Diary Post: Social Guilds and Raid Problems

Progression is simply raiding to improve your teamwork and your own personal skill, that's it. And as it is atm we lack that ambition, as a team. We need more players that are willing to put in the effort. Normals are not the LFR and the difference in how you have to approach the two is larger than the jump from normals to heroics.

This post was written on the guild forums and the topic is worth having on the blog, cause it's one that's been annoying me for a long time. Inspired by this very important article on Wowinsider. 

I will use this in a blog post. It's an important topic and I have tons of thoughts about it. I write in a very general way to "provoke" people into responding so You can join in on the discussion, after the break.

I agree, but with a many exceptions. And i'm not directing any of this at you, Narrow, just telling you my opinions. My biggest issue with social guilds is that "Getting along" is more important than actually being honest about things. Why? What's there to be afraid of? Many social guilds are so self righteous it's scary. By being so "friendly" and "helpful" they can justify why they lack in raid progression. Would that guild help new raiders/ungeared guildies gear up in a team effort as a raid team in LFR? Never! I just hate hypocrisy. I can go on for years. And the sad part is that raiding guilds are seen as a bad thing, a curse, and yet a raid team willing to progress would do whatever they could, as a team, to gear the undergeared guildies. So the guild that is more about the task acts more social than the guild claiming to be social?

1. LFR should be run on weekends; Most guildies on, simple math.
2. Being prepared weighs at least 700% more than being geared, not joking. Tons of guilds cleared Heart of Fear in 489 as max ilevel on any toon. And that's preparation, not skill or gear.
3. Openraid is a great site for filling spots, but it requires that our guildies are prepared enough for us to get a good reputation on there rather than "I joined and they wanted to be boosted! Wtf omgz"
4. Two Mains works if it's a very dedicated team that does class homework and has a very similar mindset, since it requires double the effort, especially when gearing up both toons. I have the will, but lack the time for it. Also @ loot rolls, who do you prioritize, the Main or the Alt? Do you just roll and hope that the raid is geared in a balanced way? Or do you actually use a resource like Askmrobot and their loot council, Suicide Kings, EPGP or any other loot system?
5. Being competitive with guildies is a good thing. It's the best reason to push yourself harder each attempt. Sadly in most social guilds anything that requires responsibility or self reliance is shunned upon. That's why i've had a very hard time with being in them since Wrath. You have the atmosphere = great. But then you also run the very large risk of players being hand held/baby sitted = disheartening.
6. The best guilds with raid teams, regardless of difficulty are the ones that have a "Come prepared, come in time and let's have fun learning" mentality. They also replace players that break the rules multiple times. Ie missing buffs, being unprepared, going afk multiple times and thus letting 9/24 other people wait (emergancies etc are another story). Raiding is a commitment to the team, not a right!

I love discussions, it's what makes the practice become better. Theory + Practice is always a win. But sadly enough, in social guilds discussions are seen as something bad because seeing things differently is seen as a threat, not an asset. Social guilds are more often than not a schoolyard for grown up children without any sense of responsibility.