(07-23-2017, 06:06 AM)Zhu Wrote: I had two pre-arranged romances and they were absolutely terrible. The characters did not get along at all and they were only together for meta garbage reasons such as the fact it was arranged ooc. Never again.
It was also shallow, as you say. Nothing interesting was happening. Sure it's nice to do the romance itself for a while but it gets hold. They actually have to offer something to eachother and I don't think pre-arragements are good for that. You just don't know what character you're getting.
I think it's much better if it happens organizally after several months of RP. That worked much better for me.
(07-23-2017, 06:19 AM)Rowena Everstone Wrote: I find pre-establishing of romance to be boring and very hollow in terms of play. Trying to force characters together just seems bland, unfilling, and makes me lose interest fairly quickly.
To me, characters are like children. They need to experience the world. They need a chance to grow. They need to experience the ups and downs of life.
(07-23-2017, 09:29 AM)AishaHeartfield Wrote:For me personally, so much character development occurs through the complex interactions between my character and those written by other people. To skip all the experiences and interactions that may lead to an organic connection between them is to deny my character what I feel to be genuine development and progression within the world. A large part of the creative appeal of roleplay for me, as opposed to writing on my own, is to watch my character develop through unpredictable situations and engagements with others.
I feel that a prior arranged romantic roleplay would rob that creative process of its organic value and in turn, result in a character that feels forced or unnatural. It would affect my immersion.
(07-23-2017, 12:18 PM)Lydia Lightfoot Wrote: If the characters did get romantically involved they needn't be attached at the hip, of course, but if we'd only be likely to even get to RP once a week, that may make it difficult for them to have enough face time to actually form that connection
A lot of this goes back to the question, how much time have your characters actually previously spent together, not only ingame but also in your writing for each other (forum RP threads, etc.)? Do they adventure and travel together? Or is one of them maybe a highborn type, or a courtesan type, or an inn owner type who rarely travels but regularly gets letters from / is visited by the other? Would they terribly mind if one is off cavorting with the sMol in Azim Steppe, while the other is back home running a cafe in the Lavender Beds?
Slight blurring is inevitable. How much is OOC affection for someone being reliable and chill and helping you progress your leveling, versus how much is IC affection for their character paying attention to yours? Especially in a game like XIV, where a lot of later content is walled off by MSQ and dungeons. Healers gradually falling for their tanks and vice versa is a trope for a reason. This being an FF game, I also wouldn't be surprised at players who want something similar to Squall x Rinoa, Tidus x Yuna, Quina x food.
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