Gear Taking Etiquette

A lot of the reason people get so ticked off in WoW is because of gear. There are 3 kinds of people in WoW with regards to loot.

1. The Cartmans. Some people call them loot whores. These people will roll on anything that is useful to them, even if it's an upgrade of one stat. This becomes more apparent when the player is a hybrid (druids, shamans, and paladins beware).

2. The Dumbasses. These people don't know anything about what is an upgrade for them, and will roll on things that they don't need, and will pass on things that should be absolutely essential.

3. The Brady's. These people are so nice, that anything, no matter how nice it is, is someone else's until no one else needs it. Even if you're sitting around with a green quest trinket, and the other guys have blue trinkets, you don't really need that trinket.

Everyone probably tends to act like a Cartman or a Brady for the most part. The dumbasses just need to learn what stats are good for them. Taking some time to sit down with them and help them see what they need gear-wise and to learn what is an upgrade and what is not, is essential.

The Cartmans' and the Bradys' are tough eggs to crack sometimes. Put them in the same raid, and all of the Cartmans' will have all of the loot, and the Bradys' will have none. Not a good situation.

Now in playing WoW, you have far more Cartmans' than Bradys. So how do you deal with Cartmans? A smart Cartman (one with Kenny sharing his body) will wait until no one else needs an item before he rolls on it. Now, lets say you're an elemental shaman. If there are no other shamans in the party, you get dibs on anything that drops that hunters don't want. But when it comes to trinkets, rings, necklaces, and cloaks, you have to be more tempered. It takes a long time before you end up with a really nice necklace for all of the roles that you play.

So remember, you have a primary role. If you're a healer, you can roll on any healer loot that is an upgrade. If a DPS item drops, and no one else wants it, roll with any other healers who would want it. Make everyone who could use it roll. If they won't, then it's yours.

Just remember the following things:
1. If you've gotten an item that night, and you keep rolling on stuff, people will start to wonder if you're a team player. Yes it's frustrating rolling on the second best neckpiece and then having the best neckpiece drop. It's part of the game. Just remember that if everyone in your group is part of your team, at least a teammate got it.

2. If you're sporting an epic cloak, and an upgrade drops. And you roll and someone with a green cloak rolls, see what you can do to let them have it. It's an enormous upgrade for them, and it will make the team stronger.

3. Try to take "frequency of use" into context as well. Lets take Murien and myself for example. Murien will once in a while go moonkin or DPS in an instance. No one wants to see me DPS (QQ) so I might as well let Murien have first dibs on DPS gear. It only makes sense.

4. Come prepared as to knowing what you would like to drop. Nothing is more annoying to someone who wants an item than to have to wait 30 more seconds to find out if that would be an upgrade for someone. If you're serious, research the fight. Let there be no surprises. Find out what that proc rate is...find out if it's a true upgrade. If it isn't, then don't roll. If it is, roll big.

Don't forget that not everyone in the group is necessarily reliable. You can't be letting a newcomer have 5 pieces of loot if other people need them. If things drop and no one needs them, no sense in letting them sit there and be sharded. Might as well take it (Burdin and Azi come to mind. They aren't Cartmans, just extremely lucky. Except for Azi; he's still a Cartman, cause he's a fat short guy who yells obscenities.) But remember, these people can hop off of the face of the earth. This is one reason why I let newer people come and roll even if they haven't run with us before. If they have been running with Team Blue, then they are considered a part of the team and thus reliable. As long as the loot is being used by someone in the raid, it's helping the group.

Just try to remember these things when that item drops. People will respect you a lot more if you follow these guidelines. If anyone wants to add their own rules, stick em in the comments. I'll be happy to add them to the list.