Horde looking for (and finding) fewer groups?
by Mike Schramm 
Jul 2nd 2007 at 4:29PM
Distraction on the WoW LJ posts about something I've noticed while sitting in the LFG channel over the last few days on my server as well: Alliance are having a nice big party in the LFG channel, while Horde seem kind of lonely in it.Why does it seem like Alliance run more PUGs than Horde do? It seems to happen on every server that I've been on, and it can't just be a population thing-- even Horde heavy servers (of which there aren't many) seem to have more PUGs rolling on the Alliance side. Could it be that Alliance players are more social, or just more likely to be unguilded?
And another thing I've noticed (and while Distraction doesn't mention it obviously, you can see it in his script) is that Horde seem to be less responsive to pleas for help in terms of LFG as well. Not only is it less common for a group to be LFG on Horde side, it seems, but it's less common for anyone LFG to find the help they need. I watched one guy Hordeside look for a Botanica group member for about 2 hours over the weekend, and when I finally joined up, the group frll apart anyway. Has that been your experience? And if so, why could that possibly be?
Filed under: Horde, Alliance, Analysis / Opinion, Guilds, Quests, Raiding, Factions
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
mark Jul 2nd 2007 4:36PM
I don't know about Alliance vs. Horde, but Alliance on my realm barely if ever uses that terrible LFG tool. Most PuGs are started up the old school way- LFM SL pst
Preston Jul 2nd 2007 4:40PM
Simple. Alliance outnumbers Horde, so they have more people able to form groups.
Hank Jul 2nd 2007 4:47PM
I've had the experience of being asked to join a group; we enter the instance, and before the buffs are done, someone leaves the group.
JackBrown Jul 2nd 2007 4:50PM
#2 you obviously didnt read that whole part that states its the same way on realms with the bigger population being horde. l2read
Siorra Jul 2nd 2007 4:58PM
It's not just Horde. I've spent the past few days trying to get a group on my server for several instances, and 80% of them go bottoms up. I think it mainly be due to the fact that there are NO TANKS on my server, but then again, it could just be me. -.-
Gurei Jul 2nd 2007 5:28PM
Horde probably,after being the one with less numbers,got more close to eachother and rather do premade grps with those known than the alliance,that are a lot and have been on the puging for a long time .
novel Jul 2nd 2007 5:26PM
from my experience is horde just doesn't like pug's...
i've never seen LFG for MC in general in org/UC/TB, but have many many times in IF/SW
guess it just boils down to the fact horde likes to be with those who know what they are doing, the pugs that i've gotten in on horde seem to finish as opposed to the ones on alliance where i've even watched casters try to go melee and everyone ninja-afk's.....learnt my lesson though, i don't do pugs on either, (none on alliance by choice though)
just my few years of experience....
Cavaleer Jul 2nd 2007 5:35PM
Every night when I log on, the first thing I do is use the LFG and sign up for at least two level appropriate instances. Most times, nothing will come up at all, and when it does, its usually one other player and we end up wasting more time LFM. I thought it was the time of day I play (http://commishoner.blogspot.com/2007/05/hey-where-is-everybody.html) but maybe its not.
Corrodias Jul 2nd 2007 5:41PM
It's true that in my horde guild, i've almost always been able to find people i needed for groups. I think we have just over 110 member accounts, now. You can -usually- pick up 4 guildmates for any given instance, whether they're going for rep or just to help out. Sometimes we have to pug it, but i levelled my only level 70 character to 70 during the initial rush, so i had no trouble finding guildmates for all my runs. Even if we can't pull together 5 in-guild, we usually know a few other people outside the guild we can ask before resorting to open pugging.
If it gets to that point, open pugging, then usually we just break up the group and try again some other time. My guildmates generally -hate- PuGs. My experiences haven't been as horrible as theirs, apparently, but i do like to tell the story of the 8 hour UBRS. That brings some groans.
Now, really, the only instancing i do is to help others get their rep and items. I play my alt more.
Skrilla Jul 2nd 2007 5:55PM
I will not be involved in pugs anymore. I have wasted more time in pugs than anything else. People leave in the middle, leave before getting there, don't know how to play their toon, need on things they don't need, etc...
Last night did it for me. 4 members from another guild begged me to run SL with them. I tanked it for them up until the 3rd boss. Everyone was quiet for a few minutes as I was explaining the strategy... then all of a sudden I am not a memeber of the group and will be teleported. I guess they wanted a guildie to come in and try for the loot and/or kara key fragment. I didn't need anything in there, but that was BS. I'm reporting them all today.
Ian O'Rourke Jul 2nd 2007 6:21PM
In my experience this is true as well, but once factor is the churn factor. I've done PUG groups on Horde and Alliance, as have others I'm sure, and im my experience the Horde PUG takes longer to come off, but when it does I'm usually find it holds together longer and stands a much higher chance of finishing.
The Alliance PUG almost never finished, quite often split apart after the first usueless wipe, only to find the same people LFG'ing again. So, sometimes I wonder how many more there actually are, rather than people joining PUGs, them lasting only a short time, and then LFG'ing again.
Rihahn Jul 2nd 2007 6:29PM
On the Alliance side of things, before level 30 I'd say about 70% of the available quests are flagged "group". Meanwhile on the Horde side I just don't remember there being that many "group" quests and there's a more obvious push for PvP (Battlegrounds and World PvP)... So, in my opinion, the Alliance L2PuG early in life and it sticks with them, while the Horde L2PvP early in life.
Seems fitting when you look at the back stories for the two factions...
Sterling Jul 2nd 2007 6:33PM
My hypothesis:
From what I've heard of the infamous "Barrens chat" and the few times I've actually been subjected to it, I would say that Horde characters have a reputation for being a younger crowd. My main was on Burning Blade (Horde heavy) and did the free transfer to lessen the burden of the server to Spirestone (Horde heavier -- 68%). At most, I was subjected to 2 weeks of Chuck Norris "jokes". Whenever I jump on a Horde lowbie, they're still going on.
If the more mature crowd in Horde-land has the same subconscious logic, it makes perfect sense for people to flee from a PuG. Who wants to hear how many times Chuck did something when you're hoping for that blue to drop and wish the kid would just do his job?
Like everybody who has run instances, I've been in some really bad PuGs, but I've also been in some really good ones. They're a good way to make alliances with other guilds. They're also a good way to find out why a level 60+ is not in a guild or not. And, they're a good way to make new WoW friends.
Why does the Horde seem to hate PuGs? Chuck Norris told them to.
Corrodias Jul 2nd 2007 7:03PM
That's strange. Around my home, the alliance has a reputation for being younger.
Wolfstalker Jul 2nd 2007 7:19PM
My experience mirrors that of Ian O'Rourke's.
As alliance, its very easy to find a group. However, you can expect that group to break and reform 6-7 times before you make it past the first pull of the instance.
As Horde (which I play mostly) You can wait in the LFG channel for hours, but when you do get a group together you usually manage to finish the instance.
In general though, trying to run any non-outland instance is a complete and utter waste of time. The population
Tobie Jul 2nd 2007 8:26PM
Being a horde tank, I get asked to group ALL the time. Everything from Kara to RFC. I think if you are a healer or tank, it is pretty easy to get into a group. DPS seems too focused on PVP. IMO
Acariquara Jul 2nd 2007 8:44PM
I believe this is some kind of "Critical Mass" connundrum i.e. the odds of finding a player interested in that same instance you are increase exponentially when player base increase linearly (in a simple way to put it), so even if the Alliance:Horde ratio is 3:1, you are (for example) 9 times more likely to find a group to that said instance.
Jamus Jul 2nd 2007 9:42PM
Agreed #8.
As a casual gamer, "group quests" can be a killer. My level 39 priest tried for weeks to use LFG to get those blasted Strathgarde quests in Arathi out of the way. Now at level 43, I still have those quests unfulfilled due to no grouping.
someone Jul 2nd 2007 9:58PM
"I would say that Horde characters have a reputation for being a younger crowd"
See you think this because you roll on the noob side, allies have the rep for being not only younger, but as you have just proved noobier.
Westfall is 1000x worse than the barrens. See the barrens might be full of chuck norris jokes, but westfall is full "zomg how do I attack things?","What color is the red had?", "Lets us three level 14s join up to kill a level 12 boar!".
Mats Jul 2nd 2007 10:10PM
I would not know, being horde I never PuG. If it ain't guild run, or guilds we have a relationship with, it just aint worth doing. I think the most "pugish" I have been since BC game out was that I picked up 1 person in a 4man guild run from the LFG tool.