Downside to Altisms

Really? There's a downside to having 7 level 70s? Surely I am jesting! But no, I speak truth!

There is a downside.

I've touched on it in the past: where because I have a tank, healer and top-DPS character... I feel compelled to be one of the three. Even if I don't necessarily want to be said person. I do it because I don't mind terribly and also because if I don't be that person, said group or raid is either searching for a replacement for a long while or just gets cancelled. And how is that any fun for anyone involved? And then there's all this horrible feeling. I've heard it's called guilt.

Because I didn't take my (insert class here), the run got cancelled. Wow. That's 9 (or 24? or 4? Does it matter?) other people who were inconvenienced by my preference to be something other than what they need and I have.

It's something a few people I know have run into. They have a tank and a healer and a DPS... and they, and my, question whenever someone says 'Hey, let's do...' isn't 'Sure, I'm in!'... it's 'Who do you need me to come as?'.

And really... sometimes we don't care, because the fun is in doing with friends. But othertimes... it would be nice to say, 'I'm coming as...', as opposed to, 'Who do I need to come as?'.

I've gotten a bit better in that regards... where I say, "I need to bring K*". Now, though I say that, I do still occasionally have to come as someone else to make the group actually go. Ever try to find a tank or a healer? And there's none on? ... but there's a plethora of DPS? Yeah...

Now, my friends are awesome and they let me come as whatever I want to come as when I'm not MTing or MHing. Which is how my ret paladin got into Karazhan and typical of Karazhan whimsy, not a single piece of DPS plate dropped.

The Brew Boss is another example of how having multiple alts is bad for the one afflicted with altisms. You're in a group of friends. And the 5-insults are given. And then someone says, "Who has an alt?"... while they look right at you. You, the queen of the alt-brigade.

So, one of your characters gets 5 shots at whatever you're after, but then after that... each alt only gets one shot at the boss and his drops. Not very fair, but how do you tell the group... 'No. I want my full chance at getting the kodo!'... instead, its ... 'Sure, let me run out there. 7 times.'

*whimper*

Now, everyone is entitled to play whatever class they want. No one is ever going to force someone to roll a class just because our guild needs it. At least, no one in our guild is going to do that. Yet it's so frustrating when one of our DPSers rolls.... another DPSer. *sigh*

Sometimes, alts bite you in the foot. If I only had one character... I'd go as that character. Since I have so many... I have to go with what is needed sometimes, rather than what I'd want.

So saying, I wouldn't trade my 7-70's for anything!

By the way... my goal that I said once a while ago? To have 9 level 70's by the time WotLK comes out? Almost there... so close, I can almost taste it. I just have to convince the people that I level with to level with me. That and I need to stop PvPing with my paladin. Especially with the news just released about honor points.