Repost from the old forums because this place needs it.
Many of us have gathered here to discuss, critique, and screech like howler monkeys bereft of hemorrhoid cream and donut chair covers about the story and lore of the Warcraft universe. Due to the multiple sources of media, twitter posts, and game play, we often have to cross racial and faction lines to fully understand the story.
I know many of us like to wear our affiliation and pride on our sleeves, and take with it a sense of belonging. Most of us also partake in role-play, as neglected as it is in the game. As you peruse through those threads on this hereon forum, you will occasionally come across players from other affiliations that do not match what you wear on your sleeve, or even players who are of the same affiliation with you who do not chant the officially sanctioned âfaction songâ with the same reverence you think it should be given. So, before you lash out in a Virol-filled rant about them, this, there, or whatever, keep in mind this is not the place for that.
There is an outlet for your need to stay in character and fulfill your urge to champion your views cause, and that is the Worldâs End Tavern: Role-play and Fan Fiction Forum. You can fulfill your partisan opinions there and be among people who welcome it. Because it is not welcomed here.
It tends to happen fairly often here, especially among new posters and forum users. I think a post like this is good to make sure everyone stays on the same page and we can have more constructive discussions.
I donât think itâs a call to stay neutral but rather understand that it other human beings you are trying to interact with, and that just because a player has a horde or alliance preference does not mean you can just dismiss their views out of hand.
Some people can get wrapped up in how their character would think to the point where they will argue a point because that is what their character would do, not whether or not that is a hill they need to die on so to speak.
I rarely see anyone seriously RP. It is rare enough to be pointed out. I see RP used as an insult often, and sometimes incorrectly. People accuse each other of RPing for having different opinions.
If I say:
I enjoy Tyrande telling Thalyssra off, and I understand the enmity between the Kaldorei and Shaldorei.
Some say I am RPing simply because they disagree and interpret the story differently. They think my opinion stems from self serving Blood Elf/Horde bias.
Likewise, if I say:
The Kaldorei deserved to lose Teldrassil for harboring the Worgen after Stormheim and participating in the Alliance.
Some say I am RPing because they disagree with my opinion of the current Warcraft story.
Iâve seen an occasion RP-ish response, sometimes made them myself just to add a bit of humor/snark to a post for fun but nothing serious enough to warrant a call out to another poster.
It can be fun sometimes when the banter turns to a bit of RP-teasing another poster. Honestly of late, this forum could use it because there have been some seriously heavy emotions posted about the story itself so a little fun thrown in could be a good thing.
In the end this forum is about StoryâŚtherefore it does concern how our characters see/feel said story so to some extent I think all of us are at least a little guilty of letting the we play âwriteâ an opinion or two on some subjects. Whether conscious or subconscious the story does affect our characters so its not surprising that a bit of âtheirâ opinion gets thrown into the mix. So if a little RP slips in, chill out and deal with it, its a story.
I think the larger point is that people, will form a persona on the forum and then craft their conclusions and opinions around that persona. Usually this is done when they strongly associate with one faction.
To take an extreme example from another thread.
Now, there is no way this poster is sincere without ignoring 14 years worth of lore. So either sheâs roleplaying as a Draenei Mage, sheâs a troll desperate for attention, or she has decided that she is the defender of the Alliance on this forum and she will attack the Horde at every opportunity. Now I donât think sheâs a troll because sheâs too consistent for that, which leaves the other two options, both of which are roles she may be playing.
But either way, there is an undercurrent in her posts of not being able to separate her views on this forum from in universe views of her character.
Objectivity in discussing lore is what should be strived for. Obviously not creating a toxic environment is important too, a lesson I can certainly keep in mind, and a lesson that at least one person advocating for it could also remember.
But the issue of roleplaying is one of someone picking a persona, even if that persona is as simple as âadvocate for my factionâ and then crafting their opinion around that persona. This persons persona is Illidanâs enemy, because sheâs roleplaying. But Illidan is not her enemy, because Illidan isnât real, and neither is her persona.
This is me. As you said, it can get pretty heavy in here so a bit of humor to ease the tensions helps. Sometimes I get a few smiles, sometimes my humor falls flat. But I do try to keep the RP out of most of my posts.
I think itâs easy to interpret strong opinions as RP, but itâs important to understand that they are not the same thing. Itâs even more important to understand that âneutralityâ is kind of a nonsense concept here - everyone has opinions that are influenced by their experiences and preferences. Pretending to exist in some kind of zen state of pure objectivity is just arrogant posturing.
I generally only ârole playâ on this section if someone is taking themselves and their character too seriously in the original topic post. Otherwise itâs pointless.
I donât tend to get âin characterâ on the Story Forums, but when I do itâs to insult goblins. (Which is ironic because I use my goblin as my online alias for other WoW-related things.)
It seems like thereâs always ONE person at any given time who takes lore 100% seriously. The other team is EVIL and anyone who would play them is EVIL. Eventually they usually meltdown and disappear because they canât understand why everyone doesnât agree with them, but they are replaced by some other crazy person soon after.
Social pressure is the main enforcer. Everyone will treat you like a moron, and ignore any rational point you are trying to make. Anyone who disagrees with your posts will mock you for RPing instead of having to counter your points.
![:smiley:](https://d38bqls1q93fod.cloudfront.net/en/wow/images/emoji/twitter/smiley.png?v=6" ":smiley:")