(PTR) Emblems For Everyone
From the Patch 3.2 PTR Patch Notes:
Emblem System Changes
- Both the 10 and 25 player instances of the Crusaders’ Coliseum drop a new Emblem of Triumph.
- Any dungeons that previously dropped Emblems of Heroism or Valor, such as Naxxramas or Heroic Halls of Stone, will now drop Emblems of Conquest instead. Emblems of Conquest can still be converted to Valor or Heroism.
- The heroic dungeon daily quest will now reward 2 Emblems of Triumph and the normal daily dungeon quest will reward 1 Emblem of Triumph.
- The existing achievements to collect 1, 25, 50, etc. Emblems of Heroism, Valor, and Conquest have been converted to Feats of Strength since Heroism and Valor Emblems are no longer attainable.
- New achievements have been added to collect various amounts of any combination of emblems.
Forward
First and foremost, this is partially a rant and partially theory. Obviously anything on the PTR is subject to change and should not be taken as definitive, but this is a change that brings very strong sentiments on both sides of the debate. Feel free to launch into discussion in the comments.
Personal Thoughts
There have been a lot of changes that I’ve loved, a lot that I’ve disliked, and a few thousand I’ve simply been apathetic about. This one, however, I firmly despise. This goes beyond making the content accessible by a long shot, and makes “risk < reward” by quite a huge margin (metaphorically, but the concept is there).
I could easily see dropping Emblems of Heroism now and having all of the Heroics, Naxx, OS, and EoE all drop Emblems of Valor. This would allow Ulduar (10 and 25) to drop Emblems of Conquest. This makes sense to me as a perfect way to make the content a little more accessible without completely destroying the pride and accomplishments of all the people who worked to achieve any raid-content gear up to this point. I should not, at least under the scope of the game as it will exist in 3.2, be able to run 5-Man Heroic dungeons exclusively and be able to get two pieces of Tier 8 gear.
Positively Viewing the Changes
Now that my quick rant is over, there are some things to point out:
- It is possible this will make finding groups to run Heroic content easier.
- One type of Emblem is much nicer a system to work within (personal interjection: even if it is a flat-out stupid time to implement such a change after building up a hierarchy in the first place).
- Gear will certainly become easier to obtain.
And I can’t think of anything else… Granted, I despise this change enough it is tough to think positively about it, and I’ll acknowledge that. The only reason I can see this happening so quickly after Ulduar’s release, however, is if we’re actually closer to another expansion than any of us realize. A fair warning, however: rushing the content through and making mistakes can be just as damaging as taking too long and having it perfect. Constantly changing the game in significant ways (not content-related) with every patch doesn’t help either.
Direbrewfest
Argent Confessor
Kiss and Make Up (10 player)
Heroic: Trial of the Champion
I simply disagree with you. Gear is gear. You want to show the world how good you are? Thats what the achievement panel is for. The very best of the best gear is still only available to raiders anyway, you can’t get EVERY piece with emblems. Plenty of gear drops ONLY by running these dungeons. Are you so selfish that every single piece of gear of a certain iLevel can only be attained your way?
Considering the name of your blog being casual wow, I am disappointed in you. Let people have fun. Those that want to raid for a challenge can still raid for a challenge and
Obviously my comment cut off for some reason.
Thsoe that want to raid for a challenge can still raid for a challenge, achievements, and the best gear out there. So casual players can get a few pieces of it now. Seriously. Relax.
Normally I try not to rant without adding a lot more objective commentary, but this one just feels completely wrong to me. Let’s back up for a moment though and look at the idea you touched on most heavily without really going into detail: the concept of the casual player.
I have been a casual player for a long time. I have never had the opportunity to go into Sunwell, I’ve never been in Black Temple, and I’ve only seen the first boss in Hyjal. I was not a part of a large enough guild to do so, and I actually have very little interest in anything larger than the 10-mans (though 25s can be fun if it is a regular group). I’m perfectly fine with that. I had Tier 4 and Badge of Justice loot, both of which being good but just below the available Tier 6 pieces. Could I have chosen to not be a casual player and get the best gear? Absolutely. It isn’t a priority for me.
Fast forward to now and the same concept applies. In choosing not to dedicate hours upon hours to a game I am more than willing to not have access to the best loot available. The problem with this change isn’t from a standpoint of “look at me I’m awesome,” it is entirely to do with the concept of getting items far superior to what drops in the content being run.
Being a casual player does not mean I want to content made trivial simply because I either do not have the desire or the time to spend a few hours a week working on beating the content in the game. In fact, in many ways being a casual player demands more dedication, aside from time, than a lot of the self-proclaimed “hardcore” people I encounter. Having a limited time to invest in the game means I expect more from the time I play, which pushes me to be better and better in what I choose to do. Let’s not confuse the concept of casual play with trivializing the experience of the game.
Now, back to the issue I have with the changes to the emblem system:
I have absolutely no qualms with the removal of Emblems of Heroism. It actually makes sense that, with each new wave of content, the older tier of badges be dropped and the middle set (in this case Valor) replace them. The idea presented here is that those who do not work on the newest content still become rewarded (gaining Emblems of Valor instead of Heroism, and subsequently access to better gear) while still leaving the top-most tier of gear accessible to those who choose to do the hardest content. If anyone can give me a good reason why this is a bad idea I would love to hear it, because I honestly cannot think of any reason that seems to be solid.
Just wanted to throw in a couple points I have made elsewhere. First I am part of a very small guild, having 10 people on who are 80 is an event for us. We have done a little naxx, but mostly we run heroics. So for us it’s going to be great, another reason to run heroics, and for those of us that pug into naxx and ulduar it allows us to not fall so behind other players out there.
Also lately we have noticed that it’s getting harder to have 10 people on for our Friday naxx runs, and we have heard this from other similar guilds on our server. People a bored. And this gives a new “ooo look shiny” to bring people back.
Also you have to realize that for us “heroic” players, we won’t see get any of this gear until a month or two after this change comes out.
I think this change is more about 3.3 and the next expansion (which I think is very close… I figure an announcement at blizzcon, for release in spring if not sooner), than anything in the current content. I think blizz realized that they didn’t reset the gear right at the start of WotLK, the sunwell gear was “too good” and the heroic, or badge gear wasn’t good enough. This will let the disparity between the top tier of players and the lowest tier be smaller (on a iLVL basis) and let blizz tune accordingly.
As a last point, I think there is something odd and dissapointing about the feeling I hear expressed in the terms of “spitting in the face of” or “devaluing the accomplishments of” the hardcore raider. I know you didn’t say any of those things but I am sure blizzard doesn’t want you or any raider to feel that way. You guys did something amazing and something I won’t get to chance to see. Adding better loot to the stuff I get to do, doesn’t take away what you have accomplished.
Thank you for the thoughtful feedback! I’m sorry it took me so long to respond (the graphics chipset on my notebook died, and try as I might I couldn’t bring myself to try to type out a response on my iPhone
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I’ve been thinking a lot about the changes, especially in the wake of recent news announcements. While I still disagree with the nature of this change to the emblem system (and I’m glad you recognized my standpoint not being about devaluing goals or being a “slap in the face” to raiders, people often seem to interpret my standpoint differently) I do see some benefit to doing so. I’m working on a new post where I’ll be going back to these thoughts, so watch for it later today or tomorrow!