What is your attitude towards newbie players?

[Castochi]

Ever since the Cataclysm fiasco, when WoW started losing subs, my realm has become emptier and emptier. I started playing in WotLK, and remember how nice the gaming experience was when the trade chat was bursting with people buying, selling, filling pugs, and even trolling. There used to be enough people for Mammoth trains in Dalaran, people making words and entire messages using Fish Feasts, and main cities bringing powerful PCs to their knees through the sheer number of character models present.
(I know there were many reasons for the WoW sub loss, and not just Cata).

Now, my server is emptier than ever, and this has caused a dramatic change in my attitude towards newbie players since the old days. Today, I treasure new players like a hungry dog treasures a juicy steak. If by any chance a non-experienced player needs help with something and I somehow find out, I do my best to help them out in any way I can. I am a treasure trove (or at least consider myself so) of valuable information on so many aspects of the game. Lore, Raiding, maximizing your character, Professions, Auction House money-making secrets, and all of these I give for free to a newbie player.

Just the other day someone asked me how was I able to craft so much gear with my Blacksmith and I was like "hey you're a new player right?", and he was. So I immediately started telling him everything he needed to know about gearing up and why crafting is by far the worst option. I offered him an invite to my level 25 bank guild if he needed leveling perks and free repairs while he got an active main guild. I even give newbies my battle tag just in case they wanna add me to ask me about anything at all. I see the newbies of today as the pros of tomorrow. Fresh blood coming in that may just as well bring their friends to the game so that every day WoW sucks a little less because of the availability of more players.

That is my view and treatment of new players. How do you treat newbies? What is your attitude toward them?

[wicker]

i envy em really i had alot more fun in games when they were new to me i was exploring all these things and had no clue lol

but it made it fun!

[Itisamuh]

I try to treat everyone the same unless they give me reason not too, but I probably do treat newer or worse players better because I know others likely treat them worse. Of course I keep it within reason, the last thing I want is someone to think I will do everything for them.

[inboundpaper]

I'm a fairly firm believer that discovering things yourself makes the best experience for a new player. But I do answer questions when asked.

[Nuvuk]

I enjoy helping out new players. I know what it feels like when you dont know something and some ass hat treats you like crap for it.

[zaxlor]

If someone hits the "I'm ready" button on a boss fight, dies, then later asks in chat "So, er, what do we do here?" it raises my hackles a little. They clearly wern't ready, so why hit yes? Ask BEFORE the fight! /rantover.

Someone did this during the Ahune fight I joined yesterday. I didn't get mad or anything, I simply said "Kill the adds, then when his heart shows attack that". I think we had 3 heart phases, no-one died and that was that. It's not so bad on a fight like that, because you can easily stop DPSing to talk in chat as there's basically only 3 mechanics in that fight (adds, ice spikes, burn phase).

If someone really wants to know something then i'll help out, but i'd never start dishing out "advice". During a scenario a Frost DK asked me where I'd gotten my sword from. It's the rune sword you get during the DK starting zone, but instead of going "DUH! Wut a noob, yur a fecking DK!" I just said "You can buy it from the DK starting zone, the one you can cast a DK portal back to. I think it's on the lower level, a big abobimination guy sells it". I felt that gave enough information that even someone new to the game (which he must have been, since he was wearing full pvp gear but didn't know about that sword), yet didn't make me come across as a total know-it-all with talking about spell names and zone locations.

The newbies that rush in, demand heals and show no effort to learn or better themselves, they can fuck off though

[bionics]

We were all noobs once.

I was lucky enough to have an IRL friend instill a great love of the game for me from the onset. He brought my first character, a gnome warrior, all the way to Stormwind just so I could get the Hogger quest and defeat him. That included a walk-thru to the tram, which I probably wouldn't have discovered on my own for days later.

TL;DR: We were all noobs once. Treat noobs as you would have wanted to have been treated as a noob or once in a while, if it's worth the effort -- imagine that it's like your little brother trying to have some fun in the game for the first time. Your interaction with them could make or break their playing experience, or whether they'll be playing months from now.

[Deleted]

I will go out of my way and go to great lengths to help someone If they show the type of personality I'm looking for

What do I mean by that? well, there are a couple of kinds of noobs, the first one asks for gold, items, boosts or any number of other things, and seems to give off this aura that it is expected, they almost demand it from you. Then there's the ones that will ask nicely and ask for things that would be considered acceptable considering I've just met them, like directions, help with specs, tactics, or something like that.

I tend to politely tell the first kind "No, sorry" and offer some advice where they can go and farm some gold or whatever and that's that, if I come across the other kind, I will be alot more enthusiastic and help them with almost anything, even throwing in a couple of hundred gold to see them well.

Not sure why, but when someone just approaches me and says "hey m8 can i hav gold pls?" my reaction is that of anoyance, I don't like people who ask in that manner and don't tend to help them as a rule.

[Valnoressa]

Newbie players are important to the game, anyone who tries to alienate them is a fool and should swiftly end their subs to make Azeroth a better place. That's how I feel about them.

Personally I wish it was easier to tell who the new players are, skill isn't a valid measuring tool for finding new players because I can pick 5 or 6 people from my guild right now who have played since Vanilla and are still rather bad at their classes while some of the folk who started in Cata & MoP play far better than them.

Why do I want to identify new players better? Here's why:

- I want to help new players, I really do. But when a low level whispers me for gold or help with bags I twitch a little and think "Hey wait, how do I know this isn't just some guy on a new alt begging for stuff he's too lazy to get himself?" That usually leads to me just not replying or saying I'm busy.

- I feel like there should be a channel for new players to ask their questions without the asshattery of Trade/General. I've seen people genuinely ask questions there, some of them new players as well only to be met with replies like "lol noob" and "lmao, r u new to this game or somethin?" and it's really a bad representation of the majority of people who -do- want to help.

- With such a channel, it could be open to new players (as in, brand new battle net accounts) and veteran players with good rep perhaps determined by the community of the realm and what not. How such a system would work I have no idea, but I don't think one can stress the importance of making new players feel welcome and shield them from the idiots who lurk this game.

[Deleted]

meh, I dont care for real newbie, I mean someone who is new to the game. Its ok if they don't understand stuff, I don't care I'll carry them anyway in lfd.

What I hate on the other hand is the other kind of newbie. You know, the baddie, call it LFR hero, night elf dk who death grips when he's in a dps role or whatever. The guy who is not new to the game but is just horrible at it. THis one, I really cant stand him. Heh, sometimes its hard to know what kind of newb you're facing, I'll have to admit that.

[Tastyfish]

New players are great.
Love to help them threw the growing pains of learning the game. Seeing them amazed by what wow has to offer is pretty cool.
People remember being helped, and it promotes more positive playing.

[xicoia]

Well people usually start to talk about dick size when I win or lose a duel.
I try to ignore them.
I TRY.

[Tuesday]

...Just the other day someone asked me how was I able to craft so much gear with my Blacksmith and I was like "hey you're a new player right?", and he was. So I immediately started telling him everything he needed to know about gearing up and why crafting is by far the worst option. I offered him an invite to my level 25 bank guild if he needed leveling perks and free repairs while he got an active main guild. I even give newbies my battle tag just in case they wanna add me to ask me about anything at all. I see the newbies of today as the pros of tomorrow. Fresh blood coming in that may just as well bring their friends to the game so that every day WoW sucks a little less because of the availability of more players...

You need to be cloned. Or bottled. Or something. You're an exception, rather than the rule, but it's nice to know there are still exceptions. I often did the same thing when I'd come across a new player struggling to understand how things worked (back when I actually played the game), because I remembered what it was like being an awe-struck new player. Good on ya, Castochi

[Santti]

Often better than towards the older ones. They are much less jaded.

[Resentful]

Usually very apathetic I mean really there's nothing wrong with them unless their talking shit which well I will troll the person pretty god dam hard.

[yetgdhfgh]

All newbies need to be branded and shamed

If you are new to this game you are scum you are the worst thing in the world

As that drill Sargent says in full metal jacket "You are pukes. You are the lowest form of life on earth. You aren't even human-fucking-beings. You are nothing but unorganized grabastic pieces of amphibian shit"

BUT of course im joking i hate the word newbie and if you help new players to wow you make there day and make them feel wanted you are a human being.

Only 13 year olds give new players a hard time cause of there tiny dicks and inferiority complex us real men and woman treat new players with respect and kindness

Unless they roll alliance then fuck those guys lol

[Deleted]

New players ?

Aliens.

[JSStryker]

I figure all new players deserve a fair chance and will help out when I can but IF they start acting like a-holes and/or douche bags and start demanding my help with everything, out comes my ignore list and probably a /gkick

[PaladinBash]

If I see them out questing in the world I kill and camp them a lot then chop them up and dance on their bodies. They don't have a main to even do anything about it and nobody will even care that I'm doing it. Welcome to world PVP, the only true form of PVP.

If they're on my own faction I just generally avoid them and don't want to get nagged by people into helping them. I'm a selfish wanker honestly and I don't deny it. I don't want to sit down and talk to someone who is new to the game while I am in it, I want to play the game and have fun and helping noobs isn't fun for me. There's plenty of people who are kind and helpful and all that but I am not one of them. I think deep down inside most people feel the way I do and are filled with contempt or disinterest for new players but don't like to admit it or feel bad for them and help out. I don't really even do it because it's fun but because I just don't care anymore. There was a time when I trained up new tanks and watched them grow into competent and capable raiders over the course of months of constant mentoring and demonstration but that age (of the game) has passed. There isn't a community anymore. There isn't a server identity anymore. Now there is just selfish bored jerks like me everywhere and I can't even complain because I am one of them.

So yeah...if there are any new players around just take a good hard look at me. You will see this jaded bitter selfish face in the mirror soon enough if you play this game long enough.

[Ciddy]

I just remember that I was totally clueless when I first started playing, and most of the more experienced players were very helpful and patient with me when I asked dumb questions, so I try to do the same now. Although....new players have a lot more resources nowadays than they did in vanilla. Thottbot was pretty much all we had back then, and it wasn't perfect, so it was pretty reasonable to ask random strangers for help in general chat. I don't really see random newbie questions as much anymore.

Most of the random questions I remember from back then (Vanilla days) were stuff like "where do I find _________" for some quest, because quest givers were so vague about where to go and didn't mark objective locations on the world map. You could use addons to do that, but they weren't that great and made you lag like a SOB.

Again though...I go out of my way to help newbies when they're asking for help WITHIN REASON. I draw the line at random strangers who give me the "HEY MAN CAN U RUN ME THRU DEADMINEZ PLZ??????/////" shit or ask me for tons of gold.