Death to DKs!!!

Like everyone, I was excited when death knights (aka dks, deathtards, deathnoobs, or fucktards in general) were introduced to the game. Like most people, I rolled one just to try them out. After about a day or two playing the class, I grew very bored and weary of the toon--just like the vast majority of the people who have a dk. Why? Because with all of the things in which dks are capable, there are other classes that simply do the same thing so much better.

1. Tanking. To quote trade chat from the other night, "DK tanks are for people who DON'T know how to tank." I'm going to have to agree with that. Granted, there are some dk tanks who can tank, they typically have obtained that skill from playing either a warrior/pally/druid. Overall, the vast majority of dk tanks cannot tank--maintain adequate threat, hold aggro, or even use the overpowered crowd controlled abilities so lovingly gifted to their class. I've honestly have only seen one dk use death grip accordingly (i.e. a mob runs loose and attacks the healer).

2. DPS. Gone are the days of facerolling maximum dps. Thank you Blizz for that! It was frustrating for all classes to execute our respective rotations that we have so painstakingly taken the time to perfect (and figure out), only to see some jackass hit top dps by having an epileptic seizure on the keyboard. Downside--they are now more gear dependent. If I hated sharing gear with them before, believe me I do now!

3. Gear. See above. It was bad enough that fury warriors had to share most of our gear with ret pallies, but now..../shudder. Also, there seems to be a general lack of understanding towards gearing their toons and understanding the dynamics of gearing other classes. For example, far too many times have I been outrolled (on a need roll, no less) by a deathtard for gear that does not apply to their class.

4. Ninjas. Remember the days when most ninjas were rogues? Granted it sucked, but it made sense lore-wise with their class. It seems that dks have taken their place. To continue from #3's point, I've had dks need on practically EVERY roll. In one dungeon, I had one dk in particular ninja a bow from a hunter, shoulders from a pally, and a shield. Our group tried kicking him during the first roll, but for some reason the damn vote to kick thing didn't work...and I really needed the badges...damn. This certainly illustrates a huge problem in the need before greed system. According to the parameters set by the game, a dk should NOT have been able to roll need on either the shield or ranged item, but some how they did. An easy solution would be to fix that particular mechanism, but I have an easier one--just get rid of the damn class.

5. Rudeness and inability to play their class. I could go on for days on this one, but in a nutshell--facerolling and unnecessary shit-talking.

For all the dks out there that know how to play their class and are courteous, I'm sorry you have to be associated with such asshats. It's not fair to you, but as for the rest of your class, they're really not being fair to the rest of us.

Lokes the Patient

If there is one thing that I usually cannot stand, it's the random "know-it-all" asshat that ruins a run by their incessant nagging. Yes, sometimes a player could use a little advice or encouragement to do things differently if their current setup isn't working. But all and all, unless the group is failing miserably--let it go. If you have the misfortune of being grouped with an arms warrior that is wearing nothing but PvP gear and insists on tanking, then by all means speak up or leave the group and take the debuff. Just don't be rude about it. "WTF, THE TANK IS AN UNDERGEARED NOOB!!!" is unacceptable. Instead suggest that perhaps the current dungeon might be fairly difficult with the tanks current gear. You'd be surprised as to how far politeness can get you in-game. Another issue I've encountered is holding aggro, or the lack thereof and the associated impatience. For all intents and purposes, in this discussion we're going to assume a tank can produce adequate threat. If a single mob comes loose from the tank for whatever reason, don't assume that the tank can't hold aggro especially if it only happens once or twice. Help the tank (and the healer) in these situations. If it happens multiple times, then perhaps DPS needs to pull back and stop taking aggro from the tank. I know it sucks, but it may be necessary, especially if the tank isn't highly geared. And since we're on the subject--do us all a favor and turn OFF Recount. The next mage or dk that I get stuck with that insists on reporting Recount after EVERY (or any) fight is getting stabbed with a rusty spoon!

Left in the dust

I hate leveling. In fact, who doesn't? The grind from 1-80 is a real pain in the ass with a fresh toon on any server. Without having the benefit of a previous level 80 for heirloom gear or other benefits (including Recruit-a-friend), the long arduous journey can be quite frustrating. Back in the days of the Burning Crusade, I remember being a lv65 and being able to run some of the higher level, but not endgame content, yet none of the lv70's in my guild were interested in running with me. Farming badges and obtaining better gear were always a top priority. Even when I finally hit lv70, the gear I had still wasn't good enough to run most of the endgame content, and yet again, I was left in the dust. Needless to say, this left me feeling very frustrated and left behind. Akin to the adult version of playground exclusivity--"You're wearing THAT? Sorry, you can't play with us." And for some strange reason, it hurt just as bad in the virtual world as it did in the real one. So when I finally left my former guild and formed my own I vowed not to be an elitist asshat and to help others with leveling and eventual gearing. Why? Because I remember just how frustrating it was to be so very alone in a very group-dependent game.

Granted, it is possible to completely solo levels 1-80, but where's the fun in that? Especially when you are a member of a guild of supposed "friends" that have agreed to help you be the best player you can be. So then, how does one handle this situation when the people involved are also your friends in real life?

My current guild consists of people that I know in both RL and friends that I have made in-game. Because of our collective experiences, we have a rule that requires the higher levels to help out the lower levels and we provide incentives when doing so (extra DKP). This way no one is really "forced" to drop what they are doing and help the lower levels, but at the same time it encourages those who normally wouldn't be inclined to do so. Typically when I am online, I do not notice that this is an issue. I am typically quick to help out others because of my experiences, but today while taking a day off to deal with RL matters, I found out from another guildie (who is still leveling, btw) that his requests to run lower level content were completely ignored and he was literally left behind by his lv80, geared guildies. Unfortunately, one of those guildies is a RL friend of our guildmate. To say the least, I would have expected better from this person. And at the very least, I'm severely disappointed with regards to this situation. Officer meeting anyone?