"most in this game *are those* who freak out . . "

WTB Edit Button, paying 648793012745K gold, pst.

Agreed. I pay my monthly fee to play the game how I want to play it, with the gear and trinkets I want to use-not some douchenozzle who gets a boner over numbers.

What I'M tired of is everyone blaming dickish action on DPS meters and being concerned about DPS, etc. Just because someone has a meter or cares about min/maxing doesn't mean they horrible people who will /spit and insult you over gear and all that you mentioned. I care about my dps. I will switch out a gem or get a new piece of gear that's the same ilevel as my old one but has slightly better stats just to bump up my dps a few points. But am I rude and horrible to people who don't have the same level of gear I do? No. The people who do that are just dicks, plain and simple, and complaining about DPS-related issues is just how it comes out for them. It's wonderful that you don't want to do those things you listed (switch trinkets, change strategies, etc.), but if someone does that's perfectly fine too. Someone who cares about min/maxing can be a dick, but caring about min/maxing doesn't MAKE them a dick.

Raingod: But the other 9/24 people's monthly fee outweighs yours. Play it as you want, as long as you aren't a detriment to the group.

What this means is, no, you don't have to be tip top and spreadsheeting all of your moves to perfection, but you must be passable and able to learn encounters where others are counting on you. Gray's final point, less about not using addons and reading spreadsheets, but more about LEARNING how to play. Stay out of the fire. Use utility to survive. (Bandage during Chimaeron, you punks!) With mastery of your character's abilities and learning nuances in fights where gains can be had, you can do so much more than merely pushing in numbers; you are analyzing the battlefield and reacting accordingly.

- "What I'M tired of is everyone blaming dickish action on DPS meters and being concerned about DPS, etc. Just because someone has a meter or cares about min/maxing doesn't mean they horrible people who will /spit and insult you over gear and all that you mentioned. I care about my dps. I will switch out a gem or get a new piece of gear that's the same ilevel as my old one but has slightly better stats just to bump up my dps a few points. But am I rude and horrible to people who don't have the same level of gear I do? No. The people who do that are just dicks, plain and simple, and complaining about DPS-related issues is just how it comes out for them. It's wonderful that you don't want to do those things you listed (switch trinkets, change strategies, etc.), but if someone does that's perfectly fine too. Someone who cares about min/maxing can be a dick, but caring about min/maxing doesn't MAKE them a dick."

Don't get uppity. I'm a min-maxer by nature as well. I love theorycrafting, I love tweaking my talent points, spending time on the test dummy and optimizing my gear. I'm one of the top DPS in my hard-mode guild and am always trying to find ways to push my own limists. It's all just part of the metagame for me. I wasn't just referring to people who like to take their game to the next level. I was referring to the people who are more concerned with YOUR performance than their own. The people who equate your ilvl to your worth as a human. The people who are convinced that "u have a int/crit gem in ur boots lololol u r fail!!11!".

I never said I'm unwilling to switch trinkets or try different strategies. I said that 95% of the time, the difference between one piece of gear or another is mild at best and unnoticable at worst. I said that for 95% of players, the difference between one racial or another is overshadowed tenfold by mistakes and bad habits. I'm saying that I'm not going to make BS excuses about my performamce and say that I need to be decked out in 359 epics to down normal mode Magmaw, as most trade chat pugs would believe. Freaking out over a couple missed points of Int or a choice of a Crit gem in place of a strength gem isn't going to decide whether or not a boss goes down.

Nice job Mr. Gray. I will still be looking forward to your other articles. Can't agree with you more on #5. Since 4.1 I have still not loaded up recount. It feels weird. I am always looking for something and it's not there. But I have had more fun. Of course I have been mainly pvping on my frost mage but still. It's sound advice none the less. Best of luck to you in all your other articles and endeavors!

"I pay my monthly fee to play the game how I want to play it"

And you can play the game solo if you want. If you're a liability to your raid group, I don't think that paying your monthly fee is an excuse to not be at, or at least near your best.

I know that's not necessarily what you meant, and I'm not saying that you personally are a problem to your guild, but the whole "I pay my fee, so I can do whatever I want" thing I see people throw out after doing 8k dps doesn't really hold water when you consider the other people in the raid who also pay a monthly fee and rely on you to contribute.