How To Find a Guild as a Melee 0/8 Warrior?

[Frimelda]

I want to raid on my arms warrior, but I have no experience really finding raiding guilds, and I'm currently 0/8 in DS normal. Ii have the dedicated and will to learn and do better, but it seems impossible to find a decent guild looking for melee DPS with no experience in DS.

Any suggestions or helpful tips?

[Azshira]

Try LFR, it will give you some experience. Equip yourself in valor gear and LFR gear and if you have any friends try get them to make a group and you can join. Although I don't like my next suggestion it may help you... Bluff your way into a group

Also a good way to get better at your class is to read sites such as this (go to warrior section) also watch videos from an arms warrior PoV

[thraton]

I want to raid on my arms warrior, but I have no experience really finding raiding guilds, and I'm currently 0/8 in DS normal. Ii have the dedicated and will to learn and do better, but it seems impossible to find a decent guild looking for melee DPS with no experience in DS.

Any suggestions or helpful tips?

First off, make sure you are thoroughly geared and experienced with LFR as this will give you a good start in the right direction. Then take a look at guides online to become familiar with how the encounters change on normal. From there I would just post in trade or make my own DS group that attempts to down as many bosses as possible. I'm sure there some guilds that would be willing to take you along, they may just be hard to find. Make a macro to post in trade chat often, ask around, and maybe try the forums for your realm.

General tip that will make your life easier in finding a DS group. Make sure you know how to play your class/role. If you are an arms warrior, make sure your talent is what it should be, you use the right glyphs, know the rotation/priority system and are able to put out reasonable dps. Your gemming/reforging/enchanting should also reflect that you know what you are doing. If I'm looking for more to join a group for DS and they are missing a bunch of gems, aren't glyphed, no enchants, etc. I won't take them along.

[Deleted]

I don't know about your realm but on mine there are usually at least 1-2 guilds advertising for members in trade chat every day. And it's a fairly low progression realm as far as PvE goes too. Keep an eye out for that, keep an eye on your realm forums on the WoW website and ask around in trade. You will need to start at the bottom and work your way up, don't expect to get into any heroic guild right away.

As Azshira said, run LFR and get valor gear. Make sure its gemmed and enchanted and that you're physically prepared for proper raiding and I'm sure some guild will take you in. Once you get orientated and understand raiding a bit more you can figure out what to do from there.

[Deleted]

and this is where this awesome invention named achievementfaker comes into play, what you do is DONT link the achievement from your main, but say you have 8/8 (and maybe a couple of hc's to impress) and then offer to log an alt to link, people will never check alts exp.
Ofcourse, only do this if your 100% sure you won't cock up on easy mechanics and you actually know WTF to do, otherwise chances are you will be exposed as a fraud and, depending on what server you are on, your reputation might be damaged

[ItZMuRdA]

and this is where this awesome invention named achievementfaker comes into play, what you do is DONT link the achievement from your main, but say you have 8/8 (and maybe a couple of hc's to impress) and then offer to log an alt to link, people will never check alts exp.
Ofcourse, only do this if your 100% sure you won't cock up on easy mechanics and you actually know WTF to do, otherwise chances are you will be exposed as a fraud and, depending on what server you are on, your reputation might be damaged

While that may work on some people for some pugs... it's pretty sketchy and the OP sounds like he genuinely is interested in learning the ropes and improving as a player and raider, I wouldn't really think this is the right path for him to take.

Others have given good advice, often forums like this one (elitistjerks.com, etc.) can be very helpful. Other than that, you can use wowprogress.com to find a guild on your realm with a level of progression that you are comfortable with. I'll also reiterate that many guilds, especially those more casual, will just like to see that you've used all the resources available to you (you have whatever gear you can obtain from 5-mans, LFR, crafted stuff, VP, etc.), and you gem/enchant it with proper gems and enchants, as well as do whatever research you can on your class and boss mechanics etc. If you can prove that to a guild, even one that is 8/8 Normal DS or further into hard modes, I wouldn't think you'd have too hard of a time finding one that suits you.

Best of luck.

*edit: Nitpicking suggestion: I'd personally suggest referring to yourself as an Arms warrior or DPS warrior, typically, rather than "Melee" warrior; since theoretically all warriors (even tanks) melee the target, unless you're throwing things at the boss or shooting him from 30 yards away. :P It's just nitpicking, and I personally didn't mind, as I knew what you meant; but I know people who would like to give you a hard time about it because of your choice of words.

[Deleted]

I want to raid on my arms warrior, but I have no experience really finding raiding guilds, and I'm currently 0/8 in DS normal. Ii have the dedicated and will to learn and do better, but it seems impossible to find a decent guild looking for melee DPS with no experience in DS.

Any suggestions or helpful tips?

I would suggest:

Make sure you're as geared as you can be.
Enchant, gem, reforge.
Make sure you know how to play all aspects of your class well.
Know the tactics inside and out for the raids.
Keep an eye out on your trade chat and even your realm wow forums (if you aren't willing to transfer) for guilds recruiting.
Try and find a couple of pugs for DS normal if you can, any experience is helpful.
When you apply, be honest. Admit you're a tad inexperienced, but also say what you've done to combat that (like reading guides).

I was in a similar situation to you a few weeks ago, could never find a pug that could deal with ping pong for some reason. I found a guild that was recruiting, chatted with an officer, said they'd trial me. I'm now 5/8 HC (which is the farthest my HC progression has ever gone!), in a fun and enjoyable guild =]

It can be hard work to find a guild, but if you put the time in you'll find them. Also look out for guilds that might want to go 25 man for MoP, they might be on the lookout.

[Deleted]

as opposed to a ranged warrior?

Not much i can say that hasn't already been said- make sure you're geared, do a bit of research, and make sure you know what you're talking about with regards to knowing your class. Not having the achievements isn't that much of a barrier- in my experience most decent guilds will overlook lack of achievements, or even raid experience, if you can prove tot hem that you're competent and capable of learning the fights quickly.

good luck, anyhow

[Gandrake]

There are always guilds that are recruiting.

I am an experienced raider so it's a lot easier for me, but a lot of people are burning out on anticipation for the next expansion and dropping from the ranks of their guild. The guild I am in personally, lost as many as 4/10 of our players to SWTOR and then one of them transferred. Every week we are recruiting, not looking for firelord or savior of azeroth, but just people who aren't retarded.

If you want to join a guild, one of the most important demands to meet is their raid times. If you are only going to show up for like 1 of 3 weekly raids, you probably aren't even going to get a second look at your application. Normal mode raiding is easy stuff, just say that you will show up, can pay attention and communicate. Honestly, being able to play your class is pretty important, but in more laid-back or casual guilds it's not really as important as the former.

edit:

to find guilds who are recruiting, you can sometimes watch trade, browse guild sites like guildlaunch and take a look at your realm's message board.

[Sinndra]

as a recruiting officer for my guild.. the biggest thing i look for is being gemmed/enchanted correctly for your class/spec.. a player willing to put forth effort to gemming chanting their own gear is one less thing i have to spoon feed. after that.. its pretty much a "lets go run some stuff" trial. dungeons/t11/12 raids.. basically so i can see if you can "GET OUT OF THE FIRE!!"

[Frimelda]

I am completely gemmed and enchanted right as far as I am aware (my armory is us.battle.net/wow/en/character/area-52/Basarios/advanced) and I can meet most raid times.

[Deleted]

The sad truth is that you actually don't need any fancy experience to raid heroic DS. Just common sense and knowledge of the fights. Just be confident in your applications and when you present yourself, oh and make sure you have the best possible gear you can obtain.

[Sanguinare]

go out and try dont look for a 8/8hm guild join a 1/8hm one day a week guild but raid time raid time raid time.

[Sinndra]

I am completely gemmed and enchanted right as far as I am aware (my armory is us.battle.net/wow/en/character/area-52/Basarios/advanced) and I can meet most raid times.

doesnt look too bad for a decent guild.. with guilds finished progressing for the most part.. should be easy to start asking people in guilds that raid on your server.. and be a "fill-in" for their alt runs or something.. truth be told.. you can link me all the achieves.. all the dps meters in the world.. it doesnt do a thing for me.. seeing you in action means TONS more to me. you dont need to know every tiny detail for a fight, but being able to adjust quickly and compensate for somebody elses little mistake can mean much more. (that is all just my opinion.. others may disagree)

also: as others have said.. fight thru the trolls of LFR.. so you can at least see the bare minimum of DS. there will be less a group has to teach you per fight.. other then their "this is how we do it" strat.

[grandpab]

The best way to start is to have the ability to show them that you're trying. Do LFR and max out your vp with lfg for each week. Make sure you have all the appropriate spec, enchants, and reforges.

When you're missing basic things like that it really turns people off since to them it just looks like you're asking to get carried.

Don't half ass your application either. When you take the time to fill everything in completely with detailed answers it shows that you actually care. How you fill out your application can make all the difference.

[Frumpy Frumpy Frak]

Join a raiding guild as a social member, one day they will be struggling to fill a raid, they'll take a chance on you if your gear is decent, wow them with your skills, bam you've got a core raid spot.

That's exactly what I did last week.

[ziggler]

If you are from a small country you might have some luck looking for nationality specific guilds, as most of them are willing to invite someone that speaks the same language, even if you only get a social/member status at start its a start.

[zuke8675309]

Pick up prot gear. Melee dps is a dime a dozen.

[Deleted]

I´ve mad the experience. It´s extremely hard to find a good raid as dps warrior.

[jetersky]

I would say, just put yourself out there on the recruitment forums-but be sure you know your stuff beforehand. I just faced the same situation on my paladin, though luckily I am holy/ret, and it seems everyone and their brother needs healers these days. I haven't raided at all this tier (other than LFR) due to work scheduling issues. When my work schedule permitted, I put up an ad on the recruitment forums, let my personality shine through, and I found a 4/8hm guild in the matter of a day.

As others have said, don't go out looking for 6-8 hard modes. I was content with getting a guild that was finishing up normals (even though I knew from my experience, I would be highly over-qualified), but I lucked out and got a guild halfway through heroics. Be confident in your ad and use proper grammar. Also, be sure to mention that you are reliable (and BE reliable), because a lot of guilds are having issues with attendance.

Just my $.02 from someone who was in the same boat as you less than a week ago.