Gearscore

[Navi]

Honestly, I don't get gearscore at all, and I never even heard of it until a few weeks ago.

So can someone fill me in on this new and wonderful device for e-peen pumping and why it apparently maters?

[Greyce]

The thing that bugs me the most is that there are apparently different methods to calculate gear score. Some servers (like mine) use wow-heroes, which currently gets decently-geared people scores around 2800. Others use what I believe to be add-ons that generate gear scores near twice that.

[Plague Atheart]

OVerall gearscore doesn't matter to ppl who know how to play, but if u want to check how well geared you are (for what ever reason) then i like wow heroes the best because it does more to calculate the value of items for ur spec as well as enchants and gems; however it takes a lot more time then the add-on which tells u some number related to some item lvl that blizz doesn't even recognize. But if u have the mod and u have some one in ur group with over a 5k gearscore and they're doing under 3k dps on bosses kick them quick because that's a bad bad bad player.

[Thetruth1400]

The thing that bugs me the most is that there are apparently different methods to calculate gear score. Some servers (like mine) use wow-heroes, which currently gets decently-geared people scores around 2800. Others use what I believe to be add-ons that generate gear scores near twice that.

Yes, there are more then one method but Gearscore itself is an addon that tells you a rough estimate of the gear that players have.

Gear score basically helps you in determining quickly if someone is ready for an instance or not. Not only do you get a number, but a color on mouse over. It also kind of helps you in letting you know what you're ready for. If you're hovering at 3K gear score, you probably are just starting heroics, if you're up at 5K, you're starting ICC. In the end, it's not going to determine player skill, merely gear.

The better thing is WoW - Heroes. WoW -Heroes takes into account the gear you are wearing, enchants, and gems to tell you what you're ready for. It takes longer to get someones info though, since it isn't an add on but a stand alone website.

In the end, the reason for people asking for a certain gear score is because it's easier to do things when you see that people have a relatively certain level of gear. Scrolling over someone and seeing a 5K gearscore means they can / have done things to gear themselves up, and will most likely be more beneficial then the person with only a 3K gear score. Basically, you get a higher chance of success with a certain level of gearing.

[ohlins]

Problem about GS is the people that use it as a benchmark to measure ppl around them.
They are to incapable to think out of their small box and judge ppl on a number generated trough an addon.

[Fergand]

It's usually in reference to an Addon which rates player's gear.

There are a lot of flaws with it in general, Equipping gear that is not meant for you but higher Ilvl can inflate you 'Gearscore' even though you're in terrible gear for your class/spec.

The biggest issue people have with Gearscore is some people require a certain score for their PuGs, While in some cases can be appropriate, some expect ridiculous numbers. Some individuals will judge you purely based on this score, without considering the possibilities of Skill, knowing HOW to gear (many times pieces with a higher Ilvl are in no way an upgrade), and properly Gemming/Enchanting your gear.

The best use of the add-on, is to see if someone is under-geared. It cannot measure skill, and it doesn't show if someone is actually properly geared. but if someone is trying to get into an ICC pug with a score of 1000, you know you shouldn't invite them.