Ask WoW Insider: Defining mains and alts
by Mike Schramm 
Aug 18th 2008 at 5:00PM
There's a ton of asking going on around this site lately -- between "Ask a Lore Nerd" and "Ask a Beta Tester," you guys are asking more questions than a two-year old who just learned what "why" means. But this column, Ask WoW Insider, is the O.G. of Ask columns here on the site, and unlike all of the other Ask columns, we put the question back to you readers. Chippen of EU Doomhammer sent in this great question this week:We are having a discussion in our guild whether alts have priority on loot before guild members and we do have different views on this. Some say that an alt is an alt, and need to wait to be geared up, while others can't really see the problem. What is a main and what is an alt?If you're asking me, I'd say it's definitely possible to switch mains (I've done it a few times) -- your main is currently the character that's getting the majority of your playtime, and the one where loot matters the most to you. Some guilds ask you to declare a main, so that they can make a clear distinction for passing out loot, while other guilds just have players switch alts depending only on what situations require what.
I suppose a main is the...well...I don't know. The first character I created? Or is it the character I play the most? Or is it the character I want to play the most and also enjoying playing the most? When does an alt become a main, and is it possible to swap between the two?
So let's show up those other Ask columns and give this great, open-ended question out to you, our dear readers: what is a main and what is an alt? And what's the difference between the two?
If you've got a question for our readers to be posted right here in the original Ask column, be sure to send it along to ask@wow.com. And there's lots more Ask WoW Insider, including this question on abusing the /roll, and how to make friends and influence raiders on a new server.Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Virtual selves, Guilds, Ask WoW Insider, Making money
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Warlia Aug 18th 2008 5:05PM
The main, IMO is the one who, if supposedly, blizzard were to say, due to money issues you can only keep 1 character, you would keep it. ( because blizzard is losing money, right? :p) Also, I think the difference between your main and your alt is that your main should always be first priority in the gear department, but definitely not time playing.
Spring Aug 18th 2008 5:09PM
We are clear in our guild that it doesn't really matter lootwise if the character playing in the raid is a "main" or "alt." It is the person playing the character that matters and that is the same. In general, there is usually a "main" character that someone has chosen to gear up and raid with. However, due to raid composition that person may be asked to bring a different character for the greater benefit of the raid. That character is just as entitled to loot as if the "main" had come to the raid.
Barth Aug 18th 2008 5:57PM
I'd agree for the most part. if a person is asked to bring their alt Pally because the guild needs heals, then yeah they deserve loot the same as mains. If however, a person brings their rogue-alt who they've been leveling just because they want to pew pew for a change, they shouldn't get loot over those who's mains are rogues. Not to pick on DPS, but that's what usually happens and starts these discussions. If you have a regular raid spot on a particular toon, and the guild depends on it, then that is the main.
Kai_Svenson Aug 18th 2008 5:11PM
I go with a tier approach:
Main main - The one character if asked was mine when I played WoW would pop instantly to mind.
Personally, my tank.
Mains, plural - Secondary characters I keep up with and in good working condition. If guns, these would be the ones I kept oiled and clean, but would rarely use except for target practice here and there. Should some major mechanics overhaul cause me to need to abandon my Main Main, these are ready to step up.
Alts - Toons either created just for profession mules or a bit rusty sitting there in the cabinent.
Birdfall Aug 18th 2008 5:11PM
Your main is the character you decide to focus on. Alts are the ones you play for fun.
For our family raid guild, people are allowed to change their main but only every once in a while because we want them to focus on gearing out one character and keep that character in raiding to help the rest of the guild. I decided recently to split raiding and pvp among 2 characters, so now I have a priest raiding main and a druid pvp main.
Omestes Aug 19th 2008 2:43PM
So you don't play your main for fun? I play all my toons for fun, my main is just the one I put the most work into, and have the most pride in. Right now it is a lv48 warlock, while my 70 shaman is my alt.
Birdfall Aug 19th 2008 6:40PM
Fun/casual. Instead of fun/hardcore.
Hesed Aug 18th 2008 5:13PM
I have a Main Ally, a Main Horde, and a PvP Main Shaman. all others a just alts.
Laidanyl Aug 18th 2008 6:43PM
This question is very near and dear to my heart, and I think it depends largely on how you play.
If you are the type who focuses on one toon, then you definitely have a main and alts. And if you are raiding on an alt that doesn't play very often, that alt should probably bow out on loot to those toons who do play regularly.
On the other hand, if you are like me, you have multiple mains. I have five seventies and am working on the next two, and I play all of them pretty regularly. The 70s are all about evenly geared (KZ/ZA/TK/SSC gear), and it's really impossible for me to pinpoint one as more special than all the others. In a situation like this, I think all of the 70s should be considered 'mains' and given the same loot rules and regulations as any single main in the guild, especially if the guild is still progressing through the instances to which the mains are evenly geared.
In my own case, I've been punished in my guild because I do not pinpoint a single toon as a main, so despite the fact that I have decently geared healers, tanks, and DPS -- in other words, I'm flexible enough that I can fill up any missing slots in any raid -- I seldom raid because of the issues with mains and alts. I just don't see why people who are trying to make themselves as useful in as many roles as they can should be punished for that.
dan Aug 18th 2008 5:17PM
Because in terms of progression you're hurting the guild by distributing all of the loot onto one account. It's more useful and fair to spread the love to multiple players.
Phoulmouth Aug 18th 2008 5:28PM
You are gimping your guilds overall progression by playing that many different characters. Choose one to raid with, specialize in it, gear it and for god sakes allow other people to get some gear.....
Its a point of fact that ANYONE who plays that many toons can't play a single one of them as good as someone can play there ONLY 70.
Barth Aug 18th 2008 6:23PM
Because you can't log in and play them all at once in a raid. Just think about it. If you were the guild leader, would you rather gear 5 different players who can all raid together and help progression, or gear up one guy's 5 alts while the rest of the raid isn't progressing in terms of gear and as a result can't progress in terms of content? Take an entry level economics class if you ever get any time away from WoW.
ZekeGrimsblade Aug 18th 2008 6:14PM
@Laidanyl
I agree. I personally love to play my hunter. I love the interaction between my pet and me, and I love the ranged, figure out the best technique, yank the bad guy off my pet to get a bit of healing in techniques I have developed to get the greatest mileage out of the fun I have. However, now that I've gotten my first 70, I'm sitting here feeling like a gimped player, because ... Apparently, I'm a second class citizen as a Hunter. I'm not good enough to make a decent group partner. I want to gear my hunter, but I can't even figure out how to get honored with the keepers of time to get the armor they offer to hunters. I'm considering rolling a healer just to try to get help for my hunter.
@phoulmouth
Consider that not everyone is limited to only one 70 to be able to play. Me? I'm going to play on as few as possible, because I can't handle too many well. But not everyone is limited in this way, and your statement is NOT "a point of fact".
gm Aug 19th 2008 1:14AM
@Laidanyl -
Smells like lootwhore to me. I also suspect your "evenly geared" toons aren't "evenly geared" to the rest of your guild. I'd also be willing to bet money that you don't play often or dedicated enough on any of those many toons to bother learning the raid instances from the vantage point of one role let alone 3 or 4.
Brian Aug 18th 2008 5:13PM
Sorry, but most of the reasons a user brings in an alt is because the guild usually asks for it.
If my guild needed a tank for a run and I'm normally a DPS class, then I expect to be able to roll on any tank gear the dropped as I was asked to attend as a tank.
If you run an alt just because your main is geared up already, then use your common sense and give your other guildies a chance for better loot. We usually look at this as mains roll first for main-spec. Alts roll if nobody needs it for main-spec. Again, I bypass this rule if I was required to show up with my alt.
dan Aug 18th 2008 5:17PM
Not so open-ended really. You've already hit the nail on the head in the main post.
Main: The toon a player prefers to play the most.
Alt: a toon a player uses to pass the time.
Mains should get loot priorities over alts since the main is the one that's going to be used 9 times out of 10.
Manatank Aug 18th 2008 5:25PM
Yeah, well I have 3 toons at max level. One tank, one healer and one DPS. I like to play them all. Why would one be a main?
lazarel Aug 18th 2008 5:30PM
It's only as simple as you state, if the player believes and behaves as you do.
I don't have one toon I prefer play all the time. And my guild doesn't expect me to. We have a set of rules though that covers the circumstances and I agree to them when I raid.
We have to declare who our Main is every 3 month (set time)
When you sign up to raid, it's with your Main.
If asked to bring an Alt instead, it raids as your main for that run.
Pretty simple.
Take the subjectivity out of it, and just come up with a fair set of rules.
Agree or move on.
VaMinion Aug 18th 2008 5:16PM
Main: If someone asks who I play, this is the name or class I give out. My main is a rogue.
Alt: Anything else that I play, whether it's my soonn to be 70 tankadin or my 21 shaman.
WNxSajuukCor Aug 18th 2008 5:34PM
They way I see it is the Main is your character that is used to help progression. A Main should get gear to help progression over an Alt who is there to fill a tank/heal/dps slot for the time being. Giving progression gear to an Alt just means another week for a Main to get gear to progress to other bosses.