Hands off those shoulders, Arena loser
by Mike Schramm 
Oct 23rd 2007 at 1:28PM
Wreck from Addicted to WoW sent us his interesting opinion on the Season 3 gear required ratings. Why, he asks, didn't Blizzard put rating requirements on all the gear? When season 3 starts, the season 3 shoulders and weapons will require a high Arena rating to own (2000 and 1850), and Wreck wants to know why only the shoulders and weapons got put behind a rating wall. Why not make all the gear that much harder to get?As far as I know, the cited reason behind the ratings was to keep raiders from losing in the Arenas and still getting gear. The weapons in season 3 are terrific, even compared to the mid-endgame raiding gear, and so raiders were playing just their 10 games every week, saving up Arena points, and grabbing the hot weapons. Blizzard didn't want that happening, so they put the requirement on the weapons-- you have to be good to wield those now.
But the shoulders I don't quite understand. I've been told that the shoulders are the most obvious piece of "leet" armor, and that Blizzard, as Wreck says, really wants seeing those shoulders on someone to be a sign that they're really good in the Arenas. But shoulders? As a few players have said, give them a title or something if you want them to be recognized. There's good reason for putting the weapons behind a rating, but if you're going to put shoulders back there too, you might as well require the rating for all the pieces, or leave the armor out of it completely.
Filed under: Items, Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Blizzard, PvP
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Smurk Oct 23rd 2007 1:36PM
So Blizzard does something to help make arenas popular and competitive, and people complain?
If putting a rating requirement on the sexiest gear is what it takes to make some people want to improve their rating, I don't see anything wrong with it. It doesn't matter that it's only on one piece of your armor set.
Bob Oct 23rd 2007 1:39PM
All arena gear is to easy to get imo.
rick gregory Oct 23rd 2007 1:41PM
After the massive fuss you folks put up about the orc shoulders you're questioning whether shoulders are different??
/point
/laugh
Epiny Oct 23rd 2007 1:44PM
The REAL problem with this is that some battle groups are just easier to win in. Take for example the Bloodlust battle group, they are sporting many of the WORLDS best teams on it. You have to have FULL Arena gear to even compete above 1700. While the newer battlegroups, like Emberstorm, you see people breaking into 1900+ with PvE gear.
The way the ratings are set up now it's fair. The weapons are very good and the shoulders are a sign of pride. You need to be good to have them.
Surly Oct 23rd 2007 1:49PM
.. I don't really see what the complaint is about. The shoulders are 1/5 pieces, and not having them isn't going to make or break your gear set. And, they really are the most obvious piece of gear you can wear. Look around and see how many hunters and warriors are sporting T5 lookalike shoulders. Now, if you see the T6 lookalike, you'll actually know they are either good at arena's, or into BT/Hyjal. Instead of every player and their mother sporting a set.
Doffencrag Oct 23rd 2007 1:58PM
@5: I agree with you in the sense that in this topic - as well as in quite a number of recent topics - I don't see the problem at all. Just something new for people to QQ about. So much so that it's getting tiresome reading the comments. Sigh.
Patrick Weir Oct 23rd 2007 2:06PM
i think i remember an article on this website that said that the reason the shoulders and weapons have the rating is 2 fold.. 1 is the welfare epic argument and the 2nd is that the shoulder and weapons are what the skin designers spend the most time on. So they want those very visual and interesting pieces to mean something.. get people wanting to compete to get them..
Heartless_ Oct 23rd 2007 2:16PM
ROFL Blizzard is treating Arenas like they actually take skill to win at? Being good at arenas is like being good at knitting, it just takes time and the right gear.
Hollywood Ron Oct 23rd 2007 2:28PM
@8, then why do I suck at knitting?
caylee Oct 23rd 2007 2:33PM
@3 you beat me to it :)
Mayo Oct 23rd 2007 2:40PM
I'm one of those "leet" raiding jerks with a guild in Hyjal and BT, and personally I think it's a good thing that Blizz is making us earn the right to get certain pieces.
The term "welfare epics" struck quite a chord with the raiding community when one of Blizzard's own employees said it at Blizzcon 07, and I think that the audience's reaction to that term was a bit of an eye opener to the Blizz Dev's.
I think they saw that people who spend hours a day, 5-7 days a week working on bosses were feeling like they were getting shafted because any idiot with 1/2/4 friends could setup an arena team, do poorly, and (slowly) collect gear that is of the same quality, or in some cases slightly better than that which others had to really work for.
Now, before you start flaming and QQing that I'm an "elitest raiding jerk that's a minority blizz caters to hand and toe" , I'm not saying PvP and Arena's are easy. They aren't. But the truth is that you CAN have terrible Arena teams and collect great gear for it. Skill and gear go together like steak and potatoes, but the fact remains that it's a bit unbalanced in terms of overall effort when comparing the effort involved in raiding to get your gear, versus doing 10 games a week and collecting pieces every 3 - 5 weeks (if you're on a poor team). That's not how it works in PvE.
Anyway, go ahead and start flaming. I love a good lambasting from pvptards who say that raiding isn't hard and "Illidan's a pussy - I could totally one-shot him with my pvptard friends."
Krick Oct 23rd 2007 2:42PM
@8, amen brotha. If you have the best gear and the best enchants, skill doesn't even figure into it unless you're matched against people with identical gear and enchants. For people entering the arenas for the first time, the barrier to entry is ENORMOUS. I'm willing to bet that those people losing 10 games a week were actually TRYING TO WIN and were just getting owned anyway. The welfare epics were just a side effect.
I put together a 3v3 team with a combat mace rogue, frost mage, and a mortal strike warrior all geared in level 70 blues or battleground epics with a smattering of enchants where it really matters. We played 10 games a week for 2 weeks and only won twice. One time, we got an automatic win for some reason as soon as the match started, the other time one of the opposing players disconnected at the beginning of the match and it STILL took us a several minutes to beat them 3 on 2.
Personally, I think that Blizzard should make it that arena gear is only usable in the arena. Or even better, don't have purchasable arena gear at all. Simply entering the arena should automatically equip you with a stock set of arena gear based on your rating. That way, it truly will come down to skill.
...
krick
http://www.3feetunder.com
exit stencil Oct 23rd 2007 2:55PM
@4 I totally agree.
In general, I see this as a nerf and a slap-in-the-face to the paper-doll dress-up portion of the game.
If I weren't over 2000 in my 3v3 I would quit for DOA Extreme Beach Volleyball and Bikini Contest Online.
exit stencil Oct 23rd 2007 3:03PM
@12 Did you really expect to be competitive in 3v3 with no healer?
You start a 3v3 with a less-than-desirable class combination, no experience working as a team, and little experience in arenas overall in the 1500s and you lose until you find a competitive rating where you will win half lose half.
Maybe you were unlucky to start against some new teams with people who had geared up on other teams but in general you'll find that the 1500s aren't too competitive if you have class synergy and good teamwork/strategies.
Although it's much easier to blame your losses on the perceived gear gap, amirite?
sotallytober Oct 23rd 2007 3:12PM
amen to 11 and 14
Maarick Oct 23rd 2007 3:13PM
@7 i read that too
gd1107 Oct 23rd 2007 3:10PM
shoulders are too cheap...they should just make them the most costly item instead.
Arnold Oct 23rd 2007 3:12PM
Mike,
You ask why the shoulders? Quite simple--they are the one item of gear that you can actually see when you are wearing a tabard (because plate under a tabard looks the same as cloth under a tabard...)
ThorinII Oct 23rd 2007 3:16PM
All this crying about arena gear being too easy to get. Try being a hunter and tell me it's too easy to get it. There's no arena love for us right now.
Sohanstag Oct 23rd 2007 3:18PM
Yeah...sorry, Krick, but maybe your team just sucked. Try starting a different class combo and you might meet with more success. I'm not saying YOU suck, it's just that some class combinations don't work in the arena.
@8 - Played much arena lately? I thought not.
@11 - I think you're basically on track, Mayo, except that there's a definite "progression" to arena gear. If you're behind in gearing up there's basically no way you're going to break into the upper echelons of arena any time soon. I'm of the opinion that my team is just a tiny bit behind the curve but I can sympathize with folks trying to break into arena late in the game. It's a long, long uphill slog. This new ratings requirement doesn't help with that. It does help with making leet items stay leet, but still...
One last point, though: what DOESN'T just require time and the right gear in this game? Spend time studying strats, gear up by spending time running heroics, earn gold for enchants by spending time farming, etc. etc. etc. It's all about time.