This is a sensitive topic, and while I don’t know your specific story and dynamics you were involved in, I have noticed this shift in the community as a whole as well.
A lot of “reasoning” I keep hearing to justify this behavior is:
- “I have been roleplaying on AD for a long time…” (therefore why should I make the effort? If you want to RP, you adapt to me.)
- “I just log on here for fun, it’s my subscription money” (but I take no accountability on how my behaviours impacts you)
- “I have already established my friend group, can’t I just have fun with my friends?” (but why is the guild recruiting more, if you are unwilling to make them faces, instead of numbers in the guild)
- “I have X years of experience on this, where is your resume on experience?” (used to dismiss your skillset or opportunities to prove yourself equally capable)
- “People talk and I will hear about it” (so don’t you dare to criticise us to anyone, we will know!)
Which all are valid reasons in themselves, but they also are used to justify neglect, dismissive behaviors, playing favourites and manipulative acts. People are pleasant when they want something from you, but as soon as you become inconvenient, they will forget about you, unless you’re OOC friends with them. Guild membership is no longer a guarantee for RP and if it is, there will always be the “inner and outer circles”.
The only times I have seen a new person to “break into” cliques around GMs and offcers’s characters are when someone has created female character and romanced an officer. Usually leaping over all IC and OOC ranks, becoming an officer as soon as they become IC partners with the existing member of leadership. This is a huge red flag in itself, because it shows that the guild doesn’t value skillset and isn’t transparent on standards of promotions, but they purely place value on personal bias.
This can be a thing even outside Stormwind and southern Eastern Kingdoms. Night elf community for example, is notorious for “buying popularity through character art” which more often than not, portrays physical appeal. There is also a stark difference in how much your character will be approached (or asked for RP)/how much you are expected to take the initiative between male and female characters.
There is also huge weigh on social status, reputation and an unspoken rule that you are expected to show no emotion under any circumstances, unless people know you well and you hold esteem in the community. Otherwise, you are automatically seen as “making a big deal”, “not fitting in”, “drama”, “creating problems were none exist”, no matter how their OOC friends may treat you.
There is much of OOC backstabbing and excusing it with IC - people saying that they aren’t their characters, but they still aren’t transparent, because chances are, you’d not consent to your character being used and deceived, if they were transparent.
But be OOC friends with the right people, you can get away with jokes that are degradatory towards your creative outlet, be it threats of cutting your character’s limbs off (OOC, not IC) or making jokingly negative comments towards your artwork. As long as you can excuse it with a joke, you will be okay socially.
You are expected to read the room to excessive levels as a newcomer and grasp these unsaid rules. Nobody will tell if they have an issue with you to your face, because then they would be seen as a problem. Which then enables further talking behind peoples backs and gossip.
People also seek to influence each other a lot to ensure that you are available RP resource to them, but not to someone who could be seen as competition. Sometimes people launch negativity at you pre-emptively in order to stage you as emotionally reactive and influence people away from you, so they can cherrypick those whom they want to RP with. If you just want to focus on your RP, your peace, but have no friendgroup to rely on, it’s a tough social world on AD, sadly.
I’m not saying that all people on AD are like this, but it can take years to find a group of people who treat you with respect and they engage in emotionally intelligent, non-manipulative conversations with you OOC to ensure that IC will be mutually enjoyable. While many people recommend guilds for RP, sometimes the trick is to not join guilds and risk becoming a number, but focus on people who appreciate your character and respect you as the person behind them.
Don’t spend years jumping through hoops just to be treated as an equal to your peers in a guild!
