Greedy Goblin

Thursday, December 1, 2011

The only way to stop ignorance is to write

Playing RBGs with non-fixed roster is a constant exposure to stupid behavior. Currently - and probably until being able to form two groups - we are condemned to play in the 1400-1600 range, which is - by definition - average. We can argue what is the basis where we are average, as most people did not use rated BGs, hence Blizzard changed it to 10-men only and allowed skipping them while maxing conquest. Being average among the top 10% isn't bad, but it's not the point today.

The points are the fails themselves. I often see terribly stupid mistakes, ones I would never do. My gut reaction is calling him idiot. But it doesn't help in any way. Then what? Are we condemned to have a fixed roster or to boost a collection of failers forever? Far from it.

The solution is writing. I constantly update the Rated BG Strategies page. I will include every mistake I encountered and advise not to do it.

The term "morons and slackers" is not and cannot relate to intelligence or previous experience. A system where someone without prior knowledge appears as a M&S, is elitist and classist. You either have the needed knowledge or you don't and then it's game over. Game can't be over for someone who is not an idiot or lazy.

"Morons and slackers" can only refer to someone who refuses to use or to accept the resources available for improving. Someone who runs away from the group in Warsong to intercept the EFC is not an "idiot" or "useless". He is ignorant. If there is resource available to him that tells him not to do so, and he still does it (either because he didn't read or he did not care), he is useless.

The written resources are something that must exist to call anyone M&S. If you are pointed to a class guide and you still have Str plate as holy paladin "lulz higher ilvl", you are M&S. If there is no guide, you are just new, unlucky.

The efficient goblin is halfway between liberals-socialists and conservatives. Conservatives condemn you for breaking rules never trained to you. Liberals-socialists would call you "unlucky who needs help" after making the same mistake several times despite specifically told not to. A goblin gives a chance, a guidance in form of written information, not because he is nice, but because someone without prior knowledge can be useful after training, it would be a waste to lose him. A goblin however doesn't tolerate laziness and refusal of following the info given to you. If you run the wrong way in a BG, I show you the info page. If you run the wrong way again, I replace you.

Failure must have consequence or the leeching M&S will keep on feasting on us. But there must always be information available how to fix failures if one wants to.

Some failures are funny to us. I mean what's the point of writing a "don't use it to dry wet animals" on  the microwave oven"? Only a retard would do it! No. Someone with our knowledge about modern tools needed to be mentally ill to do it, that's true. But an old woman who was schooled before the invention of these machines could reasonably believe that "it's another heater machine like the hair dryer". So it is possible for you to find funny items on the page. Feel free to laugh. I rather add a "stupid" mistake to the list than lose a match to a new player doing it.

6 comments:

Ahtchu said...

/applause

It's one thing to identify a problem. It's another to propose a solution. And quite another still to implement one. That's a very comprehensive guide- a bit lengthly perhaps?

Failure must have consequence or the leeching M&S will keep on feasting on us
Truth is like the sun- hard to look at directly. A good series of posts lately.

Xaxziminrax II said...

You make it sound as if Henry David Thoreau was the greatest goblin to ever live. Although, as I've read Walden, I wouldn't doubt that claim.

Anonymous said...

Yesterday is played this "Strand der Uralten" Beach of ancients i guess in english. There is no big guide to play it. 2 Groups, destroy the tanks and defend the doors, where tanks are. What happend?

2 guys on green, the rest on the blue gate. Several times i called for help on the green gate, then the purple, and than the last gate. What happend again? 6 Players zerged the blue gate, we lost nearly instantly.

M&S are bullshit and anoying players. Go your way goblin, i hope you could change something.

Anonymous said...

SotA isn't a well designed BG to farm honor. I skipped it most of the time.
You have two possibilities. You can either join the Zerg in order to keep the morons alive so they can focus on the tanks (Gevlon wrote another post where he describes how to handle with thos Zerg-people) or you can try to break undefended/-mounted Tanks to 1%, so they will fall in an instant when they try to move forward.

But well...the whole BG is more or less all about zerging.

Keep your work up, Gevlon *Thumbs up*

Anonymous said...

after looking at your RBG page i note the following:
You can even have full resi versions of 2-gemmamble gear pieces.
Where gemmamble, is not a word (Gemable i think it´s suposed to be) also that paragraph is not at its clearest i think, but otherwise a good read.

Rorik said...

There is definitely a lack of educating tools for WoW (and Star Wars from what I've seen in the beta). Finding the information on blogs and forums can be a painful task and you have to be motivated to do it.

The big fail is with Blizzard not making it crystal clear what some of the basics of the game are. An example would be with Paladins. Where does it tell a new player what the primary stats are for each of the three talent trees? I've had friends play the game and make some painful mistakes with gear and stats and they aren't dumb people, they just don't know where to go do figure this stuff out.