Hey guys,
I’m looking to start RPing, but honestly I have no idea where to start. I was looking at a variety of different guilds to start with, but I’m not really sure if that’s a good start for my character or not.
What’s the best way to start getting into the swing of RPing?
Hello there and welcome to Roleplay!
In short, you may first make a backstory/concept for your character. It doesn’t have to be complicated, can be quite simple to be developed further through RP storylines.
As for the guild, it depends on the individual at times, but guilds can be really helpful for sure. Depending on what you may wish to RP, options can be recommended.
Another way can be starting off with simple interactions in some hubs (avoid Goldshire totally) for you to have more feeling.
Anyway, good luck! Hope to interact with you soon. 
Hi Ousama, welcome to AD!
I think this site may help you find a guild, and you can see a little bit what sort of RP can be found on AD;
https://www.argentarchives.org/
This may help you as well. It is a bundle of guilds who are accepting newcomers and make them feel at home on the server. They also organize events. 
{and, Kump, I couldn’t sleep. 
}
First of all, welcome to Argent Dawn! I know it can be daunting to get into first, I was scared as well back in the day.
Could you tell us about your character? We can help recommend guilds for you based on that and even help tweak the concept if it could use a little elbow grease.
Also, if not done already, download Total Roleplay 3 add-on (or MyRoleplay if TRP runs into issues). It really helps by giving you options you can (but not forced to) fill out.
If you’re just starting, read up on your characters’ race lore. There has been too many cases of players roleplaying a character they have no clue on, so don’t fall into that pit!
Welcome to the server!
Welcome to AD Ousama.
Others already said the essential so I’m not going to repeat. Only thing I could add, it would be a good idea to let people know you’re new (TRP3 OOC notes works for that). More experienced roleplayers will go easier on you then in most cases and help you if you do some beginner’s mistakes whether it’s in casual or guild RP.
Guilds are easiest to start and hopefully you’ll find one that you’ll enjoy too! But if you wouldn’t, don’t let negative experiences disencourage you from trying again!
It’s finally updated my character name etc.
Right, so I have TRP3 and filled it out.
My character is called Giliath Bleakwald, a Gilnean who takes the concept of “Duty” fairly seriously, or did in the past. He’s had to make difficult decisions in the past due to his duties which has made him weary and tired over the years. One such decision was taking part in the Northgate Rebellion, which had him rebel against Gilneas because it walled itself off from the rest of the world. His duty to the human race against his duty to his country and his king, which he spent time in prison for.
Since then, there has been many other scenarios, but I’ll leave those to IC. Now, he’s basically withdrawn from that life and is instead spending time travelling and researching various pagan beliefs and traditions called the Old Ways. He comes from a bloodline that follows the Old Ways back in Gilneas, but has discovered that across Azeroth, that different types of these pagan beliefs were still being followed and different types of spirits worshipped.
He intends to compile all of these into a Tome, and dreams to publish it one day, naming it “A Treatise on the ‘Old Ways’ of Azeroth.” But, being so heavily duty bound in world so tumultuous, who knows where his heart will end up pulling him.
I don’t know if a militaristic guild would specifically suit him at this point in time, despite being a veteran. But there are so many guilds, I have no idea what even would suit him.
Something that worked for me initially was to select one or two guilds (arbitrarily if you have nothing to go on) and kind of observe their RP. You can ask if that’s ok prior to doing it. I did this because I was very new to RP and also wanted to learn how it works in general. Make sure that you do not disturb their RP if you are observing OOC. Asking in whisper is a good idea if you are unsure.
Also, you can do some RP with them in most cases which is generally a better approach. This will give you a bit of a hint towards how RP can look in that environment. Just make up a reason to stop by and hang out, it’s usually doable. Let’s say that you want to RP with a guild in Westbrook. Walk up and go “Hey, I am on my way to Stormwind from Westfall. Could use some water and rest. Is that alright?”. Most of the time they will be happy to RP with you, but do respect that if they are in an event or similar you may need to try again some other time.
Second and in my opinion extremely important, is to make sure that you have a significant dialogue OOC with the GM/Officers. They will be able to answer RP related questions, what they expect of you, what you can expect of them etc. Do not be afraid to ask anything and everything. For instance, does the guild use a uniform? Is it always mandatory? How often do they have events? What activity do they expect and can you do this? It’s better to ask too much than too little I would say. Joining a guild is joining an environment, to which you will have to adapt. It is highly recommend that you and the guild administration are open and on the same page in order to increase the chances of your “well-being” IC and OOC.
In the end, it’s always a bit of a dice roll. Sometimes a guild works out extremely well, sometimes not. Everyone knows this and has likely experienced both sides of that coin, so do not hesitate to try things.
You should always start by downloading an RP addon (either TRP3 or XRP), and making the outline of a character; give them a name, a few details, and have a rough idea of their backstory. You can usually take a look at racial or regional lore on Wowpedia and get a rough idea as to where your character might fit into. I would suggest being conservative with character ideas until you find your feet, as it helps to get confident and more comfortable in roleplaying before you take on more niche or elaborate concepts.
I would take a look around Stormwind, the most popular hub on Alliance. It is very often memed for being low quality, but it’s undeniably a good source of roleplay at least to begin with, and can help you flesh out your character through casual social stuff before you take a look at…
I always feel it’s best to look at guilds after you make your character, rather than before; unless you make a character with a very specific guild in mind. If you’re just learning now, it’s probably better to learn to walk before you run, so to speak.
I really should have clarified that my character is already made and created etc, using the addons TRP3. But it’s just I don’t really know how to start. Don’t know if I should just walk up to people, or if I should look for a guild etc.
Thanks for the tips regardless though! I think I may take your advice and just try SW out.
I say joining a guild is better, but it’s up to how you feel more confortable with.
Just hopping in to say I think your character concept is really interesting! Since your character wants to seek knowledge, you’re open to so much rp, anywhere! I’d personally reccommend browsing Argent Archives, making a page for your character and maybe finding guilds and individuals you’re interested in rping with! You can message them to express your interest and they’ll likely be flattered and probably organise to rp together.
While guild rp is great and there are plenty of wonderful guilds out there, I’d say, start by just walking around, approaching people IC and seeing where things go! It’s a good way to get into the swing of a character, and i personally think jumping right into a guild before youve got a proper feel for the character can be stifling, so go to some hubs, start some conversations and see what feels right for him.
Now, I read your explanation of your character, and I like what I read! However, try to steer clear of too much headcanon. There’s nothing wrong with a bit of headcanon, where information is lacking in the original lore, but just be mindful when writing new stuff about the world and such. Developing these headcanons alongside a guild environment is recommended, especially if a guild has something in common with your character. For instance, Olodren here is in a guild called “The League of Modimus”, an all-dwarven guild with plenty of people from all dwarven clans. The dark iron clan are not completely fleshed out, so I essentially invented some burial rites for them (marking the deceased with a spot of ash on the forehead before they are put to rest). This is accepted, because there is very little in-game canonical lore around dark iron funeral rites and so forth. Just a thing to keep in mind.
It may be good to think of a few key words that apply to your characters, like I see you’ve already done. For instance, the word and concept of “duty”. As for describing a character, take heed not to get too lost in long and vivid descriptions. You may benefit from keeping things somewhat simple. Write only as much as is needed to get your point across in your “about” section, for instance. Sure, colorful writing is very aesthetically pleasing, but the sweet spot is to be able to be concise and well-spoken, so to say, at the same time. For example, if your character is rotund, you could do with about a line or two regarding his weight and width, and then you can carry on to the next feature. Give the reader just enough to get their imagination going! And avoid using exact measurements for character dimensions! An adjective or two will suffice.
Additionally, try to avoid putting backstory in a roleplaying profile! It is needless to say that any character who meets your character for the first time would naturally know nothing about your character, and thus it is pointless to write a whole section in your “about” that pertains to your character’s full background. It is better to keep these notes to yourself for reference, and it is far more satisfying for others to learn about your character’s past for themselves!
Also, for new roleplayers, I recommend playing a character who isn’t too old and “wizened”. It’s harder to play older characters with more experience, simply because you need to know more about the history of the lore to contextualise the character. Longer life equals more lore to read. Don’t be afraid to be inspired by your own life in building a character. All authors self-insert to some degree, simply because you cannot write something that has no influence from your own experience (believe me, I have tried and failed). Just be careful not to make your character identical to yourself! Additionally, do not be afraid to ask those more experienced than you about anything regarding lore or RP, even in-game! Most people, like myself, would be happy to give our two cents about any given situation.
I really hope you enjoy your time on Argent Dawn, that you experience the best a roleplaying realm has to offer, and that you stick with us for a long time!
-D.O. Darkstone
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