I will be straightforward and will say my piece - Stalin didn’t win that war, it was all Lend-Lease. 
RPPvP by it’s very nature brings out the worst in people (Power/metagamers, people on power trips, “I WANT TO WIN” mentality even at the cost of enjoyable RP, the very genre being an oxymoron of being both a co-operative and competitive activity, etc etc). Even when the DMs do their best and people mean well RPPvP functions as a drama magnet every single time without fail.
It has gotten so bad this server can’t even keep an RPPvP sign up thread going without devolving into mudslinging, name calling, “heh, gotcha” posts, smug posts and ![:poop:](https://d1bg94bbsh66ji.cloudfront.net/en/wow/images/emoji/twitter/poop.png?v=6" ":poop:")
posts. To the point where so many flags are being thrown around like they’re dislikes of old (Which they’re really not and should NOT be used as) that it causes the auto mod to kick in and lock the thread.
I have absolutely no horse in whatever god forsaken race happened in there but I think it’s both disappointing, and disturbingly impressive, that the campaign hadn’t even started and already the drama got so bad that Blizzard had to get involved (albeit automatically but still). While a bit of spicy drama can be entertaining, it was just getting downright cringe-inducing about half-way.
At the very least I continue to struggle to understand why people find RPPvP enjoyable despite giving it chance after chance since I started playing 8+ years ago. Both for in-campaign and out-of-campaign reasons.
tl;dr: tmw AD manages to kick up RPPvP campaign drama and it hasn’t even finished sign ups yet, let alone started.
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I go for the RP and stay for the memes.
For what it’s worth I can’t deny that the RP generated by the campaigns can… Usually be okay or even enjoyable. But it’s exactly the same as any normal RP campaign in that regard. And while RPPvE campaigns have their own issues and troublemakers, I’ve noticed far less tantrums and high OOC tempers in those than in RPPVP stuff. Very distinctly so. I’d rather avoid that altogether and just focus on enjoying the RP without worrying about the daily drama that occurs over THEY DID THIS HE SAID THAT THEY CHEATED RABBLERABBLERABBLE.
Worst that I ever saw in an RPPvE event was a misunderstanding between leadership and maybe some people being a big herpaderp IC but that was the extent of it. By contrast I’m just… Exhausted with the constant, neverending mudslinging that goes on in RPPvP and it’s just tiring to see it inevitably devolve into guild politics and espionage, usually within your own respective sides because of power/meta gaming and other aspects that bring the whole mood down even if you have no hand in the leadership. All the recent thread has done is confirm my belief that RPPvP just brings out the worst in people and I’m better off avoiding it.
This is of course not even touching the fact it also seems to bring out the most utterly derp RP I have ever seen. Gotta love executing blatant alts made for a guild to try and flex edgy dominance over everyone else. I have far more stories of that sort of thing but it’s nearly midnight, that s isn’t the peeve thread and this post is long enough as is.
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if i openly say where i am from and add that i am proud of my heritage, i’ll be called a n a z i so uhh… guess it doesn’t count for everyone
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Pro tip for RP-PvP: don’t pay attention to the drama and focus on killing the other guy who, rest assured, wants to kill you as well.
Or take prisoners and ERP in bushes, up to you
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I enjoy RP-PvP simply because it brings other guilds together, you can have interactions with people you most probably would never see otherwise, you fight stuff, beat stuff, or get beaten. Everything in general makes for a jolly old time. Then there’s memes, posts and drama in general, but that’s all part of the emotional rollercoaster.
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I’ve been traumatised by being an organiser in RP-PvP campaigns so I’d rather just skip them altogether tbh. You don’t realise how nasty things (and people) get until you’re one of the people running it…
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I mean, I love me some good RP PVP, and would whole heartedly support it if it was organized well enough. Benefit of the doubt and all that.
Organisation isn’t always the issue, it’s that people get overly competitive and/or involve all manner of OOC grievances.
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Pro tip for RP-PvP: don’t pay attention to the drama and focus on killing the other guy who, rest assured, wants to kill you as well.
Bit hard when a 5s ability limit, unlimited healing and no interrupts means their hp never goes below 90% and as such a battle lasts several hours with nothing happening until one side “cheats” just enough to finally kill a few people (who then corpse run back anyway).
My enjoyment of a fight takes a nosedive when a nobhead inevitably heroic leaps into the enemy army and 1v40s just because he can. Or casters openly cast when getting a sword to the face because no kicks allowed. Or healers can keep themselves and the entire army alive despite being slapped between multiple people on all sides. Had a friend actually catch flak (IC and ooc) for not healing after he gasp RPd that he got badly injured during the fight.
I get why the rules exist but at the same time they only seem to encourage cheese strats and responses that would make no sense IC. And are also a common source of arguments. “They bursted me! They slowed me! They used a banned ability!”
Organisation isn’t always the issue, it’s that people get overly competitive and/or involve all manner of OOC grievances.
Correct. Even if organised perfectly the participants can still be and usually are the problem. And it becomes very difficult to “ignore the drama and focus on RP” when it seeps into the nervous system of the entire campaign. With constant IC and OOC bickering and backstabbing going on. It’s like going to a restaurant but there’s a couple arguing at a nearby table. Even if you ignore it and it doesn’t affect you it does bring the entire atmosphere down for everyone else. And in RPPvP every time that argument finally concludes another one starts at a table that’s even closer. At least that’s my experience, albeit told in a crap analogy.
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I’ll see you in Elwynn in 5
I honestly cannot say where all this ‘drama’ fame comes from RPPvP. Granted, my most notable contribution was adding a few coalitions & events/minor organisation for certain BElf guilds in the second Hinterlands campaign and the Saurok/Krasarang one (most notably the lagoon incident which we spearheaded with Hokima) — so that is to say not much contribution at all, but good enough experience on the field to know what I’m talking about.
While particular guild grudges and angsty conversations between Thunderbraid and the other mods in the organiser Skype groups (Skype . . .) were certainly a thing, everyone there was pretty cool and could/did end up making a nice public story to wrap things up despite their personal opinions.
The issue in RPPvP campaigns has always been the participants, who unlike described above, cannot let go of their personal feelings. It’s why I opted out of them since the last Drums of War, where participants decided (as individuals) to make a ridicule of the party in the wrong (that draenei guild or w/e). was flung across the forums, and the attitude of people from both sides was pretty toxic. Problem is, it became normalised in Drums—I can opt out not interacting with individuals, but not being a part of a campaign though? Tough choice, but I’ve stuck to it so far.
I certainly know many other similar stories from the ‘little man’ on AD across many years around, especially considering the most recent controversy ala ‘Alliance is the Devil’. Less and less notable figures rise to speak up for their respective community, which divides the larger “community”, which leads to RPPvP events being Scot Pilgrim vs. the World for everyone involved. We used to have people that cared. Now there’s either no point caring, or plain not happening.
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I’ve come to believe that RP-PvP is just some place for people to throw personal informations from other people, doxxing, showing nudes collected and other unsavoury behaviours to take place.
The thing is… It’s not even a majority of people doing it but a tiny, tiny extremist minority that wants to have everything their way… Or else.
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There’s also usually a blatant lack of respect for the people who spent a lot of their time to try and sort out the big mess that a campaign can be. I’m honestly surprised some people still want to host them knowing that there’s going to be certain groups guaranteed to trash talk them behind their backs and discredit all their work
“hurr durr x is a horrible person”
yeah but i dont see you do it without a meltdown
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Campaigns have become gradually worse
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To be honest there have been a large number of campaigns since Drums of War that weren’t advertised on the realm forums and were largely civil, except for Howling Fjord.
Lessons were learned and there are more campaigns being developed even now, but not drummed up as the next major event for Argent Dawn but more selective campaigns between particular groups.
I can’t wait to bomb another lagoon though!
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laddie deploy the hellblight…
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I do agree its participants that ruin it for others. Heck, only a select few and its a shame. But it is how it is. Why can’t we be like wrestlers and be best friends off scene but IC we are the worst of enemies?
FRENEMIES!
To be fair. I’m also hesitant for anything current. I mean, Strike at the Heart was enjoyable at least for the Nazmir side. DoW both times was a hot mess but we made the most of it. I had fun. We were in WPL though.
Anything after that was just not on the agenda? Which is probably why I have a positive outlook.
Then again. I wouldn’t mind organizing a truly gritty and immersive storyline with a horde guild at some point just to get my RPPVP fix in. One that we work on together that is.
Correlates with the expansions.
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