I am curious to hear some thoughts about RPing and which one fits better to Mage class. Lore-wise and aesthetically do you prefer Void Elf (male) or Nightborne (female) as Mage for RP? Or maybe even some third choice?
My rough idea is to play as very grounded wizzard, who is looking to learn new things and help people with small powers. Hungry for new discoveries, new knowledge and adventures. Something like wandering traveler, inscriptionist/archeologists and want to make a good story around my character.
Which one would be generally better option for it?
If your goal is to play grounded wizard, void elf is likely the worst option for that, as being constantly barraged with whispers of eldritch beings while also canonically being a member of a group that willingly decided to study the darkest, most dangerous power out there, does not work well with what you seem to have in mind.
There is however the option to RP your character as high elf, using the customizations that you might already be using (depending on the amount of tentacles in your character´s hair and funkiness of their hair color, you´ve already picked the right skin color option for it). In which case, it will work well for the concept you have in mind.
Nightborne also are fine for this concept, and unlike high elves have the advantage of being a race new to the world (as their city was separated from the rest of the world by magical shield until about 9 years ago), meaning your character could legitimately just be moving out of the city they spent their whole life in.
Overall the main difference is the faction, whether you vibe more with Alliance or Horde. Alliance in general has more RPers and therefore also more RP, but you can also find it on Horde side (however, finding a guild is almost necessary for Horde as the options for casual RP are rare).
This is basically what my character is, and I appreciate your fondness for this concept. She’s a night elf. Not a Highborne, a plain old night elf who began learning the arcane years after the ban was lifted.
I think this concept works with most races, and the main difference is how much of a head start this character would have. Mine is still early in her studies because she started from scratch. Nightborne, however, have a rich arcane tradition of their own, so it would make sense for your nightborne character to already have a good deal of experience as a mage. And it makes sense for a nightborne character to be interested in the outside world and eager to learn and meet new cultures, since they spent all their life until recent years sequestered in a single domed city.
As for void elves, I’m afraid I’m not familiar enough with their lore to comment.
If you’re looking into third options, I’m fond of (and super biased towards) Blood Elves in matters of the arcane. They have the aesthetics without being quite as ethereal as the Nightborne, while sharing a famed mastery of magic. It is ingrained into their culture - so it stands to reason that there is not only personal growth to be had, but also a measure of social prestige in arcane mastery where Quel’Thalas is concerned.
Coupled with extensive libraries and no shortage of teachers (or so one would presume), it is a more than viable alternative to the Kirin Tor… and I dare assume a notch less rigid in terms of rules and guidelines.
Looking back at your primary contenders however, both are quite viable. As others have already said, there are some considerations to be had with either option. Personally, if your angle is very much the ground-level sort of character who is new to a great many things, a Nightborne fresh out of Suramar is about as blank a canvas as I can imagine. New peoples to meet, foods to taste, lands to travel and so on it goes.
Thank you very much! For RP purpose I prefer the Alliance as faction, not sure why, probably because I started as Alliance long time ago and they usually represent themselves as good and kind faction. And also find male characters more “travely” vibed and oriented on archeology, inscription and discoveries, but I have no clue why because I am quite sure there’s many female characters related to those.
Although I really like the idea of Nightborne character, Suramar and can relate them with Frost and Arcane specs. Also aesthetically they look really good (female).
If you are deadset on these options, there’s nothing wrong with them - but if you are open for feedback, I’d try thinking of some other race.
There’s nothing wrong or uninteresting about these two races, but perhaps playing a far more grounded mage than usual might be more easily represented on something like a human, dwarf, or something of the sort, since both Nightborne and Void Elves have societies that are very much over the top in their usage of magic.
Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to play a member of either of these races as being more grounded, especially if you’ve made them step away from the ways of their kindred.
Horde has less casual role-play but by no means it is devoid of role-play. There are gatherings, communities and organizations that seek to create and uphold role-play. You will find networking to be a key part of your role-play, which can also create a little bit of a cozy atmosphere now and then.
Speaking of nightborne, I would say they offer both challanges and great rewards. The nightborne have been isolated for quite a while, which means that they may not know much of the outside world. This can be an advantage, as even a scholar would not know much about other races. This is also an opportunity for a curious character: other people can tell you about their nations/share knowledge of this world with you, and you can treat it as a novelty.
On the other hand. I would expect a nightborne to know much, instead, of their own culture: they have been developing their own way of life for more than ten thousand years. That is something you’d need to gain a good grasp on.
On top of that, I will also add this. The nightborne have a lot of flavour about their magic. Their style, or the way in which they create magic, is absolutely unique. It was developed by facing unique challanges, or by virtue of the Nightwell, or by centuries of isolation in which they had nothing to do but focus on improvement. To treat them as just some highborne 2.0 is to do a disservice to their rich lore.
If you are interested, I can provide some useful links to their lore. It is really well-done and perhaps the finest piece of modern WoW worldbuilding. Here, for example, is a good read on the nightborne schools of magic:
You made some really nice points about the lore and things you can play around with and to be fair, I really like the whole concept and idea about the Nightborne, the culture reminds me on Atlantis, which is one of my favorite stories (second places Aztec, Mayan and Inks).
There’s also no harm in going with a good ol Human Stormwind Mage! Elves ARE superior, it’s true, but with Void Elves being just “exiled Belves that happened to play with stuff they didn’t understand” and Nightborne being pretty much the highest of the high in everything Arcane, the grounded mage idea might be somewhat tricky to include into it?
It depends on how deep you really wanna go, I reckon.
Agree, Human Mage would be the best all-around choice, since it’s the easiest race to RP, bit honestly, I am avoiding them only because of the personal aesthetic reasons (in game of course). Males are too bulky and females have such a wierd animations.
I was also considering the regular Night Elves, to stay on the Alliance side, since RP scene is bigger, but at the end, I will finish with the Nightborne. It can be tricky to play around, but I really like the backstory of the race.
Feel free to give me a poke in-game if you’re looking for some fellow nightborne.
The Horde can feel a bit isolated at first, so making new contacts can really help!
Same as blood elves until fairly recently. They did after all not pop from the ground randomly. Just keep in mind that their banishment precludes their transformation, a detail even blizzard forgot.