Today we are talking about finding a roleplay guild that works for you and the character concept you have created. But in case you want to catch up; Beyond Basics is a series of posts that delve into different aspects of roleplay beyond the basics of character creation within an MMO setting. For our purposes, this setting is World of Warcraft but it can be useful in others too. This series will look at things like plots and storylines, conversations. Even the world and community around you as a player in an MMO. And how you can best make use of that as well as how it might differ from roleplay on tabletop games for example.
Beyond Basics is a series of posts that delve into different aspects of roleplay beyond the basics of character creation within an MMO setting. For our purposes, this setting is World of Warcraft but it can be useful in others too. This series will look at things like plots, storylines, and conversations. As well as the world and community around you as a player in an MMO. Explaining how you can best make use of that; and how it might differ from roleplay on tabletop games for example. You can find the rest of the series here: Beyond Basics Series Index
A lot of people will post in General Chat or on the forums with messages like ‘’I’m looking for a roleplay guild on Alliance/Horde side. What guilds are there?’’ and it is really hard to help those people. Because with no idea about their character or their personal requirements are when it comes to a guild. It’s impossible to say what they would enjoy. That is why I wrote this post, to hopefully help those people, and the people that might be answering them, to help work out how to find the right guild for them.
What is a Roleplay Guild?
A roleplay guild mechanically works just the same as any other guild in any other game. The difference is only that the focus is not on gameplay goals but on roleplay. A roleplay guild will likely be based on a particular theme or concept. Such as a military unit, a noble house, or a band of thieves or adventures There is no limit to what your roleplay guilds theme can be barring your own imagination and there are hundreds of different guilds with different themes and concepts out there to choose from when looking for a home for your character. But it can still be a struggle to find one.
Why Can Finding One Be A Struggle?
It can be hard to find a roleplay guild for several reasons. Primarily perhaps you can struggle to find a guild that you feel suits your character’s concept and storyline. When I started my guild I did so because there were at the time no criminal roleplay guilds that suited his story arc. Another struggle with finding a guild can be more practical, it can boil down to not knowing what guilds there are and what those guilds themes are.
So finding a guild can be a struggle to balance both the practical issue of finding guilds and getting in touch with them as each one might have a different recruitment process and finding a guild that suits your character concept and meets your personal preferences and requirements.
How To Find A Roleplay Guild
I’m going to break down this advice into the two parts we looked at above as both are due their own considerations.
Practical Matters
- Finding Guilds. Most MMORPG’s will have a website or a forum. If they have a place for players to post things and discuss things that is likely your best bet. In World of Warcraft each realm has its own official public forum and that would be my first stop for finding guilds. If the realm is an RP realm it will likely already have a sticky post at the top dedicated to listing the roleplay guilds on that server and maybe even have a sentence or two about their theme.
- Make a list. Grab a pen and paper and make a note of any names and themes that sound interesting to you. Some realms may even have an external third party website for their roleplay community which could be a good place to browse for guilds as well.
- Once you have your list of names you need to check if they are still active. You can scan the first 2 or 3 pages of the public forums and see if they have a dedicated recruitment post. You can also search for them on the armoury and check out if they have active members. And you can use the /who GUILDNAME function in the game to see how many of them are online at the times when you are primarily active. This will help you cross off any names from that main list that are maybe no longer active guilds or ones that have disbanded and not been pruned from the list on their forums.
- Now to find out more about them. You can search the guild name within the realm forum and see if they have a thread explaining who they are and what they do. You can try a google search with the name and the realm name and see if they have a website. Or you can use the armoury to find a high ranking member that is likely an officer and whisper them in the game to ask directly. As for what to ask, see below.
Personal Matters
Consider the theme of the guild you are looking for. Is your character a soldier, a criminal or a politician? What kind of groups or people are they likely to work with or along side on a regular basis? This will help determine what kind of guild you are looking for. Then you need to think about what else is important to you. Quality of the roleplay or quantity of the members? If you are interested in political roleplay than quality may be more important. If you prefer military roleplay then numbers might lend better to giving a more accurate atmosphere. Consider what works for you.
Also think about other things, like times. When are your chosen guild options most active and do those times match with when you can be online? Do you like events or more organic roleplay and which do they offer? If they do have events how often are they and are they mandatory? Does the guild have a set of rules and do you agree with them? For example tabards and uniforms being mandatory at all times, or not having them at all. There are both sides to look at with all these things. You just need to sit down and think about what is going to work for you before you set out.
A wise man once said if you are aiming for nothing you will hit it. To find a guild you first need to know what you are looking for.
Conclusion
Once you have narrowed down your list of potential options to the ones that you think best suit your character and what you are looking for within a guild then you can approach those people. I would suggest sending a message to their GM or officers, introduce yourself and ask about their recruiting procedure. Ask any questions you have regarding their guild concept or practices and how to go about joining up. This might not be needed for some guilds, but it will always help make a good impression on your part.
What advice would you give to people looking for a roleplay guild? Or what troubles are you having with finding one? Get in touch and follow us on Social Media!
