Image courtesy of nintaro
It’s inevitable. Everyone needs a break at some point. It’s difficult for a vast majority of people to sit still for hours on end without having to get up at some point while raiding. There’s a certain set of hidden rules when you decide to disappear for some time. Following them ensures that you won’t be viewed as an ass and that you’ll be on top of the raid invite list.
1: Announce it publicly – Let the raid know you need to disappear for a while. No one appreciates it when a player stops all activity without warning. If you were in charge of something important like healing the tank, then announcing that you’re sitting out is crucial so that another player can temporarily fill the role that you had.
2: Provide an ETA – ETA stands for “estimated time of arrival”. In other words, how long is it going to take before you’re back in front of the screen and mashing buttons? In some cases, it can be difficult to gauge how long you’ll be gone. It’s still courteous to provide a quick estimate.
3: Give a reason (within reason) – Although it’s not necessary, it’s been an observation of mine that players want to know the reason behind actions and AFKing is no exception. Whether it’s to grab a drink or saving a cat from a tree, it’s reassuring to the other 24 players to know what’s going on.
4: Offer to bench yourself – If you’re going to be gone for a prolonged amount of time (over 20 minutes), offer to hearth out. This provides the raid with an option of bringing someone else in. If you’re in the instance AFK, you can’t exactly be kicked and auto-hearth’d out (if you’re saved to it). Don’t worry about getting back in since a recent patch allowed Warlocks to summon players individually into instances.
Even though WoW is a game, never forget the fact that there are real people behind the virtual characters. Show them respect for their time and I guarantee that it will be appreciated.
In addition to all of the above (well, except for #4 since I’m never gone for that long), I also set myself as /afk when I leave, so it’s easy for anyone to look at my toon and see my status.
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Another thing that I think is important to mention is to respect the raid’s (or guild’s) AFK policies. Even if your actions are pure at heart and you follow all the above guidelines, you may violate your raid’s (or guild’s) AFK policy. Check before hand to make sure your raid/guild allows AFKing in the first place, and find out where/when it’s okay to AFK and when it’s not.
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Funny post, since I have experienced Mallet mysteriously going AFK, just to come back and super ninja heal.
Announce it publicly, yes, but please in the raid chat, not in vent, if your just taking a short AFK during trash killing. It’s quite annoying when people say it aloud, especially if you don’t say your name. It isn’t always you can recognize the voices of everyone in the raid (especially if your like me are raiding in an alliance and not only with your guildies.)
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If you know the raid will continue, set yourself to AF someone (not the tank…really not a good idea).