Racial Tensions

[ozziewolf]

I was role playing with some folks last night and it got me to thinking about Racial tensions.

Now for me as a Dwarf I just don’t like Elves.  I reason it because of past clashes with elves and dwarves in my old home over territory disputes.

A saying I made up and use frequently when RPing in regards to elves and my reasoning that not all elves are bad is I compare them to coal even when you have nothing but coal you have a chance of finding a few diamonds.

Or after hearing my comments about elves a human I was hunting with asked me how I felt if he told me he was half an elf.  My response was: I would say then yer only half a man.

Goblins Are a step below the ladder of Halflings for me.  While Halflings are a general nuisance I usually RP coming across a Goblin as a filthy little vermin.

Now with my character being a dwarf he has fairly low charisma which is why my character can be quite the disagreeable person and depending on who you are hard to get along with. (I try not to go overboard as I don’t want people to completely hate me as this is all make believe I usually rp it as hard to warm up longer we journey together the nicer I’ll start to be depending on how the RP goes)

I usually send a tell to the person to say hey sorry about that or what ever just so they don’t get hard feelings. (So far every one has been most excellent)

I had a great time hunting with a little Goblin named Grubber at the start I made it clear to him that he was nothing but a pack mule and that if he pocketed anything I’d throttle him.  By the end of the night I had grown a little fond of the guy even if he is a scamp.  So with that I’m thinking we’re going to RP past the racial tensions which is always my ultimate goal or in the case of Mith we have sort of a friendly turn your back to me and I’ll spit in your ale when you’re not looking type of relationship.  I always find friction to be a good source of RP as long as we don’t take it to far.

Like Kaiser a human he mentioned I was short one I mentioned he’d feel the flat of my axe if he didn’t watch his tongue he mentioned how he could just as easily remove my head from my shoulders which I followed up with how about I won’t remove your legs with me axe if ye don’t remove me head from me shoulders we both happily agreed and things went splendidly from there.  (Well as splendid as they can go when you’re a dwarf with low charisma.)

Erm.. I’ve sort of rambled here so I’ll cut it short.

I’m just curious if there are specific racial tensions here in Layonara I should be aware a general rule of thumb or what ever.  For example are Elves and Dwarves generally not on friendly terms to begin with?

 I’m just curious about things of that nature and if I should tone it down a bit. (To town it down at this point I'd have to go through a character development quest I believe.)

[miltonyorkcastle]

this topic has been discussed time and again, but it's because it always remains relevant.

The way I view racial tension on Layo are split among two groups:  the mass populace and adventurers.  The masses will definitely tend to have overall views and/or feelings regarding races not their own.  Adventurers, tempered by the sheer variety of experiences they are subject to, tend to have feelings and views that mirror those experiences.

Also, certain races tend to hold grudges longer and are more stubborn than others.  Hence they will have a stronger adherence to their opinions.  I'll let you figure out which races I'm talking about   .

[Stephen_Zuckerman]

Well, in my experience, elves aren't terribly well-loved, at least in the area around Hlint. Granted, this may just be the fact that my character isn't exactly fond of elves, but it's something I've noticed. After all, if a group of people is well-known for being haughty and arrogant, that group of people isn't usually going to be seen without some bias. Take Mith, for example. That character is a prime example of High Elves, to my eyes: Arrogant, pompous, and generally controlling of others, with an overbearing "higher than you, cretin" attitude. The player deserves a kudo or three for playing a character like that so well; it's much harder to play Lawful than Chaotic.

The other major races don't seem to have much of an image, in the public mind, apart from half-orcs, and other significantly-less-human races. Gnomes are apparently very rare in this part of the world, half-elves are generally treated either as elves or as humans, dwarves are generally treated in the same ways as humans, and so are halflings. The ogres, pixies, brownies, etc. are all rare enough, currently, that there isn't much of a "common" view of them, aside from what each individual has gathered from folklore and the like.

Going back to elves, though... Most elves are either treated as the stereotypical High Elf, or just the same as the other three major races (Human, Dwarf, Halfling). The reaction from each character is usually based on thier initial interactions with that elf, at least in the characters who are not significantly biased.

Anyway, that's just my two coppers; I'm rather out of time. Best of luck to all.

[FlameStrike]

At least this topic wasn't one more about how much you hate drow, hehe.


 Racial tension is always a nice subject and adds more depth to your character, as long as it doesn't turn into griefing and other more personal offenses. Keep it IC, and it's all good.

[Vyris]

*Vyris' ears perk up*

Did someone say "Hate Drow?'

*Pauses a moment to collect a few torches and choose the dullest, rustiest pitchfork from the wall*


I'm ready, wheres the infestation?


Vyris

[ozziewolf]

Vyris - 10/14/2005  2:37 PM

*Vyris' ears perk up*

Did someone say "Hate Drow?'

*Pauses a moment to collect a few torches and choose the dullest, rustiest pitchfork from the wall*


I'm ready, wheres the infestation?


Vyris

I'm with him on the topic of Drow form up a lynch mob and GET-R-DUN!

[LoganGrimnar]

...friggen dwarf, watch where you swing that crude weapon, near took my head off! Just becone you dont like elves dosent mean you need to "oopse" and knock us down in the middle of a battle, was about buzzerd food there...

[EdTheKet]

ozziewolf - 10/14/2005 6:10 PM I  I usually send a tell to the person to say hey sorry about that or what ever just so they don’t get hard feelings. (So far every one has been most excellent)

 Yeah, sending those tels is a good thing to do so that people know it's part of the game.
 

 I’m just curious if there are specific racial tensions here in Layonara I should be aware a general rule of thumb or what ever. For example are Elves and Dwarves generally not on friendly terms to begin with? I’m just curious about things of that nature and if I should tone it down a bit.

 If you download the Campaign Handbook in the Latest Files Section, you will find write-ups about the races including some relationships with other races.
 

(To town it down at this point I'd have to go through a character development quest I believe.)

This is not true, for example, you're just out and travelling with a group and your dwarf dies. One of your companions is an elf. Your dwarf dies and is brought back by this elf. A week later, you're out and about again and a similar thing happens and your dwarf gets raised by another elf. This could make him think that maybe he's wrong about all those elves, as he was saved by two recently. In this example, I hope you see there's no need for a CDQ. It is not mandatory to have a CDQ to have your character behave differently, as long as there's a good reason for the change (people's viewpoints don't change overnight for no reason ).
  For example, if he just woke up one day and thought 'Elves aren't that bad.' without any reason for this quite drastic viewpoint swith wouldn't make a lot of sense.
  Hope that helps!

[ozziewolf]

EdTheKet - 10/15/2005  4:38 AM    

ozziewolf - 10/14/2005 6:10 PM I  I usually send a tell to the person to say hey sorry about that or what ever just so they don’t get hard feelings. (So far every one has been most excellent)

 Yeah, sending those tels is a good thing to do so that people know it's part of the game.
 

I’m just curious if there are specific racial tensions here in Layonara I should be aware a general rule of thumb or what ever. For example are Elves and Dwarves generally not on friendly terms to begin with? I’m just curious about things of that nature and if I should tone it down a bit.

 If you download the Campaign Handbook in the Latest Files Section, you will find write-ups about the races including some relationships with other races.
 

(To town it down at this point I'd have to go through a character development quest I believe.)

This is not true, for example, you're just out and travelling with a group and your dwarf dies. One of your companions is an elf. Your dwarf dies and is brought back by this elf. A week later, you're out and about again and a similar thing happens and your dwarf gets raised by another elf. This could make him think that maybe he's wrong about all those elves, as he was saved by two recently. In this example, I hope you see there's no need for a CDQ. It is not mandatory to have a CDQ to have your character behave differently, as long as there's a good reason for the change (people's viewpoints don't change overnight for no reason ).
  For example, if he just woke up one day and thought 'Elves aren't that bad.' without any reason for this quite drastic viewpoint swith wouldn't make a lot of sense.
  Hope that helps!
 

 Good point! Although being a stubborn dwarf he'd probably just chalk it up to finding a couple of diamonds in a coal mine.