[1.Local]: Breakfast leftovers

Are you ready for some football?
The computer monitor or the TV -- which screen were you glued to on Super Bowl Sunday?

Daedalus : ...and if you're just joining us, the score is 38 to 35 here in the Azerothian Pro Bowl, the Alliance team leading the Horde as we go into the 4th quarter; a surprising turn of events given the Steamwheedle over-under for the game was only 24 points. Looks like the goblins will be taking a bath on this one...

Third and long, Fizzcrank Fullthrottle of the Borean Monsterbellies, filling in for the quarterback of the Dun Morogh Ewes who was removed from the game in the second quarter for a shotgun pass using an actual shotgun is back to pass. He cuts left, looking for an opening, and OH! He's sacked by three tauren defenders from the Thunder Bluff Ogres. That's gotta hurt! The first aid team is coming to the field ... wrapping his leg with Netherweave Bandages; wait, looks like they're calling for Frostweave instead ... Oh, and now they've waved that off and are calling for a priest. Fizzcrank's been rezzed, he's being helped off the field, and the Alliance kicking team is taking the field.

Fyldren Moonfeather of the Feathermoon Hawks kicks; it's a short one ... but ... wait ... wait ... Yes, there's an owl assisting it; it looks like the referees don't see it ... And the kick goes deep, deep into Horde territory. It's caught on the 5-yard line by Quithas, running back for the Silvermoon Lynxes. He blinks to the 25, to the 45 ...OH! And he's stopped by a Gnomeregan Green at the 48. Why the league continues to allow Net-o-matics in regulation play, I'll never know.

Sagorne Creststrider of the Orgrimmar Pillagers goes back to pass, pressured on both sides by a Northshire Paragon and a Hillsborough Rancher, and he breaks free with a ... Is that a Tremor Totem? There's a flag on the play; we take you to the field for the call: "Intentional Grounding: 5 yards, 2nd down." Ooh, a costly penalty for the Horde; it seems he used a Grounding Totem by mistake.

He's back to throw again; he's got plenty of time...it's starting to seem like a real mistake that the Alliance went with three gnome tackles on this play: they're being batted off by left guard Tarshaw Jaggedscar ... Crestrider spots an Undercity Skeletal Colt ... He throws... Ow! And a little too much heat on that one. It's torn the receiver's hands clear off, back into the arms of an Ironforge Mithriller for an interception.

The Alliance is taking the field again; Fullthrottle seems to be back ... The ball is snapped ... He's back, back ... Goes for the long bomb, deep into Horde territory and ... OHDEARGOD! Looks like that was actually a bomb, folks; he's blown up two Echo Isles Pirates and a Hammerfall Zepplin. That is going to hurt them.

"Unneccessary Explosives. 10 yard penalty, repeat 1st down."

And while the mess is being cleaned up, please enjoy this message from Consortium Securities:

"In these uncertain economic times, where can you really trust your hard earned gold? Why not invest off-world, with Consortium Securities? Your planet may be destroyed by ancient guardians, ravaged by dragons, or devoured whole by demons, but your money will always be safe with us. Consortium Securities: because goblins are untrustworthy bastards."

ICC normal modes no longer limited by attempts
What? No more limited attempts for normal-mode Professor Putricide, Blood-Queen Lana'thel, Sindragosa and the Lich King?

Jason: Hmm ... Should I be happy that I won't run out of attempts, or disappointed because I can't run out of attempts?

Nandini: Now that plenty of normal-mode "firsts" have been claimed, videos recorded and strategies published, there's no need to further limit attempts at these bosses. Hard-mode encounters will probably continue have limited attempts until their corresponding "firsts" have also been claimed. That way the one guild who happens to be online for 10 hours straight right after the servers come up can't grind away and claim a "first" if they just get lucky after 100 attempts. Limited attempts also lets Blizzard employees observe these raids for a sane amount of time.

Two Bosses Enter in search of reader judges
The panel is still open to readers who'd like to be considered as judges for the next season of Two Bosses Enter, One Boss Leaves. Required credentials: weigh lore versus mechanics to come to a balanced decision.

Oznak: I'm curious how many of the people voting for Eregos never played WC3. I think it must've been in Frozen Throne that Anub'arak, escorting a very weakened Arthas, kills Sapphiron. You know that giant powerful dragon KT keeps as his personal guardian. Yeah, killed that. So I refuse to listen to "but he can fly" or "but he's a dragon, of course he's gonna win." The problem with that reasoning is that for Eregos to really engage ground combatants, particularly one who can live underground, he has to land. I tend to picture Anub as Jaws in that situation.

Here's how I see it going. Anub and Eregos are standing facing each other. Eregos laughs at the puny bug, and takes off, intending to roast Anub where he stands. Anub, not inexperienced at killing dragons, burrows. Perplexed, Eregos lands to see where he went, only to be met by an impale and a wave of adds. The latter, of course, are easily dealt with, although he is injured by the former. Thinking his prey weakened, Anub reemerges into the face of an Enraged Assault, taking several good hits before hitting Eregos with a pound.

Eregos, reeling, returns to his airborne strategy. Straining to stay aloft, he is harassed by Nerubian Darters, against whom he summons his own adds. Too crafty to fall into the same trap twice, he descends, and planar shifts. Anub, sensing Eregos above, returns, takes hits from the anomalies, and once again retreats to the earth. After several seconds of silence, he surfaces under Eregos and releases his locusts, followed by a second pound. Eregos, now permanently grounded, enrages again, but by this time Anub's larger adds are emerging on all sides, finally bringing down the empowered leviathan.

Guest post: From manners to mechanics
Is it any one player's fault when aggro goes awry during a five-man? And the burning question for so many speed-demon groupmates: whose?

Napoleon Complex Visante: Okay, "you yank it you tank it." I understand that, as a DPS caster. I always do my best to maintain proper threat management and have no problem waiting a few seconds during each pull before blasting away or even out right neutering my DPS output to accommodate an inexperienced tank.

However, if as a tank you pull that "gogogo" shite, skipping bosses and pulling three groups of mobs at a time, I take that as your special way of saying "go right ahead, melt face with zeal and abandon." If I pull aggro in those situations, YOU blew it for biting off more than you can chew. That is all.