slaggle dot com

Admittedly I am not as well-versed in raiding in MMO’s as some people are. My raiding experiences start with running Karazhan in World of Warcraft and not with the epic 40-man raids such as Molten Core or the Temple of Ahn’Qiraj. I never had the joy of getting my dungeon set 0 or getting to roll on Onyxia’s head while it was still relevant to endgame content. So when I start handling the administrative details of leading a raiding team into Karazhan it shouldn’t be a big surprise that my mind is completely boggled at how normal, fun-loving people are turned into brutal loot monsters when a boss is defeated.

People complain about how much time we take distributing loot, how the fact that HordeSlayerMacDaddy shouldn’t have received the some epic-quality shield because so-and-so needs it more. Instead of bringing up discussion during loot distribution, they talk behind the raid leaders’ backs and complain and cause dissent.  Or they hop guilds thinking the grass is greener on the other side.  It happens to the best of guilds, but it was a shock to me to learn that raiding turns people into loot monsters.

People really take these kind of games too seriously and I see why and how people can get burned out quickly on raiding.  The prospect of improving your character and seeing new content is wonderful, but dealing with the stress and drama of coordinating 10, 25, or 40 people to all work toward a common goal is a daunting task that can drive a person insane.

Some guilds try to solve these problems by implementing DKP–Dragon Kill Points.  An individual player accrues points (as determined by the raid leader) for attending certain fights, showing up on time, and so forth.  These points can be used as a currency to bid on items that drop.  So if the Samophlange of Doom you have been drooling over drops off a dragon you can bid your points like an auction to make sure you get the item.  The plus side is that those who work hardest in the raid get rewarded quicker, and those who show up randomly for a few fights don’t get to “steal” someone’s epics. 

There are variations on this, and they all have their upsides and downsides.  Being in a guild that is a casual raiding guild at best where there are no attendance requirements, DKP isn’t something that makes the most amount of sense.  Our groups are fluid, and if we wish to improve the guild as a whole we need to be able to gear up everyone.  So we basically use Blizzard’s built-in “need before greed” system.

It boils down to this:  If you participate in a boss fight and he drops loot that you can use for your character (not an alt, mind you) then you can roll for it if you need it.  If no one needs it, then you can roll for greed if you want the item for an offset or for an alt (if it is Bind on Equip).  If still no one wants it, the loot is assigned to an Enchanter for disenchanting and the mats go to the guild bank.  Before ANY loot is assigned or disenchanted, we open up the distribution to discussion, to make sure everyone is satisfied with the results.

Even with that approach there is still drama, and it gets very frustrating.  We have people who won’t speak up before the loot is assigned, but they talk behind the leaders’ backs about how unfair the loot assignment was or how poorly the raid leader or loot master performed their duties.  Stuff like that has had us make things even more structured by relying on a “guild approved” loot guide (from http://www.wow-loot.com) to determine which classes are the best fit for a piece of gear.

People need to realize that acting petty and getting upset over gear in this game just causes the raid leaders to not want to organize raids anymore.  It does not solve anything to get upset over this sort of thing. If you can’t be constructive in your comments and actions, then sit down and shut up.  I mean, World of Warcraft (or any MMO for that matter) is just a game and if you start getting pissed off over a piece of gear you didn’t get, you need to step back and analyze your priorities.  Pixels on a screen do not equate to happiness.

• Work is closed due to the weather. Yay for extra days off!! #
• @hornbeck: The roads seem fine today, its just all the ice on the trees and power lines causing chaos. #
• Most of my family is still without power. I’m lucky to have mine still. My cell service isn’t working right now though. #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

• Karazhan is completely clear and I am very tired. Sunday I think will be a Warcraft-free day. #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

• Up late after a great Karazhan run. Our guild is getting really good at raiding! #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

• My flight inspection trip was cancelled due to poor weather. That stinks. So I’ve had a normal workday today. #
• I am reminiscing about the days I would put a band together to go caroling around Christmas… Those were good times. #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

So I decided to tame a new pet to go with my monkey Xabbu: I tamed a Ghost Saber which I named Stormy. This is my first kitty, so I had to go around to various places and tame random cats to get various levels of Dash and Prowl. But getting Stormy was pretty easy. You have to go the the north of Darkshore where the Naga are, and look for little kitty figurines on the ground. Right-click those and when they open sometimes they will spawn a random level 19-20 Ghost Saber that can be tamed. The cool thing is that the pet is permanently translucent (without having Prowl active), making it pretty unique.

• I’m getting excited about my flight inspection ride-a-long tomorrow. Would that be fly-a-long instead? #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

Playing World of Warcraft, I have decided to stop focusing as much on my Gnome Warlock (Bratta) and instead focus more on some of my lower-level alts and try to get them up to level 70.  I kind of miss the fun in gaining experience, completing quests, exploring, and whatnot.  Raiding constantly is kind of a drain due to all the stress involved in coordinating 10-25 people, fairly distributing loot, dealing with complainers and people who don’t care, and so on. 

I got to the point where I just wasn’t having any fun, so i said to myself, “self, either quit playing if you aren’t having fun, or make a change so you WILL have fun.”

So now I’m going to level my three alts and put Bratta on the back burner for now.

My “main alt” is a level 47 Draenei Hunter named Borattan.  The pet I use most right now is a monkey named Xabbu (taken from the Otherland series by Tad Williams). I feel very comfortable playing this character and I will most likely level him to 70 first. But he’s considered another DPS class (damage per second, or a class who sits there and beats really hard on the enemy), and so finding a raiding spot for him (if that is what I decide to do) will be a little hard.  In PvP I am very comfortable with Borattan and can hold my own against most opponents.  With Bratta, even though people consider Warlocks overpowered, I struggle in PvP.

My next alt to focus on is my level 27 Warrior.  I decided to roll a tank (i.e. the character who is supposed to take all the hits from the enemy monsters so the DPS and healers don’t die) but I wanted there to be a bit of irony.  So I created a female gnome (the smallest race in the game) with cute pink pigtails and wearing as much pink gear as possible.  Her name is Improbable.  It’s a lot of fun playing her.

Finally I decided to create a Draenei Shaman and named him Leitmotif, after an album by a progressive band named Dredg. Alternatively, a leitmotif is a recurring musical theme that is associated with a particular person, place, or idea.  Coming from such a musical background that I do I thought it very appropriate.  I created a Shaman in order to fill the healing roll but still be flexible so I can adequately DPS and even tank in some situations if I needed to do so.  And as I tell my friend Heathe, Shamans are just Druids that don’t suck.

Between those three characters, I have plenty to keep me busy for a while.  Since Blizzard decided to lower the amount of experience points needed to level, it shouldn’t take too much time to get them all to level 70.  Let’s see if I still remain interested in the game to get them there!

• Feeling better. I think I pulled (or otherwise irritated) an abdominal muscle. I’m going to run today to loosen things up. #
• My run was excellent! My stamina has increased by one (lol) and I really did work loose the pain in my side. I feel a lot better now. #

Powered by Twitter Tools.

• Hopefully some good sleep will fix me. Tomorrow is another day, is it not? #
• Still hurt today, but not as much. I even worked out at full capacity at the gym and didn’t feel like I was going to die. #
• It’s December and 70 degrees outside. Oh to not be at work and to be enjoying the last remnants of warmth! #
• @hornbeck: We’re turning into a couple of sick old men *cough cough*. Feel better! #

Powered by Twitter Tools.