(07-06-2014, 05:25 AM)岡本　秀樹 Wrote: Simply put I believe this is perfectly fine. A good RPer does not always dictate their RP by their class and will sometimes ignore their class entirely and RP their character how they would be RPed. Didn't I read that someone on a guide to RPing on these forums? 
Ahh yeah, RP handbook. A Heavy RPer might: choose to define their character purely through their story, perhaps even ignoring their in-game class all together. 

In this case we have a developed RPer who is using the story and attempting use of gray areas in the lore and strictly avoiding that that breaks it. So I see absolutely no reason as to why there would be a problem with it unless someone else wanted to dislike it simply because it is labeled blue mage. And had she not used the label blue mage and simply explained her logical thinking within the grey area of the lore I bet most people would not have a problem with it. Even now it seems that not that many people mind, I mean we have a pretty cool and accepting community.

Regarding the possibility of a blue mage appearing and making the lore difficult to use concerning usage of blue mage tactics. I believe that is a Possibility but even if it were done it could be worked around. In this case the girl has given up even being considered the class just to use a sword which shares some of the classes abilities and the classes abilities are possible to be replicated with enough lore know how and creativity. 

I already talked with her earlier about this but my suggestion for one way this could work is that because Crystals are so magically adept. In creating magical energy and storing it and expelling it into power if you have the right tools, then it is possible that her sword could have strong crystals on it that are enchanted to somehow better absorb the Aetherical abilities of what they come into contact with. You could connect the blade to the crystals and should they want to steal a spell they would just have to come into contact with it and use their own magic to harness the aether into one of the crystals. Then they can release the spell at any time they desire to. Officially allowing them to steal spells and reuse them in a logical manner. I do not even see how it could be considered all that overpowered. It would be more difficult to control then using magic by hand and she is limited only to what she steals from. The abilities would probably drain the crystals too and could only be used a limited number of times before that particular crystal would need recharging.

But it is a really cool concept and if that is what she wants to do it is possible and should be encouraged to do because it is how she wants to play her character and it makes her different. *GASP* But people can't be special and different. Well not everyone likes playing average joes, and those that do probably have different definitions for average joe than the next average joe which would classify them as different anyway. (Sorry not a big fan of people trying to be NORMAL. Normal is boring) Anywho, you all probably already know these things I am just trying to reassure the Author here. As I said you all are a accepting community. Anything that struggles lore wise we can help her fix and maybe one day we can enjoy RPing with this awesome character she creates out of it.

(07-06-2014, 10:26 AM)Yangh Wrote: With that said... Monster Skills! Thought?!

(07-06-2014, 04:07 AM)ArmachiA Wrote: Am I the only one who isn't comfortable with people RPing classes that don't exist?

I mean we just don't know what SE is going to do. Look at Thief, if a bunch of people who decided to rp it before it was announced, they'd be SoL now because SE has come in and said Thief wouldn't work lore wise so they changed it to rogue and all rogues turn into Ninja. That's a lot of retconning.

(07-06-2014, 12:20 PM)TheLastCandle Wrote:

(07-06-2014, 04:07 AM)ArmachiA Wrote: Am I the only one who isn't comfortable with people RPing classes that don't exist?

I mean we just don't know what SE is going to do. Look at Thief, if a bunch of people who decided to rp it before it was announced, they'd be SoL now because SE has come in and said Thief wouldn't work lore wise so they changed it to rogue and all rogues turn into Ninja. That's a lot of retconning.

I am slightly flying off on a tangent here, but it kind of sounds like you're focusing a little too much on the name of the class. A thief is someone who steals. There are/have been people roleplaying themselves as thieves; none of them are "SoL" now, any more than someone using the Gladiator class to portray a sword-wielding Templar from Ishgard. It's bizarre, in my opinion, to think that everyone who knows how to use a sword absolutely has to have been trained at the Ul'dahn Gladiator's Guild. So it is with Rogue: not every character in RP is going to have learned their cloak and dagger skills at the Lominsan Rogue's Guild.

As for Blue Mage, that's an iffy one. I'd say go for it, with the understanding that saying "this is Blue Magic; this is the only way it's done" and developing a very detailed history for its usage is probably not a very good idea for reasons already given. Historically, it has always has been heavily reliant on mechanics, and those tend to differ from game to game. As a classic FF job, there's every possibility that it'll be implemented at some point in ARR's lifetime. My advice is to leave yourself some breathing room for that possibility.

For example: perhaps your character found a vague reference of a High Allagan magus who styled himself a "Blue Mage" using spells learned from monsters. So your character set out to research how such a thing was possible, and found "a" method of doing so - not necessarily "the" method the Blue Mage of old used - and decided to style herself as such.

Edit: Appearance-wise, the only game in which Blue Mage had outright Arab-inspired garb has been FFXI. They don't really have a specific aesthetic. That being said, I see no reason why your specific character shouldn't.

(07-06-2014, 03:13 PM)ArmachiA Wrote: Let's say, for arguments sake, SCH came out later than launch and a few people started RPing their version of SCH - which would most likely be the version from FFXI. If you played FFXI you know SCH from that game and SCH from this game are so different, it would be like you were playing a completely different class. No faeries (Easy enough retcon, no plenty of people who rp SCH without the faery), The ability to switch between White and Black magic (completely impossible for a SCH to do here, since they use Arcanist), both healers and damage dealers but not at the same time - having to switch to Light Arts or Dark Arts.

It's a completely different class then the one we got in FFXIV.

God, I'm actually trying to imagine what  people would have said Summoner was if it hadn't been released and I'm pretty sure no one would have gotten that right. Just a bunch of rpers walking around with full sized Garuda's.

I'm not telling people not to do it, I just think it's risky. Tread carefully.

(07-06-2014, 04:05 PM)ArmachiA Wrote: Arcanist magic is unaspected, it doesn't have black or white properties. Scholar in the game is based off Arcanist (Or, what's probably more accurate, given the lore of the game Arcanist is based off Scholar teachings). If you're playing a character who can switch between White and Black magic at will, you aren't playing a Scholar in FFXIV's lore. And you can say "then I'm something else" but to be that kinda spits in the face of the lore.

If you can be whatever you want, then I can be Superman. Why play RP in a universe  with boundaries if you just completely disregard the lore to be whatever you want? The fun is the boundaries, not running around doing whatever you want.

I'm not saying OP is doing that, however. Blue Mage is a Final Fantasy staple so it's not like she's saying "I want to be Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Blue Mage will probably (maybe...) be around eventually and exists within the parameters of Final Fantasy.

I think what she's doing sounds fine, generally, I'm just telling her to be careful. There's a slippery slope between "I'm vaguely Blue Mage" and "My people is the inventor of blue mage and I'm gonna teach EVERYBODY cuz I'm the only one who knows it and here are the RULES."

I think the OP isn't crossing that line, I'm just discussing in generalities. I'm personally not comfortable with it, myself.

(07-06-2014, 04:05 PM)ArmachiA Wrote: Arcanist magic is unaspected, it doesn't have black or white properties. Scholar in the game is based off Arcanist (Or, what's probably more accurate, given the lore of the game Arcanist is based off Scholar teachings). If you're playing a character who can switch between White and Black magic at will, you aren't playing a Scholar in FFXIV's lore. And you can say "then I'm something else" but to be that kinda spits in the face of the lore.

If you can be whatever you want, then I can be Superman. Why play RP in a universe  with boundaries if you just completely disregard the lore to be whatever you want? The fun is the boundaries, not running around doing whatever you want.

I'm not saying OP is doing that, however. Blue Mage is a Final Fantasy staple so it's not like she's saying "I want to be Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Blue Mage will probably (maybe...) be around eventually and exists within the parameters of Final Fantasy.

I think what she's doing sounds fine, generally, I'm just telling her to be careful. There's a slippery slope between "I'm vaguely Blue Mage" and "My people is the inventor of blue mage and I'm gonna teach EVERYBODY cuz I'm the only one who knows it and here are the RULES."

I think the OP isn't crossing that line, I'm just discussing in generalities. I'm personally not comfortable with it, myself.