Shifting Perspectives: Share your delight in Tree of Life!
Every week, Shifting Perspectives explores issues affecting druids and those who group with them. This week John Patricelli, the Big Bear Butt Blogger, brings you a fun challenge for Restoration Druids specced for Tree of Life.
Since this column has been dominated by news of the Ferlol kind lately, I thought this week would be a good time to bring some true leafy fun into the mix.
I am still working avidly on a gearing for Karazhan list for Restoration Druids, with research and insight provided by Bellwether of 4 Haelz, with full expectations of having it ready for you to enjoy next week.
In the meantime, here is a wonderful opportunity for Treelovers to show their Bark is stronger than our Bite.
Phaelia, the mind and heart behind Resto4Life, decided that Arbor Day was the perfect time for Resto Druids to let their imaginations bloom.
To that end, she has issued an Arbor Day Challenge to all of you Trees out there.
More about the challenge, and the fun you can have, after the break!
Come up with a fun and imaginative way of displaying your joy in being a Tree. Be creative. Be original. And be fast! The deadline to turn in your work of screenshot art is May 30th!
All of your screenshots must be received by Resto4Life by May 30th, so Phaelia can prepare them for display on June 1st.
June 1st, as everyone knows, is when Arbor Day is celebrated... in Cambodia.
Phae claims she's set it for then because she missed the date of the United State's observance of National Arbor Day on April 25th, but I think it's really because she wanted to celebrate World of Warcraft's multi-national heritage.
To find all of the specifics of Phaelia's Tree of Life Arbor Day Challenge, go visit her site and read the article that sets down the ground rules.
And as you plan your leafy adventure, please keep in mind that, while many of us have fallen in love with the alternative character skins that the artist Andrige has done for Druid forms, Blizzard is strongly opposed to using such skins in the live game, and considers it against their terms of service, and they may very well slam an offending Druid with the banhammer for daring to be too pretty. I mean, for showing individual flair. Wait, that's not right. OH! Yes, for making unauthorized adjustments to the game files.
So please, if you are using in-game images for your Tree of Life screenshot submissions, only let your 'authorized' light shine!
Phaelia has made several wonderful suggestions for ways you can 'spruce' up your Tree and express your love of nature in her post.
I enjoyed reading all of them, and I wished I had a Red Winter Hat so I could try that one... with the help of Photoshop, perhaps. Okay, so I'd rather have the Red Winter Hat displayed on my Dire Bear Form, but it's the thought that counts!
They are great suggestions, and I'd love to see each and every one of them in the game. Of course, as Phae points out in the comments, it's too bad Blizzard doesn't LET any equipped gear, or tabards, show in Tree of Life form.
But that's fine, right? The leafy crowd is used to having to overcome such minor difficulties. It will only make the final success when your Tree stands out from the rest of the forest that much more satisfying.
And anyway, as Phaelia says, "Nothing should obstruct the full and glorious view of your character."
Phaelia says she will be compiling all of the appropriate entries into a gallery of images for the Resto4Life site, and showcasing a few of her favorites, on June 1st.
She has also agreed to allow us to share her favorite entries in a gallery here in the column.
Entries should be in TGA or JPG format, and as I said above, all of the details can be found at the announcement at Resto4Life.
So what are you waiting for?
Just let your fertile imagination take root, and bear some glorious, leaf-adorned fruit!
Sorry, sorry, I got carried away there for a second. I'm better now.
