Raiding is hard - No malarky

So I just got done reading an editorial over on Massively.com that I thought I would bring over here and share. The article is from their "Soapbox" feature and it is discussing Eliot Lefebvre's perspective on how it came to be that he and his wife were elitist jerks.

I can say that I have had nearly exactly the same experience; I applied to a guild that was already clearing BT and was ramping for their foray into the Sunwell. I had just rolled a fresh and fantastic Elemental shaman and I was 70 for a hot minute. The rationale for me to have the ele shammy was really free lightning bolts. I was just completely enamored with the idea of free damage just happening because of the precise amount of awesome I was...

BEHOLD! the "Majesty" of Shammy T6 kids!

The guild I joined was looking for dedication and not gear which was lucky for me because I had the time to be dedicated and the will to be a great raider.

Now it helps that I am an above average video game player and I knew my class in and out. What my skill lacked elitistjerks (Binkenstein rules) cleared up for me along with a little help from my old friend Autohotkey.

So I started raiding and in the beginning the addiction to upgrades is blinding. When you are wearing gear that is holding you back and you get an upgrade and get the instant gratification of the graphical change along with the increased numerical representation in Recount it is a real buzz.

The challenge is that over the years you end up in these repetitive wipe festivals trying to progress on content that would simply break the will of lesser organizations. You feel buffered by your friends in the guild in these situations; but the reality is that it is painful, long, tedious hours staring down fight mechanics that feel like or are borderline impossible; hundreds and hundreds of wipes later you get into the rage of missed upgrades that massively.com refers to and feed off of that energy within your raiding organization.

What is more is that it is likely that you become "competitive" - that is to say that perhaps it turns out that your guild is competing to be in the top 100 guilds in the US or something to that effect. This meta-achievement is what continues to compel you to compete even though the joy in it is long gone...

It starts off fun and exciting but it quickly turns on you and before you know it you are compelled to do something you dont actually want to do.

Source: Massively.com

P.s. Yes - I realize I just revealed to you precious internet just how much of a complete and total nerd I am <3

DC Comics: The New 52

Just a few weeks ago, DC Comics did something that can be viewed as the riskiest corporate move in recent comics history: They rebooted their entire line of comics. Now, and DC reader will tell you that this is not the first time something like this has happened in this universe. But this time, they're also incorporating Jim Lee's Wildstorm Universe into the main DC universe - they're also folding the Vertigo titles back into the DCU proper.

What does this all mean? It means that the Justice League is just gathering for the first time. Superman and Batman aren't old buddies. Wonder Woman has not yet been sent to the world of Man as the Amazon ambassador. Everything is fresh and new, and the public at large in the DCU seem very apprehensive about these new super-people (and presumed super-people like Batman) flying around in costumes.

Being a Marvel guy, I have to say that it all feels a lot like the Marvel Ultimate line, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. Of the new titles, I've only read Justice League #1 so far, and I highly recommend it. I mean, it's got Jim Lee's art and Geoff Johns' words in there...do I really need to say anything else?