In yesterday’s post, I talked about how my raiding alliance has essentially given up T5 content in favor of moving into T6.  I won’t make any bones about it, I’d prefer not to jump right into T6.  I feel like our raiding alliance, as it was constituted, could have pushed to finish the T5 stuff before moving on.  It seems that nowadays, though, a LOT of raiders are doing the same thing.

I’m a completionist at heart.  It probably has something to do with my history involving video games.  I vaguely remember having the Odyssey2 when I was little, and when I was about 10 years old, the Nintendo Entertainment System was released.  I still remember going to Ace Hardware with my best friend at the time, and watching as him and his parent plunked down the cash for the NES cadillac version with ROB the Robotic Operating Buddy and all.

From the moment we started up Super Mario Brothers, I was hooked.  I will never forget my first REAL gaming experiences with the NES and Mario.

One of the key things that Mario taught me is to always search every nook and cranny for secrets.  In the early games, there really were only a few, but you can see that in the evolution of the adventure game, the devs cater to completionists like myself.  There is often a collecting bonanza to be had, and countless hidden gems and treasures to acquire if you really want to “finish” a modern adventure game 100%.

As such, I always like to not just finish levels, but scour them for every last hidden gem before moving on.  I’m not a fan of backtracking, I prefer to either get it all or leave it entirely.

This has affected the way that I look at progression in World of Warcraft.  SSC is the “level” I have been playing in raiding for the last few months.  I’ve put in a lot of time and effort to learn the bosses, and contribute to the raid’s success in any way I can.  We’ve still only tried Lady V ONE STINKING TIME and we’re moving on. It’s like we’ve been working our way through world 1-1 through 1-2 to 1-3 in Mario, and then never getting through the Castle at the end.  Maybe I’m being a little OCD, but it’s driving me nuts.

Do you fight your way through any Zelda game only to give up and start on a new game when you get to Ganon?  NO!

Do you give up on Metroid when you get to Mother Brain?  NO!

Do you give up on GTA when you….uhhh….get a girl?  NO!

Now, I KNOW that the Lady Vashj fight is tough.  However, I don’t belive it’s due to gear.  I don’t think we can go gear up in early T6 to the point where we flat outgear the encounter.  Hell, a good deal of people in our raid are already outfitted in a LOT of the 2.4 badge gear.  It’s like we’re partially in T6 gear already!  From what I understand, the T5 endbosses are about SKILL and ORGANIZATION - NOT gear.

So, maybe it’s not really about gear anymore.  Maybe we just don’t want to try to deal with the bevvy of wipes it will take to get the Lady V fight down.  Maybe we don’t want to make the hard raid selection decisions it would take to get through it.  Whatever it is, we’re moving on.

Nowadays when looking at guilds that are recruiting, you’ll often see stuff like this:  5/6 SSC, 3/4 TK, 3/5 MH, 3/9 BT.  Since they removed those attunements, everyone is doing it like that.  A lot of them take a few lumps with Lady V and/or Kael, and then just give them up.  They tackle the first few relatively “easy” bosses in MH and BT rather than put in the work to finish T5.

I just don’t know if this is good or bad.

The Pros of Skipping to T6

• You don’t have to bang your head against the proverbial wall of Lady V and Kael.  There’s no two ways about it, they are tough, tough fights and you cannot, at least at this point, outgear them.  Perhaps you can in some ways when Wrath hits, I’m not sure.  Many people (Matticus for one) say Kael in TK is the toughest fight to learn in the game.
• You get shiny new gear, better than the stuff that drops in T5.  Let’s face it, with the 2.4 badge gear, a lot of stuff in T5 isn’t all that appealing anymore.  You can get better just by running heroics/Kara and hoarding badges.  The T6 level gear, though, is at least on par with the 2.4 badge gear, if not better.
• You get to see new content that perhaps you wouldn’t have seen before.  A lot of people, myself included, never thought they would step foot in BT.  We can do that now, even if we can only get through a handful of bosses.  I know I never thought I’d step in Naxx either, and I never did.  (The upcoming “new” Naxx doesn’t count!)  New content is good content.
• You get to say “we’re also 3/5 in MH, 3/9 in BT”.

The Cons of Skipping to T6

• You didn’t learn the “true” tests of T5.  You never learned some of the toughest fights in the game, that at one time were meant to prepare you for T6.  Remember, this 2.4 badge gear is still new.  You’ll hear old raiders say “Back in my day, we couldn’t skip Lady V or Kael, we had to fight them uphill, both ways, on 13″ CRT monitors, too!”
• Because you didn’t learn the tough T5 fights, you will most likely get stuck in T6 as well.  That’s why you see 3/5 MH, 3/9 BT so often.  If you don’t learn organization fights in T5, you aren’t going to do it in T6.  Though I suppose by the time you are really tired of the early MH and BT bosses Wrath will be here.
• You can’t finish the attunement quests for T6, which do give some nice rewards.  You also don’t get to strut around IF or whatnot knowing you’ve helped kill Lady V and Kael.  The real Kael, that is.
• You’re a quitter.  Ok, not really, but I couldn’t think of another con to stick here.

Well, that about sums it up.  It turns out the cons are pretty simple, you’re going to get hung up in MH and BT just like you did at 5/6 SSC and 3/4 TK.  There are some very tough fights that require everyone to be on their game.  Perhaps you just want to see the content and get the drops you can, and I suppose I can respect that.

As far as the pros, you do get to see content you otherwise might not see.  Now, you aren’t going to take down Illidan any time soon, but you can at least bleed on his doorstep if you want.  There is also some nice gear to be had in the early bosses, and it could potentially help you go back and take down that Nasty Naga.

Well, in the end, I’m going along for the ride myself, so what does it matter?  The completionist in me will have to take a back seat, since I don’t make any decisions.  I am thankful that I can show up, though.  I’m also a mere 100 hps away from the 9k requirement that has been set for BT, so it looks like I probably will be going on Saturday.  I do look forward to it, and hope we can at least perhaps take down the first boss or so.  Look for a rundown of the lowdown some time next week.  Thanks for reading, and be sure to let me know what you think.  Is the “New” raid progression better or worse?

I’m sure we’ve all heard the people in general chat saying things like, “LF4 More, Heroic MgT” or “LF2 More for H UB, need tank and heals.”  Why you would announce that you’re looking for more when you have neither of the most important classes, I have no idea.

Anyhow, no, I’m not actually looking for 24 more for Black Temple.  BT is, however, in my near future, I hope.  I raid in an alliance of about 5 guilds on the Whisperwind server.  None of the guilds can effectively run 25 mans on their own, so for some time we’ve had this alliance.  It start with Gruul, and moved on to Mags, SSC, TK and MH.  Now, we are set to hit the Black Temple.

Now then, I don’t agree with our progression, but I don’t have any say in these discussions, so my opinion doesn’t mean jack.  For some time we were running Gruul, Mags, SSC and TK pretty regularly.  We were spending 2 nights a week on TK and SSC, and we got to 5/6 in SSC and 2/4 in TK.  (That could be wrong on TK, don’t quote me on that.)

I have only participated in a couple Gruul and Mags runs, but I have been in a LOT of the SSC runs.  I was in the group that first killed Morogrim, FLK and Leo.  I was also in the first (and maybe only, I’m not sure) group that even took a crack at Lady V.  Personally, I wanted to continue down that path.  2 nights a week in SSC, the first night hopefully getting at least the first 4, then the second night taking out the last boss and then working on Lady V.

It hasn’t worked out that way.  You see, it was slow going at first.  It took us a couple months of 2 SSC runs a week to get to 5/6.  There was a LOT of wiping going on, as a lot of people had to learn the various fights.

2 months ago, I didn’t even have to sign up.  I could just log on shortly before start time, and they ALWAYS needed one or two more people.  Around the time we took down Leo for the first time, and got to have regular success in SSC, signups exploded.  Where before we were sometimes struggling to fill runs at all, we now had 30+ signing up for every raid.  We also took a hit in our efficiency, since many people each week were totally new to the instance.  I don’t think we’ve seen Lady V since.

Anyhow, shortly after that, the Alliance leaders decided to switch up our targets.  One night each of SSC and TK were dropped in favor of MH runs.  I don’t agree with this, but as I said before, I have no say.  I wish we could try to be at least a LITTLE more selective and make some honest attempts at the last T5 bosses, but that ain’t happening.  Instead we are moving on.

So, anyhow.  This Saturday, we are going to make our first foray into the Black Temple.  Now, I am already signed up, and though I disagree I am excited to finally see this instance, but I have a problem.

I need to get to 9k unbuffed HPs by Friday.  I think I can do it, but it will take some work.  I have an old pair of Earthsoul leggings that I can gem for stamina and swap out my present badge legs, and I also have the blue boots from MagT just sitting in my bank.  I don’t have the playtime to farm furiously for badges before then, but maybe I can pick up another useful piece or two.  Hopefully I can get there.  If I do, I will certainly blog about it!  Also, if anyone has any recommendations on what I could do, you can go ahead and peek at Pummra’s armory in my sidebar.

AH Insanity is killing me.  Honestly.  I had fun leveling my warrior for awhile, got him to 40, and said “yay, time for plate!”  Then I saw the AH.

You have GOT to be kidding me.  10g for a pair of level 40 plate bracers of the Wolf?  25g and up for anything of the Bear or Tiger?  SERIOUSLY??

I mean, aren’t I going to be using this for, like, 5 levels or so?  Which at the present rate of progression amounts to about a week of playing?  /scoff  I guess I’ll be rocking the mail for awhile longer, until I can get some good quest rewards or something.

What I’ve found is that the insanity is all over the place.  Yes, I realize Blizz dumped a crap load of cash into the economy with the SSO dailies, but this is getting ridiculous.  My shammy, now level 45, is still wearing bracers and gloves from level 30.   I refuse to bow to ridiculous prices, and farm with my 70 to outfit an alt.

Now, in some ways I understand the ridiculous prices for, say, level 29 BOE blues.  I know the twinkers fall all over themselves for those.  But this craziness about other sub 70 stuff must end.  How long do we spend in those midlevels anyway?

Now, people -  the only way this will change is if YOU change it!  You must agree to not bow to ridiculously priced green stuff on the AH!  If we work together, we can move mountains, you and I.  We shall overcome!

I’m the Part Time Druid, and I approve this message.

As is often the case with a post of this nature, I had a lot of further thoughts and things I’d wished I had included once I hit the “publish” button.  It’s the nature of the beast, I guess.  So here are some further ruminations on Why We WoW.

One of the key points that came up with people when I discussed my post yesterday, both in the comments section and in the BA Chat Room, was the idea that WoW doesn’t mean all that much.  There were people who were vehemently in opposition to this thought, and they felt that there was real meaning for them in the game in one way or another.

There are some ways in which I agree.  I agree that the “good feelings” you get from accomplishments do in fact mean something.  I generally have what I’d call an “expansive” or “spiritual” way of thinking, and IMO having positive thoughts and experiences is VERY important.  I know that I generally “feel good” about things if I have a successful night in WoW, and I know a lot of other people feel the same.

So yes, “silly” accomplishments in the game can affect your life.  Heck, maybe you have a great night in SSC, and the next day at work feel uber IRL, and get yourself a raise. 

Entertainment or Hobby?

I think something that comes up again and again in reaction to my post yesterday is that WoW is much more than your standard movie or television show.  After all, those are passive entertainment activities, and passive WoW would be no fun at all.  I mean, you don’t make any decisions in the movie theater beyond “butter or no butter,” and you aren’t affecting the outcome of CSI by making decisions for the main characters.

In WoW, however,  you are playing an active role.  Isn’t WoW more a hobby than entertainment?

One of things that people who don’t play WoW don’t get is that it’s more than entertainment.  Many people look at WoW the same way they do television.  To them, we are spending hours and hours a week doing nothing more interactive or enriching than watching the Food Network 24/7.  (In defense of the Food Network, there are times that it’s all I watch!)

Would they think differently if they thought of WoW as a hobby?  I think so, but that might prove difficult.  Say I like to make model cars as a hobby.  If I spent 3 hours every other night painting wheels, nobody would look down on me, ask if I was addicted, and insist I was ruining my life.  The same could be said for most hobbies, too.

If I spent 20 hours a week reading, I’d be enriching my vocabulary, not hopelessly addicted.

If I spent 20 hours a week crocheting, I’d have beautiful blankets and wouldn’t have ben “wasting” my life.

If I spent 20 hours a week painting, people would admire me no matter how crappy said paintings were.

If I spent 20 hours a week raiding in WoW, I’m ruining my life, I need help, and I’m a loser.

Sound about right?  That’s the rub.  How do we convince people that WoW is a hobby, and NOT just entertainment?  I honestly don’t know.

For me, I was only successful convincing my wife that it had some merit once I started this blog, and soon had over 100 regular readers.  Needless to say, I make sure to let her know how my readership grows all the time.  This has largely let me off the hook.

In general, though, it’s hard to convince people that this is a hobby and not entertainment.  We don’t have any visceral “product” at the end to show people, really.  They don’t share our triumphs when we take down a new raid boss, or win the roll on a shiny new epic.  They don’t understand that we develop REAL relationships in game.  That we often talk of things other than WoW, that we share experiences with others.  They just don’t get it.

I guess, in the end, the answer is simple.  Get them to start playing WoW, as the more people that play, the more people understand and value this wonderful game.  (And yes, I have tried this tactic with my wife, but she absolutely refuses to even give it a look.  She can be stubborn sometimes, but it’s one of the reasons I love her!)  I know I value WoW.  Hopefully yesterday’s post didn’t make you think otherwise.  Thanks for reading!

I’ve been leveling away on my Shadow Priest, making the push to 58 so I could hit the Outlands.  I was just a bit into 57 last night, and spent the next 2 hours doing various quests in Winterspring.  A large amount of dead Yetis later, I reached my goal and hit 58.  I promptly turned in my remaining completed quests, dumped a bunch of stuff I’d never finish out of my log, and headed for Darkshire with the intention of hitting the Outlands the next time I logged on.

It got me to thinking.  What exactly had I just accomplished?

I had set a goal for myself, and upon reaching that goal I was happy, and excited to push into the BC content, where I knew far better gear awaited me, along with much better zones to level through.  But I had a bit of an empty feeling.

Had I really accomplished anything?  I thought some more.  Do we ever really accomplish anything in WoW?  Let’s say I was in a guild and we just downed Illidan.  Did I really accomplish anything even then?

Sadly, I kept arriving at the same conclusion.  No.  Even if I had just picked up the most uber of uber drops, I wouldn’t have accomplished anything.  How is the staff or whatever that Illidan might drop any different from the staff I had at level 1?  When you get down to it, aren’t they both just a collection of 1s and 0s, in developer parlance?  The only thing that really differentiates them, in the real world, is some ID number on a  server deep within the bowels of Blizzard.

Am I foolish to search for some kind of meaning in my enjoyment of WoW?  I don’t think so.  The time I spend playing WoW is significantly less than many people out there, but at the same time I spend a LOT of time in WoW.  Why do I spend so much time in this game, doing the same things I’ve done hundreds of times before?  I’m not sure.

Is it because I feel some lack in my real life, and I need to “achieve” in some way in a game?  Thankfully, that’s a big no.  I have a wonderful family that’s growing, and a solid career at a great company.  Oh, and I like to think I write a pretty decent blog, too.

Is it because I’m highly competitive, and want to “do better” than other people in the game?  Nope, that’s not it.  If it is I’m failing miserably at this point.  My biggest claim to fame is 5/6 in SSC.  Not all that much in the grand WoW of things.  I’m happy that I’ve at least seen some degree of “end game” raiding, but I’m well behind the curve.  You know, “part time” and all.

Looking at all the classic categories of why we play these games, I only mildly think I like to achieve and socialize.  I like getting new loot and better gear, I like hitting new levels, and I like progressing somewhat into new content, at least content that’s new to me.  I like being in groups and taking down bosses.  I do also like talking about WoW (as evidenced from this very blog) and I spend some time chatting in /g.

Honestly, though, everything I just detailed that I like about WoW is really nothing at all.  Just more 1s and 0s, excepting possibly the social aspects.  So why do I keep doing something that doesn’t give me any benefit in the real world?

Because I like it.  I can’t detail exactly how or why, but I really like it.

Besides, get down to brass tacks.  What other things do you like to do in your spare time?  Watch movies?  Aside from the occasional indie flick with philosophical undertones, that’s largely empty as well, right?  Watch sports?  Yeah, as a Cubs fan I can tell you that there’s not much there, either.  Our uniforms don’t even change.  I have yet to see the Cubs get any loot.  Yet I still watch them, too.

In the end I guess I just have to see WoW just for what it is:  entertainment.  Gripping entertainment, that leaves most others in its wake.  Maybe searching for deep meaning in something like this is folly.  It’s just like a movie that doesn’t end, or a book that just keeps going and going.  Maybe I just need to accept that as a good thing, and not try to find a true “benefit” I get from it in the real world.  Though I can at least say that’s it’s a great way to get away.

Ok, pointless rambling off.  If you’ve gotten this far, bravo!  Maybe you can share with me why YOU WoW.  Now excuse me, I have to go hit the Outlands.

If you liked this, you can read more of my thoughts here, where I get into WoW as entertainment vs. WoW as a hobby!