Devil’s Advocate – Someone who takes an opposing position for the sake of argument, regardless of whether they agree with the stance they defend or not. This column will do just that, take a point of QQ and argue the opposite side.

Ahhh badges, who’d have thought that something intended to make getting upgrades easier would cause so much drama and whining eh?

*Adopts Freudian voice*

Ah-ah-ahem. Now I Doctor Rupert Charles Von Necrallion have some volunteers who wish to share their complaints of said badges and said upgrades. You shall analyse these statements with me to determine how much of their view is legitimate concern and how much is the gum flapping of bruised prides.

This is a slap in the face to everyone who raided the highest tier to get the best gear available!

Examine this statement with me if you will. The subject believes that a slap has been administered to his face in the form of an epeen shrinkage. Now, while the location of said slap is obviously incorrect as the epeen is a fictional creation and therefore not on the face, the real issue at hand is not in the statement but in the assumption made; that heroic badges purchase said best gear.

I do believe that the best gear as of pre 3.3 will come from 25 man Heroics, in this case Anub’arak that rascally devil of a Nerubian. Said 25 Heroic gear is of ilevel 258, but Emblems of Triumph only give you ilevel 232/245. Therefore this statement is incorrect. Those who defeated such a worthy adversary to plunder his goods will still have the best gear while those who farm 5 man heroics will not. Furthermore these brave men of the front will have access to the ilvl 264s that come from 25 man Icecrown Citadel, which is even further ahead of the measly 245s of badges.

I therefore conclude that this statement is gum flapping. Tally ho lads! Onto the next challenge

Now we can’t tell who is a bad player when they apply, we’ll be letting scrubs into our guild!

Observation! Observation! Observation! The ‘scrub’ as he is known lacks observation and care, therefore advice from places such as Elitistjerks will go unused. This in turn can be used to the guilds advantage by the observation of them in their natural habitat, I mean talent specialisation and equipment.

The scrub use of gems or ‘bling’ plays a strong role in such observations. By determining whether the gems are suitable for their role as well as being epic or rare plays a strong role. A practitioner of the dark arts or ‘Warlock’ as they prefer to be known has little use for Spell Penetration in a raiding environment, unless of course he is a practitioner and participant of more seedy forms of animated entertainment.

Furthermore by careful analysis of enchantments, this deduction can be further grounded in truth. With the considerable ease of acquiring raw materials it is not unreasonable to expect the best enchantments available for every piece of equipment. However some of these enchantments can only be acquired by being favoured by certain factions. Sons of Hodir in particular grant an excellent increase to statistics through shoulder enchantments. A player who has made little effort to be Exalted among them has made little effort to be in a progressed raiding guild yes?

The final and most obvious approach is to analyse their level of equipment. Even having access to the Emblems of Triumph, does not grant access to every piece of equipment required to succeed. Trinkets in particular remain untouched, and an astute officer will notice such discrepancies and act accordingly, preferably with gratuitous amounts of violence, I mean with diplomacy and understanding.

I therefore conclude that while this is a possible legitimate concern, the application of some care and observation on the officers’ part can negate the issue.

Why should terribads be allowed such good gear? Why do they even need it?

Firstly we must look beyond the statement and natural habitat of the ‘scrub’ and look to the rival species known as the verigoods. World Firsts are accomplished by verigoods through the use of relatively low levels of equipment. As they are completed within a few days of the challenge being made available there is no opportunity to gather gear. I would therefore conclude that the terribad does not need such gear, however neither does the verigood.

To truly appreciate the answer we must first ask a different question. Why do we play in this World of Warcraft? The answer of course is entertainment, for fun. Most, if not all, players find the acquiring of gear ‘fun’. There is enjoyment to be had in the progression of your character, the acquiring of equipment and the enchanting of it, the constant equipping and removal to see the increase of stats. Therefore while many players may not need the items to succeed, granting them access to the items fulfils a different need. The need for fun.

Furthermore as these items are of a lower quality to the newly released items of patch 3.3, there is no impact upon the verigoods play. They have a new playground to enjoy and a new selection of delicacies to be randomly allotted. Giving the table scraps to the less skilled or less fortunate players allows everyone a taste of the fun.

I therefore conclude that this is a legitimate concern in isolation. However once you factor in personal enjoyment as the goal the level of legitimacy is reduced to zero.

I’m a strong believer in the “you get out what you put in” ethos and hate the fact that those people who really put the time in aren’t truly getting the recognition they deserve.

This statement has been borrowed from the Soapbox.

Part of the argument was that it takes 210 emblems of Triumph to obtain full T9, which requires on average of 10 Heroics a day for five days. Madam if a brave adventurer is willing to endure unpredictable and possibly obnoxious people for 50 heroics, then I say that the good sir deserves every one of those items! Good show old chum!

I believe that acquiring equipment comes down to two things: Time and Effort.

Despite the ease with which a Heroic is completed, it still requires time and effort, even if the time and effort is in smaller amounts, the adding up of said time and effort would equal, if not exceed, that of the raider. The unpredictability of groups is a strong factor in this assumption as a lot of the entertainment gained from playing is reduced with the inclusion of an obnoxious player, turning what should be an enjoyable experience into a very not enjoyable one. If a player completes 50 Heroics for 5 items, there are still another dozen equipment slots left unattended to.

I therefore conclude that this madam has made the incorrect assumption that only high end raids require “putting the time in” and thus ignores the amount of time required to acquire just 5 items, never mind a complete set.

Conclusion

*gag cough* toffee nose accent, too rough on throat. *cough* Right! The conclusion.

This current badge system is how the game should work. You shouldn’t be restricted by your choice of guild or real life obligations in enjoying the game to its fullest, which includes getting gear. That little terribad kid who gets the badges to buy tier is having an absolute blast. He’s loving it! Why should his fun and enjoyment be reduced to protect the status of a handful of players?

The skilled players in the top guilds are still skilled players in the top guilds, their guild name is known throughout their server and possibly beyond, they have awesome titles like “Starcaller” or “Immortal” and ride on Iron-bound Proto-drakes and by end of Icecrown, Frost Wyrms or Arthas’ horse Invincible. They will still have the top gear of the time, stuff emblems can’t buy.

Patch 3.3 adds an important aspect to the game: Choice. Players can choose what guild they are in or even if they’re in one at all, and how to play the game without reducing the enjoyment of getting gear. In the end everybody wins, everyone and their alt gets access to good gear and the high end guilds get access to a wider pool of good geared players.

The only thing that is lost is player pride, which I do think old chum, you will agree with me that the game could do with a lot less of!

Now! Eliza! Hand me my Nesingwary 4000, there’s ospreys to be hunted! Tally Ho Wot Wot!

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