As I was reading forums, I got curious: do your characters have IC professions and how do you use them, as you rp them? Do you have them similar as your OOC ones, or completely separate? Are they an important part of your character’s concept or it is something they are barely interested in? Do they have any special techniques in the profession of their choice which makes them different from others? Do they perhaps have their own stall or shop they own or work at, or they have their skills used only for their own & their friends’ needs? If they have a stall, what is it like?
To start a conversation, I’ll tell about Daerron here – who is an alchemist & works at Solstice Bazaar as the one (used to have his own stall too, but he has stepped down to focus at other matters more). He comes from a relatively ancient line of alchemists and has been developing his skills & family legacy for quite a while (and works on passing his knowledge to his children as well).
As OOC professions, I have alchemy and herbalism likewise, but I haven’t been levelling them a lot. However, Dragonflight alchemy system is very interesting to me – and it has given me quite a few ideas about Daerron’s own techniques & potions ideas!
Kuwei here is an alchemist IC, though she doesn’t have any professions OOC!
In her function as Head Alchemist of her unit it’s actually a vital part of her character. She specialises primarily in plagues, their counteragents and necrotic transmutation.
Since alchemy as a craft isn’t really fleshed out in the lore of the game I draw heavy inspiration from historical medieval alchemy that I flesh out and adapt to the game’s setting and mechanics.
She doesn’t have a stall since she only works for the Ebon Blade and thus operates in her own little laboratory!
What sets her apart from other alchemists is probably that, as a high-ranking officer of her unit in the Ebon Blade, she has some greater funds at her disposal as well as access to reagents from another plane of existence, which greatly influences the nature of her work.
For a project she is currently working on she is transmuting the heart of a Devourer to sustain itself on negative emotions instead of anima, for an internal disciplinary measure used to train Initiates, for which she almost exclusively uses reagents that are found in and beyond the Veil.
I made her OOC profession an IC thing as she’d make her own clothes to fit just right. Presumably she’d still visit professionals for fancier clothes but make her own alterations afterwards.
Part of her personality is to be very vain and prideful so nothing short of a perfectly fitted, flattering outfit will suffice.
Spruggl is an alchemist as well. I make heavy use of TRP Extended to create her own elixirs, including some random effect like how good the healing potion works or even bad side effects that may occur. I also made alchemy a part of her offensive skills, she throws battle potions at her enemy to slow them, poison them or set them on fire. The toolkit is getting bigger and stronger the longer you play.
Lilyce is a herbalist, she makes a business out of gathering herbs and selling them forward to alchemists, cooks, scribes, healers etc. Sometimes even mages seek her out in search for rarer plants. She’s also sort of a tailor, being able to patch up her own clothes as well as make some simpler dress designs. Therefore the IC professions actually play a rather big role in RP.
OOC she’s an alchemist and a herbalist.
Speaking of professions, I actually always like to take use of other professional crafters in roleplay. For example, Lilyce was trying to determine the origin of a very ancient looking necklace and sought after jewelcrafters with the ability to help her with this. Additionally, she loves Pandarian food and never passes on the chance to grab some if the opportunity presents itself. She doesn’t know how to make Pandarian food herself, and even if she learnt, it wouldn’t be the same. I think professions make for a great excuse to interact and RP rather than having the character know all of this themselves
Rhaethas is a leatherworker, both IC and OOC, who also works at the Solstice Bazaar too. Originally it was not really in the plans for my character, atleast not something I had thought about fully. So I came up with it as a trait for him in the middle of roleplay and rolled with it ever since haha. I’ve really enjoyed it, and despite it not being an important part of him it’s opened up a lot of interesting roleplay for him. I’ve really enjoyed making TRP:E items of the things he makes for others to wear.
I do work with leather IRL, I work a lot with crafts and I’ve made LARP equipment and props out of it a fair few times. It’s not my favoured material, but I’m decently proficient and my IRL knowledge of how it works helps a lot with knowing what Rhaethas could reasonably make and do in game. It is fun because I as a crafter really enjoy the planning stage of how to make something, but I procrastinate actually making my projects. Turning ideas into TRP:E items has been an amazing outlet for that though! I have been considering making some of the things he has made IC as IRL items once my health gets better come Spring.
And on the topic of TRP:E, I love when I recieve items that people have made. I have given Rhaethas a “Storage Trunk” container to put items that he has bought or been given. It adds a lot of tangibility to items that means I feel like I really recieved something, vs an emote I will forget about over time.
Thuzar is a proficient enchanter, weaving magical properties into his clothing, trinkets and other nick nacks. In fact he barely uses magic in his daily life, instead he relays almost entirely on the enchanted effects of his equipment, need warmth? he got a heated stone for that, need a spy glass? try this enchanted pearl.
A big mean light loving paladin is bringing down a 14kg hammer? magic turtle shell, sure to block at least one or two good hits.
Besides enchanting, he has been dabbling in inscription and alchemy, although his expertise on those areas are very limited to a few select topics that compliment his enchantment profession.
Ghormisa is an amateur Blacksmith. She’s no master artisan but she knows enough to maintain her armor when on an extended deployment.
A skill that has saved her life quite a few times at this point. As she’s getting older she is now starting to think about jewelcrafting or tailoring and making nice things when she can as presents for people.
Thank you all for your replies! It was a very interesting read and that has given me a few ideas for both Daerron and other characters. Nice to see so many other alchemists and herbalists as well!
This is a good source of inspiration! I’ve been doing that too, but for more “long-term goals” rather than something Daerron already knows and can do
This sounds like a very interesting project. I hope that, whatever results it might lead to, they will be interesting likewise - and our characters might have a few topics to discuss if they ever meet.
Always good to see how personality & set of skills is reflected in character’s apperance and outfit!
Great to see another user of TRP3: Extended! I don’t have TRP3: Extended items for every potion or crafted item, but I’m trying to make an item for new items I make, even for something like leather or hides on my new leatherworking alt.
Side-effects for potions are also important! Some of rp I have done was Daerron asking somebody he knows to test the potion for any side-effects or if it works properly (which were set as certain X% of happening if you use it in trp3 item usage), and when he sells or makes a completely new potion, he warns that it wasn’t tested properly (and gives a refund if it didn’t work properly -and- they told him what happened instead in good detail - helps with adapting formula and making sure he isn’t scammed xD)
A creative use of alchemy too! While Daerron himself doesn’t get often in fights, he has a few tricks like if that happens
I definitely agree with that! Having to search and rely on others to do things your own character doesn’t know is a good way to find and set rp - and leads to many outcomes you wouldn’t have thought of yourself!
Applying your IRL experience definitely helps! It doesn’t work with all professions all the time unfortunately (Azeroth is still a fantasy world), but I’ve learnt quite a few things by googling how some things are done irl, rather than just shrugging everything of as “it is magic” (but that is useful at times too!)
Hope your mental health gets better soon! Looking forward to seeing your projects!
This looks like an interesting concept! If our characters ever meet IC, would be interesting to see that in more details!
A good use of profession as well! After all, you don’t always have a chance to find a master blacksmith, but maintaining the armour will definitely save your life!
Well, when I am not crafting and maintaining my equipment in the basement of the Slaughtered Lamb, or gathering ingredients and creeping people out in Duskwood, Redridge, and Elwynn Forest, I can occasionally be found in the back alleys of Stormwind selling minor trinkets, scrolls, and potions.
I am kinda like a rarespawn though. As I do not have a lot of time to roleplay in the evenings lately.
Alas, I never got around to actually writing it OOC so Nera got stuck with Inscription. I guess Inscription also deals with like, wood-carving and stuff, so it’s still vaguely relevant at least.
Tenasa practises alchemy and herbalism, though now she leads several knight and deals with other matters, she isn’t always able to brew potions.
Her best creation she made was ‘Bottled Bloodlust’, sourced from rage potions. The design of them was to act like an adrenaline boost to wake up knocked out mortals. It was created due to her getting tired of seeing mortal combatants getting knocked out constantly and become a burden on healers.
Herbalism still is heavily used by her because one of the main sources of materials she uses grow on her. Fungus, mushrooms and lichen grow on her armour and skin, allowing access to various materials in a pinch. In addition, she uses the spores to infest wounds of her undead allies to forcefully close up the damage until proper stitching or other methods can be applied.
The few occasions she is able to go out to gather herbs, she uses it as a chance to clear her mind away from constant military action and fighting.
I wove (heh) Atahalni’s profession as a tailor into his backstory as well.
Because he was a cripple from birth, while all the other younglings would learn to hunt and to fight, he would sit with the greatmothers learning how to weave and to do needlework, patch equipment etc.
If we could pick more than 2 professions, Atahalni would also dabble into alchemy and inscription.
Abel used to be a seasonal goatherd in life, alternating between tending to them and a farm he worked the land of with a few others. Eventually, during one of his travels through Alterac, a skeletal archer’s stray arrow ended said career short.
Now, Abel is a full-time warlock. In a way, he’s still herding horned creatures; only this time, he’s herding them to keep others safe.
Funnily enough, according to The Last Guardian, one of the first appearances of demonology in human society came from down-in-their-luck merchants and farmhands who were willing to commit sacrifices and other foul things in the name of anything or anyone who would listen.
It’s not something I get to roleplay out all too often, but I really wanted to make a character with a fascination for the written word with Ruhmeru. Good stories and history aren’t just written in one langauge, after all, so I sometimes get to RP him as a translator for other characters or as someone who writes things down for research or documentation purposes.
What’s funny is one of the only in-game professions I’ve never touched OOC is inscription which would absolutely be the most fitting profession for this fella.
During the Fourth War, Shog’ganosh wasn’t old enough to fight, but he had to contribute to the war effort along with the other children he grew up with. This contribution came into the form of manufacturing munitions; the only reason why he didn’t lose any fingers was a combination of diligence and luck.
He still makes bombs to this day and they’re an important part of his fighting style, so I guess he counts as a rudimentary engineer. He’s not able to make any sophisticated goblin or gnomish technology, but as long as Shog is supplied with the necessary materials, he can blow up most obstacles that stand in his way.
It started as a way to explain his access to the wildfire bombs that Survival Hunters use, but I got Engineering to help support that story.
A lot of my characters are either engineers or alchemists, or some sorta adjacent, which comes from being in a goblin / gnome RP environ, I guess! But there’s variation in that too.
One’s a gunsmith, another’s more into mechs and vehicles. Got an apothecary, yet another focuses on medicinal chemistry.
It’s a fun little bingo to play with your characters!
