Do you chase that Meta Rainbow?

[Zenfoldor]

I try to keep my options open in case a really strong class comes along that I feel will stay strong, IF I'm playing a class I feel will stay weak, yes. Especially for healing. If I roll the worst healer, and I have a max level of the best healer, and it isn't too much trouble swapping at that time in the game, I will swap.

Will I swap my entire character for a 3% dps increase? Probably not, but it would bother me to be honest.

[Azadina]

I still consider it a RPG not some competitive bullshit esports game so no, I don't care for the meta or fotm w/e you want to call it.

Amen. I only wish Blizzard started moving away from min/max crowds whining affecting their every design decision, and back into actual RPG elements once again.

[Geckoo]

I play what i find to be more fun, but no matter what that class/spec is, i'll try to be as optimal as possible with it.
I'll look out what are the best talents for each situation, what stats are better, what stuff is better for it and try to play as best as i can, sometimes with those 'best' choices i researched, sometimes making personal considerations that will work best for me... in the end, playing around with the tools provided.

[vulfrika]

This is the typical meta player answer. Your self worth as a player is based solely on your DPS. If you cant be top dps you feel like you are not a good player.
Your enjoyment is solely based on beating other players on DPS meters.

This is the typical sewer-goblin answer. Your enjoyment is solely based on your own warped and frail ego.

[Sluvs]

I care for the flavor of it and how it plays. I dont even look at the meta. Sure I want to perform the best that I can with that class, but I don't sacrifice my fun over it. Alhtouhg I usually play Tank or healer, rarely DPS, so I suppose I don't suffer as much from the meta gods.

[scubi666stacy]

Nope. But performance goes hand in hand with my enjoyment though. I'm perfectly happy with mage and it would take quite a lot for me to move from it. Then again I also hate arcane with a passion so even if it's top dps I won't touch it unless ofc the difference is too big to ignore.

Same reason why I don't grind regardless. I like gaining power but mindless grinding is something I won't do and I managed perfectly fine in BFA even if people claimed the grind was mandatory.

Kinda in the same boat here. Mage is my favorite class, no matter what comes, and I usually play frost. Though in TBC and Legion I have been playing fire and enjoyed the spec at that time. Arcane has its moments - finished a few Mage Tower encounters on that spec - but I ultimately don't like the flow of the spec and don't play it that much.

[Fenzha]

I started playing end of vanilla just weeks before TBC. started warlock and have played it to this day.
I have never been one to just play the top spec but ive always done my best to maximize the one i do play.

Back in TBC when all locks were destro spamming shadowbolts i was the guild malediction warlock to give other casters 3% more damage.
Since Legion ive played demonology because i dont like what that expansion did to aff and destro.

[Krimzin]

This is the typical sewer-goblin answer. Your enjoyment is solely based on your own warped and frail ego.

lol Frail ego, you clearly do not know me. Don't be mad because I was right. We all have our issues, some *cough you* have more than others.
Sorry you dont like my take on the issue. /Cheers

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Not necessarily that you aren't a good player, but that you are being carried which feels awful.

I actually wish more people were self-aware enough to realize how much they are sandbagging, heh

(note, that does not mean changing spec with the wind, just trying to put in that extra effort)

Completely agree. There are some people who just don't understand the intricacies of some specs.
They honestly just dont understand why they are under performing.

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No, on being as useful as I can be to my guild. My competition in terms of DPS is all the other people playing the same spec, so there's no advantage there.

So lets play devils advocate. Most times, meta classes are higher dps because they don't always have much utility. Is it better to follow the meta classes to be higher dps or play another dps that may bring more utility, and good(not top) dps. As for the competition between same classes, be honest.. meters are meters, people look at the top and ridicule the bottom.. not as much in guild but if they have to drop weight, they always look at the lowest and unless you bring utility to the raid, you sit.

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You must be doing casual content. If you played meta why would you play DH?

I play hunter and one other since the boosts come out. The boosted character has been ele, mage and lock. All my alts are max level and I have no boost so I'm still undecided.

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Some people also claim that the earth is flat. I'm with you. I play what I like. That's why I only play BM hunter now. I've played BM exclusively for a hunter since Legion. The same I've only played ele, arcane and destruction. As long as I find them fun I'll stick to them.

Not casual but not Hardcore either. 9/12M and 2800rio.
DH at one point were extremely OP if you had the right corruptions and the Str trinket(stupid to have str trinket on a DH but it was OP as hell on some fights).

[Zenfoldor]

This is the typical meta player answer. Your self worth as a player is based solely on your DPS. If you cant be top dps you feel like you are not a good player.
Your enjoyment is solely based on beating other players on DPS meters.

That describes me. I've never felt ashamed of it, lol. Should I be?

Edit: Also, I'm very casual nowadays, but still feel this motivation, and still play like this. I don't even know why I play like this or feel this way. Perhaps I just have a competitive nature. I'm not even particularly good or motivated, but I really enjoy benchmarking and improving and comparing. It is probably the only reason I play. No other game has such direct, comprehensive, and immediate statistics that I've played, and that's really fun for me.

I never post meters or anything like that, unless requested, and for me at least, improving my dps is never about making other players feel bad.

[Krimzin]

That describes me. I've never felt ashamed of it, lol. Should I be?

Revel in you metaness. Own it. Takes all kinds of players, Vulfrika just cant except himself as this kind of player.

[Zenfoldor]

Revel in you metaness. Own it. Takes all kinds of players, Vulfrika just cant except himself as this kind of player.

Haha, will do!

[apustus]

I just want to raid with guildies, they can choose my class and spec for all I care. If whatever I'm playing seems to not be good, they'll tell me and I can try to amend that.

[Hellbound Bloodhound]

I enjoy certain specs and classes more than others in terms of mechanics, but I also don't enjoy doing terrible dps and dragging down the rest of the group. Especially when you get negative feedback from players. Even if you're doing random dungeons, you need to factor in performance. Hell even when doing solo content, I don't want to perform badly. I've noticed this especially in Legion and BFA content with level scaling while leveling up. There came a point where it would be really hard for me just doing quests, and I had to change specs to be able to perform better. Because I just didn't want to die all the time. I mean at the end of the day it's an RPG, and RPGs are about character development and defeating enemies. If something makes me stronger, what else could be more attractive?

[Krimzin]

I enjoy certain specs and classes more than others in terms of mechanics, but I also don't enjoy doing terrible dps and dragging down the rest of the group. Especially when you get negative feedback from players. Even if you're doing random dungeons, you need to factor in performance.

I think that is one of the biggest pitfalls with Damage meters, you feel obligated to play a higher dps class when you get grief for not pulling high enough numbers.
Blizzard struggles with class balance so we are often unable to justify playing a class we want because it is not balanced properly.

[Baneto]

No, Im not switching to warlock when they are OP or firemage when they are stacked everywhere.
I play what I like, and to my best ability so I can reach the goals me and my guild set up.

[Adam Jensen]

I play what I like and fuck the meta.

I don't do mythic raids anyways, mythic is too much. Getting benched because the raid already has too many of x class or being forced to respec to some spec I don't enjoy, or having to spend time buried in spreadsheets to squeeze out another 1% dps. Nah.

Heroic raiding is good enough for me and it doesn't need most of that shit.

[Ealyssa]

I care to a certain extent.

I won't play THE best just because it's the best. But I also won't play the worse if the performance are very clearly subpar.
For exemple I would love to play vengeance DH as my main, but Blizzard never acknowledging the huge AM uptime problem the spec has is a very clear stop to raiding mythic progression with it.
But I never switched to prot warrior as main. (played prot paladin for the whole bfA)

On the other side I don't care on my alts. I played my hunter as survival during whole Legion to its best performances and LOVED playing glad spec on my warrior in WoD.

[Hellbound Bloodhound]

I think that is one of the biggest pitfalls with Damage meters, you feel obligated to play a higher dps class when you get grief for not pulling high enough numbers.
Blizzard struggles with class balance so we are often unable to justify playing a class we want because it is not balanced properly.

But not having damage meters means not knowing who plays properly.

[Krimzin]

But not having damage meters means not knowing who plays properly.

ya its a Catch 22. Funny though, FFXIV has outlawed DPS meters and they don't have any issues, even when doing extreme content.

[Hellbound Bloodhound]

I play what I like and fuck the meta.

I don't do mythic raids anyways, mythic is too much. Getting benched because the raid already has too many of x class or being forced to respec to some spec I don't enjoy, or having to spend time buried in spreadsheets to squeeze out another 1% dps. Nah.

Heroic raiding is good enough for me and it doesn't need most of that shit.

What do you do when the thing you like performs so badly you are seriously hamstringing yourself and the group?

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ya its a Catch 22. Funny though, FFXIV has outlawed DPS meters and they don't have any issues, even when doing extreme content.

I haven't done any endgame content but to be honest, it's hard to imagine there are no issues. There have to be some issues, unless their hardest content isn't that hard.