Inspired by a combination of this post by the wonderful Bellwether (of 4Haelz fame) and this tweet from the always entertaining Brigwyn (of The Hunting Lodge), I wanted to provide an alternative thought to what Gearscore-type addons could actually be useful for.

First there should be some clarification, however: using gearscore as a determiner of any factual data about another player is ludicrous. Not only is it possible to manipulate a gear score in a way that makes anyone suitable for any content, but the number alone does not present any useful information to its recipient. That does not necessarily mean it is completely useless, although as currently used by most players it serves no purpose.

Calculating a “gear score” is trivial. All calculations rely on some baseline score derived from item level and assume the player understands enough about their class to gear themselves correctly. Relying on those assumptions is exactly why something like a gear score should never be taken as a deciding factor in whether a person is capable of progressing through any of the game’s content. Further, using a gear score is misleading due to the ability of the player not being factored in at all (yes, believe it or not a player’s skill does impact whether or not they are capable in addition to a certain “baseline” level of gear).

How, then, can using any type of gear score prove useful? If working under the basic assumption that there is an “average” archetype of player that is capable of a minimum amount of damage dealt/taken or healing throughput dependent upon a basic range of gear level (more on this in a moment), then using a gearscore for your own benefit can actually provide some useful information.

Disclaimer: The following data is imaginary and only used in order to illustrate the point. The same ideas can be applied to any gear score of choice as long as the user remembers the previous points I’ve outlined in this post.

REALLY STRONG EMPHASIS ON THE FOLLOWING BEING COMPLETELY MADE UP TO ILLUSTRATE THE POINT.

Assumptions for Illustration:

• Gearscore of 0000 – 1000: Average quest reward level gear, not level 80.
• Gearscore of 1000 – 1500: Average quest reward level gear, level 80.
• Gearscore of 1500 – 2000: Average tier seven level gear.
• Gearscore of 2000 – 2500: Average tier eight level gear.
• Gearscore of 2500 – 3000: Average tier nine level gear.

Using the above imaginary levels, what could one possibly infer from just a number? Nothing directly. None. Don’t even kid yourself, nothing in that single number tells you anything. However, knowledge of that number can be used in a way that aids you based on your knowledge of content difficulty and an idea of what range gearscore translates in what level of gear/content the player has primarily run.

Case in point, if I were to use the new dungeon finder and placed into a completely random group, with the gearscore addon installed I could glance over the other party members and ether see a number that makes me look closer at a player or see nothing that alarms me. For example, if the random dungeon was the Halls of Reflection and I saw gearscores in the 1000 – 1500 range all around me I would take the time to inspect each member of the party and, based on my knowledge of the instance, be able to determine, with near certainty, whether the particular group would be capable of clearing the content. If the players all seemed to be aware of their gear choices and obviously gemmed/enchanted in a manner befitting the class then I would have no qualms seeing how things go.

The notion of barring people from a group, or using gearscore to determine whether someone should be in a group, is complete rubbish. Using gearscore to identify possible concerns in a party and using that knowledge to look closer is a legitimate use, and as far as I can tell the only legitimate use, for the addon.

To illustrate why gearscores do not mean anything, take the same imaginary numbers above and assume all party members were in the 2500 – 3000 range. If those players are not competent, or do not really know how to play their class in a way that benefits the party, then they are worth less than those with a gearscore of 1000 – 1500 who are capable of playing their characters in a way that benefits the party.

The same flaw exists in any thinking currently in game of trying to screen players based on gear, achievements, be.imba, wow-heroes, or any other arbitrary method that does not actually demonstrate the player’s ability. These are all things that even the worst player can attain in the right group, which is exactly why reliance on any of these methods to judge a player’s ability is, unequivocally, misguided.

In short, gearscore addons can help you become aware of players around you that you might want to look at a little closer, whether to see if their gear is set up properly or perhaps even to research possible changes in gear choice for yourself. The only way to decide whether a player should or should not be in a run is to let them try and prove one way or another.