At first, the question I wanted to ask was "Did you pick the race you did for the roleplay?", but it wouldn't address quite what I was trying to ask. It also wouldn't really mean anything to people who pick races for the combat aspect, or who aren't very involved in racial RP.

This has been an issue that's been nagging at me for a long time, particularly with the existence of a few racial clans. I only know about The Pack (Loboshi), and it really doesn't seem to have done much in the longest time. The purpose of The Pack, as far as I can tell from the whopping 2 news posts, was to protect Tosha and Loboshigaru culture... there just doesn't seem to be much of it. Are there any races that have strong RP, in a communal sense? I'd very much like to know. I'd also like to know if you think a race doesn't have enough/any RP because of a lack of any kind of information/precedent/general ideas about how race might be important to your character. Does it even matter to you (do you pick race(s) because of OoC taste, combat-related issues, or any other reason)?

The problem with racial roleplay is that all you have is what's in HELP and the histories, and anything you try to add onto that is invariably going to be contradicted by someone else playing the same race who has exactly as much right to be establishing racial culture or roleplay as you do. So racial roleplay tends to become a wishy-washy morass where everything is possible in every race (because somewhere, someone is doing it) and therefore the races don't mean much.

There are exceptions (and I bet my post is about to provoke a few hundred howlingly defensive descriptions of them), but the limit of their scope largely goes to prove the rule. And those exceptions tend to consist of groups, sometimes fairly large groups, of members of a race getting together and agreeing on a few things, then ignoring all the players of that same race outside that group who disagree with, or are unaware of, the things that group decided. So within a race there's probably pockets of people who feel they've developed racial roleplay, but might be completely contradictory to other pockets who've done the same in different directions.

Which of course can be plenty of fun, but it's not quite the same as building a coherent racial culture.

Personally, if I were inventing a MUD, I would create right from the first day some kind of Wiki-like system for people to propose, discuss, and ultimately adopt elements of racial roleplay in a collaborative manner, and then allow people to read up on what was agreed upon and thus became canon.

Well, there's some pretty clearly defined RP for Viscanti, namely that they're tainted, but what I've noticed is the part about mutating from the taint is a touchy subject. Most people seem to believe now that you are only born Viscanti (or reincarnate), that you do not mutate from the taint. My whole reason for making Ongaku switch from Furrikin to Viscanti is that, being a Geomancer, he was close enough to the Taint that it could transform him. The difference with him from other Geos who aren't Viscanti, because I know someone's going to point out that there are lots of non-Viscanti Geomancers, is that he ALLOWED the Taint to transform him. He willed it to make his body anew, hence still looking somewhat like a giant skunk.

EDIT: In response to Gwylifar's post, why don't we just work here on defining Racial roleplay? Let's make threads regarding racial roleplay in the Chronicles of the Basin section. I'll do it! Well, for Viscanti and Furrikin at least.

Well, the general theory is that the taint nowadays isn't strong enough to do that sort of mutation (without Kethuru's will behind it). It is a "corrosive force" that has a bit of its own power and can be used, but it's not the same "Death Or Mutation!" that it used to be. It's probably not a horribly bad thing to roleplay that kind of change (because, well, a lot of people do it and it's not really all that farfetched) but I think that in terms of actual game theory Viscanti are born, not made, these days.

Ah, that's true. I suppose my idea about the whole thing is that if you allow the taint to transform you, it will, but it won't transform you all by itself anymore.

Well, I think of that transformation as more of a mental one than a physical one now (though a completely different mental frame could easily change one's appearance in certain ways, it's not a complete overhaul/mutation). Yes, you would have to 'let it' rewrite you / align yourself with it, but I'm not really sure about the "still able to transform you"-- even Lich doesn't actually transform you (though you will start to decay, oh yes).

Well, it's all about RP preference too. And Lich will not decay me! Ongaku shall be pretty FOREEVAR!

For Shishi he's very much into being an Igasho. He really doesn't know quite what it means but he even had a time, prmpted from Elostian, where he went up visited all the Igasho in snow valley, learned what they were up to and how they acted. Now he won't kill the cats in snow valley, and he doesn't like the taurians there. Mostly becase they told him, an Igasho, "Kill all IGASHO RAWR." and he got mad about that. It's also why Shishi has a cave bear, he likes helping out the igasho and show his pride of being one by raising a cave bear. (He's on his third)

I really sorta don't agree that all we have is help files though, we have their modern lives. For most races who don't have a very clearly defined sort of RP you can go greet some denizans, figure out how they live now and base your RP around it. I believe their are exceptions to that though.

I think it'd be fun to have more racial RP, but I can think of two game features that inhibit the Racial RP

1. There are only four orginizations, not nearly enough for all of the races to form their own villages and become prejudice against each other or to set clearly different life styles because everybody either works to better their own orginization or go rouge where they just do what they think their race would do. The only races that aren't excepted in an orginization are those that are native to the opposing force. Viscanti an Ithiloids aren't allowed in Celest, Merians and Kephera aren't allows in Mag, and Elves aren't very welcome in Glomdoring. Not entierly sure who Serenwilde doesn't like.

2. There's no way of telling a person's race unless you specifically 'look' at them. It feels like we're all wearing giant name tags that hide our race. Which has always been a bother to me considering I'm sure I'd notice a big igasho comming towards me before I reconized who it was.

Elves are perfectly welcome in Glomdoring. Only race Glomdoring has an issue with is Kephera, and even then it's alright as long you're willing to go hunt some Kephera.

Elfen would be welcome in Glomdoring still, they may not be the big race but they're still very much part of the Commune.

Viscanti are welcome in Celest with understandable limitations and Glomdoring has nothing against Elfen. I've got a Glom alt who's elfen and she's well into her 60's, never had a problem.

For the first point, I don't think it's quite true. I'm sure I could make an Elfen Celestine and still have that character feel close to nature and spend most of her/his time outdoors. Or a Merian Blacktalon who spends most of her/his time near the river to be close to the water. The other races would seem easier to create a racial RP for. I'm sure that Aslaran and Krokani would have a slight grudge against one another and of course racial tensions between Lucidian and Dracnari would probably run a bit high if people were aware of what had happened between Gaudiguch and Hallifax. We have some in game examples of racial behaviours, dwellings, phrases, and tensions. While people who lived in different cities and communes may not be totally the same about traditions, I'm pretty sure most dracnari would still rather bathe beside a lava pool, most lucidians would still rely on logical reasoning, taurians would have an attitude problem, and tae'dae be loathe to hurt a furrikin.

For the second point, I would agree. It would be nice to know what race someone was. I don't know if that would be done by a little entrance or exit message, but I also think it's not something that inhibits racial roleplay too horribly.

It's all just what I think, of course, but I really think the only thing that really inhibits racial roleplay is people who want to play the race however they want. Like cat faelings.

Lets see if I can't explain that first point a little better...

I was meaning to say that none of the organizations really allow for racial individuality. As it was just pointed out to me, even with what little prejudice there is against certian races, they are still allowed... making each orginization a giant melting pot where every body adapts to the orginization's roleplay with race having very little effect outside of which guild that person would be best suited for.

I agree that an organization's roleplay tends to take precedent over racial RP, unless that race happens to "fit" in that org better than the other races, namely Merians in Celest, Faelings & Elfen in either forest, Viscanti in Magnagora. That's strongly supported by the histories and help files, etc. However, I wouldn't say that the orgs don't allow for "racial individuality". It's more like you're allowed to roleplay being any race, but you have to tailor it around your organization's rules and beliefs. However, the cities and communes are probably why there is little unifying, concrete roleplay for any race - with one or three exceptions.

The Viscanti are very clearly set up for Magnagora. The reasons why are being discussed above and elsewhere, and I won't clutter this topic by repeating any of it. The Illithoids and Kephera, being more-recently introduced races are much more clear on their racial roleplay: both of them were locked in the Undervault for the longest time, locked in conflict with each other, and are only now exploring the rest of the Basin. The Glomdoring actually provides a little leeway (only insomuch as serving the Glomdoring as a Kephera means you have to betray your people), but otherwise, I don't think there would be much debate over this.

Now take Humans. They are also, technically, a 'newer' race, having only appeared with the coming of Estarra, whereas most other races were extant since after the Elder Wars. They're the most populous race in Lusternia, and there's almost nothing that unites them as a people. They're just too different and diverse, but this also suits them mechanically and role-play wise to settle wherever and do whatever they please. The only real thing they have in common is the unusual soul-shard they possess (Yudhe's son or whatever it was).



I agree with this wholeheartedly. It would be nice to develop races on a fundamental level (ignoring cities and communes). Racial RP could be so much more than it is today, and I think Lusternia would be much better off if players at least knew what the history of the races were, their general manner and so on. Some people would probably defy this roleplay (drow, anyone?), but that's to be expected. At least the material would be there.

Vio actually published a book about how organizations like cities and guilds dilute racial 'purity' in the sense of culture... but race {both as a human, and as a trill, married to Arel} has defined Vionne's character in a number of ways. The first book she ever wrote was about her experiences as a human and what she thought about her race. Her 'unacknowledged half-breed merian' status gave her a lot of very useful resentments in her early years, and now as a Trill I've been designing a lot for her (yay cartel!), she's married to a lucidian, and she definitely spends most of her non-glomdoring time at the mesa or the observatory.

Race is always pretty important to me for defining a character when starting out, though sometimes I do tend to grow away from the race as I get more enmeshed in other facets of the game.

I picked my race (Aslaran), mainly because I love lions. But, the idea of a tribal sort of character sprung to mind and I just went with that. I really like it and even though I tossed the idea of reincarnating around over and over again, I just can't do it. I tried to start a small Pride, but that fizzled out. I think there were not a lot of Aslaran players around at the time or they were all in orgs that I was enemied against, so I have up.

Technically they are. I've never seen one last.

Akui interprets the world in part through her race. She aspires to be like Aslarn and Shanth; at least as she interprets them from what is known. She doesn't worship them, but sees Shanth as a paragon of the Aslaran, and Aslarn as the core of what it is to be one. As far as her personal beliefs go, her attention to her racial heritage weaves itself into other aspects of how she lives. For example, Aslarn was proud and regal, and Shanth wise and fleet of foot, White Hart embodies many of these same traits that she sees as virtuous, so it is a natural pairing for her.

I know there are other interpretations out there of what Aslarans are like, and what their culture is, The Shanthine Pride, for example. But, beyond what we see in Shanthmark, as it has been said, these are merely the interpretations of other individuals. For most of the races, unique history is probably difficult to find, and so individuals take what they can, and use it as they will, as Akui has done.

In a way, this makes sense. The races here didn't come about in any sort of "traditional" sense. At least some of their nature is derived from the star god from which they splintered, and various pieces of those divine may carry different weights on different parts of their nature. Even then, how much was lost in the Soulless holocausts? For most races, it is probably difficult to arrive at one true, or original culture. Some, like the Merians and Elfen are fortunate to have relatively long standing epicenters that give their cultures some grounding. In theory, the same could probably be true for the Lucidain and Dracnari at least, and perhaps Furrikin (if they were indeed centered on Ackleberry), and, after this most recent history, even Aslaran- however, as none of these are actually in game, we are still left to guess, create, and speculate for the most part.

The Viscanti and Faelings are different in nature, with the former being arguably the most well defined race culturally, due to the prominence of the effects of the taint in the histories, and their link to it. Ultimately, I would very much like to see more race-based roleplay, and I feel it is an area with a great deal of potential depth that isn't delved in to in practice as much as it might be.

The problem I find is that a lot of people want to be different from the norm. And I'm not pointing fingers, I'm one of them. And when everyone is being different from the norm, you don't have whole stack of core people who are being the norm, so there's no actual norm.