The Classifieds: Why I wanna kill Arthas, in 500 words or less
The Classifieds brings you weekly news from around the WoW community, including the famous Random Acts of Uberness shout-outs to players who make WoW memorable.
"The Llane forum has a great contest going from a guild named <Monolith>," writes WoW.com reader and enthusiastic tipster Gimmlette of <Spectacular Death>. "They have been around since the server went live, and with some of the top raiding guilds on Llane folding their tents and going home, that alone says a lot. The contest is ingenious and falls in the 'I wish SD had Arthas on farm so we could do this.'" What is this ingenious contest, you ask? <Monolith> is taking up to two players a week to ICC-25 to slay the Lich King -- and it's not gold they're asking for. What is this mysterious payment they're asking of applicants?
"Well ... you will have to tell us why you want to kill the Lich King," writes <Monolith>'s Beruthiel. "You can do this in any number of ways: a short essay, a piece of fan fiction, a short comic or a roleplay story are all acceptable submissions! Regardless of your method, what you need to convey to us is what makes killing the Lich King important for you. We don't care about your gear, your GearScore or how amazing a player you are. What we do care about is why it is important for you to kill the Lich King. Creativity is encouraged!"
If you're a Hordie on Llane who'd like to give this a whirl, visit the forum thread linked above for all the details. This sounds like a creative contest from a classy guild -- best of luck to all involved!
Let's crack open The Classifieds ...
Random Acts of Uberness
It's when another player lights up your night with precise play, a wicked sense of humor or unexpected generosity that your login becomes something to remember. Share your Random Acts of Uberness with theclassifieds@wow.com. Keep things brief (150 words or less, please), and be sure to list everyone's character names and home realms or battlegroup.
of Earthen Ring (US-H) We've all done it: the dreaded "mistell." I had purchased some engineering services from Darkkrow earlier that afternoon, and several hours later, while attempting to pounce on a recently-logged-in friend, I accidentally sent Darkkrow a whisper. I immediately sent the customary, "sorry, mt!", embarrassed at my error. Instead of shooting back a mere "np" or ignoring me altogether, Darkkrow cracked a light-hearted joke that led to our having an absolutely hysterical chat about the evils of the R button and our future campaign to have it stopped (with T-shirts and cookies, obviously). It really brightened up my day to have a laugh with a complete stranger, and it reminded me why I really love this game. -- Mialoha, Earthen Ring (US-H)
Glinda, Feathermoon (US-A); Blamzilla, Stonemaul (US-A); Frauld, Suramar (US-A) Hey there! I just wanted to bring attention to an awesome group of players who I got to meet today. Glinda, Blamzilla and Frauld were tossed into a PUG with myself and my Recruit-a-Friend partner, Hollywuyd, also of Suramar. It was Holly's first time tanking and everyone was very helpful to her -- those with pets helped when she lost aggro, but by the end of our chain runs through Ragefire Chasm, she was tanking like a pro! We all got along splendidly and I just wanted to thank them for the laughs. You guys rock! -- Raphaela, Suramar (US-A)
Cynisca, Mok'Nathal (US-A) School will resume in less than a month, and I wanted to make sure some of my achievements were complete before Cataclysm rolls around. Since all I had to do was finish Northrend to get the World Explorer achievement, I decided to make that my priority; but being a level 73 druid that can't fly was gonna make it more difficult. Nevertheless, I put myself up to the task. After several hours of saying to myself, "I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die," and actually dying, I was able to explore most except Icecrown Citadel. I was in Ymirheim when I saw Cynisca, and I asked her which way to the Citadel. She warned me about the many mobs. I was just about to kamikaze across the bridge again when she invited me to group and pulls out her two-seater mount. I couldn't believe it! She quickly flew me to the Citadel and I got the achievement. Thanks again! /bow -- Therar, Mok'Nathal (US-A)
News: Azeroth local edition
Little Miss Speed Demon We don't get it -- last week, submissions were so lean that we didn't even run The Classifieds; this week, we've got cool guild events and community news coming out of the woodwork. Let's kick off the news this week with a toast to <Matador> of Madoran (US-H) on its third anniversary. To celebrate, the guild threw a multi-event party open to the entire realm (see the video, above), which responded with what organizers called "ridiculous turnout." Prizes were hot, too, including a Shadow's Edge and a Crimson Deathcharger.
If you watch all the way through the event video above, you may notice a familiar face winning the last event. Yes, that's Missbank the Noble, the level 1 achiever we featured back in April, coming back for more achievetastic action to win the <Matador> level 1 footrace through Northrend. "It was a blast from the past that a level 1 character you wrote about ended up winning the grandest prize of them all," wrote tipster Ezzy. "I asked the person who should have won the race what happened in the end. How did he lose the lead? He said, 'I was so nervous, my hands were shaking and my fingers slipped.'" Looks like everyone had fun in the end -- grats to <Matador> on their anniversary and a successful server-wide event.
When WoW meets real life Here's a story we'll share directly from the reader who sent it in.
On the Echo Isles server, a group of people have bonded and become close friends. Between destroying the Lich King's armies and earning those hard, sought-after achievements, this group of friends have had years of fun with each other. One of our friends, we will call her June, epitomizes this friendship. She is a hard-working single mother. Her two young sons both have autism. She is one of the best mothers I have ever met and also a great friend.
Recently her youngest son and June came face to face with a tragedy. It was just like any other summer evening. The blistering heat had gone on for weeks, but that didn't matter to the little 7-year-old, who, taking advantage of his break from school, jumped on his bike like any number of children were doing as the heat of the day began to subside.
What happened next couldn't have been predicted. It was a freak accident that resulted in tragedy. A dog ran out in front of him and, getting caught in the bicycle, threw him over the handle bars and onto a metal beam. At first, the injuries to him seemed like nothing to worry about, a cut on the head that needed stitches. But after sitting in the emergency room, things began to change for the worse. That's when the doctors found that his liver had also been very severely damaged. The past weeks have been touch and go, even leaving the 7-year-old lying with his restrained hands in an P.I.C.U. with an opened stomach, waiting for surgery after surgery.
His doting mother hasn't left his side after nearly three weeks and several hospital transfers. She is now living at a Ronald McDonald house attached to Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, where he just underwent his fifth surgery to attach a piece of his intestine to his liver so that his liver can process his bodily waste into the intestines instead of into his stomach cavity. The last surgery went very well, but still he will need another surgery in six to 12 months to repair his stomach muscles, which were too swollen for the doctors to close.
The close group of friends on Echo Isles pulled together and created a gift basket of toys, movies, a DVD player and much, much more to send to June and her son to help get them through this blight. June contacted us shortly after receiving the package and told us she didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She said she has been waiting weeks to see her little 7-year-old smile.
Thanks for listening at least,
Dagreightone, Echo Isles (US-H)
Best wishes to June and her family from WoW.com and all our regulars at The Classifieds.
Journaling your own Travels Through Azeroth Remember the fanfic of Destron and his Travels Through Azeroth? Creator Destron has set up new forums at his site to discuss the ongoing travelogue. "It's still pretty small," he writes, "and I'm hoping I can grow it over time." Many of our readers have found the tales of Destron's adventures to be an entertaining read. Check them out at Travels Through Azeroth and Outland.
Employment: Guild recruiting
Casually hardcore <The Skulls> of Executus (US-A) claims to be "a guild built of experienced raiders who have left all the elitism behind." They're looking for tanks and healers looking for a light, fun approach to 10-man content.
From LK to hard modes <Flagrant> of Lightbringer (US-A) is seeking a non-pally tank to carry from the group's recent LK kill into hard modes. Raids 10-man Wed. 7-10:30 p.m. server, 25-man Fri.; currently 12/12 in ICC-10 and 7/12 ICC-25.
Casually open <Maverick Hunters> of Trollbane (US-A) is seeking both new and experienced players. "All classes welcomed and needed," writes their recruiter. "We will train and gear you! Come down the Lich King and prepare for the Cataclysm!" Contact Methyl, Eluni, Hyjinx or Aliann in game.
Final heroics <Exalted Order> of Aggramar (US-A), winners in Blizzard's Cataclysm beta guild contest, are looking for "raiders with a passion" to help in the final push to finish heroic Halion and heroic Lich King. Raids Mon./Tues./Wed./Thurs. 7:45-11 p.m. CST. Here's a snip from their winning contest entry:
Exalted Order of Aggramar has been raiding since vanilla. We've seen the ups and downs of the endgame experience, from hard mode Scholomance to lava packs and Ragnaros all the way through both versions of Naxx to Arthas. We've grown and risen through the ranks of our server, from a mid-range PvP guild to the current No. 1 powerhouse. We represent your typical semi-hardcore raiders. We push content fast enough to be top 500 in the United States, but that's only going four nights a week! ... Most of our core raiders are busy in theorycrafting communities, like Elitist Jerks and Arena Junkies, to maximize our performances in all areas.
ICC-10 hard modes <Hypnosis> of Sen'jin (US-H) is recruiting paladin and priest healers with protection and shadow off specs, respectively. Raids Tues. 8-11 p.m. realm/CST and Sun. 6-9 p.m.; 9/12 on ICC-10 hard modes.
New 10-man guild <Mea Culpa> of Spirestone (US-A) is a brand new 10-man guild currently recruiting for core positions. Raids Tues./Thurs. 7-11 p.m. CST.
Rated Cataclysm BGs and world PvP <The Stormwind Crusaders>, previously seen here in The Classifieds for their old-school world PvP events, has moved from Anachronos (EU-A) to Auchindoun (EU-PvP-A). They're seeking more PvP-minded players for rated battleground premades in Cataclysm plus plenty more world PvP. "We are a PvP-only guild with an occasional VOA run," notes their recruiter. "We just started anew on a new realm and we don't have many requirements besides that you have to love PvP and love to socialize in the g-chat."
The Classifieds brings you weekly updates on player and community news, help finding the right guild, who's making waves in the WoW community and more. Email your news and Random Acts of Uberness to TheClassifieds@wow.com.
