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Raid Tips Guide
Hey guys, after reviewing feedback on the boards for good
raiding tips, we're ready to show off our first iteration of our
'Raid Tips Guide'. We'd like everyone to take a pass at what
we've written and provide some more feedback, to ensure that
this guide covers as much as possible, is still very
user-friendly, and most importantly makes sense and provides
valuable information.
On that note, please have a look. ;)
Raiding Tips
Taking part in dungeon raids can be an adventure and a challenge
for those participating. Raid dungeons take careful planning,
coordination, knowledge, capable leaders, and skilled
participants to conquer them. We have created this primer based
off of community feedback to provide players with some tips on
how to best organize and run a successful raid.
Selecting a Raid Leader
The raid leader can influence everything in the guild from
recruiting, guild gathering (herbs/mining/recipes), to global
guild plans. A capable raid leader is a player who is highly
knowledgeable about the game’s mechanics, layout of the
dungeons, and the specifics of each class’s role in a raid
setting. Having this knowledge will help them to be effective at
managing and organizing players of each class. It’s important
that they are capable in problem-solving, should any
disagreements arise between raid members. It’s also important
for the leader to be able to remain calm when things go wrong
and encourage raiders to continue the battle.
It can be beneficial to designate several qualified raid leaders
in the guild.. This can help divide up the issues one may face
when taking on the large responsibility of being a raid leader.
Having multiple raid leaders is also helpful during times when a
key leader isn’t able to log into the game.. Alternate leaders
can then step into the role and ease any anxieties that a group
might feel due to absence of their normal raid leader. .
Create a Guild Raiding Calendar
Consider creating a calendar of raid times that takes advantage
of when your guild has the most members available. Let guild
members know well in advance when a raid is scheduled to occur
so that they can plan accordingly. You can create a sign-up
sheet and ask players to sign up in advance. That way you will
know who is showing up and can organize the raid effectively.
There are also free website calendar programs you can use on
your personal guild web site as well. At the very least, it’s
always beneficial to create a forum post with the raid schedule
for members to be able to plan their attendance accordingly.
Raid Scheduling
It’s often a good idea to schedule raids around the times that
the raid dungeons reset. You can see when each dungeon resets by
following the link below. You should also try to pick times that
align with the play schedule of the majority of the guild. Be
flexible with your start and end times and be prepared to
substitute people in and out as the raid progresses, since
people may either arrive late or need to leave early from the
raid.
https://www.worldofwarcraft.com/calendar/
Raids Spanning Multiple Days
Most raids can be completed in increments. Initially, when a
guild makes their first attempt at progressing through a raid
dungeon, it can often take several hours to advance from boss to
boss. As the guild begins to learn each encounter and perfect
their raiding technique, players will find that the time it
takes to complete the raid dungeon is significantly reduced.
Many guilds work toward this goal so that they can cut down on
the time investment of a particular raid dungeon and also
schedule in others.
It’s important to try and schedule raids with plenty of time to
allow for completion, otherwise the dungeon will reset on its
scheduled day and you’ll have to start from the beginning.
Consult the Raid Calendar when planning your raids to help make
sure that you can complete as much as possible before the time
of reset. Most importantly, be patient with yourself and your
guild if you find that it takes some time to learn a particular
dungeon, especially if you’re at the point where you can’t
complete the dungeon before its reset.
Selecting the Raiding Dungeon
Initially you want to focus on raiding dungeons that benefit and
better equip the majority of players. Once you have built up
your guild’s equipment and gain experience working as a group,
you can work to take on more challenging dungeons.
Upper Blackrock Spire (UBRS), Zul’Gurub (ZG), and Ruins of
Ahn’Qiraj (AQ20) are all good places to begin. Upper Blackrock
Spire allows 10 players to be in the instance at one point in
time, while Zul’Gurub and Ahn’Qiraj allow for 20 players. From
there many guilds head to Molten Core or Onyxia. Both of these
encounters allow for 40 players to be in the instance at one
time. Once those dungeons have been mastered, players often
challenge themselves with Blackwing Lair (BWL), and Temple of
Ahn’Qiraj (AQ40). Last but certainly not least is Naxxramas,
which currently, is the most challenging raid dungeon in the
game. Blackwing Lair, Temple of Ahn’Qiraj, and Naxxramas also
all allow for 40 players to be in the instance at one time. If
you’re looking for a non instanced experience there are multiple
outdoor raid encounters located in many points throughout
Azeroth, These can prove to be fun, challenging, and random.
Keep in mind, since the outdoor raid bosses are not instanced,
you may end up competing with other players for the victory. You
can follow the link below for more information on the outdoor
raid encounters.
http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/info/basics/raidarea.html#outdoor
Before Raiding
Add-Ons
While World of Warcraft comes with many raid interface options,
some guilds prefer to use specific 3rd-party add-on programs.
Check with your guild to find out if they have any preferences
on what add-ons their members should be using. Make sure that
anything your guild uses or suggests does not violate the
Exploitation Policy before you install it. Also, make sure
you’re careful when downloading programs from unknown sources
and always make sure that you’re running the latest firewall and
anti-virus software available.
http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowgm/?id=agm01716p
Voice Chat Programs
Some guilds also use 3rd-party voice chat programs to organize
and run their raids. They typically create a specific channel
for their raid and have members join the channel. The raid
leader then gives instructions via microphone and players can
listen through their headsets or speakers.. Make sure that if
you decide to use these types of programs that you do not use
anything that violates any of our in-game policies.
http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowgm/?id=agm01712p
Learning the Raids
Prior to the start of a raid, make sure that the entire raid
party knows which boss encounters are on the agenda. If the raid
leaders are familiar with anticipated encounters, make sure that
information is shared with everyone in the raid. Most often,
guilds will have a section in their forums or website strictly
devoted to strategies for every raid dungeon and boss encounter
for their members to use as a reference. Understanding the fight
is always half the battle!
Raid Materials (Mats)
There are many items that can be useful to have when raiding,
such as resistance potions, flasks, healing potions, mana
potions, repair bots, and so on. These items are generally
referred to as consumables. Some consumable items are most
useful when given to a specific class, while others are items
that everyone can take advantage of. In many cases, guilds will
stockpile several items for their members to use. In order to
have all the consumables needed for the entire raid party each
week materials will often be collected and made available prior
to the raid starting. At the highest level of raiding, this
becomes very important.
Get It Put Together First!
· Make sure that guild members bring their required items to the
raid such as: resistance sets, correct equipment, potions,
bandages, reagents and so on.
· Make sure guild members have their required dungeon keys, if
needed. Remind everyone prior to leaving for the raid location..
Example: “Don’t forget your Onyxia key!”
· Sometimes providing lists of items needed for each raid
dungeon can help members better prepare ahead of time.
Repair Before Raiding
Make sure guild members repair all of their equipment prior to
raiding. This point can’t be stressed enough. Having to place a
repair bot shortly after a raid begins because a member or
several members have broken gear can become expensive.
Having multiple repair bots is always helpful in case the need
to repair arises.
Loot
Before raiding, each member should know, understand, and agree
upon the loot rules. Having this aspect of the raid understood
by all will help prevent loot disagreements.
Master Looter
Many guilds feel that it’s a good idea to assign a very
trustworthy player the role of master looter. The raid leader
can set this option by right-clicking on his or her character
portrait and selecting the master looter option. The master
looter needs to always have as much available bag space as
possible since they will be the primary looter. Having a master
looter generally protects the guild from the possibility of
someone taking an item without the permission of the guild.
Starting the Raid
Determine an exact start time for the raid and start inviting
people to the raid prior to the raid start time. This time can
be used to make additional checks on supplies and allows people
a chance to finish up anything they need to do prior to the raid
beginning. Make sure all of the raiders are at the designated
starting spot prior to the start time.
Staging Point
Pick a spot for raiders to gather. On a PvP realm it can be
dangerous to head out to the dungeon one by one. Instead, it’s
recommended to gather somewhere like a flight path before
heading out. After the group is ready, start out. On PvE realms
the staging point is less necessary because there is no danger
of being attacked by the opposing faction, unless one of your
own members decides to flag PvP.
Summoning
Warlocks can summon players to the desired gathering point. In
order to summon a player, the warlock will need a soul shard and
the assistance of two other players in their raid party to click
on the summoning portal. It’s a good idea for guild members to
offer their warlocks help from time to time in gathering soul
shards.
Water & Food
One thing mages love to do is to summon food and water for the
raid. Okay, maybe they don’t love doing it, but it is something
that is important for the raid. Give your mages plenty of time
to create food and water, as it can take a while depending on
how many players are requesting this service.
Organizing Groups
Good raid leaders should have great organizational skills. It’s
important to look at the raid member’s panel and move all of the
classes and groups around until you find the group setup that
works best for your raid. Being flexible and adapting as the
raid progresses is also important. Often times it’s necessary to
make changes to your groups during the raid, as members come and
go, new bosses are reached, or if something is simply not
working.
Fighting a Boss
Fighting a boss can be one of the most exciting parts of the
raid dungeon, but it can also be one of the most frustrating.
These encounters are designed to be challenging, so remember to
keep things positive, and have fun. Victory will come with some
patience and focused play time.
Buffing the Raid
Make sure everyone is buffed prior to the fight. Buffs are the
spells that add benefits to another player’s statistics. These
include such spells as mark of the wild, prayer of fortitude,
paladin blessings, arcane intellect, and others. This is a need
that every buffing class should be well aware of, and the
appropriate materials/reagents (if needed) should always be on
hand.
Soulstones (Warlock)
Before fighting a boss, make sure to have your warlocks’ give
soulstones to select party members so that they can resurrect in
case of a wipe. Generally speaking, soulstones are used on
resurrecting classes that are not capable or resurrecting
themselves. This can help a raid group recover from a bad pull
or other miscalculation much quicker and get the raid
progressing again.
Explain the Fight
The raid leader or appropriate leader for the raid should
explain to everyone what the raid is about to do. This is
especially important if you have people that are new to the
encounters. Give them any necessary warnings and share common
mistakes or errors they should avoid. Ask for questions and
answer any questions you can prior to the fight beginning. Make
sure everyone knows what they’re supposed to do. It’s also good
training for future raid leaders and a refresher course for
anyone who might have forgotten the specifics of the fight.
Issue a Ready Check
Before the fight begins, make sure everyone is at their
computer. You can see if someone is AFK in the raid if they have
an AFK symbol next to the name floating above their head.. You
should also perform a ready check. You can issue this by using
the command “/readycheck.” Raid members will be prompted with a
dialogue box. If someone is AFK, do not begin the fight until
they have returned.
Pull the Boss
After the ready check, alert the raid that the fight is about to
begin and send the puller out to grab the boss. In some fights
multiple players will go out to pull. It depends on the
encounter you are facing. Generally hunters, warriors and (on
occasion) rogues do the majority of pulling.
Fight
If everyone knows their roles, the fight should go fairly well.
However, it may take some time for everyone to adjust to the
strategy involved in defeating a boss so try to be patient.
Trust in the group to do what’s needed to get the job done. When
the boss is vanquished, be sure to stick to your looting plan,
award the loot from the boss to the selected players, and move
on to the next challenge.
Wipe Recovery
There are many classes that are capable of escaping death even
if it’s at the aid of another class. Paladins can use divine
intervention (DI) on another player (preferably one that can
resurrect) which effectively kills the paladin but removes the
target from combat for 3 minutes. Warlocks can cast a soulstone
on another player which will allow that player to resurrect
themselves. Shaman can use reincarnation to self-resurrect and
then resurrect others.
Wipe
A wipe is defined as the entire raid dying to a monster or boss.
Before resurrecting, make sure the fight is entirely over and
all monsters have returned to their spots. Otherwise, when
players resurrect they could re-aggro the mob(s).
Wipes can be very demoralizing to a group that has been
progressing well. Players must endure repair costs, have lost
time, and must get back their momentum and enthusiasm for the
task at hand. Players can become very agitated and start placing
blame if they feel justified in their anger. It’s important that
the raid leader(s) take control of the situation and get
everyone back into focus. Players must take the time to be
resurrected or run back to the dungeon from the graveyard and
gather at a staging point. They then need to spend time
recovering their health and mana as well as begin recasting all
of their buffs so they can try again. A well trained guild can
learn to shrug off these setbacks, overcome them, and rebound
fairly quickly.
Downtime
Try to reduce downtime. Too much time consisting of players
going AFK, taking their time returning after a wipe, or even
setting back up after a previous battle can add a considerable
amount of time onto the guild raid.
Skinning
Some bosses or mobs can be skinned. The skins gained from these
raid areas can be very valuable. Make sure there’s someone
selected before the raid who is going to skin (and has the right
skinning skill and tools), that the person is trustworthy, and
that they send the skins to the appropriate trustworthy person
to hold for the guild.
Class Leaders
It’s a good idea to have class leaders for each class. They can
help lead the groups of classes in a raid. This helps take some
of the load off of the raid leader’s shoulders. For smaller
raids this may not be necessary. The best thing to remember is
to do what’s best for your guild.
When the Raid Ends
Oftentimes when the raid ends one or more mages will begin
opening group portals so that the raid party can port back to
one of the major cities. That’s the quickest way for everyone in
the raid to exit safely and move on to whatever they have
planned next, whether it’s doing some PvP, taking part in
another dungeon run or just logging out to spend time with the
family.
After Battle Summary
It’s always helpful for the raid leader or officers to do an
after battle summary. Inform members how the encounters went.
Point out how well everyone did, and offer suggestions on ways
everyone can continue to improve. This should be supportive,
encouraging and informative. Often times the best place for this
type of summary is on your guild site forums. .
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