DPS Parser - ToS Violation?

[choke]

A lot of people argue "did you kill the boss or not" and then "does it matter what your dps was". Well to make an analogy, it's like taking a formula 1 car to the racetrack that isn't equipped with a speedometer and saying, "well did you cross the finish line"...

Dps meters are great tools. No, they're not just for determining who does the highest/lowest dps(though that is one of its best features), it's also for looking at who is taking the most/least damage, and then watching what each one of them are doing for certain mechanics(which is its best feature). They are fantastic tools, to say otherwise is naive.

Yes, they can be used to badger and intimidate (typically newer) players and to point fingers at "who is doing low dps" or who is "taking too much damage", etc but you nay-sayers have to keep in mind that these people exist whether or not DPS meters exist. These people are still going to badger and intimidate regardless.



And yes I want one to know how much DPS I'm personally doing. It's great way to determine if something I've changed recently (such as rotation for certain fights or positioning, etc) is effective.

[choke]

There seems to be a lot of disagreement among the community whether this/these tools are allowed. Can SE please answer this once and for all?

[LadyVaJedi]

It sounds like cheating to me.

[choke]

It sounds like cheating to me.

It's cheating if the tool did things like doing actions for you or making you automatically avoid damage, or any other direct advantage over other players. These tools do not do anything like that, just provide information in an easier to read format than the combat log.

[Sove92]

This is just like the speeruns, people always want to ban whatever methods they don't happen to like. In this case, it usually happens because *"too low DPS" kick* is totally a parser's fault.

It is true that DPS parsers are used by people who use it to harass DDs for doing too low DPS, but they are also used by people who just want to see how much damage people are doing for improvement purposes.

From what I have seen, it is usually BLMs who end up being harassed for too low DPS. These people are either trolls or they forget the fact that BLMs can't move when casting, this is compensated by a higher damage output, but when you add bad enough luck and get constantly targeted with AoEs, you are almost inevitably doing much less DPS than normally. >_>

[Ervin]

I just wonder what happened to playing games for fun instead of putting more work into them than your daytime job.

[choke]

I just wonder what happened to playing games for fun instead of putting more work into them than your daytime job.

You've got to start thinking of mmo's as modern day hobbies. They take substantially more time than other game types. Either play a lot, or fall behind.

[Ervin]

You've got to start thinking of mmo's as modern day hobbies. They take substantially more time than other game types. Either play a lot, or fall behind.

Playing to not fall behind is one thing, and it's not even remotely hard to keep up in this game really. 300 tomes per week, obtained through a very easy manner. The game is timegated, sure you can raid for green drops aswell, but the only competition is from NPCs. I dont worry about falling behind or maximizing my preformance until I set foot in PvP, where a parser wont do jack for you since PvP is dynamic. If you can beat PvE content somewhat smoothly it's good enough for me, shaving off 5 minutes on a raid is hardly something I'd bother with. Because more than likely, the time I would spend to tweak my spec would most likely consume more time than all those extra 5 minutes added together per run.

Limitations are also a big hindrance for min-maxing in this game, there are very few options, both with gear, skills and attributes. You get BiS fairly easy, you learn a good rotation, you learn the boss fights, you stay out of bad stuff on the floor and you profit. It's a trinity game, it doesnt get harder than that.

I can see the parser being useful and legit for personal use, but when you start bringing it to pugs where people are trying to just have fun it should be bannable. If you use a parser, stick to other parser using people, easy as that really. But dont think everyone shares the enthusiasm to have the game as a second job. Also, with the difference in class mechanics/dps design, a parser wont give you a fair answer. Some classes are screwed on moving fights while they shine on static fights, just like other classes have more mobility but deal less damage to compensate.

[ZohnoReecho]

I just wonder what happened to playing games for fun instead of putting more work into them than your daytime job.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTJQTc-TqpU
What's not funny for you can be funny for someone else

It's funnier to play a game or watch a "let's play" on youtube? Some people prefere the latter.

[Natolii]

Over analyzing numbers is not going to get you the best groups. My friends and I know how to work together as a team and that's what is needed more. There are too many people willing to tag along with a group and let everyone else do the work so they can get the loot.

A Parser is not going to tell you that. Nor will it help communications. You can crunch numbers until the end of time, but that is not going to help you get through. A Solid team you can trust, that's what is needed most of all. Someone willing to work together to help you get the gear, run the dungeons... That's the winning formula.

Yeah, crunching numbers to maximize your damage? No, I don't have time to take on a 3rd job.