Breakfast Topic: How legendary should legendary be?
Has WoW's latest legendary item become a mandatory checkbox on the raid recruitment circuit? The legendary cloak has been called "the people's legendary" based on its relative ease of acquisition. "As long as you put in the time there is literally no barrier to entry," explains WoW Insider's Adam Koebel. "It's the most powerful item you will equip this expansion -- sometimes the proc alone is over 10% of my damage on a boss fight, and that's not counting its enormous stat budget or the metagem."
Sounds like a pretty key piece to acquire, doesn't it? Apparently, so goes the thinking of guild leaders across Azeroth. Tales from the field indicate that a legendary cloak has become a prerequisite for players seeking entry into a raiding guild. It seems reasonable enough: Completing the cloak quest is a pretty good benchmark of persistence and basic game knowledge, and the cloak is certainly a powerful piece in its own right.
Still, how legendary can a cloak be if the community at large establishes it as the bottom line for endgame participation? "I must state that this cape and all its associated quests and grinds still do not make it feel 'legendary' IMO," wrote WI commenter shaw.sbst. "But, I do applaud Blizzard in trying to find ways to emulate the epicness of what was trying to get a legendary weapon, or an equivalent in terms of personal importance, like what it was to get the class mounts."
What does it say when a supposedly legendary item becomes an expected prerequisite for endgame play? Does that dilute its status? What makes a legendary item "legendary," and did the so-called people's legendary cloak achieve that goal? How much value does the term "legendary" itself hold for you?
