Hi everyone! I’ve encountered a problem in my WoW life which can be called as “identity crisis”. Here’s what I’m talking about:
I’ve been playing WoW on and off since TBC exclusively for Horde. (Barely touched BfA though.) Tried making a couple of Alliance characters during the course of years, but in the end abandoned them.
After Classic announcement, however, I decided to see “the other side” and was determined to play Paladin. In the end, I started this character and now I’m level 34.
Every time I log in, however, and interact with Alliance side of the World, be it cities, NPCs or players, I have an odd and uneasy feeling that I’m an outsider to this faction. Hard to describe more specifically, but to put it simple, I’m not feeling comfortable playing for team blue even though I like Paladin as a class. Don’t have this feeling while playing my Horde toons on another server.
Has anyone else experienced something like this? If yes, how did you deal with it? Perfect solution would be to play both factions, but I can’t afford the luxury.
It’s somewhat similar for me, yeah. My first character was horde, back in 2006 and I’ve stuck primarily to that side ever since. Had a few alliance characters at times, but overall the whole ‘vibe’ of the faction just doesn’t strike a chord with me.
As to how I deal with it… by primarily playing Horde and using Alliance mainly as the faction that I occasionally play an alt at ;>
Before my break I was a proud hordie, I tried several alliance, but it didn’y feel like ‘home’ like you describe it
When I returned I started a new toon because I couldn’t figure out my chars as I left them.
And as I ran around in the beginner areas of my new tauren I became extremely bored, because I’ve seen everything before
So I started on ‘the other side’ and I started by creating a race I always find extremely boring: Night elf - the change of perspective seemed to help.
The game got so new to play again
(this was in retail)
I didn’t decide on a faction in Classic, but more on a realm or 4 and decided to try out different sides.
On one realm it was the alliance side that has won, on another it is the horde… So atm I play on 2 different realms with a char on each faction.
What pulled me to the sides on each realm is the players I have come across
That is very accurate to how I have felt too, those few moments I have ventured to the Horde side I do not really “deal” with it, other than playing Alliance, almost exclusively. Sorry, that answer is probably not of much help!
I played Alliance when I started in 2007, I started also playing Horde in MoP, but I always felt like a double agent, I decided to play both to prove it to myself that there is actually no difference between the players skill or attitude on either side(as so many suggest in these forums and in BG chat), I found what I expected
I am your opposite number. I was always an Alliance player, in Classic I play Tauren, and I like it. I still feel a bit strange, and I even got myself killed a time or two by clicking the wrong flight master But Tauren grows on me, slowly. Like Moothilda it’s also the people I have met, that makes the difference, on one realm I met disgusting Hordies, that’s now where I play alliance, and vice versa. But I main Horde in Classic so far.
I’d say give it a try for some more levels. Try reading the Quest descriptions, also the flavour texts of NPCs; go out of your way to see some of the more hidden sides of the Alliance. It takes time becoming a native in a foreign culture.
Yeah I an guilty of that one too… Specially if I change char/faction during the same evening and they are in the same area, I always run into the same camp the other char was in… Always have me sitting for a moment thinking if I flagged myself for pvp since I died where I did
When I came back to wow, coming to vanilla for the first time in Pservers(I’m a wrath baby that quit in cata…) I played horde at first, that’s what I was most nostalgic about.
Then I went to Alliance and had some issues, similar but mostly just gameplay related. Despite Alliance having better low level areas compared to The Barrens, I struggled to optimise the experience on my little gnome warlock. I also(nearly) clicked on wrong flight masters at BB etc.
It all grew on me though, Alliance has my favourite cities, hubs and even method of travel. I picked Alliance when I played TBC despite the disadvantage because of that preference.
For Classic I went Horde but it’s only because I chose hunter. The most recent hunter I levelled to 70 was Night Elf. If I had chosen Warlock, which I almost did; I’d have been a human for maximum aesthetic gear quality.
Edit: To summarise I feel like you become the faction you’re playing as during Classic, maybe not right away but eventually you’ll learn to hate the Horde while levelling. Soon.
Alliance quests, towns, cities and zones I do love in their entirety. but I’m Horde for life. my main was always UD rogue. I used to sneak around SW and sit in stealth in the town in Redridge just to admire the surroundings.
Always been Horde and much like others had the odd dabbling of Alliance here and there but it never resonated. However, in Classic I have to be Alliance because the Horde toons are just so damned ugly. Yet I feel lost, out of place and very much like I don’t belong here.
Have to agree with this throughout classic and retail. I even faction transferred a character on retail just to have an Alliance garrison because they were so awesome compared to the dross Horde had. (Never played the character beyond getting the Garrison mind you.)
I feel u brah. I tried to play as a Hordie but eventually rerolled Alliance due to memories/aesthetics/music/short fat beer drinkers. Not regretting my decision so far, I just can’t be where I feel I do not belong. We spend way too much time with our characters and their little worlds to be able to ignore things like that, it’s not a quick shooter game without any lore and depth.
I still think that once you’re part of the faction for a while, natural antagonism toward the other faction emerges and ofcourse you meet friends etc so…
Aesthetics are a big deal though, especially long term.
Alliance wasn’t that intriguing until I ventured in to Duskwood and started to unravel the Missing Diplomat-quest line. Stormwind truly has a character of it’s own - and now it feels like a second home to me. And since I rolled on a RP PVE realm, there’s been player-added details that have deepened my relation with The Alliance.
At the Stormwind auction house, right on the step where you enter, was a gnome laying down. He was named Doormat. He welcomed people stepping over him, who went to do their business at the auctions. An example of a detail.
Thanks to everyone for positive feedback! Maybe it’ll just grow on me, and I’ll find something enjoyable about Alliance. I’ve seen just a little fraction of quests and besides rerolling will just cost too much to me.
I’m lvl 34 and been playing since launch, what are you talking about? :-/
I have always swapped between the 2, often having a toon (or more, I’m an altoholic), on each faction. Sometimes I play one toon or at least 1 faction almost exclusively for many months and when I then play a character from the other faction it’s a bit weird. Sometimes I have caught myself in trying to hide from people from my own faction so they won’t kill me, as I’m so used to play the other faction and my brain haven’t quite regrouped yet and still see everyone from that faction as a threat, even if it’s now the other way around.
