Expectations of our Raiders:

Catch a Serious Business member during any other time than our raids, and you will likely find out why we chose such a tongue-in-cheek name for the guild. We are probably some of the most laid-back and casual players you will find. We play to have fun, explore the game, and enjoy one another's company - whether it's instancing, PvPing, or just killing time.

All of that having been said, as a guild consisting largely of working adults with real-life obligations and little raid time, we do take our limited raiding windows very seriously. Below are the general rules that all Serious Business members (and any raid guests) are expected to abide by when raiding with us:


Timeliness:

If a raid is scheduled to start at 8:00 pm server, that means that the first pull will be at 8:00 pm server time. If you are signed up to attend that raid, you are expected to be there to start on-time.

We are limited to, at most, 12 hours of raiding a week; spending 15 minutes after "first pull" time to summon latecomers, buff people, wait for AFKers and so forth is spending 15 minutes that could be used to kill a new boss.

In a nutshell, to succeed, here is what we expect of our raiders:

  • Summoning stones are great - but they're to be used to summon people who log in close to raid-time, not to summon people who have been online for two hours. Be repaired, restocked and ready to go at the raid site by invite time!
  • If you are signed up for a raid and are on an alt or otherwise grouped at invite time, you'll lose your priority for a spot in the raid and may be waitlisted in favor of someone in your class spot who showed up on-time.
  • If you know that time will be tight and you may not be able to log in until just before first pull time, please show your fellow guild members some courtesy and log out the night before restocked and waiting at the raid site.
  • If you find yourself unable to make a raid you signed up for, it's your responsibility to notify an officer in-game via whisper or mail as soon as you can. If you aren't sure if you'll arrive on time, simply mark yourself as "standby" and note your estimated arrival time in the signup note. People who have a habit of signing up to raids that they do not show for will receive a warning, and may eventually be bumped down to "recruit" or "non-raider" status if they continue.
  • Please make an effort to sign up for the raids every week, even if it is to indicate that you will not be attending; this makes it much easier on our raid leaders to plan out balanced groups before the raid starts, and saves a great deal of time spent configuring the groups and wait list.
  • Raiders are expected to have spent time prior to raids researching boss fights they are not familiar with. This includes reading strategy guides and watching videos. The Raid Leader is responsible to assign roles for each fight, not to walk individuals through each fight while 24 people wait.
  • DO NOT COME TO RAIDS PVP FLAGGED.


The Wait List:

Sometimes, we have more raid signups than raid slots; sometimes, we just need a different class balance than the one currently present in the group. Some of our raiders have real-life commitments that prevent them from showing up in time for a raid's first pull. Regardless, at some point, chances are good you will find yourself waitlisted for a raid.

Individuals on the raid's wait list will accrue EP at the same rate as those raiding in the instance. They will also be invited to the raid group to facilitate the point-tracking. By placing themselves on the wait list, these individuals are earning points because they are committing their time to the guild - even though they are not in the instance, they are foregoing other activities to ensure that they can be ready if needed.

Thus, these are not "free" points. If you log out without notice and are not available to fill a spot should you be needed, you will lose any points you've accrued on the wait list that night. Thus, it's your responsibility and in your best interest to keep the officers informed if you need to log out, or switch to an alt.

Back in the day, most raiding guilds required that raiders on their wait list were repaired, restocked, and waiting by the instance portal until they were needed. Having spent FAR too long staring at that stupid elf outside Molten Core myself, in Serious Business that isn't necessary. However, there are limits - the following are "acceptable" activities while on our wait list:

  • Farming on your main, as long as you can be repaired, restocked, and ready to accept a summon within five (5) minutes of a spot opening.
  • Playing on an alt, as long as the raid leader is aware of your alt's name, and your main is repaired, restocked, and parked outside the instance portal before you switch.
  • PvPing on your main, as long as you meet the criteria above.
  • Questing on your main, as long as you meet the criteria above.
  • Note: please inform the raid leader before leaving the raid, and notify him (via mail) after the raid, so that we can ensure you are credited the correct number of points.

Additionally, you may also participate in five-man instance or heroic instance runs on your main, provided that you meet the following criteria while doing so:

  • You inform all members in your group that you may be required to leave without much advance notice. (This is common courtesy, and our reputation on the server is an important asset.)
  • You are able to accept a summon to the instance within five (5) minutes of being requested to join the raid group. This includes any time that it takes you to repair and restock your consumables!
  • You do not spec out of your "raid spec" in order to run the instance - to earn raid credit, you need to remain specced for optimal raid performance during that period in case you are needed in the raid.
  • You remain listening on the guild's vent server at all times, to make sure that you're aware of any developing strategies and that you're able to be easily integrated into the raid.
  • Note: please inform the raid leader before leaving the raid, and notify him (via mail) after the raid, so that we can ensure you are credited the correct number of points.

The following activities are not permitted while you are earning wait list points:

  • Raiding any 10- or 25-man content on your main or on an alt.

Failure to follow the guidelines above will result in the loss EP accrued for being waitlisted for that raid.


Required Mods and Addons:

Every raider in the guild is expected to have installed all of the addons listed under the "Required Mods" section on the left side of the website, and to have a working copy of ventrilo installed (though a working mic is not required - you just need to be able to listen).


Vent and Voice Chat:

It is expected that during our 25-man raid times, vent will be kept clear of extraneous chatter, so that the officers and raid leader can communicate easily with the raid. This is exceptionally important when distributing boss drops, as vent spam can very easily result in a mis-assignment due to a missed pass. If the channel is especially noisy, and if it interferes with the smooth functioning of the raid, the raid leader or officers may opt to mute it for the evening.


Damage Meters:

At no time is "damage meter spam" permitted during a raid. It is distracting, and can be demoralizing and harmful when analyzed improperly. While raiders are free to run their own private damage meters, we encourage everyone to take them with a grain of salt, and remember that many of the most important contributions to success cannot be measured on a damage meter!

That having been said, as a guild we do collect and post WWS logs after each raid, to analyze and track our performance over time. These are used strictly as tools to hone our performance as a group.

If you are interested, feel free to browse our WWS log repository.


Attitude:

We are an endgame progression guild. Wipes happen. A lot.

People who make a habit of complaining, heckling guildmates for mistakes, or generally just being unpleasant will find themselves at best waitlisted, and at worst looking for a new guild.

Outside the guild, in your day-to-day interactions with your fellow Gnomeregan players, remember that your actions will reflect directly on our guild tag. Wear it with pride - conduct yourself accordingly!

And finally - we are a no-drama organization: any disuptes that arise are handled quickly, fairly, and quietly in-house. As mentioned on our front page, drama llamas need not apply!

For a great example of our guild's atmosphere, and of the Serious Business approach to raiding in action, feel free to check out an unedited video of our guild-first Magtheridon kill.


Alts:

Alts will only be permitted in scheduled 25-man raids at the specific request of the raid leader, to address class imbalance issues.

They are free to participate in any of our off-night raids, should there be space; remember, however, that any upgrades needed by mains will go to those mains over any alts, as per our EPGP rules.


The Guild Bank:

In a nutshell: contribute when you can, and take what you need. The supplies are there for use by any raiding main in 25-man content. This includes money for repairs, and consumables such as potions, flasks and elixirs. Please do not use these resources for any non-progression runs, i.e. Karazhan and 5-mans/heroics; and please try to bring your own to the 25-mans whenever possible.

Remember, however, that if everyone withdraws and nobody deposits, the guild bank will not be a useful resource for long! Contributions of any kind are always appreciated; particularly gold for the purchase of more materials, and the materials themselves to make needed consumables.

Crafting materials and faction items are free to use (within reason) for mains; and depending on the item, may be available to alts as well. Consult an officer or the guild leader for access to any of these.


Other Issues:

If you have any questions, or any issues arise that are not covered above, feel free to contact the guild leader or an officer and we will do our best to help you sort out the situation.