I'm actually rather ambivalent about achievements in raids (though it does bother me a bit that all the metas are tied, not to the achievements alone, but also to heroics). However, I wanted to make a remark about the issue of normal vs heroic raids.

Normal is in fact not really "normal" anymore. It's become the obstacle course you have to run in order to get to the real raid. In effect, it is the "key quest chain" of latter Wrath and Cata. Except that when you get to the real raid, it's a duplicate of your key quest. Just with more volcanos. Or more spiders. Or more story.

Our guild just downed Rag for the first time last weekend. Now, we already knew that Rag wouldn't be getting legs and wandering around for the "normal" version of the fight, but we also knew that we just had to get him to 10% (like Lich King) and then we would join forces with the Archdruids and Cenarius to finally defeat the Lord of Fire. Right? We hit that 10% mark and I was ready for some sort of immobilizing effect where Rag was going to try to wipe us out while Malfurion and Hamuul go all Wrathful and Bearish on his ass.

Nope.

Rag just disappears muttering something about "Too Soon" like he suddenly forgot a very important appointment, and could we perhaps come back again next Thursday? In the meantime there's some coffee and epics in the chest in the lobby.

There was this moment of confused silence in Vent, everyone looking around wondering where Rag went to. We wondered if the encounter was bugged, or if we had really defeated him. But no... there was the chest. We took the requisite screen shot, but to be honest it was completely anticlimactic. Rag just ran away. We didn't defeat him at all.

If the goal of NORMAL is for everyone to be able to experience the content.... why the hell didn't I get to kill Rag?! I don't actually get to kill him, if I am merely NORMAL. I have to slog through the rest of the bosses (again) so I can come to Rag on HEROIC. Then and ONLY then do I actually get to experience the content.

If I'm going to have to duplicate all my efforts for every tier, that is just as much of a grind as getting keyed was back in the Ony days. Except at least with key quests you actually got sense of achievement in FINALLY getting your Drakefire Amulet. Imagine if, after getting the amulet, you were told "Ok... but NOW go find HEROIC Rexxar! It's just like Normal Rexxar, except he can wander across five zones, and Misha will one shot you if you don't use cooldowns."

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