Ninja looting

#0 - Oct. 8, 2010, 5:03 p.m.

Okay, before I get flammed or trolled I would like to share a little story before I dive into what it is I am upset about:

"I was in Forge of Souls and this Needle-Encrusted Scorpion drops. I select need as I am DPS and right after the tank who is a paladin selects need also and wins."

I tell him, why are you rolling on that to begin with? For crit or ArP (which is from what I understand a stat not worth investing in as I have a retri paladin myself) but he insists its an upgrade but he clearly nowhere said he was going to roll on that when we entered the instance.

My philosophy has been main spec > off-spec.

Now here's where people respond: "It's WOW, move on or it drop tomorrow, etc."

I have ran with guilds, with people I know, and pugged and it has never dropped over the past 45 runs I have done and when it finally does which happens to be a pug its taken by someone who does not need it.

There was a shaman healer with us who expressed if she could roll on it when it dropped and for that I was perfectly fine with it as she asked -- what I was not happy about was the Paladin tank who told me to chill.

I don't get the whole stance on ninja looting or the whole loot system but I'm curious to ask, should then ninja looting not be seen in a negative light? I say this because nothing is penalizing he or she and they continue this behavior without punishment. This could be anyone, from guilds, pugging, or someone you think you know but find out they are not who they are.

I am tired of running dungeons and finding people taking stuff they don't need whether its me wanting the item or someone that I know or don't know.

I watched a Hunter select need on Tyrannical Beheader over a Death Knight. I honestly do not understand the policy Blizzard runs here and sorry to sound like a QQer but when you've played this game since 2005 and while its not since 2004, I think you begin to hate crap like this when it happens.

If people can ninja loot or whatever and not punished, then why can't I go out and buy gold or something of that lines? I mean, ninja looting ain't hurting nobody -- why should buying gold or something like that hurt anybody too?

I'm frustrated when justice is not served and quite honestly I don't understand why behavior like for instance a tank gets angry and decides to pull a bunch of mobs and then leave and thus wipping the whole group gets away with all that and continues to enjoy the game without penalty.

Please do explain all this. I am totally out of sync with how the game policy and how the behaviors in-game are setup.

Nevalistis

#11 - Oct. 8, 2010, 10:53 p.m.

Andavin, there's a few points I'd like to cover here.

"Ninja Looting," as commonly defined, is simply not possible in World of Warcraft. To ninja loot is to take something you did not earn from someone else. There is no system in World of Warcraft that allows this behavior - every player eligible for loot has access to the items dropped in some way.

As for the current Need for Greed system, which appears to be the one you are experiencing issues with, we have fairly recently taken steps to narrow the access to certain items among classes. You may only select 'Need' for items that your class can equip and use, as well as only items of the highest tier of armor type you are able to equip. As an example, Druids can no longer roll on cloth, while Warriors can no longer roll on leather. This system isn't perfect - I'm not sure a perfect loot system that everyone will agree on will ever truly exist. But if you feel that there are ways it could be made better, or have thoughts on how to improve it, then please let our developers know in the Suggestion Forums.

Keep in mind that others of the group could be in a similar situation as you, where they are looking for a particular item, but queue as a different specialization to get there. I've certainly queued as a tank before for the faster queue time, but aimed at instances that would improve my dps set (which was truly my character's main specialization). Some players may be forced to enter as DPS because their tank or healing sets aren't good enough yet to fulfill those roles. Ordinarily, I make that known, but not everyone is always quite as social or straightforward. The comment you describe that player using might be a bit rude, but his class can use and benefit from that item, even if it may not be "best in slot." Going from a quest blue to an epic, sometimes regardless of the stats on the item, can at times be a big upgrade.

I hope I've provided some insight on the issue. The player you encountered could have just been being impolite - but he may have genuinely had use for the item too. If a player is able to roll need on an item, then they can make use of it in some way. A player's intention is something that is much more difficult to quantify in a coded loot system.

On a somewhat related note, if you ever feel you have truly been the victim of a scam, where a player has intentionally deceived you in order to benefit themselves, our Game Master department would be quite happy to investigate. Please understand, however, that we are not always able to provide reimbursements after such investigations, though we may apply appropriate penalties or reclaim ill-gotten goods.

What is Blizzard Entertainment's stance on "ninja looting" within the World of Warcraft?
http://us.blizzard.com/support/article/17761

Scam Policy
http://us.blizzard.com/support/article/20459