It is a topic that is circulating in World of Warcraft like no other and the best example of how a community can harm itself. We’re talking about toxic players who become abusive due to their skills when other players are not performing well.
Now a Reddit user started a thread and clarified once and for all that even good players can be removed from the raid if they behave like rude children.
What happened? The Reddit user Kbearforlife was in a raid group for the AotC achievement. AotC – short for Ahead of the Curve – is awarded to players who defeat the final boss in the current raid on heroic difficulty or higher.
The group is doing great. Every boss goes down on the first attempt until the raid encounters the Wyrmkeeper Diurna, who has caused problems for even the pros. The group fails to destroy the eggs and forgets three, then four of them. Because of this, the raid leadership decides to abort the attempt.
Then the top DPS of the raid reacts angrily and expresses his frustration on the keys, letting it out on his teammates. What exactly he wrote is not revealed by the thread starter, only that he removed him from the group afterward.
Particularly bitter could it have been for the hunter, since the next raid is just around the corner:
What happened next? Of course, the hunter couldn’t keep his feet still. Together with two friends, he messaged the raid leader. One of the comments is quoted directly in the thread: “You’re throwing out the top DPS? You’ve got real guts.” With 60,000 DPS, he was at the top of the statistics.
The Reddit user opens a post, tells the story, and receives hundreds of replies and almost 3000 upvotes.
“It’s so easy not to be toxic”
This is how the community reacts: The action received positive feedback. Many fans advocated for toxic players to be thrown out, even if they deal a lot of damage or fulfil a different role.
One user even recommends: “Super easy. Just don’t use the Enter key” and refers to simply being unable to send chat messages anymore to avoid being toxic. Also, the 60,000 DPS of the hunter garnered laughter, as this number is not as impressive as the player thinks. In fact, the top of the DPS list is significantly higher.
Several users also agree: “We’d prefer to die for hours with funny and nice people than to succeed with mean players.”
Further stories from the community followed. Vio94 reports about being in a raid where a few good DPS players threw the group into chaos by constantly pulling mobs and mocking each other in the chat. While some tried to protect the DPS players, they ultimately were also removed from the raid.
Why is this such a big topic? This behavior is not new. It’s been with WoW players since Classic and experiences phases of highs and lows depending on the current content. Particularly in bosses with enrage and damage mechanics, a high DPS number (for damage per second
) is crucial for victory or defeat, as there is no alternative mechanic.
Therefore, there is often an opinion within the community that it’s a bad idea to alienate or upset the best DPS players. Instead, one should let them do their thing and just swallow the insults.
Tanks and healers are also not safe from such highs and quickly fall into the thought of being the best who can get away with anything. Since in a raid all players are dependent on each other, it’s easy to conclude that with particularly good players one should turn a blind eye.
The problem of elites forming in World of Warcraft keeps recurring:
Is it really that bad? Many players and fans who positively comment on the incident and would have acted similarly hope for change within the community. Particularly in the randomly assembled groups of LFR (Looking For Raid), players are strongly advocating for one another and for better behavior. Because this way, new players are integrated, have fun, and maybe stay or want to become part of the guilds that promote a sense of community.
If you’re feeling the urge again, check out what the last patch brought.
What are your experiences from the WoW community? Tell us in the comments!
