I’m a big fan of your work. I have been listening to you on different podcasts. I am now just listening to your interview on AIE guild podcast. I’m also a fan of Veneretio’s blog and he linked to your article in twitter.

Looks like you have a great community of commenters on this blog as well. I will check back again.

How do I know?

Trust me. I know. :)

I liked Veneretio’s article, I would not jump ship to get to the top. I think its more about building a team of players and friends, but I think if the guild you in is not achieving your own goals then leave but don’t burn your bridges.

I think it’s interesting that you compare it to baseball because baseball even explains the hurt attitude of guilds that lose their teammates. You see while everyone is thrilled for those that work their way up the major league ladder, there are also different leagues that exists where the opposite is the case. Many, in fact. Little leagues, beer leagues, college leagues and more. I’m reminded of my own little league team’s disappointment when one of our two pitchers didn’t play with us one year and instead played with a superior team in a superior league when we were just kids. I’m reminded of my beer league team’s angst when a long time member went on to play in a superior, city league.

Thanks for adding to my post. You took it to a level that I never dreamed anyone could or would have.
.-= Veneretio´s last blog ..The Road to Content: Reputation vs Gear vs Experience =-.

Sometimes a player is not a good fit for a guild. In the last guild I helped run we had an outstandingly good player, really miles more skilled than the rest. He jumped for the server’s top guild.

It was a blow but we took it on the chin and wished him luck.

His new guild was a much better fit for him than our guild, he was clearly at a different level to the rest of us.

I stayed friends with him and ran some instances with him after.

A guild is just a chat channel and a raid pool really. Friendship is something different.

We are, however, a tight-knit group, and we’re running second on our server right now. My experience may not be like everyone else’s. Most of us have been running together since Karazhan, and someone just splitting for phatter lewtz in that situation would leave me feeling betrayed.
.-= CC´s last blog ..The Northrend Beasts Heroic, or: An Ugly, Hairy Learning Experience =-.

Earlier today I was helping a lower level friend through an instance, and had just mentioned in party chat how upset I was. And some random death knight they had pugged in for the ride … LAUGHED. Really HARD. At how upset I was over it. They were like “it’s just a freaking game how can you be upset?” It’s not exactly the same thing. But I guess the effect was the same .. I felt totaly blindsided by the knowledge that there were other people out there, that will find something like that .. Funny? That can’t see a guild — and our collective property we accumulate as anything substainal.

I guess I just wanted to say that we all play the game with the preconsieved notion that to a certian degree everyone else is just like us. That they wont consider your guild simply a stepping stone to bigger and better things. Until today I played with the basic assumption that the friendships people build in a guild, and the things they build up together means something, and that the outside world would totally get why we were upset at being hacked. Much less find anything funny about the situation.

Early in my wow playing career, I think I did something similiar to my first “leveling” guild. I wanted to raid. And our attempts at raiding in the guild I had mostly leveled/socialized in up until that point just wasn’t making it happen for me. I quit in in the midst of a very heated arguement. And ever after had this feeling of guilt/remorse and upset over how I left. I especially felt guilty once I outgeared my old members and could run raids they couldn’t even come close to. These days I play horde, not ally .. and I’m back in the kind of guild I once left behind. I have an ally alt though I still play .. and they reccently let me come back “home” to their guild. Even if I’m level 15. It’s been a long time. I think it just took me a while to realize that playing with people you like is way more important than playing with people who will get you gear that you like.

(One thing I think blizzard did right was allow people who can’t raid the hardmodes to get access to hardmode gear — through a hefty time commitment on their part — I really think that them doing that allows people to continue to progress in a guild that might be grinding it’s gears/not getting to end game content or through it as fast as you want. It allows for personal improvement to continue, even if at a slower pace while you wait/help your guild catch up. And thus allows for you to -pug- into higher end raids, to get that experience if u really want, without HAVING to feel like you need to leave the guild ur in, simply TO progress. Because that roadblock is just gone)

And wow this post got long. I think this post just struck a nerve with me. Sorry I am all over the map in replying to it!