Want to get to the highest levels of Azeroth? Are you afraid of the time commitment? Find out how much time a player must dedicate to taking on some of the most menacing threats in the World of Warcraft.
Player Skill Determines WoW Raid Length in Part
World of Warcraft raid lengths are not as excessive as some other MMORPGs. Most WoW raids last between 2 to 4 hours. Several factors determine how long a raid can last. Unlike Everquest, Warcraft bosses do not require a large amount of preparation, but raiding parties in either game must make sure players have all the necessary buffs and understand how the fights work .
The two-
to four-hour time for raids given above assumes that players are capable of taking down the bosses on the first try and allows for about 10-20 bosses. A simple raid that only has one boss, such as Onyxia’s lair, may take less time. A long raid with multiple bosses may take longer. The largest raids may take place over a few nights. Most guilds divide the raid into wings.
Raids such as Icecrown Citadel and Naxxramas have multiple wings. Most raiders only do one of these wings per week. Guild raids can go multiple nights however, provided the raiders commit themselves to doing the raids on the nights when it is scheduled.
WoW Raid Length for 40 Mans Raids Is Not As Long As It Once Was
The Burning Crusade and the Wrath of the Lich King did not include 40 man raids, but these instances still exist on the original continents. 40-man raids were originally expected to take more than four hours. This is no longer the case. Mudflation has taken its toll on Azeroth and many of the 40-man encounters are now trivial. Guilds can now breeze through most of the larger old-world raids, even once daunting instances like Molten Core, in an hour and a half. There is very little risk to higher-level players who have gotten the greens and blues available in the Wrath of the Lich King expansion.
Can WoW Raid Length Be Longer than 2 to 4 Hours?
There is no set World of Warcraft raid length, only average times for raids in general. A raid force that wipes on every boss and then succeeds will take twice as long as a raid that can take down the boss successfully the first time. Gear also affects the overall length of the raid. Better gear means that the tanks, the DPS, and the healers can all perform their respective roles better. The primary feature determining the length of boss fights is how much damage per second the entire raid can put out.
As most guilds view MMO content as a linear progression, raid leaders schedule raids based on the items needed to get the raid force better gear. When a guild chooses to do a raid for nostalgic reasons later, a player may be surprised how much easier content that once gave him and his guild mates a lot of trouble has become.
