Image Designer Archive
Thread: Is this the invisible profession?
No clue but I sort of like it this way. Fortunately I was able to find a few master IDs on Radiant who are kind enough to have taken me under their wing.
But you're quite right. I rarely if ever see anyone with their ID title on in the cities and when I flip mine mine on, I'm instantly bombarded with customer requests.
I'm not complaining of course...I'll complain less when I'm a master and I can actually do half the stuff that's being requested of me
Thea
Expert Image Designer
Radiant/Talus/Nashal
#1) If they're doing something else (like say, working Dancing or Muscianship), having anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour taken out of your 'grind' for xp for ID services can get annoying.
#2) We really don't get to do all that much that's special. Most people will regularly settle on their appearance at chargen.
#3) Related to #1, alot of IDs get frustrated when there's alot of people out there who think we do something that we don't ("Can you color clothing?") or can't ("Can you fix the freckles on my human male?").
#4) It feels too much like playing dress up with dolls for some people. Ironically that's the most common 'hesitance' I get when people ask me for my services
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I would have to agree that #4 is probably one of the biggest factors. I believe the large majority of SWG players consider themselves 'masculine', but consider ID to be a feminine activity. And in a lot of regards, they are right - I don't suppose men sit down and work on another person's appearance very often or for great lengths of time.
To emphasize this point one particularly immature player told me 'All male Image Designers are gay'. While this assessment didn't really bother me (my brother is gay and I'm married with a child in RL), I'm sure this thought echos in the minds of a lot of player who don't want to have that image cast about them.
I just became an Image Designer because character creation is my favorite part of the game, and largely because I played EQ for three years (and might some more) and am largely burnt out on the combat grind. I also like the fact that I can walk around, explore, watch other players and just goof around while progressing my character at the same time.
I hide my title when I go out hunting or I'm just passing through a city but as soon as people see that Master Image Designer title over my head, I get swamped with tells. It's a very social profession and I've met many people through it. I just wish I had more things I could do for people, the human hairstyles are getting old.
Any idea why such a fun profession seems to have so little appeal for so many?
For me it is #1.
I only put my title up during set times when I make myself available for image designing. Even with that, I get a lot of referral clients during my "off duty" hours.
I never wear my title when traveling - itis a guaranteed way to miss the shuttle or starship.
"The Invisible Profession"
Hehe I like that It's very true. I've come across one Master ID in all my travels. There are a lot more out there, but they aren't wearing their tags.
I love image designing and have a blast with my clients, but there is no way I could do it for my entire game time. The interactions are fun but shallow. It would be like eating cookies all day long. 
Sometimes Invisible ID 'er
Radiant Server
And yes, I am aware that many people do eat cookies all day long.
I have a different idea why it appeals to only a few players. I believe it actually takes talent.
Okay, maybe not much, but you have to have a good eye for shape and color, you have to be able to diagnose what's wrong, know what the customer is asking for, and use your judgement and your artistic sense to design something pleasing and appropriate. You also have to remember personal details about people (and let's face it, most of the gamers are guys, they're usually terrible at this -- and some girls, too), you have to remember other people with the desiredstyle, network, remember names, and enjoy socializing. ID isn't a goal-oriented profession, once you reach master, so you have to enjoy working with someone to give them a pleasing apperance, and not to mind doing it over all day.
I guess a lot of gamers can't handle the lack of structure or goal-setting, the slow pace, hanging around town without exciting explosions and things to shoot, and maybe some of them are insecure about picking out fashions for themselves. Side note: if I see another black gunman's duster, I'm going to shriek.
Escia Baetkor, MD, Mid
I agree that talent helps in providing the customer with a satisfying ID experience.
As to the inherent superiority of women over men as image designers?
Pfffffttttt !
If you believe that image design is simply rearrangingappearance then that view is understandable. Most women are putting on make up from a young age, most men are not. Thatgivesan advantage in the design elements of ID - but thatadvantage vanishes with experience.
The profession is what you make of it. If you believe that Image Design is sitting around without goals waiting for your customers, then that is what you will experience.
For me, image designing is about travel and meeting other players, adding to the roleplayenvironment, and having fun while helpingpeople define who they are within theStar Wars universe.
A liking for excitement is not a reason to malign the action oriented players.
I strongly hope that something is done to makeour profession more useful in the galactic civil war. Not in a combat role, but as an image designer.
Ikit_Char wrote:
A question that was brought to mind by LoopFruit ... am I the only male Master ID out there? I have never seen another one so I wonder. It has been fun so far and many of my female customers seem to really enjoy and be pleased with the attention to detail I attempt to provide them.
Do you mean male character or male in real life? Either way, I'm both andI definitely see what you mean. I haven't seen one other male Image Designer (character wise at least) except for a maleMon Calamari I was training for a while but I haven't seen him in a while.
I know of one master ID on Radiant who is male. I tried with my doctor but I couldn't advance far enough into the medical career if I mastered ID and didn't want to be a dabbler so I set up another account. Who knows why, but I'm having a blast with my female twi'lek. I just blew 20,000 at Gisi's last night on new gowns
Well, I'm a male, I play a Trandoshan, and I run around quite happily with 'Hairstylist' over my head. (Master Hairstylist once I get the XP. )
There are a few reasons why I like being an IDer.
-As I've stated before, I PvP a bit. Getting 'pwn3d' by a Bounty Hunter is nothing compared to being bested by a barber. (p3rm3d!)
-Giving people, especially my guildmates, extremely silly hairstyles and moustachios makes me laugh. This one's the most important. (As a side note, I'm generally easy to amuse.)
-It gives me something mildly productive to do during downtime (make ID XP).
-I have the novice entertainer box. This makes me one of the few people with any performing skills that actually performs out in the wild to heal up mind wounds, rather than staying in the cantina all the time. It also means that whenmy guildgoes to a remote location there's at least one person that can heal battle fatigue if there's no other performers around. I'm also not dependant on waiting for an entertainer to show up in the more sparsely inhabited towns.