SSG, the reason why I don't buy IoD or Vecna...

[vryxnr]

Soloing them IS something special, and it also IS possible. Both statements can be true. It's not a dichotomy.

Shortmanning is easier than soloing. It's also an accomplishment compared to always being in a full group. But it is also possible. All it takes is a little bit of effort and flexibility.

DDO raids are much easier and more forgiving than raids in other games, especially on the lower difficulties. But that doesn't mean all challenge or prestige is non-existent. That doesn't change the fact that - if someone is willing to put in the effort - many raids CAN be soloed. Not guaranteed, but can be. The main reason soloing was brought up was as a counter to the claim that "I am blocked from raiding because I can't find groups". That is simply factually not true, as those who have put in the time, effort, flexibility with builds, and personal skill, have been able to solo and shortman raids (completed raids without having a full group). This doesn't mean everyone can solo raids, but it does mean that the statement "you have to have a full party to do raids" is simply not true. Soloing is just the extreme opposite.

It's also the absolute nature of the claim that causes a lot of the pushback imo (well, that and the attitude coming with it).

It's one thing to say you don't raid because you don't like the concept of raids.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you feel your character's power is not ready for it yet.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you are not personally skilled enough or capable of fast reactions that are sometimes needed.

But those were not the claims or complaints being made. The OP's complaints were there were no one joining their groups and that they can't raid without others. Hence the suggestion of lowering the difficulty and shortmanning, or even learning to solo.

You know why I started to solo raids? I had some really negative experiences with other people being jerks, and decided it's not worth the annoyance of dealing with people like that. Rather than giving up on raiding, I pushed myself to be better until I could solo raids. It also helps that I enjoy challenges like that and figuring things out (how do I deal with these mechanics while solo, etc). It wasn't about not being able to group, it was not wanting to group at that time.

That was many years ago. Now I'm leader of a guild that raids 3 times a week with a focus on being new player friendly and teaching raid mechanics so everyone can learn, participate, and better themselves to be better contributors to success in non-guild groups, and eventually push raid difficulty as well (we're no where near the level of guilds on other servers, but we've built a community that is - I hope - non-toxic and friendly and able to work towards that level via encouragement rather than elitism).

However, the excuse of "I can't participate because people, therefor no one can, or should be able to even try" as the OP essentially said (by asking for raids to be removed from games), is a load of foul. It is not black and white as portrayed. There are ways around such obstacles. That is one of the things the talk about shortmanning and soloing was supposed to relay.

And yes, this takes effort. No one is entitled to success or rewards because of being busy IRL with other things. You are too busy with work? Your reward is the money you made working. Too busy with family? Your reward is time spend with your family! Want rewards in game? You're going to have to put time and effort in to get something out. DDO has some pay for _ aspects to it, but no where near what many other "pay to win" games out there have. Despite some people who really want it to be, DDO is not a true pay to win game. It has aspects of one, yes (otto boxes and exp pots to fast track leveling), and many people find that alone quite gross, but it isn't like other games where you can "buy x to get to max level instantly", or "buy BiS items outright for real money" that appears in other games. Here, you are still expected to play to get the most out of it all.

I personally hope it never gets to be like that here. Furthermore, the exp pots and stones from boxes can be a double edged sword. I've seen it a few times where someone uses otto boxes and piking in groups where the others did all the gameplay to get all the past lives and reaper wings, so they could build what they wanted with all the bonuses... and they end up sucking as a player, not knowing what they were doing or even how to play their builds well. DDO has more to it, and more that is needed to perform well, than just that.

At the end of the day (and I know this is a long post, so I wonder how many people will actually read this part), I want to help Elminster and anyone else wanting to get the most out of the game. I want to help people be able to be less reliant on others and more capable of doing what they want when they want. If someone wants to learn how to shortman or solo raids, I will try to help. It's not for everybody, but even being willing to try, or get together some friends to do shortman runs, can and does make a huge difference. I will not force anyone to do content they do not want to do or do not enjoy, but I will push back on entitled attitudes or asking for the removal of things others enjoy and the diminishing of achievements.

 

[D's / Iron & Mortanis/Kin]

It's called the gear matrix for a reason... you can get an almost equal build going a different route... instead of raids trust me... talk to the folks on wayfinder...

 

[Shear-buckler]

Soloing them IS something special, and it also IS possible. Both statements can be true. It's not a dichotomy.

Shortmanning is easier than soloing. It's also an accomplishment compared to always being in a full group. But it is also possible. All it takes is a little bit of effort and flexibility.

DDO raids are much easier and more forgiving than raids in other games, especially on the lower difficulties. But that doesn't mean all challenge or prestige is non-existent. That doesn't change the fact that - if someone is willing to put in the effort - many raids CAN be soloed. Not guaranteed, but can be. The main reason soloing was brought up was as a counter to the claim that "I am blocked from raiding because I can't find groups". That is simply factually not true, as those who have put in the time, effort, flexibility with builds, and personal skill, have been able to solo and shortman raids (completed raids without having a full group). This doesn't mean everyone can solo raids, but it does mean that the statement "you have to have a full party to do raids" is simply not true. Soloing is just the extreme opposite.

It's also the absolute nature of the claim that causes a lot of the pushback imo (well, that and the attitude coming with it).

It's one thing to say you don't raid because you don't like the concept of raids.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you feel your character's power is not ready for it yet.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you are not personally skilled enough or capable of fast reactions that are sometimes needed.

But those were not the claims or complaints being made. The OP's complaints were there were no one joining their groups and that they can't raid without others. Hence the suggestion of lowering the difficulty and shortmanning, or even learning to solo.

You know why I started to solo raids? I had some really negative experiences with other people being jerks, and decided it's not worth the annoyance of dealing with people like that. Rather than giving up on raiding, I pushed myself to be better until I could solo raids. It also helps that I enjoy challenges like that and figuring things out (how do I deal with these mechanics while solo, etc). It wasn't about not being able to group, it was not wanting to group at that time.

That was many years ago. Now I'm leader of a guild that raids 3 times a week with a focus on being new player friendly and teaching raid mechanics so everyone can learn, participate, and better themselves to be better contributors to success in non-guild groups, and eventually push raid difficulty as well (we're no where near the level of guilds on other servers, but we've built a community that is - I hope - non-toxic and friendly and able to work towards that level via encouragement rather than elitism).

However, the excuse of "I can't participate because people, therefor no one can, or should be able to even try" as the OP essentially said (by asking for raids to be removed from games), is a load of foul. It is not black and white as portrayed. There are ways around such obstacles. That is one of the things the talk about shortmanning and soloing was supposed to relay.

And yes, this takes effort. No one is entitled to success or rewards because of being busy IRL with other things. You are too busy with work? Your reward is the money you made working. Too busy with family? Your reward is time spend with your family! Want rewards in game? You're going to have to put time and effort in to get something out. DDO has some pay for _ aspects to it, but no where near what many other "pay to win" games out there have. Despite some people who really want it to be, DDO is not a true pay to win game. It has aspects of one, yes (otto boxes and exp pots to fast track leveling), and many people find that alone quite gross, but it isn't like other games where you can "buy x to get to max level instantly", or "buy BiS items outright for real money" that appears in other games. Here, you are still expected to play to get the most out of it all.

I personally hope it never gets to be like that here. Furthermore, the exp pots and stones from boxes can be a double edged sword. I've seen it a few times where someone uses otto boxes and piking in groups where the others did all the gameplay to get all the past lives and reaper wings, so they could build what they wanted with all the bonuses... and they end up sucking as a player, not knowing what they were doing or even how to play their builds well. DDO has more to it, and more that is needed to perform well, than just that.

At the end of the day (and I know this is a long post, so I wonder how many people will actually read this part), I want to help Elminster and anyone else wanting to get the most out of the game. I want to help people be able to be less reliant on others and more capable of doing what they want when they want. If someone wants to learn how to shortman or solo raids, I will try to help. It's not for everybody, but even being willing to try, or get together some friends to do shortman runs, can and does make a huge difference. I will not force anyone to do content they do not want to do or do not enjoy, but I will push back on entitled attitudes or asking for the removal of things others enjoy and the diminishing of achievements.

At no point in that wall of text is there an argument to why raids should have exclusive access to significantly stronger gear and tetris options.

Your end note is a complete strawman. No one is asking for anything to be removed from anyone. There is also no entitlement. Getting raid gear is not challenging if you play on the right server on the right time zones. You just join a auto-complete pug and collect your participation trophy, nothing special is done to "earn" that.
If anything the entitled attitude is coming from the posters with static raid groups saying others don't deserve what they got.

 

[vryxnr]

Your end note is a complete strawman. No one is asking for anything to be removed from anyone. There is also no entitlement. Getting raid gear is not challenging if you play on the right server on the right time zones. You just join a auto-complete pug and collect your participation trophy, nothing special is done to "earn" that.
If anything the entitled attitude is coming from the posters with static raid groups saying others don't deserve what they got.

Raids are a stupid MMO thing and should die with the dying genre. Seriously.

STOP RAIDS.

Very first page of this thread.

Regarding your last sentence... I'm not saying those without static groups don't deserve what they were able to get, and I don't recall anyone else saying that, though maybe I missed a comment in the flood of messages. IMO That doesn't make sense, even in the context of this conversation.

What I am saying that the things the OP wants are achievable with some effort (even if that effort means adjusting when you play, or trying to make friends with those who play at the same time as them) without having to alter a significant part of the game itself.

One of the things I love about DDO compared to some other games like D3, is that you can target farm loot. Item X is in quest Y, and item Z is in raid N. I know where to go to get the items I want, and what I have to do to get them (some quests and raids require different preparations, and this is another things I enjoy... sometimes a character that excels in one area might struggle in a different area, encouraging group play in the short term, making alts or different builds in the long term). Some also require more effort than others, and that is great imo too! Games where every item can be gotten anywhere/everywhere get boring faster for me. That is one of my arguments for raid gear being gotten from doing raids. I enjoy it, and it makes sense to me. This item is located there guarded by that boss, and that area happens to be classified as a raid. Sweet!

Why raids? I find them fun. The extra mechanics, the ability to be in a larger group than 6, the extra challenge when shortmanned or solo. I enjoy it, and I know others do too. Being able to get raid specific gear without doing raids seems... just baffling to me, and cheapens the game as a whole in my eyes. What I do find entitled is wanting to get things without doing what is required to get that thing. Are there situations where what needs to be done is far too extreme for what is given? Sure. Do I think DDO raids and raid gear to be one of those extremes? Nope. Not even close (imo of course).

 

[Blunt Hackett]

On the one hand, I kinda get it. I would personally be happier without raids. I solo heroic Chronoscope, and I used to run ADQ with a friend. Other than those and a couple that I tried to see if I could solo, I don't raid. I wish I could fight the balor in the latest raid, mostly because it reminds me of Dungeon Hack runs where that would be the final enemy in the game. It stinks that I've never fought the final fight against Strahd, Baba Lysaga, Lolth, The Lord of Blades, and more.

But ultimately that's on me. I'm not entitled to having everything be solo-able, even if I purchased it, and even if it locks me out of top tier gear. DDO with no more new raids would make the player population drop far more than the few cases where players see it as a wall and leave because of it.

 

[Shear-buckler]

Very first page of this thread.

That is not the request in the OP. The ask is to access raid gear in a way that is not primarily dependent on your time zone.

Regarding your last sentence... I'm not saying those without static groups don't deserve what they were able to get, and I don't recall anyone else saying that, though maybe I missed a comment in the flood of messages. IMO That doesn't make sense, even in the context of this conversation.

What I am saying that the things the OP wants are achievable with some effort (even if that effort means adjusting when you play, or trying to make friends with those who play at the same time as them) without having to alter a significant part of the game itself.

One of the things I love about DDO compared to some other games like D3, is that you can target farm loot. Item X is in quest Y, and item Z is in raid N. I know where to go to get the items I want, and what I have to do to get them (some quests and raids require different preparations, and this is another things I enjoy... sometimes a character that excels in one area might struggle in a different area, encouraging group play in the short term, making alts or different builds in the long term). Some also require more effort than others, and that is great imo too! Games where every item can be gotten anywhere/everywhere get boring faster for me. That is one of my arguments for raid gear being gotten from doing raids. I enjoy it, and it makes sense to me. This item is located there guarded by that boss, and that area happens to be classified as a raid. Sweet!

No one is asking for "every item can be gotten anywhere/everywhere" so that is another strawman.
No one is asking for "every item should require the same effort" so that is another strawman.

Plenty of loot in DDO is not tied to a specific chest.

Why raids? I find them fun. The extra mechanics, the ability to be in a larger group than 6, the extra challenge when shortmanned or solo. I enjoy it, and I know others do too. Being able to get raid specific gear without doing raids seems... just baffling to me, and cheapens the game as a whole in my eyes.

You talk like doing the raids is some sort of special challenge that you must overcome to be deserving of raid loot. The fact is that the primary factor for aquiring raid loot is your time zone. If you play on the right time zone you can join auto-success pugs and collect your participation trophy with negligible contribution. I really don't see how that would be cheapened by allowing runes to be farmed outside of raids. You can still raid and keep enjoying them. Nothing is changed for you. Higher difficulties would still be relevant for mythic and reaper bonuses along with threads if that's your thing.

What I do find entitled is wanting to get things without doing what is required to get that thing. Are there situations where what needs to be done is far too extreme for what is given? Sure. Do I think DDO raids and raid gear to be one of those extremes? Nope. Not even close (imo of course).

There is nothing "entitled" about wanting to have access to more of the game systems when the barrier to those things primarily are time zone dependent. No one is asking for free hand-outs either, just alternative ways. You would still "have to do what's required to get the thing".

The point that both IoD and Vecna gear being uninteresting without access to the raid gear is pretty accurate. There are ofcourse exceptions but in general the raid gear is key for both expansions.

 

[Guntango]

That is not the request in the OP. The ask is to access raid gear in a way that is not primarily dependent on your time zone.


No one is asking for "every item can be gotten anywhere/everywhere" so that is another strawman.
No one is asking for "every item should require the same effort" so that is another strawman.

Plenty of loot in DDO is not tied to a specific chest.


You talk like doing the raids is some sort of special challenge that you must overcome to be deserving of raid loot. The fact is that the primary factor for aquiring raid loot is your time zone. If you play on the right time zone you can join auto-success pugs and collect your participation trophy with negligible contribution. I really don't see how that would be cheapened by allowing runes to be farmed outside of raids. You can still raid and keep enjoying them. Nothing is changed for you. Higher difficulties would still be relevant for mythic and reaper bonuses along with threads if that's your thing.


There is nothing "entitled" about wanting to have access to more of the game systems when the barrier to those things primarily are time zone dependent. No one is asking for free hand-outs either, just alternative ways. You would still "have to do what's required to get the thing".

The point that both IoD and Vecna gear being uninteresting without access to the raid gear is pretty accurate. There are ofcourse exceptions but in general the raid gear is key for both expansions.

No.

The primary factor in raiding is putting an effort into raiding. This may mean running with people outside of your circle, being social, doing a bit of marketing in any number of server-wide discords, but it's absolutely attainable where an effort is made.

For those that stand on their ship bitching in guild chat that an LFM hasn't been posted for them, they reap what they sow.

 

[festasha]

Another simple solution would be to offer runes in quests. Nothing is taken away.

Another simple solution would be to put effort into acquiring items that you want from the game or you could wait for the August Draconic Raiders reward box and hope it offers what you want if you do not want to put the effort in. I guess raid gear is not gated after all but it looks like you will have to wait and hope that SSG offers more of these rewards boxes in the future.

You are offered friendly advice from some very kind people but it is clear that the only thing you want is the opportunity to earn raid runes without exception and without the effort. I guess all hope is lost as you have no intention of following up any advice given.

 

[Shear-buckler]

...the only thing you want is the opportunity to earn raid runes without exception and without the effort.

No. At no point was it asked for runes to be earned without effort.

 

[DBZ]

It only took 2+ years for skellies slog to even get a rune option

 

[Shear-buckler]

No.

The primary factor in raiding is putting an effort into raiding. This may mean running with people outside of your circle, being social, doing a bit of marketing in any number of server-wide discords, but it's absolutely attainable where an effort is made.

For those that stand on their ship bitching in guild chat that an LFM hasn't been posted for them, they reap what they sow.

No, it is the primary factor. There are time zones where you can put an LFM up for hours without a single player joining and time zones where you can put up an LFM and fill in a few minutes. The difference is extreme and pretending that it does not affect access to raid gear is nonsensical.
That it is technically possible to scrape together a few merry men outside of the game and go low man does not change that.

 

[festasha]

No. At no point was it asked for runes to be earned without effort.

A token system was asked for by the OP and while I guess that's not a raid rune it still amounts to pie in the sky for not completing the required raid.
OK to appease the OP and yourself how about 1 token is offered in the saga rewards list for every saga competition but you need 1250 tokens to get a raid item. I'd guess that would still have people b*tching cause it would be too much effort and some do not want to work for their rewards even when many have offered friendly advice.

 

[DBZ]

5 tokens in a saga list could be an option at least its something on repeats

 

[Shear-buckler]

I'd guess that would still have people b*tching cause it would be too much effort and some do not want to work for their rewards even when many have offered friendly advice.

Again, it's not about not "wanting to work for the reward". This pretence that raid runes are somehow an achievement to collect is laughable. All you have to do is play on the right time zone and server and join pug raids and collect your participation trophy. There is nothing remotely challenging about it. It's not an achievement, it's not hard work and it does not require anything other than playing on the right time zone. Gatekeeping significant character progression and game systems soley based on geography is just aweful game design.

 

[Lacci]

I don´t want to play reaper difficulty, but I feel like I should be entitled to get reaper enhancements and reaper bonuses on items.
I don´t want to run hard or elite difficulty, but I still want remnants.

Rewards are tied to certain tasks in every aspect of this game. Don´t want to do the task ? Don´t get the reward !
Why should raids be an exception ?

 

[Ahpuch]

Seems pretty clear most raids can be soloed
...

Some old builds but clearly clearly clearly soloable. I'll add in the links if anyone has them for the two remaining raids solo or short manned.

Case Closed.

"Clearly soloable" is perhaps a stretch. While someone may have figured out how to solo some of those, I don't think that it is reasonable to tell people they can solo them. I can't even imagine what it would take to run baba (or even strahd) solo. That is a .1% (if that) option only.

But it is clear that all those can be shortmanned. 2 to 4 people should be a manageable number for any of those both for completion and for getting a group together. One will need to prep and read the wiki if they have not run them before but that is not a barrier.

As to the suggestion of getting runes through quests. I would not be opposed if someone suggested that Elite Saga rewards include the option for a single Raid rune. That would not degrade the reason to run Raids as people on that path would clearly never raid anyway.

 

[Shear-buckler]

I don´t want to play reaper difficulty, but I feel like I should be entitled to get reaper enhancements and reaper bonuses on items.
I don´t want to run hard or elite difficulty, but I still want remnants.

Rewards are tied to certain tasks in every aspect of this game. Don´t want to do the task ? Don´t get the reward !
Why should raids be an exception ?

Raids should be an exception because the primary factor for accessability of raids is time zone and server population.

 

[Eelpout]

Soloing them IS something special, and it also IS possible. Both statements can be true. It's not a dichotomy.

Shortmanning is easier than soloing. It's also an accomplishment compared to always being in a full group. But it is also possible. All it takes is a little bit of effort and flexibility.

DDO raids are much easier and more forgiving than raids in other games, especially on the lower difficulties. But that doesn't mean all challenge or prestige is non-existent. That doesn't change the fact that - if someone is willing to put in the effort - many raids CAN be soloed. Not guaranteed, but can be. The main reason soloing was brought up was as a counter to the claim that "I am blocked from raiding because I can't find groups". That is simply factually not true, as those who have put in the time, effort, flexibility with builds, and personal skill, have been able to solo and shortman raids (completed raids without having a full group). This doesn't mean everyone can solo raids, but it does mean that the statement "you have to have a full party to do raids" is simply not true. Soloing is just the extreme opposite.

It's also the absolute nature of the claim that causes a lot of the pushback imo (well, that and the attitude coming with it).

It's one thing to say you don't raid because you don't like the concept of raids.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you feel your character's power is not ready for it yet.
It's one thing to say you don't raid because you are not personally skilled enough or capable of fast reactions that are sometimes needed.

But those were not the claims or complaints being made. The OP's complaints were there were no one joining their groups and that they can't raid without others. Hence the suggestion of lowering the difficulty and shortmanning, or even learning to solo.

You know why I started to solo raids? I had some really negative experiences with other people being jerks, and decided it's not worth the annoyance of dealing with people like that. Rather than giving up on raiding, I pushed myself to be better until I could solo raids. It also helps that I enjoy challenges like that and figuring things out (how do I deal with these mechanics while solo, etc). It wasn't about not being able to group, it was not wanting to group at that time.

That was many years ago. Now I'm leader of a guild that raids 3 times a week with a focus on being new player friendly and teaching raid mechanics so everyone can learn, participate, and better themselves to be better contributors to success in non-guild groups, and eventually push raid difficulty as well (we're no where near the level of guilds on other servers, but we've built a community that is - I hope - non-toxic and friendly and able to work towards that level via encouragement rather than elitism).

However, the excuse of "I can't participate because people, therefor no one can, or should be able to even try" as the OP essentially said (by asking for raids to be removed from games), is a load of foul. It is not black and white as portrayed. There are ways around such obstacles. That is one of the things the talk about shortmanning and soloing was supposed to relay.

And yes, this takes effort. No one is entitled to success or rewards because of being busy IRL with other things. You are too busy with work? Your reward is the money you made working. Too busy with family? Your reward is time spend with your family! Want rewards in game? You're going to have to put time and effort in to get something out. DDO has some pay for _ aspects to it, but no where near what many other "pay to win" games out there have. Despite some people who really want it to be, DDO is not a true pay to win game. It has aspects of one, yes (otto boxes and exp pots to fast track leveling), and many people find that alone quite gross, but it isn't like other games where you can "buy x to get to max level instantly", or "buy BiS items outright for real money" that appears in other games. Here, you are still expected to play to get the most out of it all.

I personally hope it never gets to be like that here. Furthermore, the exp pots and stones from boxes can be a double edged sword. I've seen it a few times where someone uses otto boxes and piking in groups where the others did all the gameplay to get all the past lives and reaper wings, so they could build what they wanted with all the bonuses... and they end up sucking as a player, not knowing what they were doing or even how to play their builds well. DDO has more to it, and more that is needed to perform well, than just that.

At the end of the day (and I know this is a long post, so I wonder how many people will actually read this part), I want to help Elminster and anyone else wanting to get the most out of the game. I want to help people be able to be less reliant on others and more capable of doing what they want when they want. If someone wants to learn how to shortman or solo raids, I will try to help. It's not for everybody, but even being willing to try, or get together some friends to do shortman runs, can and does make a huge difference. I will not force anyone to do content they do not want to do or do not enjoy, but I will push back on entitled attitudes or asking for the removal of things others enjoy and the diminishing of achievements.

I have been playing for 18 years and am still not a really skilled raider. I mostly static with a group of 4. We do short man the raids we are able and once or twice a year have a cross guild raid night to hit some others. There are a bunch of raids I still haven't been able to complete even on Normal. This is not SSG's problem or fault.

I like that raids are in the game and the loot I can't get, I do without. IF I needed those pieces of loot, there are resources (they may not fit for everyone). I have a character on Sarlona (even though that isn't my regular server) that could raid and I have been tempted so many times to jump into VOODOO's teaching raid nights but haven't. Most of the raid loot issues are mine. I haven't gone out and learned the raids, tried to get good enough to lead them, or post/join an LFM. Would I be ok with another potential option to gain some of that loot, sure, but not at the expense of those raids or minimizing what those people accomplished by running those raids. So I truly don't know if there would be a reasonable way to have a workaround.

Not sure if all my rambling has a point, but I would not like to see raids go away or be diminished. There needs to be an array of quest styles and difficulties so that we have a variety of players and enough content to keep them active and paying. It seems like the raid in every paid expansion is a big part of a large group of people buying that expansion. If we bring everything down to the lowest common denominator, we risk losing even more paying players and then where will we be? Again this is coming from someone who is nowhere near the top of the food chain.

 

[Falkor]

I've been using it judiciously. And hope others have as well, if I come across as disagreeable for them. All for consensual non-communication.

 

[Falkor]

Raids are very much solo-able and the constant complaining and comparison to others is just a great way to destroy your own joy in the game.

The very notion that raid equipment is essential and 'the best' is massive tell for how inexperienced OP is. Which has been repeatedly demonstrated for a long time. You can make powerful characters without raid items.

The other thing about raiding that I've noticed with newer players, like OP ... is they refuse to use alts. Or adjust. Or learn.

Don't have a bard, cleric or ranged dps alt for some LN or LH raiding? Then don't complain about not having runes to just buy equipment. It's the fastest and easiest way to get raid items.

Don't want to learn how to solo a raid? Then don't complain about not having runes to just buy equipment.

Don't have the patience to wait for a group? Then don't complain about not having runes to just buy equipment.

Don't have the patience to wait for a group to shortman? Then don't complain about not having runes to just buy equipment.

Don't want to put in any effort to adjust, and would rather force an entire community and game to fit your expectations? That's pretty special ...

I just can't wrap my head around somebody who disempowers themself so frequently with these comparisons to how others play. It's been full of this kind of tripe ever since the boards were changed over. OP and others, are quite literally, doing it to themselves.

And as for server population, I think the only one that really has issues is Wayfinder, and raiding IS harder there. But raids still happen. What's funny is I've seen posts on here and reddit where people ask which servers are best for raiding, and then they move there or create their characters there.

So ... huh ... they figure out where the raids happen and move there or create characters ... wow ..... pure genius. I get it, if you don't have points to move or don't want to make a new character, it sucks. Other than wayfinder, we can see on playeraudit.com that raids are a regular occurrence.

I just think OP isn't in the social channels to be informed. A lot more communication happens in discord than LFMs. Challenging personalities face challenges with other personalities and have to accept the consequences. Maybe OP isn't being informed b/c of the attitudes he displays here.

I'm really starting to wonder whats going on with some of these forumites. It's concerning. Are they ok? I mean that, quite literally.

There are some aspects to games that should be gated behind different experiences, activities and difficulties. This is just HOW GAMES WORK. This isn't elitist. It's fact. And always has been.

When I played team sports, I didn't complain that the guards were faster than me and could dribble better than me. And they didn't ***** about my height as a center or forward. We played as a team and won. The differences didn't matter. And while DDO isn't basketball, being a skilled gamer and empowered mindset goes a long way to succeeding in games.

Focusing on what can't be done creates those results. Focusing on losing makes a person lose. Focusing on what makes a person unhappy will only make them unhappy. Focusing on winning makes a person a winner, even if they lose a match or quest or raid.

Winners have winning attitudes.

Next up, Elminster starts complaining that White moves first in chess, and demands a nerf.