Nick Bee over at GotFrag interviewed members of Evil Geniuses (previously called Frag Dominant), and revealed a few points about the Arena that many casual players don't necessary see. While Nick doesn't actually say to which member he talked, the interview doesn't seem about the individual as much as the team.When asked about perceptions of Frag Dominant, the Evil Genius responded that before the MLG San Diego tournament (which they won), the only really available basis for opinions was from the Tournament realm and other tournaments. But his real point is that since Frag Dominant could run multiple class compositions using the same players, they had a very good chance of winning -- their adaptability was higher than other teams'.
He reinforces that idea of composition flexibility at the end of the interview. The Genius says whether you like it or not, you need to be aware of WoW's metagame if you're going to compete seriously in the Arena. (This means each person on a competitive team should have experience with multiple classes, and how the dynamics between those classes change.)
I think this outlines an idea that many folks miss about the Arena. Arena competition isn't just about your character competing, but also the players behind the characters. I could be the best Hunter to ever tame a pet -- but I probably don't bring much to a team if I can't tell the difference between a Silence and an Interrupt. Your skill isn't just fast-twitch reflex or single-class knowledge: it's overall knowledge about the whole enchilada. In the midst of nerf-calling, we should keep in mind that player skill doesn't just mean "skill at my class."
Subscribe
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-12-2008 @ 4:11PM
Heilig said...
So basically these guys say in a lot of words what we all already know: WoW PvP is a big game of Rock-Paper-Scissors.
Yes, they are indeed Evil Geniuses, capable of playing Scissors when the other team plays Paper.
Reply
7-12-2008 @ 7:10PM
Dobbs said...
You misunderstand. When they talk about the metagame they're talking about changing the characters on your team to accommodate Blizzard's changes to the classes, and the make up of the teams you expect to be facing. This has nothing to do with simply understanding the classes well, and absolutely no relevance for people playing in the regular realms who can't just roll a new S4 70 if the one they're using gets gutted in a patch.
Reply
7-12-2008 @ 8:40PM
DeliciousCupcake said...
WOW arena in WOW PVP
So lame the hardcore .
Huge failure
Reply
7-12-2008 @ 11:02PM
STereo said...
The key to success in arena is to play the classes Kalgan plays.
Reply
7-13-2008 @ 5:08AM
Verit said...
I think the big problem with arena is that blizzard has shown repeatedly that they are willing to drastically tweak a class because its either over-represented (druids/warriors - except I have yet to see any warrior changes) or underrepresented in various arena classes.
So if your winning composition relies on a certian spec warlock/warrior/druid and all of the sudden for whatever reason its no longer viable you need to be prepared to change all that out.
Seems pretty rough to me if you think about it - on a public realm that means grinding a toon all the way to 70, gearing him or her etc - could take months.
In my own experience it seems that warriors are probably the most overrepresented class in bg/arena. It used to be warlocks (having 10-15 warlocks in a bg was not at all uncommon). Paired with a healer they can dish out absolutely fantastic damage with no pushback or downtime unlike a caster.
Reply
7-13-2008 @ 9:50PM
Eisengel said...
ZZZzzzzzzz...
Reply