So you can ignore whole districts, but not one or two individuals? 
Not when theyâre slap-bang in the middle of the city influencing everyone around them. Itâs not just them, but those who stan them and forgive them and turn a blind eye at everything they do.
And letâs not pretend like the stuff thatâs been around isnât major. One of them had art of a young-looking character that they called jailbait, and their friends were like âitâs just a joke xDâ
I donât know about you but most people I know donât tend to make jokes about having attraction to underage people and then acting as if itâs totally normal.
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I donât think anyone here is suggesting that non-Mages should pack up and leave just because they arenât Mages - at the very least I personally do not subscribe to that mindset. If people enjoy what a place has to offer right now than they should continue to do so.
The point being made - at least, what I believe it to be - is that some of us enjoyed the more Mage centric vibes the hub initially had and are feeling more disengaged now its being drowned out (since its certainly there, just overshadowed) by other things more aimed at generic social interactions like any other hub.
The OP is about how to draw even more RPers to Dalaran and for some the answer is just a simple âthey donât want to because it doesnât offer what they want,â which is fine. Live and let live.
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Ahh, now I get you. Must be a hefty imbalance then.
Iâll RP with just about anyone as long as they donât get weird. Some definitely do, which is my cue to have an "IRL incident"⢠and evacuate.
Innocently assuming people arenât weirdos with a long, sordid history becaue I donât keep a stasi folder on everyone on AD is my problem.
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Thatâs the whole point, everyone here says the right things in some way or another, but it doesnât help to solve the problem.
And I think the key problem is that there is no place in whole Azeroth where cross faction RP can be comfortable and allow players to communicate with each others. But there is a way to solve this.
I know that Dalaran and the whole concept around it is not meant for everyone, but in order for community to grow in numbers there should be a foundation for that.
I see that guilds are more willing to do isolative RP content, divided into small groups and having fun. And thats completely fine, I am not against it.
But I genuinely certain that community needs a CORE, a well organazied group of RPers who agree to do their activity constantly and regularly. So other players could join or be attracted to take part in it.
I will try to give you more examples:
Stormwind - yes, it is crowded, but why? Because it is a capital? Because there are a lot of players who enjoy their stay there? The asnwer is yes, partly, but NO. I think the main reason players RP in Stormwind, because Stormwind has constant activities like brawls in Shady lady, SI:7, Investigative groups, Villains, Court every monday, Lionâs Roar, trading organizations, there are always bartenders in inns and people to have a drink or two with⌠etc. It is the main and only reason why RPers decide to RP there. It is a CORE. Besides Stormwind is the ONLY place in RP community, where if there is a dead body lying on the ground, it will be picked up by the guards and investigated properly, like it should be. Hands up for Nightwatch in Darkshire as well. Because of these RPers (Night watchmen) who do their activity regularly guarding the small woodland village, it creates a small core for other players to join because it feels like it meant to be the right thing.
Boralus - literally the same issue, there are a lot of COOL RPers thereâŚBUT only because it is not constant and most of tha time it is empty with couple of small groups sitting in hidden places. If there would be a group of players who stay there all the time - it would create a core (so called magnet) for other rpers to join.
Silvermoon - for example even if it will be crowded with one hundred sinâdorei RPers, it would feel isolative anyway, why? Because the whole concept of it speaks for it. It is a very beautiful city with a lot of cool zones for RP but its concept works against the idea of attracting more people into it.
Ogrimmar is lacking every element (described above, that Stormwind can offer to incomming players. And due to the statistics and the current situation, I canât see a way for it to become even remotely similar to Stormwind in sense of RP activities. Dalaran is another question thoughâŚ
Since there are not so many neutral territories in Azeroth where players can have all the convinient requirements for comfort RP - I am tryng to show you my point of view.
Every successful community is built around well organazied consistent people who know what they are doing, so the majority can catch up with them on the go and everyone could be a part of something bigger. Thats what I call - the CORE element.
We, as a community - we can start bullying and arguing with each others about all the GOOD and BAD ways to RP ⌠OR we can group up and think about how and where we can do something interesting together, while soberly assessing our capabilities.
Again, I am very interested in hearing what you guys think, especially those who understand the importance of âCOREâ conept I am trying to describe. Maybe I pick not the best examples or words due to my lack of experience in some areas. But in general, I hope I speak clearly enough.
Yourâs red haired sinâdorei,
Galadana
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I myself have not been to Dalaran much, but I have been there on occasion, mostly to attend an event held by a friend, or to meet some characters that usually do not visit Stormwind.
But I do remember the story a friend of mine told me. She used to run a small shop selling baked wares and tea and flowers in both Stormwind and Dalaran, but eventually left the latter because even after six months, that community was still very close-knit and did not seem open to the idea of newcomers, so sheâs returned to Stormwind. She also told me of the building-ownership that is going on there, and quite frankly, that is something you should never do imho.
That said, Dalaran is a beautiful place to rp in , and it has opportunities for many, as others have mentioned. But indeed, hubs always tend to attract many people, and with hubs tend to come weirdoes. We had the same problem when a few years ago, a friend of mine that now longer plays, had a guild that hung around Thelsamar in Loch Modan for a while. And it all went well , life was being brought to the place, but with that also came weirdoes sadly.
A good sentiment, and idealistic, but at this point also unbelievable. Thereâs simply too much bad history between groups on this server, and neither side seems to think theyâre in the wrong or that it still is any use to reach out. So they choose the next best thing, which is to stay out of each otherâs way as best as possible. Is it preferable or ideal? Not really, but it is what is.
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Even when there isnât any bad blood, some people just have different interests or styles that donât always mesh well together with those of others. It is a fact of life that there are several different groups on AD, that may not always vibe well together, because that is just a natural thing for human beings to do, even when there is no ill will towards others.
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You are 100% right, my friend.
It is what it is, for now. Lets think about the future. We all do RP to have fun, to take part in cool events, stories or just to escape the real life problems or just for a distraction, or simply to chill with friends or any other reason etc. There are a lot of weirdos, but there always will be sick minded people. The best option is not to ''feed the troll". All that I can say about it. IF you simply ignore them - they will quit anyways, because they donât treat it seriously like we do. For that I am certain.
Next expansion will be announced soon and there will be an increase in player numbers, at the same time a temproarily drop in RP numbers cause a lot of us will be doing new content. As it usually happens everytime. It is a cycle.
I hope housing will be a thing. I do really hope they will add housing, and if that happens, and everybody will be able to have a private place where the guild members can literally live in, that would be very cool. But also, RP can become even more isolative, because of that. And that is a dark side of it.
I also think that besides those groups of people with bad history with each others that try to avoid each other, there are also a lot of RPers who start rping and quit, just because there is noone to RP with and they are not interested enough to search through the forums or for discord servers in order to find that small group of players to RP with.
I really hope Dalaran can become a neutral place for everyone to RP in. It is probably the only place where cross faction RP has a chance to survive at least.
Yeah I rather rp with the pcu at this point than the trash heap of ooc figureheads the dalaran community has become
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It is good to have different groups role-playing in different areas. Many members of this community donât get along; on Horde, this played a role when it comes to traditional hubs dying, such as Orgrimmar.
Letâs not repeat this again.
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Yeah thats another thing really, people going there and finding it un-welcoming, be that for whatever reason, be they PCU members or non PCU and going there and getting abit of a cold shoulder, Ive heard a few times now how vehemntly against certain parts of the rp community the Dalaran community is, best to take an entirely neutral stance regarding larger groups maybe if you wish for the community to actually continue to grow, especially if only due to small personal petty disputes.
Edit: Ofc sometimes you gotta shun certain groups wont name and shame but we all know the sort, weirdos ect, that being said, OOC politics should always be kept out of a hub disc imo, from my own experience over in ESO when hub discs n their mods start delving to much into the âthem and usâ mentality, it stifles growth and only encourages alienating
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Dalaran is a nice place to RP every now and again. I wouldnât go there all the time as it does get a bit samey after a while.
There is an element of questionable people and characters in the city, but unfortunately thatâs the case in many areas now, and itâs not a reason to stain the whole zone and everyone in it. Just got to be aware of whoâs who.
I was initially worried about the âguilt by associationâ factor, for even rping near certain people. But I reckon the best approach is just to roleplay your character, and trust others wonât assume youâre of the questionable sort by virtue of a handful of IC interactions.
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Agreed, people go to crazy with the guilty by association stuff sometimes
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Thatâs the way of it. And donât let anyone tell you that you canât RP in the VoH, docks or lionâs rest without losing cred either. Not one step back!
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We need more views like this.
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There is already, or at least has been for a while (the drop in general player population no doubt has put a dent in it) a location and a community for cross-faction RP, that of Booty Bay. A location that is neutral (more so than Dalaran).
Dalaran already wields a certain reputation, not necessarily in a positive direction for what OP seeks/desires in this post, no names being dropped.
I honestly feel that isnât the main issue with Silvermoon, at its core. But rather the fact it has been reduced to the Goldshire of Horde, and the only people actively RPâing there are very much that, just ERPâers.
Silvermoon once upon a time, many years past, was one of the major RP hubs of the Horde. I doubt it will be again, due to the aforementioned people that dwell there. People tried a few times to âretakeâ Goldshire and bring legitimate RP there. It didnât work.
Definitively, the core issue with any cross-faction hub is the fact that OOC hostilities and past drama persists, and poisons every attempt at such. And there is already a âcross-factionâ community on AD. Whether you want conflict or otherwise. That of the PCU.
And unlike every other hub Iâve seen over the years, the PCU doesnât allow outward hostility to fester and ruin the experience. The same cannot be said for Dalaran, however.
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Galadana, what is Dalaranâs âcoreâ?
For it to be a neutral hub effectively enough, it needs to contain enough activities that would promote several groups to go there daily. Not weekly or monthly. Daily.
Let us list of the range of activities that various groups can partake in with the current set up that Dalaran has to offer.
The current community of Dalaran has:
Open market
Some small brawl event.
Bars
But thatâs all I can see from a quick skim. You want this to be a âcoreâ, then you need to offer more than shopping, drinking and a game of rock/paper/scissors.
What do you offer:
- Grunts of the Horde
- Tauren with a focus on the spirits
- A group of Alliance mercenaries
- Night elves and worgen seeking revenge against the Horde
- Devout worshippers of the Light
- Devious warlocks
- War-veteran death knights
- Practisers of void magic
- Pirates
To name a few.
What is Dalaran to offer for them that they would say âI would like to go to Dalaran.â when they think of doing an event?
You want a âcoreâ but you have to remember that if there isnât a drive to visit Dalaran, then there isnât a drive for the people to visit constantly to make it a âcoreâ.
What is there for the Horde?
What is there for the Alliance that they canât already get in Stormwind?
Post some suggestions. See if you can round interest.
Merely âwishingâ that people will visit is not enough.
The market is a start, but as mentioned by others, it can feel a bit âsameyâ. So what would you provide that, for example, a group of Horde would come to the city for?
Build and they will come. But all I see is words saying âPlease come.â
I have given one suggestion:
A cooking competition.
But is it enough to draw the Horde? I donât think so.
Thatâs the problem that is presented and one that needs to be overcome.
You need to start small. Make events that people would arrive to the city to partake in. Give them something that other places do not provide.
And, while you are at it, might be worth telling the current community in Dalaran to chill. Their latest outburst screaming âPCU badâ when not a single PCU guild was there kinda reinforces their image of being a hostile environment for anyone who isnât âinâ with them.
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Oh, and I should add: Donât expect people to make events for you. People will, in time, but your initiative needs to be more than just words. It needs to be the fire that people come to place logs on and keep it roaring.
I could host that cooking competition as an event. And I would have a lot of fun doing it.
But I do not want to do so in a place which actively projects bile on others because I am with a âdifferent groupâ. Nor would I if I know that not many would want to come to Dalaran because of the reputation it has.
This will take a lot of work. Not wishful thinking.
And that work begins with knowing what events will appeal to various groups.
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Strictly going by my own personal experiences this has never been a problem for me. Although readings your two posts, I get a strong impression that it has been for you or your mates?
Is Dalaran ârunâ by a single homogenous group of people? Or is it a collection of roleplayers with different personalities and ideals - some decent and others bad?
Iâm not overly fond of painting the whole Dalaran scene in one colour on the actions of some people, just as Iâm not fond of people painting your own community one colour, on the actions of individuals within it.
Iâm being a little more direct than usual. Partially because itâs 3am and I still canât sleep (woe is me), but also because I really, truly dont want to see another rp hub decline partially because of feuds that - believe it or not - most of us rpers want nothing to do with.
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