To the people who say "Let them play how they want", ask yourselves this: If you were in a pt where people weren't doing their job, wouldn't you be even a little upset? Say for instance, a pld who doesn't wanna voke or cure to keep hate. Wouldn't you be even a little upset? Or would you just say "Oh its fine, they're just playing how they want to." Now granted you don't lose xp for dying in campaign, but still, its a little upsetting to see people not fulfilling their jobs duties.
(Didn't realize this thread was still going-- had to do a bit of catching up.)
As for this comparison, Miruyasha, I have to disagree. I do agree that I would get upset if I invited a PLD to tank and he didn't sub warrior and decided he was not going to tank for an exp party. I'd also get upset if I invited a white mage that didn't heal. I'd also get upset with any job but maybe a BLM that aimed specificly for the kill shot. The reason I cannot get upset about it in campaign is several reasons:
The exp system SE made for campaign doesn't allow the same advantages a normal PT setting does. When I returned from my absense and did my first campaign I did it as your sterotypical WHM should. I stayed on the backline and cured, buffed, hasted, etc until running out of mana and rincing and repeating. The campaign ended and I mentioned how much EXP I gained as did a few others that had been in my party-- It was insulting by how little I recieved. Much, much less than someone who would be auto-attacking a mob and doing minimal effort.
Do you find that fair? I don't think you could assume it's fair. In an exp party everyone is gaining the same (with the exception of bands, level differences, etc). Everyone has a common goal. The same mechanics don't work in campaign. You have a wide range of people with an assortmant of goals. For some it is strickly exp purposes. Like in an exp party, for them its to get the most amount of exp effectively. This varies job to job. For some its just something with minimal commitment to do for fun. Then you have the hard-core campaigners who are all about the win. SE designed this for all of the above. I am more than sure that SE would have cared less that people spammed songs if there wasn't so many complaints and also actual programs made for singing. A lot of the bards being targeted by this, including myself, don't have said program. (Well, I know I don't-- I don't really bard enough to want to risk my account.) If they did have a major problem with it there would have been an immediate fix or a topic made of it being an exploit.
This game (this board especially) has always had a stigma for doing things in a cookie-cutter way. I don't think its nessessary in campaign. It's more than fine to do this in your parties, your linkshells, but it has no place in campaign. I make no commit to you, or anyone else, when I join in a campaign. What I would recommend is linkshells forming (I'm sure they already are) designed to win campaigns. That way the /brd or the NIN/DNC PLD/WHM or whatever odd combinations that nets well in campaign will have minimal to no effect on your progress. I'm sure that if you have enough collaborated effort going on in a zone others will be compelled to join in on your efforts. Leading in complaints might gain you a plethra of rank ups, but leading with action will lead to progression.
As far as the issue with /bards who never leave Sandy-- that's a very biased statement. A LOT of people stay in Sandy and wait for campaigns to re-start. And it's generally more productive than jumping from zone to zone if your aim is EXP.
Further more, with the nerf so close in toe... what shall the next heated campaign debate be about? I nominate tank jobs that don't sub warrior to voke? <shrugs>
