Just like last week we're going to talk about a way in which people accidently troll other players. This week we're going to be talking about I level snobbery. For those of you that don't know, a I level/ILV/I score/gear score, is a rating placed on gear by Blizzard in order for players to gage it's relative quality. These ILV's are also used by Blizzard to gate content. At various points in the game (most notably at end game) certain dungeons and raids require not just a minimum character level but also a minimum ILV. Blizzard imposes these requirements like a carnival has a height chart you have to measure against before you can ride the really dangerous rides. This helps to keep players from getting in over their heads. There is however a few problems with this system, as with all other brilliant systems, it involves people and free will. Therefore, we're screwed. The problem breaks down into two sections; snobs and newbies. We'll start with the snobs as this is the more obvious form of trolling. Some players think themselves better then others and impose their own set of
requirements for this gated content. These players, at the start of a encounter, will use the gear inspection function in order to decide if the other players meet up to their standards. If a player doesn't meet their standards they will remove them from the group by one means or another. Typically this is done by using the vote to kick function. Players manage this by controlling the majority of a group with ether friends or guild members. This allows them to kick any player they want for any reason with total impunity. This can also be done by controlling key positions in the group, such as the tank and healing positions, and refusing to start the encounter until the people they don't like are kicked out of the group. Rather then wanting to wait in the outrageous raid ques, the other players in the group will let themselves be bullied into being bullies. Truth is these players think their performing a public service by kicking the under geared player before the encounter starts. That way the group doesn't have to lose worlds of time and gold to gear repair from repeated wipes. As well intentioned as these players may think they are, Blizzard put the actual standards in place, and if it was good enough for the makers of the game it should be good enough for any of us. New players have to play in increasingly difficult content in order to get better gear. That's how progression works. We were all the new guy once, try and remember how it feels. Additionally just like the old saying goes, the cloths don't make the man, it's the man that makes the cloths. So let new players, play and they might surprise you. The flip side of this coin is that as a new player you shouldn't just jump right into the new content as soon as it opens up just because you can. I can drink a whole gallon of milk in five minutes, that doesn't mean that I should. In fact, just like the raids and dungeons, this would end in a truly unfortunate and squishy way. You should continue to farm the content you are currently working on, get as much gear from it as possible before moving on to the new hotness. This will make sure that you and the rest of your group stand a far better chance of completing the content and doing so in a timely manner. It will also help to make sure that you have more fun doing it.
Remember we're all noobs, some of us just fly the flag a little higher.
-Morison
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