Yes, last week it was slow going, but this week, guilds are charging ahead, powered by the crazy raid nerfs (not to mention our shiny new 51-point talents). There's nothing wrong with that -- Blizzard did exactly the right thing by letting guilds who'd never been into the later content see some new bosses and nab some epics before we all head to Northrend and pick up ten more levels. But all the same, even guilds downing bosses for the first time have to admit -- this is the time of the lolpatch.

Drama, downed, and recruiting news from around the realms all after the break. Want to see your guild here (or see a particularly tasty drama thread, on your guild's forums or somewhere else, with some delicious tears to drink)? Just email us your tips at wowguildwatch at gmail dot com, and make sure to include your guild's name, server, and faction (and try to keep it short, if you would -- some people are sending us novels about their guild, which we appreciate, but as you can see below, there's not much room if we're going to fit everyone in). Thanks -- enjoy this week's GW.

• Good: post your realm's boss kills in a forum thread. Bad: someone trolls you, claiming you don't deserve to be even raiding Sunwell, much less downing bosses in there. Great: Thread completely falls apart in flame after flame. Stay classy, Shadowsong.
• Breaking up isn't too hard to do: Nemesiz on EU Moonglade is breaking up into two different guilds for Wrath -- the guildleader says he wants a more hardcore restart. This seems like a good way to do it, actually: Nemesiz will be a social guild with slower progression, and Corvus will be a tougher guild that's more focused. Sounds like it works to us, though we hear raiders are following the GL, so the social folks might need their own leadership to stay together, too.
• We like the way our tipster framed this: number three guild (Novus Ordo Seclorum) on EU Bloodhoof downs Kil'jaeden the day after the patch, and the number two guild (Cause and Effect, we believe) says "well grats... buuuuuut he's not exactly hard any more." Cue the QQ. On page 7 Thori'dal drops, and that doesn't help things at all.
• There's some interesting politics going down on Kael'thas -- someone suggested that leadership of the realm might be needed, and Vendetta's GL stepped up to try and take charge of raiding on the realm. Except, as you might expect, most of the guilds aren't really interested in working with anyone else, and accuse Vendetta of trying to nab away raiders for themselves. It sounds like some things are coming together, though -- there's a chat set up already, and apparently a meeting is either planned or has already taken place. Maybe they'll be able to transform their server. Oh, and since this is Guildwatch, we'll remind everyone (appropros of nothing) that Redemption, one of the guilds working to coordinate leadership, has a skeleton or two in their closet. It's old drama, sure, but it's still fun to read.
• Apparently the lag is bad on Llane -- Vita Eternus tells us that they have had nothing but nightmares trying to raid there lately -- one night it got so bad that they were signed in to Black Temple on their alts... and couldactually see their mains online and in BT. Hopefully Blizzard will fix the situation soon.
• Bank ninja: Knights of Good on Zangarmarsh. Our tipster says that they had someone join as a level 26, and waited just long enough to get some privledges -- and then grabbed and ran with everything they could. How did they know it was him? Bank logs don't lie... and neither does the Auction House, which is where everything was apparently listed. So here's a lesson in guild management, we're told: /gkick them and all of their alts. And don't do it quietly. Sounds about right to us.
• The Night Council on EU Sporeggar is preparing for Wrath... by cleaning house. Apparently a member of the guild called another "noobish" and when he got /gkicked, another member, who called the officers "little Hitlers," also got a swift /gkick. They say that while other guilds might regulate members based on raid time or skill, they prefer to make sure everyone in the guild is worth having there in terms of a social aspect. No jerks, it sounds like, which seems like a fine policy to have.
• Dark Democracy on Durotan disbanded -- but actually they didn't.
• Ninja alert: Holybunz of Inertia (formerly) on Vek'nilash. Especially interesting when he shows up to defend himself, and by "defend himself," I mean "call everyone fools."

• After months of attempts, Blood Oath Clan on Gilneas downed Archimonde a week before the big patch. After the patch, Bloodboil and Vashj have also dropped, and Illy D (that's what we call Illidan 'round these parts) is on notice.
• Piston Broke of EU Eonar, has rolled into SSC after the nerf and dropped Lurker, Tidewalker and Karathess on their first run. Vashj is on notice, and KT isn't far behind -- this is exactly how it's supposed to work after the patch.
• Clarion Call (on Skullcrusher-A) finished off the first three bosses in Hyjal and BT, and cleared out ZA. Thrall tanked Kaz for them, but they finished off Rage on their own. No drama, they say, just love.
• Calamity of Tortheldrin, after a recent change in leadership, went from being a ZA guild that apparently couldn't go further than Hex Lord to a guild that has 4/5 Hyjal, 6/6 SSC, 4/4 TK, and 7/9 BT in less than two weeks. Grats!
• Nothing Else Matters of EU Draeno got ZA on farm before the patch and were struggling with Astromancer Solarian in TK -- until the patch hit. At which point they took two days to kill the first three bosses. Keep it up.
• Council of Shadows on Sisters of Elune stormed through ZA and cleared it all out with three chests this week. Zul'jin dropped on their second try.
• Senatus Redux dropped three new bosses in a row in Black Temple: Gurtogg, RoS and Mother. The Illidari Council is next, if they haven't finished them off already.
• The Wizard's Sleeve on Bronze Dragonflight-H really love the new specs: they've downed Vashj, Najentus, Supremus and Shade of Akama even with server issues plaguing them. They're also recruiting for Wrath -- they're seeking active players who will fit into a mature guild that raids late and tries to do more in less time (9 hours a week raiding is pretty much max for them).
• Balance of Judgement (EU Darkmoon Faire-A) rolled into The Eye for a second time last week and finished off Loot Reaver. Grats!
• Serpent Fury on EU Ghostlands finished off Leotheras before the patch. And after the nerf, they've been stomping through BT, and finishing off the first four bosses. Kudos, they say, to the raidleaders, Ettarean and Yalandar, "for keeping everyone's chins up when things don't go so well."
• Is Being Repressed (winner of this week's Best Guild Name award) of Muradin downed Kalecgos, Brutallus, and Felmyst last week. Very nice -- they're also recruiting some heals: COH Priests, Healing Shammies and Pallies.
• Tsiixiisiix on Barthilas Oceanic have dropped Illidan on the second try after the patch. Archimonde is on notice, and Kalecgos (how is it that we don't have any funny nicknames for the Sunwell crowd yet?) will drop soon after.
• Past Tense on EU Bronzebeard says they're more active than ever, even with the expansion looming -- just minutes before they patch, they finally dropped Kael and nabbed their titles. Since then they've dropped 4/5 and 7/9 in BT and MH, and report it's pretty darn easy in there. They are recruiting all classes, and they're a late night raiding guild, which gives them a smaller player base to pull from. Check the website if you want to join up.
• L I G H T N I N G on EU Kilrogg probably has taken the most advantage of the raiding nerf: in one reset since then, they've dropped a whopping 40 bosses, including BT to Shahraz, MH cleared, Kalecgos and Brutallus, SSC and TK, and then ZA, Karazhan, Gruul's and Maggy. Get some sleep, guys! That's nuts.
• Curbjaw on EU Twilight's Hammer started out as a group of friends (their motto is "we are brothers," and they've proved that, even through some arguments), and they've just recently cleared out Karazhan. Here's to more victories in the future.
• Malice, of EU Nagrand,took out Illy D and his council for guild firsts. Very nice job.
• Raven on EU Silvermoon weren't satisfied with just a Karathon: they cleared out ZA and KZ in one night. A second group also cleared Karazhan, and they rocked all of TK but Kael. We'll put him on notice.
• Rebirth of Anvilmar-H has downed The Illidari Council. Grats!
• Riven on Firetree downed M'uru followed by Kil'Jaeden the next night and got the legendary bow. Server second kill, Alliance first, and server first for the bow. They've also coined a term for raiding after 3.0.2: "lolpatch." I like it.
• Endless Shadow (server?) has broken new ground thanks to the lolpatch: they've taking down the third boss in ZA, Maggy, and Gruul. They say it's been slow going during the summer, but things are actually picking up now. Keep going!
• Genetic Drift (Malfurion-A) have recently cleared the post-patch Zul'Aman twice in quick succession. Grats. They're still working up to 25man content. Good luck.
• Dawn of Serenity (Dunemaul) has gotten guild firsts of Archimonde (4 shotted), Kalecgos (3 shotted) and Brutallus (4 shotted). Kalec and Brutallus were achieved on the guild's first time even entering Sunwell Plateau. Felmyst is on notice for next time.
• Children of Eternity on Moon Guard-H has been recruiting, and they've gotten enough together to start raiding. Karazhan is downed, and Bear and Eagle in ZA are out, too. Sounds like they're having a great time.
• Oath Sworn of Thorium Brotherhood did a speed clear of Karazhan they other night: they downed the place in about three hours. Their longest boss fight (which one, though?) was just two minutes. Their first Karathon -- grats!
• Reborn of Frostmane-A is still pushing things in the endgame before the expansion -- they just dropped Bloodboil. Grats!
• Sacred of Daggerspine finished off Kil'jaeden. Nice job.
• Flame of Azeroth on Duskwood has been taking advantage of the recent boss nerfs and has actually stepped up raiding instead of slowing down. Zul'jin, Void Reaver, and Rage Winterchill have all dropped, and they've got their eyes on clearing Hyjal soon.
• Nephilim is a month-old guild on the Fenris server, Alliance side, which has killed the first four Zul'Aman bosses (missed the timer by 1:01) and just the other night downed HKM, Gruul and Magtheridon. They're also recruiting for Wrath leveling and raiding. They usually raid from 8:30-11 on weeknights, longer on Friday and Saturdays. Apply on the website if interested.
• Peace Through Violence on Staghelm-H started raiding recently -- they pulled off a Karathon last week, including one-shotting everything from Ilhoof to Prince. They're recruiting as well -- they start in Naxx on December 16th, they say, so join up now.
• Guilty Pleasures on Korialstrasz reminds us that we said no down was too minor, and they're right: we congratulate them on clearing Zul'Aman, even making two timers. They've also been pulling off Karathons, Gruul and Mag have fallen, and SSC is on the way.
• The Pen is Mightier of Hellscream achieved a guild first and cleared both Karazhan and Zul'Aman in the same week with three guild firsts being accomplished in ZA. This week they're trying out the Black Temple -- it's a big step, but you never know. They're also recruiting Hordies looking for late night raiding and expansion leveling.
• Phoenix Wrath on Echo Isles-A only had Rage down before the lolpatch, but afterwards, they shot through T6 content: Al'ar, Fathom-Lord Karathress, Anetheron, Kaz'goral, Azgalor, Naj'entus, Supremus, and Shade of Akama all fell, including a Doomwalker kill for good measure.
• The Threat on Baelgun-A finished off Illy D and his cronies for a full clear of BT. Grats!
• Revamped on Eldre'thelas-A cleared out BT with a guild-first Illidan. They also finished off TK -- Hyjal is next on the list, with all other dungeons eventually.
• Redeemed on Stonemaul-A, apparently Azeroth's largest Christian guild, finished off Anetheron. Grats!

• The Clique of Laughing Skull is recruiting mature and competent players for raiding in the expansion. They have a mature, fair leadership, a good loot system, and a strong and solid core. They haven't decided raiding yet, but it'll be at 9pm server. Put in an app on the website if interested.
• Oneforallallforone on Cairne-A is recruiting members to do some last minute BC raids and move into doing Wrath content as well. They are looking for casual and hardcore raiders to make a group of each. They're especially looking for a webmaster, and someone with raid experience interested in leading raids. Look them up if you want to help lead a guild into the endgame.

Tags: downed, drama, guilds, guildwatch, karathon, lolpatch, patch-3.0.2, pve, raiding, recruiting

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Guilds, Odds and ends, Humor, Raiding, Guildwatch, Bosses, NPCs