Wandering Alliance has gotten a lot of new members recently, some of whom have little or no raid experience. When an experienced raider applys, the decision is easy. Usually they get a quick invite assuming we have room, or they are obviously stupid and are rejected. Inexperienced raiders are much harder to evaluate. My recent experiences with rebuilding WA have gotten me thinking about what I look for in an applicant. So here are some tips on how to get into a raiding guild for new raiders.
Quality of play is obviously the most important factor when considering a new applicant but that is really hard to evaluate unless you know the applicant or do test runs. Since most guilds do not do test runs there are three main things guilds consider when looking at a new applicant: Talent Spec, Gear, and Application. How much each of these matter depends on the guild and the needs of the guild. However, putting effort into all of them goes a long way.
Talent Spec:
Your spec may not seem all that important because it is so easily changed, but it is a great indication of how well you know your class with regards to raiding. First you should research raid specs for your class. There are tons of resources out there that explain almost every class and spec. Skipping what is considered a must have talent can cause your application to be ignored. If you are currently using a PvP spec or Solo spec then post what your Raid spec would be when you apply. If you have made some uncommon choices in your spec explain why, but understand that your reasoning may not fit in the guilds style or needs.
Gear:
Gear means a lot of things and will be looked at a lot of different ways. Here are some of the more common views.
1. How much work do you need? Even if you are the best player in the world, having gear significantly below the guilds current progression means the guild will need to put a lot of effort into you. It is also an indication if they will have to run old content to get you attuned to their current progress. Its not a deal breaker if the guild really needs your class and spec, but someone that can step right in has a definite advantage.
2. Enchants: Not having enchants on your gear is seen as not being very serious about your performance. They don’t necessarily have to be the most expensive. Putting +15 Spell Damage on a pair of green bracers is kind of stupid since you should replace them quickly, but putting +12 Int is a smart choice. It shows that you are making a reasonable effort to maximize your performance.
3. Gems: All sockets MUST be filled. Put cheap green gems in if you have to, but all epic gear should have blue quality gems. Research what stats benefit your class the most and socket accordingly. Also, be aware that the best choice may be ignoring the socket bonus.
4. Crafted Gear: Some of the crafted gear available is much better than some of the stuff available from T4 content. If you can craft a piece of gear that is better than your current piece then do it. A Shadow Priest Tailor without Frozen Shadoweave will draw questions. Since this is some of the easiest gear to obtain, not doing so is highly looked down on.
5. Instance Gear: This should be your main source of gear pre-kara. There are some great pieces from quests and professions but that can’t fill every slot. Research what type of gear suits you best, and find out where it drops. The more effort you put into improving your gear the better you will look.
Application:
This is the most important aspect of getting into a good raid guild. A great app can cause the guild to overlook your less then stellar gear. A bad app will cause you to be ignored even with the best gear. Here are a couple things to remember:
1. Fill out the entire application and provide detailed answers. When asked what are your characters strengths, the wrong answer is “CC and high DPS.” Stating the obvious like saying CC in a short answer doesn’t help you. Giving a well thought out explanation will help you dramatically.
2. Grammer and Leet speak: Anyone that has read this blog knows I am not the best at this, but grammar is really important when trying to make a good impression. Most guilds won’t care about a few errors, but an app filled with errors will raise doubts. Also do not use leet speak. Its fine while joking around over vent or in the guild channel, but a guild app should be serious. Most guilds are run by adults that find leet speak very annoying. Leet speak will not help you and will probably hurt you.
3. Humor: Making someone laugh can automatically make him like you. So humor is not necessarily a bad thing, but it should be used with caution. Sarcasm does not translate well in text and can easily be taken the wrong way. When making a joke, make sure its not at the guilds expense and complemented with a lot of serious responses also.
4. Finally, be respectful and humble. Being confident in your abilities is one thing but nobody likes a jackass.
Guild Update:
I got the dreaded “Are you happy here” question this weekend from the GM. Apparently he saw my application at Legacy. It’s not that big of a deal since I did post the app a while ago and I am happy with how things are going at WA. We are making progress and starting to get some high quality recruits. Now if we could just get a few more healers we would be set.
Toon Update:
Graylo – Raiding, Farming, Heroics.
Graypal – I pooled a lot of gold together and got him his epic mount. I am very poor right now but that should improve soon after I do some dailies.Grayfel – I worked on him a little. I wanted to use all his rested xp over the weekend but it didn’t happen. I did get him up to 28 though.
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