What Exactly Does Blizzard Mean By This?

Since Wrath of the Lich King was announced, Blizzard has been preaching that players should be included in raids for their ability rather than the class that they play. This has been picked up by players and many are asking serious questions since they view it as not being complete fact yet. Here are some comments that Blizzard posted in the forums in response to various questions.

Q u o t e:
Come on. Be honest now. Are you guys over at Blizzard kicking yourself yet for saying that?

No, of course not. I'm thrilled that so many players got the message loud and clear. It must have been a half-decent soundbite. :)

Q u o t e:
Every single thread it gets quoted. Every time one class recognizes the tiniest of differences, the tiniest of advantages to another class, and out comes the quote along with demands for immediate buffs/nerfs to bring about 'equality'.

Yep, that happens. The same thing happens when a hybrid class fails to out dps a pure dps class (or even more likely, quotes a wws parse on a run in which they weren't even involved). One of the quirks I have noticed about the WoW forums is often (though certainly not in every case) the people shouting the loudest are not the ones directly affected, but the ones who have heard something second or third hand.

Q u o t e:
Am I the only one who thinks this phrase is getting trotted out entirely too much? That it's being too broadly interpreted? I mean, where's the line? Can I sit here and insist that my 5 DPS class group be a viable heroic composition? Insist on success for my tank-less 25 man?

I would mention some less extreme examples, but they've all really been suggested. I can't even parody or satirize them, cause people are actually making ridiculous demands about bringing all of one healing class to a 25 man and similar crap.

Blizzard couldn't have truly meant this the way people are taking it, could they?

We don't mean that you can select 10 or 25 random people and expect to succeed and thrive. The mantra is not "bring any player." The mantra is not "class is irrelevant." Instead, it means that the class (or spec) involved does not trump all other issues, which we felt was increasingly happening in BC.

We honestly heard from a lot of players (and experienced it ourselves) that a group might shelve a good rogue because bringing the shaman for WF was a better overall improvement for dps, even if the shaman was face-roller. That just sounds broken.

I think what happens is that players hear "Bring the player, not the class," and add to that "Well, I play my class flawlessly and have perfect gear," and conclude that any failure is because of the game mechanics and not their own skill or gear (and luck certainly plays a factor in any RPG too).

The intent is actually that when faced with who to invite to a 5, 10 or 25 player run that you can consider the player involved. You should never have to take a terrible priest over an excellent paladin just because the priest has some uber buff or required spell. If your guild has lots of paladin healers, then go run Naxx with them.

The emphasis on encounter design is more about execution, coordination or good old gear checks rather than "at this stage, a mage must cast Counterspell or the boss will wipe the raid."

When we are balancing numbers, we can assume that your group has +haste, +AP and +crit without you having to make sure that means a shaman, warrior and feral druid is with you.

You can find the thread here.


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Last Updated: Mar 13, 2016

About The Author

Byron has been playing and writing about World of Warcraft for the past ten years. He also plays pretty much ever other Blizzard game, currently focusing on Heroes of the Storm and Hearthstone, while still finding time to jump into Diablo III with his son.

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