January 19, 2021
Farming Etiquette 101
As worlds have gotten increasingly difficult, farming has become an integral part of the Wizard101 experience. It all started with Waterworks. For forty levels (or thirty, if you were a fan of Hades gear), it was the best gear in the game. In order to get a shot at the gear, you had to run the long dungeon with annoying cheats over and over again. Getting all the gear could take anywhere from hours to weeks. This same concept occurred again with Darkmoor (though I liked the story-line and design better). While the second chance chest can increase your odds of getting the best gear, not everyone has hoards of crowns to spend.
Now with the addition of team up and the team up kiosk, farming has never been easier. You can see which dungeons people are in and choose one at your leisure. However, I’ve noticed a growing problem with team-up, a lack of proper farming etiquette. Here are some things to keep in mind when you’re on your next farming expedition.
1.Wait for everyone to be ready.
A problem I’ve noticed is that in their rush to speed farm a dungeon, players sometimes leave others behind. Boss fights in some of the later dungeons have mitigated some of these issues by causing steep penalties (like the instant kill with the Aberrant Paradox). With mobs, it’s a bit different.
They have no cheats to prevent people from jumping in. So why should you wait for everyone? Some mobs may drop reagents or jewels that people are looking for. The secret tunnel in Empyrea requires only one or two AOEs to finish off the mobs, meaning you need only one or two wizards. Wait that extra round to allow everyone in. Those mobs drop the elusive Shadow Pip Jewel and Evil Magma Pea. Give everyone a chance at getting drops.
2. Skeleton keys.
This is a problem that I’ve only now started to notice since the implementation of the team up kiosk. Originally, you could just pick people standing by. Now, you may be joining complete strangers. I’ve run into situations where no one has a skeleton key. The simple solution to this is if you start the queue, it’s up to you to bring the key.
It’s unfair to assume that other people will provide you an item that you need. That being said, be generous! Some people may not remember to bring a key. Don’t get frustrated with them. We all make mistakes. If you have a key, speak up after a moment. If people are doing the skeleton key boss, it means that there is something that they need. When you’re generous, people tend to reciprocate the favor.
3. Know your cheats.
Some of the bosses in later worlds (Grandfather Spider, Fellspawn, Storm Trident to name a few) have a large list of cheats. I have spent over five minutes explaining to people the various cheats that can decimate a team. Final Bastion and Wizard101 Central’s wiki are great resources to gain info about the cheats.
This is even more important for people that don’t have open chat. It is so much harder to communicate with people who can’t even see what you’re saying. Many a great strategy has been destroyed with a person not knowing the cheats and hitting or healing when they weren’t supposed to. If you don’t have open chat, find creative ways to communicate with the members of your party. When in doubt, take a moment to brush up on the cheats of the boss.
4. Be patient!
Things don’t always go as planned. Farming takes time. There will be times when the boss does something you absolutely hate such as casting enfeeble or earthquake. Sometimes it may be a teammate accidentally triggering a cheat. Be flexible. If you need to restart the boss do it!
Always remember that you may be playing with a kid who is trying their sibling’s account or an adult who had a rough day at work. Simply put, you don’t know the person behind the wizard so be kind and supportive. We all get frustrated. A boss fight may not go as planned or a player may not be using the right spells. Just don’t take it out on your teammates.
5. Don’t leave the dungeon
Is a rank 18 boss with loads of cheats difficult with four storm wizards (aka glass cannons)? Definitely. Is it possible to beat? Absolutely. We don’t always get the quintessential team when playing. Get creative! Figure out roles, such as healing, buffing, and hitting. Thanks to healing current, even a storm wizard can become the healing hero. Also, remember to stay for the entire battle. You leaving means they have to start all over again. With some of those longer boss fights, that’s a pain.
If you know that you’re in a time crunch, doing Omen Stribog may not be the best option. At the end of the day remember that this is a game that we all play to enjoy ourselves. Try and be supportive and courteous to your fellow wizards. Farming Etiquette doesn’t just include following the rules I mentioned before. It also means to be nice to everyone with you as well!
