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How Method are gearing up for their next raid
They've only recently beaten Lady Jaina Proudmore, but as Chris Potter tells us, preparations are underway for the next raid.
There's no time for Method to bask in the glory of their 11th World First Mythic kill. At the beginning of Ferbruary, after a week of intense battles, the UK team became the first guild in the world to beat Lady Jaina Proudmore, the final boss in the Battle of Dazar’alor raid, but, as Method's Chris 'Pottermonk' Potter tells us, they're already preparing for the next challenge.
Two weeks after the raid, Chris has returned to the scene of the last Mythic race – The Red Bull Gaming Sphere. We spoke to him to find out what Method have been up to since the raid, and discover how they're preparing for their next raid.
Method's healer also discussed the forthcoming Proving Grounds for the Mythic Dungeon International, revealed his favourite raid bosses, which classes he's drawn to, and he has some top advice for anyone looking at getting into Mythic raiding.
So what's next for Method? Has gearing started for the next raid or are you giving yourselves a break first?
We had a very, very shortlived break after the World First [kill]. We raided the next day to claim [what was] technically the world second Jaina kill. We actually went for it the next day and got it. Then, after that, we had a few days off, but then we were straight back at it. Back to the gearing up and preparing for the next raid tier.
We know if we take too long off, we can fall behind other guilds
Oh wow. So it's all pretty full-on then?
Yeah, our aim is always to win and we know that if we take too long off we can fall behind other guilds, so it's important for us that we get straight back on it and make sure we win the next one.
And the next raid is the Crucible of Storms?
Yeah, despite Limit having a huge advantage with such a short raid and their headstart, we still want to try to get World First.
Chris Potter (bottom right) with his Method teammates
© Mark Roe
So what does that look like at this point? Is everyone really busy or is it quite chilled at the moment?
It's not at the crazy stage just yet, thanks to the in-game mechanic with Artifact Knowledge, where basically the Artifact Power you grind becomes worth more later on in the expansion. Every week you get more value for the amount you farm. So, in terms of Artifact Power farming, we're not really at that stage yet where we're going too crazy on it. Some people have [laughs] but that's not really a guild-wide thing. They're just a bit addicted to Artifact Power, I think!
And in terms of raids, right now we've just done the one raid per week but I'm pretty sure, very soon – maybe next week – we're going to be pushing up to multiple raids.
Is that split raids?
Yeah, exactly. We'll be going into split raids. We're not sure about how we're doing with Titan Residuum yet, because for the tier that we just won, there was a lot of Titan Residuum farming going on. We're not sure if that's so important this time, but yeah, there will definitely be split raids of some sort happening soon.
So going back to Battle of Dazar’alor and the post-raid shows – the second one gave people a good opportunity to get to know the Method guys a bit more. You didn't take part in the gnome race or the duels due to technical reasons but you did a great job of the commentary with Preach. Do you like to do anything in WoW other than raiding? Do you hunt for Transmogs or farm mounts or anything like that?
Most of the things I do in-game are to achieve World First. That's absolutely my priority. I'm not against any other sorts of fun – people enjoy different things in the game, but for me personally, it’s raiding – Mythic+ [dungeons] for the purpose that it aids that. Anything that helps us get World First is what I'm about. That's basically why I play the game. Transmog, pet battles, that kind of thing, they're okay but they're not my cup of tea.
Most of the things I do in-game are to achieve World First. That's absolutely my priority.
Unlike Narcolies, because he seemed to be quite into the whole gnome race, didn't he?
[Laughs] Yeah, that's a very Narcolies topic there.
You mentioned Mythic+; the Proving Grounds are opening up on February 26 for the Mythic Dungeon Invitationals. Do you guys push the higher Mythic keystones or are they just a way of getting gear for the raids?
It's different for every person in Method. There are quite a few people in Method who have just recently announced their MDI teams, so we do have some teams from within the guild going for it. But that's not really directly connected to us getting World First. If they want to go for it, they can go for it, but it's separate.
Chris Potter playing WoW at the Red Bull Gaming Sphere
© Mark Roe
Do you think running the higher Mythic+ dungeons help the average player improve if they're looking to get into Mythic raiding, or is it not really comparable?
I think you can definitely learn skills from it and it can help improve you as a player. However, you can't make the correlation between someone who's really good at Mythic+ and being able to go for World First raiding. I think it's a very different mentality and different playstyle. But certainly you can improve your gameplay, your reactions, you can learn more about the game and your class. So it definitely has upsides but it's not equal.
Going back to raiding in general, what's your favourite boss from any raid that you've done?
My favourite boss from any raid? Jaina was actually a really good boss. Maybe it's because it's the one that's the most recent in my mind, but that was a really well-designed boss. Thinking further back, the Lich King fight; I think everyone that played back then knows it was an absolutely epic fight, especially with the story that goes along with it. So from the past, I'd go Lich King, and more recently, yeah I think Jaina.
And how about to heal? Rather than just mechanics or lore-wise.
That's a good question. With the Lich King, I didn't heal back then so I really couldn't give a perspective on that. But my most fun fight to heal recently… hmm. In this raid tier, I think Jaina was probably the most fun fight to heal. And I think it will be even more fun when we can drop healers on farm and three-heal it. We actually had a discussion during progress about three-healing it then, but it just would've been very difficult so we played it safe with the four healers. So yeah, I think Jaina – when we drop a healer – is going to be really fun to heal.
What drew you to healing in the first place? Anything specific or did you just fall into it?
It was basically out of necessity. I was playing DPS (damage dealer) and was an officer in a guild called Rapid Eye Movement that merged with Method a few years ago. We were lacking healers for the upcoming raid tier – it was right before Highmaul at the start of Warlords of Draenor. Our guild just lacked healers so me and one other officer, we just re-rolled on the spot so we had enough healers. And since then, I've never been let go. [laughs]
Potter was a DPS before he became a healer at Method
© Mark Roe
So, if you could play any class, regardless of how it's performing at the moment, would you change? Is there any class that you'd really love to play but can't, for whatever reason?
Classes that I enjoy playing are either ranged classes that multi-dot, like warlocks and shadow priests. I really enjoy that kind of gameplay; that really appeals to me. Also, I've always had a kind of impulse to tank. I feel like playing a tank is a nice role. I'm not saying I'd be good at it but I like to be in control and being nearly unkillable is always fun; it means you can stand in all the fire and not die. [laughs] So I think tank or a multi-dotting ranged [class] is what I'd play.
Always try to play in a better guild if you can
And finally, do you have any advice for anybody who wants to get into Mythic raiding for the first time?
When you're looking to get into Mythic raiding, and especially push the high levels, you always need to self-reflect and see how you can improve. Always try to play in a better guild if you can. I don't mean constantly jump guilds and leave people behind and be that guy, but if you feel like your guild can't go any further and you're playing the best you can, then it's time to jump to a higher level guild. And kind of keep doing that maybe once a year. It does take a lot of time to get to a really high guild. You're not going to jump from a really casual guild to one of the top-ten guilds. But just constantly look to improve yourself and improve the team you're playing with.
