Warcraft Roleplaying Guide: Addons - Misc. Roleplay Etiquette

Already we've gotten quite far in this guide, and we've gone over a lot of topics; especially in the etiquette section alone. However, we're not really done since there's a lot that I still need to discuss.

Of course, the following bits of etiquette aren't something that can easily be classified, unlike the previous sections. They're built off of one another in some instances, and some are just callbacks to previous etiquette subjects, but all are pretty much single and solitary as opposed to being a subject of an overall explanatory narrative.

Don't worry though! More or less these are all lumped together as just tips and tidbits that you should be aware of when Roleplaying. A lot of players when starting out in the Roleplay community tend to read these as a sort of "well duh" tip that should be common sense - which at their core they are. However, their inclusion is just to be thorough. You never know, you might find something in here you didn't even think about or know before.

With that said let's go ahead and finish this section of the guide since we do have a few things still left to cover.

Being OOC Vs. Being IC

Roleplaying is great, and it’s a lot of fun but it’s also very mentally taxing on people who might not be used to being creative all day. Artists, Writers, and other content creators tend to take breaks when they're creating and working on their projects, and Roleplayers aren't any different in that regard.

Luckily, we have a lot of different things that we can do in the game when we don't feel like Roleplaying. Dungeons, Raids, PvP, daily quests, leveling an alt, getting achievements, pet battles, and more are all accessed to us when we pay our $15 a month to play. So it's understandable that sometimes you just don't want to be in character, and you want to just sort of chill, relax, and play the game as a video game.

So how do you indicate that you're not in character exactly?

The simplest way that a lot of players do it is simply to add some sort of tag to their speech to indicate that they’re not In Character. If you've done any sort of observing and just watched Roleplay as opposed to engaging in it, you might occasionally see a player end an OOC comment with the ending tags of " )) ".

How did this start? No one really knows, but it’s widely accepted in almost any Roleplaying community as being the symbol used to indicate a person is speaking, or acting, on an out of character basis.

Some modification of the brackets can include symbols such as " ]] “or " }}, and some people even prefer to wrap their entire speech in brackets, such as " (( this, when indicating Out of Character words )) ".

Whatever form you choose to write your OOC commentary in though, just as long as it’s seen, and at the end of your writing, is good enough. Though, most Roleplayers tend to avoid using em-dashes, or even arrows to indicate their OOC speech since those are often seen as "continuations" of speech when you run out of typing space. So keep that in mind when you're writing.

Emote Limits

Roleplaying is a creative hobby and one that involves a lot of writing.

A lot.

So t’s no surprise that it attracts a lot of people who like to write and like to showcase their creative skill. As a writer, nothing makes me happier than getting into “the zone” and belting out a thousand words in ten minutes, and having my Roleplay partners be happy that I’m so descriptive with the scenes and settings that I create and describe for them. Heck, this entire article itself was about three times as long before I realized it was TOO long and I dialed it back.

Yet, at the same time, there might be people who aren’t really all that interested in your Roleplay. Your roleplay partners and friends might enjoy it because you’re emoting and creating a story with them but what about the surrounding people who aren’t interacting with you, and focusing on their friends instead? How much is too much?

Honestly, that’s hard to say. However, a good rule of thumb to usually go with is to limit yourself down to no more than two paragraphs at a time and to generally wait for other people to respond before you continue to write.

The reason for this is it allows you to not only avoid filling up an entire chatbox with your text but also gives breathing room to reply and emote at the people they’re interacting with as well. Keep in mind; in a crowded room, you have other people who are keeping an eye out on their targets emotes, and not necessarily yours, so if you create a literal wall of text for them to overcome they MIGHT put you on temporary ignore just so they can focus and annoying people who you could potentially interact with later on is something you want to avoid.

Remember: Brevity is the soul of wit. When you’re in a crowded area, keep it short and succinct. When you’re in a small group or even one on one? Go wild and enjoy being creative and descriptive.

Spamming and How to Avoid It

This is going to be a little bit different from the above. While the above is mostly informing beginners to keep in mind other people around them, this short section will be going over how to avoid being seen as someone who is spamming and disruptive.

So what constitutes spam exactly? At its core, it’s a disruptive technique where you use a lot of text to just drown out people’s chat boxes. Maliciously, it’s used to just disrupt what’s going on and annoy people – which is pretty bad in and of itself – but it’s often done by beginners who don’t realize that they’re technically spamming people with their actions.

How do you avoid this? Well, let’s look at two different techniques that beginner roleplayers often accidentally do when they’re new to the community and discuss the proper etiquette that a lot of roleplayers follow to avoid being disruptive of others.

Emote Spamming

Emote Spamming is where you typically fire off emote after emote after emote in rapid-fire succession as the thoughts come to you. Usually done in small spurts of 2 – 3 sentences (if that), it’s a constant barrage of actions and thoughts that come out at once.

Now when you’re starting, this isn’t a problem if you’re in a small group and they’re patient with you. A lot of beginners have a hard time trying to wrap their head around the idea of “emoting” what their characters do, and often separate both dialogue and action from one another. Not only that, but oftentimes beginners feel that they have to emote “in the moment” as their characters walk, talk, or do anything.

The problem comes when you’re in a crowd of people who are all trying to emote and interact with other people. The Chatbox isn’t an unlimited log of information that you can scroll back up either – typically only holding maybe 10,000 characters at one time to avoid bogging down older systems with data. So when you spam out emotes rapid-fire like that you might end up causing someone to miss what their target is saying.

The etiquette for this that a lot of Roleplayers tend to follow is the same as the one above: Simply wait a little bit and give others a chance to emote and speak so as not to hog the screen with your writing. To be a good roleplayer you don’t HAVE to write a lot, you just have to be courteous!

In-Game Effect Spamming

What exactly is an in-game effect? Typically it’s anything that the game engine allows you to create noise, music, or any visual effects. These can range from toys and items to voiced, scripted emotes (Such as wave, joke, rude, kiss, and such), to even class abilities. Even running around in a circle can be considered an “In-Game Effect” because it’s creating something that can catch the attention of other players.

Of course, this isn’t about just running, sitting, and stuff like that. You have to move after all. This is mostly concerning toys and in-game effects.

Toys are great because they’re an on-use effect you can use to enhance a Roleplay scene and give some visuals to it. Items that allow you to wear wings of fire, flip tables, glow like a ghost or anything like that can be used to enhance a scene and make it feel a lot more personal. The problem though arises when you “layer” these effects on top of one another – especially the toys that make noise, such as the train set or others.

Doing it too close to another group, too often, or in a large crowd can be seen as disruptive and annoying. Something that a lot of Roleplayers don’t enjoy being subject to when they’re trying to enjoy the moment. One or two every so often isn’t bad; in fact, it might even make it visually interesting enough to draw attention. However, if you have to use more than several in a short amount of time? Don’t do it. Simply space it all out as best you can.

Interrupting Roleplay

This section is going to be extremely short, simply because I flesh out Roleplay interruption better both up above, and down below.

Simply put, if you have the urge to interrupt Roleplaying already in progress: Don't. Not only is it extremely rude, but being disruptive can quickly get you ostracized from the community as someone who cannot play with others.

Small interruptions - such as to give a gift, a hug, or something of that nature - is generally fine. It’s perfectly acceptable to walk up to someone you know well and give a quick emote to or an item before walking off. It’s when you stick around and continually inject yourself on an OOC basis that becomes the problem since it can ruin the other player’s concentration and immersion in the game.

This brings me to the next tip down below:

Being OOC – When to Properly Be

This sort of ties in with the above etiquette a bit, but is entirely separate. Mostly because with the above interruptions, it’s you interrupting Roleplay already in progress to either engage with another player in the middle of roleplay or disrupting a scene because you think it might be kind of funny.

This minor section mostly deals with you being OOC in an area where a lot of roleplay is already taking place.

So what do you when you’re OOC and wanting to talk to someone in an OOC manner? Is it alright to do so, or do you have to constantly be in character? Luckily, you don’t have to. Minor OOC discussion is perfectly acceptable, especially if nothing is happening. In general, if no one is Roleplaying, or you’re outside of well-known Roleplaying hubs (such as in questing zones, dungeons, or the like) you don’t have to constantly be in character. A lot of players when engaging in the game's content never go in character unless they’re in specific places. I know for personal reasons, I never roleplay during a dungeon or raid, or when I’m doing daily quests.

When you’re in a centralized Roleplay hub, and there are people already roleplaying together though? Minor conversation is alright, though if you’re engaging another player or two in lengthy conversation it’s best to either move that conversation to a party chat, or whisper chat so as not to break the immersion of the other players. It’s honestly the courteous thing to do and a lot of players keep this in mind and try not to be as disruptive as possible.

IC Fighting - Three Modes of Settlement

In the previous section of this guide, I touched on arguments and conflicts, but that differs from this section in the fact that I previously discussed collaboration and understanding between people when it came to storyline development. This section instead deals completely with in-character conflict; namely from the physical kind.

Imagine this: Your character is out and about in town, having a good time when someone comes up to you in an alleyway and pulls a knife on you, demanding your money. What do you do, and how do you handle this situation on an IC basis?

For starters, hopefully, the other player had asked for consent (As detailed earlier) to enact this sort of roleplay, which I'll be assuming is the case. If you allowed for this sort of Roleplay to happen to you, how do you resolve this short scene with the other player?

A lot of beginner Roleplayers think that the best solution is to simply evade everything that the other player throws at you; which works out fine at the beginning but typically dissolves into usual "I hit you" "No you didn't" style arguments that are reminiscent of childhood rather than a developing story.

For a lot of veteran roleplayers though, what they typically do (assuming that prior discussion happened OOCly) is just choose one of three ways to resolve an IC confrontation. Each of them of course having its pros and cons, but all of them being the general fallback option for players. Let me discuss them now:

1) Emote Battle: I know I just said above that you COULD emote dodging everything that the other player throws your way, but it’s still a legitimate way of Roleplaying if you know the other player well enough and work well with them. There's nothing wrong with purely going off of emoting your actions and playing against the other players' emote; In fact, with a player that you work well with it's a great way to flex your creativity and improve your writing skill.

But, the downside is you have to trust the other player usually. With strangers, you don't exactly know what you're getting yourself into, or how they act, or what their intentions are. Plus, there really isn't any sort of etiquette to go with this other than to not God mode and control the other players’ actions.

So because of that, it’s not often done as a way to resolve fights and conflict unless it's been discussed prior.

2) Rolling: This style of conflict resolution is pretty much what you'd expect it to be since it usually takes after tabletop gaming conventions. It's pretty simple as well; both players roll a determined number (usually 20 to simulate Dungeons and Dragons), and whoever has the higher number wins. Whoever has the higher roll within a set amount of "rounds" (usually 3) wins the conflict and you emote accordingly in between.

Easy.

The upside of this form of IC fighting is pretty obvious from the start. It's entirely dependent on luck, and it doesn't take into account your skill or gearing in the game. If you're lucky and you win the higher number you win the fight. You don't even have to really know how to play the game to win.

Of course, the downside is that it’s entirely luck dependent. So if the scene doesn't make sense - such as a hungry Street Urchin robbing an Archmage brimming with arcane might - it's entirely possible that unrealistic matchups can go to the underdog.

Of course, that downside IS also an upside at the same time since it means that you DON'T have to play a super-strong character to be viable for an interesting story and conflict. It’s entirely dependent on your perspective.

So because of that, it’s no wonder that Option 2 is often the most chosen style of Conflict resolution chosen by most Roleplayers.

3) PvP: Of course there is a third option that's not chosen AS often as the above two. PvP is a style of conflict resolution that's pretty straight forward. Two players duel, and whoever wins is the victor. Straight to the point.

As you can see, it's entirely dependent on your ability to also play the game. It takes into account your gear, your skill level, your achievements, and more to achieve victory. The upside for this is pretty obvious: If you play the game for the content rather than the Roleplay, you'll more than likely win.

The downside? If you're not an avid player of the game, or if you're playing on an Alt who isn't as geared, you're pretty much at a major disadvantage comparatively. So because of that, it's utilized less than the emote battle unless it’s between players who know each other and are comfortable resolving an IC fight through the dueling system.

So there you have. Three ways that Roleplayers typically resolve fights. While every single one of them has its upsides, and downsides, they're still far from perfect from a narrative point of view since each option doesn't take into account the character's actual level of skill and experience; just your ability to either write or hit buttons well enough.

So then what’s the safest way to handle conflict and fighting that’s fair for everyone if it's not the three above? Honestly, the best way to handle it is to just not get into random fights unless you've collaborated it ahead of time, or are partaking in a structured storyline event.

It might seem counter-intuitive to organic Roleplay, and might even mess some player characters up if they're not able to be as violent or destructive as they've been designed to be, but more often than not other players simply don't want to spend their time fighting or risk devolving into an OOC argument on character strength. Most of the time, they prefer to save that sort of conflict for personal storyline development.

When the Game is More Than Just a Game

Everyone who has played any sort of multiplayer based game has heard the phrase “It’s just a game, chill out” when they voice their dissent at a situation that’s affected them negatively. Whether it’s another player stealing resources from them, kill stealing an enemy, or any situation that doesn’t go their way, everyone has been told to “lighten up” or something at one point.

And it’s a phrase that rarely ever does make a person feel better.

When it comes to Roleplaying, when does the game become more than just a game though and when is it appropriate to separate ourselves from it? After all, if we’re coming to World of Warcraft to Roleplay, obviously the game's content isn’t the first thing on our mind (Or is, if Roleplay is just a side thing to do when bored).

Simply put; when it wastes the other player's time. As I said before, a lot of Roleplayers are actually in the mid-’20s, to early ’30s, and thus have jobs, families, and careers they have to balance outside of the game. This means that their time and capabilities in the game are severely limited and that they can’t play the game to its fullest extent since a lot of the game's End Game content takes a time investment to do properly.

So for etiquette reasons, you should never do anything that will devalue another player’s time or the money they put into the game. Jokes, pranks, or generally doing things that otherwise inconvenience another player in some way is fine in moderation, but if you find yourself angering people around you who are just trying to play with one another, then YOU’RE the problem, not them. As a new player to the community, try not to do things that would inconvenience another player or take away their time and resources just because it might seem kind of funny.

Being Friendly: When to Be Appropriate

Let’s assume you’re out and about at an event, or otherwise doing general walk up Roleplay, and you happen to engage with someone new that you find yourself having fun with. You Roleplay for a few hours and you find that you mesh pretty well with the character, and you want to Roleplay further on with that person. What do you do after that?

Simply put: Just ask. There’s nothing wrong with it. Never assume though that just because you’re spending time with another person means that automatically makes them obligated to be your friend. This is a hobby like any other, and you’ll meet a lot of different people who act in a lot of different ways.

Some people like the autonomy that comes with Roleplaying and being able to switch characters on a daily basis. Some players just don’t want to clutter their friends' list with a bunch of people they might not get a chance to play with again. Some people also just aren’t that interested in being connected.

And there’s nothing wrong with any of that.

When it comes to meeting new people, just don’t assume that they’ll be willing to add you to their friends' list, B-Tag, or be willing to exchange discord tags right away. Always ask first if it’s alright to do that, and then go from there!

Not a Competition

I feel that a lot of people forget this, and simply try to “Win” as much as they can. Roleplay by its nature is a collaborative hobby that you do with multiple people. Unlike Raiding or PvP, you don’t get a prize if you do it well. There are no items to gain, titles to earn, or a sense of accomplishment other than the fun you get out of it.

So because it’s collaborative, there is no set objective to accomplish and no one comes out on top. The real winners of Roleplay are the people who turn off the game at night and feel like they had fun.

Some people though tend to put their egos on the line and think that they have to somehow “win” over other players. Either by controlling the scene, controlling other players, or somehow being better than the people surrounding them.

Remember the fact that it’s NOT competitive, and that it’s alright to lose, or not be the most powerful, influential, or wealthiest person in the room. You’ll have a lot better time, and be a lot more relaxed when you ease into it.

Have Fun

This is the second thing that a lot of players tend to forget. It’s a hobby you’re putting time and effort into, and it should be fun for you and everyone else. If you’re feeling stressed, anxious, or otherwise feeling negative in any way when you Roleplay, you should take a step back.

There’s nothing wrong with taking a break and doing something else for a little while. A lot of players feel “burn out” from the game and want to do different things for a bit. Other times their social circle or time in the game become stressful that they dread logging on.

Never, ever put yourself through it just because you feel obligated to do it. This game is not that important that you have to risk your mental well-being for. The whole point of Roleplay is to enjoy it, not dread it.

Conclusion

That about wraps up the entire Etiquette portion of this guide, since I’ve gone over every major topic that needed to be discussed. Hopefully, by now you have a better understanding of how Roleplaying communities operate, and what’s expected of you as a new player when you jump on in.

As I said earlier, it’s not that hard to follow along; there are no real special rules that you need to know, nor hidden slang and jargon that you have to memorize. Other than some of the jargon that you’ve hopefully picked up on by now, most of the etiquette section can simply be condensed as “Don’t be a jerk, be courteous, and be understanding.”

So where do we go from here? What else is there to know about Roleplay?

Luckily, there’s quite a lot left still to talk about! By now a lot of the advice that I’ve presented should give you a good basis for interacting and communicating with other players, but what about beyond that? In the next section, I intend to go over how Roleplayers – especially on World of Warcraft – remain connected with one another through various different means. I’ll be going over communities, guilds, third-party programs, and even social media for remaining in contact and planning purposes.

So don’t worry; stick around, and find out how you can integrate yourself seamlessly into the larger community instead of being alone all day.

See you then!