Chailya on WoW Ladies did something cool that I'd bet quite a few players have done-- she formed what you might call a "microguild." In her case, it's just a guild with all of her alts in it, but there are all kinds of tiny little guilds for all different reasons-- in Guildwatch the other week, we featured a guild that had only three 60s in it, that were running around doing all the old content. And in the comments of Chailya's post, there are all kinds of fun stories-- people who formed a guild with just them and their significant other, solo roleplaying guilds, and even guilds created just for comedy value (one guy called his solo guild "Attorney at Law").

My story's a little stranger-- one day I randomly got invited to a guild on one of my alts, a gnome mage. Just to see what the deal was, I accepted the invite, and the guy who invited me /gquit immediately, leaving me as the only person in the guild. For a few days, I thought it was funny, having a guild all to myself. But eventually I passed it on to another person, and I don't know what happened to it after that. I'd look it up on the Armory, but to tell the truth I don't even remember the name.

Have you ever started up or been a part of a micro- or sologuild? It can be a lonely experience, I'm sure, but being in a guild is a huge part of identity in the game, and people who do this (as I said, there are probably more than you think) are simply choosing their own identity rather than joining in with a big group. As a guy who likes bigger guilds, I'd think you're missing out on a lot by staying in a tiny guild or a guild with just yourself. But there are probably plenty of benefits to doing it as well.

I admit it, I am never going to raid Naxxramas. C'Thun? Broodlord? These are fights I doubt I will ever see. That's not to say that I don't play a lot, I do. I have 10 characters, ranging from 70 to 1, and I admit an addiction to character creation. But I am not a raider. My mage has average gear. When she stepped through the portal in January she had 4 pieces of Arcanist, all of which I have replaced with green or blue items. My entire goal with the expansion hasn't been to defeat Illidan, and I've had no burning desire to send Vashj back into that hole created by the destruction of the Well of Eternity. I just wanted to go to the Caverns of Time. It was a simple wish, but I somehow feel less of a gamer because I don't have the opportunity or the drive to push through to the raid content.

I have the desire, I do, I just live in a small world, with a small guild of friends. I would love to experience all the game has to offer, that's why I've created as many characters as I have. If there were 20 character slots, I would still have them all filled. In addition to my desire, though, I also have a lot of unease. Am I too a gamer if I don't get the "uberest" of gear sets? Is it enough to play for the love of the game, or do I need to have 6 characters at 70 by the time the next expansion comes out? A lot of the content in the game requires 25-man or 40-man raids, and I don't know how likely it is I will be able to get into Kharazan, despite finishing the key. I am grateful for the 5-man content in Outland, but I wonder, is there room in Blizzard's heart for the casual gamer?