I’ll preface this by saying that if you don’t want to be part of the conversation, then you don’t have to. Some people need to be reminded of this for some reason. However, I will debate anyone who disagrees rationally and with vaild counterpoints. Tl;dr at the bottom

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LET’S face it, WoW RP is not as good as it should be. There are many reasons for this, but the two primary causes are blizzard’s horrendous storytelling and the playerbases’ confusion of worldbuilding vs gameplay.

Alas, there is nothing to fear. Classic WoW is the perfect stage for quality, loreful roleplay to return to WoW. And I mean in the most true sense of those words.

Flashy gear is going to be very hard to get. You won’t be able to look the part of certain, ridiculous archetypes anymore. The freedom to do so has spawned various, almost off brand archetypes that plague both WrA and MG. Not in Classic. Those who can look that way must have earned it from 100s of hours of gameplay (let’s hope that they know how to RP if they’re going to be repping that kinda gear). Because of the lack of gear, the freedom to RP these outlandish characters has been almost eliminated, effectively creating an environment that will encourage RP that adheres to Classic lore and the respected lore of Warcraft III. Those who do RP these archetypes without gear are going to have to get creative and well, isn’t that a welcomed change? The vast majority of RPers who play those parts now just do it so that they can wear the gaudiest gear available and feel good about it. Not good for the community as it subtracts from other roles that can bring the world to life. Also to note, there are some exceptional RPers who deserve to look the part, and I believe that their roleplay will be enough to get them recognized.

Classic’s respected lore and the recent events of Warcraft III set the stage for truly loreful RP. This is great for RP because the silly events of WoD, BFA, Legion, and Cata will have never happened. The option to roll a Demon Hunter is no longer on the board and I already know that 95% of DH rpers will not be making an appearance in Classic. Looking forward to NOT seeing a pack of Illidari casually playing cards in an inn. You’re going to have to make an elf, level her, and get the gear to look the part, first. Months come to mind, and if you’re that dedicated, I’d wager you’re a good RPer. The same applies to other classes that are endowned with insane power. Win win.

No more will players be tempted by gameplay mechanics that were added simply because the developers needed to keep people interested. Your mage is not on par with Kalec anymore. He’s now a simple, mortal spellcaster - and your writing is better for it.

No more will players RP the Grand General of the 17th Battalion, esquire, who is also a part time yoga instructor and the greatest chef on Azeroth. Good luck getting the gear to look like one.

No more will players be shackled down by the unfortunate storytelling of the past few expansions. Classic occurs shortly after Warcraft III’s untarnished lore, effectively abolishing almost all powergamers that were borne from the last few xpacs (and fingers crossed, dragon RPers) AND setting the stage for Warcraft archetypes to be portrayed (not your own fanfiction).

Classic is only a month away and I can’t wait to see how RP evolves on the already confirmed RP realms. Ideally, MG and WrA will be fragmented to leave only the off brandish, fan fictiony, dragon wannabe roleplayers that have become the trademark of those realms while Classic servers will be full of people who know how to roleplay.

Tl;dr: Classic is going to be a place for good RP because of story and straightforward world building and if we’re lucky will be the future of RP.

[This thread has been locked before conversation could devolve even further. - Forum Moderator]