No I've never lightened the beacons. Never bothered to, isnt that the bonus? I cant really remember the other member because it's a long time ago, maybe an E...

Seriously, it shouldnt be that hard if you have a decent group. I dont know how it is right now but back when I played alot, I changed from the european to the american servers. I saw that there were alot more players, and people were always on. Also IMO, the level of skill was a bit higher as well. I thought I was going to have lag issues when changing but that wasnt the case, still as smooth as ever. But then again I dont know what the situation is right now on the servers.