Posts with tag wow-grouping

We were all newbies once -- and some of us who have left the game and come back have found themselves being newbies a second time. And while there's no way to avoid newbiedom entirely, with a bit of foresight, even the newest player can run a dungeon without looking like a newbie. These 9 tips should help you get started on your dungeon running career -- and even if you're well on your way to being a professional, a refresher course never hurt.

1. Know your (instance) role
If you've never been in a dungeon before, the idea of group roles may not be intuitive. But when you're working with a group, you'll typically have one person assigned to tank, one person assigned to heal, and the rest of the group dealing damage (DPS). Additionally, some classes have crowd control abilities they'll be called to use in instances -- if you've got one, make sure it's on a hotbar rather than hidden in your spellbook. Whether you're playing with friends or you've jumped into a random group, know what your role is before you go.

Need tips on getting started? Here's some advice on getting started as a tank, getting started as a healer, and tips on improving your DPS.

This article has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider's pages.

Make no mistake: Early Cataclysm dungeons are not the faceroll that we experienced at the end of Wrath. Not only have everyone's gear levels dropped dramatically relative to the content, but Blizzard has returned to a more BC-style design philosophy wherein crowd control really matters and one live mob can make the difference between an easy pull and a very difficult one.

Of course, the ideal solution is to read up on the dungeons beforehand and make sure you're prepared for them, but we don't live in an ideal world. Sometimes, you'll wind up in a random dungeon that you weren't expecting, and you haven't had time to research. Additionally, dungeon guides don't always give tips for trash, and trash pulls now require some coordination. Luckily, instance design does not expect you to have an encyclopedia in your head. An alert dungeoneer can succeed on the fly by following a few simple tips.