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All of the latest Mists of Pandaria newsBreakfast Topic: What was your first raid experience?
by Jason Christ 
Sep 24th 2011 at 8:00AM
After reaching max level for the first time in Wrath of the Lich King, I started to really enjoy heroic 5-man dungeons. I'd heard of raids and seen them forming in trade chat, but I was terrified to try my hand at them. I was tanking the 5-mans, and while they were generally pretty easy, I didn't like the thought that my performance as a tank could make or break a run for others.
Finally, after gathering enough gear, I applied to an ad for the weekly raid quest to kill Lord Marrowgar. We zoned in and the other tank started pulling the opening trash. I wasn't sure what exactly to do, so I just hung near him and tried to attack what he did. Then I was asked to make a pull. Having recently facerolled several heroics, I threw my Avenger's Shield into some mobs and charged in. I quickly discovered that this trash was not the same as 5-man trash.
After being kicked from the raid, I licked my wounds until the expansion was in its waning days. Eventually, I joined another guild's raid and made it all the way to tank the Lich King himself. I didn't get the kill, but I discovered that raiding could be fun. Along the way, I found a new guild to call home.
So what was your first raid experience? What were you feeling when you first stepped into the raid? How did it go? Did it make you invest in raiding more heavily or dissuade you from doing it ever again?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 5 of 5)
Bobby Earl Sep 24th 2011 2:23PM
About a year after the game came out I was innocently riding through EP with my 60 Paladin when a large group of players standing by the roadside accosted me and forced me into a raid group. They told me we were going to kill something called a Blightcaller and proceeded to fill the group over the next hour by impressing high level passers-by into the raid. When we finally had forty members, which included about thirty level 60s and the rest 58/59s, the leaders continued to hand out instructions and strategize for no less than 45 more minutes before we finally pulled. Nathaniel Blightcaller and his dogs wiped the entire group in a little over a minute and we all went our separate ways. The next time I raided was ICC.
Coldbear Sep 24th 2011 9:51PM
Total win story. Hah.
RetPallyJil Sep 24th 2011 2:25PM
Way back in 2005, maybe two days after hitting 60 ... (flashback waver)
It was about 2am on a weeknight when I got a pst from a friend in a different guild - "Want to come to Molten Core?" "Sure!"
I hurried over gleefully, only to have the 38 other people mutter variations of "Who invited a ... ret?" They promptly threw me in a corner and told me to help heal. I'm an agreeable sort, so I tried.
Then a Lawbringer chest dropped - and every other paladin there had it already. Score! Until they told me that I had no DKP with them and they let a rogue buy it and shard it in front of me for 2dkp. The rogue said "Welcome to MC."
I left, and to this day the very mention of DKP makes me want to hit people in the face with a brick.
shawnshawnamyot Sep 24th 2011 3:11PM
My first raid was Naxx40. My friend hooked me on warcrack had me convinced that it was the place to be. I dinged 60 2 months before bc. I spent those 2 months after leveling gathering crypt feind parts and gaining argent crusade rep. I finally hit the rep needed and got to enter a naxx40 with my buddies guild. I remember standing around before the first pull looking at these 39 players decked out in teir gear and thinking "this is going to be cake".. yeah, to this day I fear the spider wing, I had no idea gaming could be so intense.
Skarlette Sep 24th 2011 3:31PM
I was only level 59 but my guild at the time was desperate for enough people to fill out their group for the brand-new Zul'Gurub raid, and they had been encouraging me to give raiding a try. They talked me into coming, and it was intimidating but amazing! We worked on ZG for a few days and before long I dinged 60 while clearing trash to the bat boss.
Pretty soon I was doing MC with them, too, and it was the start of a long raiding career.
Lemons Sep 24th 2011 3:38PM
My first raid was Kara. I was too much of a noob back in vanilla to even realize that raiding existed. Finally in BC I got into raiding a little bit, probably only because I was a holy paladin and a guild needed healers. They basically had me come in and spam Flash of Light. I found the whole experience incredibly boring. Healing people and buffing people just wasn't my cup of tea so I rerolled rogue shortly after that experience.
Zev Sep 24th 2011 3:44PM
My first raid was Zul'Gurub, the 20men version, back in May 2006.
We killed Venoxis and Jek'lik, in a raid composed by a raid community (cross-guilds).
I also got my first epic that night: Fang of Venoxis, a caster dagger for my frost mage.
r.pogue Sep 24th 2011 4:04PM
I reached my first max level during BC. Join a social guild, geared up and we attempted Kara. We did ok, but I got the bug big time. I joined a more formal 25-man raiding guild, started learning the websites to help me min/max my DPS and it was all downhill from there. I now enjoy raiding more than anything else in the game.
Thatemokid Sep 24th 2011 4:32PM
My first raid would be ICC as it first came out. I had just got my pally his ICC dungeon shield and had got alot of advice from the guilds main tank. I had never even seen the inside of a raid let alone off tank one. so as we walk in i was handed all the stuff i needed from the main tank. as we pull trash i was already ready to stain my pants but we survived and after many many times of me dieing we got to marrowgar. I was told what to do and i did it best i could(latency always dropped during that fight) i survived thanks to all the other people and i won my first raid piece(could of cried) and after that i was assigned to main off tank! i was so happy but so scared cause i had a huge responsibility. but after that day i loved to raid! I still do even tho my server isnt a great server im 4/7 right now but change from pally to lock and now is on top of those charts. But i will always be greatfull to that guild that took a pally new to raiding for there like third ICC run.
Terraburn Sep 24th 2011 6:24PM
Some of the first raiding I did was on things like Araj the Summoner and Strat/Scholo when they were really tough (and you could form a raid group).
Coldbear Sep 24th 2011 8:02PM
You fucking kids.
60. Feral Druid. Raiding guild, or rather the 'big' guild's feeder guild. Okay, Molten Core, what do I do, besides bring FR gear? You heal. Okay.
Six months later (or a year, I can't remember, it was a while ago, before the colostomy and my wife dying) I said fuck it, I'm done with this healing shit and quit WoW for the first of three times. BWL up to killing Somethinglord whatsisface.
GET OFF MY LAWN.
You fucking kids.
Bobby Earl Sep 24th 2011 9:04PM
Nominated for Post of the Year.
eyeball2452 Sep 24th 2011 10:51PM
My first raid was a MC with an alliance of 5 guilds and no vent. Got my first purple on a roll though ... a druid belt or ring I believe. I only completed MC, BWL and AQ before I quit raiding.
I also don't mean to bash people, but Kara's wasn't a raid any more than UBRS or ZG was. I think the idea of what a raid is and a raid is not not has changed over time, but back then, Kara was just a stepping stone or attunement chain to get to the raiding. Having said that, Kara was probably my favorite dungeon experience in WoW with maybe DM West/North or heroic Arc being a close second.
Crìmson Sep 25th 2011 3:49AM
Just like Noyou My first raid experience was OS 25 I was a little dk dps sporting unholy spec. A guildy asked me to go when I had been in the guild for all of two days :P I step in there and it's daunting to say the least, but I did surprisingly well, I died a couple times on trash aoe, but I nailed "Gonna Go When the Volcano Blows" From then on I was enthralled with how much fun it was to group up with a bunch of people and down (what I thought at the time) insurmountable odds.
Happy raiding :D
Pantro Sep 25th 2011 5:07AM
Karazhan!!! :D
viciouspen Sep 26th 2011 6:43AM
Well, i started playing with cata, and if I'm remembering right my first was BWD, unfortunately with a raid leader that couldn't get past the dragon mobs infront of magmaw....
I quickly started figuring things out myself and saying "hey, thats not right, do this."
Months later I figued out a new Valiona and theralion strat that swept through my server like wildfire.
Kelsar Sep 26th 2011 10:17AM
Lady Vox in EQ
Tanya Sep 26th 2011 10:30AM
Naxx25. My guild was grinding Ulduar at the time & I had just hit 80. When the call went out for anyone else who wanted to go to Ulduar. I replied that I was the only one not in the instance who was 80, but that I didn't have the gear (was wearing the level 78 crafted blues a friend made me) & they told me to contact a person who ran Naxx25 as an opportunity to gear up new members/alts. At that point I hadn't even done a heroic dungeon. So Naxx always holds a special place in my heart. I never really set foot in Ulduar while it was current content cause ToC came out shortly after I got my rogue geared. But I made some really good friends while running Naxx. Ended up with a raid slot most the time for ToC loot fest & was one of the first guildies to enter ICC & down Lord Morrowgar.
GetUpAndKill Sep 27th 2011 1:17PM
My first raid was UBRS when it was a 15-man raid. I had just recently hit 60 on my Rogue and was invited along. My DPS was pretty bad since I was still in mostly greens with some blues, but overall it was a ton of fun and got me hooked on raiding. I worked on my gear and skills and eventually did ZG and AQ20 regularly.