World Leader as an Evil/Chaotic/Moody/God Follower PC

[LynnJuniper]

In case the development Journals have drowned it out, Leanthar recently made a reply to his post on World Leader behavior. It can be found here:

http://forums.layonara.com/world-leader-development-quests-wldqs/93208-what-does-take-world-leader.html

In addition, I've had a small conversation with him, asking him a question. I don't think he'll mind if I post what was said here, because there were very important (I feel) things said on how that behavior as a WL and your expectations can comply with/fit in with and/or interfere with the nature of your PC.

In the post it was stated:
"We expect them to take others under their reach to teach them the world and introduce them to new things, without breaking server rules of course."

and also:

"We expect them to be great RP'ers and to be constantly RP'ing and setting the standard and TEACHING others how to RP better; not meta-gaming or any of that silly stuff. They take in to account (and RP) deity relations (as they are listed), they take in to account factions, lore, history, and all of those things that would cause situations to be altered."

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My question, that I want to open up for discussion, as a player trying to do as best a job I can IC and Out, and as an aspiring world leader, and more over as the player of a rather moody and sometimes downright unlikeable character:

How do we incorperate the RP of our characters (Alignment, Deity relations, General nature of the character we play) into these things? Do we do it strictly OOC? Do we pick and choose who we interact with? [I don't like this idea and I'm not alone]? Do we find a nice happy medium? or do we compromise our characters' diety relation, alignment, nature, in order to preform our role as an active player, WL , aspiring WL or just a good player? Does this effectively eliminate Evil Characters, Characters with Strong Prejustices due to race, deity, ecetera, Characters with negative personality traits/CHA by nature? Or is this more an OOC Agreement?


This is what Leanthar had to say and I agree with it:

"Help everybody you can as you travel with them and/or encounter them on a bench or in the road or out walking around (wherever it may be), help them to learn the world, how to RP and all of that. I wouldn't exclude players as then other players will think you are doing it for various reasons other then evil/good. I would do it both IC and OOC"


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So , as the discussion, I was wondering if anyone had any tips for the aspiring WL , or just anyone who'se trying to be the best player they can be ?

[miltonyorkcastle]

One: You may have an unlikeable, moody character, but as a WL, I would expect you to be very creative in responding to other PC's, not just ignore them. Moreover, I think the most important thing for a WL is to spend time communicating with the players behind the characters. The WL's character and another character may clash, due to a myriad of reasons. However, behind the scenes the WL should be communicating with the player in a friendly, constructive manner. Above all, do not be demeaning, snide, or rude. Be helpful, as Leanthar has stated.

Two: Compromising your character's alignment, deity relation, etc. would be going against the standards set for a WL. Leanthar never stated that a WL should do that. Quite the opposite in fact (i.e. no metagaming). Rather, you are held to a higher creative standard. Leanthar emphasized helping the community, which requires communication. As long as WL's show a vested interest in the Players they're interacting with, no matter how their characters have responded to each other, then the WL's have done what we expect of them.

I hope that helps to give more clarity to the role of a WL.

[LynnJuniper]

So in that case, if a character was to respond negatively to another character the proper thing for anyone aspiring to be a good player or a potential World Leader would both play this animosity in a convincing , consise and clear way (so its clear as to why its being done) and then go onto interact with the player in telling them that there's no hard feelings and perhaps explaining why the character behaved in the way they did..

Right?...but..er..isn't this more or less standard action not "I want to be a world leader" action but rather basic courtesy?

[miltonyorkcastle]

You'd be surprised how many people don't apply this "basic courtesy."

Perhaps an example is in order. After an encounter (or during) in which two characters clash, the WL doesn't simply say,

"Hey, yeah, sorry about that. My character is a bit of a pain to deal with. No hard feelings?"

Rather, the correspondance should look more like this:

WL- "Hey. Great RP! You did a good job keeping the convictions of your character despite my character being such a pain. How long have you been playing here?"

PC- "Thanks. Um, I think two months."

WL- "Really? I've never seen your character before. Glad I had the chance to RP with you. There's a quest on the calender tomorrow at about this time. I'm going to be there, think you can make it?"

PC- "Quest?"

WL- "Yeah. I think this one is a story about a famous sword recently uncovered.... or something like that. =P It'll be fun. You should come!"

PC- "Hmm, yeah, I think I can make it. Sounds neat! You said it was on the calendar? Where's that?"

WL- "It's on the forums. The link to it is near the top of the page on the left. There's a GM calender and a player calender."

PC- "Oh, I'll look for it. Thanks."

WL- "Yeah, you can actually add your own events to the player calender. Next Saturday I'm hosting an event. Check it out. =D "



....... okay, so I hope you get the picture. WL's should be inviting and supportive. WL's go beyond the basic courtesies to extend extra help and friendliness. The point is to get people involved in the community, to the point they really feel like they're a part of it. I'm sure you can name the people that helped/still help you along your journey through this place we call Layonara.

[Dorganath]

So in that case, if a character was to respond negatively to another character the proper thing for anyone aspiring to be a good player or a potential World Leader would both play this animosity in a convincing , consise and clear way (so its clear as to why its being done) and then go onto interact with the player in telling them that there's no hard feelings and perhaps explaining why the character behaved in the way they did..

Right?...but..er..isn't this more or less standard action not "I want to be a world leader" action but rather basic courtesy?

It sure should be, but WL's are expected to be held to that standard.  We'd love it if everyone did, but whether due to inexperience or individual play style, not all do or even know how...or at least not to the extent that we might prefer.

[LynnJuniper]

Thanks Milty (My keyboard is wigging out and switching the letters around on me, darned school computer). I just want to make sure that if Im going to do this WL thing that I do it right =)

And *nods to Dorg* Idealism Versus the reality of the situation, I think we have found ourselves seeing from opposite sides of that spectrum before ^_-

[Black Raven]

I can name a few of folks that fit into your example Milty, sadly and this isnt any personal attack, they were from normal and none WL characters/players.

I really think that as a world leader you are supposed to go up and beyond to support roleplaying with everyone within your reach and when it comes into a character conflict, which for me is also very fun to play. You should Remind the other in tell that hey...no hard feeling thats just my character....

The standard for becoming a world leader character from what I saw isnt based on just your character, but how as a player, how long you've been in the community and if you help support it.

So, while your character might be unpleasant at times, based on his personality or the event of some recent development like a quest or perm death of a beloved character. You, the player are still the player that was approved to become to play a world leader, so your duties goes beyond IC.

Thats just how I feel in any case. Not meant to offend or upset anyone with my own belief.

[Polak76]

To me this isn't rocket science.

WL's simply lead by example.  If you're evil, show how well an evil player can RP and set a standard.  You can't exactly tell someone how to RP but you can explain to them why certain deities dont get along, if something boarders on metagaming, if their actions are causing undue grief...etc.

To me WL's aren't made, they're chosen.  In that sense simply role play as best as possible and be helpful as you normally would in the real world.  If you can do that I'm sure you'll be a good WL.