If you're reading this, that means you're probably interested in raiding with Anonymous. And if you're interested in raiding, then we're interested in helping you make sure you're ready. These guidelines and information are intended to aid you in being the best raider you can be, and getting the most out of those four hours you could be spending outside on any given night. But who wants fresh air anyway?
Being Anonymous
Anonymous was formed in early 2007 as a joint venture between the most progress-minded members of Ravenwood and RoU, with the intent of seeing and completing all the endgame content in each new expansion. We succeeded at that in Burning Crusade and had a lot of fun along the way, and we're on track to do the same in Lich King.
Presently, Anonymous is rated in the top five guilds for raid progression on Gilneas. We are currently the first guild to have completed A Tribute To Skill (25 player) achievement on Gilneas and we're currently working on heroic modes in ICC. We're a goofy, irreverent bunch by and large, but when it comes time to get things done, we take our raids seriously, and the results show. If you dream of one day storming Icecrown, dethroning Arthas, and making Frostmourne your own, read on!
Preparation
The hallmark of a good raider, preparation is necessary for raids to run smoothly and loot pinatas-- I mean bosses-- to fall quickly and painlessly. Well, painless for us. You get the idea. Good raid preparation comes in three parts: your UI, your character, and perhaps most importantly, your knowledge.
Raid UI
Readying your UI for raiding is a relatively simple process, but also a vital one, and what you need will vary by class and role, but there are a few constants, and a few suggestions we can offer. One definite necessity is a threat meter of some sort; most people prefer Omen, but any threat meter that gives you the information you need for your class is fine too. You'll also need some sort of boss announce/timer addon; opinions are generally split between DBM and BigWigs, and either one will provide you with all the tools you'll need for that. We also use a main tank target list which depends on oRA2; some raid frame addons have these functions built in. Lastly, anyone with the ability to remove debuffs is strongly advised to use Decursive or another addon that handles dispelling. There are of course a number of other useful addons, but you should figure out what works best for you. For recommendations and class-specific mods, feel free to ask any of the officers for advice.
On a related note, Anonymous uses Ventrilo for voice chat to coordinate tactics and give orders. You don't need a microphone to raid with us, and you don't need to speak even if you have a microphone, but you do have to listen. This is mandatory and a requirement for consideration as a member.
Raid Gear & Spec
Readying your character for raiding is something you're probably already doing if you're looking to join a raiding guild. We expect that you'll have prepared your spec, your gear, and your consumables before showing up for a raid, and failing to do any of these things is a very good way to make a very bad first impression on the people making decisions about your membership.
Specs are now easier than ever to manage thanks to the advent of dual-specs. Be specced for the role you were recruited for. If you PVP on the weekends (or during the week, or whenever else), and can't keep your raid spec as one of your dual-specs, just be sure you're respecced back to your raiding spec before raid time. We don't want people running back to Ironforge at 7:25 to fix their specs; our raid times are posted, so there's ample time to prepare beforehand. You will be expected to be competent in the function of your spec, and to put effort into knowing how to spec effectively for your role (you don't need to number-crunch every last detail, but if you're an ElitistJerks regular and you want to crunch numbers, you're more than welcome to, and you definitely won't be alone in Anonymous).
Gear sufficient for entering raids is fairly easy to come by, particularly if you're already level 80 and have spent some time in Heroics or 10-man raids (a fair number of you are probably coming to this page after a Heroic or 10-man run with one or more Anonymous raiders, for that matter). We're not going to tell you what you should be wearing and we're not going to tell you any minimum numbers for HP or Attack Power or anything like that; you should already know enough about your class, role, and spec to make those decisions on your own, though most of our number will be glad to help you out with any questions or advice if you ask. We're not expecting you to top the damage/healing/etc meters the instant you show up (though if you do, consider us impressed), but we do want you to be able to hold your own, and gear choices and quality contribute a lot to that.
Consumables are the easiest character-related preparation we ask for, because all you have to do is buy them or have them made, but they're also the easiest to forget, so make sure to double-check that you have appropriate consumables for your class and be ready with them before raid time each night. If you're using Flasks, make sure you have enough of them for the night's raiding (Anonymous presently raids from 7:30-11:30 PM EST, meaning four hour-long flasks should be sufficient); if you use Battle/Guardian Elixirs instead, try to have enough to last the night, however many you'll need. Food with proper buffs is, like Flasks/Elixirs, also mandatory, and its impact on your performance should not be underestimated. You'll probably want to have a stack of bandages just in case (it saves the healers a lot of mana if you can bandage yourself in a safe moment), and a stack of Health and (if you use it) Mana potions for the same reason. Other consumables may be required for certain raids, though we do frequently provide any unusual consumables; ask the raid leader or any available officer if you have any questions about what the night's raids will call for.
Please note that being unwilling to consumable, or unable due to lack of preparedness, could lead to your being sat or even removed mid-raid, even once you become a raiding member. Consumables are not optional, people.
Raid Knowledge
Know the fights. We're not blazing any new PVE trails here, as much as we'd like to; once Ensidia or one of the other "professional" guilds completes something, the strategies are all over the web, followed shortly by videos explaining them. Except in rare cases, there will be ample information resources for you to research and understand the day's fights well in advance of the beginning of raid time. The guild's Message of the Day will usually state where we'll be starting that night, and of course you can ask the raid leader in advance of the raid if you're wondering what our plans are.
Raiding with Anonymous
Besides the above notes about preparation, there are a few things to know about how Anonymous carries out its raids.
Our 25-man raiding schedule is Monday through Thursday, from 7:30 to 11:30 PM, Eastern Standard Time. If you cannot show up for those times on at least half our raiding days, we can't consider you for membership.
Officers are currently Faldirk, Setsuna, Aryona(the recruitment officer).
All roles and most classes have their own chat channels which are used for coordinating raiders' assignments and strategies. Healers should /join healinganonymous; melee DPS /join ferlisgone; tanks /join anonymoustank. Other channels may be used; ask an officer or a raider of the appropriate class for more information. There currently is no ranged DPS channel.
Loot is normally set to Free For All, in order to facilitate easier trash-looting by the officers. Nobody but officers should be looting trash drops; these are sold to pay for guild repairs and supplies, which you will have access to when you become a full member. Epic loot is divvied out using a DKP-style system, which is explained in detail in other posts in this forum section. When epic loot drops, an officer will first list all the drops off that boss, and then list each item in turn along with its AP cost. If you're interested in a drop, send a tell to the officer when the item is listed with its AP cost, linking that item back to them. Raiders have priority over trials, but we hate disenchanting items that someone could use, so if it's a item you want, send a tell to an officer anyway. If no full member wants it, it then becomes available to trials.
Ventrilo is to be kept fairly quiet during raids. Encounters which we've already mastered, we tend to be less restrictive and more forgiving of random chatter, but since Ventrilo is our primary outlet for tactical coordination, we generally request that the channel be kept quiet except for raid-related conversation, particularly in new encounters or ones that demand a lot of coordination.
Trial Information
Anonymous trials last two months, and exceptions are not given for new applicants for any reason. Retrials for those who have gone inactive or changed classes may be shorter, and trials may be extended under special circumstances, but two months is the standard and what most trial members will experience. During this time, you will have second priority on epic loot (after full raiding members), and you will be gauged based on your performance during your trial. Officers make the decision to promote to full member status based primarily on:
- Attendance: As a trial for Anonymous, we require for you to have 66.6% attendance. Once you become a member, that number drops to 50%, but we request that all members (Raiders and Trials) post in our forums if you're going to be absent. If you're just barely making the required 66.6% attendance, you're going to have less of a chance of getting in than someone whose attendance is at or close to 100%. We're not draconian about it (we'll leave that to the actual dragons), but we do like seeing people who are enthusiastic enough to show up regularly.
- Performance: A good raider is one who knows what they're doing and how to do it. Those who have the talent and knowledge to play their class well stand a much better chance of admission, so be sure to brush up on the ins and outs of your class, role, and spec. You don't need to be an expert, and the capacity to improve can be just as important as existing ability, but if you just slack your way through the trial period and don't show any talent or interest in improving it, you're probably not going to make it to member.
- Attitude: We're a particular sort here in Anonymous, and we like to surround ourselves with people who work on the same level. We're not ridiculously strict or serious; we crack jokes and poke fun; we even say a few things our mothers probably wouldn't want to hear from time to time. A happy raider is an attentive raider, so we tend to look for people who mesh well with the quirky social melting pot of the guild, who get along and have fun with their fellow members. We also want to make sure we're not recruiting someone problematic and argumentative, so don't start fights with your fellow members; remember, we're all one big, happy, dysfunctional family here.
Know the rules. Know the fights. Know your character. Know that you will likely learn things about Draenei reproduction that are better left unknown. Keep all these things in mind, and you should pass your trial with flying colors.
Good luck!
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