B.A.D.S. and the Art of Pugging

I just read this forum post about choosing pugs and I was impressed by it.

I have my own twist to the B.A.D.S. pug rating system, and it's much easier.

When players first join my raid they all end up in group six and above. I form the groups as I check players out. I do not give assist to anyone so they can screw up my groups. All buffs are raid wide for the most part so groups don't have to be perfect for anything you would pug.

Checking players.

If the player tagged with a ninja guild, they still get an invite because then I don't have to give them loot. They are the first to be booted if we get a better player.

Imba gives me a sense of how well the player itemizes. I have an account there so I can refresh them pretty quick. Even if they are in PVP gear, this gives me a sense of how hard they try. If they haven't enchanted anything or are mostly using green gems, I pass on them. Fully gemmed and enchanted they get an invite even if they have bad gear. I make a note to check their gear before we zone in.

The other thing I check is their armory achievements in 25 and 10man raiding. This gives me a sense of how well they perform, and in combination with the gear itemization, this is pretty much all we need to do.

I run WWS during my raids and I have a shitlist I have compiled in my Gmail. Basically any terrible player in a raid gets added to the list with a keyword I email to myself so I can quickly search their name in my inbox. If it comes up they don't stay for the raid.

Leaderhip

I explain every fight. I never lead a fight I'm not 100% comfortable with. I do not hesitate to take over leading a raid if the leaders aren't performing.

The number one thing with any fight is knowing what could go wrong and explaing to people on vent what they need to look out for.

No matter what you do, you can on rare occasion get some quirky thing that kills you, so don't beat up on players who die or it's embarassing. Just know the fight, do your best and your people will perform.

Know the fight from a tanking perspective as well as a playing perspective. Study DPS, healing and tanking information. Know what other classes can do.

Discuss trash, and how you want your tanks to be chain-pulling as long as healers have mana and are there. If more than five people are dead, tell tanks to hold off on pulling more trash.

Do not pug "undying" or "immortal" Naxx runs because you're just asking for trouble.

Talk to people, and ask questions.