World of Warcraft®

This is a repost of the RP guide originally on the old forums. I figure I ought to post this here, too!

All too often I've heard the complaints, both here and elsewhere, of the lack of RP on RP servers, of how people will only RP with people they know, of people complaining that nobody will RP with them, of how people can't tell who is an RPer and who isn't. So! Come sit down for a moment or three, and listen to Spook, and hopefully this will give some basic guidelines to alleviate the problem, yes? Yes.

But Spook! I don't know who the RPers are! How am I supposed to know who will RP with me and who wont?

There's a simple solution to this. RPers, the serious ones anyway, usually have one of a few 'roleplay' addons that are available"

http://nonamestudios.com/flagRSP2.php - FlagRSP2 is a very basic roleplaying addon that will let you plunk in a basic description for your character, and view other people's character descriptions. Now, you don't HAVE to put a description in there if you don't want to, you can simply run around reading everyone else's descriptions, but that wouldn't be much fun, would it? FlagRSP2 is strictly for PHYSICAL descriptions - as in what someone would see if they are looking at your character. I have seen many, many FlagRSP descriptions in my time, so for illustration's sake, let's delve into what would be a 'good' physical character description vs. a 'bad' one, all right?

Good: (Character) is of an average height and average weight for his race. He has yellow eyes, and jet-black hair that looks somewhat messy and unkempt, as if he'd just rolled out of bed. To the casual observer, all appears normal - but if you look closely, you'll see a bit of tissue or paper protruding from one nostril, for no apparent reason whatsoever.

Bad: (Character) is the long-lost son of Arthas and Jaina Proudmoore, disowned at birth by his mother and possessing part of the spirit of the Lich King. He grew up in Nagrand because that's where they left him at and likes horses and chocolate. He's killed over 12,000 people in his lifetime.

The 'Good' character description is quite simply what you would see if you are looking at the player character, nothing more. It's short, to the point, and to top it all off, there's a hook there that may or may not make people want to talk to you - why on EARTH do you have a tissue jammed up your nose, anyway?

The 'Bad' character description is not bad because the player is obviously trampling gleefully all over lore - what makes the bad character description 'bad' is that it says nothing about what the character actually looks like. There is no way you will EVER be able to tell by looking at someone that they are the son or daughter of two particular people, nor where they grew up, nor their likes or dislikes, nor how many people they've killed recently, much less in a lifetime. However, if the description is changed a little:

(Character) stands before you, a sullen, sunken face viewing the world with the casual disgust of one who has never learned to appreciate the life he was given. The bags slung over his shoulder are crude, and upon closer examination you see they are constructed with insignia after insignia of members of the horde, presumably those he's killed. Around his neck, a small necklace that appears Kurenai in origin. Occasionally you will see him mutter quietly, though whether this is to himself, or someone, something that follows him is unknown.

He does not seem to notice or care that he is leaving a small trail of chocolate wrappers in his wake that flutter and waft in the breeze.

THERE we go, that's a bit better isn't it? Now it shows what somebody looking at him would see - and still hints at those facts that you so desperately want to divulge to everyone. Had to leave a few things out, but it's still more than enough to capture anyone's interest.

Let's post this, and then move along to another, more in-depth RP addon called 'MyRoleplay'.

Now - if you are content with a physical character description, then so be it, FlagRSP2 will do the job just dandy for you. But if you're interested in a more in-depth look at characters, you may want to check out this addon:

http://wow.curse.com/downloads/details/3133/ - MyRoleplay is what FlagRSP2 is, but on a much larger scale. It is worth mentioning that if a player has MyRoleplay, they can still read people's descriptions that are running FlagRSP, and people that are running FlagRSP can read people with MyRoleplay - BUT, the distinct difference is this:

FlagRSP2 is a physical character descrption only. You will only be able to read a person's physical description, even if they have MyRoleplay. MyRoleplay allows both a physical character description, and a spot to write in the history of your character - however much or little you'd like to give away. You can also put in your character's height, weight, what emotion they're feeling at the time, where their hometown is, what House they are from if they are nobility, etc. It's a much more in-depth addon, and while I have been a FlagRSP user for years now, I recently made the switch to MyRoleplay and love it, simply because there's so much more you can add with it.

FlagRSP2 however, is a bit easier to use, so it's up to you which one you'd like to pick.

Right. You got one picked out? Go ahead and install that puppy and log on. You don't have to write up a character description just now if you don't want to, but you'll be able to see at a glance who has FlagRSP or MyRoleplay profiles, and is therefore more than likely somebody who rps.

But Spook! How do I know if they're busy?

Check out their description. There is usually an indicator for whether or not they are IC - that's 'in character', or OOC - that's 'out of character'. If they're out of character, it means they aren't roleplaying just now. If they're in character, there's a good chance that they are roleplaying, or will roleplay in character if approached.

But Spook! How do I roleplay with them?

Well...you walk up and say hello, of course. Start up a conversation. Check out their description, or what they are wearing, or where they are at, and ask a question. Or perhaps, if you're a new character, you're lost and can't find something in town - ask them if they could help you find it. You know...talk to them. They'll talk back, I promise.

If you are nervous about walking up to people and just jumping into roleplaying, don't be - it's just...acting, only written out. If this intimidates you, I encourage you to go find someplace that is fairly active from an RP standpoint - for Horde, it would definitely be Silvermoon City, for Alliance...well I'm not sure on this server, but on my old one Stormwind was pretty hopping most of the time. Have a seat, and watch the show! See how people interact with each other, what is said, how emotes and /say is used, get a feel for the people that are roleplaying. If someone is particularly interesting, maybe you could get away with nonchalantly following them around a bit, see where they go, what they do. Observation is an excellent idea.

Nobody wants to RP with my character!

This is a common complaint, and one that will require some frank and honest self-exploration. So people are avoiding you, or don't appear to want to roleplay with you. This is the point to ask yourself some important questions:

1. Is your character too overbearing/odd/unusual/strange? If your character is constantly interrupting conversations between other rpers to shout gleefully about socks and earwarmers, it is likely your reputation is not going to be good. If you're content with this, and more than willing to play a psychopath, by all means carry on - but don't get angry when people ask you to go away, because buddy, you brought that one on yourself.

2. Are you roleplaying something really outlandish? Chances are if you are roleplaying something completely out of the box, people are going to ignore you. World of Warcraft has many different characters and factions in it, but the following don't really exist: Fairies, Vampires, Catboys/Catgirls, or pretty much any species of furry (excluding tauren but personally I don't think they really count). If you are playing someone who is a vampire(half), then you should probably realize that most serious rpers are going to look at this, laugh, and walk away. They don't exist in this world, and creating a character who is one of these things generally puts a big old red flag over your head that says 'I am an amateur roleplayer who is not capable of working within the limits and boundaries of the world I am given to play in. Please ignore me.'

3. Are you godmodding?

Godmodding is one of the worst symptoms of an inexperienced rper, and most people who godmod will be, as a rule, ignored. What's godmodding, you ask? Godmodding is taking control of someone else's character, and acting things out for them.

An example: "(Charactername) angrily stabs you in the heart with his [Steel Dagger of the Monkey], piercing deep into your flesh and wounding you terribly and making you fall over."

Or: "(Charactername) has had enough of your foolishness, and throws a handful of sleep dust at you. You collapse into a deep sleep."

Or: "(Charactername) sneaks up behind you, burying his sword into your back and killing you instantly."

Or: "(Charactername) is invincible, your blade tries to pierce his flesh but snaps in two, broken forever."

In all three of these examples, you are essentially telling the other player what they are supposed to be doing and saying that their character does it, or 'playing god', in other words. In the world of roleplaying - no matter what the game or genre - it is handy to keep a simple rule in mind: The only character you have any control or power over is your own. This is...an interesting puzzle to figure out in a game where you cannot fight with those of your own faction, and requires some dancing around. To re-write the descriptions above:

"(Charactername) angrily pulls out a dagger, rushing at you with a yell, clearly intent on stabbing you."

"(Charactername) has had enough of your foolishness, and pulls out some sleep dust, throwing it at you in the hopes that it will silence you."

"(Charactername) pops out from the shadows, lifting his sword with a snarl."

"(Charactername) dodges the attack, ducking into a roll and calling for the city guards."

All of these leave the person you are interacting with several options to play with. If you deliberately try to goad someone into one course of action, they will not want to play with you. Be nice, and be aware of this.

4. Your character simply isn't interesting. This is, without a doubt, the hardest question to ask yourself and look at.

Take a good look at your character, and I mean a REALLY good look. A character is much like a story, an ongoing story - it should have an interesting premise, some sort of conflict, and some sort of feasible resolution. If your character has poured out their entire life's story to anyone and everyone that will sit still, there is nothing more that your character has to say. If your character is constantly happy and never has a care in the world, nothing ever makes them unhappy or phases them in the least, then what exactly makes that character interesting to other people? On the other end of the spectrum - if your character is constantly miserable, constantly getting into fights or brawls, insulting people and generally behaving as if they don't like ANYBODY, nobody is going to want to interact with you.

Another thing to look at is your character's backstory. Have you made them the son/daughter/long lost sibling of someone very prominent in the World of Warcraft lore? Have you taken liberties with the lore as it was written to make your character 'important'? Let's look back at the example above:

(Character) is the long-lost son of Arthas and Jaina Proudmoore, disowned at birth by his mother and possessing part of the spirit of the Lich King. He grew up in Nagrand because that's where they left him at and likes horses and chocolate. He's killed over 12,000 people in his lifetime.

First off, in the Warcraft lore, Jaina and Arthas never had a son. This has already been written, so it is highly unlikely that such a thing would occur. Secondly, even if they had had a son, there is no way that son would end up in Nagrand, as neither Jaina nor Arthas has set foot in Outland, according to Warcraft lore. Third, when Arthas and Jaina WERE an 'item', as it were, it was waaaay before Arthas had found Frostmourne, or had any contact with the Lich King. This character premise is impossible within the constructs given by the story already written, making your character highly unlikely. In this case, those familiar with Warcraft lore are gonna look at you REALLY funny.

Any of these are more than enough reason for people to ignore you.

Now that we've got that out of the way - why don't we look at what would make a character interesting?

Okay Spook - how do I make an interesting character that people want to RP with?

This is...a highly subjective question with a lot of different answers. Keep in mind the list I'm going to give you is solely my opinion - but it contains ideas and concepts that do make sense, so make of it as you will.

1. Create a good backstory. This sounds so simple in concept, but it's really difficult to execute properly. When you are making your character, keep in mind where they are coming from, and where they have been.

In the case of Night Elves, you have more than likely been in the world MUCH longer than say, a human or a gnome or a dwarf. As most Night Elves only RECENTLY lost their immortality, chances are you are really old.

In the case of Orcs, you have more than likely been born in Orgrimmar or surrounding areas, making you VERY young, or been around for the move to Kalimdor, giving you an interesting series of hardships. Possibly you were around for the original move from Draenor to Azeroth, giving you a unique perspective on things.

If you are a Troll - oh lord, do you have a boatload of possible lore to work with, as your race is possibly one of the oldest ones in the game. There are a zillion different tribes you could be from, each with a different and distinct history - some defined, some not.

If you are a Forsaken, you aren't really any older than the events played out in Warcraft III: TFT, or thereabouts.

If you are human, depending on your age you may or may not remember what happened with Arthas and everything else from that time period.

If you are Tauren, chances are you've lived a pretty quiet life and were possibly around for the first arrival of Thrall, when he helped Cairne against the centaur.

If you are a Gnome, more than likely you were around for the destruction of Gnomeregan.

If you are a Dwarf, you've probably been around for ages.

If you are a Blood Elf, you more than likely remember the fall of Quel'thelas, unless you are very young.

I highly recommend, if you are serious about giving your character a plausible backstory and you know little of Warcraft Lore, that you take a look at the History and Lore section available on this website here: http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/story/index.html#history

This summarizes the events in the previous Warcraft games, and gives a look into some bits of lore that you may or may not be familiar with. It is not 100% accurate, as some bits of lore have been changed here and there to suit what the writers are coming up with now - but it's more than enough to give you a good look at the world you are living in.

Now, you've got a few choices ahead of you. Do you write a detailed backstory? You can if you'd like, every nuance of where your character has been, and work forward from there - or as an alternative option, you can give your character very little backstory.

in the case of Spook, she is very much aware of when she was raised as a Forsaken, but if you ask her about her history as a human, there's very little she'll tell you. Whether that is because she doesn't remember, or simply won't TELL you is unknown. She'll gladly tell you everything that's happened to her after being awoken as a Forsaken, however.

And that's the balance that seems to work best, in my opinion - sure, write that big old backstory if you want to, but don't give it all away. Keep some of it to yourself - it keeps your character interesting, and gives you an infinite well of things to pull from for future stories. What if your dwarf has a huuuuge backstory involving the Explorer's Guild, but nobody really knows about it - until one day something occurs that upsets the dwarf and that bit of backstory can be revealed? Keep in mind that a good book never gives away the entirety of the plot at the beginning of the story - the same applies to characters.

The other thing to watch for is who your character is. Sorry, but no matter how much you wish it, it's highly unlikely your character is ever going to be the secret heir of Stormwind's throne, or Thrall's forgotten sister who is the 'real' Warchief of the horde, etc. I realize there is some appeal in making a character appear 'important', but keep this in mind: it is infinitely more interesting to have a character with no remarkable background, and make their lives remarkable as you play. If your character is already important beyond all reason, there is little for them to strive for.

A character, however, that has little going for them beyond a well-rounded backstory and history of where they came from, is a much more appealing blank slate and can be made important over time, giving you something to do and your character something to accomplish.

2. Let's Get Physical: What does your character look like? Do they have any defining characteristics?

Okay. Deep breath time here, and I don't mean the Ony type. Physical character descriptions are...difficult to write as well, possibly even more difficult than a back story. You want your character to look unique, or look a certain way. Here are some really, really, and I mean REALLY common things you will find in character descriptions:

A. It is normal and completely understandable to want to have a character that is attractive. I understand this. But when you are writing your character's physical description, nothing gives an inexperienced roleplayer away more than a six-paragraph long-winded explanation on the merits of your character's bustline/hair/eyes. There is no reason in the world that anyone would have to go into that kind of detail. Feel free to do so, but keep in mind that your character isn't really a stunner, because there's about a zillion stunners out there already. Apparently.

B. Scars/wounds/etc: Everyone and their mother already has a very unique and distinct scar. Quite possibly you think that long scar across the left side of your troll's face is interesting and unique. Please keep in mind that out of the millions of players that play the game, there are more than likely several hundred players with a scar exactly like yours. Have you lost your eye? Good - there's about a million other characters wandering around in eyepatches, so you'll have plenty of people to commiserate with. Tattoos up your back? Awesome - there's about a million people with those, too. Strange glowing runes? Yep.

There is literally nothing you can do to make your character physically unique, short of stating that they've lost all their limbs and roll around on a cart, which is highly unlikely from a game mechanic standpoint.

Therefore it is entirely unreasonable to expect everyone to show interest in your physical characteristics. Got it? Really, the only reason you write them out is so that people know what they are looking at. People don't need a short novel for this - a simple two to three paragraph explanation is fine. Go ahead and throw that scar in there - but realize that it's not gonna be the most amazing thing people have ever seen. Toss those runes in there, if they are visible - but you better have a plausible explanation for why they are there, buster. Are their robes messed up or torn? Were they recently in a fight? Do they smell funny? Throw those things in there, that's some interesting tidbits.

I realize the urge to write a six-page soliloquy outlining the virtues of your character's fabulous buttocks is overwhelming, but it's really not necessary. Really really.

3. I Wanna Be A Superhero! Is your character a 'Good Guy', or a 'Bad Guy'? Stop right there! You've got a black and white character!

Okay what the heck does that mean Spook?

Simple. Everyone wants to be the good guy. Everyone's got some sort of master plan for the greater good they're working on. A character that is good is all well and good, but if they've got a few vices thrown in there, or something they've done that they're ashamed of, or some opinion they have that could be considered 'bad', then wouldn't that make them all the more interesting?

Quirks are essential. Give your character something they believe that is contrary to popular opinion. Give them a disgusting personal habit. Give them something particularly repugnant in their past that they aren't particularly fond of. Give them some really embarassing moment in their life that would embarass the heck out of them were anyone to find out about it.

Sure, you want a character that is 'good', but being nothing but advantages is kind of dull, don't you think? Toss some disadvantages in there to shake things up a bit.

I Wanna Be A Bad Guy!

Awesome. There are very few people that want to be bad guys in this game. A good villain is probably one of the hardest characters to portray, for several reasons:

a. Nobody is really going to like you. Villains are awesome characters, but at their heart, they are evil. Not really likeable by people. Keep this in mind when you take up the role of a villain - I've seen way too many really, really good villain characters quit the game or reroll a good guy because they simply couldn't stand the fact that everyone hated them. If you are playing a villain, keep in mind that most people, IC, are not going to like you, and run with it! Take joy in it.

b. In the end, you more than likely are not going to 'win'. Pretty much every story out there tends to end with a happy ending. Most people playing this game would like a happy ending for their characters. This involves thwarting the villain's evil scheme and keeping them from taking over the world/getting the girl/having a quiet and tasty lunch. Keep in mind, when you are rolling a villain, that it is highly unlikely that your character will ever get the resolution they are happy with.

And that is the main difference between a good guy and a bad guy - with a good guy, you're happy with your character overcoming conflicts, gaining a good reputation, and learning from their experiences. With a bad guy, it's the opposite - what should be making you happy is that people are interacting with your villain and shutting down his evil schemes, time and time again. The interesting part of a good guy is how they deal with adversity - the interesting part of a bad guy is how they deal with people ruining their plans all the time. Do they go insane? Do they come up with another plan? Do they try and recruit more people to their mad schemes?

Most people, when they realize this, back down and stop playing the bad guy, because this kind of thing doesn't make them happy. If you enjoy messing with people and enjoy presenting frustrating challenges for people, being a bad guy might just be for you.

It is worth noting that being a bad guy is much easier when you aren't the only one. Find some other bad guys and team up, form alliances, work together, and take joy in the fact that you're providing so many people with conflict for their characters to overcome.

Okay Spook, I think I've got a good backstory. Now what?

Now? Now you play the game. Roleplaying is not the be-all and end-all of an RP server - there is leveling to do, goals to accomplish, a mount to obtain, Outlands to see. This game is HUGE - limiting yourself to a level 2 character in a city that never goes out and does anything would be kind of dull, don't you think? Especially when there's so much to do!

Read your quests. No, really, I'm totally serious here. Blizzard has planted all kinds of interesting stories within the game, and you can pick and choose how doing those quests and performing those tasks affects your character. Quests aren't just leveling tools, they're bits of stories that have been put in place for you to play with - and you can make some awfully good stories out of the adventures you've had.

Talk to people. This is important - remember all those complaints about how people will only roleplay with people in their guild? Shake them up a bit! If they've got an RP description and they're wandering around town, ask them a question, say hello! Don't be afraid to talk to people, if you simply stand around waiting for the RP to happen to you, it's not going to happen.

Keep in mind as you're playing, how what you are doing would affect your character, and roleplay it!

But Spook! Everybody wants me to do stuff in their story!

That's going to require another post to deal with. Let's go!

So How Do I Get People To Play My Story?

This is the interesting part of playing a Roleplaying game with so many players. In your more traditional tabletop roleplaying, you have one GM who is dictating what your group is seeing and where they are going. In World of Warcraft, you are your own GM - and this makes things tricky.

Sure, you want people to play your story. That's all well and good. But keep in mind that they more than likely want you to play THEIR story, and run with it! Spook's currently got her own storyline going, but she's also involved in several other stories with several other people - some of those people know her story, most do not. You can pick and choose who the players are in your game - and you shouldn't try to force anyone to play your story if you don't want to.

Plant a seed. Give them a hook to figure out what you are doing. If they follow it, cool! If they don't, find someone else to do it! Half of the fun with Spook's current story was talking to a whole MESS of people, and then giving those that were interested something to go on, if they wanted - and in the meantime, I managed to meet a lot of different people and get involved in what THEY were doing.

The fun of RP on an RP server like this is that there are literally so MANY stories going on at once that you can pick and choose which to follow along with, and which to leave behind - and keep in mind that EVERYONE does this. Just because one character isn't interested in why you're angrily painting your toenails in the middle of Orgrimmar doesn't mean there won't be others that are. And if you happen to see someone doing something that you find interesting, go ask them why they're doing it! Who knows, your character may be in for the story of a lifetime - or at the very least, make a new and entertaining friend.

Keep in mind when you are giving your character a conflict or something to overcome that there are game mechanics in place. You can't make them the King of Stormwind because there is already a king. However, making a council of advisors TO the king is plausible enough. Or perhaps you are part of a group that is intent on finding out what happened to the REAL king and where he went - that's also plausible, heck there's even a questline in game that follows that very question, although it ends mysteriously.

Speaking of mysteries, this game has tons. Dwarves should find Uldaman particularly interesting. Night Elves will find one particular quest in Winterspring really interesting, as well as all the back and forth between the Cenarion Circle, and Fandral Staghelm. What IS that guy's deal, anyway? Forsaken - there is a questline that starts in Tarren Mill and raises some really interesting questions about Sylvanas. Gnomes - the entirety of the history of Gnomeregan should raise some puzzling questions for your characters. Blood Elves? Goodness, have you got loads to deal with when you get to Outland. Draenei? The fact that you've crash-landed on another planet, and what happened to bring you there, gives you all kinds of things to play with. Tauren? There is plenty involving the Grimtotem tribes and the centaur - more than enough to raise some interesting questions. Trolls? Oh lord don't get me started. Just go...pretty much anywhere with trolls (which is to say almost every zone in the game) and you'll have a field day.

The possibilities are literally endless - but you have to keep in mind that there are certain things that can happen in the game, and things that cannot. At present time, Alliance and Horde cannot speak to each other, something that is really annoying in-game. You can, however, have a perfectly satisfactory cross-faction RP experience on the forums if you wish. Just keep in mind that that gnome you're hanging around with on the forums would be KOS in the middle of Orgrimmar.

NPC's! There's tons of them all over the game. Use them! You don't have to make other people interact with them even, just...use them as necessary.

For yet another example - Spook was involved in a story I wrote that had her speaking to Umber, a very real NPC in Moonglade who is an Archivist. As a direct result of the story, she was, in-game, being blackmailed by the NPC, and had to go collect books and odds and ends of interesting magical items for him, whether she wanted to or not. Umber the NPC stayed up in Moonglade, handing out quests as per usual because he wasn't required to move about.

The conflict instead involved Spook, and how she could get out of the blackmail situation without getting herself killed or worse, branded a traitor in the process. This went on for...gosh, months, before someone came up with a plausible solution that ended with a really fun scene in Moonglade in which we 'knocked Umber out' and set his archives on fire, then killed the few guards that discovered us on our way out of the zone.

How'd we do it? We attacked the NPC, let him aggro his way upstairs from the inn, and then killed him. The NPC respawns, so he wasn't really 'dead', just out of the way so that we could set the place on fire - IE, set a few campfires up in the bookstacks. When a guard aggro'd, we killed him so he couldn't 'tell anyone' about what was going on.

It was fun, REALLY fun - and used NPC's that already exist. Don't be afraid to use whatever's there at your disposal for your stories - just keep in mind that the world you are in is limited, and use those limits to your advantage, rather than being limited by them.

Hey, I'm Already A Roleplayer And I Think Roleplaying On This Server Is Dead!

Good for you! Guess what? You're not doing much good by moaning about it! You can help RP thrive on this server by continuing to roleplay - not just with your group of friends or your guild, but with everyone that's got an RP tag. If someone comes up and says hello in character, say hi back! Your guild has a huge guild roleplaying event going? Awesome! Why on earth would you want to limit it to your guild? Chat with people about it, or if it's 'Top Secret', DON'T chat with people about it - but throw some hints out there so people are interested.

RPing isn't really a one-person game, it takes LOTS of people to keep up and running successfully. If you aren't feeling into rp, or think that rp is 'dead', likely there is little you are doing to correct the situation. RP flourishes when a lot of people are doing it - and if everyone has given up in disgust, you will most certainly see it die out completely. Let's not let that happen, okay? Okay.

For more information on roleplayers on Sisters of Elune, check out the brand new server wiki at Wowpedia: http://www.wowpedia.org/Server:Sisters_of_Elune_US

And if you're so inclined, throw a wiki together for your character!

For more information on Warcraft Lore, races, and just about everything under the sun, check out Wowpedia:
http://www.wowpedia.org/

Okay kids, gather round and have a seat. Let's explain two very important concepts here, all right?

IC: IC means In Character. It means that you are playing and reacting to people as your character would react. Your character may like some people, may not like others, may fall in love, may have babies, may have all kinds of heartbreak, may cause undue amounts of distress to other players. They might compliment one person, and insult the next person they see. The important thing to remember is that this is a character. Like a character in a play, on a stage.

OOC: OOC means Out of Character. This means that you, the player, are saying things as yourself, not as your character. Now, most roleplayers will notate when they are Out of Character by surrounding what they say with (( )) or [ ] or something along those lines.

It is very, very important to keep these two things separate. You are playing a video game with a ton of other players. If someone insults you in character, it is silly to assume that the player behind the character hates you. More likely than not they're having a grand old time trading insults (I about died laughing with a blood elf that was swapping insults with Spook the other night. I love it when people get prickly and I can be prickly back!), and not really thinking about whether or not your feelings have been hurt.

Don't get your feelings hurt over what someone says IC.

Don't get confused with IC and OOC.

If someone says, IC, that they love your character and want to get married, it does not mean that they love you outside of the context of the game.

If somebody says, IC, that they hate you and want you to die, it does not mean that they are going to hunt you down irl and destroy all that you hold dear.

Don't get offended if someone says something nasty to you IC. If it really bothers you, send them an OOC tell and talk it out. The player behind the character is more often than not a nice enough person.

Now HOLD ON THERE BUSTER. We aren't done here. The REVERSE applies as well: Just because your character is a jerk IC, it does not give you the right to insult the crap out of everyone that walks by you, OOC. It also does NOT give some sort of mystical 'sanctuary' from people that are offended.

"But I was IC!" is not a valid excuse for hurting someone's feelings, or making another player feel like crap. Period.

Please keep in mind the difference between what a character says and does, and how a player feels, and the distinct line between the two while you are roleplaying.

And NOW:
WIKIPEDIA FOR THE WOEFULLY INEPT (like me!)

I even took screenshots, oh my gosh. Okay, here's how to make a wikipedia article.

1. Go to http://www.wowpedia.org/ - we have a page on wowpedia now, but the same concept applies to wowpedia as wowwiki, hooray!

2. Create an account - only takes a second, they won't spam you although I guess you could use a junk mail account if you've got one!

3. Log in!

4. This is where I got confused. You don't have to 'create' a page, exactly. Here is what you do: Type in the URL you want your page to be. It should look like this, only replace username/charactername with...whatever you want your username and character name to be!

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/7134/wiki1nu4.jpg

5. It'll pop up a page that looks like this:

http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/1972/wiki2jr1.jpg

Click the 'Click here to edit this' to edit the page.

6. Now, here's what you can do - you can go to my wiki page, linked in my sig, and click 'edit' at the top of the page. It'll open up a box with ALLL the stuff I tossed in my wiki, and look like this:

http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/9528/wiki3lp3.jpg

Copy the code, paste it all into your edit box. Then go through and replace all MY text with whatever you want yours to say. Once you've done so, you can save your entry - and presto! You have a wiki page.

If you want to upload an image to put in your wiki, you can do so via the link at the bottom there. This is the code you use to get it on your page in the middle of an article:

http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/7420/wiki4xg5.jpg

You can see where I even tossed in a caption.

Really, that's it. There's nothing more to it than that.

Please keep in mind that you CAN edit other people's wikipedia articles, and don't do it unless they've given you permission to do so. Unless you're like...correcting a word that isn't spelled right or something, in that case go to town!

Q. That's it?

A. Yes.

Q. Are...are you sure?

A. Positive. Now go make an article already!

Is a "story" a planned thing where everyone is supposed to know what happens, or only a couple people do and the rest just react to it?

Think of it like this: Your life is a story that you are living right now, with a huge cast of characters that you interact with every day when you're going to work or school and out there in the real world.

Now, the same applies to your RP character. What do they want out of life? What are they up to on a daily basis? The answer could be 'absolutely nothing', which is fine, if you just like roleplaying casual conversation and joining in on other people's plots.

However, the answer can also be 'whatever you'd like them to do', in which case, go nuts. Within the context of the game, of course. Maybe your character is looking for this really amazing sword but they have no idea where it is or who has it - just a few inklings to go on. Or maybe they're seeking revenge for the death of someone they loved, be it parents, a husband, a wife, or a child. Or maybe they're hiding something that other people would want, and they spend most of their time dancing around the subject. It's up to you what your character is in Azeroth for - and as I said, you can simply choose the 'my orc is in Azeroth to serve the horde' route and leave it at that if you want.

There are a whooooole mess of players out there that have ongoing things that their characters are up to. And no, not everyone knows about them - that's what makes it fun! It's a bit like real life, in that way - nobody really knows what your life's dream is by just looking at you, and nobody knows what you're up to just by passing you by at the store or on the street - but hey, if they stop and ask, they might figure it out.

The important thing to remember is that if you are giving your character some sort of major story arc, don't blow the whole thing in a matter of days, and don't tell anyone and everyone that stops to listen what you are up to. Less is more, and for the curious rper on the server, solving a mystery or finding out more information about the odd thing that just happened to them, or the odd person they just met, gives their character something else to do as well.

Accents!

Let's take a moment out of the day (since I'm still technically at lunch here) to talk about something that can either add a lot of flavor to your roleplaying, or be the utter bane of your existence.

First, let's make things very clear. There is no France in Azeroth. There is no England in Azeroth. There is also no Ireland, Europe, Californian surfer dudes, Australians, Japan or China or any of the eastern countries. Saying your character has a French or English accent is just about as ridiculous in the realm of WoW rp as you suddenly going out in public, faking some strange dialect, and saying you picked it up from the planet Glurp.

There is no planet Glurp. There is no Glurpian accent.
In Azeroth, there are no earth countries, and faking an accent from an earth country is downright absurd.

Having said that! There are some dialects that sound remarkably similar to earth accents! Go figure.

TROLLS! For some reason trolls have been given a faux Jamaican/primitive accent. This is fine, but if you're speaking to someone in /say with your troll accent, please remember the following: Less is More. If you garble your speech completely with so many contractions that people can't read it, people aren't going to want to talk to you because they cannot for the life of them understand what the hell you are saying. Go ahead and throw in a few 'ya' or 'jah's, go ahead and drop a syllable here and there, but try to keep in mind that you're speaking to other players and if you wish to rp with them, they need to understand what you're trying to say.

DRAENEI! For some reason you've been given a thick european/russian/whatever accent. Please keep in mind what's been said above.

DWARVES! Same deal.


Accents can be fun, and they can make roleplaying a little more interesting. But please remember it's all too easy to go from inserting the occasional colorful phrase to going so overboard that nobody can make out what you're saying.

Common questions from non-rpers!

1. Why do you rp?

The reasons vary from person to person, but the theme is similar between all of us: we like to write. We like to act. Some people liked playing tag when they were kids. Some people liked running around apesh*t on the monkeybars. Most RPers are people that liked the games of let's pretend, where you pretend you're something you're not. Some would call it dumb I guess, others would say 'oh you mean like acting on TV', and the concept is similar. What you're seeing when you see people rping is not a bunch of losers trying to make themselves important. (For the most part!) What you are seeing is a bunch of highly creative, literate people that are writing stories as they go along. For them, it's not so much the game that's important, or the gear that's important, as the story that's important, and Blizzard gave us one heck of a world to create stories in.

This is why in general, most rp servers aren't up there with the whole bleeding-edge of progression in PvE. It's why you don't see them, most of the time, with gigantic PvP rankings, or insanely overgeared arena teams that cut through opponents like so much butter. It's because our focus for the most part is the story, not the gear, not the progression, not the other reasons people have to play.

2. Spook, that makes absolutely no sense and I think you might be insane.

Okay, look at it this way. Everyone likes pizza, with few exceptions here and there, right? Well some people like pizza for the crust, some people like it for the toppings, some people like it for the sauce - there's nothing wrong with liking one over the other, because hey, you're all liking pizza, right? It's just the way that you enjoy it that's different.

Everyone here loves the game that Blizzard created, it's just that people love it in different ways. This is why making fun of people for liking one aspect of the game over another is kind of silly in my opinion - we all like the same game guys. And we'll all gripe about how our class is underpowered vs. that other class that just two-shot us eventually!

3. RP servers are lame and the people on them are dumb.

That'd be your opinion and you're entitled to it. If you don't want to RP, I would suggest rolling on a normal server, unless you want the high-action leveling 'oh god I might be ganked' action of a pvp server. Having played all three, I can tell you this much:

A PvP server is an absolute blast and at the same time a pain in the butt to level on. You run the risk, every time you step out of your territory, of being ganked by whatever high-level mid-level low-level character of the opposite faction you run across. It's not for people that don't enjoy the mild adrenaline rush of constantly watching your back with every step you take. That said, man I loved leveling on one. To me, the rush was exciting, it made the quests that much more fun. I didn't stay there because #1, I was playing alliance and I don't care for alliance too much, and #2, the uh...typing skills of those on PvP servers tend to be...lacking. What you will find on pvp servers are people concentrating on killing everything in their path while staying alive, and the english language is not really at the front of their minds. But man do they know how to have fun, if you can get around the constant flow of shorthand.

A PvE server is uh...well, it's a mix. Some people are there to PvP - but they didn't care for leveling on a PvP server. Some people are there to raid and instance. It is rare, but sometimes you'll find an RPer or two on a PvE server. You get...a mix of what you'll find on a PvP or an RP server - there's a lot of internet shorthand, there's a lot of namecalling and infighting, but if you want high progression, this would be the type of server to go to. Most people here concentrate on endgame or PvP, one or the other - but they are in general more concerned with beating the dungeons and the ingame things that Blizzard designed rather than other players in combat. People on these servers, in my experience, are very much concerned with gear and loot and getting the best loot and gear that they possibly can so that they can go to other dungeons and get - guess what - more loot and gear. It's fun, seeing the high-end content is neat, raiding is a blast, but yeah, if you're looking for creative content, look elsewhere. People call this type of server 'carebear', pretty much because there's no threat to leveling.

An RP server is...well, it's a realm full of storytellers first, players second. For RP servers, it's not so much what you're doing as it is the journey getting there that's entertaining. Most players on RP servers aren't terribly concerned with being ahead of everyone else in progression, nor are they terribly concerned with being the best PvP players in the game. They're content with spending their time exploring and doing quests and interacting with other people in character, and stories and the creative elements of the game. Do you get end-game guilds on RP servers? Heck yeah you do. People raid. Do you get PvP teams and guilds on RP servers? Sure, they happen too. The general atmosphere of an RP server is definitely more laid-back and quiet than either of the other servers I've played on, however. Internet shorthand is a rariety because you're dealing with a ton of writers and people that are concerned with making sure what they are saying, story wise, is understood. Other players aren't so much competition as they are potential friends and team mates. Yeah yeah yeah, some people may call it a carebear wonderland, but it's fun in its own way.


4. Spook, I'm an rper and there are people bothering me/mocking me/being a general pain the butt/calling me names/running around with the stupidest name I've ever seen. What do I do?

There's this amazing feature Blizzard built into the game called the 'ignore' feature. You can ignore a player by typing in /ignore (name of the character), and then you won't see what they say anymore.

5. But they said this that the other and they were mean!

Right. And here's the thing you need to understand about these people. Any reaction that you have is incredibly funny to them. If you get pissed off, they think it's funny. If you cry, they think it's funny. If you treat them like they're stupid or childish, they think it's funny. The only reason they're doing this is because they think how you react is absolutely hysterical. And maybe they're right, and maybe they're wrong, but the quickest way to get them to leave you alone is to simply pretend they aren't there.

6. But I have this amazing comeback!

If you give them anything, be it a witty comeback, a burn, a mention that you will be reporting him, a forum post, a whisper, they will laugh. That's what they are there for. Just ignore it. Ignore them. Don't give them what they want.

7. Okay I ignored them but now they're following me around and won't leave me alone!

That falls under harassment and you can report them for it. Do so. Don't tell them that you're doing it, just do it.

8. But they won't go away!

Ignore them. Or move. Go somewhere else. Yeah it's annoying, but there's little more you can do without encouraging them.

As for names in violation of the naming policy - yeah, we've all seen Honeybutt the blood elf paladin dancing naked on the mailbox, or Private Parts, or whatever. If you really find it that offensive, report it. Blizzard may or may not do something about it, until that point, just...ignore it.

You'd be surprised how much power there is in not acknowledging someone else. USE IT WISELY. Mwahahaha.

And that's that, for now.

((What are your thoughts on the trappings of the game itself? For example, it doesn't make much sense to talk on the /General, /Trade and /Local Defense channels to people who aren't nearby and couldn't otherwise hear you.

A couple of characters I've talked to have made a point to emote leaning in close before /whispering. In the same vein, it wouldn't make sense to /w in character to someone on the other side of the world.

One of those characters also had to remind me that their name wasn't really floating over their head, so it didn't make sense to address her by name until I'd been introduced.

I would think these sorts of decisions come down to your individual style of play. What are your opinons? There's no right or wrong answer per se, I'm just curious what people who've been doing this awhile think.

Are there other game mechanics along these lines I haven't considered?))

To make it clear - EVERYTHING comes down to people's individual styles of play. The suggestions offered on this thread are merely that, suggestions - and I try to keep them in as broad a scope as possible. It's not a bad thing if you want to play the son of Arthas - but you have to keep in mind that most people probably won't want to RP with a character as out-of-whack with lore as that.

As far as general/trade/whisper/guildchat, people have their own methods of working around those mechanics - on my old server there was a troll girl who used to pipe up in trade chat and offer what she had for sale in character, because to her, trade chat was just a series of city-wide announcements spoken over some sort of goblin megaphone device. She was always really nervous when she was talking, too. It was cute! I've heard of guilds using the catchall hearthstone as a communication device that 'magically' allows you to talk to people across great distances. I've heard of other guilds (more hardcore mind you) that had their members carry a shard of something or other, and they called that their communication device. It's really open to interpretation, and there's no 'wrong' way to take it - that's where creativity comes into play.

Back to accents, because people have piped up about 'em - I'm not saying an accent is a bad thing, but there is such a thing as too much. If people can't understand you, you're less likely to get the rp you crave. I've seen some amazingly well done accents by players in-game, and while I'm pretty content to decipher what's being said to me, I've seen people just walk away from characters that were too hard to understand. It's just one of those things to keep in mind while you're playing.

Avoiding The RP Name Police:

Have a good idea for a name for your character? Awesome! Watch it though - this is an RP server, so names should fall under RP server guildlines. We DO have people here that report non-RP names, so keep that in mind. What's the naming policy? Eh, here - a quick search of the internet finds a pared-down version of it:

In general, categories of poorly chosen names include:

* Racial/Ethnic/National
* Extreme Sexuality/Violence
* Sexual Orientation
* Obscene/Vulgar
* Harassing or Defamatory
* Blizzard Employees
* Inappropriate
* Advertising
* Trademarks
* Pure Gibberish
* Contain "Leet" or "Dudespeak"
* Titles (Does not apply to Guild or Pet Names)
* Real World References
* Partial or Complete Sentences (Does not apply to Guild Names)

Some Examples of names that cannot be used include:
+ References to human anatomy or bodily functions
+ Names consisting of any alphanumeric character not normally found on a standard 101/102 key keyboard (O§iri§, Ÿelena, Jašon)
+ Are references to illegal drugs or activities.
+ Have neutral or positive racial/ethnic/national connotations
+ Have neutral or positive connotations of major religions or religious figures (i.e. Jesus, Christianity, Buddha)
+ Includes names of World of Warcraft realms, zones, or names of major characters from Warcraft lore
+ Strings of letters which do not produce a pronounceable name (i.e. Asdfasdf, Jjxccm, Hvlldrm)
+ Language existent only in online communication (i.e. Roflcopter, xxnewbxx, Roxxoryou)
+ Any title prefix attached to a character's name (i.e. Kingmike, Presidentsanchez)
+ References to very well known people, characters, places, or icons (i.e. Britneyspears, Austinpowers, Mcdonalds, Georgewashington, Newyork)
+ Multiple (generally more than 2) words strung together to create partial or complete sentences (i.e. Inyourface, Welovebeef, Howareyou)


So! Don't string together sentences, don't use anything that might be vulgar. Try to keep it something that looks like a legitimate name - strings of vowels or consonants that look like they'd be impossible to pronounce are probably a bad idea.

Hey Spook! Can I call my character Legolas/Drizzt/Tenchi/Bilbo/etc?

No. That'd fall under referencing well-known people, characters, etc. General rule of thumb is this - if you've seen the name in a book or series that is incredibly popular, using that as a name for your character would probably be a bad idea.

So how do I come up with a name?

Well, there's the random name generator, but that thing doesn't really work so good. Try to think of what a good name would sound like or look like for the race you are trying to play. Maybe take a look at what other people are naming their characters, and take a cue from that. Myself? I love using adjectives and nouns as names - especially when it's just a nickname my character's going by. Spook's name is the third that she's had - each server change I did required a re-name, and the names that I picked were worked into her story. Shade's name is also a nickname or codename of sorts, if you will. My hunter's name is Ketala - there's no real reason behind that name, and it doesn't mean anything, it just sounded like a good name for a troll.

Remember - keeping it simple is oftentimes better than trying to overdo it.

Q: Hey! I was trying to write a story and I can't remember just what the heck it was I shouted angrily at the Fruit Vendor last week. How am I supposed to remember all that?


A: Chat logging mods!

There are mods out there that will merrily run while you are rping away, and save all of your text to a txt file in your computer - that way you can go back and use the file for reference when you are writing stories and the like, or even if you want to remember what that insane man that mistook you for a fruit vendor was shouting at you last Tuesday.

The one I use, and have used extensively for years is WoWScribe: http://wow.curse.com/downloads/wow-addons/details/wowscribe.aspx

WoWScribe will let you log whatever parts of chat you want to log: Guild Chat, Says, Emotes, Party, Yell, Whispers, even channels! You can pick and choose which things you want it to record. I prefer to turn off everything but Says/Emotes/Party and Yell - usually the other channels have nothing to do with rp going on. If you've in an rp guild that does rp in gchat, then you may want to log that as well.

Where does it go? Well, it all goes into your WoW folder, in a file called WoWchat.txt or somesuch - the mod will tell you where it's going. This is apt to become a *very large file* over time, especially if you do a lot of rping! So you'll want to make backups every now and again, and delete the wowchat file so wowscribe will make a new one. I like to name the backups with the date of the last time they were updated - that way I've got a fairly good idea of what's in each backup.

There are other chat mods out there that will simply let you copy/paste your chat text, so you can put it in a chat file - personally, I find them kind of annoying, because I can't really pick and sort what goes where. But if anyone's got some good ones, feel free to list them here!

Q: YOU WASTE MY TIME, FRUIT VENDOR!

A: Thanks Cro.

Right, I think that's everything that was on the old thread. And would you look at this slick new forum. Really. Look at it.

This thread, just like the old, is for discussion about RP. The stuff I've posted here is by no means the only method of doing things, but it was written to be a help to those that are new or just getting started with roleplay, roleplay mods, or just curious about roleplay servers in general.

As with the old thread, people are totally and absolutely encouraged to post here with their own tips, tricks, questions and answers. Go for it guys, and welcome to the new forums!

Great. Thanks for copying this over :D

Thank you very much, now I feel the need to start roleplaying after a good 2 year hiatus. =D