I mean when we change the default UI, we do it because we are looking for functionality we didn’t get in the default UI, but to some extent we want it to look better right?

First a list of the main addons that I use:

• Need to Know – Buff/Debuff bar tracking
• IceHud – Heads up Display
• Xperl – Unitframe replacement
• Prat – Chat enhancement (color coding of char types, timestamps, etc)
• Omen – Threat Monitoring
• Recount – DPS, Healing, etc. meters
• Sexy Map – Minimap replacement
• Bartender4 – Action Bar replacement mod
• ChocolateBar – Status Bar (similar to Titan Panel or Fubar), used Broker plugin addons
• Deadly Boss Mods – Raid Boss Warning tool
• LuckyCharms2 – Raid Icon Marking Tool
• Sunn Art Viewport + Art Packs

As you can see from my basic setup, I have my HUD in the center of my screen.  Here I have my Health, in this case my runic power (but for other characters, mana, energy and rage) on the left as well.  I also have the pet health on the inner left.  On the right hand side I have the target’s health.  I have my runes and combo points located under my character.

This allows me to have some of the most critical information in the middle of my screen so that I am always in the know of my character’s health, runes, energy, target’s health, etc.  Directly below the HUD I have setup my Need to Know addon with my most critical debuffs on my current target as well as short timed buffs on my character.  Short-timer buffs are like Bone Shield and Horn of Winter, both of these are examples of short lived buffs that I can manually restore and are not a result of a proc.

At the top left of my screen I have my proc based buffs on timers.  This lets me keep an eye on how all my proc based buffs are stacking up, but these are buffs I can’t control but allow me to make important decisions especially if I have to execute a major move that increases in power if those proc based buffs .  To the top right I have my standard buffs and debuffs.

Along the bottom of my screen I use Sunn Art Viewport to block out an area I can assemble my chat, bars, mini-map, omen and recount areas.  I use Sunn Art in order to stop the game environment from being seen between my UI and making it appear un-professional and also having the background move behind your add-ons can at times feel disorienting.

I use Sexy Map as my mini-map replacement, mostly for the fact that is looks nice.  Xperl is used to replace the default unit frames and I place my character’s unit frame on the left and the target on the right.  Both of these can be hidden since I use the HUD, but I include it simply because I like seeing those frames on my screen.

Bartender4 is used to replace the existing WoW bars.  I have 2 sets essentially of bars.  The bars on the left are mapped to my gamepad, but are essentially keyboard press bars, it only matches to something I use my fingers to press an actual key.  These are my most used abilities.  On the right are bars with my lesser used abilities, like buffs, mounts, etc.  The right bars I use my mouse to click on.  This allows me to coordinate and multi-task/press using my keyboard and mouse at the same time.

I have Omen and Recount at the bottom right, while both are important, they are not pieces of information I need to constantly be staring at.  It can be argued that Omen you should, which I have also moved it to the top center in the past when I have noticed my threat on dps chars or even threat as a tank becoming an issue.  On the bottom left, I use Prat to replace my chat window, allowing me to add timestamps and color code characters based on their class.  While not needed, its a nice to have feature that I enjoy.  If you are an officer, raid leader, or PuG leader its helpful to have those timestamps if you need to take some pics to prove someone said something about loot rules, etc.

ChocolateBar is my data broker bar similar to fubar or titan panel, its essentially the next generation status bar mod.  I have a plethora of data broker plug-ins that show me my total gold, my guild/friends, repair, factions rep, cpu/mem usage, FPS and many more.

When in raid I have Xperl raid frames on the left.  What is not shown in the above is when on my healer I use Grid + Clique.  Grid is actually positioned just above LuckyCharms2.  This is as my point above about my bars on the right hand side uses my mouse to click.  Same thing with Grid + Clique I use the right hand side to mirror my hand position out of game for clicking and the left for keyboard presses.

At the very top middle I have my Deadly Boss Mods bars going, they eventually move down to be positioned on top of the HUD so the warnings are in my face the whole fight.

LuckyCharms2 is my raid icon assignment tool.  I have it resting right on top of Omen and Recount.  This lets me quickly assign icons to targets, perform ready checks as the Raid Leader and also post the kill order (especially if its not standard).

A look closer at my bar mod along with the use of my gamepad (also shown above) reveals I tied my bars on the left to mirror the setup/layout of the keys on my gamepad.  This makes it easier on the brain to make a 1 to 1 connection of positioning of the keys to what I see on screen.  This made it faster for me to learn my gamepad but also makes the decision from brain to finger press faster because the bars are matched to the gamepad.

Our first attempt took the Lich King all the way to 22%. I was feeling really good, we made some modifications to our strat and got ready for the next attempt, and this is where it started to go down hill…

Our next attempts were consistently met with some miscue by one or multiple raiders, we weren’t moving away from defiles fast enough, or not slowing the valks, not getting off the platform before it fell away, letting a tank die early in phase 2, tanks no repositioning mobs properly.  We all had very small mistakes which led to lots of unnecessary wipes.  We even had our boomkin get defile, and then he disconnected, resulting in the Defile growing to enormous proportions and wiping us.  It seemed everything was against us.

Frustrations were growing, we had already lost our shadow priest at the beginning of the night to his account getting hacked, we replaced him with an arcane mage.  At about 10:20pm EST one of our healers (Holy Pally) disconnected.  10 minutes passed by and we thought we would have had to call it, but one of our resto druids logged in after having an unfulfilled evening at the bar and decided to return home, mind you he had little to no experience on the Lich King fight at all but we pulled him in anyway.

First attempt with the new druid in the fight, we wiped in phase 2 due to poor positioning of the boss as compared to defiles.

Then the next attempt came, we breezed through phase 1 and 2, entered into phase 3 and was finally able to put our tweaks into place, moving the Lich King around, using living bomb and starfall on the vile spirits, we saw the LK get to 25% and then 20%.  Calls on vent were frantic by our healers for innervate, mana was running low.  As the tank on the Lich King, I started to use my cooldowns more liberally, watching the Lich King’s health drop here and there, it was as if time was slowing down watching his health.

I had all my tank buttons pressed, everything was on cooldown, I saw the Lich King’s health it said 12%, I hear on vent from all the healers they are out of mana, I see we have a mage down, then I see our boomkin go down.  We pushed on, my finger poised above the health pot button as my last saving button, and then it happened…Lich King to 10%.  I yelled out on Vent…”We did it!!!!”  Everyone in the raid was dead now and the RP was going on, most people didn’t realize it at first what happened, but then it sunk in, many of us were shaking, my arms were raised up high in triumph.

We had done it, we kept fighting, no one quit on me even when I got frustrated and let it show on vent.  I continued to push my team as hard as I could because I believed in every one of them.  They are my guild, my raiders, my family.  In some way I feel they believed in me as their GM and their Raid Leader to get them through all this and I did.  In the end I was the proudest GM I could be that my team was loyal, there with me to the end, and in the end my guild, no…our guild stood triumphant.

Phalanx of Nod had committed Regicide against the Lich King.

In my guild we invented, or reinvented recently how we do loot to allow a friendly atmosphere for PUG (Pick Up Group) folks but also for our own members helping to divvy out the loot so everyone has a chance at a piece of the pie.

Now the loot system doesn’t favor if you have showed up to multiple raids, been in the guild for X number of years or if you are giving special favors to a member of the Loot Council, it does provide a clean and clear way to handle loot.

Rule #1: Main Spec > Off Spec

Main spec is always greater than off spec.  Main spec is designated by whatever role you come into the raid as that is your role, so if someone is typically a ranged DPS, but instead they were brought into the raid as a healer, their main spec is healer.

The only exception to this are the following:

3rd off-tank in ICC (and similar raids), most of the time you only need 2 tanks.  The 3rd tank has the choice at the beginning of the run to declare their spec as either DPS or tank.  That is the spec they may roll on for the remainder of the run as,  so if the 3rd OT decides they are DPS, then when tank gear drops they can only roll on it as off spec.

Switch Healers are an easy situation to handle.  If we are running 6 healers lets say and know that on certain fights we may need a 7th, we may designate 1-2 people as DPS who can also heal, well in this case they are DPS period as we brought them in as DPS.

Rule #2: Rolling

Everyone who wants loot will roll a flat 100 (/roll).

If you have already won an item, you may continue to roll, however someone who has not won will get priority over you if they roll, even if your roll beat them.

So for example lets say you won a chest piece off of the first boss, on the 2nd boss a weapon drops that you would like as well.  You roll for it and roll a 98, someone else rolls on the item and rolls a 31, well normally you would win, but this person hasn’t won anything yet so they will get the item by default

Now in the event you already won an item,  some piece of gear drops that you need for your main spec, and no one else rolls against you, you will get the item even with a previous win.

Lets say that you have won an item and you roll off against someone else who also has won an item.  This simply goes back to the highest roll wins.

If you are rolling on an item for your off spec, if you were to win it does not count against your main spec need

Rule #3: Item Types

Items are items, we do not distinguish between the value of a bracer vs. a weapon.

Any tier tokens are counted as any other normal item, they don’t get a special need roll.  So if you used your need on a previous item and a token comes up, you will be potentially competing against people who have not already won an item.

Recipes are an open random roll that do not count against your main spec need.  However we do ask people to link their profession to make sure they can use it.  In the case where no one rolling on the recipe has a high enough profession it will go the highest roller, this is if the pattern is BoP (Bind on Pickup).  If no one can use the recipe and its BoE (Bind on Equip), its a mass random roll going to the highest roller.

Quest items are similar to the recipe.  They do not count against your main spec need.  However you must prove you have the quest to get said item.  Highest roll wins.

Mounts are free random rolls to the entire group.  Highest roll wins and winning does not take away from your main spec need.

Special items like primordial saronite in ICC can be handled in a few ways, if its a true PUG everyone should get a fair shot at the item.  If its a guild alliance of say 2 guilds, then 1 representative from each guild will roll for it, highest roll wins, next one that drops goes to the other guild, and you keep swapping back and forth.

Rule #4: Main Spec vs. Off Spec

Main spec vs off spec may be considered one of the most controversial rules in all of this due to hybrid classes vs no hybrid classes.

Offspec only exists for hybrid classes.  The following are considered hybrids:

• Warriors (Melee/Tank)
• Druids (Feral/Caster)
• Shaman (Melee/Caster)
• Paladin (Melee/Tank/Heal)
• Priests (DPS/Heal)
• Death Knight (Melee/Tank)

Wherever you read “Caster” in the above that counts towards Heals and DPS Casting.  This is simply to limit confusion and potential drama.  There are designations for +hit and +mp5, read below.

Druids

If you are a Druid and your main spec is feral all non-casting items (melee related gear) is considered main spec.  There is no distinction between cat and bear.  All spell casting items are considered offspec.  If you are a boomkin or resto Druid, all feral gear (whether dps or for tanking) is considered offspec.  All casting gear in the absence of +hit or +mp5 is considered main spec. (See below for distinction on +hit and +mp5)

Shamans

If you are a Shaman who is Elemental or Resto all spell mail is considered main spec (in the absence of +hit or +mp5 on the gear), all melee mail gear is considered offspec.  Conversely if you are enhancement all melee gear is main spec, and all casting gear is considered offspec.

Rogues

There can be made a case for Rogue (Combat vs. Assassination) – I will leave this to you.  Combat roguesmay only claim daggers as “offspec” though, all other items are main spec.  Conversely Assassination rogues can only claim non-dagger weapons as offspec, all other gear is main spec.

Hunters, Mages, Warlocks

You are considered to be pure dps.  Meaning you do not have an off-spec that is not dps.  It can be argued that some specs in these classes require more or less hit, however in this system, the system does not micro-manage how you manage your stats.  Therefore any rolls you make will be main spec rolls.

+Hit vs +Mp5

The +Hit stat designates the item is for damage dealing.  The stat of +mp5 designates the item is better suited towards a healer.  For example if you are a resto shaman/druid/priest and your armor class drops something that has +hit, only then will it be considered offspec for you.

Role Specific Items

The exception to some of the class specific rules are trinkets (and in some cases weapons) that specifically are for damage dealing, tanking or healing.  These items follow your main spec whatever role that may be.  For example if you are a resto Shaman and a +spell power trinket drops that has a proc to increase spell damage, its offspec for you as it does not improve healing on the proc.

Armor Class

Highest armor class gets priority.  If a Druid rolls on a cloth item as main spec and a priest rolls on the same thing for main spec, the Priest gets it, why? Because a Priest can’t roll on leather.  However if the Priest rolls on it for offspec, and the Druid rolls on the cloth item for main spec the Druid has priority.  Same goes for Paladins and Shaman.

Standard Raid Message

Here I will give you the standard raid message to compact all of this into a tight clear message to the raid prior to first pull to make sure everyone is on the same page.

Loot Rules are as follows:

1. Main Spec > Off Spec
2. Flat /roll for all loot
3. Once you win an item you may continue to roll but you have lower priority vs. someone who has not won anything
4. All loot including tier tokens count the same
5. Off spec rolls do not count towards your main need (Hunters, Mages, Warlocks, Rogues* do not have an offspec, complain to Blizzard)
6. Recipes, Quest Items and Mounts will be flat 100 rolls to everyone
7. +hit designates DPS, +mp5 designates healing
8. Highest armor class has priority, meaning if a Priest and Druid both roll for a piece of cloth for main spec, Priest has priority since they can’t roll on leather
9. We do not designate a piece of gear as DPS caster or Healer if it doesn’t have +hit or +mp5 on it, its neutral.  Meaning if you are a boomkin and a spell caster item drops that doesn’t have +hit or +mp5 on it, its your main spec.
10. BoE gear that is rolled on for main or off spec must be equipped immediately
11. Primordial Saronite and BoE gear that is not needed will be rolled off by the 2 guilds represented in the raid, winning roll gets the item for their guild, next item that drops goes to the other guild**

*See the blurb about Rogues in the above rules, you can leave them out

**Statement 11 is good for if you are running a guild alliance, if you are not, and its a PUG just have Primordial Saronite and BoE gear that wasn’t needed go to a free /roll.

So how did my trip in Gilneas go?  Clicking Read More, may spoil some things for you, so read at your own risk…

You start off as human in Gilneas fighting off the Worgen invasion or infestation, depending on how you look at it.  You go about rescuing towns folks, gathering supplies, stopping attacks on roof tops.  Very fun and engaging quests.  You also get to ride on a horse and throw torches at hordes of Worgen.  All finally culminating in a “hold your ground” fight with the Worgen inside a cathedral.  All of these quests were very fun and exciting, but the idea of a quest hub was very foreign here, it was a straight line, do this quest, return now go here and get this next quest.

Well finally you get overrun by the Worgen and become one yourself.  You are given a potion to control your Worgen side I suppose and are set loose to help fend off against an invasion by the Forsaken.  Once again the quest is very linear get this quest kill these mobs, and do that.  However I will say that the quest to put gunpowder on the head of a Abominations and have the marksman on the hell blow it up, is quite an entertaining quest.

Once all of that is done you are sent over to the other part of town near a farmstead.  There was never a choice of go here and also go over here.  Some people may like how Blizzard designed this area where it pulls you along, but for the advanced WoW player I think having a little bit of choice would make it more worth it.

Now my Worgen adventure ended at level 6 because the quest giver was missing, so will have to continue it later and let you all know my continued experience in this new starting zone.

Please note this is as of beta patch 12759 and things are likely to change…

Now it may be linear but the design of the town is awesome, the quests are well thought out and offer enough variety.  My only gripe is how linear it is.  Other than that is an awesome starting zone, not quite as cool as the Death Knight starting zone but still cool and with a well thought out storyline…so far

These can be difficult choices especially if you are a guild like mine thats more casual and focuses on the close knit comradery of not that many people having to sit during raids, and people playing with one another for several years in some cases.

So as a guild leader or officer, what do you do, well I have some thoughts (I know shocker)…

What is Your Current Focus?

If your current focus is 25 man or 10 man raids, and you just lost a bunch of folks due to whatever the reason (not showing up, account cancelled, work, family, etc.) then you should find some alternatives.

1. Identify the lost members class/benefits.  Decide which other classes can bring the same buffs etc.  That you just lost.  If you lost a boomkin, perhaps an unholy death knight is an easier find on your server.  Take the inventory and figure out what you can recruit.

2. Determine how many you want to recruit.  If you were doing 25 man raids, and you lost 5 people, and you have 3 who typically sit on overflow, you might be inclined to recruit 2 people, I would say recruit the 5 you lost, and try for a bit more.  This is not the time to be stingy.  Your most loyal members will most likely continue to show up, but the newer recruits may not stick around.  So get more than you need and sort through it later

3.  Are you going to be doing hard modes or stopping at the end of normal modes?  This is a decision that you need to understand to be open and honest with new recruits and your members.  Some members may just want to see the content and not care about the extra challenge of hard modes.  If thats the case see number 1 and 2.  You may need to recruit more to get you where the majority of your guild want to be.

What is Your ‘Clysm?

This is essentially what your focus for cataclysm will be.  Do you want to have a diverse population that will help the guild level faster, which if you are a PVE focused guild, maybe include more PVP to get those guild achievements?  Remember only your top producers right now will help you level the guild, and the question becomes do you have 10 or so very active members that are going to push your guild’s level?

Find those who want to get in on a guild right when Cataclysm kicks off.  Guild rep is going to be a big thing, changing guilds resets that rep.  Tell folks to get in on the ground floor of it all and help build the guild up.

For raiding, in Cataclysm expect many guilds to go the 10 man route.  Less coordination and same loot.  However do not underestimate the power of starting a 25 man and splitting it up to up to 3 10 mans.  Do the 25s for extra badges then split up for progression perhaps.  Either way keep the plan and be able to answer questions for new recruits

How to Recruit?

There are many ways to recruit.

1. Invite members to pug raids, if they are unguilded and whisper them after the raid if they would be interested in joining your guild.  Don’t poach existing members unless they inquire about your guild first.  This is a great way to meet new folks and build some relationships and spread the word about your guild even if you don’t get anyone to join based on it.  Inviting pugs together also lets you evaluate folks without bringing them into your guild first.

2. Create a macro to use in game.  Make sure to join the in-city guild recruitment channel.  Unguilded people are in this channel by default, if you are guilded you can join by typing “/join guildrecruitment”.  Now you can specifically target those that are not guilded and looking.  Also you may need to fight through the trolls but don’t be afraid to also broadcast in trade chat or general chat.  Both are inhabited by many people some of who are already considering making a change.

Things you want to include in your macro:

• Raid Times (if you raid) if you don’t raid identify guild event times.  For example: Raids Tue/Wed/Thur 8pm-11pm EST.  Immediately when seeing this I can decide if those raid times meet my needs
• Classes/Specs Needed.  List what classes, specs, roles you need.  This is to not waste people’s time.  Example: LF5 Spriest, Boomkin, Tank, 2 Heals.  Here you know someone is looking for a shadow priest, a boomkin, 1 tank assuming any class and 2 healers also assuming any class.
• What your guild does. Say what your guild’s current focus is.  Example: Working on ICC10/25 & RS10/25.  This tells prospective members that “oh this guild is doing Icecrown and Ruby Sanctum and they do both 10 and 25 mans).
• More information. End with a PST for more info or see www.guildsite.com.  This give the prospective recruit a place to ask additional questions if necessary.

You may also include a blurb about your guild if you have space, remember your macro can only be 255 characters long and at least 3 of those are reserved for the channel and a space afterwards (i.e. “/2 “).  Do not make a double macro, double macros are 2 macros together that tell the whole story, but guess what its too much reading, too much spam in a channel, don’t get yourself reported, ignored.  Getting ignored by folks definitely is not the path you want in order to recruit.

Remember your macro is a brief advertisement, the best advertisements are short, succinct and give the information about the product, in this case your guild.

3.  Realm Forums.  Post up something on your server’s forum.  The chances for spam are far less than the WoW at large recruitment forums.  Here you can be a bit longer, but you should include all the points from the guild macro.

• Raid Times
• What you need (Classes/Specs)
• What your guild is currently working on
• More information

DO NOT respond to trolls, if you absolutely must respond to anyone who posts something negative, report the post and simply post “thanks for the bump”.  NEVER feed the trolls.  This goes for when recruiting in-game via macros as well, ignore them, most good recruits you get ignore them anyway.  Fighting with them just makes you look as immature and less desirable as them anyway.  You don’t want that.

4. Twitter.  Even with only 140 characters you can try to recruit here, especially if you have a good followership, chances are maybe someone is interested in joining.  Say what you are looking for, perhaps raid/event times and put “DM for more info”.

Conclusion (TLDR)

So to recruit remember to:

1. Identify what you need, classes and specs
2. Know what your current goals are in Wrath of the Lich King
3. Know what your goals are for the next expansion if asked
4. Plan out your recruitment strategy along different mediums
5. Keep your message short and to the point

Self Promotion Time!

If you are looking for an EST guild that raids 8pm-11pm.  Alliance side.  We are looking for:

• Feral Druid Tank
• Warlock
• Holy Paladin
• Holy Priest
• Resto Shaman

Visit http://phalanxofnod.com for more information.  Be part of a guild with long history (5+ years old), get in on the ground level for an epic guild experience in Cataclysm!

So what should grant guild rep, I have a few suggestions…

1. Completing Quests with Guildies

If you go out and quest with guild members, as in grouped with guild members in a party and complete quests, I think that you should be able to get guild rep.  For 5 person parties, I would say at least 2 guildies to give rep.  I would say the more guildies you have in the group the more rep you gain, however I think a big part of grouping is to meet new people and potentially recruit them into your guild, so maybe after there would be a rep cap at 3 guildies in a group.

2. Completing Dungeons with Guildies

Currently I believe you run a dungeon and you gain 1 rep per creature kill.  But where is the guild aspect?  The same idea as completing quests, force a group up of at least 2 members to gain rep.  But instead of just farming trash in an instance to gain rep, have the rep based on completing the dungeon.  This would prevent rep farming and trivializing guild rep.

3. Killing Raid Bosses as a Guild

I believe if you are raiding and greater than 50% of the raid (6 guildies in 10 man, and 13 in 25 man) are in your guild you should gain rep for killing raid bosses.  Not trash to once again force people to complete content with the guild and not just farm rep off trash.  This would force raids to be comprised mostly of guildies and to work together to complete the content instead of pugging raids to gain guild rep.  Forcing one to be active in guild and raids and not just someone who raids when they want to.

4. Completing Quests & Objectives with your Guild Tabard

Just like current WotLK, let players gain rep if they are wearing their guild tabard.  This would mimic current mechanics in game, and also lets you boast your guild to the rest of the community.  I think this in combination of the previous suggestions would be well received and a nice stacking rep buff.  Also it would give guildies a reason other than cosmetics to wear their tabards again.  In this age of tabards for everything, very few folks wear their guild tabard anymore.

5.  Participating in PVP with your Guild

PVP I usually find to be very boring personally.  However when I participate in PVP with my guild I have a blast, I think with the ability to queue for most battlegrounds as a group, doing so with your guild should provide reputation gains.   Winning should obviously yield more than losing.  Wearing your tabard perhaps gives a buff to your reputation gains here instead of wearing a PVP tabard.  Same goes for arenas, if your arena team is built with guild members I think you should gain some reputation as well, more for winning matches.  This I believe may be more inviting to some who are hesitant to participate in PVP.

6.  Donating to the Guild

Allow people to donate needed items (i.e. Fish Feasts, gems, raid mats, etc.) to the guild bank.  This would allow crafters of the guild to create items needed by the guild and gain rep for doing so.  Creating armor, weapons and giving them to a guildie and having them equip it, should also provide rep to both the crafter and the recipient.  This would promote folks to make things for the guild to progress and to provide items and trade/sell them to guild members instead of posting on the auction house first.

7. Weekly Allotment of Reputation Handed Out

Allowing the guild leaders to get a weekly bank of reputation say 1000 reputation and allowing the guild leaders to hand out this rep as they see fit to those who have gone above and beyond for the guild that week.  This also goes along with my previous post of user created content in World of Warcraft.  This makes the reputation gaining a more custom experience based on your guild.  There would also be more flexibility in earning reputation as well.  For example if you have someone who wants to organize an open world treasure hunt contest, well it doesn’t sound like they would earn any guild reputation for doing that, but if the leader was able to give it out then it would encourage people to do more for the guild outside the standard raid.

8.  Leading / Running a Guild

Guild leaders and officers put up with a lot.  Drama, organizing raids, recruitment, etc.  They hardly ever get any credit for doing any of this.  So I think that these critical pillars of the guild should get a weekly reputation gain for running a guild.  So what would stop people from just creating guilds to get this rep?  Well I am sure the guild won’t last long if the only reason for existing is to grant rep to its leaders.  This is meant as a perk to the officers of guilds who often have to go above and beyond the normal functions of an ordinary guild member, and usually put in many hours outside of the game to make sure everything runs smoothly.

Conclusion

In the end, guild reputation for awesome rewards, however cosmetic they may be (mounts, tabards, flags, pets, etc.) still makes the game more engaging specifically for guilds.  These guild changes are among some of the most exciting in a long time for me, and can’t wait.  I can only hope that my above 8 suggestions for how to earn guild reputation are in part implemented for Cataclysm and the reputation gain is not trivialized by not participating with your actual guildmates.

Topic proposed on Blog Azeroth by Anexxia

I think Cataclysm is the perfect time to start to introduce minor user created content.  Now I am not talking about players creating new battleground maps, or their own raids and dungeons (though that would be awesome).  Start off small and you have a perfect opportunity in the expansion of guild immersion Blizzard is introducing.

Guild reputation (at least in its current state) is a grind to earn, you do dungeons, level, etc.  Note its still beta and all these things could change, but your rep is slowly gained through these things.  None of these things I really see this as something that is guild centric.  So what can Blizzard do to make gaining reputation with your guild feel more like a personal and specific experience?  User generated quests.

How many times have you talked with your guild and said hey we need more gems, enchanting mats, flasks or fish feasts in the guild bank for raids?  If you are like my guild, plenty.  How great would it be for a guild leader to create a weekly quest to turn in 10 fish feasts or 5 flasks and in turn you gain 250 guild rep, and these items get deposited into the guild bank.  Seriously how hard could that be?  Blizzard I am sure could make almost like a “wizard” type interface for guild leaders to create these quests.  Pick them up in the guild tab, and hell remote turn them in with the new remote quest system being introduced in Cataclysm.

What about those who don’t care about raid materials?  OK well create a quest that you must clear a specific dungeon with at least 3 guildies or something.  Maybe set a quest to kill a raid boss with a minimum number of guildies in group.  The minimum number of guildies is already in Cataclysm for some of the guild achievements.

I know I make this all sound very simple and it may be more difficult to actually implement but after 5+ years and with other games able to let you create quests in a mmo (City of Heroes) why not the juggernaut that is World of Warcraft, especially when they are already providing ways to create content for their other games.

I think its time for user created content, and the easiest place to start are quests.  I would love to see user created dungeons and raids, but that may be much further out than something as simple as quests.

Well its no different in World of Warcraft, there are many different issues that people stand firmly usually on one side or the other, some usually break this down to the casual vs. hardcore debate.  Honestly though its not that simple, and goes beyond all that.

Lets review the issues…

Guildies

Is it better to have the highly skilled, well prepared player but he may be an asshole or the low to medium skilled member but who has a great personality.  And yes there is the holy grail of the great player with a great personality, but for the sake of this issue how do you weigh the two other sides?  Many folks who prefer to progress may lean towards the higher skilled player and may put up with his/her subpar attitude in the name of killing bosses.  Though maybe a more casual raiding team would take the lesser skilled player because community is more important to them.

I have even heard from some folks in hardcore guild that would rather have the lesser skilled better personality people simply from the point they refuse to play with jerks.  I heard from one friend in a casual raiding guild that he would prefer the highly skilled player because he felt he could keep the attitude in check.

For sure its certainly an issue that people are on one side or the other.  But from my research I tend to see more in favor of the lesser skilled better personality because they can learn.

Gear Score

This debate is hot and contested.  Those who love it, those who hate it, most know my stance on it.  Some even float the middle ground saying its a necessary evil.  With Blizzard’s recent announcement that they are throttling the inspect queries done by add-ons, will certainly impact the Gear Score mod (along with several others).  The end goal may be less load on the servers and the back-end databases, which may ultimately translate to less lag in cities.  But thats a whole ‘nother issue.

The issue at hand is those for or against Gear Score.  Many PuG fans are in favor of Gear Score simply from the standpoint it helps them to weed out poorly geared folks for content.  Hardcore guilds for the most part shun it and instead want to see log files of players’ performance.  Some other guilds and players refuse to use it at all and won’t group with folks.  Others simply use it as a barometer to see how they are progressing gear wise.

For this issue, I really don’t get an accurate count of who really likes it or hates it, but those who are most vocal seem to despise the Gear Score system that has infiltrated World of Warcraft.  So I would have to say most are against it, but even some of those who are against it see it as a necessary evil.  There really is 3 camps on this:  For, Against-But Needed, and Against.

Real ID in Game

This is a new one in that its part of the friends list experience Blizzard has put together and is a way for people to communicate cross game, realm and faction.  However what seems to cause the most drama is you need to know the person’s email address and then you see their real name (first and last).

Some consider this an invasion of their privacy and others do not see it as such.  The 2 sides are deeply divided on it.  I personally think its a great idea, as it brings a more social experience to the game of World of Warcraft.  For others who want to hide their personal identity due to work and/or personal reasons don’t have the option to use a fake name or a persona, so they have to not even use the new system.

Most folks seem to favor this system and are generally for Real ID.  Now the Real ID proposed on the public forums, now that was shot down by community, and created a huge uproar.

Cataclysm Loot – 10 and 25s the same

This one hasn’t even been implemented yet but already it has sparked a debate amongst raiders of whats the purpose of raiding in 25 mans anymore?  With loot being the same, people tend to assume that 10s will be easier, however Blizzard has said they plan on normalizing the difficulty in both 10s and 25s and 25s would be rewarded with more loot and badges.  But is more loot enough of a carrot is the real question.  Hardcore 25 man guilds will probably continue, though I think you will see more 10 mans popping up now.

This one is neck and neck, and probably won’t pull away one side or the other until after Cataclysm is released and people start raiding to see what the true differences are.

Loot Systems (i.e /roll vs. DKP)

Some people are in favor of the the simple just flat roll and let RNG (random number generation) decide.  Others though want some assurances they are in a better position than someone else when it comes to loot, maybe due to the time they put into making the guild better, being at every run instead of a fresh new member.  I can certainly see both sides, and for 25 mans I definitely see the benefit of a loot system not based on RNG, but when its a 10 man, I think a loot system may just over-complicate things.

In the end from reviewing over many discussions on this, I can’t decide which the community is more in favor of, its really the flavor of the week for some.  Hell I even know a friend in game who used to LOVE DKP based systems, now he can’t stand them.

Conclusion

These are not the only “politics” of World of Warcraft, but they are some of the bigger ones.  In the end it comes down to personal preference and what you feel is right, just like politics in government.  So I end it with ask you to think what are your politics, and where do you stand on these issues.

I did leave out one of the biggest ones in hindsight…Horde vs. Alliance, but hell that can be a whole ‘nother topic!

But all is not lost regarding hybrid builds, they still exist just need to meet the original 31 point requirement.  Once you choose a tree at level 10 though, that’s where the real fun begins.  All of the changes that are coming I personally think are great and make this change truly the cat’s pajamas, but lets investigate some of the specifics…

Feeling Like Your Spec Earlier

One of my biggest issues with the current talent specs is that its boring, you never feel like your chosen spec until you get 51 points into that talent tree.  You never differentiate yourself from the other specs until you get that 1 or 2 defining talents that make you truly that fury warrior or enhancement shaman.

Well all that is changing.  At level 10 now you get a choice of which spec you want to focus on.  Upon making this choice you automatically get a few cool abilities that help you instantly feel like your specialization.  At level 10 and the opening of the talent trees Fury Warriors get dual wield, Arms Warriors get 2h weapon specialization,  Feral druids get cat/bear forms are just some examples.

Finally people may continue playing more past level 10 and not get bored of doing the same old, same old.  In Cataclysm new classes will finally feel like the spec they want early on, making the game I think much more fun and engaging than it has been for the past 5+ years.

Taking Out the Trash

With the removal of so many talents and slimming the trees down, Blizzard is finally able to get rid of many of those passive boring talents that you felt obligated to take just to get to that new cool talent at the next level.  One of the biggest things Blizzard mentioned at Blizzcon 2009 was that they wanted talents to feel cool and not just provide some passive stats that you were forced to take.  Well with WotLK the trees became so bloated that it would have become near impossible to have Blizzard redo every single talent to make them cool.

So instead they gutted the trees and gave us only 31 point talents, essentially giving lipo to all the character and spec combinations.  This should bring new life into the trees and let you take only the most fun talents.  Of course there will most likely be the cookie-cutter “best specs” to maximize your dps, tanking or healing, but I am hoping that this opens up each class to be a bit more creative with their talent choices.

Overall

This could be one of the best class changes in Cataclysm.  Removing confusion, increasing immersion in one’s character earlier on, and making talents a fun mechanic/in-game event.  This change makes me excited to level up a new character.  I always disliked leveling a new character because I felt like the spec I chose wouldn’t bear fruit until level 60 a minimum.  But now also my high level characters will be more focused on important fun talents than getting filler talents just to get to that next level.

Blizzard always said one of the biggest hurdles was getting people to get past the level 10 mark, and I think with this change they may have at least part of that equation solved, basically leaving a starting area and entering an engaging specialization system.

To look at all the current (read this as it may change) fun stuff you get when you open up talent specs for your classes check them out over at this wow.com post.  And feel free to play with the not 100% fully implemented 31 point talent trees at MMO-Champion’s talent calculator site.

When I experience burnout and over stressed, I lean on my officers to take on a bit more, but out of game I turn to my wife.  Now I have been playing World of Warcraft for 5+ years (if you include the original closed beta).  I have known my wife pretty much that whole time and been married for 3 years.

Now my wife has tried to play WoW, she has tried a druid and a priest, the most fun she seems to have is hiding behind foliage and trying to pop out to surprise me in game, even though we are grouped together and can see her on my mini-map.  But that’s besides the point.  Either way none of her characters have ever really gotten off the ground, mostly because she is not that interested I think, though I secretly hope one day she will want to play more.

Where the First Lady truly shines is after a long raid I can go and talk to her about the events that transpired.  She offers me great advice on how to deal with situations.  The great thing is she doesn’t truly understand all the game mechanics so she can focus on purely the social aspect in giving me advice.  Which is great for me as sometimes I try to tie things together with game mechanics.

She is also there to de-stress me after a long progression night or a bit of drama that might creep up.  She will scratch my back, we will watch TV and just talk about anything non-WoW related to get my mind off of it for a bit.

She has kept me grounded while being a guild leader for several years.  She has been more to me than a great wife, my best friend, she has been my greatest behind the scenes officer, my first lady.