We have a Tabard: I could teach you, but I'd have to charge
by Amanda Dean 
Oct 13th 2009 at 6:00PM
It's so nice to run a raid when everyone is up to snuff on their characters and can focus entirely on what their doing. Unfortunately there seems to be at least one person who is not at the top of their game. Either the healer that's standing in fires or the DPS that can't fight their way out of a paper bag. They're not bad people and they mean well, but they are better cheerleaders than raiders. What's a raid leader to do?
I like to help people out and give people a shot, but there's only so much that I can do. At some point I have to consider the needs of the other nine or people in the raid over the needs of the single player. I was leading ToC 10 with a Hunter pulling 1800 DPS and the entire raid averaging about 2700. We had a number of wipes, but low DPS was a contributing factor. I called out the DPS saying, "Guys, I really need to be seeing 3K DPS." The 1800 Hunter said, "I don't think Hunters can pull 3K DPS." I nearly fell out of my chair.
My first response is to try to offer quick suggestions for how to resolve an issue (this is considerably easier when it's a raid awareness problem rather than a role problem). I feel genuinely awful when I have to remove someone from a raid, but the raid environment is not where one should learn his or her class.
This is a good time to be tactful. Usually I say something along the lines of "Hey man, let's run some heroics later, but I really need a little bit more for this raid." I always feel a pang of regret as I hit the "remove" button, but sometimes it just needs to be done. I'm always delighted when someone takes me up on the heroic offer, but more often than not they leave thinking I'm an elitist b***h.
While most people would love to be running Trial of the Grand Crusader, it's just not always feasible. Part of the Guild Master/Raid leaders job is to lead their team into appropriate content. Do a reality check for your team. The raids should be challenging and providing gear upgrades toward progression. If you take on too challenging of content, you may be able to get a boss or two down, but you're likely going to end up spending a lot of time and getting very frustrated. That time might be better spent gathering gear for a more achievable range. Naxx is a good training ground for raid awareness issues. With escalating gear levels it provides a safer environment for learning positioning, avoiding gas clouds, and other common raid issues.
I actually find that carrying guildies that aren't pulling their weight to be the most heart breaking. On the one hand, I'd like get gear on them on the other hand the whole team is suffering for their mistakes or insufficient play. One strategy I use is to recommend resources to struggling players. I rely on TankSpot videos for raid information. Generally I refer players to someone of their class for spec, rotation, and web resource information. Not everyone takes the advice, but many do. In the end the player and the guild wind up in a better position for the effort.
I truly wish there was a market for a school of raiding. I still believe that anyone can be a raider, some just need a little more patience and direction than others. But you don't just wake up one day and decide you're worthy of the endgame. Raiding takes practice, study, and perseverance.
WoW.com offers a plethora of information on guild leadership and guild membership. Be sure to check out Scott Andrew's Weekly Column Officer's Quarters and keep an eye on the community with Mike Schramm's Guildwatch.Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Guilds, Raiding, (Guild Leadership) We Have a Tabard
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Nazgûl Oct 13th 2009 6:05PM
I hate these situations surely, but I hate more when people are so stubborn and unwilling to learn, that you suggest something to them and they promptly quit the guild because people "won't let me play my way". (Yes, that really happened)
A school of raiding you say? Interesting idea.
Bronwyn Oct 13th 2009 7:42PM
This. Now, I don't think that people have to play *my* way necessarily, but there's a difference between, say, raiding as a frost mage (which I did for a bit and actually pulled fairly decent dps) and raiding in a fire spec but using only arcane spells.
If you can do well playing your own way, then it's obviously working. If you can't do well, then you need to figure out how to do well your way or change it.
Citabria Oct 14th 2009 10:10AM
"A school of raiding..."
If: WoW.com has a huge readership.
If: WoW.com already has guilds associated with it, a'la "It came from the blog..."
Then: Why not make up on a PVE realm and hold those very classes? Naxx 25 over and over again. Only WoW.com leaders have speech activated in the vent or TS server. 30 minutes each boss. Rotate in new players every boss or two.
Nick Oct 13th 2009 6:12PM
I hate criticizing people for their playstyle... Unless they fail, and then try to tell the people who are succeeding how to play their class.
Karilyn Oct 13th 2009 6:12PM
Back in Burning Crusade, I used to log on fairly early in the mornings. Now, early in the morning, when there's only like 30 people online, you can't be too picky about who you invite to your party. After a while, I had managed to settle into a groove, where I ended up running 3-4 heroics in the morning with the same four people every day.
One of them was an Arms Warrior. He was bad. Really really bad. 300DPS in Burning Crusade bad. I remember, and I quote "I won't stand behind mobs to attack them. A real man does not attack from behind!"
3-4 months of running heroics with him every morning, and none of us could ever convince him to actually stand behind stuff, so mobs wouldn't parry his attacks.
Echohunter Oct 13th 2009 6:21PM
why would you run with the same INTENTIONALLY bad player every day for months?
Karilyn Oct 13th 2009 6:28PM
He may have been bad, but at least he was consistent!
Never would there be a day where he would fail to meet your expectations :P
Calybos Oct 13th 2009 7:41PM
Were you on an RP server?
Echohunter Oct 13th 2009 6:20PM
"It's so nice to run a raid when everyone is up to snuff on their characters and can focus entirely on what their doing."
really wow.com? i mean, i know you generally pump out a lot of posts per day, but come on!
..
they're*
Razortooth Oct 13th 2009 7:06PM
Let me google that for you:
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=How+to+Use+There%2C+Their+and+They%27re+-+wikiHow
uncaringbear Oct 13th 2009 9:50PM
@echohunter
OMG, that was epic fail! L2Grammar before you decide to correct others.
Ragnorax Oct 13th 2009 11:19PM
I can't google it for you, but I can point out that you may want to read the linked suggestion yourself and consider reading the whole sentence before jumping down peoples throats.
"It's so nice to run a raid when everyone is up to snuff on their characters and can focus entirely on what THEIR doing."
'3. Remember that they're is a contraction of the words they and are. It can never be used as a modifier, only as a subject (who or what does the action) and verb (the action itself).'
Subject - They, the people doing the DPS.
Verb - Doing.
"focus on what they're doing.*"
That said I don't see the point in jumping on the author consistantly every time there is a mispelling in a blog post. The authors are just human and mistakes and accidents happen.
Also in relation to the article itself, the hardest people to help are usually the ones who won't help themselves. Most people can be encouraged along by a few kind words and a helpful explanation of going wrong. You do get some people who consistantly won't listen or are convinced they're in the right who won't listen but I think those people are a minority and the vast majority of poorer players just needs the right encouragement and patience.
Valris Oct 14th 2009 8:52AM
Razortooth, uncaringbear: How about you'll take your own advice? Echohunter was actually right about the grammar.
Chris Anthony Oct 15th 2009 10:29AM
Echohunter may have been right that "they're" was the correct word choice there, but his unfamiliarity with the Shift key and with the correct form and use of the poor, abused ellipsis makes him a particularly black pot indeed.
Attack Gypsy Oct 13th 2009 6:20PM
Hunters can't do 3k DPS?
I think my DPS sucks, and I do 4.5k in Onyxia 10. He must have a really screwed up spec.
Jason Oct 13th 2009 6:25PM
I'm happy when my Shad priest gets 1800 Dps... i'd shit if i got 3k!!!
Spriesty Oct 13th 2009 6:35PM
oh boy... way to represent there friend. lol
Delterius Oct 13th 2009 6:36PM
My guild "carries" new 80s all the time and has officers assigned to help new 80s with their specs and rotations. I don't see any problems with low dps, above all -undergeared- low dps, as far as one is willing to learn of course.
The problem is when that person doesn't want to cooperate. And then, is unfitting for an MMORPG until this changes.
ziggler Oct 13th 2009 8:36PM
that^
recently a fellow mage guildie just stopped playing because he felt gear was being given away, yet, he never pulled above 2k in both full nax and ulduar up to thorim.
sometimes, a guild enviroment came make you believe your way better than you are...
(btw, that mage had one of the most amazing class leaders you can imagine, who would even give free gems and enchs to a new mage who was obviously miss-geared)
(second-btw, sorry for my poor english)
dillonwelch Oct 14th 2009 11:06AM
Depending on where they are carried it can make a big difference. If they are being carried through heroics and you (or the officer or whoever is ther with them) know at least an inkling of what they are supposed to do you can teach them in a non-punishing environment. ToC is a different story, definitely not the place to learn how to play your class.