Sig

I respect RP'ers who incorporate soul stones in their RP but would not incorporate a soul stone as part of my characters. FFXIV lore is vague enough to permit characters to perform the same functions as most jobs without strict compliance to soul-stone lore. If a character possess a soul stone, my characters' reactions would be contingent on their knowledge of the arcane and the veracity of the character in possession of the soul stone. Sigurd, for example, would probably take little interest in the subject, but would believe statements describing the function of the soul-stone if the possessor appeared credible.

The FFXIV housing system is fundamentally flawed because supply is so beneath demand that it has priced a substantial portion of players out of the market. This will continue until supply is dramatically increased. The current lack of housing is highly detrimental to new players, RP'ers, and casual players in particular for obvious reasons. The solution to the housing problem is not to apologize on behalf of SE, or encourage players to grind out unreasonable sums of gil for purely aesthetic elements of gameplay. These approaches will only increase market inflation and exacerbate the problem. The only solution to the housing problem is increasing supply. Housing is an important element of the game for many roleplayers. It should not be a luxury contingent on certain social connections or obscene quantities of PVE farming. Until supply can keep up with demand, housing will remain critically flawed. It doesn't matter how supply is increased (i.e. more wards, aggressive reclamation, etc.), but SE's current proposals are unsatisfying vague.

I'm not very fond on tying my characters' IC abilities and background to specific in-game classes. Strict adherence to IC classes and PVE gear is too conceptually restricting and requires obscene amounts of PvE time for certain characters. However, I try to harmonize the class and equipment of a character as closely to what I desire to portray in RP without spending huge amounts of time leveling every associated class. Sigurd, for example, utilizes some DK-esque aether powers and a greatsword as a secondary weapon. I tend to set his class to DK while RPing because most of the outfits and equipment are very consistent with his IC aesthetics. However, he has several skills that are not depicted by the dark knight class. His primary weapon is a single knife, but RPing him as a ninja would be inconsistent with his primary character traits. Similarly, he is a vintner by trade, but I have no aspirations of spending a ton of time leveling a culinarian. It is plausible and reasonable for characters to possess certain IC skills and abilities that do not directly relate to PVE content or classes (but have support in lore). The only thing I attempt to avoid outright is blatant violation of well-settled lore, or RPing a character of an entirely different PVE archtype ( i.e. - do not RP as a mage while the in-game class is a warrior, etc.).

Work lame soul-crushing career job 10 hours while waiting contently to return home, log into FFXIV, and grind to 60. Attempt to log-on and discover night-long primetime maintenance underway. Realize another 10-12 hours of soul-crushing job awaits in the morning. Grab beer and listen to suitable music. The tyranny of modernity. 5iyDNdo12Fk

Please strike Ebonbrand Teknoworks from the attendee list. Regretfully, most of our members have RL commitments this evening. Good luck with the event!

Pls. Sig. ...B-but an RP crush on a character and event is different!

- Did you have any of these "roleplayer crushes"? y/n, is it just me, being a creepy nugget? No. My desire to RP with certain characters has never really developed to a "crush" because I usually approach players directly for RP if I believe their characters would be a good fit. It helps that my character is disgustingly outgoing, and I have few reservations about scheduling RP on business-like timetables if necessary. However, there is nothing creepy or weird about wanting to RP with someone you consider a skilled RP'er. Do not feel bad about wanting to have fun through good roleplay. - How do you handle these? Do you just send an aggressive PM/tell with things like "you, me, RP, 8PM EST"? Maybe not that aggressive, but PM's usually do the trick if someone is interested in RPing. My big problem is a limited play schedule that prohibits me from RPing with all the great RP'ers I've met. - Stories to share? Bonus points for embarrassing things. A similar but embarrassing story. I once had a RP crush with a "bar crawl" like event and could not resist the urge to RP Sigurd in his full alcoholic, manic, narcissistic, and sexist glory. Many found it hilarious but it offended others. I felt bad about inadvertently offending others and apologized OOCLy through tells for accidental slights. It was a fun night but mildly embarrassing. - Did senpai notice you, when you started emoting at them very very loudly? Not applicable. - Just how excited do you get when plotting with these new people, and realize they love your ideas and bring even more material on the table? I love plotting with new RP'ers, but it's really difficult to find the time these days. I wish the government handed out RP grants that would allow me to quit my job and RP. That would be terrific. - Did like, once, this person was actually pretty awful and you regretted everything? Happened to me more than I'd like to admit, BUT, I still keep on pushing. I haven't had the misfortune of running into any awful RP'ers.

I'll discuss this with fellow officers later this week, but please reserve a space for Ebonbrand Teknoworks. Sigurd Sundsteigen or Nero Varus will likely attend if we decide to make an appearance.

Solnne would be a great fit in Amesoeurs considering her less conventional talents. We have LS members from a variety of FCs; Amesoeurs is a fairly loose and decentralized LS, but could hopefully lead Solnne to some good RP contacts.

^ This. Dark knight lore is so vague that there are numerous plausible angles you could take without destroying lore. An evil dark knight is one of those angles.

GAIUS DID NOTHING WRONG, KAG!

September 2015 Update: OOC: ...The Ebonbrand Teknoworks has no affiliation with the Garlean Empire, seriously! Well, not YET. Our FC is slowly drifting towards plot arcs that may align it with Garlemald interests. We've worked through some delicious IC drama recently and cemented our little family of fascinating characters! If you have a character who would like to join the fold, please let Nero Varus or Skylar Brooks know in game!

September 2015 update: OOC: Amesoeurs has really taken off with the help of an amazing cast of great RP'ers! We're getting some fairly regular witty, dramatic, funny, and zany IC banter! I'll be on vacation from Oct. 2 through Oct 11, 2015. During this time, please feel free to bug Nero Varus, Skylar Brooks, or Khana Borlaaq for an invite in-game! We're about 65 strong and always looking for more skilled RP'ers to join the fun!

We're on Balmung, sadly! Transfer it up, !

Last minute potential entry: Not sure if I can make it, but please add Sig to this.

Secret IC Confessions: When I first conceived of Sigurd while drinking an IPA and listening to obscure french blackgaze music, I had no idea that his emotionally-volatile nature would mesh well with dark knights. Heavensward had just came out, and I was leveling Sigurd up as a warrior. However, I never cared much for the aesthetic appearance of axes, and the warrior job concept did not match Sigurd's background very well. Therefore, I decided to level up dark knight for "dat greatsword." Around the time I unlocked dark knight, Sigurd was in the middle of a plot arch where he was confronting a series of terrible emotions and memories he had locked away. When I unlocked dark knight and played through the quests through level 50, I thought to myself, "geez, this is so ironic -- this emotionally driven dark knight lore is basically the character I've had in mind the whole time, minuses the heavy armor and with some interesting aether powers added." I would not consider Sigurd a "dark knight" and bend lore to give his background context and depth. He borrows emotionally-fueled defensive aether abilities from the dark knight, uses a greatsword clumsily, and does not wear heavy armor most of the time. I believe most RP'ers bend dark knight lore, given its ambiguity, to bring an individuality to their character. This is a great thing. Most dark knights I've met in game have been very moody and angsty. I'd also like to meet some more emotionally-driven, affable dark knights.

Before Sigurd got stuck in his current glut of "hide from constant IC assassination attempts," I'd enjoy RPing him in public places like the Quicksand and had a few solo emote go-tos: Smoking moko grass in public; Drinking large amounts of wine alone; Carving wooden objects; Cursing while reviewing dense business transaction documents; Buying amusing patrons wine; Pacing about the room in a large circle. I usually draft the solo-emote posts on the spot, and they're normally around 3-5 sentences. It's a great way to warm up for substantive RP and meet new RP'ers!

Sigurd approves of "Kingsley-Mazes" and his incredibly thick-accented, witty dialogue. It was a blast meeting you IC last evening, and I look forward to the RP adventures!

This thread is starting to go off the rails. I'll try to drag it back on course with a controversial statement: Call me a meta-gamer if you desire, but I really try to make sure that both myself and people I RP with find the roleplay enjoyable. As a result, I've intentionally not pursued scenes or taken IC actions that my character could have taken. I believe deriving enjoyment from RP trumps 100% character consistency, and I tend to have my character take plausible IC actions that will suit the tastes/expectations of my RP partners. There have been a few occasions, however, where I have performed the actions that I believed would be ICly plausible and OOCly enjoyable, but inadvertently offended others OOCly [[wow, that is hard to describe in a compound sentence]]. After such occasions, I've felt pretty bad, especially because I prioritize OOC enjoyment of RP. Thankfully, this has been pretty rare, because I've been lucky enough to RP with people who appreciate a wide range of scenes.

Google and the inter-forum search function have failed me. I've been looking for a basic summary of dark knight lore, specifically information regarding the nature and origin of their powers. I believe this information is revealed in level 50-60 dark knight class quests. If anyone could provide a brief summary of dark knight lore, I would appreciate. Thanks!

I would like a proverbial ticket on this bus!

See above comments in red.

Sigurd glanced over Ebonbrand's standard job posting form, observing how it had been haphazardly tacked to a message board near the Quicksand's rear entrance by one of his business partner's "employees." Sigurd's icy pupils studied the form carefully, noting several typographical errors and formatting problems. "...Gods, Varus -- the amount of formatting problems and scrivener's errors... It is /so/ hard to find good help these days." Sigurd would mumble to himself, biting his tongue as he suffered the center-justified text splattered over the form. Sigurd folded his arms about his chest in silent disapproval and voiced further objections: "...I supply the content and draft the disclaimer, and that dense-headed Garle-- ugh, humble son of a Mor Dhonan miner -- can't even get the damn formatting right. Hopeless! Whatever happened to delegation, Varus? Gods, where is our administrative staff?!" A heavily scarred left hand reached for the flask slung about his hip, raising it to his lips for a sharp swig, which staunched the criticism. Adult beverages had a way of excusing inadvertent errors. ((Best. RP. Buddies. Evar. <3.))

Rhys & Amark, I should be on this evening and tomorrow evening around 6:00 PM PST for invites. Feel free to send me an IM if those times do not work, and we can identify alternatives.

A gentle critical touch in red above. Excellent writing, overall. Enjoyed the subject matter. A bit verbose in parts.