I find this change interesting, though unfortunate.

Background: I detest world PvP. I am not a fan of the Battlegrounds, with that endless "die... run back... die... run back... ad infinitum." I enjoy the Arena somewhat, but I'm not overly competitive about it. I want to play with my friends, and they want to play with each other as well. If we do not have the "right" classes and Talent specs to win... so what? We're having fun, and in general we're going up against teams that also are not excellent. For our caliber of play, this is fine. We do the best we can given our "fun first" motto.

For me, this change on the surface means very little. I will readily admit that I'm not a good PvPer. You can stick me in the best PvP gear possible, pit me against a good PvPer in greens, and I will likely lose. I am okay with this. As such, I do not need or deserve access to the "bleeding edge" PvP gear. I'm fine with what I can get, but need to know that I can eventually get something.

There are, however, people on our team who ARE good at PvP. They actively enjoy the Battlegrounds, and are in there a lot. For them, slumming with a PvP schlep like me (and a few others) in the Arena was fine, because we still had fun. They would get their points eventually... perhaps not as fast as they would if they were on a hardcore team, but eventually. I dare say, also, that they have more fun with friends than they would if it was more cutthroat.

These changes basically remove from the list of Arena participants all people like me. I really see little point for me to go in there, and know that several teammates will feel the same way. Basically, these changes spell the end of teams like ours. Given that S3 shoulders and weapons will maintain requirements once S4 starts, I see no reason that S4 will not also keep the same (or similar) requirements when S5 comes down the pipe in the future. End result: There is no point for the Arena for teams like ours.

When you remove the bottom of the food chain -- teams like mine -- the top of the food chain suffers. Without weaker teams from whom to draw wins, mid-tier teams will suffer. They will become the "new 1500s". Eventually, frustration may lead those people to also leave the Arena, extending the cycle. The Battlegrounds will become the only option for these people, but if the trend is that Battleground pieces will also require Arena ratings... what then?

This very well could lead to an interesting cycle of decline for the Arena. Hardcore raiders may revel in that, but I find it unfortunate. When you make an area of play onerous or pointless, thus removing options, it's a bad thing for the health of the game.

Reply