I Want to Be Bad

[Cowvenent-area-52]

Yes, how dare you want something different, immersive, responsive to your choices, or just your kind of fun

[Pyromor-shandris (Pyromor)]

It’s not that it is,it is because you’re an anti-hero after awhile no one will trust you on either side. You can’t get around the type.

[Hornwinkle-caelestrasz]

I watch the movies at least once, then I skip them

[Lingxiu-the-forgotten-coast]

No, this doesn’t work in MMOs. You can play villain in single-player or small-scale mutliplayer games but WoW’s narrative can’t handle PCs-as-villains. Everyone has to be on the same side.

[Ornasse-wyrmrest-accord (Ornasse)]

I was just thinking about that quest, it was super fun!

[Inthvedis-wyrmrest-accord]

What you need is a all undead themed RP PVP guild. Where you go out into the wild with comrade edge lords killing players left and right in pvp mode until they cry on the forums.

Then you will know the deed is done. XD

[Orctang-area-52 (Orctang)]

@Humort-emerald-dream

I’m tired of being a champion, hero, whatever random NPC #9,001 is calling me next xpac and on. It’s boring. I’m sick of it… sick of helping Azeroth. Playing a villain is more fun, especially if you have alts.

Sounds like this game might not be for you!

[Fungi-sisters-of-elune]

I never really liked d&d alignment though. Made a billion neutral characters to avoid it. I am rather glad there isn’t that sense of rigidity in other fantasy games, like this one.

[Humort-emerald-dream]

@Lingxiu-the-forgotten-coast

No, this doesn’t work in MMOs. You can play villain in single-player or small-scale mutliplayer games but WoW’s narrative can’t handle PCs-as-villains. Everyone has to be on the same side.

There are a series of quests in the Howling Fjord where you help the Forsaken synthesize a plague capable of killing all life on Azeroth. In fact, even before this, players were helping the Royal Apothecary Society commit all manner of atrocities. During the Cataclysm, you unleashed said blight upon Gilneas. In Legion, as a death knight, you invade Light’s Hope (a second time), killing many paladins as you attempt you attempt to recover Tirion’s remains so he can be raised as the Fourth Horseman. In BfA, as Alliance, you invade Dazar’alor and commit regicide. Also in BfA, as Horde, you are given the choice to help Sylvannas–again–commit all manner of atrocities.

The quests players complete, and even the choices they make need not be the same. While the main story will have a generic, set path, it’s still possible to let a player choose their alignment and/or part in that story. It’s already been done before in WoW… just on a much smaller scale than what it could be.

[Lingxiu-the-forgotten-coast]

You’ve outlined the problem here; good characters can’t stop those atrocities from being committed by the RAS, and evil characters can’t stop Sylvanas from being deposed.

WoW can’t handle a morality system because it would further divide the playerbase.

[Kynladoria-maladath]

Have you seen how much fauna we kill at the slightest provocation with the littlest regard for anything other than treasure? You think you’re the good guy?

We’re constantly playing into villains’ plans because of our propensity to just kill.

[Tennueth-proudmoore]

Thus the entire plot of Duskwood.

[Maidenofbeer-proudmoore]

@Lirani-nordrassil

In BfA the Horde was downright evil. Disgustingly so. Of course, it’s just a game, but I really struggled to have my characters go through all that repulsive stuff.
I mean, the Horde had done some dubious things before, like Southshore, Gilneas, Theramore, Stormheim, the Gathering, Valley of Eternal Blossom, Ashenvale and so on, but BfA took it to a whole new level. If everything in this game wasn’t defined by race, that would have been the moment I transferred all my characters because it just stopped being enjoyable to play Horde for me. So, yeah, at that time, I would have told you to play Horde.

Now, though, since the Horde has more or less been turned into the red Alliance and every race feels kind of the same… I dunno, either find a role-playing group in WoW or play something else. I don’t think they’ll do something like that again unless they create a third faction.

Alliance committed war crimes in Panda. shooting the unarmed grunts trying to swim to safety was evil

[Humort-emerald-dream]

The nuance of morality for both sides has always made the Warcraft franchise interesting. There never was a clearly defined “good” faction. I just wish the main story and quests offered more choice, variety, and/or paths for the player. This would only reflect the variations in alignment found within the Alliance and Horde.

Although not really a moral branch, the quest chain involving Sabellian and Wrathion is a good example of how player choice (or at least the illusion of it) can be utilized in an MMO. This could even be taken a step further, in which the percentage of players selecting a side is considered for how the main story proceeds. Our collective decisions would have an actual impact on the lore.