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EPGP Overview & Explanation

Overview

Face on Fire has decided to institute an EPGP based DKP system. EPGP is a relational reward system for World of Warcraft. It is an alternative DKP system in which your loot buying power is defined by the ratio of your effort and rewards points instead of their difference. In plain English, in a traditional DKP system you receive effort points that increase your DKP pool and spend them to receive loot which decreases your DKP pool. The person with the largest DKP pool has the most buying power. In EPGP, you receive effort points but you also receive loot points. These are separate from each other and your buying power is defined by your effort points divided by your loot/gear points.

Before we get started, there are three terms we need to familiarize ourselves with:
EP - Effort Points, this is what would conventionally be refered to as your DKP pool. These points are accumulated through various means such as boss kills, raid attendance, etc. A full list of EP values can be found below.
GP - Gear Points, when an item drops it has a numerical value (see chart below for the formula to calculate the value of a particular item), when the item is won it's value is added to the player's GP total.
PR - Priority, this value is expressed with the following equation (PR = EP/GP). Once PR is determined, values are compared and the raider with the lowest PR total receives the item.

Priority is expressed with the following formula:
PR = EP/GP

EPGP in Practice:
When a boss is killed, the Loot Master will link all of the drops in raid chat. For the sake of this excercize, we will say that a trinket has dropped that is needed by a Hunter, Rogue, and a Warrior. All three then send a whisper to the Loot Master saying they want the item. The Loot Master then consults the Standings list by typing /epgp, the AddOn automatically calculates EP, GP, and PR so all the Loot Master must concern himself with is the PR of the 3 contending Raiders. Whichever of the three has the highest PR wins, the item is awared to that raider and the GP value of the item added to his total.

The person with the higher PR gets the first say on loot. As a result, the more effort you put the more gear you receive. As a matter of fact, the gear you receive is proportional to the effort you put. EPGP is based on this simple principle, but there are some complexities that need to be dealt with which will be covered below.

I'm on Standby:
Not everyone can raid, but that doesn't mean you don't deserve credit for your dedication. Raiders who are online and ready to raid, but are not in the raid itself will still earn EP normally. This means however, that you must be ready to drop what you are doing and join if we have an opening. If you decline for any reason, you forfeit all points earned during this raiding session. This is non negotiable. If you say you're ready to raid, then be ready.

Decay:
Originally, we did not use decay. But after some experience with the system, and careful scrutiny of the numbers it was decided to a 10% Decay to ensure that everyone is treated fairly. At this rate, it will take 5 weeks for EP and GP to decay to half of their current standing. Players with perfect attendance will be basically where they would be without Decay (maybe even a little higher). Players with poor attendance will drop to the bottom of the priority list due to the decay and a lack of incoming EP.

Base GP:
Base GP adds a certain GP to each member of a guild. This means the final GP of each member is: GP = BaseGP + RealGP. All PR computations happen on GP not BaseGP or RealGP. Decay also applies to GP as a whole but it only diminishes RealGP. As such GP can never be lower than BaseGP. For example, say we have BaseGP = 100 and RealGP = 10. Applying a 10% decay will result in RealGP = 0 for a total of 100 GP. Base GP prevents new recruits or long time inactive members from trumping your dedicated members just because their GP is 0 and thus their PR infinite.

Face on Fire's Base GP is set at 500.

Min EP:
Min EP puts a limit, which members should exceed in order to have any loot priority. This is more or less an attendance check and a road block for new members to reach a point after which they can need on loot. Anyone below MinEP has in effect lower PR then everyone above MinEP even if their effective PR is higher. For example MinEP = 10000 and member A has 20000 EP and 4000 GP for 5 PR and member B has 1000 EP and 100 GP for 10 PR. In this case member A has higher priority for loot since he/she is above the MinEP threshold even though his/her PR is lower than member B.

Face on Fire's minimum EP is 2000 points, which should be easilly attainable by anyone who raids for a couple of weeks. One week of complete dedication/donations, being early, felating officers, etc. You will have the necessary points. Let's face it, if you're not dedicated enough to have 2000 points in this system after two or three weeks, you don't deserve the loot.

Important Note: The EPGP Pool will be reset at the beginning of a progression tier. Initially items will be rolled on using the /roll command until such time as PR can be used to determine loot.

The AddOn

EGPG AddOn - This is mandatory for Face on Fire progression raids; you can download the latest version of the EPGP AddOn at the following site: [ Download ].

The Numbers in Practice

All three values will fluctuate, sometimes wildly, during a raid. This is normal. As stated above, priority for an item is calculated by finding the quotient of the raider's EP and GP rating. The highest PR wins the item, in the event of a tie raiders will use the /roll command until a clear winner is decided. At which point the GP value of the item is added to the winner's GP rating.

Note: At the beginning of a tier-cycle where all Raiders have equal EP and GP values loot will be decided by /roll until a point is reached where a clear PR winner can be declared on an item.

Finding the GP value of a given item is a bit more complex than finding the player's PR. However, it's important to note that the AddOn handles these calculations for us, as well as giving officers a method of updating and tracking EPs. The formula for determining GP is in the chart below.

Raiders can check their standing at any time by typing /epgp as shown in the following example:
[ Click for an Example ]





Under certain circumstances a different modifier is used to determine GP. These are:
2H Weapon:
» If it is going to be used as an offhand (TG warriors for example) the modifier becomes 1 (down from 2)
» If it is going to be used by a hunter the modifier becomes 1 (down from 2)
1H Weapon:
» If it is going to be used by a hunter the modifier becomes 0.5 (down from 1.5)
» If it is going to be used by a tank for tanking purposes the modifier becomes 0.5 (down from 1.5)
» If it is going to be used as an off-hand the modifier becomes 0.5 (down from 1.5)
Shield:
» If it is going to be used by a tank for tanking purposes the modifier becomes 1.5 (up from 0.5)
Ranged:
» If it is going to be used by a hunter the modifier becomes 1.5 (up from 0.5)

This gives more or less equal GP value for MH + OH + Ranged slots for all classes.

Note: The EPGP AddOn calculates GP automatically and displays the GP amount at the bottom of the items Tooltip, in the event that there are possible alternate modifiers as above, both totals are listed. [ Click for an Example ]

Gaining EP

Boss Values:
Onyxia: 400
TOC: 200 per
IC: 200 each, Arthas is worth 300.

» First Timer Bonus: kills would be worth 150%, so guild first Ony kill would be 600 for example.
» Incomplete Kill: Each failed attempt at a boss is worth 25% of the killed bosses value, up to a total of 75%. This is to reward dedication in the face of learning a new boss.
» Donor's Bonus: Raiders may donate items or gold to the guild bank in exchange for EP, the amount of EP received is directly proportionate to the gold value of the donation(s) at a 1:1 ratio, up to a max of 500 points per week. This will however be monitored, so don't expect to buy a Runed Orb for half AH price from the guild bank, and then sell it back to the guild bank for full AH price. A list of needed donation items will be made available on the website in the near future. These include, but are not limited to: Potions and Flasks, Fish Feasts, Uncut Epic Gems and other tradeskill materials such as Frost Lotus.
» Hourly Bonus: 100 EP per hour, 125 per hour after our normal raiding hours.
» Early Bird Special: 50 bonus EP. Raiders who show up 30 mins early for invites are eligible for this bonus.
» Dedicated Raider Incentive: 50 bonus EP. Raiders who are present at the end of the raid are eligible for this bonus.

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