A discussion on how to improve PUGs

Your proposals simply reemphasize the total failure of PUGs in today's GW. Because at least some of the things you mention now happen in nearly every PUG. Yeah, they're all calling everyone noobs, filtering will do nothing about it. Radar picture madness that gives me something else I can report (big whoop there), drops/afk's that I have to deal with via some vote system that doesn't change the fact that they dropped or went afk, screwing the mision or whatever. Horribly stupid builds of no use to the team to the point I have to be able to spy on their bars if I'm the leader.

Morons. You can't fix morons.

No thanks.

Well, my response is more serious. Not all, but the vast majority of those I play with are now or were in the military. Those that were not are often parents. Some who are in neither of these categories *get it.* A great many who do not have this kind of experience do not.

Noob is an amuzing term for me. The New Ugly Boy or New Ugly Guy in the military has morphed into a general pejorative instead of a razz of comeradery. Again, those without experience use incorrectly.

I cant go with this because there are too many immature PUG leaders who do not defer to experienced play.

Too much screen space used.

I could not allow this. There are mothers of small children, disabled people, etc. for whom the immature and intolerant would make the game worthless. I have in my guild a mother who is poddy training one child and taking care of a newborn - those who cannot be tolerant through interuptions for these important issues have no place in my company. I have a guild leader who is deaf, and so has to use a special phone and sign language with her family. You cannot continue playing while signing - again, a lack of consideration for these real life situations is not acceptable. When they go AFK there is a reason. I will concede however concering Leechers. There is already a report for that.

I have some guidelines I have never fully implemented because those I play with naturally follow these ideals:

The patience and tolerance part are important because no person is perfect and no one will observe these 100% of the time. This doesn't mean you have to cater to every social acceptability. I refuse to appologise for being male and every feminist in universe can shove it. I approve of my male heritage and traditions - I wont back up. I wont back down. And I wont give in just because someone waves a bra-burning card. But, I chose to fall on this sword and if you take an unpopular stance you have to be willing to maintain resoluteness and bleed when you hit the sword.

Am I the only one who thinks this is too easily abusable? Yeah, you could report a guy for drawing genitals and writing swearwords on the minimap, but I've also heard of people who cannot tolerate drawing on the minimap at all. And then there's the entire 'disgruntled' issue. Don't like the fact that he got a good drop and you didn't? /Report.

Which is also why a Dishonorable Hex for PvE would be a nasty, nasty feature unless you could find a way to skim through the reports from sheer abuse. Furthermore, in PvP, the hex makes it such that your character can't enter PvP for x number of minutes. How would that pan out in PvE?

Thank you sir.
You have revived my belief in guru posters actually having a functioning thought process.
No need for a /report function in PvE..that's just silly.
It was really only used back when we were infested with bots.
If you and your team think someone is leeching..go back into town, and boot him/her.
the /report team function is mostly for the weird chit that happens in RA..you don't wanna go there!!

Mini-map draw/ping function simply removed.
Option for team leader to force load builds onto other players and lock them to stop all the retarded Power Attack Warriors and Firestorm Elementalists.
Ability to kick other players at will and have them automatically replaced by a hero, while in an instance.

/report option of terrible spelling and grammar. This game is for 13 years or older, if you can't manage to speak English correctly at 13 years of age, something's wrong with you; get back to English class.

Mandatory IQ test that starts as soon as anyone logs in after the next patch. There is a time limit and it must be done immediately. The score is then listed beside your ingame player name. This score is permanent.

/facepalm.
I hope that's a stab at sarcasm!
There are many days when I get home from a long, hot day of big peoples stoof that all I want is a couple of stiff drinks...and to run amok and kill many things in a video game.
I just wanna play a game..NOT apply for M.I.T.... </sarcasm\>

and kick the 7 other in teh party just as the final chest appears !!!

No chest for all of you !!

I only play in PUGs if I wanna have a good laugh....nothing like asking them to ping their skills.
My fave was the warrior who had sever artery, heal signet, endure pain, vampiric gaze, blood of the master. animate bone minions, well of blood and res signet.
He died a lot...and he apologised a lot...apparently the problem, as he said, was that he ran out of energy so fast...priceless I tell you.

Actually, to be fair, the trouble with that is that sometimes you're too far into the game to make it worth going back into town. However, I also admit that might be entirely your own fault for not noticing sooner.

If there is a viable way to get past players who leech, I'm all for it. /report is too easily abusable to be one of those viable ways.

You will always risk someone being a moron in a PUG, because that's how things work. You will also run the chance of meeting decent, nice players. It's been that way since I started playing, and I only stopped PUGging after GWEN came out. (Actually, I learnt a lot of lessons on 'what not to do when you play this class' from PUGging, but I digress.)

The main issue with PUGs is, I think, mostly tolerance. This doesn't mean you have to handle every last piece of shit that people throw at you. It does mean that people need to be more open-minded. If someone criticizes your build, it doesn't automatically mean the person's trying to tear you apart verbally. If someone runs a build that isn't the usual one you expect, it doesn't automatically mean that the person's a bad player. That's probably the difference between guild teams that can pass areas with a mishmash of professions, and a PUG that wipes even with their 'ideal' build.

Because, seriously, if the flarespammer would stop and listen to why another bar is better, he wouldn't be a flarespammer anymore.

I stopped PUGging after GWEN because I got increasingly irritated at people who wouldn't listen. Not because they were bad - I'd rather play with a total newbie who's willing to learn than a better player who isn't. I don't think losing your temper at every single thing that goes wrong is the way. People tend to be more willing to sit down and pay attention when you say something calmly, and that can make the difference between finishing a mission/quest/whatever successfully. Saying "stand back a little" is a lot more effective than shouting "OMFG STAND BACK NOOB."

scenario: Player x afk's from the start of the mission. Once he is reported by all remaining members of the party for leeching he recieves a dishonorable hex. He then does not recieve credit for the mission and/or bonus and can not enter said mission again until the hex wears off.

Not abusable by one person with a chip on their shoulder and discourages leeching by not allowing a reward for doing it. Doesn't require /resign and regroup if the party chooses to continue with the mission.

@Damian: I like that idea.

Remove pugging from game, make it solo game !!

QFT. This is a game not University.

You already have that option, HEROES

No need for it if you implement your first idea

Make all English speaking players play in German/French districts,( not everyone in GW speaks English)

Judging by your ideas above, you would have to H/H the whole game with an IQ title under your name

The problem with PuGing is that you're playing with random strangers. Pulling a group of random people together to accomplish anything in a civil and organized fashion in real-life is already absurdly difficult, and when you throw in the anonymous safety of the internet it becomes damn near impossible. This is a fundamental problem that really has little or nothing to do with GW.

All hail Hypno Toad Minipet, it will brainwash any Pug into submission.



The longer people play the more the game focuses on forcing players to execute their skills more masterfully. The Pug problem is then one of having to few experienced players and too little time to instruct them, combined with an unwillingness to be instructed of course. Why would MMO players want to be instructed, after all, they are used to winning with any skill combination in most MMOs, as long as they pre-grinded their levels far enough.

the frustrating and hilarious nature of PUGs is intrinsic to MMORPGs. Embrace it, go solo, or group w/ only ppl u know and trust.

You want to improve PUGs? Remove all h/hs and disband all guilds. That'll work.

There really is no fix for this unless you close off the Islands to all Foriegners(sp) meaning Istani and Sing Jea.This way no one can get run around and when someone leaves they can't return it is a one way ticket.This is for Factions and Nightfall.

When it comes to Prophecies a higher lvl should be required and grouping should be must in expanded 4 party members.This would be in higher areas though.It starts in the beginning to improve player quality maybe some testing would be good similar to the insignia testing.This is if Anet want to make these changes and the community supports them.

There really is no simiple solution to this.I have been in great and really bad pugs.

I like playing with PUGs occasionally - The mele Necro or Mesmer are fun to watch just as are the over-aggroing Warrior or Assassin. I have to admit though, I am easily amused. That said, I only play with PUGs when I'm playing a quest/mission that I am VERY familiar with and am playing just for fun, or when helping a friend who is in a PUG. When I'm determined to beat a mission/quest that's new to me, or I'm having trouble with - I research it and play with H/H or friends that I can trust to play appropriately. I should mention that I've been playing for 35 months and I've gotten pretty good at recognizing a bad PUG pretty quickly. My experience with PUGs when I was a new player were mostly frustrating - both at my teammates and at myself.