Female to Male Ratio

[Dogberry]

Oh Dogberry. You are like the epitome of manliness. What is your advice to those boys aspiring to be a man like you?

 

Be tranquil as a forest, but on fire within. Once you reach your center you will surely win.

[Faye]

I think it's a combination of two factors.

 

Lots of guys like playing girl characters.

 

Lots of girls like to RP (I'd argue the M/F RPer ratio is much more balanced than the ratio of players in general).

 

Those two factors lend themselves to it.

 

This is pretty much it. Most of the guys are playing female characters, and most of the girls are playing female characters.

 

We need more menfolk.

[Dogberry]

All of these girls and my characters still can't get dates *Sad Face*

 

Not with that attitude, bucko!

 

OK, so I guess I should contribute. I do know PLENTY of women who always play men. My wife will very seldom play a female character. She just seems to get more emotionally invested in her male characters than her female ones. Couldn't say why, she just does.

 

OOGH WANT TO TRY THIS SO BAD - I just don't want to tank the character I've worked on for several months or make alt that has to MSQ again :c

 

I'm going thought this with Iskierka. I love the character so much, but OH GOD doing MSQ, and then after that getting into the post 50 content all the way through the coils and such... it's daunting. I'm taking it nice and slow with her, but I do want all the shiny things for her that I have on Dogberry.

 

Oh, I didn't know you play Iskierka. We used to be in FC together o/ \o. Love that character concept, by the way. Oh look, I have derailed my own thread. Cool!

 

Thank you! I could actually go into why I made Iskierka a woman rather than a man. Mostly it has to do with empathy, and how the things that were done to her seem all the more egregious, but how she deals with it seems much stronger. The tragedy isn't that she was scarred and her beauty taken from her, it's that her identity was taken and how she wears the mask specifically to stand out. Even with her face essentially taken from her, she refuses to be faceless. Though that concept comes from a much different place that gender has very little to do with. I might write something about that eventually, because there's a lot I have to say on the matter.

[Gaspard]

I probably stand in stark contrast. I exclusively play male characters, always. Not so much out of an unwillingness or incapability to assume a more 'female' Role, but simply because it doesn't sit too well with me.

 

I think it mostly originates from the fact that I strongly believe that, while Men and Women are ofcourse very alike, there 'are' a few, but very profound differences that make it simply impossible for me to portray a woman realistically. Just like I'm sure it's the same for women in regards to men. I'm not talking specifically in a 'writing-only' fashion. But it is something even famous writers struggle with. the POV of the opposite sex isn't as easy to assume realistically as most would like to believe it.

 

Now, I'm not talking out of stereotypes or 'gender perceptions' that society dictates. I'm talking about those very profound, nuanced differences we all can spot in behavior between men and women, but can hardly put into words.

 

 

As for the ratio in general ; I think FFXIV is very pro-female oriented in its variety of outfits, options and even appearance customization. And from a purely subjective point of view, I believe the female models/options look more appealing compared to the males. We suffer from a serious lack of good looking hairstyles, body options and outfits. Almost every outfit out there has some effeminate traits to it aswell. I.E, the battlemage outfit with it's cleavage cut, Vanya Robes with their flowers, leather pants so tight you'd expect David Bowie to quirk a brow, etc etc. Again, that part is purely subjective and my personal opinion, not really saying that everyone perceives it as such.

[Dravus]

The tight trousers for men wouldn't be too bad if the models boasted a slight and realistic bulge. We can't have that, though, since it's apparently fine for oversized breasts to be given their own set of physics but all hell would break loose if male anatomy was ever touched upon. :dodgy:

[Branson Thorne]

As a male this is me everytime I try to roll a female character rp.

 

*creates character*

*completes tutorial*

*enters game world*

*thinks "dafuq am I doing*

*deletes character*

*logs into male character again*

[DeletedUser]

The tight trousers for men wouldn't be too bad if the models boasted a slight and realistic bulge.

 

Ken dolls everywhere.

[Hihimi]

I don't care what gender takes up the majority in RP as long as they aren't being prejudiced against or catered to.

[Faye]

I don't care what gender takes up the majority in RP as long as they aren't being prejudiced against or catered to.

 

...and world peace.

[Volk]

[...]leather pants so tight you'd expect David Bowie to quirk a brow[...]

 

Ground control to Major Gaspard: This made me I'm just throwing rep out today!

[Telluride]

Some folks tend to worry about this subject a lot, it seems.

 

I have played out a hell of a lot of scenarios as many different kinds of people, and I feel I have boiled it down to a single philosophy:

 

I like RP with players who have mental maturity enough to handle what they choose to portray, whether it is silly or sultry or surly or serious, and respect their fellows and partners. All else follows from this basic respect. It is the first balm to fears, dreads and worries.

 

To paraphrase several philosophers both sacred and profane, if you care about your fellow actor in these passion plays, then play as you will, because if you care, you will do no harm.

[xelliexell]

I'm posting from my phone, so I can't do quotes (please forgive!)

 

@Graeham: I agree that there are those who could be using RP as an outlet for unfulfilled aspects of their RL, and as such may be prioritizing romance well over any other detail. I don't mind this though, because to each their own! I just tend to attract these sorts when playing males, I suppose, and the lack of compatible priorities makes it awkward for me.

 

@Any female wanting to play a male character who is afraid they'll "mess it up": don't be. I acknowledge that there are some subtle differences in gender, as Gaspard mentioned, but don't let the fear of how accurately you may or may not portray a male stop you from trying (if that's what you'd like to do.)

 

Thinking about it, I've been playing male characters for about 15 years, so I may be able to offer advice for any who want to hop over that mental hurdle.

 

Maybe try thinking of a female concept like you usually would, with all of the background and personality quirks that you'd regularly assign, to start. Then ask, " And what if this concept I like were a male instead?" You might be surprised at how little you'd have to tweak things.

 

When I first started playing male characters, I thought a lot about male characters that I admired or enjoyed in media. A few of my early experiments took on strong attributes from those, as I gained my footing. I paid attention to them, and noted / studied how they were different - and it was easy, because I already enjoyed the character anyway. Also, if you think about guys you may know in your RL (dad, cousin, brother, friends, boyfriend), they may be different in some ways, but they probably aren't SO alien.

 

Granted, I'll admit that I do not ERP personally, so I've never had to describe anything remotely approaching what males feel during such things (nor would I really be able to, even if I had the desire.) Still, the line between genders isn't so expansive that it's uncrossable. If you want to try it, take the plunge! Even if it didn't work out, you could at least say "I tried to once" as opposed to "I've always wanted to but..."

 

You don't have to die to write a death scene, as they say!

[OttoVann]

As has been mentioned, there's this trend with video games where guys tend to opt for the female character model in lieu of "playing as themselves"

 

The most common explanation I see in other forums whenever this is brought up is "Well, if I have to stare at an avatar's ass for 6 hours every night, I might as well make it an attractive one."

 

I hate when people say that! I can never take it seriously, haha.

 

Also, there are slightly more hyur than there are miqo'te according to the statistics if I recall correctly, so maybe this "there are far more miqo'te" thing is a Quicksand/RP'ing thing, though even that would be disappointing in some ways.

 

I can't take it seriously either. However, at least in other MMOs, each race AND gender had their own casting animations for spells and abilities. I only play human, and I played a female human in WoW for all of my classes except Shaman (for race-locked reasons naturally). Human females in WoW looked cool as hell when they shot magic and lots of skills in general. Other races did too, and I could've played a male, but I liked making pretty females to go slap the shit out of Horde with all day and night.

 

But FFXIV, with all the animations locked to be exactly the same across all genders and races? Male. Besides I get to be a womanizer in RP now, and I've been quite successful for a while doing it so I'm happy. Humans are usually considered the most generic race in MMOS, but on Balmung its the Miqo that are most generic (this isn't a negative). It's interesting being a human and being not-the-most generic.

[Ilwe'ran]

Yeah, I think for most races its pretty balanced, Miqo'te are the exception and this is actually in keeping with the lore (there are actually more male Miqo'te RPers running around than is proportional).  The "problem", if one wishes to call it that, is that there are just so many Miqo'te characters in the community that their imbalance imbalances all others.

 

And I'm glad there are more males than females in that case as it fits the lore. Our main problem is accepting how the lore is made and the logic views Miqo'te have on breeding ("we need to breed to give birth to males or the race extinct").

But it's true that I noticed that most of time Ilwe is surrounded by females ._.

 

As has been mentioned, there's this trend with video games where guys tend to opt for the female character model in lieu of "playing as themselves"

 

The most common explanation I see in other forums whenever this is brought up is "Well, if I have to stare at an avatar's ass for 6 hours every night, I might as well make it an attractive one."

So close-minded about the male figure!

 

MALES OR FEMALES THEY DON'T HAVE A BUTT ON FF14 ANYWAY SO WHO CARES !

 

@Any female wanting to play a male character who is afraid they'll "mess it up": don't be. I acknowledge that there are some subtle differences in gender, as Gaspard mentioned, but don't let the fear of how accurately you may or may not portray a male stop you from trying (if that's what you'd like to do.)

 

Thinking about it, I've been playing male characters for about 15 years, so I may be able to offer advice for any who want to hop over that mental hurdle.

 

Maybe try thinking of a female concept like you usually would, with all of the background and personality quirks that you'd regularly assign, to start. Then ask, " And what if this concept I like were a male instead?" You might be surprised at how little you'd have to tweak things.

 

When I first started playing male characters, I thought a lot about male characters that I admired or enjoyed in media. A few of my early experiments took on strong attributes from those, as I gained my footing. I paid attention to them, and noted / studied how they were different - and it was easy, because I already enjoyed the character anyway. Also, if you think about guys you may know in your RL (dad, cousin, brother, friends, boyfriend), they may be different in some ways, but they probably aren't SO alien.

 

Granted, I'll admit that I do not ERP personally, so I've never had to describe anything remotely approaching what males feel during such things (nor would I really be able to, even if I had the desire.) Still, the line between genders isn't so expansive that it's uncrossable. If you want to try it, take the plunge! Even if it didn't work out, you could at least say "I tried to once" as opposed to "I've always wanted to but..."

 

You don't have to die to write a death scene, as they say!

 

So I'm a girl IRL and on FFXIV I began to RP in english AND to RP a male. I don't ERP (which might not help some questions) but just think that it doesn't stop men IRL to RP a female, so it shouldn't stop you either.

 

I mean.. You won't be accurate, you will sometimes be less manly than a man, but.. Who cares ? As long as you have fun and the character is how you want it to be, you don't need to be a stereotypical man as we see in movies or is described in the society to RP a male.

The only thing you need is to just.. Try out !

 

On my side, Ilwe was at first a female character even though I had the feeling that he would be better as a male. I was so scared to add both RP in english and RP a male for the first time that I just.. Forced myself to make her female

 

 

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But, honestly, Ilwe was just a male since the beginning, forcing myself just made me feel really uncomfortable and I swapped his gender when I was around lv 30 on my first class because I couldn't just stand it.

 

 

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So, in the end, as long as you have a concept in mind, follow it ? Don't be scared, as I said many men play females character and they aren't accurate (you noticed it, I'm sure) but we're tolerant with them even if they are sometimes RPing some clichés, and they will be as tolerant as us if we are RPing a male not 100% accurately as well.

(Or they are an arse and we can always find better people elsewhere).

[Kellach Woods]

Damn it, now this thread is making me want to delete my two female alts that I never really play because I'm always on Kell.

[Kurt S.]

*Just nosediving into Ramona. Being a male RL be damned I will make the most adorable and violent black mage midlander to walk eorzea.*

[gfdhg]

Personally, I'm a full fledged lady in real life who prefers female characters, but I do at times play male characters. I think it just has to do with me preferring to play a gender I know more about.

 

Though, I don't think it truly matters - gender that is. Sure, at some point, racial aspects and lore, even sexuality and gender have at it. But in reality, I just write for a character and then place all those parts into their character, when I believe one is more fit than the other.

 

I always find that I seem to be in a room filled with female RPers, and it's been so long that I always have my jaw drop when I see an actual male one...

 

It's been too long for me, hasn't it.

[ChewableMorphine]

*Just nosediving into Ramona. Being a male RL be damned I will make the most adorable and violent black mage midlander to walk eorzea.*

 

See: Edda Vincents

[Kurt S.]

*Just nosediving into Ramona. Being a male RL be damned I will make the most adorable and violent black mage midlander to walk eorzea.*

 

See: Edda Vincents

 

*DARK KNIGHT ASPIRANT THEN, GOING TO PULL A REVERSE CECIL, CAN'T COMPETE AGAINST EDDA VINCENTS, IS SCRUB KEYK*

[Kellach Woods]

I made this joke before. I will make it again.

 

Kell is already a dark knight. Hue.

 

(For real, if I like the mechanics I might main that instead of WAR, but his WAR days will always be with him)

 

That being said, I try to keep a 50/50 ratio in gender and race in most games. I don't know why - maybe it's just because it feels right to do so. I'll also typically try to spread out within the races. It just feels like that's what I should do. The only race I've two of right now are two Elezens and they're not the typical Gridanian/Ishgardian (one of them used to be one, but a close encounter with a Necrologos energy residue outright wrecked his left eye and side of face, also showed him the power of the void, so he's studying Thaumaturgy in Ul'dah.)

 

I will also never roll a catboi unless I knew I could get RPers to get into my Asexual/Impotent Nunh breaker.

[Otte]

I'm one of those female players that ends up RPing mostly male characters, more or less succesfully. I've always seen RP as a chance to try something different from myself and my own experiences. I live a life of a woman on a daily basis, so why not try something else? Male characters have also always felt more comfortable to me, and whenever I create a new one they just seem to "fit" into a male gender more than female.

 

....and I like how the male characters look in this game, so I ended up rolling more male toons than female. I'm one of those people that creates a character in-game, before thinking who they actually are >_>

[Duskwright]

I use to play a male character from Launch.. but I just can't do it. I can't make an attractive male. ; ; Tis why I play a female character.. That and because I can't really RP men.. e.e;

[Enla]

I just started RPing Sae this evening, so hopefully I'll be able to help with the imbalance in some way. Personally I just feel more comfortable playing a female character over a male one, though I'm trying to change that and several other issues I have with Sae as a whole. It'll be fun!

[Fujimoto]

I myself have been a male Miqo'te since day one and came from another server. And I'm a guy irl. I do that to model him after myself. To put myself in the game so to speak.

[Aya]

MALES OR FEMALES THEY DON'T HAVE A BUTT ON FF14 ANYWAY SO WHO CARES !

News to me!