The Difference Between PVP, PVE, And RP In World Of Warcraft
There are three styles of play that you can choose from when you begin playing World of Warcraft that are determined by your realm first and choices second. Before you can create a character, you must first choose a realm to play on. Beside each realm, you’ll see PVP, PVE, RP, or RPPVP. Here is a brief run down on each play style so you can see what’s best for you.
Player vs. Environment (PVE)
PVE is the most common way that Warcraft is played, and it shows in the number of servers that are PVE. On a PVE server, you are mainly aiming at questing and playing out in the environment of the game. You cannot be ambushed by players of the opposite faction while you’re playing. This means that you can focus more on the game itself without worrying about a high level toon “ganking” you repeatedly. There are areas on each continent where you can still battle other players, and you can always take part in battlegrounds after reaching level 10, but these realms encourage the deepest exploration into the game itself.
Player vs. Player (PVP)
While the maps are identical on all realms, there are very few safe areas in a PVP zone. Generally you are safe in your faction’s capital cities and in Shattrath and Dalaran; if you go anywhere else, you can be killed or attacked with no warning. When you attack and kill other players that are within your level range, you will be rewarded with Honor Points (HP) that can be used to buy better gear and help you to win more battles. You can still quest and queue for battlegrounds like you can on other servers, but there is an added element of not knowing when you’ll be attacked.
Role Playing (RP)
This is exactly what it sounds like: you are actually becoming your character. You are not the person controlling the character, you are the character itself. You decide on your toon’s backstory and then let it control the actions that you take throughout your gameplay.
For example, let’s assume that you choose to become a Night Elf Druid. Perhaps you can start under the storyline that the evil Blood Elves attacked your village, killing your wife and children, and now you would like to train and take vengeance on the Blood Elves. You would need to talk like a night elf (a previously immortal race), and also act like a druid. You might not hate Tauren or Goblins, but you would have a definite hatred of all Blood Elves and attack them at first sight.
Your guild and player interactions would all revolve around this persona, and it would be against the rules to break out of it and talk like the person who is controlling the character. You would still quest and do the other activities that the other realms do, you just would not do them as a human… you would do them as your character.
As you can see, each play style takes a little thought before you are able to choose it are your official play style. PVE is more about the game, PVP is more about combat, and RP is more about becoming someone else. Which one is right for you?