Hi. Recently I returned to RP after taking a break for an expansion. And since I no longer have friends that RP, I decided to rebuild my “RP circle” and did the dreaded walk up RP in Stormwind.
I will not mention the whispers my DH got. But I got few ooc whispers that said “Sorry. Not interested in worgen/guys etc.” immediately after approaching, or in better case scenario, People walked away IC after the RP turned flirty and I refused to take it further.
I suppose my questions are that if the romance RP is so common these days that people always have it on their mind/expect it? Or how do you avoid scenarios like that? Join a guild? Or just keep trying until it works out?
To clarify I am returning RPer and not really interested in romance. Quite frankly I am just trying to figure out the RP scene and trying out different concepts. And decide what char/race/faction to RP. That is my main issue with joining guild right away. Don’t want to join just to leave if I figure out I would enjoy RPing something else more. Any tips, advice or insight is welcome!
Hubs are home to all sorts of people looking for all sorts of roleplay, and a lot of them are going to assume that other people want the same thing that they do, or are going to leave the scene if it goes in a direction that they don’t like. This includes people who are looking for romantic engagement for their characters, or even just smut.
My suggestions:
Try non-conventional hubs. Dalaran, Duskwood and Stromgarde are all home to different communities who typically share the same interests. Magical and faction-neutral RP for Dalaran, dark and edgier RP for Duskwood, grittier and more low-magic RP for Stromgarde. You’re less likely to run into people just trawling for romance and smut in those places.
Try OOC communities. There are Discord servers and other sorts of communities that cater to specific sorts of roleplayers. Some of these are for certain hubs mentioned above, while others are for different races or classes, or for different styles of RP.
Try attending organised events and campaigns. You can find some of these on the forum, some of these on Discord servers and some of these on Argent Archives. People who attend these events are likely to be interested primarily in the event, and unlikely to use it as an excuse to pick up partners for their characters.
Travel around the open world. This is a tricky one and more often than not, it will be deathly quiet and you won’t run into anyone. However, there’s a chance of you running into guilds and communities while roleplaying your character doing whatever they would normally do in the wilderness. This is a method that personally worked for me, but might not work for other people, as it can be a waste of time.
Just throw yourself at guilds and see if they stick. Come up with a basic concept and then chuck the character in the deep end at a guild. If it’s not to your taste, drop out after some weeks or a month. But a lot of character concepts are very hard to explore if you’re just going to be wandering around a hub.
Are you going to claim that Horde is free from romance rp? Because y’know, I have some news for you.
Real answer is, probably just make a mention in your TRP profile. Truthfully, any sort of RP hub is going to have some form of romantic interactions as well. But also, you can just say ‘no’ IC, and I would like to believe that romance RP is not the sole goal of everyone in your vicinity, outside of maybe Goldshire.
If you just want to decide on what char to play, I would try looking around different hubs and if RP did lead into potential romance, have your char say no. It doesn’t need to get more complicated than that. Perhaps try to tone down any sort of flirtations, idk.
Some people put ''Not intrested in romance" in their TRP, ooc information.
However, how to avoid such encounters?
I suppose just don’t be flirty with people you meet for the first time, and don’t take it personal if they walk away.
Also, remember context is everything.
Did you meet these people at the bar, on the street?
Did you interrupt their lunch in the park…?
I think it’s more common in established friend circles and with people you have known for a good while, over a complete stranger.
If someone flirts with you, as in real life and you are not interested:
Just don’t follow up on that attention, or let them know IC you are not intrested.
Stormwind has the lowest standard for roleplay on the realm after Goldshire. I am sort of grateful it exists as a quarantine for the imvu scourge, but that’s virtually all it’s good for. I’d recommend joining a guild, and might be able to make some suggestions depending on your character concept.
TRP3 has a field under the ‘Roleplay style’ section in the Miscellaneous tab through which you can declare that you do not accept character romance, if it helps.
Some people also see putting “married” in your description as a challenge as well.
Most of my RP nowadays is by appointment only, I just do not have the patience to do walk up RP anymore, but if I see you around Stormwind, I’ll drop a hello.
Yes, that is unfortunately true, and we can not control other peoples actions.
You will always come across individuals, not the majority mind you, who tries to push your boundaries.
But a no, is still a no and one does not need to give more reason nor answer.
That is a ‘them’ problem in regards to being a decent and respectful person.
It quite selfish to be fair, and lacking in compassion.
Thank you so much for the responses! I will take your tips under considerartion! Especially Shogganosh’s suggestions about RP in communities/guilds and outside of SW.
And yeah. I am not blameless but after first garrison invite. I toned down jokes that could be taken the wrong way. And put some armor on, instead of just clothes. I will just keep trying to RP, make it clear IC that no garrison parties are going to happen. and avoid red flags in TRP, in some profiles I noticed (Partner’s gender preference, overly “detailed” descriptions of bodies, etc.)
I am also thinking about making less conventionally “attractive” rp guy. Deciding between Dwarf, Tauren or Draenei Paladin.
eesh i recall the stories about that even if I wasnt active around the time. the lenghts some people will go to, just to get their characters together is frankly unsettling.
gives me flashbacks to when someone divebombed a public wedding in thunder bluff and a private event a few days later to pressure me into saying yes with ooc plea’s because the word “no” wasnt doing the trick.
yeah i feel you. i wont touch the subject with a ten foot pole. the sole case of it i entertain is a background rp ive had ongoing with a friend with 6+ years but its precisely that, background.
litterally any other form of rp is considerably more engaging. which also most of the time thankfully serves as a detterent from that kind of person.
also, the fact genuinely harmless jokes can lead to those kinds of reactions is just sad. public rp really is an eggshell minefield
IF THOU ART FORCED INTO SUCH SITUATIONS BY THE MORALLY-LOOSE VIXENS OF THE EARTHEN-PLANE, THY RESPONSE OUGHT TO BE A ROTUND ‘NAY! HALT THY SIREN-SONG, YE BUXOM ELF, FOR I AM A NOBLE MEMBER OF THE ALLIANCE, AND I SEEK NAUGHT BUT ADVENTURE, NOT NAUGHTY ADVENTURE!’.
CAST UPON THEM THE SPELL OF ‘I’m sorry if my approach was percieved like that. I’m back after a long time off rp and am still getting adjusted, haha.’ AND BE DONE WITH!
BUT BE WARNED, YE RETURNING TRAVELER. EVEN WITHIN THE SAVAGE LANDS OF KALIMDOR, AND THE DOUR FORESTS OF DUSKWOOD - THOSE WITH MINDS CORRUPT AND BODIES BARE WILL DOUBTLESS SEEK MORE THAN A CUNNING ALLY IN YOU.
