Guide to Pick Up Groups

It's been a long day at work, and all you want to do is play your favorite game. You log in and start talking to your guildmates and friends, but none are free, and the instance you want to run requires more people. You wince as you realize there's only one thing left to do, and slowly type, "LFG..."

Pick-Up Groups, or PUGs, are one of the most dreaded things in any online game. Just what is it about PUGs that makes people hate them so?

The best bet is it's owing to a lack of understanding of how PUGs work. It's all too common for someone to just grab everyone they can get to fill out their group, without first figuring out how they fit. This random assembly consistently leads to groups that will wind up completely frustrated, and often bickering amongst themselves even while the enemy pounds on their heads.

How does one avoid these problems? That's our topic for today actually. We're going to take a look at the art of making PUGs fun for everyone.

The first consideration is to ask yourself if you're more comfortable as a leader or a follower. If you're a follower, don't try forming your own group! The person forming a group is the leader by default, and the one everyone else should be listening to. If you're not the leader, make sure you're listening to what the leader is saying. Leading a PUG is hard work, and the other members of the group should keep that in mind. He or she isn't trying to be bossy, they're trying to get everyone through alive!

If you're a leader, you're going to start by figuring out what you need to make your group work. Don't just grab anyone who's looking for a group just so you can get started. It's the most sure-fire technique to get the entire party wiped.

Once you locate someone that you think will work well for your group, send them a message before inviting them. Explain briefly what you're looking for and the looting rules you'll be using. They might point out they went completely opposite of what you thought they would, and won't fit. Better to find out now than when you start. By getting these questions out of the way early, the group can function effectively.

If they're interested in joining, invite them in and tell them what you feel you need to fill out the group. Make sure you let them help! They may already know exactly the person you're looking for. Even if they don't, allowing them to help find the people to fill out the PUG not only speeds up the process, but begins to build the feeling of being part of the team. In the long run, this makes it far easier to manage your PUG as you're already establishing yourself as an intelligent leader.

When the team is assembled, the leader should take a moment to explain a few things to everyone in the group. He or she should confirm for everyone they're the leader, and how they will command. This is also a good point to remind them of the loot distribution rules you'll be using, as well as how people should arrange themselves. Code words should also be discussed, such as typing "rear" to denote something's coming in behind the group.

Once the preliminaries are taken care of, it's time to set out! Remember to listen to the leader, and send them a private message if you see a problem or have a concern. If things are going badly, ask if the group can fall back for a moment to figure out what's wrong. NEVER under any circumstances just start insulting someone and blaming them for any failures. If they're doing something that you think is causing problems for the group, let the leader know and let them talk to the person about it.

With a bit of luck, you've made it through and accomplished what you all set out to do. Time to disband the group, right? Wrong actually. It's time to discuss the group to find out how everyone else felt about it. Feedback can be very valuable, and this is a prime time to get it. After all, people are going to be in town a bit selling loot and repairing gear anyway, so you might as well chat a bit.

Also, it may turn out the PUG will continue on. As the leader, there's some tough choices to be made here. If someone isn't working well with the team, it's the leader's job to explain to them that things aren't working out and why before removing them from the group and finding a replacement. Nobody ever said being the leader was easy.

In the end, if you follow this advice, you should have no problems becoming a contributing member of PUGs, and a welcome addition to most. Remember the key to a successful PUG is clear communication. If you have that, you can't help but be more relaxed, and have a blast!

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