“You’ll always be Siori to me. Running around Deadmines and lowbie instances as we nuked everything…always be the player who would swim from Theramore Isle to Tanaris just because it was the fastest route.” ~Magik
He said those words to me a few days ago and it brought a smile to my face. For starters, other than getting wiser about the game (but I’m not a know it all or anything close on the matter) I don’t think I’ve changed. I’ve become a better player, but not a great one. I’m still the guy in it for fun and I’ll try and do the damndest things on a whim. Heck, I remember being disappointed during Burning Crusade when Siori hit 70 and I couldn’t solo Ahn’Qiraj. I wish I were kidding.
Like I said, I’ve gotten wiser.
Okay, not really. I just bring more friends these days.
But Magik’s advice isn’t just for me. It’s for everyone. Too often we see cases where we become the player that frustrated us for so long. We forget where we came from to get where we are. And we take it out on those sporting around in our hand me down shoes of inexperience.
As Magik said to me in the same conversation, “don’t be the jerk who just says Google it.” He then pointed out I “Googled him off” a couple times, and I admit it. Usually the only time I’ll do that is if I honestly don’t know the answer. Actually, I’ll probably “wowhead them off” first. In rare cases, like Magik, I’ll do it just because it’s Magik. We get each other, and it’s funny.
And that’s the beauty of it. We’ve been two similar guys with different playstyles since pretty much the day I randomly (but politely) asked him to sign a guild charter over five years ago. We’ve stayed true to ourselves and what we enjoy.
As of late, I’ve commented on several other blogs about the idea of doing what makes you happy and what you enjoy. World of Warcraft has so much to offer (whether good or bad) that pretty much anyone can find a way to play that makes them happy and they shouldn’t have to sacrifice that for anyone. Now, the exception to that is if there is an aspect they want to take part in there are sometimes adjustments and understandings that need to be met just to find a moderate level of success. You can’t be a profession leveler wearing BoP Cata greens and expect to PvP well in Mists of Pandaria on the turn of a dime.
But in staying true to yourself, you need to recognize the type of player you are. You also need to recognize the player you are might not be the player you were a year or two ago. Using myself as an example, if I had purchased Mists of Pandaria Siori would already be 90 just from questing and Tum would be 90 or close just from questing and dungeon healing. That’s how I’m wired.
Thing is, I can’t be that type of player anymore. Not that I even want to, mind you (and I don’t fault those players either). My lifestyle and family has changed a lot even since Cataclysm launched. I have expectations and responsibilities that would get sorely neglected if I tried to be the player I was/would be. Work would suffer, family would suffer. I would suffer. I know that. I might not have considered it when I first decided I wasn’t buying Mists, but I most certainly recognize it.
I understand not everyone can do that, and quite frankly some will never stop to take the time. But the thing to remember most is be the type of player you want to be without having to sacrifice important things. It’s so much more than that, but at the end of the day World of Warcraft is a game. And games are supposed to be fun. If you’re not having fun, then it’s time to take a step back for a moment or two and evaluate things.
I’m famous again!! I’m on the interwebz!
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!
You’re downright worldly.
Well, I know you have commitments. I sometimes wonder if it’s hard for you watching all your friends at 90 and talking about things you’re not doing. Perhaps that is what inspired this post. And I admire you for sticking to your guns and to what you enjoy.
It’s really not hard at all seeing folks hit 90. I’m not saying it’s the case with you, but I’m sure for some people it’s hard to understand. I’m just quite comfortable with where I’m at.
Honestly Magik and I just had a really good conversation about not becoming elitist or rather the type of person who is suddenly “above other players” in terms of attitude. So after we had the discussion I got to writing this post because I thought it was great food for thought.
I agree with almost everything in this post. As I’ve become more and more “hardcore” over the last few years, I always try to remind myself of what a noob I once was, and I firmly believe that there is no “wrong” way to play the game. (There are ways to play certain aspects of the game poorly, but there’s nothing wrong with being a raider, PvPer, quester, altoholic, AH maven, pet collector, transmogger, etc or any combination of the above.)
However, I disagree slightly when you say, “Don’t be the jerk who says ‘Google it’.” In rebuttal I say, “Don’t be the lazy ass who expects me to look up everything for him.” I don’t mind answering honest questions from people. In fact, I’ve been known to spend half an hour after a pug random dungeon explaining something like, “hit cap, expertise and the importance of melee attacking from behind” to random strangers who honestly didn’t know and were willing to learn. However, it really, really irritates me when someone never even tries to look up the answers for themselves, and always pester other people to look things up for them. If I am tabbing out to WoWhead to find the answer for a random guildie, then that guildie should be taught how to use WoWhead for themselves. Because I am not Google. I am busy with my own activities in-game, and I should not have to hand-hold other people because they are too lazy to look things up themselves.
So, in conclusion, answering the occasional honest question = good. Constantly having to look things up for the one guy who’s too lazy to tab out = bad.
tl;dr version: Give a man an answer and he’ll quest for 5 minutes then come back to you with another question; teach a man to WoWhead and he’ll look up the answers for himself and leave you to play in peace.
I agree with Khizz on that one – I once spent about an hour talking to a random guy from a dungeon I’d tanked – it started out with him needing on a tanking ring because it had strength on it; and so in that respect it was a significant upgrade for him. I explained about secondary stats, and that each class/role has certain ones that are more important than the others. I explained the hit/exp thing, how to read it on your character sheet, and the like. And then I told him about a few sites that would help him out, and suggested some search terms for finding a good warrior forum for the type of play he wanted.
He thanked me very much for my time, and two weeks later sent me an ingame mail (from a lvl 1 alt on my server) thanking me for spending so much time with him – he’d gotten a seat in a secondary raid team on his server because of my advice. I cannot imagine that the biggest part of that advice was suggesting how to get “expert” advice from the interwebs. The little things I did explain couldn’t have been enough to turn the tide to get a raid spot.
I think the difference is “Google them off” is more about how you go about it. If a guildie asks me a question, and I think it’s because they don’t know how to find the answer, it’s not telling them to go find out for themselves, it’s showing them the tools they need to become a better player.
Yeah, I think you’re right in the “how you go about it.” Basically, I think Magik’s exact words were “Don’t be a dick.” lol
I agree with what you’ve said here. I think there is a balance though, where you can provide a little help on occasion. I mean, I know a lot of the trivial stuff, or things I find trivial, and I’m happy to answer people if I have that information. But you’re right, when you become someone’s personal WoWhead, then it’s a bit much.
Oh totally. I don’t mind helping people out generally, but when it becomes obvious that they never bother to look things up on their own? That’s when I get irritated.
*nods vehemently*