Alright, if you are complaining about this one you have really gone off the deep end. Go ahead and get caught up if you haven’t already. Seriously, I’ll wait. No big deal.
http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/topic/13273137450#6
Great so after reading the response, we should understand a few topics for discussion:
1. Guild Leveling Removed. AKA all guilds 25 by default.
2. Some perks removed, including Cash Flow.
3. Alternative forms of profit will be considered include raid BOEs.
Now, let’s discuss each one individually and explain all that surrounds it. Are you still with me? Hope so.
1. Guild Leveling Removed:
This is significant and needed to happen for one main reason: It was a garbage idea after the initial launch. Simple as that, my friends. If there are any out here who played Cataclysm at launch in an active raiding guild you will realize the flaws it had even then. Our group specifically tore itself apart over who does and doesn’t contribute and some membership demanded extra kickbacks in raid because they did a high percentage of the leveling contribution. Things like this were a product of the half-wits we had at the time, no doubt. But this does not mean its not also the system’s fault.
They tried to limit issues by making a unit cap on experience over a certain period so a guild wouldn’t just invite the 1k max players and get 25 day 1, but all this did was place heavy doubt on the shoulders of those who weren’t active when the cap wasn’t quite reached. Myself included, found dailies and the like to be a huge tedium (still do) and would never engage in them, and being the GM… well what did Ser Alliser say to John about leading…
Ya.
So if those were issues we had at launch, can you even fathom what it would be like now? I’m sure many live it daily. Starting a new raiding guild from scratch must seem daunting if people actually care about the perks, but even worse is getting people to contribute to leveling this late into the process and this expansion.
To add even more doubt to this, spend an hour in trade and you are likely to see some one SELLING a level 25 guild. What a joke! What is happening here is people are creating these mock guilds, using addons to invite every single player on the planet 100x a minute, and then watching as the guild levels and the coffers fill. That’s part of the next point, however.
Either way you look at it, I don’t see how anyone could mind this removal. I’m sure there is some bleating sheep out there crusading against it though. There always is.
2. Perks Removed, including Cash Flow:
To understand this decision, you would need to know which ones are staying. It was in the post, but for brevity’s sake, lets agree the ones that are staying that are important are Mass Rez and Ride like the Wind, and the only important departure is Cash Flow.
Unfortunately, Ion tries to downplay the loss of Cash Flow. This is a HUGE blow to our group, but like so many other things, the cons are vastly out weighed by the pros.
In the last section, I discussed the mass invite and guild afk leveling. This follows suite in this portion as well, as the two go hand in hand. Its become a huge issue, honestly, and has really hit the economy with a lasting damage. When you can literally use an addon to earn free gold, actions need to be taken, but especially when its in so a strange way.
By mass inviting people to the guild, the person behind the idea gets the cash flow bonus rolling into their coffers, as well as a level 25 guild to sell after its all over. Once the guild is 25, you empty the bank, try to sell it for a crazy price, and then go start another one.
Its gotten so bad that there are actually groups selling them, likely to raiding guilds starting up, and making enormous yield. Its essentially money for nothing. All you need is your chicks for free and you got a hit.
So as good as the perk was, it had to be addressed and I am glad it did.
However, Ion also says that Cash flow likely contributes less than the guild challenges to those active. The confusing part about this is, that doesn’t seem to be the case for us, even when we complete all the relevant challenges.
Click to Enlarge!
This picture should speak volumes, but is it really all from Cash Flow? It seems impossible that we gained 7k+ gold just from people looting, especially since we keep a trim roster to preserve the raiding atmosphere. My hypothesis has always been that the number on screen regarding Cash Flow actually accounts for the money made from the challenges as well. Because that would make sense. 1k for the raid, 2.5k from scenarios, 1.5k from CM… These things add up leaving less than a few thousand gold from actual cash flow looting.
Or perhaps its always been that high, and we just use that much gold a week in repairs?
Honestly, I couldn’t say. But if we are actually gaining 7k just from looting, and we lose that, it is an irreparable loss.
3. Alternative Income:
Since they go hand-in-hand, let’s get right into this. What options could they provide that don’t currently exist, to boost the revenue organized groups create?
The first thing mentioned is the reintroduction of BOE epics to raiding. Of course, if this includes Mythic, this can be extremely profitable. Absurdly so, that it would dwarf any money anything else brought in. But what will the drop rates be? Will be it 1 even 2 months like days of old? If so, what will the market look like? It will degrade over time no matter, but the rate is whats important. Can this alone replace Cash Flow for a raiding guild?
On top of this, what happens with the material disenchanted, such as Spirits of War. Are these remaining as well as adding BoE? If not, I call it unjust. We lose one to gain another.
Regardless, I hope they have something more to reveal in this topic. Gold earned is EXTREMELY important to me as a guild leader, and when talking about the first week of an expansion, Cash Flow seems irreplaceable. Unfortunately, it seems we will have to find alternative options.