad for the community to keep everything behind closed doors.)

9. That depends on the person. Me, personally I have all my toons in one guild but a couple because it makes sense for those other toons to be in those other guilds instead of this one.

Hope some of that actually makes sense.

1) Gen gave you a good source to figure out the general events your character would have lived through. I have a character in her mid twenties; it's best not get more specific that that and avoid referring to events happening in specific years.

"The Scourged attacked when I was just a child" is safer than "The Scourge attacked when I was five." That leaves you some wriggle room should the timeline turn out to be different than what's currently listed.

2) He has yet to live down the incident with the dress, and now feels compelled to steal as many pants as possible to compensate.

3) The Scarlet Crusade is an example of Light wielders who are not necessarily what other people would call virtuous or honorable. So you don't have to be a paragon of the Three Virtues to be a paladin.

4) It does not have to be religious, as Genevra addressed. Blood Elf paladins are another example of Light users who probably don't think of it as a religious experience, considering they enslaved a Naaru to gain their power.

5) I already know some RPers who have characters with tattoos- Arothand immediately springs to mind. The Wildhammer Dwarves are known for having tattoos in lore, so tattoos exist.

6) It's not super accurate. Sunday Fishing isn't being held anymore, and it doesn't list Horde Lounge night, for instance. The Monday night Pia events are still being held regularly, as are the events Genevra mentioned. I don't know if the Raven Tavern night is still being held since that guild moved headquarters.

7) Because he's projecting his self worth on others.

8) I have a character who I decided not to join a guild with. With /AOOC it's easy to stay in touch with a community and a lot of guild's RP events and storylines are open or cross-guild. The biggest advantage to joining a guild in my opinion (beyond perks) is that it makes it easier to join any RP involving that guild. For instance, any AAMS member can easily walk up to whatever Derscha's doing with a quick, "Hey, boss, what's up?" and get filled in on events. That advantage won't be as important once you start making IC connections and friends with other people, and I know a lot of CCers will do their best to include anyone who wants to be involved if asked nicely even if they're not guildmates.

9) I have multiple characters. Derscha and Kezrin are in AAMS; Ketlan is in Terra Incognita because she's a military character and would not fit in the AAMS. I never found a guild I liked for Elren and I didn't want to toss her in one that would not fit her personality. I have a couple of other AAMS alts that are actually IC members of the AAMS but I don't play as often. Then I have a few alts that are OOC members of AAMS who only sport the guild tag for the perks and to help the guild level (and to prevent the hourly "want to join my guild?" whispers.) I also have a goblin rogue villain who isn't in AAMS and I don't intend to place in any guild in the foreseeable future.

I know a lot of people who have alts in multiple guilds, depending on that character's personality. In fact, I don't think there's a single AAMSer that doesn't have a character in another guild!

No problem. Hope it helps you out some. I used to have a guide written up on World's End Tavern's pages, but it has since died so this is my new point newbies too until I feel the need to type one up again.

1. As a human, it gets easier. Most of the events in the game so far have happened in about 6 years. So you'd have been training and participating in a fair portion of it. Stick with general and mildly insignificant duties during those events and you won't be treading any ground that can't easily be repaired.

2. I raided the pants from his compound. Now it's a restocking his collection thing.

3. Okay so the thing you have to remember is that paladin's don't have to use the Holy Light to be a paladin. A paladin is simply a knight who fights for what he/she thinks is right or just. Usually guided by their faith. If you want to RP your paladin in turmoil, take away the access to the Holy Light as part of her questioning faith but still trying to pursue what she thinks is right or just. (The two aren't mutually exclusive nor inclusive.) I mean, technically, you lose access to the Holy Light if your belief falters or your willpower weakens, but still. There are ways to go about this type of RP and it be fun.

4. Yes, the Light is a religious thing. Sorry. That does not mean though that you are restricted to sense of paladin. Like I mentioned above, you could take it away and still have her be a paladin. The spells just take on a different name, tone, mechanic, etc. For instance, my priest is an engineer and not a priestess, but when I use her to heal in RPs, they are the manipulations of various devices she has created. Like a bandage gun (for penance), a bubble safe zone (for PW:S), a green tea air freshener (for renew)... etc. You can do similar with your paladin. It just requires a smidge more creativity.

5. Maybe not a parlor but tribal people can tattoo so the access to it would exist in Azeroth. Perhaps from a Troll or Goblin in a neutral city. Night Elves could do it for you. Etc.

6. Tuesday Tavern night at the Salty Sailor still goes as planned. We usually start at 630 - 700 server. Clinic and Troubadour night still happen on Mondays as well (they rotate), but I always have to ask to make sure which week it is so you may want to /join piaooc to ask them to double check.

7. Did you earn it? No. That's why you don't deserve it.

8. You are going to have more opportunities to RP if you join one, but you aren't limited to them either. For instance, I RP with members of Navigators of Azeroth and Pia Presidium on a regular basis even though I'm not a member of either guild. The key is getting to know their people and asking if you can be a part of their stories even if you are not a member of their guild. Most of the guilds here will enthusiastically embrace your participation. (I mean Izby was unguilded essentially for 2 months after I came back for MoP.)

9. Nope. I have members in multiple, but it is difficult to play with more than one sometimes. And I do feel that I'm playing favorites, so I try to keep my interactions with the various guilds I'm a member of consistent by making all my characters accessible to them for different reasons.

1) My understanding of the timeline would have someone in their mid-twenties born somewhere between the events of Warcraft 2 and Warcraft 3, but definitely take a look at the timelines and figure things out.

2) Last I heard, he was building a Pants Golem with which to dominate the world.

3) I generally try to avoid having my spec/class define my character; it's usually the other way around with me. But a Paladin should always have some degree of religiousness to her. The fact that she's Holy doesn't necessarily mean she's moreso than other specs though. All that means is that she focuses on healing others rather than confronting enemies head-on or punishing enemies with a weapon the size of her infused with holiness and stuff.

4) The Light is rather explicitly stated all throughout Warcraft mythos as a religious thing among Humanity, spreading somewhat to Dwarves and Elves. The Draenei showing up as big Light-heavies is a nifty coincidence, but that's all it really is. But it is a religion nonetheless. It's just that, like many religions in Fantasy settings, religion actually has results beyond the behavior of people in the magic and stuff, and the Light actually having a tangible presence in the world through said magic, or the Naaru.

5) Tattoos are definitely a thing, though not in the modern sense. Think more along the lines of tribal markings or warpaint, like the Night Elves, Wildhammers, or Grimtotems. Alternatively, they're also used in a ritual sense as well, like with Demon Hunters.

6) The others have already covered this one, and I don't pay attention to much of the resource-threads for server RP anymore anyway.

7) lolpiroth

8) This one's entirely up to you. I have many characters who are unguilded, and if I do put them in a guild, it's just because I feel like at least having them contribute to someone's achievements, or I want the perks. If I'm going to associate my character with a guild in-character, I want to make sure they have a *reason* to associate with them. It's one of the reasons most of my Hordies are unguilded; I haven't been able to find a halfway active RP-guild with a theme that they would be drawn to.

9) Oh ye GODS no. At least, not intentionally. Donovan is with the Modas because he finds association with them to be useful toward his own goals, and doesn't mind helping with theirs. Korigal, Sharanka, or Teonass? They'd be more likely to attack Modas on sight if they knew what they were about. And I've been considering taking Ceiara out of Terra, because of the sort of personality she's got.

Thanks for the replies! After hanging out in the AOOC for while, I suspected you would all be helpful and you did not disappoint. :)

I still don't know what to think about the timeline. The Wowpedia site was one I had originally researched. However, I asked about it in the AOOC channel a few months back and someone told me that we couldn't possibly be that close to year 30. So I'm still confused. Also, Harmarth, I have no idea what occurred in Warcraft 2 or 3. Would reading the books give me that knowledge? I think I agree with Derscha. Being more general in my history would probably be easier. At least until I figure this all out.

Another question: How do you role play things like pet battles or dungeons? I would guess that if you run a dungeon with your guild it would be easier. I am only running them through use of the LFD finder so I don't even try. As for pet battles, I don't know what to say. They certainly aren't something Azzy would do, so I switch MRP to OOC because I find myself becoming addicted to it. I must have all the pets!

After reading your responses I think joining a guild might be the way to go. Now I just need to find the right one(s). Will it disqualify me from applying to any guilds if I admit that a small part of me wants to join only to avoid the whispers of, "I seen ur not in a guld joyn mine its awsumsaws cuz wer awsom!!"? I must say, I appreciate that most role players usually use proper grammar and spelling.

Edited to add: I hope that last sentence or two didn't make me sound like an elitist snob. I'm really not. I know everybody makes mistakes (me included :)). I just have this weird thing about grammar and spelling.

After reading your responses I think joining a guild might be the way to go. Now I just need to find the right one(s). Will it disqualify me from applying to any guilds if I admit that a small part of me wants to join only to avoid the whispers of, "I seen ur not in a guld joyn mine its awsumsaws cuz wer awsom!!"? I must say, I appreciate that most role players usually use proper grammar and spelling.

I think if you let folks know that you're looking for something to just get started and get your feet wet that folks will be glad to oblige. And this is where I recommend my guild: find me in game if you're on later tonight and we can chat. We have a quick and painless application at Conclaveguild.org . We're a friendly bunch of folks. IC: Scholars, adventurers, and those who protect knowledge (all knowledge); OOC: It gets a little silly to say the least.

Pet battles & dungeons:
I don't. That's as simple as I can make it. I just don't RP them since Izby has no reason to do those things IC. If Azzy doesn't, then don't. Most people don't really consider it IC activity anyway. Now you can... like we held a bbq in Molten Core once. But people took shifts guarding and our reason for being there was to power the grill. Then we cleared the place OOC anyway.

Guild whispers:
Ignore the whispers and flag yourself in your settings to decline all guild requests. It'll cut down any requests after about a week to nearly zero. I think I got one in about 2 months after that first week and I politely explained I already had one lined up because I did. Then we went and RP'd together.

I don't know who said we can't be that close to year 30 yet, but it makes sense to me; most timelines I look at put Year 0 at the start of the First War (AKA: Warcraft 1), at which point I place Jonathan Harmarth at 10 years old. Most research I tend to do places him at about 38-40 these days.

If you're interested in the events of Warcraft 2 and 3, there are definitely a lot of ways to find out what happened. The novels are one way to do it, for sure. There are also plenty of synopsis' of the two games/wars online. As someone who played both games at the time, I occasionally like to get nostalgic; there are videos on youtube that are literally nothing but all the plot moments from both games. In the case of Warcraft 2, this just means all the mission briefings one after another, as the actual missions held no plot in them aside from one or two surprises that foreshadowed a later mission. In the case of Warcraft 3 though, this actually gets fairly lengthy; but if you're ever bored and have a *lot* of time to kill, the video below is nearly two and a half hours, and covers the entirety of Warcraft 3's plot... *not* including the expansion!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=099P8xBxM1A

As for guild whispers, I definitely feel you there, as does anyone who ever plays an alt without immediately guilding it. It shouldn't really affect your chances of getting into an actual RP guild at all, as long as there's more to it than that.

1. You aren't the only one confused about the timeline. Blizzard's been kinda quiet on this. We know the original World of Warcraft took place about 5 years after Warcraft III, but things have gotten murky after that. It also doesn't help that Cataclysm functionally had you running two simultaneous timelines as well. Updates to the storyline that didn't directly reference the Cataclysm are meant to represent changes that have happened since WoW launched, while other events directly referencing Deathwing's re-emergence occur, obviously, after the Cataclysm. The worgen opening quests are an excellent example of this, as the first half of our story occurs before the Cataclysm, the second half after. Attempts at making a unified timeline have been made, but Blizzard hasn't put much effort into the timeline since their original one disappeared from the main site after its redesign.

2. It's Top Secret(tm), but when my master plan is revealed, you're all gonna see that I've been drinking milk, and I'm gonna get big like you some day, and you'll be sorry then!

3. The original Paladins were the Knights of the Silver Hand, led by Uther Lightbringer. They were technically a holy order, but they were disbanded when Arthas Menethil (yeah, that Arthas) formally stripped Uther of his rank when Uther refused to assist in the Culling of Stratholme. There were tattered remnants, who were once again re-unified under Tirion Fordring when he combined the Argent Dawn and the Knights of the Silver Hand into the Argent Crusade in Northrend. Much like the Knights of the Ebon Blade, they're officially in a "they're around, but there's no story on them right now" status as far a Blizzard's concerned. Paladins are technically holy warriors, but the Light is such a nebulous thing at this point that you have a lot of wiggle room for telling a more nuanced story of internal conflict without being concerned that you would sacrifice your abilities.

4. It doesn't have to be a religious thing, but it frequently is. Blizzard seems to have been angling lately towards a "Many interpretations of the same thing" concept for Azeroth's religions. Velen is hinting Elune may be a naaru (and making Tyrande uncomfortable), trolls in Moonglade are convinced the wisps are actually Loa, and taurens are getting the same power from the worship of the sun that Paladins get from worshipping the Light; likewise, blood elf Paladins had Paladin powers from stealing them from a captured naaru before they set it free and got to keep their powers by its grace. Their Sunwell is now powered by the Holy Light instead of arcane energy.

5. I've not heard anything about it; seems like an opportunity!

6. Events happen, but your best bet is to join a guild, and pay attention to AOOC. People got really busy with rep grinds and other dailies when MoP launched, and now that time is freeing up a bit, RP events are happening more often again. Mists has been a very busy expansion.

7. I dunno.

8. A lot of Cenarion Circle's RP tends to happen in guilds, vs. the walk-up RP you can find in places like Wyrmrest Accord and Moon Guard. Being in a guild makes things easier, but it isn't required. Befriending guilds helps as well, as you can often be invited into their private channels and learn more about their events. You can also, if you have the patience (and are willing to have a quiet guild chat for some time), form your own guild. We always want more RP guilds here.

9. It isn't unusual to be a part of more than one guild at a time, though I caution you to figure out how much time you're going to spend on your toons, as some guilds can be touchy about having a rarely-used alt parked on their roster. Talk with the guild(s) you're interested in, and see what their policies are.

Your pants... I can haz?

Another question: How do you all deal with mounts your character would not have access to (due to lower level or not enough faction rep)? I have a few (okay, okay, maybe more than a few) mounts, such as the Shado-Pan tigers that I enjoy using, but there is no way any of my characters here could have access to them. Could I just say they were a gift from a benevolent uncle? Or am I delving into the minutiae here and it really isn't a big deal?

Genevra - I'm sorry I missed you in game. I didn't log in to CC until late yesterday evening. Thanks for offering your guild as a possibility for me. I checked out the website. I'm not sure it will work for Azzy, but I think it would be a good fit for my priest, Xeiri. I'll try to connect with you in game soon.

Izby - You had a BBQ in Molten Core? That sounds like fun!
Also, you mentioned /piaooc. I'm going with the assumption that is Pia Presidium's ooc channel. Obviously, I'm not in Pia. Would it be a problem for me to just randomly join that?

Tyrynna - Why would I need to know where the best staircases are? Are they anything like elevator bosses?

Kyalin - Yes, please.

Harmarth - Thanks for the video link. I'm not sure when I will have time to watch it though. When I have about two hours to spare I'd rather be in game. :)

Ragefang - No.

Azheira, Tyrynna's nickname is "Staircase Elf". She hangs out on staircases whenever possible in RP. Frequently, Alliance RP takes place in the Blue Recluse in the Mage Quarter of Stormwind, though it's been a bit more empty since everyone moved down to Pandaria. There's a nice staircase there where she'd park herself.

As for the mounts issue, it kind of depends on how much you want to worry about it. By 20th level, you've interacted with Alliance leaders to some degree, and you're making a name for yourself as a hero. It isn't unreasonable that you may have been granted a boon or two by a "sponsor" from within one of the Alliance governments, which makes it easy to justify things like the motorcycle, etc. Conversely, you probably don't want to be using something like Heart of the Aspects as a ground mount; it qualifies as one, but looks silly flopping about on the ground when it was meant to majestically soar in the air.

If you're playing a draenei, it isn't unreasonable to perhaps have a talbuk; if you're operating in a current timeline, the Kurenai are likely fairly re-integrated into overall draenei society, for example. If you're on a worgen, the Gilnean horses are available.

Once you can fly, things open up a bit. Do you have one of the drakes (red/bronze/blue/black/twilight)? Those dragons are intelligent (if young), and befriend mortals for inscrutable reasons that only a dragon would understand (and likely isn't terribly inclined to reveal to interested parties; dragons' business is their own, and they're twitchy about the curious). Gryphons are easy to justify.

In regards to your earlier question about timelines, it gets dicey once you're 60th level and going through Outland, where a lot of quest text directly references things like Thrall being Warchief of the Horde, Illidan and Kael'thas Sunstrider still moving about, and even Deathwing (though he isn't named...) being active, if you're grinding out Netherwing Dragonflight rep. The way I always rationalize it is by saying that from 60-85, I'm in one large Caverns of Time instance, asked by the Bronze Dragonflight to make sure certain things happen to maintain the integrity of the timeline. I "re-join" the primary timeline once my alt hits 85 and goes off to Pandaria.

04/29/2013 11:44 AMPosted by Azheira

Another question: How do you all deal with mounts your character would not have access to (due to lower level or not enough faction rep)? I have a few (okay, okay, maybe more than a few) mounts, such as the Shado-Pan tigers that I enjoy using, but there is no way any of my characters here could have access to them. Could I just say they were a gift from a benevolent uncle? Or am I delving into the minutiae here and it really isn't a big deal?

My little priest, she is like level thirty, rides an Armani War Bear. I explained away as a bear that she grew up with because her parents are over-protective. The armor is just more protection. So go wild with your own explanation. Maybe an aunt got it for her? Perhaps she saw an exotic trader at the DMV and she couldn't resist a particular exotic breed? Not all things are exactly as we see them in game so use your imagination and find a reasonable explanation. People will believe anything well thought out.

Izby - You had a BBQ in Molten Core? That sounds like fun!
Also, you mentioned /piaooc. I'm going with the assumption that is Pia Presidium's ooc channel. Obviously, I'm not in Pia. Would it be a problem for me to just randomly join that?

There are always fun times to be had. Just need to think and get excited enough to convince others. For Pia, you should be okay by just saying Izby invited you. But if you would feel better, just ask Gently if it would be okay.

I'm from the Horde.

Grrr etc.