Essays and House Requirements

Iocun

That being said, even "that's the only house that would take me" can be a perfectly valid RP justification - although it often wouldn't be a smart thing to say it so bluntly. Keep in mind that it actually makes sense for a novice not to join a house for its deepest philosophies, since from the outside, they simply wouldn't know all that much about all houses. You join them because they are a fit for your class, city, because they have a cool name, because your friend recommended them - all reasons that can apply as much IC as OOC.

Iocun will freely admit that he joined the Mojushai primarily since it was a monk guild and he wanted to be a monk, and of all monk guilds it seemed to be the best fit. All the feelings of a deep connectedness with the guild/house's ideals came quite a bit later, when he had actually studied and lived there for several years.

Mannimar

@Delphinus I sit down and work with true newbies and help them flesh out a better response. I guess I should correct what I said to be more along the lines of when told you need something more as an explanation, and you have a few examples to pull from, then don't give that as your reason. I make an effort to sit down with anyone who is struggling with that so that they can have a basic idea of where to start with building their roleplay.

@Iocun while I can see how that may be appropriate for some Houses, I find that for the more niche Houses like the Ty Beirdd and the Spirit Walkers, that that type of answer can be detrimental to your interaction. Especially when I commonly task novices with getting to know full house members, and ask questions like "Why did you join the House?". I want to prepare them for when they are in that situation. I'm not looking for something outrageously detailed like some older house members may have. Just something simple, something basic.

I think that the answer is dependent on the type of House you're dealing with, and in a House like the Wardens, that type of answer might work to a certain extent. I will sit down with a novice if I see them struggling, and help address it, albeit a little OOCly. If someone joined the CiJ and were asked that type of question... I'd like to see "Because I want to perform.", and then if they were asked "Why did you join us instead of Ty Beirdd?", I think using the class barrier would be adequate.

Rovelda

A newbie would not know what is the Ty Beirdd.

Well, I don't know what is the Ty Beirdd!

Sylvance

Rovelda said:

A newbie would not know what is the Ty Beirdd.

Well, I don't know what is the Ty Beirdd!

As much as I lol'd at this, it's actually a fairly good point.