Crossposted from http://soe4rp.wordpress.com/2011/04/15/5-things-that-will-make-your-rp-richer-more-fun-and-more-connected-to-other-players
Many people get frustrated when they come to a new server. They don’t know what faction has the most RP, where the RP hotspots are, or how the heck to get RP NAO plzkthx.
Consequently they figure, RP is dead on this server. I’ll go elsewhere.
However, that is rarely the case. If a server is marked RP in the realm list, there’s RP there. The trick is coaxing it out of its basket, snake charmer style.
Here are a few things I’ve found to be good for getting RP going on just about any server.
1. Look at other media for character inspiration
I recently got inspired about a character. She was the product of me running Scarlet Monastery with some friends, thinking, “Hey, the Dark Rangers are hawt. I want one” when we picked up a quest, and promptly searching my library of music, stories, and favorite TV shows for inspiration.
Somehow, I was led to the character of Ilyria from the TV show Angel. A fanvid had shots of her kicking butt and taking names, stopping time, looking quizzical, and other interesting tidbits, all to the beat of Disturbed’s Down With the Sickness. And then, I knew… THIS was how I wanted Slydebrandt to be.
Of course, this is just a starting point. Your character will take on life of its own, much like a living, breathing organism, when you throw him/her into the Giant Roleplay Melting Pot. But it can help when you’re trying to breathe life into a character if you’ve got some idea of how they should be. Modeling a character off a previously existing one, especially if it’s someone you like, is a great way to do it.
2. Pick an object from the world around you, and interact with it
Blizzard took the time to craft an incredibly intricate, detailed world, and with two expansions and a redoing of Azeroth after the Shattering, there’s no reason not to take advantage of it. You can interact IC with something really simple, like the morrowgrain in Un’goro. Or it could be something bigger, like the cultist ritual camps in Hyjal and Silithus.
Questing is a great way to do this. Working through the quest chains in the Cataclysm expansion? Do them in character! An NPC tells you to go pick up pieces of a broken staff? Your toon might complain, or he/she might relish the idea to help out the cause, no matter how insignificant a task it may be.
If you want to take it a step further, write out how your character feels about this. Self-conscious about writing? Just use a Word doc and keep it private until you’re comfortable sharing.
3. Just be IC, all the time
I know it’s not realistic to be in character in everything you do, from login to logout. In raids and heroics, for example, you’re probably not going to want to be taking the time to calculate each and every thing your character might say or do when five naga are eating your healer, your tank’s lying dead on the floor, and you’re spamming fear desperately and shouting profanities over Vent.
But when you’re just walking around Orgrimmar, or taking a trip to the mailbox to pick up mats from the mailbox, take a minute to breathe. Maybe your character is really angry about the fact that Thrall is now helping people get into Deepholm, because damn, Thrall gives good advice and gets all the chicks. And it’s kinda hard to talk to him now that he’s busy smelling his armpits over the Maelstrom.
Many people get frustrated when they come to a new server. They don’t know what faction has the most RP, where the RP hotspots are, or how the heck to get RP NAO plzkthx.
Consequently they figure, RP is dead on this server. I’ll go elsewhere.
However, that is rarely the case. If a server is marked RP in the realm list, there’s RP there. The trick is coaxing it out of its basket, snake charmer style.
Here are a few things I’ve found to be good for getting RP going on just about any server.
1. Look at other media for character inspiration
I recently got inspired about a character. She was the product of me running Scarlet Monastery with some friends, thinking, “Hey, the Dark Rangers are hawt. I want one” when we picked up a quest, and promptly searching my library of music, stories, and favorite TV shows for inspiration.
Somehow, I was led to the character of Ilyria from the TV show Angel. A fanvid had shots of her kicking butt and taking names, stopping time, looking quizzical, and other interesting tidbits, all to the beat of Disturbed’s Down With the Sickness. And then, I knew… THIS was how I wanted Slydebrandt to be.
Of course, this is just a starting point. Your character will take on life of its own, much like a living, breathing organism, when you throw him/her into the Giant Roleplay Melting Pot. But it can help when you’re trying to breathe life into a character if you’ve got some idea of how they should be. Modeling a character off a previously existing one, especially if it’s someone you like, is a great way to do it.
2. Pick an object from the world around you, and interact with it
Blizzard took the time to craft an incredibly intricate, detailed world, and with two expansions and a redoing of Azeroth after the Shattering, there’s no reason not to take advantage of it. You can interact IC with something really simple, like the morrowgrain in Un’goro. Or it could be something bigger, like the cultist ritual camps in Hyjal and Silithus.
Questing is a great way to do this. Working through the quest chains in the Cataclysm expansion? Do them in character! An NPC tells you to go pick up pieces of a broken staff? Your toon might complain, or he/she might relish the idea to help out the cause, no matter how insignificant a task it may be.
If you want to take it a step further, write out how your character feels about this. Self-conscious about writing? Just use a Word doc and keep it private until you’re comfortable sharing.
3. Just be IC, all the time
I know it’s not realistic to be in character in everything you do, from login to logout. In raids and heroics, for example, you’re probably not going to want to be taking the time to calculate each and every thing your character might say or do when five naga are eating your healer, your tank’s lying dead on the floor, and you’re spamming fear desperately and shouting profanities over Vent.
But when you’re just walking around Orgrimmar, or taking a trip to the mailbox to pick up mats from the mailbox, take a minute to breathe. Maybe your character is really angry about the fact that Thrall is now helping people get into Deepholm, because damn, Thrall gives good advice and gets all the chicks. And it’s kinda hard to talk to him now that he’s busy smelling his armpits over the Maelstrom.
