Overwhelmed....

[Methodiom]

I have read many posts on here regarding many different things, I have to admit, some of this stuff is very overwhelming to me. I started playing..as I know many did...because a friend introduced me to it. He does help me at times, but I don't think he's as interested now as he seemed to be before.

There isn't really a point to this, but just that all the info about raiding and gearing and all these spreadsheets and formulas everyone uses to figures things out....is just confusing to me.

I am not the brightest mind out there...but certainly not the dullest either. But I just find things confusing. Will I be able to enjoy this game without fully understanding all that? Is it worth it to continue if I CANT understand all that?

[Grandorf]

I Know how you feel. i have a level 70 hunter, but love the Warlock class much better, as I read the posts I sometimes feel that I'm really not smart enough to do the warlock class justice.

[Pernicious]

I completely understand where your at. Looking back over the 3 years I've been playing this game, I can honestly say that the first year was spent "blind" to the technical/confusing side of WoW. Not that it made any difference in my game, if anything, not having a firm grasp on all of that stuff made me a better player as I had to learn and discover the class on my own.

My advice to you is to just play to have fun, don't worry about the confusing stuff and focus on what you like. Eventually you'll have a firm grasp on what it is your doing, one that only comes with experience, and all this other stuff will become clear to you.

[Theleb]

Take your time.

Most of the eternal wrangling over spreadsheets and mathematics involves (for want of a better term) "extreme" theorycrafting that essentially boils down to a couple of DPS here or there. Sure there are some rules to be aware of but discovering them in your own time whilst having fun with the game is certainly better than being bogged-down in numbers.

Just enjoy yourselves

[Umbralpuff]

Others seems to have said it as well, but yes..of course you can have fun without being a theorycraft wizard.

WoW supports multiple playstyles

I'll use a tabletop gaming example. When I played DnD, I always enjoyed the mechanics of the game to some extent; rolling 10d6s to see how much damage I do for spell just tickles me sometimes. Really, though, I enjoyed the roleplaying more. I didn't have to talk in a funny voice, I just had to make a personna and act on it. My fellow gamers, however, sometimes liked to powergame and were wildly concerned with getting the best THAC0 they could possibly get (did I just date myself?).

WoW's not all that different. I don't enjoy RPing in WoW really, but I do enjoy suspending my disblief and sometimes that means ignoring the fact that there are formulas and "programed" randomness that determine how much spell damage I do. I kind of like the mystery.

The theorycraft can be interesting if you're into it, and possibly even essential, when viewed in the context of end-game raiding, but I'm just a little gnomelock drunk with shadowpower.

[Night Owl]

Originally Posted by Grandorf

I Know how you feel. i have a level 70 hunter, but love the Warlock class much better, as I read the posts I sometimes feel that I'm really not smart enough to do the warlock class justice.

You're not alone, friend. I consider it an ongoing process, and I know the learning is supposed to be part of the fun. Yet there are days when I feel like I am too stupid to play this game. And I am not considered stupid by most methods of measuring intelligence. I was homeless at 18, and retired at 45, so I must have some form of smarts up there somehow. It just doesn't always translate to the game I love. Warlock is a complicated class, and there are times when a lot of varied things are demanded of us. But experience comes with time and practice. hang in there.

All in all, look back at what Theleb said in his post. Perhaps the wisest of words here. I have to stop once in a while and remind myself that I play this game because it is supposed to be FUN. When it isn't, I'm doing something wrong.

[RomaGoth]

Originally Posted by Umbralpuff

Others seems to have said it as well, but yes..of course you can have fun without being a theorycraft wizard.

WoW supports multiple playstyles

I'll use a tabletop gaming example. When I played DnD, I always enjoyed the mechanics of the game to some extent; rolling 10d6s to see how much damage I do for spell just tickles me sometimes. Really, though, I enjoyed the roleplaying more. I didn't have to talk in a funny voice, I just had to make a personna and act on it. My fellow gamers, however, sometimes liked to powergame and were wildly concerned with getting the best THAC0 they could possibly get (did I just date myself?).

WoW's not all that different. I don't enjoy RPing in WoW really, but I do enjoy suspending my disblief and sometimes that means ignoring the fact that there are formulas and "programed" randomness that determine how much spell damage I do. I kind of like the mystery.

The theorycraft can be interesting if you're into it, and possibly even essential, when viewed in the context of end-game raiding, but I'm just a little gnomelock drunk with shadowpower.

THAC0 = To Hit Armor Class 0 (Zero).....

Yeah, I remember those days too....

[Woundweaver]

One of the really nice things about WoW is that you don't *have* to understand all the math behind what goes on. ;)

I played all the way to 60 without using more than a talent calculator really... It was only once I started raiding that I started looking for more information on the math, mechanics, and min-maxing that can be done for 'Locks.

It's very true that there is a ton of information here, but think of it as a Cliff's Notes. ;) "What gear is good for a 55?" Ah, there's CPimp's guide on wowmb.net... "Dang, how am I going to get my Dreadsteed when nobody on my server runs Dire Maul?!?"" Oh, that's right, I searched wowmb.net and there's a Dreadsteed contact list! "What was that cool addon that let me que up summoning party members using tells?" Heh, you get the idea.

Don't feel like you've got to hit the library end to end. It's entirely possible to enjoy playing your class without doing any research at all. But if you have a question about something Warlock related, this is most certainly the place to find it.

And don't forget: Using the search feature seriously helps to find the information you're looking for quickly. ;)

THAC0 = "To Hit Armor Class 0", of a 20 sided dice the number needed to hit an enemy with an AC of 0. For example, if the THAC0 is 19, a roll of 19 or higher is needed to hit an enemy with an AC of 0. A roll of 1 is always a miss, and a roll of 20 is always a hit, called CRITICAL MISS and CRITICAL HIT respectively.

"Seriously? I'm standing closer than arms reach and I stabbed myself in the eye, seriously?" ;)

[nitromoose]

THACO!!!

Man I miss that stuff.

Look around for a critical miss table, it's great stuff.

It is all a little overwhelming, when 99% of the posters here are working end game content (least it seems that way sometimes). I try to think of it as if they are playing a different game, just one that I can use tips from to make my game run a little better.

[Oaken]

Yeah miss it too, but what the heck.

Anyways back to the topic, when i startet WoW again after Burning Crusade and hit
70 i was clueless, and by that i mean really clueless, but as i started raiding i started getting into warlocks as much as i could to improve every day.
Guess this stuff is really confusing to someone who is being hit with all those numbers, theories and opposing oppinions, but there is no need for you to understand any of this as long as you enjoy playing and people like to have you around.

But if you ever want to get into your class-mechanics than the warlocks den is a great source of knowledge.

Kil Jaeden 33% speaking of endgame^^