Mini Patch 1.8.4

[Concillian]

Update by Caydiem, the best news we've heard all day:
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After reasing the Terenas realm forums, the deserter debuff may have an interesting side effect.

Those high up on the ladder say the will still AFK out of difficult WSG matches, as 15 minutes < 30 mins + and maybe no win. The result on our server (vastly more alliance than horde) will be that alliance will probably have much longer queues if this happens, since horde will be sitting on their butt or fishing or whatever for 15 minutes instead of playing.

The proposed solution there is that the flag have a 5 minute timer, where if it's not capped in that time it resets.

The hot topic was WSG since the holiday made abundantly clear the conflict of "properly played" WSG and the goals people have for the honor system. I would also think a weighting of bonus honor based on the combined rank of the opposing team would go a long way in helping the issue as well. At least I'd feel better when the opposing team is 2Hv10A knowing that they are getting far less honor than they would from a full team.

[Kevin]

The hot topic was WSG since the holiday made abundantly clear the conflict of "properly played" WSG and the goals people have for the honor system.&nbsp; I would also think a weighting of bonus honor based on the combined rank of the opposing team would go a long way in helping the issue as well.&nbsp; At least I'd feel better when the opposing team is 2Hv10A knowing that they are getting far less honor than they would from a full team.
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I've often wondered why weighted honor wasn't used. Since the honor system is a ladder and the traditional way to climb a ladder is to beat those ahead of you. I like rewarding everyone for trying but weighting the honor amounts would help. A General will not get as much honor for killing a private as a corporal would for that same kill. A team with an average rank of 8 would not get as much bonus beating a team of average rank 4 as the would for beating an average rank 8 team. Now yes PvP rank does not accurately reflect skill, right now it reflects time spent, but the estimate it provides is close enough and the skilled players will rank up faster because they will win more or kill more higher ranked players, etc. And if since you are playing a team of average rank 10 say that might last 30 minutes since your kill values will be higher that might equal the same honor as steamrolling an average rank 4 team or whatever.

Since the goal of Battleground players is different. Some just want to rank up, get rewards, etc. Some want to just play PvP on a more even field than world PvP can provide. Some just like the strat and challenge that PvP offers, etc. You need to try and work the rewards so the min max, get my honor people, have the same incentive to do a 30 minute match as they do to do 3 10 minute matches or 6 five minute matches or whatever.

[Concillian]

Since the goal of Battleground players is different.&nbsp; Some just want to rank up, get rewards, etc.&nbsp; Some want to just play PvP on a more even field than world PvP can provide.&nbsp; Some just like the strat and challenge that PvP offers, etc. You need to try and work the rewards so the min max, get my honor people, have the same incentive to do a 30 minute match as they do to do 3 10 minute matches or 6 five minute matches or whatever.
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Yes, this is the root of the issue, and the proposed changes would help.

5 minute max flag duration = forced heavy conflict and shorter WSG matches... coupled with the AFK debuff should significantly reduce AFKing. This addresses one of the main issues with WSG... the fact that it can last a long time.

weighted team bonus honor values = less incentive for the organized honor machine teams to find easy opponents / more incentive to stay and fight a difficult opponent and not just AFK out looking for an easy opponent.

There is already greater honor for killing higher rank people, but by and large, the way to rank up is not the honor through killing, it's the bonus honor received from accomplishing BG objectives (especially winning).

But yeah, there is a need to even the playing field. In my mind, putting a mechanism in place for team weighting is the first step towards the ideal world... cross server BGs (a pipe-dream perhaps). Weighting teams then allows matching up of ~even teams, and cross server BGs would then allow matchups of similar gear/ability levels, at least as close of matching as I can see happening in WoW.

This then satisfies all comers. You work against people approximately at your rank on the ladder and you have to beat them to advance up the ladder. There would be a low incentive to AFK because you'd get matched up with other similar teams. Newcomers wouldn't have to know all the tricks and strategies, as they'd end up matched against other low rank players, but as they climbed the ladder they'd have to learn advanced strategies to have any hope of competing against the tougher opponents.

[oldmandennis]

Those high up on the ladder say the will still AFK out of difficult WSG matches, as 15 minutes < 30 mins + and maybe no win.&nbsp;
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It seems like a better stratagie would be to take a dive. That way you could be back in a game in 5 min. Now if you combined the 10min rule and the 15 min rule, even the most serious honor grinder would be compeled to at least try and play.

[Brother Laz]

weighted team bonus honor values = less incentive for the organized honor machine teams to find easy opponents / more incentive to stay and fight a difficult opponent and not just AFK out looking for an easy opponent.

And you'd get the exact opposite problem. Instead of afk'ing out of difficult matches, they'd afk out of easy matches. Low rank players would have trouble climbing the ladder, due to the fact that any slightly worthy opposition would just quit...

[oldmandennis]

And you'd get the exact opposite problem. Instead of afk'ing out of difficult matches, they'd afk out of easy matches. Low rank players would have trouble climbing the ladder, due to the fact that any slightly worthy opposition would just quit...
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Nope, the deserter debuff would stop that. Why /afk a pug and sit for 15min, when you could beat them in 5 and be back in a game.