Two parter: pug raid checklist and question for debate!

[Nesingwary-Eliada]

Here’s a little check list for you to determine whether or not you should put a little effort into researching something if it’s the weekly:


1. Are you even aware that there are weekly quests for raid bosses?
2. Do you know where the raid instance is for the weekly raid boss?
3. Do you know where the instance portal is at said raid location?
4. Do you know whether or not the weekly raid boss is the first, second, third, or ninth encounter in the raid instance?
5. Do you know if the weekly raid boss is a single phase or multiple phase encounter?
6. Do you know if the encounter with the weekly raid boss involves any sort of vehicle control? If so, do you know the controls for the vehicle/s involved? (Max/Min of +2 or -2)
7. Are you aware of whether or not the weekly raid boss has any sort of 1-shot kill abilities or massive AoE damage attacks that you should be aware of? If so, are you aware of what they look like and capable of stopping what you are doing to move out of them? (Max/Min of +2 or -2)
8. Do you know if the weekly raid boss requires some sort of attunement or key? If so, are you attuned or do you have the key? If not, do you have any idea whatsoever about how to obtain either of those requirements? (Max/Min of +3 or -3)


Yes = +1

No = -1


10 or More: You are a very well prepared player, who has clearly put in a decent amount of effort to prepare for the encounter you intend of doing, and who I would absolutely love to pug with.

5 or More: While I am sure you are a capable raider, who pays attention and tries his/her best, a quick polish up on the basic facts regarding a weekly boss would likely make for a smoother run and help the group get where they need to be faster.

0 or Less: You clearly could take some time in familiarizing yourself with content. The 50/50 nature of your knowledge on content will more than likely really frustrate any pug you are in and likely won’t get you a future invite from those you are with.

-5 or Less: I think it is wonderful that you want to raid but you are clearly not ready to. Doing some research on reputable sites such as tankspot, wowwiki, worldofraids, and mmo-champion will go a LONG way in getting you to where you should be. If you just jump into pugging raids you will find you’ll be met with hostility, frustration, and ridicule (especially in pugs). Don’t waste your time or the time of others. Prepare yourself.


My Opinion: REMEMBER!!! It is not your server’s responsibility to hold your hand and tell you where to go, what to do, and how to do it. If you intend on raiding something with a pug it is common decency, common courtesy, to put a little effort into preparing yourself for the content. There are countless resources out there and plenty of VERY thorough videos that don't even require any reading whatsoever and take 10 minutes to view.


So that’s where the question comes in:

Do you think it is the individual's responsibility to know the content they intend to do, whether it be last minute intentions or not? And to prepare for it by taking 30 minutes out of their day to read about it or 10 minutes to watch a video?

OR

Do you feel that pugs need to be “understanding” and be willing to tell people where to go, what to do, and how to do it?


I ask this because I have been noticing, as of late, on the servers I play on, that opinions seem split. Just witnessed an enormous trade chat debate on it.

[vesseblah]

Remember that everybody is first-timer once, and the first impressions will make a big difference.

People who are building group for weekly raid quests in /trade or whatever wrong channel they may be using should clearly advertise if it's meant to be beginner-friendly run or not.

This is also something I think LFD could do better, giving better loot for groups that sign up into beginner runs where rules are slightly different. Maybe higher treshold for kicking people, temporary buff (like the one in ICC) and little things like that.

[Spartanoble]

I got 12 , good job I remembered what weekly we had ( Been hacked )

[CptAwesome]

9. Do you feel the need to make terribly long and unnecessary questionnaires on forums which serve absolutely no point whatsoever?

Yes = STFU
No = +1

[Tziva]

Do you think it is the individual's responsibility to know the content they intend to do, whether it be last minute intentions or not? And to prepare for it by taking 30 minutes out of their day to read about it or 10 minutes to watch a video?

OR

Do you feel that pugs need to be “understanding” and be willing to tell people where to go, what to do, and how to do it?

It's not black and white for me. There is a big divide between doing an ICC PuG and, say, killing Patchwerk as part of the weekly. In general, I think it's good manners that people unfamiliar with the content make an effort to make sure they at least know the basics before they head in, regardless of what the content is. I will definitely appreciate it and probably have a higher opinion of a person who does so.

If it's higher content or something more challenging (like Malygos who, in my experience, is about a million times harder to beat in a PuG than even Marrowgar), then it's necessary to me. I'm not going to take a PuG who has never beaten the fight(s) unless they explicitly tell me that they have read or watched a strategy on them and are prepared. It shows initiative, it shows that they at least know the drill for raid fights, and it shows they respect their teammates enough to at least try to pull their weight. I am more than happy to cut those people some slack on mistakes or lower performance because, hey, everyone has a first time and at least they're making effort. If they can't be bothered to do any of that, then I'm just going to be selective and take someone who knows the fight in the first place.

If it's just the weekly and it's, like, a Naxx boss, I don't really care if they're ten minutes into 80 and don't know what the word "raid" means, nor do I mind giving a very brief overview, and I can easily ignore their 2k DPS. If they have researched, again, I respect and appreciate it, but I don't require it. At this point, almost everyone so vastly outgears the content even on alts, that that player could be the world's worst player and everyone would still one-shot the boss. With that in mind, it seems folly to insist someone read a Noth strategy guide prepare in advance when not only is it wholly unnecessary, but the fight is going to be over so fast they won't even see half the mechanics.

[saberon]

I prefer that people do the research and know what they're getting themselves into.

However, if they don't know, I'm not too fussed, ASSUMING THEY TELL YOU. If someone asks what to do, i'll gladly tell them a boss's abilities, what to do, and any tips/tricks that might help them.

But what really shits me is the people who have no clue and say nothing. They die right away, and, depending on the boss, can easily ruin it for everyone else, too.

[Daetur]

I prefer a pug to know what they are doing, and it is a HUGE bonus if they actually put in the effort to research the fights.

However, I feel that it is REQUIRED that the RAID LEADER knows the fights. I don't CARE that it's FLAME LEVIATHAN, if you're looking for tanks and heals, I'm going to assume that you are 1.) lazy and 2.) and idiot.