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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsThe Daily Quest: Gearscore
by Anne Stickney 
Jun 16th 2010 at 2:00PM
Here at WoW.com, we're on a Daily Quest (which we try to do every day, honest) to bring you interesting, informative and entertaining WoW-related links from around the blogosphere. Is there a story out there we ought to link or a blog we should be following? Just leave us a comment and you may see it here tomorrow! Take a look at the links below, and be sure to check out our WoW Resources Guide for more WoW-related sites.
Gearscore is one of those addons that seems to get everyone talking, one way or another. Some people love it, some people hate it. Personally I'm of the opinion that the player behind the gear is more important than the level of the gear they are toting around, but there are plenty of other people out there that think it's a really good base indicator of a player's skill. Let's check out what the blogosphere has to say about it:
- Noobding has some input on gearscore and you.
- Pugnacious Priest talks about gearscore as a recognized universal measurement.
- TankingTips says gearscore isn't going away, and suggests that maybe it's better this way.
- Qieth's Quips has a few grumbles about gearscore.
- Variant Avatar make the bold statement that gearscore is like a child wielding a loaded gun.
Filed under: The Daily Quest
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 5)
Alden Jun 16th 2010 3:20PM
And this is bad why?
Numb Jun 16th 2010 7:32PM
You're absolutely right. And while I may look an unattractive girl and not have any way of know how beautiful she is inside, if her looks aren't up to a certain level I can functionally assume that she can't be a supermodel.
Just like GS - just replace looks for gear, "beautiful inside" for skill, and "be a supermodel" for compete in X raid.
Alden Jun 17th 2010 3:37AM
@numb-
To be honest, you look neither like a supermodel, or an ugly girl, based on your picture.
You actually look like a dude.
You might want to work on that. Looking like a dude, while being an ugly girl, says a lot about who you are.
Beli Jun 16th 2010 2:51PM
Lets face it... You need some way to determine if someone is going to do well in your raid. Until blizzard lets you start looking at numbers from a players past performance (they did XXXX dps on Sourfang last week, for example), we're stuck with what we do know - a players achievements and their gear.
As far as it goes, gear determines a lot about a player. First and foremost, it determines their maximum possible benefit to the raid. Take an ICC equipped player and throw him in Naxx gear, with all else remaining equal, and they won't do as well. It's a simple measure of mathematics to know their maximum potential in a given set of gear. From there, you simply play averages - most people won't perform up to their maximum... but if you've been running with people long enough, you get to know what the average performance for someone should be with a given level of gear. When you put together a 25 man raid, you know that some of those people are going to perform low, and others will perform high.
I have no problem using gear score and living by it. It ensures smoother runs (although problems like huntards with pets on agro always seem to crop up). It sets my expectations for the evening before we get started. And I know right off the bat which of my characters should be pugging which instances and in what rolls (for example, my DK only has 4.8k on his dps set - not enough for a pug ICC... but the 5.4k tank set is).
Armill3 Jun 16th 2010 3:06PM
GearScore is only a tangential concern to the problem I find most irritating in PuG raids: people who drop group a few bosses in, making it almost impossible to find people to replace them and continue making progress.
From the moment a pug raid starts to form, the clock starts ticking - consider it a version of the healing triage quests we used to have to do for Artisan First Aid. Each pugger has a Time Commitment Limit that is relatively absolute in length (e.g., 3 hours) but can be reduced further (sometimes completely) based on their (1) Patience for Failure, (2) Patience for Asshabedashery, (3) Selfishness/Asshabedashery (e.g., those who drop after winning a roll on a Mark of Sanctification, or drop when there's a chance that another, say, plate DPS just might roll on something they want).
It's these three values that folks organizing raids are really trying to determine. Unfortunately, only previous experience with the individual is truly telling, and this is made more difficult by folks running with multiple alts.
Outside of prior experience, tools are limited for making these determinations. GearScore and prior achievement obtained are good tools for helping with Patience for Failure as well as in dealing with the Time Commitment Limit, because the faster a group comes together, the more time you can spend actually raiding. The other two values are more difficult to determine - there isn't a score for how thin someone's skin will be, or whether they'll be jerky or drop group after ninja looting.
It's probably unfair of me to base whether I admit someone to a raid on their toon's name, but I've found that players who name their toons crudely tend to have high values of Selfishness/Asshabedashery, which has a negative effect on how much time the rest of the group can or will be willing to participate. Anyone else up for helping to script NameScore?
Alden Jun 16th 2010 3:19PM
Organizing pugs raises my blood pressure too much.
feniks9174 Jun 16th 2010 4:46PM
AFAIK, Namescore already exists.
Zhiva Jun 16th 2010 3:07PM
it's funny. I saw a thread to day on EU forums: player said he could not connect if he had GearScore in Interface folder. http://forums.wow-europe.com/thread.html?topicId=13705343548&sid=1
Ysaric Jun 16th 2010 3:11PM
As I have become a more sophisticated raider, I have noticed several occasions where I have intentionally brought my gear score down because a lower gear score item is superior to a higher gear score item in the same slot, even though they may both be items that are good and appropriate for my class and spec. Good examples are going from 264 drop gear to 251 tier gear when you factor in the bonuses. Another example specific to resto shaman is the use of the lower gear score totem that gives spellpower on chain heal rather than the frost emblem totem that grants spellpower on riptide stacks. I was using the higher power totem until I read the big forum thread on the WoW forums about riptide vs. not riptide in standard healing rotation.
I think it comes down to the quality of your guild leadership or raid leaders (guild or PUG). The good ones will use gear score appropriately, looking for a "ballpark" or "in-range" figure that is appropriate.
Ysaric Jun 16th 2010 3:12PM
*sigh* not higher power totem, higher GS totem.
wtb edit.
Ysaric Jun 16th 2010 3:13PM
*sigh* meant to say higher GS totem, not higher power totem.
wtb edit.
fireflyoftheearth Jun 16th 2010 3:12PM
Here's the issues with GearScore. It is never the measure of the player. I often get overlooked or ignored when asking to go on VoA or even lower raids. I've got about a 5.1k GS. It's not horrible, but not "omgwtfbbq" either. I ask and ask, and I don't even get the benefit of the doubt. And looking at all-out DPS isn't a measure of the player either. Ask me whether I know the fights. Because my DPS is often less than other Warlocks or Mages because I'm doing what I'm supposed to... changing my target from the boss to the adds that show up. This will **always** drop your DPS.
GearScore has become this crutch to players. Mostly lazy players. It only takes a couple of minutes to find out if a person knows what they're doing. The AddOn doesn't take into consideration any enchants or other things as well. Maybe I don't have the best gear, but I have the best gems and enchants which help me out a lot?? Yeah.
Screw GearScore. It'll be nice to see what the next "Omg! Lookit how bad ass I am" AddOn will be. I can't wait for this phase to be over.
Alden Jun 16th 2010 3:17PM
Heres the deal. You're trying to organize a 25 man pug. You are a good caring person, that knows if you spend 2 minutes inspecting someone's armory, you can get a much better idea about their skill than a GS (Its totally true.)
You post /2 LFM 25 ICC, going 6/12, Need all PST.
You receive 14 replies over the net 8 seconds, and an addtional 11 during the next minute.
You paste, "Please give me a minute, I'm armory-checking the people previous to you. You are number 13 in line." Simply replace the 13 as you get closer.
Ya.
It takes you 50 minutes to check 25 people. By the time you are on number 23, the first 8 people have left, 3 logged off, and you keep getting "Go go go go!" tells from #9.
Yes, gear score is a crutch. Try solo-organzing a 25 man raid without some sort of crutch though.
Ysaric Jun 16th 2010 3:18PM
Who has time to take a couple of minutes to find out if someone knows what they're doing in a VOA25 PUG? Seriously.
That's not to say there aren't idiots out there who put too much emphasis on GS, but because Blizzard is trying to make it easier for everyone to raid and get into higher content you have to have a mechanism for efficiently filtering out people who might drag the raid down.
How many people bitch about what are essentially the GS requirements Blizzard has instituted for what random dungeon you get? Do you want to get PoS or HoR with three other guys with terrible gear telling you how awesome their skills are? Sure you get some high gear players that are terrible, but it's the 80/20 rule--given an average player ability across the player base, you're going to, on average, have more success when you have a higher GS.
There are exceptions, but exceptions are hard to build into a scalable, efficient process.
Alden Jun 16th 2010 3:12PM
I really fail to see why people care so much about GS.
I don't have the addon, so I'm forced to /y in Dal "Can anyone tell me my GS?" when I need to check it.
My shammy dinged 80 little over a week ago. She is now at 5.2k GS with minimal work. I rarely see pugs asking for anything above this (Sometimes 5.5k is asked for.)
Its really not hard these days to get it in the range of stuff thats asked for for ICC pugs. (Hint: there is a vendor in SW or Org that sells 264 gear that you can earn while watching TV.)
Zhiva Jun 16th 2010 3:24PM
# I really fail to see why people care so much about GS. #
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catch-22_(logic)
mds Jun 16th 2010 3:24PM
At this point, gearscore only brings me the funny. When I zone into VoA and receive helpful tips on improving my gearscore by upgrading my libram, I know I'm in for a hilarious good time.
My libram is the libram of renewal. My title is Kingslayer, and I'm 9/12 heroic ICC. I don't know my gearscore. I don't care. But I also know I'm very lucky because I don't have to face what thousands of fresh 80s are dealing with every day. I see how they're treated and it sucks. I'll stop groups over it. As a healer, I can do that much.
(ps: if you ever really need a comfort food mood booster, take your top gear and queue for the high end regulars with the really gearing people. They will, generally, be thrilled to see you)
Ominous Jun 16th 2010 3:26PM
"the opinion that the player behind the gear is more important than the level of the gear [Edit: "he or she is"] toting around"
That is not an opinion. It's fact.
An expert in blues can make them sing. A noob in purple is still a noob.
iceveiled Jun 16th 2010 3:32PM
To quote Ash, Gearscore proves exactly jack and shit.
And jack left town.
Pfooti Jun 16th 2010 3:34PM
Plugging my own blog:
http://www.castrandom.com/2010/06/in-defense-of-gearscore.html