Starting to encounter an interesting problem brought on by the 3.1 dual spec changes. There are many raids right now running on my server that use the practice of rolling 200 for main spec, and 100 for off spec. However more and more we are asking players to switch hit for the raid. In our “Alt-ramas” run we have already had a Retribution Paladin go Tanky, an Elemental Shaman go Resto, and a Resto Druid go Feral in order to better fit certain fights. So I am starting to wonder exactly how someone determines what your main focus is these days.
Belghast my warrior for example is definitely a tank by heart, but when it comes to a run like Alt-ramas… I was only there tanking it to help stabilize the group. The only gear that I could actually use comes from the DPS trees. So for stability of the raid, do we agree to let me roll on DPS items just so that I don’t feel like a pack mule? I think 3.1 and the ability to switch specs on the fly is going to chip away at the foundation of “class roles”.
I can already see amongst our tanks the ability to alternate the main tank hat from fight to fight so the others of us can don our dps gear and kick some ass. Doing this will help to break up the monotony by a wide margin, since most boss fights only need 1-2 tanks. Are we going to start seeing this same thing happening for healers and hybrids?
What are your thoughts on how best to manage this whole Main/Off spec issue?
For Zero Sum DKP, Bel is right, it’s self-correcting. I don’t think the situation Aigie listed is very common. The key to the rough edges in any loot system is communication. If you want an item that may step on toes, talk to the folks affected beforehand (pre-raid), and see how they feel. Thalen did this recently, and was very generous in allowing me to win the BIS druid staff, though it would have been an upgrade for him too.
It’s being blindsided as the DKP timer is ticking down that pisses people off most.
I slightly agree with this…being a tank, I really have no qualms about just rolling on tanking gear. I just started rolling for off-spec on Holy…but I’ve never healed as a Holy Paladin…so it’d be one of those “last resort” things. Plus, Lucenta isn’t dual-specced yet as Prot/Holy, but I’ve always been a tank at heart with my warrior Yuuki….with my paladin Lucenta. I’ve attempted to DPS…but I find that I don’t really like melee DPS.
I’m also in the camp of not rolling on something that may be tanking gear and only a SLIGHT upgrade for me, if another wants it(especially if I’ve won a few other items already) even for off-spec. I figure if you get better gear for the whole raid(though I doubt many of the non-tank types that could be tank types would want to tank solely.
I like tanking…it can be hectic and complex sometimes, but being able to keep the mobs on me and not on anyone else is what I like to do. Oddly enough….but my first love will always be RANGED DPS. 🙂 My first toon and “main” is a boomkin…that’s what I have the most experience with…now you ask….”Maria, why aren’t you a boomkin? We need a boomkin!” I dunno…I kinda fell into tanking and seems almost all my alliance characters are tanks…go fig! 🙂
I don’t agree with this. If a dps warrior who normally does not tank wins on a tank item that would have benefited you and the rest of the raid more, then I don’t think that person should have been able to roll/use dkp on it. It’s a little different for casters because the gear is all grouped together. But, a resto druid shouldn’t be able to roll/use dkp on something that is an upgrade/beneficial to a rogue.
Well in the case of Duranub which uses Zerosum DKP, it won’t be an issue. I figure if someone has the points they can spend those points however they see fit… just so long as they are spending them and not hording them 🙂
My take on this is that whatever spec the person is at the time, is what they can roll on unless they were specifically asked to switch spec. If they were asked, then they should be able to roll on the gear of the previous spec that they wanted to use going into the raid.
On pugs/alt runs it’s ok to use the 100/200 method, but for main runs, no. Current spec rolls unless asked to switch during the raid.