Background and RP of classes with poorly matching covenants?

[Cyanu]

Some classes are a poor match in terms of aesthetics and ideals for some covenants and some are even stricter and could only fit into one. So how do you view your charracter and his odd covenant choice?

a night fae or kyrian warlock? a non-kyrian paladin? a non-night fae druid? have you tried if not rping creating some backstory for your character's odd choice?

personally i'm at the odd spot of having destro lock being my favorite class and Kyrian my favorite covenant (whose class skill i enjoy the most in terms of gameplay as well, so i had to go for it) and i'm trying to make some sense of it, not only about why would my lock pick Kyrian but why would the Kyrian want anything to do with a warlock... the more likely themes i can think of:

a)the ends justify the means-good guys with nuclear weapons

b)greater power to be gained from the Kyrian, come to think of it the Venthyr rebels have little to offer in terms of power so few and anima starved, while the necrolords have had half their realm wiped out, Night fae are not really militant anyways, so one could argue that Kyrians are the most powerful covenant as of now

c)being more of a forsworn than a Kyrian

do you have any similar stories or ideas to share? how do you feel about the match or mismatch of covenants and classes?

[Razion]

Your class is something you do, but that doesn't have to be the thing that defines you, it could just be a job you do on the side here and there. If you fought in a war once and the rest of your life was in service, even if you're a warlock you would probably find purpose in Bastion - and heck, that war could probably be considered service, too. "Service" is a neutral term, as is, "a connection to nature."

Classes are also neutral concepts. Not all warlocks are evil. Or DKs, or Shadow Priests, etc. Some like picking flowers and just happen to be adventurers (or otherwise) who could melt your face but may choose not to.

[Gaidax]

"A master of chaos who calls down fire to burn and demolish enemies"



pepehands

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After all can always ride it out with "warlocks grab power from patrons and otherworldly sources no matter who they are". Still feels odd.

[vitor210]

I RP as a paladin inquisitor on Argent Dawn EU so I chose venthyr. The aesthetic of the zone, plus the entire venthyr story, fits well with my RP

[Aucald]

I can see a couple ways in which seemingly contradictory classes could fit into the overall aesthetic of some Covenants. A Kyrian Warlock may be about the idea of wielding the Fel as an onerous service to a higher ideal - doing a dirty job that few others can do without succumbing to the corruption. You could use the same riff for a Kyrian Demon Hunter or even a Kyrian Death Knight. All of those classes can dovetail with the notion of service to a nobler cause, wielding a power that scars/changes/damns you to serve some loftier purpose or principle. A Druid might be drawn to the brutal nature of being an animal, red of tooth and claw, and thus could feel a draw or resonance for the Necrolords and their connection to battle and supremacy. Paladins and Priests might be drawn to the goals of Venthyr, castigating and purifying the damned through the Light (or the Void for Shadow Priests). At the end of the day the choice of Covenant seems to me to be more a personal choice than a class/spec one, so to speak; there are some who seem tailor-made for some classes like Necrolords and Death Knights or Paladins and Kyrians but a case can be made for almost any combination.

[Cyanu]

surprisingly Venthyr is imo the second best fit for paladins and priests: Venthyr are all about sin and punishment/attonement which are religious concepts, if one believes in sin he also believes in virtue and is probably religious if he perceives the world in such terms, imo a Night Fae paladin would be harder to justify than a Venthyr one

[A Chozo]

So how do you view your charracter and his odd covenant choice?how do you feel about the match or mismatch of covenants and classes?

I feel that too many players misinterpret the lore and what the Covenants / Afterlives are about.

You join a Covenant based on your character's personality, and while a class / race can be indicative of some personality traits (example: an Orc Warrior would fit with the Necrolords, right?) it doesn't mean they automatically must go to one specific covenant because of that (The Orc Warrior drank the Blood of Mannoroth, rejoiced the slaughter and still thinks the Draenei deserved it - this fucker would also fit with the Venthyr).

My character is a Mag'har Orc Holy Priest, and I wouldn't put him anywhere else other than in Maldraxxus, for he uses Holy magic for warfare purposes.

For instance, your Destruction Warlock could've picked Kyrian because he believes in the greater good, no matter the cost - which is why he wields the forbidden magics. He wants to do the right thing, and demonic magic is the best path for him.

There's no need to tunnel-vision classes and specs into specific Covenants just because "it fits more". People are free to chose under that criteria, of course, but it's not the only one.

[Nerovar]

I think WoW has moved too far away in terms of scale and setting to be salvaged for any serious roleplay. Not a single roleplayer I know has actually incorporated any of the larger lore aspects of the more recent expansions (apart from their backdrops like the faction war, Legion invasion, Scourge invasion) because it's almost impossible to reconcile them with existing RP concepts. Most roleplayers tend to stay in a very confined socially negotiated headcanon that's technically not really compatible with the actual lore of the game anymore. Roleplay just requires a different degree of suspension of disbelief and you can't really work within the lore context of Shadowlands if you started your character as a mere Stormwind footsoldier back in Classic. It's just not believable that a person like that would somehow end up in the Afterlife without dying.

As a result of that, 99% of Shadowlands lore (including Covenants) will be completely ignored by roleplayers.

[Mehrunes]

Warlocks are generally power junkies (reason for seeking power may vary). If there's power to be had, they'll find it and study it, even if it has little to do with their preferred types of magic (the Council of Black Harvest studied Elementals, for example). And while most would steer towards Venthyr and the Necrolords, some individuals would still check the other two out. As for Paladins, we literally have Alexandros in Maldraxxus, because his family meant too much for him, making him a poor fit for the Bastion. Some Paladins would also be interested in Revendreth from the perspective of helping out lost souls find redemption. More healing-oriented Paladins could be interested in aiding the rebirth of powerful guardian beings.

Classes aren't hive minds.

Though walking with a Voidlord out in the Bastion just as the Kyrian teach you about the great Void invasion is a bit silly. But that's more because no NPC ever comments on such things.

[Soon-TM]

a non-kyrian paladin? a non-night fae druid?

My pally is actually Venthyr, he's supposed to be an OG belf pally, so all that selflessness, "noble", goody goody speech is nonsense for him. Besides, Ashen Hallow is a really fun spell.

Now, for Druids it makes little sense (from a RP PoV) not to go NF. As for Warlocks, they are pretty much "forced" to go Venthyr, for RP purposes that is. "The end justifies the means" does resonate with Kyrian ethos to an extent, but not in this regard imo. Going Forsworn isn't really a good idea either, since they seem to be actually unaware (most of them, anyway) that they are actually working for the Jailor.

[loras]

Some classes are a poor match in terms of aesthetics and ideals for some covenants and some are even stricter and could only fit into one. So how do you view your charracter and his odd covenant choice?

a night fae or kyrian warlock? a non-kyrian paladin? a non-night fae druid? have you tried if not rping creating some backstory for your character's odd choice?

personally i'm at the odd spot of having destro lock being my favorite class and Kyrian my favorite covenant (whose class skill i enjoy the most in terms of gameplay as well, so i had to go for it) and i'm trying to make some sense of it, not only about why would my lock pick Kyrian but why would the Kyrian want anything to do with a warlock... the more likely themes i can think of:

a)the ends justify the means-good guys with nuclear weapons

b)greater power to be gained from the Kyrian, come to think of it the Venthyr rebels have little to offer in terms of power so few and anima starved, while the necrolords have had half their realm wiped out, Night fae are not really militant anyways, so one could argue that Kyrians are the most powerful covenant as of now

c)being more of a forsworn than a Kyrian

do you have any similar stories or ideas to share? how do you feel about the match or mismatch of covenants and classes?

I like how they give this impulse to be creative in that regard.

For any one could go with "stepping stone to restoring the balance of the realm"(our entire purpose this expansion) , "most enticing power" (practicality) or some other variations thereof.

My rogue's a bit of a pirate so it'll probably go for whichever serms like it'd yield him the most treasure (either directly, through influence, opened opportunities or gained direct power).

My warrior is considering Venthyr as he empathises with the danger of getting back to the path of "good", not necessarily in a way commonly understood but rather to going back to an existence you consider justified.

My arcane mage is just going for the most interesting knowledge, so i'm not yet decided on that but the Kyrians seem a nice fit.

I have several warlocks, one of which is "evil" and who may end up duplicitously allying with the most enjoyably corruptible (either night fae or kyrian), one is interested in planar travel and various means of teleportation and as such might go for Venthyr (or Kyrian if the give some "hands on" version of tgat stuff), and the last likely would also pick Venthyr just because she's all about moar dots and suffering to bring to bear against the horde.

My DI ele shaman will likely go necrolord, because, if he's going to be in the realm of decay he had better learn the most he can of it, by staring death directly in the face. Necrolords seem the most "death"-y.

My mechagnome dk will likely go necrolord because lf the constructs.

My protection paladin will go with whatever allows him to protect more, as he sees all realms as foreign to his ideals but likely necessary for the continued existence of those he strives to protect.

[Soon-TM]

Though walking with a Voidlord out in the Bastion just as the Kyrian teach you about the great Void invasion is a bit silly. But that's more because no NPC ever comments on such things.

Come to think about it, it would be cool if one of those blue folks gave you a /bonk emote, stunning you and rendering your screen black for a couple of seconds if you ever happen to walk into one of their towns as a Warlock with a voidwalker out

[Molvonos]

"A master of chaos who calls down fire to burn and demolish enemies"



pepehands

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After all can always ride it out with "warlocks grab power from patrons and otherworldly sources no matter who they are". Still feels odd.

Here's my justification behind it:

There are two aspects behind Nature: Regrowth and Decay. Without one, you cannot have the other. My Affliction Dots are diseases, infections and the like, eating away at the weak. My felfire burns away everything it touches, leaving nothing but ash (which is wonderful for regrowth). Nature doesn't care about your feelings -- power is an absolute and even the powerful can be waylaid by the chaos that is Mother Nature.

[Nerovar]

Here's my justification behind it:

There are two aspects behind Nature: Regrowth and Decay. Without one, you cannot have the other. My Affliction Dots are diseases, infections and the like, eating away at the weak. My felfire burns away everything it touches, leaving nothing but ash (which is wonderful for regrowth). Nature doesn't care about your feelings -- power is an absolute and even the powerful can be waylaid by the chaos that is Mother Nature.

If we are to believe Chronicle's chart, decay is tied to Death and not to Nature.

[Aucald]

If we are to believe Chronicle's chart, decay is tied to Death and not to Nature.

I don't think they mean Decay in the cosmic sense but more in the cycle of Spring and Autumn, of growth and death, plants flowering in bloom and then withering only to be reborn next year.

[Nerovar]

I don't think they mean Decay in the cosmic sense but more in the cycle of Spring and Autumn, of growth and death, plants flowering in bloom and then withering only to be reborn next year.

Sure, but if we are to believe that "decay" is actually a cosmic force than it makes more sense to view it as something that lies outside of nature i.e. something that nature is struggling against.

[Unholyground]

Necrolord Zandalari Shaman I thought at first would not fit but it seems to kind of be perfect lmao.

[Molvonos]

If we are to believe Chronicle's chart, decay is tied to Death and not to Nature.

And yet, death is intrinsic with nature. In reality, in games, no matter how you wanna twist it. Predators don't care about eating you alive. Fungi, bacteria and virii don't sit back and go 'well, this one's tied to nature, so we can't do anything about it'.

Which is the motif of warlocks to a definition.

Also, we have to keep in mind that the Shadowlands aren't aligned with 'Good or Evil', they simply 'are'. It's why the Kyrian can and do look at what the Venthyr or Necrolords do and say 'they play their part', or vice versa. Most of the issues we, as players and characters of Azeroth, have dealt with, being Fel and Void (or Light, if you ask the Mag'har), just doesn't translate well in the realms of Death/Life IMO.

[Clone]

I play a tauren warrior with Venthyr to help with their revolution, not because of ideals

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Covenant choice is about how you lived your life.

Only for the deceased, the player character aren't dead and are only picking one to help out.

[Aucald]

Sure, but if we are to believe that "decay" is actually a cosmic force than it makes more sense to view it as something that lies outside of nature i.e. something that nature is struggling against.

As a primordial force, Decay is likely more akin to the greater concept of entropy - reflected both in nature, is the cosmos (e.g. the stellar decay of stars), and everything else. Decay is the opposing force to Spirit, which would be more akin to the essence of potentiality and motion.