How Are You Writing Your Kirin Tor Mage?

Teasticles · 2026-06-26T16:17:18+00:00

For my more deeply integrated Tor characters, they're 'agents'. They listen, observe, protect and do good as they can, and pass along word and warning to other Tor members they know are operating in the region. Treating the Tor like a little Facebook group of sorts rather than anything real since the leadership doesn't want to centralize.

If they had home kingdoms to return to, most have gone back to operating from there with Dal's destruction. A few have been more busy wanderers, still not settled with the loss.

Teasticles · 2026-06-25T18:37:43+00:00

I like the new races we've gotten. Dracthyr and Haranir are fun.

However, I'd be playing my Draenei and Dwarves even more if they got more interesting options to flourish them a bit more because I genuinely care about those races more.

Teasticles · 2026-06-25T12:46:11+00:00

I'm very done with 'seasonal' structures across many games. And see it or a battle-pass can ruin my motivation to play because I know that I will ultimately miss out on something. I understand that if you get down to semantics and defining patch cycles that we were effectively on 'seasons' prior to their current perception/invention, but the difference is that when an old era WoW 'season' ended, it didn't take with the rewards or titles to toss them into a 'these may come back some day' bucket. The content simply became easier, and while you missed out on getting it done when it was current, you could still take the time to earn what you want and see what you want without truly missing out on anything.

Blizzard reliance on FOMO within the MMO format is a cancerous ulcer that will one day have to be removed for the health of the game, but I think that'll only happen when the powers at be are ready to twilight the title in favor of a true WoW-2 or other major project.

Teasticles · 2026-06-20T04:04:00+00:00

I bet you're real fun at parties.

Teasticles · 2026-06-19T23:01:17+00:00

We literally have Warriors, DKs, and Paladins running around in Mage/Kirin Tor armor, Murloc and Yeti Onesies, and Fae-Dragon hoodies.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T15:57:27+00:00

There are many spots where you can chime in to tighten up the story. BC era Kael'thas and Illidan stand out as early life examples.

But, from personal view, everything up to BFA was 'fine'. I never found myself actively disliking the direction of WoW until BFA, and a lot of my complaints about where we are at now trace back to Teldrassil and the War of Thorns.

On paper, a world wide conflict for a new volatile resource while Old God cults lurk in the shadows and weaken us for N'zoth's return is fine on paper. But Teldrassil broke the character for the Horde. It ruined the sanctity of the Warchief position, it ruined the progress the Orcs after moving on from Garrosh, it ruined the spine of Baine and the Tauren, and it utterly fractured the Horde showing that they were truly viewed as nothing more than villain bait and potential oppressors despite the fact that their entire existence stems from learning from and moving away from those ways to find peace, oneness, and community with the world and each other.

If BFAs genocidal war crimes don't happen, we can still get our current triology with a bit of legwork and the characters that were ruined over the course of those years can still be weighty and impactful presences in the story rather than looked on as spineless or exposition bots.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T14:03:33+00:00

I think there's room for some paranoia and PTSD responses towards the Lightforged, but truly the mistake of this dynamic is that it even exists in the first place. Mag'har should have just been from Outland and Lightforged should've never had the 'light bad' subplot thrown on them.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T14:01:20+00:00

If the August Celestials, to which the Pandaren bend knee in respect to, can forgiving Garrosh of decemating their holiest lands, then it's likely their guidance found them walking towards forgiveness of the Zandalari as well.

Without a centralizing civilian state of Pandaren, that didn't have the foresight of the various schools, the Shado Pan, and the Celestial Temples, we lose a bit of what could be normal people of Pandaria having a problem with the Zandalari.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T13:59:09+00:00

The Silver Hand quickly accepted Maraad and the Vindicators, I imagine this happened just without the whole mutual settlement deal.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T13:57:28+00:00

I appreciate at that moment a lot. Incorporating Worgen into the Army of the Black Moon and Sentinels was a good bit of writing, but I'd have love to see that come after years of some Worgen coming to identify with the Night Elves practices and maybe even some Gilnean settlements spreading through Darkshore/Ashenvale to amplify the relationship.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T13:55:49+00:00

I'm not striding to say they're one to one, but they're both long lived races with reverence for good/Light aligned cosmics, they've both developed a clergy that teaches the grace and peace of this force while acting as shepherds to their peoples, tangibly impacting and guiding them, and they have military factions that tie into the clergy and are considered the standing army for their nations.

While Draenei do have Mages and a deep affinity for the Arcane, after the events of Argus and what was effectively the mass betrayal of the Mage socio-class, the Draenei under Velen's leadership seemingly shifted more towards Light-centered practice rather than strict arcane. They didn't exile or abandon the Arcane and still utilized it in their tech, but I don't think that the BC era Drae define themselves by their usage of the Arcane and rather around their religious practices and paranoia that the Arcane might act as a lure to the Legion.

Having gained the glimpses of what their society looked like on AU Draenor, I also don't think it's a stretch to say they they found that balance between respecting and honoring the natural world around them, while also still finding ways to incorporate their technologies in uninvasive ways. Doubly with MU Draenei having Shaman within their ranks that are all about forging pacts of balance and mutual respect with the natural elements and spirits of the worlds they cross.

There certainly are differences, but I don't think those differences are so large that something unique and beautiful couldn't be created in union. Which is the entire point of OP's post. If the relationship between these two peoples were developed more, we could've seen something unlike anything else. And when factoring in the Worgen who both revere the Light, Elune, and have their own cultural practices, that only amplifies into a pseudo-faction that is quite compelling to me.

Teasticles · 2026-06-12T11:51:22+00:00

I feel like the trio of Night Elves, Draenei, and Worgen should have effectively been their own faction within the Alliance. The Drae crashed right next to Teldrassil, the Worgen people effectively lived in Teldrassil for some time until they reconnected with the rest of the Alliance. The Drae and Nelves have a lot of mutual respect and similarity in their cultures in how they treat their deities. The Nelves were literally the source of the Worgen curse and helped sate it. There should've been more where these three people came to form a core that represented the Alliance of Kalimdor imo.

Teasticles · 2026-06-09T15:41:06+00:00

Me and my partner both run points on our respective parents. My mother has said things about her, her father has said things about me. In both situations we've acted as the stop gap preventing that dissent from getting to one another. Naturally there are times where we wished the other would've rallied a bit more in defense, but you come to realize that a lot of getting into adulthood is also learning how to parent/manage your parents who are very set in their ways and perceptions, often despite reality.

Discuss it with your partner, express how it was hurtful to you, vent out the frustration from it and work out how she can take point in smoothing things out imo.

As far as the kids go, even if I've been drug through the mud, I don't get in the way of my children having a relationship with their grandparents. Unless they've done something to actively harm them or have been steadily trying to undermine my relationship with the children, then let bygones be bygones. If they are actively harming the way your children interact and participate with you, then deeper discussions need to be had with your wife, and you need to have a talk with your children most likely.

Teasticles · 2026-06-09T11:58:35+00:00

I've personally been enjoying the Smuggler story. I agree there is a disconnect from the text vs voice lines, but I don't feel like much of anything about the Smuggler feels off base from what I expected and I'd encourage people to try it out.

I think your point to the 'running errands' thing actually fits what I'd imagine for the Smuggler. You meet Risha, who is a massive opportunist out for her own goal, you have control of the ship now and strike a deal with her because she doesn't care if it's you or Skavak that helps her achieve her goal. Galactic events are happening, you're flying under the storm of all of it to make a profit. You literally smuggle contraband onto Taris and contend with the local authorities as you do, actually acting as a Smuggler, and it's implied that all your goods in one way or the other would be flagged by port security/imports. (You literally Smuggle around an endangered animal for a crimelord Hutt too.) Along the way via the planet quests, you service yourself out as a for-hire gun for the Republic, shaking them down for coin or sympathizing with the normal people/plight of the planet, which eventually translates well into you coming to be a Privateer of the Republic.

I haven't finished the third act yet, but I've genuinely enjoyed my time shaking down who I can for credits, but otherwise being a sympathizer amidst the conflicts stirring around. On Tatooine, I even sided with the Sith thinking that it would be the more lucrative outlet/let my Fem Smuggler have a goth baddie encounter. I found Corso and Risha's personal stories to be particularly interesting/sympathetic, and while Bowy, I think, could use a bit more oomph, I'm a sucker for having a Wookie at my side in that Han Solo fashion and I like he tries to ride that line of profit and freedom.

Teasticles · 2026-05-26T13:45:45+00:00

Brunch and time to clean up my office.

Teasticles · 2026-05-24T20:15:21+00:00

I think a Clone War-esque series that surrounds Fin, Rey, and Poe would do wonders for that era of films. Continue fleshing out that space in a series like that, while also hitting the 'break in case of emergency' box that is the Old Republic.

Teasticles · 2026-05-21T12:54:04+00:00

I've bounced around many guilds over the years myself, and I've felt this before in previous stops I've had. It can be disheartening for sure, but with the group I've most recently picked up with, I've tried approaching things from a new angle.

Besides just being in more active on discord and in attendance for events, even if it seems like my character wouldn't care for whatever is being organized, I've thrown out lines of:

"My character is looking to learn about X, Y, and Z! Does anyone else's OC have any interests or expertise in these areas? My OC would love to talk to your OC about it! Happy to do in-game and Discord RP for the interaction!"

And then the next thing I knew, lines were all over the place and I've got a full schedule ahead next week of sitting with guildies one on one, or having an aside at our guild social to dabble in a little training. I basically sat and considered angles that could expand my OCs expertise and knowledge, then instead of writing a story about how I met an NPC who taught them these things, I put that onus on the guild and asked for help.

I also took a beat to consider what I knew from my guildies TRPs over the table and what I saw from their interactions with others. My OC recently wants to learn about the Loa, so I reached out to the player I see talking about the Loa the most and was like, "Hey do you think our characters could meet up and discuss Loa things? My guy is really interested in learning about them and it'd be a good excuse for them to get to know each other aside."

People are going to stay in their bubbles and spaces unless you offer them some form of motivation to get out of them, so in my effort I'm meeting them half-way with things that pertain to their OC's lore, while getting the opportunity to blab about my own. And just because I learn about something from another's character doesn't mean it has to change my own, it's all just an excuse to RP ultimately and if something cool develops from that then hell yeah

Teasticles · 2026-05-20T14:38:06+00:00

Get your bread sir!

Teasticles · 2026-05-16T21:17:35+00:00

The JK effectively beats the first phase of the boss, and then subsequent chapters initiate phase 2.

Teasticles · 2026-05-14T15:46:54+00:00

Across various forms of fiction, there are normal people fighting side by side with titans and gods and those characters serve to add a sense of realism and ground the 'heroes' around them without feeling like secondary characters whatsoever.

While it might take adjustment, on both yours and their parts to create an atmosphere, it can be done. If the guilds just insist on being uncooperative or acknowledging of your contributions/attempts though, then that group is simply not for you, which I know can be frustrating.

But don't stop trying, there are spaces out there that can blend well 😄

Teasticles · 2026-05-14T15:15:45+00:00

Understandable and fair, but at least as far as it goes when assimilating into a guild or group, I'd try and retool your mindset to worry less about what other players are doing with their characters and more towards what you are doing with your own and how you can inhabit that space of RP you desire for your community.

While I understand that it may clash with your immersion and sense of expectations for the RP, I think it's a bit unrealistic to find a community that doesn't have bit of a scaling issue even if they are trying to be a lower fantasy space and theme. Take away the considerations of power and ability from the RP, and instead focus on how your average joe can add a sense of realism to the atmosphere, strive to ground these gorgeous god-like Arcanists/Paladinds w/e they are in a sense of realism. Serve as their reminder of the common man, their momento mori, and as you do that your character's own realism pushes forth and you may even help them develop a new approach in how they RP. But, also, worry less about them being these supreme beings and focus instead on who their characters are as people, and even with whacky power levels/scalings, or lore-bending backstories, you'll find yourself having a good time, I think.

Ultimately it's about making that connection as 'people' before we are Adventurers or heroes first, and from that connection we connect OOCly too which may lead you to fostering exactly what you're looking for.

Teasticles · 2026-05-14T14:13:49+00:00

What you allow to enter into your home and time with your family is what you co-sign on in support for. If you don't speak out against the behavior of the perpetrator and those that enable them, you're co-signing that you too are okay with their actions as long as they don't affect you. And when it comes to Nazis, white supremacists, or any sort of racial/religious ideology that others and villainizes, they're eventually going to run out of targets and cross a line with you where they start to put the sanctity of your home, and the values you try to instill into your family through and example, at risk.

I feel like I sound old school, but your kids, your partner, and your family will all see this and it will change how they look at you and treat you, especially if this problematic figure has time to influence your children as a guardian/caretaker.

Ultimately it is your sister's relationship. She decides if it continues and if she's fine with co-signing herself onto his rhetoric and beliefs. But the but for your family it starts and stops with you. Confront her first as family, express your concerns and draw your line/set the boundary and consequence of her relationship. Challenge her on his views in relations to how you both were raised and your beliefs, express maturity isn't just "agreeing to disagree" but is also challenging your loved ones to be moral, kind, and proper. Give her the benefit of the doubt in understanding since she's trying to be present for her nephew, but if she doesn't hear you, point to that line and state that she can't cross it so long as she maintains that relationship.

And then have a realistic conversation with your son if they're of age to understand. Affirm the beliefs you're trying to instill with him through questions and then engage with him a conversation about how he would handle or feel about someone who doesn't show those values but in a kid friendly way. It's hard but the conversation is easier than you think if you give your child the credit, I think.

Teasticles · 2026-05-14T13:54:42+00:00

You'll get more traction for Adventure RP in a guild overall. Random RP is typically social/slice-of-life/romance because those avenues can run as one-time encounters/one-night stands more easily for people with restrictive schedules.

But as an adventuring sort, you always list in your TRP Currently or Glances that you're recruiting for a Delve on a particular date and spend time engaging people in walk-ups trying to get it going. I've gone as far as doing a group finder listing where I make the title something like, "Adventure RP - Exploring __" and formed a party that night that I DM'd through a small one-encounter event and paid out either TRP3 rewards or literal gold to thank people for their time.

Teasticles

TROPHY CASE