Gear your lowbie Alts with your Main

[ivansmashem]

Hi everyone,
This would be my first contribution to the site. I peruse the exploits section for things to do in instances a lot, and I hadn't noticed anything pertaining to what I'm about to share, so I figured I'd do a thread search for everything involving "alt" and "instance." I came up with nothing.

Allow me to explain what the goal is here. Using your Main, you can kill boss mobs in instances, or mobs in the world, and loot them with one of your Alts on the same account. Here's how you do it:

1) You need to get your Main and your Alt into the same group somehow. Typically, this is accomplished by having a friend or a random person from Trade invite them both to the same group. It's a little easier if they remain in the group to reset instances for you, but you can have them make one of your characters the leader and do it yourself, though it takes more time.

The next steps differ based on whether you are killing a mob in the world or in an instance. I'll simply explain in detail how to do it using an instance, and how to do it elsewhere will be apparent, since it's just skipping steps you don't need.

2) Get both your Main and Alt at the entrance to an instance. Enter with the group leader (or either if someone other than your Main/Alt is leader and still logged on). I will refer to "group leader" as your Main from now on to keep things simple. Disconnect your main without logging out. I use Alt+F4.
Next, log onto your Alt and enter the instance. Your Main will still be there. You are now both in the same instance; good job. Let's keep going.

3) Disconnect your Alt and log back onto your Main. Proceed to clear up to (but not including) whatever boss there is from which you want loot. Disconnect your Main again.

4) Log onto your alt. Run up to where your Main was (should be right before the boss). Disconnect your Alt. Log back onto your main.

5) This next part is important. Before engaging the boss, right-click on your character's frame and choose to Pass on all loot. If you do not do this, you will not be able to loot anything on your alt. Engage the boss.

6) Get the boss to very low life total. Make sure you don't have any buffs / abilities present that will automatically cause damage to the boss when they attack you (Retribution Aura, Thorns, Shield Spikes, etc.). Disconnect your Main.

7) Log onto your Alt quickly. When you get into game, your Main should still be standing there, taking the hits. Finish the boss off with your Alt. Loot the boss, and... Congratz! You will get whatever loot there is.

Here's how it works:
Since there is another member of the group, you are forced to roll on the item. Since they are technically "present" when the item dropped, they have the option to roll for it. However, you previously chose to have your Main pass on all loot. This skips his roll, and, thus, you are the only person eligible to receive the loot. Roll on it and you'll win.

Hope you got what you wanted!!

Side note: It is important to follow each step closely. Not doing so can, many times, lead to having one of your characters being put back at the beginning of an instance or, even worse, at the closest graveyard.

One last thing to mention. How to reset instances so you can try again!!
Here goes:
Assume your Main is the group leader. Have both players leave the instance. Disconnect your Alt and log onto your Main, such that your Alt is still standing there. Reset the instance. Wait for your Alt to disappear. Enter the instance. Disconnect your Main. Log onto your Alt and enter the instance.

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Edit: Added some screenshots of my Druid helping my Mage get gear. I don't know how to do spoilers in this forum atm, so I'll just put links to the images.
ImageShack(TM) slideshow
The first image shows me winning the roll on the belt. Notice that the two guys in the group with my Mage and my Boomkin are not in the instance. I just joined their group to make resetting the instances easier. Since they're not there, they don't get to roll. How about the Druid that is there? Well, he's actually Link Dead, because I DC'ed about 30-40 seconds earlier. I passed on all loot before I did, though.

The second image shows me winning the offhand on a different occasion. Notice that my Druid had already gone completely link dead by the time I took this screen shot. Before that, he was standing in about the same spot as in the previous screenshot.

The third image shows me finishing the mob off with my Mage, while my DC'ed Druid still has all the agro. This is about 20-30 seconds after I disconnected my Druid using Alt+F4.

The last picture shows me on my Druid flirting with my link dead Mage before doing the same thing in ZF for Zum'rah's Vexing Cane. Hi Mage! The next steps involve me
1) Passing on all loot. Pulling boss, getting him to very low health
2) HoTing myself after all adds are dead, then disconnecting via Alt+F4
3) Logging onto my Mage, finishing the boss with a couple Frostbolts, then reaping my reward
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Hope this helped some of you Night Owls out there like me. While most other people are asleep, I enjoy doing this to get that one particular drop I just felt I could not live without on my Alt. Legitimately rolling on gear in a real group is for suckers =)

Peace!

[sorrows]

thats a lot of effort where you could just quest or use the lfd tool..
this is more common sense than anything else. people use this for things such as portals, or the hallow's end wand achievement..

[Jackie Moon]

It doesn't work, you have to be present in a certain radius from where the boss you kill dies. I did this in a raid disconnected in VoA and went on my mage and killed boss in the same group. Druid gear dropped and your whole theory had been patched out. Unless you have screenshots or video proof don't post based on "Theory's"

[ivansmashem]

This isn't based on a theory. I have done this multiple times.

you have to be present in a certain radius from where the boss you kill dies.

Please fully read the instructions on how to do this. My method involves having your Main and your Alt standing right next to each other, both visible, when the boss dies.

I guaruntee you this works. If it didn't work for you, I suggest you try it again, following my instructions strictly. In the mean time, I will search through my screenshots to see if I have one, as I ran my Mage through RFD multiple times to hit up the skeleton boss.

this is more common sense than anything else

Are you serious? You consider this common sense? I really just don't know what to say to that.

thats a lot of effort where you could just quest or use the lfd tool

Yes, it is a lot of effort. Yes, LFD tool is probably a better choice in most situations.
That's not really the point, though, is it? There are still a few people interested in twinking characters, or people who really want one particular drop and are tired of having their Healing gear needed by a Ret Pally in the LFD group.

[Trollblod]

thats a lot of effort where you could just quest or use the lfd tool..
this is more common sense than anything else. people use this for things such as portals, or the hallow's end wand achievement..

I agree with Ivan, this is no way close to common sense, and there is downsides on using the LFD tool. First of, people might take the loot you want. Second, it should be loads faster having your main boost you (unless the main suck balls). Also, quests no way give such nice rewards as dungeons, maybe a few quests do, but nowhere close to what an instance give, I haven't tested this myself. But I'll make damn sure to report both this and your post to avoid meaningless spam to fill up the topic.
Please treat people nicely...

[ivansmashem]

I updated the original post to take some pictures of my Mage getting some on-demand loot. I never lost a roll!

Edit: Oh, I also forgot to mention...
If your computer can handle it, I recommend having two copies of WoW open when trying to do this. One is for playing, and the other is to leave at the login so you can get back on more quickly after disconnecting. This maximizes the amount of time you have to kill the boss before your Main disappears.

[Eldhenn]

Is it bannable?

[Leonim]

TL;DR pleeease

[ivansmashem]

Is it bannable?

I don't know. I don't think so. I have so many other infractions on my account that, if it were something they look for, I think I would have been banned by now already. Then again, how the hell is anyone going to know you're doing it in the first place? It's not like it's something that would send up a red-flag in their logs, like someone selling the same item to a vendor 10,000 times, or someone receiving raid loot from the same boss 5 times in a week (Ahh, good old MC cascades).

So I'm going to guess no. Blizzard tends to not care about the things that have little or zero impact on end-game or economy.

TL;DR pleeease

- Get a friend to help you out and get both your Main and your Alt in the same group
- Alternate disconnecting/logging back in between your Main and your Alt so you can get them to the same boss in the same instance
- Turn on "Passing on all loot" on your Main, engage boss, get boss to really low health, forcefully DC yourself once more
- Log into your Alt, finish off the boss who is still agro'ed on your main, loot
- Win

If you get stuck, refer to the big ass post above.

[Neonic]

I remember trying this a very long time ago, i had the same thought "both characters are logged in at the time of death.....just one is currently dcing"

When i tried it, it did not work, however i didnt use the "pass on loot" thing so ill try it again.....i am however doubtful

[Ssateneth]

ivanshamshem, thanks for the tl;dr. Weird this is I did exactly this about a week ago trying to get Hatebringer - Item - World of Warcraft on my fury wartard. Didn't drop though, so oh well.

[ivansmashem]

When i tried it, it did not work, however i didnt use the "pass on loot" thing so ill try it again.....i am however doubtful

Yeah, the pass on loot is key. If you don't do it, you have no way of getting the item. You can loot the mob, and you can even see the item on the mob's corpse, but you can't pick it up. It will just rot there.

Pass on loot before you DC your main, and you'll be able to roll on it. Once you roll, it'll automatically loot the item to you. GL tryin' it out, man!

[gippy]

Used to be a guide around here somewhere someguy showing how to do it to for zg mount runs and such.

i tried it on my old druid for anzu runs, trying to get my rogue the mount, was dead by the time i got back ingame on my rogue, havent bothered to try again.

[Drarn]

I did this for my shaman in brd, back in TBC, and then it worked just fine, I just had two wow started at the same time, cleared with my main, tabbed to my other wow, just did a normal log in (will auto DC the other wow) and then ran up close to the boss, tabbed and logged in and killed the boss with my main, within the 20 sec it takes for my alt to DC.
Then fast logged in my alt to loot the boss but since I did not use the pass on all loot setting I had to wait for the roll time to run out and my main auto passing on it to get the item.

[ReidE96]

I wonder....what would happen if you did FFA loot?