Ultimately, a mouse pad is not necessary for you to use you mouse. However, you would be missing out on the many benefits that using a good quality mouse pad offers. They give you a nice comfortable surface to rest your arm or wrist, they protect your desk from scuffs and scratches from moving the mouse around, they help improve your gaming performance by giving you a smooth consistent surface that the mouse glides nicely across, and they are another way to customize your gaming setup.