(06-10-2017, 01:27 PM)Lydia Lightfoot Wrote: My advice is to take the "sheltered character" approach when you're new to the lore in an MMO. In other words, make your character's background be one wherein the character has a reason why they wouldn't know much about the world outside of their sheltered upbringing. One of the biggest reasons why it's vital for a player to know the lore is because their character grew up immersed in it (and so when you're writing from the character's perspective, they should definitely know those things). But, with this approach, the character can be forgiven for being as ignorant of the world as the player is, and it presents a lot of great roleplay opportunities for the character to eagerly learn about the world (and their player can learn too, in the process).
This is why so many fantasy stories are told from an ignorant outsider's perspective. It gives the author the opportunity to explain the world through the characters:
- Harry Potter is a wizard who grew up as a normal kid. He doesn't know anything about this foreign world, so it provides ample opportunity for characters to explain things to him.
- The Hobbits are just simple common folk who go out and explore a world of Men, Elves, and Dwarves; magic and monsters and ancient civilizations.
