Thinking of getting into WoW, but need some answers first

[02ranger]

OK, so after all this talk about WoW on this forum, I've been thinking of getting into it. My biggest concern is that there is NO WAY I'm going to spend hours on top of hours each week playing. Is it possible to play this game well if I play maybe an hour or two a day, at most? Also, can I play on my own, or do I have to work with others in teams? I just don't want the commitment of having to be online at a certain time to do something.

If this doesn't seem to be a good game for me, what are some other good RPG's? They don't have to be MMO, but I'd like to try one since I've never played one before. I like the Final Fantasy series, so would XI be a good choice?

Thanks

 

[Malladine]

sure
it's casual friendly really. Some instances (dungeons) take longer than 2 hrs though.

Solo play all the way to 60 is possible, dont know about beyond, probably the same.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Is it possible to play this game well if I play maybe an hour or two a day, at most?

Yes

lso, can I play on my own, or do I have to work with others in teams?

Either way, content for people that like to group and that like to solo, it is probably one of the most friendly solo MMOs out there.

I like the Final Fantasy series, so would XI be a good choice?

I hear that FF11 takes a far larger time commitment than WoW.




But, the MMO bashing crew will be along shortly to tell you never to start.

 

[Malladine]

Yeah, i heard the same. FFXI is not for the faint of heart or the um people with lives

 

[02ranger]

Cool. I'll probably pick up a copy of WoW tonight, give it a shot. I didn't realize FFXI was so time consuming. I tried reading up on both before posting, but couldn't really find what I was looking for. Thanks.

 

[Aikouka]

As a piece of advice, play on a non-PVP server if you only plan 1-2 hours a night. PVP won't matter for the first 20 or so levels, but when you get killed about 5 times trying to do one quest and the items don't drop... well, it gets a bit irritating and you'll barely get anything done in 1-2 hours at that rate.

If only Blizzard would offer free transfers off my server... I don't want to spend $250 for 10 characters .

Also yeah... FFXI isn't for the faint of heart. The game also isn't as player-friendly as WoW is, but it's got... some... albeit sparse benefits .

 

[Malladine]

if you want to go non pvp ("Normal") start on Malygos...i'm Malladine there on horde. though it is an older server so things are a little different.
Ask around but it might be better for you on a new server.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: 02ranger
OK, so after all this talk about WoW on this forum, I've been thinking of getting into it. My biggest concern is that there is NO WAY I'm going to spend hours on top of hours each week playing.

Is it possible to play this game well if I play maybe an hour or two a day, at most? yes

Also, can I play on my own, or do I have to work with others in teams? depends. you can do alot of quests on your own but if you want decent gear you have to do instances which require grouping.

I just don't want the commitment of having to be online at a certain time to do something. again, depends on what you want to do. the earlier instances can be done with pickup groups. some of the later instances at end game pretty much require a schedule.

If this doesn't seem to be a good game for me, what are some other good RPG's? right now, WoW is probably the only one that meets any of your needs.

They don't have to be MMO, but I'd like to try one since I've never played one before. I like the Final Fantasy series, so would XI be a good choice?

Thanks

 

[ggnl]

Originally posted by: Malladine
if you want to go non pvp ("Normal") start on Malygos...i'm Malladine there on horde. though it is an older server so things are a little different.
Ask around but it might be better for you on a new server.

I don't think older servers matter so much now with the cross-server battlegrounds. Even if you join a new low population server chances are you'll still end up competing with at least a few of the older ones.

 

[Aikouka]

I think it's just the idea that older servers typically provide a more... experienced environment? Although, I wouldn't say much for some servers... I know LB is only a mere glimmer of the joy that it used to be. Hmm I need to find a good server to go to, so maybe I can have fun again.

I actually never would've joined a PVP server if I knew back then what I know now. Originally, I had this odd idea that PVE servers had absolutely no PVP (at all, mind you this was before the PVP system) and I liked the idea of defending towns. Then, later on... I found out that the idea of flagging and auto-flagging makes it so defending towns is quite possible on PVE servers. It seems my idealistic notions are too "noble" for PVP servers and it just ends up irritating me. I'm the kind of person who leaves others alone, regardless of their faction, because I know that I'm out there questing and they probably are too... if I attack and kill them, they'll more than likely do the same to me. So I'm just ruining my own ability to just finish my quest(s) and go to the next one (as well as their own time). But most people cannot understand that simple concept. Also, there are other simple ideas that I follow such as doing onto others... I mean, I don't like being ganked (for prior reasons) and because of that, I don't do it. I won't be hypocritical in my actions. So wouldn't someone logging on their main when their alt gets ganked... and going around ganking other people simply be hypocritical? They do it out of revenge, revenge is spawned from anger ( happy revenge? ) and if you're angry, that means it spawned dissatisfaction in you (i.e. you don't like it).

You know what I mean?

 

[Malladine]

Originally posted by: Aikouka
I think it's just the idea that older servers typically provide a more... experienced environment?

Exactly! That and the prices seem to be higher in general, on trade goods especially.

 

[ggnl]

Originally posted by: Malladine

Originally posted by: Aikouka
I think it's just the idea that older servers typically provide a more... experienced environment?

Exactly! That and the prices seem to be higher in general, on trade goods especially.

I wasn't referring to the overall enviroment so much as the arguement that you'll always be playing catchup if you make a fresh start on an old server. I just don't think it matters anymore in regards to the BG's. In that respect, you could say there's no longer any downside to picking an old server since higher player populations are almost always a good thing (unless you get stuck in a queue to log on).

On the other hand, it could be argued that a new player might not always benefit from that experienced atmosphere. There are a lot of jaded people out there that won't give a confused noob the time of day.

On the other other hand, I think the faction you choose has a lot more to do with the attitude of your fellow players than the age of the server. On just about every server I've played the horde has always seemed a little more mature, a little less prone to munchkinism.

But I digress...can we talk about happy revenge again?

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: ggnl
But I digress...can we talk about happy revenge again?

I'd actually like people to give opinions on my opinions on world PVP . I feel that I'm fairly alone when it comes to this as I don't think many people push their own self onto their character. I also think people bring way too many excuses to the table in WoW. "It's just a game!" Yeah, but see unlike your Final Fantasy XII, you're playing with other people. Acting like an idiot is akin to that guy who yells and curses while playing Halo (for example). It seems that's the one thing people seem to forget the most, behind that clump of pixels is someone (unless they're using WoW Glider :laugh: ).

Also, I find that non-RP servers tend to hold an elitist ideal over RP servers as they are "nerds." Yet, in my experience, PVP servers tend to hold the biggest RP'ers of all. Horde and Alliance never got along, they've always had a constant tense state between them after the third war and some lands even found a sense of peace (Orgrimmar and Theramore for example as Jaina helped Thrall beat Daelin). But why do people attack the opposing faction? Just "because they're Horde/Alliance?" Aren't you simply subjecting yourself to the role that Blizzard has planned out for you by adhering to such simple-minded ways? Killing the other player is not always the smartest decision game-wise, so why do it? Because Blizzard has the mindset of "red = dead" in your head?

Bah, sometimes I just don't understand the illogical fallacies of man.

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: 02ranger
OK, so after all this talk about WoW on this forum, I've been thinking of getting into it. My biggest concern is that there is NO WAY I'm going to spend hours on top of hours each week playing. Is it possible to play this game well if I play maybe an hour or two a day, at most? Also, can I play on my own, or do I have to work with others in teams? I just don't want the commitment of having to be online at a certain time to do something.

If this doesn't seem to be a good game for me, what are some other good RPG's? They don't have to be MMO, but I'd like to try one since I've never played one before. I like the Final Fantasy series, so would XI be a good choice?

Thanks

IMO, it's dumb to take a single-user casual-user point of view towards a MMOG. MMOG's are by definition intended for multi-players, and most are designed in such a way that a team or guild etc., will have distinct advantages over single players. This could be the wrong game for you.

MMOG's are also designed at the game level to suck up your time, to keep you involved for months and months and years. And they do this. Don't be under any illusions. The game will not "pause" for you. Nor will it "save". Nor will it end.

If solo, casual game play is your goal, I think you'd be better off with something like the original NWN or their add-ons. You can get whole sets for very little. It's a well-designed RPG, and will let you spend a lot of time if you want, and get out of it quickly when you need to.

MMOG are very different. They're really about multi-player. Finding a bunch of people you enjoy hanging around with online, etc., is what they're best at. And this comes closely attached with specific issues of time and behavior and tastes, etc.

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: Madwand1

Originally posted by: 02ranger
OK, so after all this talk about WoW on this forum, I've been thinking of getting into it. My biggest concern is that there is NO WAY I'm going to spend hours on top of hours each week playing. Is it possible to play this game well if I play maybe an hour or two a day, at most? Also, can I play on my own, or do I have to work with others in teams? I just don't want the commitment of having to be online at a certain time to do something.

If this doesn't seem to be a good game for me, what are some other good RPG's? They don't have to be MMO, but I'd like to try one since I've never played one before. I like the Final Fantasy series, so would XI be a good choice?

Thanks

IMO, it's dumb to take a single-user casual-user point of view towards a MMOG. MMOG's are by definition intended for multi-players, and most are designed in such a way that a team or guild etc., will have distinct advantages over single players. This could be the wrong game for you.

MMOG's are also designed at the game level to suck up your time, to keep you involved for months and months and years. And they do this. Don't be under any illusions. The game will not "pause" for you. Nor will it "save". Nor will it end.

If solo, casual game play is your goal, I think you'd be better off with something like the original NWN or their add-ons. You can get whole sets for very little. It's a well-designed RPG, and will let you spend a lot of time if you want, and get out of it quickly when you need to.

MMOG are very different. They're really about multi-player. Finding a bunch of people you enjoy hanging around with online, etc., is what they're best at. And this comes closely attached with specific issues of time and behavior and tastes, etc.

by definition, MMORPG says nothing about grouping with other people. sure, thats usually how its mean to be played, MMORPG mentions notihng about grouping with other people. it just means that there are other real living people behind those other characters

 

[Smilin]

Originally posted by: 02ranger
Cool. I'll probably pick up a copy of WoW tonight, give it a shot. I didn't realize FFXI was so time consuming. I tried reading up on both before posting, but couldn't really find what I was looking for. Thanks.

Find a buddy who has a copy first. We've all got these 10-day eval cards sitting around everywhere.



You can play casually until you hit level 70. After that you pretty much gotta turn hardcore or spin up a new character.

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: Smilin
You can play casually until you hit level 70. After that you pretty much gotta turn hardcore or spin up a new character.

This is not a good approach to take -- level up to 70 (or even 60) solo, and you'll miss a whole lot the game's content, and also find yourself pretty much unprepared and ill equipped for group play. You shouldn't do this, esp. in your first MMOG / character.

Besides, one of the few redeeming values that MMOG have is the real live interaction and teaming with other players. Miss that, and you're missing about the only good in the game. Of course teaming carries with it all the bad of interpersonal conflicts, etc., but what doesn't?...

 

[Tremulant]

Originally posted by: Aikouka

Originally posted by: ggnl
But I digress...can we talk about happy revenge again?

I'd actually like people to give opinions on my opinions on world PVP . I feel that I'm fairly alone when it comes to this as I don't think many people push their own self onto their character. I also think people bring way too many excuses to the table in WoW. "It's just a game!" Yeah, but see unlike your Final Fantasy XII, you're playing with other people. Acting like an idiot is akin to that guy who yells and curses while playing Halo (for example). It seems that's the one thing people seem to forget the most, behind that clump of pixels is someone (unless they're using WoW Glider :laugh: ).

Also, I find that non-RP servers tend to hold an elitist ideal over RP servers as they are "nerds." Yet, in my experience, PVP servers tend to hold the biggest RP'ers of all. Horde and Alliance never got along, they've always had a constant tense state between them after the third war and some lands even found a sense of peace (Orgrimmar and Theramore for example as Jaina helped Thrall beat Daelin). But why do people attack the opposing faction? Just "because they're Horde/Alliance?" Aren't you simply subjecting yourself to the role that Blizzard has planned out for you by adhering to such simple-minded ways? Killing the other player is not always the smartest decision game-wise, so why do it? Because Blizzard has the mindset of "red = dead" in your head?

Bah, sometimes I just don't understand the illogical fallacies of man.

I leveled two characters to 60 on a PvP server, and didn't really notice the ganking/world pvp very much. I admit that STV sucked, but that was about it. Most of my PvP while leveling came from me instigating it with my friends. In my experience, Horde towns were very rarely attacked.

I'm now leveling up a couple of characters on a PvE server, and even though they're only in their mid-20's, XR is always being attacked. I also have the feeling that as I level more, there will still be a decent amount of town attacks.

I follow the "if you don't attack, I won't attack" mindset though. Honestly, I prefer PvE realms because I don't have to deal with getting ganked. Especially lately, since I've been playing less often.

Here's my WoW noob story of the day: When I first started, I was put onto the Malygos realm (PvE). Not realizing the mechanics of PvP on a PvE realm, I was always scared of the opposing faction, even when I wasn't flagged for PvP. I would avoid the Horde as much as possible, for fear of getting ganked. It wasn't until about 6 months later, when I re-rolled on a PvP realm, that I realized how flagging works.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: Tremulant
I leveled two characters to 60 on a PvP server, and didn't really notice the ganking/world pvp very much. I admit that STV sucked, but that was about it. Most of my PvP while leveling came from me instigating it with my friends. In my experience, Horde towns were very rarely attacked.

I think it's pretty safe to say that STV is the worst for both factions. Hillsbrad is the worst for Horde (because Alliance are usually level 30+ in there and Horde go there at level 20-ish after Silverpine). Duskwood or Swamp of Sorrows is probably the worst for Alliance. Duskwood is just bad because people who're used to Westfall come in all hunky-dory and think nothing will happen and some guy who got bored killing in STV comes up and wham, bam, thank you, ma'am. Swamp of Sorrows wasn't bad before, but with the inclusion of Karazhan, try to stay out of western SoS during the evening time.

Originally posted by: Tremulant
I'm now leveling up a couple of characters on a PvE server, and even though they're only in their mid-20's, XR is always being attacked. I also have the feeling that as I level more, there will still be a decent amount of town attacks.

Astranaar and Southshore are attacked usually 2-3 times a day on Lightning's Blade by bored players. I wouldn't doubt that Tarren Mill and possibly Crossroads receive the same treatment.

Originally posted by: Tremulant
I follow the "if you don't attack, I won't attack" mindset though. Honestly, I prefer PvE realms because I don't have to deal with getting ganked. Especially lately, since I've been playing less often.

It's really the smart thing to do, 'cause the main goal of WoW is to level and why hamper your goals with some flexing of an e-peen by attacking someone at 25% hp when he's fighting a mob. Sadly enough, I had a Tauren Druid (that I LET LIVE on my priest) do that to me, but unfortunately for him, I was a lot stronger than he suspected (even at that much hp) and I killed the mob, died, pulled a Jesus and whooped on him... then died again to the darn moonfire DoT .

Originally posted by: Tremulant
Here's my WoW noob story of the day: When I first started, I was put onto the Malygos realm (PvE). Not realizing the mechanics of PvP on a PvE realm, I was always scared of the opposing faction, even when I wasn't flagged for PvP. I would avoid the Horde as much as possible, for fear of getting ganked. It wasn't until about 6 months later, when I re-rolled on a PvP realm, that I realized how flagging works.

I bet you I'd do that if I started playing on a PVE realm and I've been playing for over 2 years .

 

[Matthias99]

I leveled two characters to 60 on a PvP server, and didn't really notice the ganking/world pvp very much. I admit that STV sucked, but that was about it. Most of my PvP while leveling came from me instigating it with my friends. In my experience, Horde towns were very rarely attacked.

I don't know if the server you were on was relatively young when you started, but the experience can vary substantially. PVP servers with substantial Alliance/Horde imbalances are not much fun to be on the 'losing' side of from what I've heard.

Right now it seems like a lot of people are hitting 70 and suddenly realizing that the level 40-60 NPC guards around non-capital cities are essentially made of tissue paper. I'm on a PvE server and it still seems that about half the times I pass through Tarren Mill and Crossroads have been razed to the ground and have no quest-givers or flight point.

 

[Tremulant]

Originally posted by: Aikouka
I think it's pretty safe to say that STV is the worst for both factions. Hillsbrad is the worst for Horde (because Alliance are usually level 30+ in there and Horde go there at level 20-ish after Silverpine). Duskwood or Swamp of Sorrows is probably the worst for Alliance. Duskwood is just bad because people who're used to Westfall come in all hunky-dory and think nothing will happen and some guy who got bored killing in STV comes up and wham, bam, thank you, ma'am. Swamp of Sorrows wasn't bad before, but with the inclusion of Karazhan, try to stay out of western SoS during the evening time.

My first PvP char was an UD rogue, but my friends rolled Tauren and Orc, and we all leveled up doing the Orc/Troll line of quests, so I didn't do any of the Hillsbrad quests. My first hint of PvP on that char was in Stonetalon.

Originally posted by: Aikouka
Astranaar and Southshore are attacked usually 2-3 times a day on Lightning's Blade by bored players. I wouldn't doubt that Tarren Mill and possibly Crossroads receive the same treatment.

I didn't mention TM and SS on purpose, because those places are always under attack (my friends and I would goto TM fairly often just to start wars). I think Astranaar gets attacked more than XR though, atleast on Deathwing.

 

[Aikouka]

Originally posted by: Matthias99
I don't know if the server you were on was relatively young when you started, but the experience can vary substantially. PVP servers with substantial Alliance/Horde imbalances are not much fun to be on the 'losing' side of from what I've heard.

Usually Horde wins hehe. Alliance just has numbers. Although, I have met some really really bad Horde at PVP. Like the other day I was helping some 60 mage get the STV chest for his alt (I killed him and some other guy earlier for it and got the mail bracers I wanted :evil: ). There ended up being a group of 4 Horde there (70 priest, 66 (maybe 68) rogue, 60 warlock and 60 shaman) versus us (60 mage and 70 rogue). Well, eventually the rogue found the mage and I went to take care of the rogue, but the priest started getting in the way. Now, normally I try to get rid of rogues first, because a good rogue makes killing their healer a real pain for a melee class (since a rogue can incapacitate/stun you quite often), but eventually I realized this guy wasn't that great and the priest was more troublesome. So I started taking out the priest when a 60 priest came up and started healing me, which was pretty awesome as I had all 4 on me at this point. I ended up killing the priest, then I was fighting the rogue but I noticed that the warlock's succubus was being a pain to the priest. So I took the succubus out (silly warlock should've just seduced the priest until I died, but noooo ). So then I take out the rogue and the last two are purely fodder.

It was fun :evil:!

Originally posted by: Matthias99
Right now it seems like a lot of people are hitting 70 and suddenly realizing that the level 40-60 NPC guards around non-capital cities are essentially made of tissue paper. I'm on a PvE server and it still seems that about half the times I pass through Tarren Mill and Crossroads have been razed to the ground and have no quest-givers or flight point.

I think people are just bored . Also, didn't they lower the level of the Tarren Mill and Southshore guards? I think they were both 55 before, but now they're either 40 or 45.

 

[Tremulant]

Originally posted by: Matthias99

I leveled two characters to 60 on a PvP server, and didn't really notice the ganking/world pvp very much. I admit that STV sucked, but that was about it. Most of my PvP while leveling came from me instigating it with my friends. In my experience, Horde towns were very rarely attacked.

I don't know if the server you were on was relatively young when you started, but the experience can vary substantially. PVP servers with substantial Alliance/Horde imbalances are not much fun to be on the 'losing' side of from what I've heard.

Right now it seems like a lot of people are hitting 70 and suddenly realizing that the level 40-60 NPC guards around non-capital cities are essentially made of tissue paper. I'm on a PvE server and it still seems that about half the times I pass through Tarren Mill and Crossroads have been razed to the ground and have no quest-givers or flight point.

The server was one of the ones available at launch, and it was around for about 7-8 months before we rolled on it. So, it was kind of new, but so were all the other servers.

According to current numbers, the ratio is about even on that server, but I don't know how it was when we first began playing on it. Though I suspect there were more alliance than horde and that it's balanced out over time.

And yeah, there's a lot of times that I goto XR and all the NPC's are dead.

 

[Tremulant]

Originally posted by: Aikouka
Although, I have met some really really bad Horde at PVP.

I've met some players that are really really bad at PvE.

Like my cousin. When he plays his mage, he just spams Arcane Explosion to kill one mob, then drinks, then repeats. (even after explaining to him that he's wasting water, mana and time, he still does it)

I've also seen players who have no sense of aggro range, or of their surroundings and end up pulling mobs because they run around too much in battle.

 

[rh71]

I can't commit blocks of hours at a time either... I think I've done maybe ten 2-hour instances and maybe five 3-hour ones in my 1 year of playing... I have a level 70 and 68 right now... playing PvP in battlegrounds is good for "playing when you want" too. It's very possible to enjoy the game without committing a lot of time, at a time.