Loot system
From Divided Loyalties
Dunno how original this idea is, but here's what we call the "Half-burn DSP." This loot system is a dungeon-specific point (DSP) system, i.e. you earn points per instance versus a collective pool of points.
Contents |
Introduction
Common problems
Two of the primary problems with DKP systems are:
- People quitting a dungeon (example: Molten Core (MC)) because they have what they want - a problem of pure dungeon specific system and rank-based systems.
- People not raiding in a new dungeon (BWL) until the wipes are curtailed and bosses are being taken - a problem of standard dkp and rank-based systems.
DKP scenario 1
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 Dragon Kill Points (DKP) from running Molten Core and AQ20. However, he has everything he wants from MC, so he decides not to attend MC any longer. He feels he is just wasting his time. He is going to wait until the guild begins BWL and use his dkp there. The guild suffers from his absence in MC.
DKP scenario 2
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 Dragon Kill Points (DKP) from running Molten Core and AQ20. The guild begins BWL, where they wipe frequently and pull very little loot for several weeks. PlayerJoeBoo knows that chances are he will come away with nothing but a heavy repair bill, so he doesn't attend BWL, opting to only attend MC and AQ20 so that he will have lots of DKP to spend in BWL when the *other* guildies finally pave the way for him.
DSP scenario
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 Dungeon Specific Points (DSP) in Molten Core. However, he has everything he wants from MC, so he decides not to attend MC any longer. He is just wasting his time building points in a dugeon where there is nothing left to obtain. He is going to wait until the guild begins BWL to rejoin them there, where everyone will begin with 0 DSP.
Half-Burn DSP Solution
What is "Half-Burn"? Half Burn is the ability to transfer your dungeon specific raid points from one dungeon to another dungeon with a 50% loss ("burn") rate.
Half-burn scenario
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 Dungeon Specific Points (DSP) in Molten Core. However, he has everything he wants from MC, so he isn't interested in helping the guild in MC any longer. However, when the guild begins BWL, everyone will be offered the opportunity to transfer DSP from other dungeons to BWL at a 50% loss rate. This means PlayerJoeBoo cannot sit out of MC or he will begin BWL behind the curve of others who continue to help in MC for the transfer opportunity.
Thus, PlayerJoeBoo continues to help in MC. Finally, the guild hits BWL. PlayerJoeBoo considers waiting for the repair bills to subside before joining the weekly BWL learning efforts. But then he realizes that those in the learning phase are pulling full DSP for BWL. PlayerJoeBoo will quickly fall behind if he does not attend.
Earning points
All members enter a raid dungeon for the very first time with a starting point base of 10 DSP for that dungeon. As mentioned above, you earn points for each instance. So you will have X points for ZG, Y points for MC, and Z points for AQ20.
| Contribution | Points | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Being on time | 1 | This is to reward people for being on time and not delaying the group. |
| Finishing an entire raid | 1 | This is to reward people for staying through the entire raid (not leaving early) |
| Per hour of raiding | 1 | Rounded up, so 3:20 of raiding would receive 4 points |
We are a "main-only" guild. However, occasionally we may ask someone to bring an alt to fill in a crucial raid spot that cannot be filled by a main that is online. In those cases, the alt will earn full points for the main.
Spending points
When loot drops it's like Christmas all over again! You want to get the best stuff, but for the cheapest price. Enter the spending system. It occurred to us after talking about this a while, that this a whole lot like eBay bidding (except you don't get to re-bid).
- Categories of loot are assigned a minimum bid (these numbers are up for discussion as needed we get more experience with the system):
- Armor (includes rings and trinkets): 5
- Weapons (includes main hand, off hand, and ranged slots): 10
- Class/profession/quest items (e.g. Totems, Patterns, etc): 5
If you're thinking eBay, these minimum bids would be the starting bid on eBay.
You may go in negative only if no one else wants the item.
Priority for loot
- Mains who have not received an epic
- Mains who have received an epic or mains who have not received an epic and will have to go in the negative
- Mains who have received an epic and will have to go in the negative
- Alts, at the expense of a shard to the guild bank, the shard-match price, or the normal dsp subtracted from their main. As of 9/13/2007, the shard-match price is 15g. This may change with the market value, and will be different, of course, with a new shard type.
- Shard the item and send to bank
Example walk-through of the system
When an item drops, a silent auction is held by whispering the master looter and the point cost to the winner is second-highest-bid + 5. Bids are kept in multiples of 5 to keep the math simple. :) Once all bids are in, the master looter will announce the winner and how many points were paid and will distribute the loot to the winner. In the event of a tie (usually only because of multiple minimum bids), /roll among those tying.
Example 1
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 MC points built up, and PlayerJoeSchmoo has 40 MC points built up. One night after downing Garr, the Circlet of Prophecy drops. Since the guild is not currently doing Onyxia, JoeBoo decides he really wants this item, so whispers the loot master his bid: all 50 points. JoeSchmoo is the only other priest, and he bids his full 40 points. The loot master announces that the head piece goes to JoeBoo at a cost of 45 points, which are then deducted from his MC account.
Example 2
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 MC points built up, and PlayerJoeSchmoo has 40 MC points built up. One night after downing Garr, the Circlet of Prophecy drops. Since the guild is currently doing Onyxia, it is an upgrade, but not as important (because he will have a chance to get the Tier 2 head piece from Onyxia) so JoeBoo whispers his bid to the loot master: only 10 points (because of the minimum for a BoE). JoeSchmoo bids 15 (hoping to beat out those only bidding the minimum). The loot master announces that the head piece goes to JoeSchmoo at a cost of 15 points, which are then deducted from his MC account.
Example 3
PlayerJoeBoo has 50 MC points built up, and PlayerJoeSchmoo has 40 MC and 40 ZG points built up. One night after downing Garr, the Circlet of Prophecy drops. Since the guild is not currently doing Onyxia, JoeBoo decides he really wants this item, so whispers the loot master his bid: all 50 points. JoeSchmoo is the only other priest, and he suspects/knows he has fewer MC points or maybe just doesn't need anything else out of ZG. JoeSchmoo decides to "half-burn" all his ZG points and transfer them to MC. He now has 60 MC points and 0 ZG points. JoeSchmoo now bids the full 60 points. The master looter announces that the head piece goes to JoeSchmoo at a cost of 55 points, which are then deducted from his MC account.
Potential advantages
- The intent of allowing a 50% loss rate transfer of DSP is to provide motivation for guild members to continue doing dungeons they other-wise would not do, and yet not allow their frequent participation in "farm status" dungeons to completely preclude the necessity of helping the guild during the difficult first learning phases of a new dungeon.
- In a Half-Burn DSP system, the selfish individual is hurt in their point standing. The most active and the most helpful team players are rewarded.
- The casual raider is still able to save up his points and bid high enough to win an item.
Potential disadvantages
- There is no perfect "point of insertion" for a new guild member to start on an equal playing field with long-standing members, as there is in a strict Dungeon Specifc Point system. This is a problem with most loot systems, and we are considering some possibilities. However, we consider this to be a minor issue compared to all the other issues that the system resolves.
