Painaid
The Immortal
So I came back tonight to play a few 19s with some other twinks (Bone, Marshman, Mocha, and IcyJr). While I will likely be focusing more on 20-29s since it offers more diverse gameplay, I decided to give this bracket another shot after hearing how things have been toned down a bit since MoP.
Admittedly, my experience is limited to only having played a few games at the moment. However, there are already some obvious flaws in the bracket that really threaten to undermine the viability of 19s on a competitive stage.
1. Lack of class diversity. Druid/Rogue/Shaman made up pretty much 90% of the games I played. This has always been a plague in the bracket, hearkening back to when Hunters were the FotM. But this issue appears even more aggravated than ever due to the nature of CC in the current meta. There is little to no reactive counter to many abilities (see: feral druid kit) creating an "anti-fun" aspect. Being 100->0'd within a single stun isn't an encouraging aspect when it comes to trying to attract new blood into the bracket. And it further removes the ability to develop and counter strategies on a competitive level.
2. Feral Druids, in particular, are a serious issue. They cannot be allowed in any sort of competitive medium in the bracket. To do so would call into question the legitimacy of the match. As such, allowing them into competitive play is a complete nonstarter. There is little to no reactive ability to counter them. Other classes with similar opening kits, such as rogues, should also be limited.
Obviously, these issues cannot be policed in pugs. That said, it doesn't help in the attempt to attract new blood to the bracket. But if the 19 Bracket also wishes to premise itself as being a competitive bracket, certain rules should be instituted in any tournament, such as the Twink Cup (which I admittedly know little to nothing about personally) to combat this problem.
I'm sure these issues have been discussed ad nauseam already on these forums, but it doesn't hurt to continually talk about issues that threaten the competitive balance of a bracket that is in the process of trying to portray itself as an alternative avenue for competitive play in WoW. You simply cannot avoid confronting an 800lb gorilla in the room such as this one.
It's also a concerning problem for the ever-pressing worry of finding new blood to bring into the bracket for further growth in the community. Communities always need to be finding more ways to stimulate growth and expansion of new players into the bracket. The current state in pugs does not appear very amiable to this goal. Forming solutions to further this goal, however, would require a more bottom -> top approach that may not be realistic in all practicality.
Anyway, just a few thoughts after a couple games. I appreciated the warm welcomes (on both factions), and despite the complete lack of counter-play, I managed to have some fun. Maybe I'll see some of you around in the future as I'll try to pop in a game here and there when time permits.
Best,
Painaid
Admittedly, my experience is limited to only having played a few games at the moment. However, there are already some obvious flaws in the bracket that really threaten to undermine the viability of 19s on a competitive stage.
1. Lack of class diversity. Druid/Rogue/Shaman made up pretty much 90% of the games I played. This has always been a plague in the bracket, hearkening back to when Hunters were the FotM. But this issue appears even more aggravated than ever due to the nature of CC in the current meta. There is little to no reactive counter to many abilities (see: feral druid kit) creating an "anti-fun" aspect. Being 100->0'd within a single stun isn't an encouraging aspect when it comes to trying to attract new blood into the bracket. And it further removes the ability to develop and counter strategies on a competitive level.
2. Feral Druids, in particular, are a serious issue. They cannot be allowed in any sort of competitive medium in the bracket. To do so would call into question the legitimacy of the match. As such, allowing them into competitive play is a complete nonstarter. There is little to no reactive ability to counter them. Other classes with similar opening kits, such as rogues, should also be limited.
Obviously, these issues cannot be policed in pugs. That said, it doesn't help in the attempt to attract new blood to the bracket. But if the 19 Bracket also wishes to premise itself as being a competitive bracket, certain rules should be instituted in any tournament, such as the Twink Cup (which I admittedly know little to nothing about personally) to combat this problem.
I'm sure these issues have been discussed ad nauseam already on these forums, but it doesn't hurt to continually talk about issues that threaten the competitive balance of a bracket that is in the process of trying to portray itself as an alternative avenue for competitive play in WoW. You simply cannot avoid confronting an 800lb gorilla in the room such as this one.
It's also a concerning problem for the ever-pressing worry of finding new blood to bring into the bracket for further growth in the community. Communities always need to be finding more ways to stimulate growth and expansion of new players into the bracket. The current state in pugs does not appear very amiable to this goal. Forming solutions to further this goal, however, would require a more bottom -> top approach that may not be realistic in all practicality.
Anyway, just a few thoughts after a couple games. I appreciated the warm welcomes (on both factions), and despite the complete lack of counter-play, I managed to have some fun. Maybe I'll see some of you around in the future as I'll try to pop in a game here and there when time permits.
Best,
Painaid
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