Rila

So! Convenient lore-dubious-but-potentially-fun plot excuse vs. that quaint old-fashioned pen-pally charm. I see strengths and weaknesses in both routes and would welcome thoughts from others who are interested! Should I do a poll I wonder?

Also a fair point. I kind of like the idea of an LS so that can it sit in the directory for posterity, since I suspect many more people browse through all of the LSes than read several pages back on the Making Connections forum. That way if someone wants to write and receive letters, say, a month from now, they'll know of a thing to join. And I missed the post I just responded to being stricken out, whoops

That is an excellent point. I like this idea.

Ooh. The idea just came to me that in addition to starting a linkshell, we could set up some sort of plot where an artifact links us together. It would explain why we suddenly have IC pen pals from completely different backgrounds. Like what if there's some kind of a fractal tome that exists simultaneously in multiple locations? And whenever one version of it is written in, anyone else with a copy can see it? Kind of like a... a magical fantasy Google Docs. And that way, we can actually exchange addresses ICly and potentially start sending private letters from there. It would also give us the freedom to start communications with multiple people without having to search for an IC plot reason each time. Am I overthinking this?!

I am humbled by the response to this! Thank you. Truth be told, I had only expected one, maybe two people to reply. What a pleasant surprise to see that my love of letters is shared by many! As for the letters themselves, I was actually thinking Google Docs is a promising medium. Aside from it naturally logging everything you post, you can also mess around with fonts. I owe this idea to the great Nuin Noiregide, so if you happen to see her in game, be sure to tell her she's awesome. What does everyone think of using Google Docs? On a logistical level, I'm more concerned about the fact that with five responders so far (one was through PM), I might not have time for as many pen-pals as people who are interested. And as this thread is less than a day old, it's probable that even more people will want to be part of this. I fear that if I tried simultaneously to start up writing to everyone, there will be a lack of quality and persistence on my part. So I think what I'll do - and again, please chime in with your opinions - is start a pen pals linkshell so that everyone who's interested in exchanging IC letters can meet others with a similar interest. My plan is to have Rila write to each of you at some point, but I don't want to keep anyone waiting. This way, we can all enjoy pen-pals right away.

I'm getting a little burned out, so am trying something different. If you love letters and the idea of your character getting a somewhat unhinged Seeker mage for a pen-pal appeals to you, you're in the right place. I'rila Desta is a twenty-six year old former medicine woman who lives in La Noscea and works in Thanalan. Her expertise lies in alchemy, cooking and botany, and although she's not physically fit enough to be good at it, armorcrafting is also a life-long interest. She manufactures potions and medicines for a living. Not all substances that leave her lab are legal. In personality, she is curious, enthusiastic and insincerely flirtatious. To her, there are few things in the world better than an interesting story. She wants to know about other people, although she can be slow to share anything about herself since her previous life had not been a particularly pleasant one. But not to worry! I'll keep the grimdarkness to a minimum. As a whole, I tend toward comedy. Angst is usually situational and has only happened rarely. Still interested? Let me know in a reply or a PM. EDIT: due to there being at least six people interested in a pen-pal, I'm going to get contact information from all of us and am also considering a linkshell. If we start a linkshell, we additionally have the option of using some kind of a fractal tome plot line (i.e. book that exists in multiple places so we all write to each other) to tie all our characters together. The lore behind it might be a little sketchy and we'd lose a bit of the charm of classical pen pals, but some might be interested in engaging with an artifact like that. So here's a poll!

Count me in!

If it's not too late, I'd like to put Rila's name down as a back-up to the S'imba/Theia/Nuin/Xarl crew.

I'd like to audition for the role of total Fate-14 newb in A Pirate's Life For Me, Monday the 5th. <_<;; *pushes Rila forward*

I would love to have my cat interact with your characters - Faith especially. Just to share a little bit about her: Rila is a mage and craftsman who makes her living as something of a "procurer". Make of that what you will. She's curious and friendly, loves to cook and loves to travel. Morally gray. Well versed in destructive magic and potions. Very tall for a miqo'te, but rather unattractively noodly and looking for some kind of a physical trainer. Also she's a little bit high more often than not, so if you're squicked out at all by non-reckless drug use, you'll want to steer clear. I'd be interested in seeing how Rila's moral ambiguity jibes with Faith's do-gooderism, especially since they're both friendly and well-meaning people. But I bet she'd also have some fun misadventures with your Sea Wolf kitty. PM/tell me if you're interested and we can get to plotting!

Our characters are similar enough that they'll either adore each other or absolutely detest one another. I'm curious to find out which. Also, I too am always on the lookout for more OOC friendships, so I'd welcome both RP and conversation. Let's chat if you're interested!

I do. Rila's gigantpole is IC. Its name is Mathildegarde and she harvests hallucinogenic secretions from it for recreational use.

I fluctuate between desperately missing in-game RP and being unbearably sick of in-game RP. There's no in between.

Sounds like our characters might just have a promising friendship ahead of them! The wiki entry for I'rila is embarrassingly outdated (I really do need to get around to that at some point), so I'll summarize her current state of being as best as I can. She's an ex-shaman who has physically left her clan behind but still carries around some anger from living in such an insular community. Outwardly, she's sometimes upbeat, sometimes sarcastic, a little too imaginative, a little lacking in common sense, and rarely appears to take herself seriously. Several possibilities come to mind as to how they might know one another. Rila's current job has her working primarily in a laboratory near Ul'dah, but over the last five years or so, she's had tons of little odd end jobs. Luha may have known her as a smuggler, and with her knowledge of alchemy and especially poisons, I imagine she would have also manufactured prohibited substances. Also, Rila hates people in positions of authority who are greedy or ignorant, and would likely have supported vigilante justice against government officials whom she believes are not acting in their people's best interests. So, that's my spiel! Interested? Then contact me in game, or, even better, shoot me a PM with your skype username. Hope to hear from you soon, and good luck with finding quality RP!

I wouldn't be able to play a character well without a good backstory. I'll admit it right now: I can be a Chronic Exposition Monkey OOCly. When I come up with a detailed history I'm excited about, it's difficult to resist gushing about it. My main character hardly ever speaks in depth about her past. Me? I'm a different story altogether. "You want to know about I'rila?! Well why didn't you say so? Oh hon lemme tell you all about her. *four hours later, still happily talking*" Seriously. Do not get me started talking about any of my characters. You'll regret it. And you know? Part of it is sheer self-indulgence. Getting a really detailed backstory down is like filling a blank sheet of paper with very intricate and tiny doodles. It gives me that sort of reptilian pleasure. But part of it, too, is that I don't think people are ever really outside of the influence of their personal backstories. When I speak, even when I think, I notice bits and pieces of my parents and friends, little subtle behaviors, ways of saying things that I've picked up as a result of mirroring. My hang-ups, my pet peeves, my ambitions, my thoughts about myself and about the world, the things that I value in interpersonal relationships. Some of it I can't explain any further than "this is me", but a lot of it I can trace to past experiences. Without my memories, I wouldn't really be me, at least not completely. I think the same applies to fictional characters. Someone who refuses to raise his sword against a bandit because his parents raised him to be a staunch pacifist is different from someone who refuses to raise his sword against a bandit because the last time he used it, he lost a most embarrassing duel against three little ladybugs and three lost lambs. For me, RPing a character without a backstory is like getting into a pair of shoes without soles. I can admire the stitching and the laces, but the moment I trying to move and react, there's nothing for me to stand on. No traction. EDIT: Another thought. I don't think having a detailed backstory is detrimental to character growth. To me, it's akin to throwing a ball. Once you release it, it has a certain trajectory. If something else comes flying from another direction and hits it in midair, that trajectory will change, although the forces that had originally acted upon it will also have an influence in where it lands.