The Latus Guide to Leading Raids

Latus the Goat only has three readers — by his count.  (Personally, I think he may be underestimating his appeal!)  Of course, since I'm one of them (/tar Latus /wave), that means only two other people are going to see his excellent Guide to Leading Raids. 

Now that, my friends, is abhorrent. 

In my seldom humble opinion, Latus's guide should be required reading for all guild leaders, raid leaders, and anyone who has ever cast three little letters (l, f, m) into the Nether and prayed for a response.

My favorite point (and one that my guild could definitely stand to improve on):

• Don’t single people out after a wipe.  Unless you’re a really hardcore guild, this is not something you want to do.  The people who made mistakes know it.  Singling them out over vent or raid chat is going to make them feel awful.  People who feel awful, or embarrassed, will often not come back to your raids.  You want to encourage your group, not insult it.  If a situation requires addressing, speak to the person privately, or give it a general announcement over vent… “Let’s make sure to pay more attention to the dark orbs on the right side of the room please, more got through than we can handle.”  That doesn’t blame anyone specifically, but it lets the people there know they did the mistake (which they probably knew already), and it lets the raid as a whole know that you did notice it and you are addressing it or will do so if it persists.

Now, our raid leader believes as Latus does.  I've never seen Keaton single anyone out after a wipe.  On the contrary, I've heard him advise against it for very similar reasons.  Typically, Keaton addresses "areas of improvement" publicly and in broad terms, while I deal with specific issues in whispers (which often surprises people; the public criticism is so open-ended that those players who receive my private follow-through are often taken aback). 

Unfortunately, while we follow Latus's advice ourselves, we do tend to be rather permissive when it comes to others.  After all, if criticism isn't coming from a guild leader (/airquotes), then it isn't "official" and doesn't count — right?

Wrong.  WrongWrongWrong.

In order to create a supportive raid environment, officers must not only lead by example, but also ensure that their values are shared by the rest of the raid — or, at least, by those vocal enough to make an impact.  After all, it isn't always enough for the nominal raid leader to be upbeat and positive: one abusive or overly critical voice in the raid can ruin the experience for everyone.