Experiences God save the fantasy section.

[Sara Sidereal]

They are pretty cringy.

 

[Sunstone]

Doesn't make what I said any less bad, tbh.
I sound like a whiny bitch in that post.

 

[Umbrie]

But it's still considered low fantasy in my opinion due to it taking place in England. Just an alternate England where magic exists. High fantasy, imo, involves creating an entirely fantasy world.

i beleive high fantasy is more about the level of fantastic effects that are regularly produced in that world than the world it takes place in. HP has wizards who literally have dozens of means of instant transportation, a whole series of schools dedicated to magic, entire wizards guilds, sale of magical equipment on anything besides commission, the concept of a chosen one, and frequent spamming of extremely highly powerful spells. i would consider that to be high fantasy to be based on the above criteria, even if it did take place in an alternate England.

if you look at the sheer number of magical weapons King Arthur and his round table knights had, the opposition they faced, and the level of power some of those artifacts had, you can consider Arthurian Legend to be high fantasy, even if it exists in an England where magic exists.

it isn't the world itself that determines how high fantasy a setting is, it is the potency, abundance and frequency of magic or other fantastical effects or elements in the story. the magic in harry potter was the bread and butter of most wizards and frequently produced extremely advanced effects technology would have difficulty keeping up with, which alone is a high fantasy trope that would declare Harry Potter High Fantasy.

 

[Sunstone]

I believe that this is high fantasy.

HIGH fantasy?

 

[WickedDreams]

My definition for high vs low fantasy seems to differ. While it introduces many fantastic effects, it still draws heavily from a more realistic England. For that very reason, I will still consider it low fantasy. My standards for high fantasy would be things such as Lotr. If you look up the definitions for both high and low fantasy, you would find that because HP is set in the 'real world' it would fall under the category of low fantasy. No matter how fleshed out the magic is, simply because it is set in an alternate England it falls under low fantasy. And even if my view on the setting was set aside, I simply don't consider HP 'epic. Yes, Voldemort was a big threat, but only ever to one country. Surely if all the wizards of the world came together, he could've easily been subdued. Harry or no Harry, there are other methods of stopping a criminal who is near impossible to kill. And aside from that, the story didn't truly become 'epic' until towards the end of the series, and even then the stakes were low compared to high fantasy novels. Fighting for one country vs the universe. What sounds epic? Can you tell me if you consider Narnia high fantasy, as well? Just wondering if that also fits your criteria.

 

[Umbrie]

My definition for high vs low fantasy seems to differ. While it introduces many fantastic effects, it still draws heavily from a more realistic England. For that very reason, I will still consider it low fantasy. My standards for high fantasy would be things such as Lotr. If you look up the definitions for both high and low fantasy, you would find that because HP is set in the 'real world' it would fall under the category of low fantasy. No matter how fleshed out the magic is, simply because it is set in an alternate England it falls under low fantasy.

i guess we can agree to disagree and say we have differing criteria for what counts as high versus what counts as low. better than arguing about it,

 

[WickedDreams]

True. Though, I didn't consider it a argument. I figured it was just sharing our opinions.

 

[Umbrie]

True. Though, I didn't consider it a argument. I figured it was just sharing our opinions.

truesies. i just didn't want it to devolve into an argument. i'm fine with sharing opinions, but i had bad experiences with opinions devolving into arguments.

 

[Bone2pick]

But thing is, I feel as if less than a percent of the people who complain ever make something unique themselves. They may make great characters or have good ideas, but nobody ever runs anything. And when there are some actual unusual or at least non-trite roleplays with good concepts, people don't join, either. I can't recall how many times I've submitted roleplays with twists and unusual elements (stuff that I was legitimately proud of) and the interest just wasn't there, ever. And when I search for stuff myself, nothing's ever there.

I remember you creating a dark fantasy RP not too long ago. It was well written and unique and had a respectable amount of interest. I even inquired about creating a character for it but our narrative needs didn't align. Did you ever get that off the ground?

 

[Sara Sidereal]

Yeah, nothing like a depressing stage of life that causes a large part of suicides and generates more angst than God's Omniscient mind can comprehend.

Not only do you have to live through it! Now you can roleplay it to double the angst!

In a high school roleplay, you don't suffer from isolation and the depression it causes, you don't have to turn to substance abuse to forget about your problems, you don't have to juggle schoolwork with two part-time jobs to feed you and your siblings, you don't get pregnant in your junior year and drop out, you don't get abused by your parents or teachers, and you don't watch your friends die in gang-related shootings.

It's all the good with none of the bad: the equivalent of a nostalgic memory. What's not to love?

 

[Umbrie]

In a high school roleplay, you don't suffer from isolation and the depression it causes, you don't have to turn to substance abuse to forget about your problems, you don't have to juggle schoolwork with two part-time jobs to feed you and your siblings, you don't get pregnant in your junior year and drop out, you don't get abused by your parents or teachers, and you don't watch your friends die in gang-related shootings.

It's all the good with none of the bad: the equivalent of a nostalgic memory. What's not to love?

a high school within a roleplay is merely a gathering hub for the students to meet and interact or even develop bonds. it isn't intended to be a realistic high school, think of the various settlements and camps in World of Warcraft that serve as little more than breadcrumb questig hubs to help give a player some chores to help them level with. everybody has to do the exact same chore list in the end, and all these NPCs have you do chores for them as a tried and true game mechanic that helps you learn the game. in fact, leveling is just a big unskippable interactive tutorial intended to prepare you for dungeons and raids.

high schools are large social hubs for interaction.

 

[Sara Sidereal]

a high school within a roleplay is merely a gathering hub for the students to meet and interact or even develop bonds. it isn't intended to be a realistic high school, think of the various settlements and camps in World of Warcraft that serve as little more than breadcrumb questig hubs to help give a player some chores to help them level with. everybody has to do the exact same chore list in the end, and all these NPCs have you do chores for them as a tried and true game mechanic that helps you learn the game. in fact, leveling is just a big unskippable interactive tutorial intended to prepare you for dungeons and raids.

high schools are large social hubs for interaction.

Yes, it's not intended to be realistic, hence the appeal.

 

[Noble Scion]

Well.. I mean.. If you go into the fantasy interest checks, there's plenty of other ones you could hop in for..

 

[iWriteAboutNothing]

I go hybrid.

My high school experience was absolutely awful, and I'd prefer to forget about it, hence the appeal for a high school RP. Not exactly replacing the experience (that'd be stupid), but trying to relate more positive emotions to the overall experience, so that I won't be as bothered when I'm (hopefully) 40-something years old (hopefully) with children and a partner and "looking back" (really just remembering the emotions most closely linked to the overall experience) on that particular part of my life.

Then again, I enjoy more original ideas for RPs for the thrill of having the chance to be someone else. What would have been different if I was put under these circumstances? What would happen if I held these set of values above the values I currently hold dear? What if I wasn't even human? Same reason I'd go for a book, video game, movie, or music. Entertainment and boredom.

 

[Sunstone]

I go hybrid.

My high school experience was absolutely awful, and I'd prefer to forget about it, hence the appeal for a high school RP. Not exactly replacing the experience (that'd be stupid), but trying to relate more positive emotions to the overall experience, so that I won't be as bothered when I'm (hopefully) 40-something years old (hopefully) with children and a partner and "looking back" (really just remembering the emotions most closely linked to the overall experience) on that particular part of my life.

Then again, I enjoy more original ideas for RPs for the thrill of having the chance to be someone else. What would have been different if I was put under these circumstances? What would happen if I held these set of values above the values I currently hold dear? What if I wasn't even human? Same reason I'd go for a book, video game, movie, or music. Entertainment and boredom.

That's an interesting take on it.

 

[AtlannianSpy]

I don't think the appeal of a high school setting is linited to nostalgia or reworking bad memories. If it was I don't the trope would be so popular in commercial media as well as RP. Two things people haven't touched on as much here.

Rapid growth: probably as much or more than any other group on the planet, highschoolers are growing and figuring things out. In a fantasy school this is usually mirrored by the development of their powers or magic or dragon riding abilty or whatever. Character growth and growing stronger cam be really compelling and a good school is basically all about that.

Different people: Pretty much everyone has to go to school but any individual school has a limited population. Most students end up spending tine with or at least around people who are really different from you. After graduation you go off and most of the people you see are studying the same thing as you are or working the same or similar job, there's nothing forcing you to hang out with different people and most people choose not to. After all that's what people hate about highschool, its full of people with different interests than them, or different strengths or weaknesses. But for storytelling that kind of conflict and contrast is good stuff.

Its true that what makes the high achool setting compelling doesn't always manifest in a typical rp but I don't think it's a totally tapped out setting, nor do I think its only sutitable as a plot device or window dressing. It's like any Rp, if the GM and players put in the effort and know what they're doing it'll be good and if they don't the its gonna be flawed.

 

[Sunbather]

I remember you creating a dark fantasy RP not too long ago. It was well written and unique and had a respectable amount of interest. I even inquired about creating a character for it but our narrative needs didn't align. Did you ever get that off the ground?

Nope, had personal stuff just crushing me into a pulp unfortunately. IIRC most of the interest was semi-redrawn anyways, so I hope and believe nobody was disappointed.

 

[Sunstone]

I'm glad for the parts of this page that became an actual discussion, but I'm also ashamed for (maybe) creating a circle jerk that's just meant to shame people who enjoy these sorts of roleplays. I haven't seen many people going that far, but I think I've gave them a chance too. I hate that it's taken over the fantasy section, but I don't want to rag on PEOPLE who enjoy those kinds of roleplays. I'm glad this thread didn't go to far, and i highly encourage everyone else who finds this thread to not go there.

 

[Sunstone]

I mean... I've got a fantasy roleplay up that's part of the one percent. It's dystopian.
There's two characters.

What we learned from this: if your roleplay is an original piece of work in the fantasy section. Fuck you. Just make another school/academy roleplay and everyone will love you!

This is something I regret saying, it was more negative than I usually intend my posts to be, and could have planted the seeds for a circle jerk.

 

[jinkx]

i actually quite enjoy fantasy-based high schools... uh, speaking as a high schooler of course.

they're quite easy to jump into at any given time, there's a fantasy or supernatural element without great amounts of lore to read up on before joining (personally i struggle with great amounts of lore), and there's generally no limit to the amount of characters that can join.

magical high school based roleplays also cater to people who like franchises like harry potter or percy jackson (magical summer camps anyone?) or movies like sky high. they can be simple and fun or interesting and detailed, depending on the direction the GM wants to take.

and actually, it's the direction of these roleplays that generally turn me away from them. my main issue with them is that the majority of fantasy-based high school roleplays on this site tend to lack narrative and revolve more around character interaction and/or romance. and that's great, if that's your thing.

but personally, i just wish that there was an overarching story instead of just... going to school. of course, not blaming any GMs for struggling with plot, as it's the hardest aspect of any story. but i tend to get bored in roleplays where the basis is standing around and chatting with other characters.

give me the dark underside of this fantasy high school!! give me the corrupted teachers and the students who are practising illegal magic on school grounds and the evil plot that will take down the whole school if the characters don't thwart it!! (a little too harry potter perhaps?).

the point i'm making is that whilst i do adore fantasy-based high schools, i wish for more story and more plot!! when a roleplay has no story and relies entirely on character interaction, it tends to flop. it grows dull and the characters don't develop. this trend of "you can do whatever you want" attitudes in these styles of roleplays can be frustrating to me, even if some find it liberating, because everybody just runs off into several different directions and rarely does anything interesting happen.

i love fantasy-based high schools and similar plots but they are getting recycled and recycled to a point where they can be predictable, plotless, and downright boring at times. and that's just my opinion on the matter.

 

[Thatoneflawedhero]

Finally someone says something about it.

 

[Thatoneflawedhero]

I totally agree, I'm actually writing a fantasy world right now for one of my settings, a character is keeping a sort of "journal" of their travels that serves both as a first-person view into the world I'm creating, and as a creative tool to see any flaws in the setting from a character's perspective so I can make a more solid setting for the story. In particular, this character is exploring the world's races and their varying cultures, and one of the most interesting ones I've written so far is the orcs. I'm doing just about everything I can to subvert the stereotypes, like yours, they're nomadic and have an established culture, they're not mindless bloodthirsty barbarians (well, actually, they are, but for a reason XD). I've got this entire culture written up just for these orcs, like they're warring nomadic tribes living in the desert, established as a matriarchy ruled by a queen, and the females control the family units. But my favorite part is that the roles are still the same as you might expect, but they hold a different meaning, like I didn't just make the men housekeepers and the women warriors like so many other fantasy tropes I've seen. The men are warriors, yes, but it's because they are larger than the women, bred for strength and size, but the women hold the power because, especially in a nomadic tribe, handling resources is just as important as collecting them. And there's a whole bunch of other traits I thought made for an interesting culture, like the fact that they are ritualistic cannibals that practice a form of blood magic no other race can duplicate or that the men grow tusks the same way Nordic cultures grew beards, as symbols of seniority and power, earning them a greater chance of a higher-ranking female choosing them as a mate. So, it's interesting to see what goes into making a setting, especially a race that is so often pigeonholed into a stereotype when they have so many other options to explore that are far more interesting than "Grok want smash rock with face" XD

I see you're a man of taste aswell.

 

[StrixDesmodus]

_{Why do a lot of people like school roleplay, I thought most people really disliked school...}

It can be to "redo" their school years in a more pleasant way, or it can be to vent their angst in regards to school. Or it can be because of nostaglia filter.

 

[Shalalong]

As with practically any role play setting, there is more than enough breathing room to create an engaging role play with a unique spin put on it, assuming that the GM puts forth enough creativity and effort to actually think through everything relevant. Besides, while the setting is important, the way it is presented to the other players can be a bigger influence on the success of the role play. (Think over-exposition, hinting at possible actions, activity, even the graphical representation of the thread, linking the thread to well-known board personalities that might be interested and much more)

It is sad that some original ideas will be glossed over because they're not presented in a engaging way, but blaming it on a certain type of roleplay is surely the wrong way. If you really think that's the only reason, at least try to include certain attributes of the other settings to round out your own creation or other ways to promote your idea.

Cheers, Shalalong.

 

[Bacon is fluffy]

a high school within a roleplay is merely a gathering hub for the students to meet and interact or even develop bonds. it isn't intended to be a realistic high school, think of the various settlements and camps in World of Warcraft that serve as little more than breadcrumb questig hubs to help give a player some chores to help them level with. everybody has to do the exact same chore list in the end, and all these NPCs have you do chores for them as a tried and true game mechanic that helps you learn the game. in fact, leveling is just a big unskippable interactive tutorial intended to prepare you for dungeons and raids.

high schools are large social hubs for interaction.

High schools are also places with regulation, rules and schedules. If a social hub was the only reason, then a theme park or a super mall or the first space ship launch to mars could serve as the meeting place.

Schools are only interesting if you intend on using them to teach people the logic behind something. If it's just a hollow place to serve as the place to meet someone, then why don't people actually use creativity?

Every other thread, even those without academy in the name, are school rps lol.