On the flip-side of having a good party the other night, I had a pretty disasterous one last night which left me with a lot less hair and more dents in my desk than I'd like.
Ultimately, I attribute it to two players which I will likely avoid partying with again, but I'm not really sure I wish to say "worst players" as they may have just been having a bad day (I know I've had them). After careful thought and consideration though, at the very least I'd like to point it out (if it's a pattern but nobody ever talks about it...then the pattern will not be realized).
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First off the folks I would party with again:
Mikika - THF and IMHO a very competent one. I had partied with him the night prior and he had no problem putting so much hate on our Taru PLD against the same mobs in the same exact location that there was 0 chance of me peeling it off him even if I wanted to. I felt very comfortable not having shadows up after he SATA'd the hate off of me. In addition, depending on which gear food setup I'm using, it's consistently a tug-of-war between me and him for most damage dealt. It bothers me to no end that we couldn't get him his level. :(
Babyboyy and Babygirrl - SMN and WHM husband and wife combo. I've been in multiple parties with them (I jokingly call them my static when I talk to them) and although we don't rank in amazing experience in an hour like I have with some parties we do move forward and I can rely on them to do their jobs. There are some adjustments that I think would make us more compatible and efficient, but they are just nuances which can be overcome if we get some time to strategize better.
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Now the members of the party I'd prefer to avoid at this point:
Schmidt - I'm sorry man, but I can comfortably say that without SATA, I have more reliable hate on me...and I'm not comfortable with my ability to keep hate the past 4 levels, so that's saying a lot.
I'm hoping you were just having a bad day...or drunk...etc. In the event that it's how you normally conduct yourself, here are a few tips.
a. Move to your position and stand there. When you do have hate on you, *DO NOT* run off to some random spot on the camp...especially when the melee are spamming that their TP is ready for use. Multiple times WS could not go off when planned because the mob was suddenly running away...in a random direction ("you cannot see the Helm Beetle"). Sometimes the mob was going after the mages....but many times the mob was chasing you (again, there was no apparent need for it when it was happening). As the tank...YOU control the mob...not the other way around.
b. If you're going to go to an area with mobs with silencing moves...carry Echo Drops. Hell, carry Echo Drops regardless. Fortunately, that's what I did and when the entire group got silenced I was able to take over and you were survived what was certain death.
c. When the WHM goes to pick up one person at the telecrystal...
c.1 - Do not suggest the whole group goes. The larger the group, the larger the stealth liability.
c.2 - Do not decide to tag along without the appropriate stealth meds. Carrying Silent Oils and Prism Powders is not only easier on the mages, but reliably lasts longer than sneak and invisible (not to mention doesn't put them in harms way when you're wearing in a tight spot).
d. When there is an established puller...do not take it upon yourself to...provoke...the first mob you see. That was particularly bad for a number of reasons. First, the puller might (and was) pulling a different mob at that moment. Second, how is the THF going to SATA hate on to you when it's facing you? Finally, you're wasting MP (either yours or the healers) immediately in the fight on IT++ mobs. Shadows = No hits while waiting for SATA = No MP needed that could be better utilized later in a tight fight.
e. Don't wait until over an hour into exping to equip your helm.
f. Read party chat.
g. When a member states that they are afk, they are probably afk. Spamming party chat with "Name <call>" 6 or 7 times will not make them magically return to their keyboard. All it does is annoy the folks who aren't afk.
h. When you're in a party and teleport to a zone that has monsters you can't quickly fight solo...do not provoke one before everyone has loaded into the zone. Especially do not do this when there are 2 of them, and they are linking. We survived it however it was a lot closer than you know (90% of it I was solo fighting the 2nd antican so it wouldn't destroy our Taru mage line supporting you).
i. If you zone before the DD, THF, and SMN during a tough fight which requires retreat (while the DD, THF, and SMN try to keep it occupied), you're not living up to the heroic example a paladin represents. That's more of an opinion than a "do or don't" I suppose.
j. When there is an MP shortage and you /tell me asking me to take over hate, do not pop invincibility once I provoke. I'm not a miracle worker, and when it wears you will still have that hate for long enough for you to get eaten. If anything, allow me to use my shadows as a small buffer before you pop it and get the hate back. That short period of time could make or break the fight. If you had emergency juice on hand then you would've had at least a little mp after the 40+ seconds it would take for my shadows to disappear and then your invincibility to wear.
k. When hate is bouncing around like a yo-yo as it is...do not insist that the mages debuff *SOONER* than they already are. If hate is that much of a problem already...try establishing hate *THEN* having the party throw in those things that piss the mob off royally. The reverse doesn't work particularly well.
I think that's all for you Schmidt...and I apologize if you take offense to this, but these are just some of the things which were a factor in the overall success in the party.
Spaul - BLM
Ironically, you were largely responsible for the reason you eventually left for. One reason you gave was the hate management, and between "Dancing Schmidt" and you pulling hate before SATA could be done...yes, hate management was a nightmare. You didn't stick around as long as Schmidt did, so I have less to say....as a matter of fact only 2 things really come to mind.
Some tips for you:
a. Put away the scythe. According to the parser, the most you contributed with a scythe in a battle was 27. The rest of the time it was usually 0, with a few 18-ish contributions. Overall your damage wasn't even close to mine or Mikika's (but you left so early that the sample size isn't big enough for me to really comment on your DD abilities).
b. Do not do things which cause you to get hate before SATA can be initiated on the tank. I'm not sure what you were doing to pull hate immediately when the fight started, but if you're standing to the side of the mob, and it turns to face you after I provoke, hit it with a big axe for more damage than you did an entire fight with your scythe, and cast shadows (while waiting for Schmidt to stand still behind the mob), then the THF simply can't SATA the hate on to the tank. Had the SATA been able to land consistently on the tank, there would have been much less hate bouncing. A little early discipline would have made a huge difference.
c. When the Warrior sacrafices his life to allow the rest of the party to get to safety, do not insult him by going "D2 last call!" and warping back to your homepoint. Yes, it was a disaster, and even Schmidt (who's courage I've questioned already) stuck around. Given that I feel the inability for us to get a SATA on the tank....which was a direct cause of you turning the mob to face you before it could be done...a minor adjustment (aka you waiting until SATA was initiated before taking action on the mob) in strategy would have made a world of difference.
Again Spaul, like Schmidt it's nothing personal...but certainly things that should be taken into consideration.
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In closing, I like to think I don't live in a glass house. I'm sure there are ways that I could be more effective in my job as a Warrior and would be more than willing to hear them from folks I've partied with in the past...even moreso if there are things that I do that aren't good. I can't make adjustments unless I know what to adjust. ;)
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Character: Tolar
Server: Ifrit
