Loot Conscious or Loot Whoring

“Loot Whore” is a pretty derogatory term in the World of Warcraft. You don’t want them in your guild, you don’t want them in your PUG, and you don’t want to see them whining in trade chat that someone gave such and such an item to a different class who did 200 or so less DPS than them. However, this generalization of the slanderous title can be dangerous and be rather far from the truth. Its stigma can be such as to keep many quiet as they’re out-rolled and out-bid time and time again, as they watch items go to people who are generally more geared, get less benefit or are simply gearing wrong.

Knowing when to speak up is entirely based upon your environment. In many cases, simply asking the other person if they will pass to you is acceptable. Adding an explanation, i.e. it’s a larger upgrade for you, it’s BiS for you, they just picked up some legs and you could really use the four piece bonus, can be helpful. In this case, it’s up to the other person. Will they be gracious? They may decide they need it more. They may have run the instance every week since they were 80 waiting for it to drop and being out-rolled every time. In this case, you’re SOL, but you don’t look like a Loot Whore unless you pitch a fit over them not passing. In fact, if the other person has already won a ton of items, it’s possible that they could be the ones to come out looking like a Loot Whore if they say no, so be careful of putting people into such a position.

Be aware of loot rules before going into an instance. Can you live with them? One piece of loot per boss sounds nice, but that still leaves room for someone to continually win a piece of loot off of every boss. One piece of main spec loot per instance (unless everyone is out of main spec rolls) sounds nice, but can become convoluted quickly, especially in longer instances where you lose track of who has won what. Free roll on everything means you go with the dice and the dice don’t lie. If you get out-rolled on three pieces in a row, you get out-rolled on three pieces in a row.

What about DKP or other point-based systems? Well, in those instances, the more you lose, the more you gain. Meaning, maybe you keep losing bids on items, but so long as you continually show up for raids, you will keep gaining DKP while others lose it, and items that were hotly contested prior may drop in price. Eventually, you will be top dog and can pick your items with impunity. Please note, bidding other people up just to make them spend their points is really just another form of Loot Whoring, and is in very bad taste.

Or how about the infamous loot council? If run correctly and impartially (it is possible!), the loot council system can insure that upgrades are given to the proper class, to those who perform the best for their gear level, or who need the upgrade the most. Stating your case in a clear, polite, non-aggressive or threatening or whining manner can help the loot council decide in your favor. However, pitching fits when they don’t, imagining favorites, or forgetting that all people, including yourself, are fallible and mistakes happen can put you low on the loot council’s priority.

Raiding and playing should not be all about the loot. But, face it, without the prospect of upgrading gear, what’s the point in seeing the raid content more than a few times. While you may relish the fights, everyone wants to see their character improve and look more badass each day. As well, losing out on an item again and again or seeing it drop but once and losing it to the tank who cannot even use half the stats on it can be a bitter pill to swallow. It’s always up to you on how you act when this happens, and how close you can stand to gaining the Loot Whore brand. An unfortunate part of the game’s culture, to be sure.