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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsCross-realm raids and mail are a work in progress
by Zach Yonzon 
Mar 1st 2010 at 8:00PM
That said, it might take a while longer before Blizzard implements cross-realm raiding although they said that they were looking into it. Aside from considerable technical issues, the developers were also concerned about group dynamics, such as how to get groups back together through those long raids that require more than one session. Another concern was keeping the sense of community alive in native realms. On the other hand, the growing culture of PUGs that has bloomed through easier content and the new Dungeon Finder has already diluted the sense of community in individual realms, so we should probably expect Blizzard to allow cross-realm cooperation sooner rather than later.
Reader Comments (Page 2 of 2)
supersam448 Mar 1st 2010 9:18PM
well it seems that the cross realm raids could function for regular raids, but they could limit heroic raids to one's own realm
taylory Mar 1st 2010 9:30PM
Your raid ID should record which bosses you have downed in a particular raid, i.e. it's not necessarily that you're "Saved to Naxxramas", but that you're "Saved to Naxxramas [Plague Quarter finished, Patchwerk and Grobbulus downed, Instructor Razuvious downed]". Ideally, you would be matched with players with the same bosses downed.
This can be tweaked further in a variety of ways:
* Match players depending on which players have already won a roll, with the intention of giving a better loot "spread"
* Could potentially find "best-fit" matches, where several players in a raid may be asked to repeat (or skip) a particular boss (with certain loot restrictions and/or compensations) in order to join a group. Non-random groups are not eligible for such considerations (to prevent abuse).
* Raids could be "gated" or "sectioned-off" for the purposes of simplifying finding a group. For example, you don't join a raid for "Naxxramas", you join a raid for "Naxxramas - Arachnid Quarter". Even if you don't complete the section, you're eligible to join raid groups for other sections of the raid.
And, of course, this is all in addition to a SCII-esque "Skill Score" rating system that accurately judges players' skill levels (NOT Gear Scores), a system which would have to be highly dynamic and flexible to account for all sorts of situations related to skill, such as those that are situation- or encounter-specific. Raids will be formed by either grouping players of the same skill level, or by mixing skilled and not-so-skilled players into a raid that is judged "doable" by the system.
That said, all of this would be a fairly intensive technical endeavor, even beyond a "Skill Score" system. I suppose the Raid ID system would potentially need to be changed to allow instance mix-and-matching based on a "Bosses Downed" system...?
Cyanea Mar 1st 2010 9:48PM
As long as it lets you preview players before dumping them in your group, I'm fine with that. I'm not about to do what is essentially the equivalent of inviting the first person to respond in trade.
Sean Mar 1st 2010 9:53PM
With my work schedule, it's just about impossible to find a group to get into raids with. A cross server LFG tool sounds like a great solution...especially if we see some key changes:
What about, instead of boss drops, everyone gets a "Bag of Goodies" like at the end of the random dungeon for low level dungeons. So you down the boss, get a bag, and hope that something you want drops. Maybe even allow the loot inside to be traded with members of the raid, so if that Warlock just got the leather helm you were looking for, you can trade him the caster off hand you just scored?
And, instead of "this boss drops these four things", we could make it so "these three bosses drop these twelve things." In other words, you've got three shots at getting the sweet drop you're looking for, instead of just one. Incentive to keep people rolling to the end of that wing, anyway.
Which leads me to change number two....Raid Wings. Instead of getting saved to ICC....you're saved to The Crimson Hall or The Plagueworks. You go into LFG for one wing, and when that wing is done the group has the choice to press on or disband. Either way, you can go back later for another wing. (And set up the LFG tool so you can choose a wing, if you are looking for a specific set of bosses.) In my head, you couldn't go after the Lich King until you had cleared all the other wings that week.
Change number three, and I think this will draw the most derision: Move away from gimmicky, strat specific boss fights. If we're going to PuG these Raids, we have to be able to do it without Vent. I'm not saying every boss is Tank and Spank, but none of them should be more complicated than, say, Onyxia is now. Yes, you have to know what you're doing, but you don't have to have a raid leader feeding you instructions.
Just my two cents...
Adeany Mar 2nd 2010 6:13AM
"I'm not saying every boss is Tank and Spank, but none of them should be more complicated than, say, Onyxia is now. Yes, you have to know what you're doing, but you don't have to have a raid leader feeding you instructions."
Odd groups go left.
Even groups go right.
That means 1, 3, 5, 7 left, 2, 4, 6, 8 right. 7 and 8 are whelp groups.
Okay, listen the @#$% up! You are going to DPS very very slowly. Now. And by slowly I mean @#$%ing slow. If you get aggro, it means you are going to lose 50 DKP 'cause you didn't know WTF to do. And watch the @#$%ing tail. You get kicked into the whelps, you lose 50 DKP AGAIN, for not being where the @#$% you were supposed to be.
There is no aggro reset. You only need-- there's some @#$% about an aggro reset when people don't know how to manage their aggro. After two sunders you can basically start doing damage to it. Assuming you know how aggro works and you don't over-aggro.
Okay, nuke it, dot it, help the whelp groups. When it's in phase 2, nuke it as hard as pos-si-ble. You want to get it down as fast as pos-si-ble. Have dots up on every time, two rows, Shadow Word: Pain, Warlock curses, Rend, everything. I don't see enough dots, more dots now. Come on, more DPS. Hit it like you mean it. You'll get time to rest on phase 3 while I'm getting the aggro. Remember, save all your aggro reducing abilities for when it lands. That means feign death, vanish, uh... @#$%ing fade, anything that you can use to reset aggro.
At 40%, you will stop dots until then you will throw more dots throw more dots more dots more dots. Come on, more dots. Kay, stop dots. Now hit it very hard and very fast.
Lee, run to the center! Mogrus, run to the center! Foresight, run to the center! Starf, run to the center! Isis, run to the center! Whatever the @#$% you do, do not stand next to other people! Mogrus, center! Just heal me. Lee, do NOT-- Go away from the head, Lee. GO AWAY. Kay, DPS. Slowly. Come here, you @#$%ing @#$%. Watch the tail!
--Whelps!--
Crushim was feared into--WHO THE @#$% WAS THAT! CRUSHIM, WHAT THE @#$%!!! WHELPS, LEFT SIDE. EVEN SIDE, MANY WHELPS. NOW HANDLE IT! #@$%! THAT'S A @#$%ING 50 DKP MINUS! WTF WAS THAT @#$%!!!
If you stand in the right @#$%ing place, there is no way you are going to @#$%ing into the @#$%@#ed whelps whatever @#$%ing fear, tail swipe, whatever the @#$%, OK? IT'S LIKE ONE IN A @#$%ING MILLION from the @#$%ing north corner to the middle into the @#$%ing whelp cave, it's not even @#$%ing remotely imaginable.
Vogie Mar 1st 2010 9:53PM
Why are they making the mail system more & more complex? I personally think that all faction/realm issues could be solved using an "Account Bank".
Misha Mar 1st 2010 10:31PM
As the leader of a small guild, I would love to have an operational Raid Finder tool. I would even be happy if it was only for my server. We rarely have 10 people show up on time for raids. The time we waste every week searching friends lists, and spamming lookingforraid is such a waste and cuts into the time we can actually raid. Then if someone has to leave early, we have to do it again. Ugh. The instant porting to the raid location rather than the summoning would be sweet, too. I do wonder why Blizzard is worrying about the mechanics of getting groups back together for additional attempts. How about randomizing where the run starts and then when the group decides to call it, the raid is over? Use the same mechanic as currently works so well with the Dungeon Finder, so that If they go through the random tool, they wouldn't be saved. I'm loving all of the 'quality of life' changes that Blizzard has been making. I am looking forward to cross-realm mail and a Raid Finder!
Deathknighty Mar 2nd 2010 4:13AM
Have you considered recruiting a couple active players to fill out those slots that never seem to be filled? Might solve the problem in the mean time before soon (tm) arrives. :)
Kole Mar 1st 2010 10:44PM
Assuming of course that all this drops in Cataclysm, but I thought they were working on the Battle.net function to track friends, etc. Why not use that service to get back into a cross-realm raid (if needed). The other option would be to finish what ya start...but that is alot to ask for some raids (ie. all of ICC.)
oallen Mar 2nd 2010 3:26AM
Uh Nazgul you totally missed my comment. You can only loot the boss once. So 9 people are gonna stick around incurring repair costs just so one guy can have one *chance* to loot. Mind you, you're locked to a boss, whether something drops for your char or not. Just like your locked to an instance soon as a boss goes down. So just like always, you have 1 shot to loot Marrowgar, and then every kill on him is useless. But you could join a raid mid-raid and it'd be ok because you could find another group to kill the first few later.
paul Mar 2nd 2010 4:50AM
So, we can now use mailboxes to send things to other dimensions, similar to what the orcs needed a huge glowy green portal with doom statues around it to accomplish?
Heh, what goes on inside those magical little metal boxes? Powerful little things xD
Lethality Mar 2nd 2010 8:47AM
I wonder...
Would it make sense, if they had the tech, for gross-realm "guilds"? Since the "content" is inside of instances that we're all getting loaded into, if they implemented cross-realm chat (this has to be on their list, as Battle Net has this infrastructure) and the guild tools had management features...
This would essentially make up "one big Azeroth".
Good/bad idea?
Sword Mar 2nd 2010 12:25PM
I agree with this idea one thousand percent. It would solve the growing problems produced by the Dungeon Finder.
On the other hand a big part of me wants to see the LFD removed, it has not just destroyed communities, entire guilds and made people less friendly, it has made the world smaller than it already was due to flying mounts.
I have a feeling the people who liked these changes in their entirety without looking at this objectively and seeing it has negatives as well are likely the FPS console crowd, which isn't an audience that should be catered to.
Maana Mar 2nd 2010 9:28AM
WAIT! you mean they are FINALLY making BoA gear BoA?! About time.
sprout_daddy Mar 2nd 2010 11:19AM
I am more concerned about cross-faction than I am about cross-realm, but welcome both. I'd love to be able to share some of MY stuff with MY Horde characters, especially since they're on the same realm. Right now, they're limited to BoA stuff. It would be really nice if Blizzard would either (a) turn off the unfriendly target filter on same-account mailings or (b) offer BoA "gift cards" or something that could allow you, even for a price, to transfer gold from one faction to another on the same account, without having to use another person and those greedy goblins at the neutral AH.
JoeRandom Mar 2nd 2010 1:49PM
Crossrealm-Raids would be a dream come true for me, since (due to my job and family situation), I simply cannot plan my raiding time weeks ahead. But having the option to sign up for a raid when I know that I have the time for it, and not rely on a strict schedule in a raiding guild, would be really appreciated.
Ziberious Mar 2nd 2010 9:46PM
You know what, cross realm mail would be really cool.
"Dear Friend,
It's been a long time since the last we've talked. Do you remember me? It's Ziberious, from that old guild we used to have! Indeed, you have server changed since then and it has become tedious to talk to you. Let us have a long chat over my AIM address over some tea and scones, shall we?"