One of the biggest challenges facing the casual player is keeping up with the guild. When you only have a couple of hours here or there to devote to WoW, you can quickly find yourself lagging behind the “curve” of guild progression. As a casual player, this is just something you have to learn to live with. There will be days when you log in and see half the guild in Kara or Gruul’s, leaving nary a soul to join you in a regular Shadow Labyrinth run. It can also be difficult because your guildmates probably ran Mechanar on regular a thousand times before you started asking. Don’t despair, with focus and determination, you can close the gap. I recently went through this myself, and here are a few tips I have to share to maximize your time in WoW.
Guild 5 Mans and Focus. As I said before, this can be tough. Chances are a lot of the peeps in your guild will puke if they have to run regular Arc one more time. Keep at it though, and in a good guild you will get your runs.
When you’re looking to get regular5-mans going, you have to be flexible. Don’t get tunnel vision about the one drop you just HAVE to have in SL- be prepared to run nearly any five man instance out there. On this note, make sure you are aware of every instance drop you could use. When you’re gearing up, every green you replace can make a huge improvement and get you that much closer to heroics. There are some great sites out there with focused loot lists (4 Haelz has a GREAT list for resto druids, for instance), do your homework. It will also help if you shoot for the instances that maximize your chances at a drop. If Mech only drops one great item you could really use, while SV has three very good drops, choose SV. It’s hard enough getting a regular 5-man going sometimes – maximize your chances. The good news is that if you can get a run going with over-geared guildies, it will most likely be pretty easy and you will usually have first crack at the drops. In a few short runs you can have the upgrades and rep to try the easier Heroics.
PUG 5 Mans. I hate em. You hate em. We all hate em. PUGs are such a crap shoot. Will you end up with the “tank” who insists on using a 2-hander because he “doesn’t like to use shields?” Will you end up with the hunter who’s never used a frost trap before? Sadly, the fact of the matter is, sometimes the only route to progression for a casual player is a PUG or two. Roll the dice, sometimes you get lucky! Again, keep that flexibility and focus I mentioned earlier, and you’ll progress.
Tradeskills. Don’t ignore em. Yes, I know how frustrating it is to try to level these. Sometimes, though, it can be the best avenue for a casual player to get their gear up to par. Warrior? Take a look at engineering. (Heck, the epic goggles in Eng are great for ANY class!) Druid? Leather working, no matter the spec. For a feral you can go for PrimalStrike, and for a Resto you can shoot for Windhawk. Priest or Mage? Level that tailoring! The point is, there are GREAT upgrades in the armor creating tradeskills, and you generally need very little help to get them up, it’s just a matter of time. I spent many 2 hour sessions farming Primal Air for my Windhawk set, and I don’t regret it one bit. I didn’t have to beg anyone for anything, I just had to meticulously gather my mats on my own, and run a few easy heroics for nethers. One of the most satisfying days I had in WoW was when I finally completed my [Windhawk Hauberk].
“Easy” Heroics. So, you managed to swap out most if not all of your greens for blues, and managed a lucky epic drop or two. Now you’re ready for heroics, but where to start? Heroics are a whole new ball game, and it helps to start slow. One of the generally accepted heroics to start with is Slave Pens. It’s not too long, only has one or two tough pulls, and even has quite a few mobs that you can skip. Underbog is another good choice for a first heroic. Heck, maybe you could hit one then the other. Ramparts is another fairly easy heroic, and from there a good progression would be into Crypts or Blood Furnace, both are still on the “easy” side, but the difficulty is definitely ramping up, with a few tough pulls and some interesting boss fights.
Believe me, I know it can seem intimidating when you finally just hit 70, and your guild is already looking at SSC or beyond. Stick with it, stay focused and flexible, and before long you’ll find yourself farming heroic badges for real nice epics, and putting together your list of Kara drops you’d like. It can be done, you just might get to the party later than the rest of your guild!
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