Crucial Factors In Becoming An Elite Raider In Wow

The majority of players that play the World of Warcraft do so for endgame content, even though the game is really never ending not to mention the fact that Blizzard keeps adding expansions to enlarge and enrich the game allowing your character to grow. The next expansion due out is Mists of Pandaria which is not far off into the future, most likely the fourth quarter of 2012.

With endgame content comes the past time of raiding, and it takes a lot of practice and very dedicated focus on a player’s part, and their guild or raid group. You must have a keen sense of your surroundings and what is going on with all aspects of the raid, depending on what your spec is. You need the right gear, enough consumables to last you throughout the raid, and the proper strategies. If you can have all of these factors, than you will have much success in your raiding endeavors. Let’s start with preparation and strategy:

The Right Group

The first essential step you need in any raiding strategy is to find the right group to go raiding with. A raid can consist of either 10-man or25-man raid groups. It only makes sense when you look at the amount of people that you're playing with, that you yourself are only a small part of the much larger picture. Players in the raid group must be able to take orders and follow directions, and must get along well with others. Players should also have done their research on the specific dungeons that you will be concentrating on. Preparation is the key.

The Proper Gear

Just like you need the right makeup of a raid group, such as the amount of healers you’ll need for twenty-five man, you want to make sure that you go in with the proper gear. There are literally hundreds of different encounters in World of Warcraft and quite a few require specific gear to get you through them. For example, the second to last boss in Naxxaramas is a giant Frost Wyrm names Sapphiron. She requires that you wear sufficient frost resistance gear. Entire raid groups have been wiped because someone wasn’t wearing the proper gear during a raid. Using an addon such as Rating Buster to choose the best gear is a plus.

Your Spec and Talents

How a raid gets put together and whether it is successful is dependent not just on your class, but of your specialization and the talents you put into that spec. These are determining factors in any raid, in order for it to be effective. It's always a good idea to check and see what it is your guild to fill raid spots. You will find that there are plenty of DPS specializations out there, but for healers and tanks that's another story. Healers and tanks are in demand and it's a sure bet that you'll get into raids if you are either heals or a tank spec.

Being dual spec'd is in very high demand also. If you are starting a character from scratch consider a class where you can be dual spec'd. Almost all classes have the option of becoming dual spec. For example, if you are a priest you have the option of either being DPS or heals. With the right addons you can learn, fine tune and excel with any spec you choose.

Becoming an elite raider takes a ton of practice and solid teamwork. No single person can make it happen on their own, so find a great group of fellow players and see if you can't get yourself a raid together. After several hundred if not thousands of wipes, many gear changes, possibly revamping your entire character and several addons to aid you, you will be able to truly call yourself an elite raider.