#1 - March 22, 2011, 3:41 p.m.
You asked for feedback regarding the current raid tier. I am writing as a Guild Master of a guild currently sitting on no Tier-1 Cata progression, and I would like to share a couple reasons I feel this is the case, but I must do so in context, lest the point be lost.
I first started raiding in the Naxx 2.0 era. Yes, this raid was rather simple toward the beginning, yet had encounters which required coordination in order to succeed, in turn required to even see Sapphiron, much less KT. I was in a guild at that time with the patience to teach me. Luckily for them, I was a quick learner.
After that experience, and moving on in the World for various reasons, I decided that was how I was going to run a guild when I eventually did so myself. That I would have the patience to teach people, so that they may also become good raiders and participate well in the community.
When I reformed my guild in the last 2 months of the expansion, I started out with a variety of raiders; from the competent and experienced to the opposing extreme, and gear ranging from heroic gear to moderate in-tier, and only I had any experience beyond the Plague Wing.
In 2 short months, I was able to get my raiders onto the same page, coordinated, and the guild quickly went from a reformed guild with none but naxx progression on record, to an ICC-H 6/12 guild, 71st in overall progression and 17th for 10-man casual progression (Guildox rating). Yes, that is something I am proud of. It is an accomplishment, earned by blood, sweat, tears and a few missing hairs. This wasn't because of how easy the encounters were... you have access to the numbers... 96 wipes on the Lich King.
Hyped by this, my guild was poised (and motivated) to dominate the server with the upcoming expansion. The anticipation was palpable.
Then, the paradigm changed...
And it's okay to want to change a paradigm, shake up the house. And it's okay to want to introduce new elements of difficulty. What we lacked, and still do, is a good boss or two not on a PvP timer which (while not an entire giveaway) doesn't have quite as many mechanics running at the same time. Give raiders a reason to WANT to continue further, to learn new types of mechanics, to learn how to mitigate them.
We are missing this in this current tier. If you wanted raids to remain at a high-ramped scale of difficulty with no training bosses, then it would have been better to stick to Wrath-paradigm mechanics. But, I think we both know that would've led to more disappointed players than we have now.
Now, to be fair... yes, I did lose players for non-raiding reasons, and this in turn threw our co-ordination overboard. But you asked for feedback on this specific subject, so it is the one I am addressing.
I guarantee you. Give me two raid bosses on a graduated scale to accustom people to this new paradigm, fresh out of heroics on 333 and 346 gear... and I can get almost ANY 10 people through ANYTHING you wanna throw at us. I mean that... ANYTHING. Just remember that first a human being needs some incentive to want to continue... and in this type of scenario that is to come to a raid and at least see one big, ugly dead thing.
I hope this feedback is even read... often I wonder. But moreover, I hope it is useful.
P.S. The grammar of the French translation on the Battle.Net maintenence page leaves much to be desired. If interested, please send me an email and I would be most happy to correct.
