We did a guild 25 man last night (still not a sniff of DBW) which ended in more loot politics (no doubt Cat will post sometime) and had a huntard moment when I ran out of ammo about 20 arrows into Festergut. It's lucky that you can make arrows whilst in combat, as my melee sucks.
So I'm back and its like I've never been away - just not quite. I admit I'm hooked on WoW - I've a history of addictive traits in my psyche. I'm a caffeine addict - I just don't function without it. I'm also a smoker although I know it'll most likely kill me one day. In my past I've dabbled with drugs, in fact a sizeable chunk of my time in the 1990s I was dancing in clubs with a whistle and penchant for hugging random strangers.
I've also had an internet addiction for a number of years. I discovered the internet early - I was 16 (so over 20 years ago) when I discovered my first BBS (bulletin Board System) and have been on-line ever since. I have been a gamer for a while but other than text based MUDing, World of Warcraft was my first MMO of note.
I've played WoW since April 2008 and the enforced two week break due to the aforementioned Vodafone issues was interesting. I went through some of the classical signs of withdrawal - mood swings (mostly vented at Vodafone - and thankfully via their forums where I can express my frustration in a more eloquent manner than if I had to deal with the 8th CSR on the phone who had the customer service skills of a wild cat defending her kittens.
On top of this was the actual missing of the game - but eventually after a week or 10 days this began to subside. Although I missed the people of the guild I didn't miss the politics, the problems with raiding and all the other bullshit that happens on a regular basis when I bunch of strangers form a collective.
I'm not saying its all been bad - Thursday was a great night - 10 of us finally got Cat, Acid and me our Undying title on our mains (we had previously got them on our alts and its been a series of travesties that have prevented us repeating the run). It was a great night - relaxed, run, no stress. One of the good nights you can look back on and realise the $25 a month is worth it.
Last night was meant to be the same 10 heading back to ICC 10. A second run was also organised - but with 22 signed up - it was the usual drama of who drops out - so we switched to a 25 man run.
25s are a entirely different beast to a 10 man. The one great thing they have done with Cataclysm is killing the 25 man raid - for me it's possible to find 9 people that I can spend sizeable chunks of time with without the need to tell them to shut the hell up. I honestly cant say the same for a group on 24 others.
One of the great strengths of the GKP runs is that there is a goal for everyone - and that goal prevents a lot of the politics. PuGs are generally a PITA, but the GKP runs aren't. Sure sometimes they get a little strained when you have to spend an hour dropping XY or Z on hard-mode - but as merely a bit player I don't have to bother myself with that. I just heal/shoot and bid when required.
Guild 25s are different - politics arise quickly. Last night was no exception. I'm not going to comment on exactly what happened but people left and its tricky to continue with 22, espeically when a significant number of the 22 haven't done much 25 man raiding in ICC.
But for me it just reminded me of the things I didn't miss in my 2 week leave of absence. Sometimes I think I invest myself too much in MTRs and the game itself - and having time to realise that I don't want to get back to where I was.
When the 'incident' occurred I said in officer chat that I "didnt care" - which is true. I didn't. And for two reasons - firstly I want to kill Saurfang and see if my damn trinket dropped (it didnt) and secondly ultimately the loot rules are never going to please everyone - loot master decisions are never going to please everyone - so I've stopped investing myself into dramas when the world has ended because of a piece of gear didn't go to someone.
I realise those two statements may appear conflicting - but to me they have a common thread - selfishness. I'm putting me first and the guild second - because when I invest the other way it drains me and why would I pay $25 a month for that?
2 comments:
Did you in your past life ever make it to a gathering down in nelson?
I only arrived in NZ in September 2000. My party days were spent in Birmingham and Glasgow in the UK. I was there at the times when hardcore was in its infancy, where raves were raves in their truest sense and too much time was spent talking crap to any random person that was in the vicinity.
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