28 is for normal raid, especially in a pickup group. (although even a 27 can be carried through HM Raid - but lets face it, who's going to do that in a pickup group its like saying to a random you die, we try 5 man everything and you get the best loot), the damage difference between a 29 and 30 is huge, let alone a 28 and 30. If you haven't already, Normal raid is better suited for 25-28s, and Hard Mode for 29+. If you have already done Normal mode, you really want to be using shards to get to 29.