Lazy Yva is Lazy, and I’m terribly sorry about that. Why? Mostly because I’ve been taking a much needed hiatus from Warcraft lately. Summer’s here, the outdoors is nice, and I own a house and a dog. Nough said, I think.

HOWEVER. I still log on to raid and get my rp on, so lemme get something out there that’s been on my mind lately: raid morale. Have you ever thought exactly how contagious one bad apple is? There you are, twenty five of you gathered to kill mans and get epix, and then someone cops attitude on vent. The target of said attitude defends himself or herself, others jump in or comment. Officers are now involved, doing their best to defuse the situation. Next thing you know, your raid has become dark and gloomy and everyone gets pissy. Anger makes people mess up, and the night could very well be shot over ONE PERSON’S ANGST. It’s a domino effect more times than not.

Man, I hate that.

I’ve seen it twice in so many weeks lately, and I’m noticing a lot more rampant crabbiness in general. Maybe folks are stressed out over finals? Maybe the content isn’t as satisfying to the player base? Maybe I should stop inviting Charlie Manson to my raids so everyone is comfortable? Who knows what’s sparking it. I’m mostly interested in ending it.

I hate to be patronizing, but I’ve found that using my “calm and soothing mommy voice” is one of the things that makes this particular scenario fizzle out. Greeting anger with anger only encourages people to grow more hostile, so I tend to do the opposite: fluffy bunnies and gumdrop rainbows. It’s a little revolting, to be honest, because I’m not that type of person AT ALL, but I’ve made the mistake of using logic before. Sometimes, angry people resent logic, as they’re pissed about something fairly inconsequential anyway. I mean, really, this isn’t brain surgery. It’s a video game, so why do people get homicidally stressed about pixels? We all do it, of course, but when we get to That Point, logic’s probably gone out the window. But, BUT! How can you be mad at someone who sounds supportive and understanding? It’s akin to kicking a puppy in the teeth, and you just don’t DO that.

At any rate, enough blather from me. I’d love to hear other leadership techniques used to keep the crab apple from infecting your raid with The Suck. The Suck spreads fast, it makes everyone have a terrible night, and it results in flouncing, poor gameplay, and hurt feelings which are incredibly hard to get past.

So, comment away!

Ta!