Hey, Rev here. I have not posted in a bit so I figured I should get some sort of update out. So I have been raiding 4 nights a week. Ug. Actually it is not too bad but it does blow a lot of nights out of the water. The other guild raid, the raid formerly known as ‘raid 1’, runs on Sundays and Mondays. There was an attempt at getting a third raid off the ground, opposite Analogue’s and my run on Friday Saturday but it looks like that might not be going on any more. I think the guild could support another raid but really mid week might work better for the people that want such a run.
Anyway, Raid 1 had been having some personnel swaps and ended up with a tanking hole. A few weekends back they asked me to fill in with ‘squishy bear’. Also known as Reciprocal, squishy bear is my other 85 druid tank. People ask why I have two 85 bears…. Well… I like them, heh. Reversion’s gear is looking pretty sweet (just 2 blues left) but Reciprocal is still lightly geared (all blue with a handful of purple). Fortunately for Raid 1 I knew the fights they were in so I did not have any issue stepping in with the spare bear.
So since then I have been getting roped in week after week. Trying to convince myself it was just as a fill-in until they get another tank… well it looks like a long term arraignment. I have had some disagreements with a person or two in that raid… but hey, we are raiders and raiders know when to buckle down to business and ignore meaningless stuff. The raid is business and the show must go on and all that. And ‘go on’ it has The group is quite experienced and well balanced and for the last few weeks we have had the same crew each time. That helps a LOT. Our own raid, Analogue’s and mine, has had issues with that, as her last post mentioned, and that has really slowed down our progression.
The interesting thing about running with two groups is seeing strengths and weaknesses and seeing what works despite differences. For example the Friday Saturday crew tends to do a better job keeping the magmaw adds out of the melee. But the other raid, who sometimes fails at that tends to get them killed faster. The strats we use cause this difference as a natural outgrowth. One has everyone stacked in melee. That causes more rdps to not have to move and they get their firepower on target faster and harder. But that also means there are more chances for someone to be too far from melee and drop a set of adds on the raid. The other group has more people at range. This keeps the adds one where they can’t get to tanks and such but it also means the rdps is moving a lot and can’t kill them as fast. Interesting differences and tradeoffs.
I love tactics. I guess that is why I like raid leading. It does get hard being in someone else’s raid. I have to bite my tongue a lot. I have to keep my interjections to a minimum. Thinking of myself as a fill-in actually helps with that. I can shut up and let them do it the way they want to. That raid already has a lot of ‘cooks in the kitchen’ so one more, even if I have a high opinion of my own ideas, does not actually help the strategy. At some point more inputs just muddy things up. So for me it is an exercise in just looking for those critical bits I think need mentioned, or else just the bits that apply to my part of the fight.
So where are we at? Well ‘raid 1’ last week cleared 5 of6 in blackwing and this week we came back, did 5 of 6 and spent a whole next night wiping on the end boss. They also popped over and after a few wipes got their first kill in the Throne of the 4 Winds. So right now both raids stand at 7 of 12 bosses. Each raid has gotten ‘guild raid first kills’ on 4 bosses. The Friday-Saturday crew got got first kills on Halfus, Omnomnomitron, the 3 wind bosses, and the twin dragons. The Sunday-Monday crew has took first on Magmaw, Maloriac, Chimeron and Atrimedies. In three of the four of those on both sides the other raid went in soon after and downed that boss.
As you can see we are neck and neck. It is great that this guild can field two progression 10 mans. Right now overlap between the raids is 2 people on a regular basis with 1 or two more swapped in on occasion. Those people are usually alts. We have many people with multiple raid ready alts. (I have been killing raid bosses on 3 of my 4 85s)There is plenty of cross communication of strategies as well. We also are coordinating what epic level enchants we buy so the both raids will have access to the good stuff.
Each raid has gotten down one boss the other has not so the guild wide progression is 8 of 12. We have made guild attempts at two others. So as a guild we have fought 10 of 12. Personally I have been at the first downing of I think 7 of them and for 11 of the ‘raid first’ kills if I remember right. We expect to get a minimum of one more next week, perhaps two, and there is a smaller chance of 3. If we get lucky we are just a couple weeks from fully clearing all 12. More likely we are 4 to 5 weeks from that. Also it is the outer edge of that before any one raid or even one character gets all 12. Right now the Friday Saturday crew is working on the Ascendant Council and planning to go right into Chogall after that. The Sunday-Monday crew has been working on Nefarian but is considering if they want to go hit somewhere else first. I logged off before that discussion was done so I am not sure what that plan is for next week.
What I am trying to say with all these stats is that we are doing great! Grats to all Crits and Giggles raiders and keep up the good work! If Bliz holds off 4.1 just a little longer we can down all the normal heroic bosses before more content is out. And we are sure to get them down before any new raid content is out.
Raid group 3 which will be during the mid week will be both horribly tragic and phenominally fun—I can just feel it! I cannot wait for floor tanking!!
😀
I can’t spell, but also I wanted to say I am very proud of the groups!!! Crits and Giggles was not formed until February 2009 so it is our first real chance to stay current with raiding through an expansion pack. I’m proud of everyone for giving their all each week on these raids.
“Right now the Friday Saturday crew is working on the Ascendant Council and planning to go right into Chogall after that. ”
I’m not sure that going right into Cho’gall is a good idea untill 4.1. In the Cho’gall fight a key part is the killing of the slimes that spawn from the dead adds, 5 per add, stacking for each dead add. Right now our friday/saturday raid does not have the ranged AOE to do that.
We may be adding whodowhat to our regular lineup, or at least sometimes having him in, which will help our ranged out. But also eat up the clothie gear which is less ideal.
Woot go Crits!
I am sure ya’all will find a way to get those adds down! Keep on trucking!
It’s looking like I’ll be available. I’ll be confirming AGAIN with Moe to make sure. Cho’gall is absolutely doable imo. Although, I thought the adds spawn 4, then 8, then 12 and I was always asked to save my infernal for the 3rd set of adds. Can’t remember. I actually 2 healed (down to 3% darnit) on Anon last time I ran with Heroic Mode so it’s been a bit since I ran Who with them.
And yeah, having a few involved in both groups I think helps both groups for exactly what you’re saying Rev. I know you’ve been a help with ours, specifically a fairly quick 4 Winds down. Although, I must say I can’t remember the last time a worm found our melee group, :P, but it is unforgiving if a group doesn’t get stacked properly.
Although, on further reflection of your normal 8 priests and 2 tanks you unfortunately find yourselves with (slightly exaggerated for effect, lol), your usual hunter would probably need to be there to have a solid chance on those adds. DARN YOU BLIZZ, WHEN WILL WE PRIESTS HAVE OUR AOE BACK!
I know you normally have a much better raid makeup to start, I’m just playing around, but we really do need more than priests who can be backups. The guild seems to be overrun with them, lol.
I’d love to have a good, hard hitting hunter who WANTS to be there but I’ve yet to find one of those…
the Sun-mon raid drops at least one near the melee almost every weekend, but they get downed so fast it is not an issue. I usually typhoon them myself so they are only ‘in’ the melee for a second.
Hmmm, have to disagree with ya on that one. We had more adds in the melee on fri/sat imo due to them splitting up.
If we’re getting them on sun/mon, it’s probably that “extra” pillar you get when the chains are late. We’ll have to make sure Abby stays out until we’re sure there isn’t an extra pillar.
That’s the beauty of multiple strats though. You can pick which one works the best for that raid. I’m just glad we’re getting several perspectives this way.
Wait! I reread what you said, and you’re probably refering to the extra one. The worms don’t reach us on the planned ones, but you didn’t say they were reaching us, you said we dropped one near them. Yeah, we definitely need to keep Abby out JUST IN CASE we get one of those late ones. Good point.
Yeah, we did not get them IN us. The other raid did that more this week (the FS group had a much sloppier than usual magmaw) but that they dropped near us. I knocked them away right off and they died almost before they moved. In my posts I was comparing the difference between getting stray spawn points versus stray individual worms. The SM strat tends to err on the side of a spawn point out of place where as the FS strat tends to let adds wander… in both cases this is strictly the most likely failure mode and not the the proper execution situation.
*points at Rep* she has a hunter!
Not on our server!
Reversion has a hunter too but we need him to tank…
You know….Ado has mentioned that he’s considering leveling another hunter….you *may* be able to sweet talk him into actually doing that. And lets be honest, if he agrees to level one, he’ll have it to 85 and geared for raiding in less than a month (because he’s CRAZY)!
I love his shadow priest but….. we are way shorter on hunters than on ranged clothies….
You do NOT want me to level my hunter. I could be the poster girl for the huntard stereotype. Seriously, I can’t manage a pet, and traps, and shots all at the same time. You’re much better off with me healing. (I know, that sounds backwards … dps are supposed to be ezmode amirite?)
Challenge accepted, huntard alt plans in place.
Ex-cellent. Mwahaha.
Heh. I have been trying to get Analogue to let me have my spare hunter back so I can have two also.
Approx will have a weapon waiting for you.