As you all should be aware, it is our intention to quickly establish Tactical Gamer as one of the preeminent raiding guilds on our server in Wrath of the Lich King while still holding true to
our core values. The purpose of this post is to outline our planned path to that goal and to solicit your interest in helping achieve it. While it should be very clear that I am speaking from a Resurgent standpoint in this post, I would also like to emphasize up-front that there will always be a place in
TG for existing and future squads as long as there is interest in such activities.
Summary
In addition to providing us all with exciting new content to explore and experience, the expansion also provides
TG with an opportunity to discover new talent, both in guild and out of guild. With the gear-reset that comes with a new expansion, the stat disadvantage that many may currently have which keeps them out of Resurgent will be removed. To account for this,
Resurgent will be resetting its entire roster for Lich King. All classes and roles are once again open and I will begin compiling a new roster based on the interest I receive over the next few months. Additional details on how to express your interest as well as what will be expected of you will follow later in this post.
While Resurgent will continue raiding up until the release of the expansion, we will (obviously) be suspending all raiding once the expansion hits to focus once again on leveling our mains and enjoying the new content. Throughout these early days of the expansion, we will be questing and instancing together in an ad hoc fashion as we grind and gear our way up to level 80. I would emphasize grouping with a wide range of individuals through this process to help identify talent, coach those who could benefit from class advice and help gear each other up in anticipation of our raid efforts.
As individuals begin to reach level 80, I will begin to put a bit more structure to things. Unlike the early days of raiding in BC, the only thing stopping us from stepping into 25man raid content in LK will be having enough skilled level 80 players to do so; 10man content is not a prerequisite for 25man raiding. That being said, there will be a lag between the first Resurgent raider hitting level 80 and the 25th. Until we are able to field an appropriately balanced 25man raid, we will be scheduling and running 10man Naxx
as Resurgent. All individuals who express a serious interest and commitment in Resurgent will be eligible for these 10man Naxx runs. If we reach a point where multiple 10man Naxx runs can be formed out of Resurgent “candidates”, we will do that as well. Defiant will obviously not be actively raiding at this point as we will be focused on getting Resurgent back to full capacity.
Once we have a viable cadre of level 80 Resurgent “candidates”, we will resume our 25man raiding schedule and begin to lock down the roster based on commitment, performance and need. Up until this point, I welcome anyone (in guild or out of guild) to express an interest in joining our ranks and display the commitment that we would require going forward.
Specific details to preemptively address your questions follow below. Please post any additional items I may not have addressed yet and I will respond accordingly.
Detail
The Roster
*Action* If you are interested in joining Tactical Gamer’s end-game raiding efforts in Lich King (a/k/a Resurgent), you must notify Wintrow, Gaviin or Talara (Orion808). No assumptions will be made that current Resurgent members will have the desire/ability to remain sufficiently committed going forward so all must explicitly express their interest. Please do so via PM or in game, but
not via post in this thread.
We will be compiling this list of candidates over the next few months to help identify potential gaps and weaknesses in our roster going forward. As these gaps are identified, I will begin actively recruiting to fill them so it is important that you try to be as decisive and timely in your updates to me on your class/role intentions going forward.
While we are generally happy with the individuals that currently make up Resurgent, you will not necessarily be given a free pass into the re-formed Resurgent for Lich King. Likewise, other members of the guild not currently affiliated with Resurgent are not guaranteed a spot on the roster simply by expressing interest.
ALL are welcome, provided you are comfortable with and meet the expectations laid out below.
Please also reach out now to any friends you might have in other guilds who might meet these expectations and be interested in joining
TG as we raid in LK. They will be given equal opportunity to prove their merits not only as quality players, but also as quality people.
The Expectations
I want to be very clear about the level of performance that is expected out of Resurgent raiders without scaring away those who tend to be modest about their ability. We move quickly through our raids and expect everyone to understand their role and perform to an optimal level. Each player must be able to hold his/her own in our raids. You must know your class, including the best gear available to you and how to maximize your abilities. You need to be able to react quickly and smartly in the heat of the battle, and not necessarily with specific direction from raid leaders. All of this translates to a need to not only prepare you toon with gear, buffs, spec, professions, etc, but to also commit time outside of the game researching your class, identifying optimal gear to target, reading and discussing raid strategies, identifying useful addons to optimize your UI, etc.
You also need to be able to openly accept constructive criticism and be able to grow from it, both during a raid and over time. While we always will demand an atmosphere of respect in our raids, things do get tense at times and tough messages occasionally must be delivered. We want folks to have fun while raiding, but we also do not want to waste people’s time. We subscribe to the mentality that we will have more fun steadily progressing through end-game content rather than simply playing in an end-game instance for 3 hours a night. As such, we tend to be very focused on our objectives during our raids and don’t tolerate sloppiness, inattentiveness or unnecessary delays.
I would also expect that anyone interested in raiding with Resurgent will be able to be a consistent presence in our raids. You should be able to commit to attending 90% of our raids for their entirety. While special circumstances will arise and I remain committed to working through those with you, these should be an exception rather than a regular occurrence. I am not interested in bringing on individuals who can only make 1-2 raids a week, or can only raid for 2 hours a night, or periodically don’t show up to raids they sign up for.
There are no definitive expectations being placed on dates by when you must be level 80 to be involved with Resurgent. Obviously, the longer you delay in getting raid-ready once we begin 25man raids, the harder it may be to get involved.
For those who have limited or no prior experience with Resurgent or raiding with Wintrow, Gaviin or Talara, I would encourage you to begin reading through the Resurgent forums and listening in to our raids on TS to get a better sense of how we operate.
The Timeline (portions subject to change)
November 13, 2008: Wrath of the Lich King is released; Resurgent suspends its raids
December 9, 2008: Resurgent begins formally scheduling 10man Naxx raids beginning no later than this week.
January 6, 2008: Resurgent begins formally scheduling 25man Naxx raids beginning no later than this week; Resurgent 10man Naxx raids begin to be phased out; Resurgent roster begins to be finalized.
Resurgent Raids
At this point, it is our intention to retain our current raid schedule going forward in Lich King. Raids will run from 8-11 ST, with invites beginning at 7:30 and the option of extending the end of the raid beyond 11 in special cases (e.g. for that last attempt on a boss). Resurgent will raid 4 nights per week; we will likely continue with our Sunday-Monday-Wednesday-Thursday schedule, though will be prepared to adjust to other nights if we determine that will provide us more consistency.
Once they are scheduled, both 10man and 25man Naxx raids will be limited, initially, to those individuals who explicitly express their interest in Resurgent. If necessary for 10man raids and the initial stages of 25man raids, we may accept others from the guild into the raid on a case-by-case basis if you are available and interested. The intent remains, as it is today, to recruit both internally and externally to form a deep roster of capable raiders to consistently fill out all scheduled raids rather than rely on fill-ins.
Tactical Gamer Raiding in Wrath of the Lich King
