PuG dungeon loot etiquette for dummies
So with the dawn of Wrath, a lot of people have been heading into 5-man dungeons, both the normal and heroic type. They may be after experience, they may be after badges, they may be after achievements, but nearly everyone is also very interested in whatever loot may drop along the way.
To add to this, not everyone is so lucky as to have a pre-made 5 man ready to go when they log on for the night. Maybe they're guildless, maybe their guild is off in Naxxramas, maybe their guild is 10 levels below them, but whatever the reason, a lot of people end up looking for the pickup groups to get their dungeon diving done.
Anyhow, you probably know what happens next. Pickup group plus loot equals drama. You'd almost think that's some sort of universal constant in WoW. Sure, we've had some great PuGs, but we've had some bad ones too, and those bad ones seem to come complete with ready-made loot drama, and it seems like we're not alone. We're hearing from a lot of people lately who've had problems with loot distribution drama.
But here's a secret: While most people want to get all the loot they can, very few people actually like being in the middle of loot drama, and they probably want to avoid it as much as you do. The easiest way to avoid that drama and get along with your PuG when the boss drops and it's time to roll for the blues and the purples is to know the ropes. With that in mind, here's a few pointers on loot policy in PuGs.
1. Know Your Roll for BoPs - The Bind on Pickup stuff that drops off the boss is where most of the drama comes from. This is where you need to know exactly how your group plans to roll. There's a couple ways this usually goes down:
One, everyone just rolls. Need if it's something you'd use and is a genuine upgrade, greed if you don't need it but want it for vendor fodder. Some people prefer this method for its simplicity, but it's sort of a straight forward bullheaded approach that may lead to the loot not being used in the best way.
The second basic way, which I strongly prefer, is for everyone to pass on the item, and for any discussion to ensue on who gets it before making another roll. This allows people to decide if they really *need* It, and allows people to differentiate between those who would use it immediately, and those who would just stick it in the bank for an off spec. Likewise, if someone could use it for an off spec, this gives them a chance to see if it's alright if they roll need. If there's an Enchanter in your party, it also gives people the option of asking them to break it down into a shard.
2. Know your Roll for BoEs - Generally for Bind of Equip, the "everyone just rolls" approach works much better. It's BoE, so it's not like it's not transferable later. If a BoE is a genuine upgrade for someone (as in, I'd wear it now type of upgrade), many groups don't mind handing it over.
Okay, so that's the most basic outline for rolling loot, but what happens when stuff gets really sticky? After all, if it was really as simple as everyone rolling, things would be a lot simpler. Let's move on to part II, where we'll discuss some of the finer nuances of rolling for loot.
