I am from this one, I think. I just don’t want to run around like a fox and cast some light spells as death knight. But what you going to do if one choice is far superior in PvE for 2 of your specs ?
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Because it would effect basically EVERYONE. Trickle down effect.
Anyway; Blizzard have made it clear what their intentions are and what their philosophy behind the system is. Imo terms like ‘meta’ or ‘min-maxing’ are evil; they shouldn’t be catered to. So I agree with their philosophy because it at least supports my stance a little bit instead of giving in yet again to obsessive players.
But the thing that I don’t understand; why are you (and likeminded people) making such a big deal of this? Because it’s really not such a big deal.
It’s 1 ability. One. It’s an extra ability too; it’s not meant to be like 99% of the other stuff you have already; no changing on the fly and such. It’s fine.
People who pick a covenant for what that ability does are being silly and obsessive. There’s so many other things that you DO get to control and change… stop worrying about 1 single ability. 
Again, the number of abilities is irrelevant: their impact are. A single ability can have a huge impact. Covenant abilities do, and this is by design because Blizzard wants the choice to matter.
If you argue that the abilities are irrelevant, the choice would not matter, so where would be the problem in “pulling the ripcord” anyway?
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He said a lot in the past and there was 0 sense. Everyone will be forced to raid, raiding is mandatory and core of the game, period.
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I have seen this response from several DKs. You are definitely not alone. It does not seem a good match aesthetically but clearly seems to be the strongest class choice at present. 
I do wonder if we will see certain covenants will large numbers of certain classes.
Yes it will make difference. It will ruin way for me to by different palading then other paladins. No cosmetics are not enough for people to care about their choices. Specialy not when pretty much all covenant cosmetics are easy to earn which they are.
Not yet tho. Ion acknowledge the problem (having only 4-5 pieces actually good for pvp) but we have yet to see the actual change they make.
Why do you feel qualified to speak for me? I care a ton about cosmetics. I pick race based on cosmetics. I go through the pain of old content farming for cosmetics. I spent half an hour choosing between Kayn Sunfury and Altruis the Sufferer. Cosmetics is a massive choice for someone like me who cares about my characters as characters and not just as tools to an end.
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I maintain that the only way to kill off meta compulsion is to make a game more simple and easy in order for someone who follows the meta to looks like a compulsive overachieving munchkin caricature to those around them.
In our Dungeons and Dragons table, our Dungeon Master encourages us to go for what is fun and not what is meta and that we can rest assured that he will always be adjusting the challenge so that we will not feel regrets for not going for meta character builds and party compositions.
What Blizzard is doing with the covenants is making the game more complex and restrictive while probably still balancing the challenge of the game around the best options available on the high end. As we all know ,what the high end chose, trickles down to a lot more players.
So until Blizzard commits to making even the cutting edge players to admit that “it does not matter which covenants we use” I will find their statements about wanting to break the meta to be a bunch of balderdash about how they want there to be sunshine and rainbow farting unicorns everywhere.
I guess we do - when you log in beta and stick on main hub and follow the chat and people ask about covenants you see distinctive choices formulating with Night fae being meta for like half of the populace.
It is all great if people a. like Night fae style (i.e. as a druid I am willing to hop right into it!) b. don’t care of active abilities (all power to the them!), but a Night fae DK is like ‘what?’ and as a frost dk I ignore them, but as tank and uh I cannot and then how much of a choice it is, when you only have 1 choice ?
So there I am awesome knight of death … running around like something straight out of anime.
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It is undeniable that the anti-pull-the-ripcord crowd wants to hinder others or does not want to be talked down to when the actual game is released and everything is no longer just discussion. If you want to be ardent in your pick and want it to mean something, don’t switch? Why dictate what should be meaningful for other players - and if they do not want things that way, call them cold, calculating “min-maxers”?
You cannot stop the META. People will stick to the best Covenant for their class and content of choice based on what YouTube, WoWHead, IcyVeins and whatnot will tell them. Only difference in a non-pull situation is just them being hemmed into that one type of content.
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I think players of all levels have different concerns about the systems. Everyone’s view is valid even if some seek to invalidate others.
This is something people tend to forget in those conversations. WoW is just so multi-layered game with different sub-categories. And each players environments differ even when they might do same content.
And likely in most every day scenarios covenants make no difference, but then there is situation where they do…
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Except you get almost to different playstyles with it. It is not obsessive or silly. I just want to have fun and play around with all the different ones. You know, the non sheep road. By game design being stuck makes me a sheep. I have no other choice.
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why not just make the covenant abilities and spells usable in Torghast only. So while levelling, each covenant will say hey, if you join us, this is some power we could offer you in thanks. you then hit max level, choose your covenant and they say thanks for joining us, we need you to take on the tower and to do so, we’ll lend you some of our power (spells and abilities) to help. That way you still get the RP aspect of it, you still get the choices you want but it doesn’t effect anyone else outside of the tower. You’ll still get the little bonuses in instances like shortcuts and buffs depending on who you went with which is fine, you just don’t get a power that then becomes mandatory if you want to do progression.
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The problem is that the covenant power is like our new talent row. It’s the borrowed power system for this coming expansion.
Cosmetics are the true end game of WOW.
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The gear gets replaced but the cosmetics are forever.
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Well, my char already has a transmog 
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How exactly you plan to have meta covenant for all type of bosses/pvp scenarios/specs/etc… Oh wait you wont just like rest if playerbase.