Solo Players and Gearing: A New Perspective

Does Gearing Matter for Solo Players?

This seems to be a contentious topic of late, with gearing through Delves popping up as a point of discussion in various places around the internet, so I thought I’d wade in and live dangerously.

First, I want to say that not every solo player plays the same way or spends their time doing the prescribed end game content.  Not every group player raids, or does Mythic+ or PvP, so why do all solo players get pushed into the same box?  We must all enjoy running delves or else, it seems, except when delves interfere with gearing progression for non-solo players.  The only reason for solo players needing a gear progression, I’ve heard some say, is for delves.  

This seems short sighted to me.  I haven’t run delves past level 8 and I have no desire to.  I’ve never gone for the Zekvir delve content either, nor do I plan to.  Similarly, I never tried the Mage Tower when it was current content.  Partly this is because throwing myself at a wall that was put there on purpose doesn’t seem like much fun to me, and partly it’s because gear progression is difficult which makes this content more difficult as a result.

Don’t get me wrong, I want higher gear, just not for delves.  While I would appreciate level 8 delves being easier, what I really appreciate is the ability to run older content with less struggle.  As a mostly solo player, my end game has, for years, been running old content to collect transmog, pets, mounts, and achievements.  Since I don’t raid or run higher end dungeon content when it’s current, I spend my end game of the next expansion going back to the older ones.  

So no, thank you, I don’t want higher level gear for delves (or at least not only for delves) or outdoor content.  I want it so I can run raids and heroic (or sometimes even mythic) dungeons from older expansions.  Of course the much older expansions are generally easy enough at the current end game, but the last expansion or two are still somewhat difficult.  I still have yet to beat N’Zoth, for example, in part because I can’t kill him fast enough to avoid the mechanics that are harder to do as a solo player.  I also haven’t tried it since hitting the current end game, but don’t worry it’s on my list.

My point, basically, is just that gearing is talked about in terms of prescribed, and current, end game content and perhaps it shouldn’t be.  Or perhaps it should be, who am I to say?  Maybe I’m alone in seeing whether I can finally beat back the Primalists or if I need to wait for another expansion.  Somehow, though, with all the WoW players in the world, being the only one who spends end game running older content just doesn’t seem very likely.