alliance
Latest
UK carriers form alliance to speed up 800MHz LTE rollout, let us enjoy our Freeview TV
Isn't it better when we work together? British carriers think so. EE, O2, Three and Vodafone have officially created a non-exclusive joint venture, Digital Mobile Spectrum Limited, that should speed up the deployment of 800MHz LTE by keeping Freeview over-the-air TV signals clear of interference while the partners bring their low-frequency 4G online. Previously, the networks were bound to form an equivalent company called MitCo that wouldn't have been active until after the 800MHz auction, preventing companies from getting their wireless houses in order until they'd already made a commitment. There's also a competitive angle involved to go with the cooperative work, as you might imagine: with EE's 1,800MHz LTE poised to go live on October 30th, choosing infighting over assistance would only help widen the frontrunner's lead. Whether DMSL represents altruism or pragmatism, we'll appreciate knowing that the hurdles to a catch-up in UK 4G will be more those of the technical reality than the usual political maneuvering.
New patch 5.1 Horde and Alliance cinematics
Yes, Patch 5.1 is bringing a whole new hub of Alliance/Horde conflict, and in addition, it's bringing in the full might of the Alliance and Horde fleets to get the combat starters. MMO-Champion has both the Alliance and Horde cinematics up now, so take a gander at the Alliance one (above) and the Horde one after the cut. Things are definitely heating up. I was going to say hotting up, but I have no idea who'd get the reference.
Datamined scenario voice files point to heartbreak in 5.1
With patch 5.1 hitting the PTR, spoilers are now out and abundant in regards to the new patch for Mists of Pandaria. MMO-Champion has datamined several bits of information from the PTR, including spells and item information. But most disturbing is a set of voice files, presumably from a scenario of some sort that involves Horde and Alliance facing off in the wilds of Krasarang. We'll post the full voice files after the break, but be forewarned: This is absolutely, without question spoiler content. If you'd like to remain unspoiled about what's going on in future patches, I'd strongly recommend against clicking through. In addition, keep in mind that this is early PTR, and the voice files you hear may not even be included in the completed patch -- so listen if you'd like, but remember that what you are hearing is not completed content, and may change drastically before the patch is released. Spoilers follow after the break. Read on at your own risk.
Pandaren roleplay from 1-85
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. In World of Warcraft, that player is you! Each week, Anne Stickney brings you All the World's a Stage with helpful hints, tips and tricks on the art of roleplay in WoW. Roleplay can be tricky in a game like WoW, particularly when new races or classes are introduced. In Cataclysm, we had the conundrum of worgen and goblin death knights to contend with -- how did they become death knights, if they weren't fighting with the Alliance and Horde until after Wrath was launched? This was explained in a relatively tidy fashion, leaving those roleplayers with reasonable options for a plausible backstory. With the pandaren of Mists, the story is slightly more complex. Not only are the pandaren that we play significantly different than the pandaren we encounter in Pandaria, they're also available to both Alliance and Horde. This makes that clear line between factions slightly muddled, and it's a challenge for a roleplayer to find a plausible reason for choosing one side over another. But there are a myriad of other unique challenges that face pandaren roleplayers during the course of their travels.
Roleplaying in Pandaria: The basics
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. In World of Warcraft, that player is you! Each week, Anne Stickney brings you All the World's a Stage with helpful hints, tips and tricks on the art of roleplay in WoW. Welcome to Pandaria, roleplayers! With the launch of Mists, players suddenly have a lot of leveling to do, and countless things to keep them occupied at level 90. However, that doesn't mean that roleplay should come to a halt. Because Pandaria is a land we've never before seen, there's a ton of information to be absorbed, stories to be heard, and lessons to be learned along the way. The things your character will see and hear in Pandaria will affect them throughout the course of the new expansion, every step of the way. But what if you leveled in a frenzy, or you missed some important points? There's so much to see in Pandaria that frankly, it can be overwhelming to even the most seasoned roleplayers. Today we've got a primer of basic plot points for you to consider for your character as they travel the Pandarian wilds and make that trek to level 90 -- or a refresher course if you've already hit max level.
Clearwire starts building LTE network this month, wants to salve (and profit from) Sprint growing pains
Clearwire doesn't have much time left before its promised LTE rollout goes live in early 2013, so it's with some relief that we know the deployment is getting underway. CFO Hope Cochran told those at Goldman Sachs' Communacopia Conference this week that construction of the first cell sites starts this month, with efforts truly swinging into full gear during the fall. The executive also reminded us of a very pragmatic reason why many of the 5,000 LTE sites due by June 30th will target high-traffic areas -- as Clearwire is only selling the faster data access to other providers, it should pocket more money in any regions where Sprint needs all the help it can get. Call it a virtuous cycle. Cochran certainly does: while Clearwire is free to make deals with others, Cochran says her company weighs any alliances against what it still considers a very special pact with Sprint. No doubt the 4G pioneer is hoping that it's making the right choices, as other carriers aren't waiting around.
WoW Insider interviews Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak
Mists of Pandaria is a gigantic undertaking of an expansion that has subtly reworked everything that was painful about Cataclysm and turned it into a fun and interactive work of art. Responsible for much of that is Lead Quest Designer Dave Kosak, who graciously sat down to chat with us about the changes, and what went on behind Mists' development to make it the expansion we've all been waiting for. What makes Mists so fun? The substantial revamp to endgame, and the crazy number of quests and content to complete. The key to Mists is the sheer amount of quests and content to play through, presented in an interactive and entertaining environment designed and executed by Kosak and crew. Read on if you're wondering where that that world event we were expecting went to, what exactly happened to the Jade Forest, or how dailies are going to be less grind and more fun.
Rural Cellular Association rebrands as Competitive Carriers Association, mirrors its move to the big city
What's in a name? Quite a bit, if you ask the Rural Cellular Association. It's becoming the Competitive Carriers Association to reflect a membership shift from smaller providers that often serve the countryside to a much more urbane roster that includes Clearwire, Sprint and T-Mobile, on top of grown-up existing members. Not surprisingly given the advocacy group's recent bedfellows, the name switch also emphasizes the attempt to resist a consolidation of power in US telecom -- CCA membership is limited to carriers with under 80 million subscribers, which conveniently excludes heavyweights AT&T and Verizon. Although rebranding is a symbolic gesture first and foremost, the group is no doubt hoping the name will make its intentions clearer the next time a big spectrum swap rolls around.
Breakfast Topic: Vengeance for Theramore
The loss of Theramore is the latest, biggest blow struck to the Alliance in a very long series of blows. Mists of Pandaria suggests the Alliance is done accepting the abuse and is prepared to do something about it. Let's all pretend for a moment that this story arc won't result in newfound peace. Let's assume the Alliance is going to make an equally devastating strike against the Horde, wiping a major Horde stronghold off the map. What would serve as an equivalent reprisal? As an Alliance player, specifically someone with a human main, I'd love to see the fall of Undercity. However, trading Theramore for Undercity isn't quite an equivalent exchange. A better reprisal may be an orcish settlement in Kalimdor. The night elves have been losing territory to the Horde nonstop since the orcs' arrival on Kalimdor and it's about time they start to push back. I'd love to see the kaldorei, under the command of Shandris Feathermoon, push the Horde out of Feralas or Ashenvale. Alliance players, what would you see as a valid reprisal to the loss of Theramore? Horde players, what would hurt to lose? Remember, in this scenario, it will happen. You can't claim the Horde wouldn't lose anything, that's cheating!
Mists of Pandaria in-game cinematic achievement
You know what I love about this cinematic? Everything. But the biggest thing I love is the fact that it is utterly tied in to the actual expansion in the coolest possible way. Those in the beta may or may not recognize the location of the cinematic; it's the top of the Shrine of Fellowship in Jade Forest. And the sheer attention to detail between cinematic and game is staggering once you've seen the location in game, which you should absolutely visit upon hitting Pandaria's shores. Why? Because unlike any other expansion before it, Mists of Pandaria has put together the cinematic and the game via a unique achievement that you can only get by visiting the Shrine of Fellowship. Once there, all you need to do is reenact Chen's actions by straightening the broken incense burner found near the bridge. And once you've done that, you'll nab yourself the Restore Balance achievement along with 10 achievement points. So what's Chen doing up there? Well, he likely heard the bell -- and he may have been nearby visiting Sam the Wise, too. Check out our gallery for some side-by-side comparisons of stills from the cinematic and more shots from the Shrine of Fellowship, and don't forget to nab your achievement when Mists is released! %Gallery-162673% It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
Sega Alliance launched, will provide marketing and production support for indies
Sega has announced a mobile initiative that it's calling the Sega Alliance, which seems like a publishing division of Sega Mobile. Sega says the Alliance will "provide participating developers with comprehensive marketing and production support as well as creative consultation." In other words, this is Sega's version of Chillingo, where the company will find indie developers doing good work and back them up with production and creative support, as well as partnering in the revenues when the apps are released. For a lot of indie devs looking for a spotlight, this is probably good news. As open as the App Store is, it can be hard to get seen by users and the press, and teaming with Sega is a good way to do so. Jack Lumber is a new $.99 game on the App Store, and it's the first release through Sega Alliance. The game was created by Owlchemy Labsthe folks behind Snuggle Truck, and it's a game along the lines of Fruit Ninja, where you have to draw lines across your iPad or iPhone to cut wood instead of fruit. The game looks interesting, and we'll have to see how this Sega partnership helps its chances.
Breakfast Topic: Why do you play your faction?
A forum post about why people play Alliance turned into a general discussion that got me thinking about why I play what I play, which is primarily Alliance. Interestingly to me, I played Horde most of Cataclysm on my main, so when I went back to Alliance, I felt like I was coming home. To me, I played Horde to raid with good people, to play a tauren -- and that was it. I really don't like Horde races aside from tauren, Horde lore aside from tauren lore, or Horde cities aside from -- actually, I don't like any Horde cities. Sorry, Thunder Bluff. I made some good friends Horde-side and I still miss playing with them (Woo Apples), but in general, I'm happier being Alliance. But for all the reasons I could say I play Alliance, the real, honest truth is I play Alliance because I like to be able to play with my wife. She's awesome to be around, and I enjoy doing old content and will likely enjoy running dungeons with her in Mists. The fact that I like playing Alliance races like draenei and worgen, that I enjoy Alliance lore better and think Stormwind and the Exodar are cool cities -- none of that really matters. I play Alliance because of my wife. So, therefore I ask you: Why do you play the faction you play? World of Warcraft: Cataclysm has destroyed Azeroth as we know it; nothing is the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion, from leveling up a new goblin or worgen to breaking news and strategies on endgame play.
Breakfast Topic: Yay for the other guys
Whatever faction you play, one thing is for certain: Without those other guys, life would be a lot tamer. Going into Mists of Pandaria, we're looking forward to an expansion full of murdering those pesky (fill in name of enemy faction here) all over Pandaria. And PvP servers would be positively weird without the other guys. Who would we fight? Would we just shank each other in the streets all the time? World of Warcraft has been shaped and defined by the Horde/Alliance conflict, and whether you picked the good guys or the bad guys (or for that matter, whether you picked the morally ambiguous faction with shades of gray or the morally ambiguous faction with shades of gray), it's hard to imagine what the game would have been like without them. So now I say, hurrah for those other guys, who have filled our battlegrounds with targets and our world PvP zones with ganking. Those other guys, whom we define ourselves against. Those other guys who did that bad thing to us that one time that we're never ever going to forgive. Those other guys, who aren't as good at Warcraft as we are. Join me now in telling tales of our impending victory over them. You know who they are. World of Warcraft: Cataclysm has destroyed Azeroth as we know it; nothing is the same! In WoW Insider's Guide to Cataclysm, you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion, from leveling up a new goblin or worgen to breaking news and strategies on endgame play.
Mists of Pandaria Beta: The Jade Forest revamped and reopened
The Jade Forest has been reopened on the Mists of Pandaria beta servers, and it's had quite the face-lift in a few key areas. Two new giant mogu temples are now at either end of the zone, and the Alliance and Horde have claimed them in the names of their respective factions. As a result, the starting quests for each faction have changed significantly from what they were before the Jade Forest was closed for its renovations. Because of this, beta testers who were well past the zone when it was closed may want to copy another character over to the beta and give the new version a play-through. It seems that both Alliance and Horde have received significant changes in the opening portions of the zone; however, later quests outside of the starting areas seem to be unchanged. In addition, there were several model updates with the current patch. Pandaria's wildlife now seems to be suitably diverse from the rest of Azeroth's creatures. So what's changed? Well, quite a bit, actually. Take a look at the before and after in our galleries for a peek at the changes, and follow after the break for some impressions from the new Mists starting experience. %Gallery-157916% %Gallery-161437%
Facebook and Walmart to 'deepen' involvement, won't rollback FarmVille prices just yet
The involvement between Facebook and Walmart is about to get a lot cozier than gift cards in aisle three. Facebook says it wants to "deepen" its connection to Walmart and hopes to learn from the big-box retailer's skill in building a long-term business; that's rather important when the social network is still young enough for the ink to be wet on shares from its initial public offering. To that end, Facebook's entire executive team will meet with Walmart at its Arkansas headquarters on July 20th in the hopes the two companies will be singing kumbaya when all is said and done. Knowing that both companies have taken a bruising in their public images from time to time, we can understand why some might be apprehensive about the idea of any tighter collaboration -- not until they can buy FarmVille harvests for 88 cents, at least.
WoW Moviewatch: Making the Alliance More Appealing
In this video, Slightly Impressive tackles the challenge of Making the Alliance More Appealing to new WoW players. It's an interesting note because I've never really thought the Alliance was losing a huge number of players, at least not proportionally. Still, you can easily make the argument that the Alliance could use a newer, more hip image anyway. Sadly, my idea to force all Alliance players to wear skinny jeans didn't make the cut. This is a comedy video, so don't look for serious answers. I admit that I like his notion for fixing Varian. If Varian started wearing that hat around Stormwind, the game would certainly be more entertaining. Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an email at moviewatch@wowinsider.com.
Know Your Lore: The final boss of Mists of Pandaria
The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft. We've heard various and sundry conflicting tales about Mists of Pandaria, tales of various pandaren groups, tales of faction warfare, tales of a warchief's downfall. But in and among all of the tales, one theme pervades, one thing stands out as something people point to in dismay. This thing is the lack of a final boss that is a powerhouse in Warcraft lore, something that we've had with every prior expansion. Illidan, Kil'jaeden, the Lich King, and Deathwing were all prominent figures in Warcraft lore before we rose up to defeat them. They were terrible threats to our world, threats that had to be dealt with. But in Mists of Pandaria, we don't have the reassuring face of a villain to charge after. We don't have a major lore figure to take care of. We have no idea what we're facing other than some rumblings about the warchief's downfall -- and even then, we're not sure if those rumblings are correct. For the first time in World of Warcraft's history, we don't have an easily recognizable, high-profile figure to contend with. Or perhaps we do. We have to deal with one of the greatest threats we've ever seen. We just aren't looking closely enough.
Mists of Pandaria Beta: Vale of Eternal Blossoms
The Vale of Eternal Blossoms, nestled at the center of Pandaria, is the last zone players will encounter while leveling. Unlike prior expansions, the Vale is a level 90 zone -- you won't really see any quest hubs open until you have hit level 90. Once you've reached max level, you'll find scores of daily quests to do for the various factions of the Mists expansion. The Vale is also home to this expansion's two capital cities for the Alliance and Horde, perched on opposite sides of the valley. And those capital cities are complete with bankers, auctioneers, vendors, inns, trainers, reforgers -- just about everything you need for day-to-day errands and quests. This way, there's no real need to head back to the rest of Azeroth -- unless you're looking to farm some older content, that is. Because of the proximity to each other, the two cities guarantee you'll see members of both factions here and there, although it's definitely not a peaceful situation. The Vale is home to the Golden Lotus, who offer the majority of the daily quests available in the zone. Also based in the Vale are the Lorewalkers, who offer additional daily quests. The Vale itself is a picturesque valley, but it's being besieged by mogu, and you assist the Golden Lotus in thwarting the mogu's efforts as part of your daily duties. But it's the architecture of the zone that really stands out above anything else. The cities are some of the most amazing eye candy I've ever seen in World of Warcraft -- and frankly, I'm not sure I'm going to want to leave them when the expansion is over. For a look at the Vale and a closer look at the cities, take a peek at the full gallery. %Gallery-159941% It's open warfare between Alliance and Horde in Mists of Pandaria, World of Warcraft's next expansion. Jump into five new levels with new talents and class mechanics, try the new monk class, and create a pandaren character to ally with either Horde or Alliance. Look for expansion basics in our Mists FAQ, or dig into our spring press event coverage for more details!
The ins and outs of pandaren roleplay characters
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players. In World of Warcraft, that player is you! Each week, Anne Stickney brings you All the World's a Stage with helpful hints, tips and tricks on the art of roleplay in WoW. We've had new races in two expansions so far -- the alien draenei and the native blood elves, the scheming goblins and the beaten-down worgen. Each of these races had their own quirks and reasons for allying with the Alliance and Horde, and they were good ones. The draenei chose the Alliance because the night elves made first contact with their people, and the ideals of the Alliance matched what the draenei were all about. The sin'dorei allied with the Horde partially because of the help offered by Sylvanas Windrunner and partially because the Alliance had already turned their back on the blood elves in their most dire of hours. As for the goblins and the worgen, well, the worgen were a natural match to the Alliance as they were an Alliance race already -- human, save for the curse. The goblins allied with the Horde out of sheer necessity more than anything. The Bilgewater Cartel was in ruins, and the Horde helped them out. Each race chose Alliance or Horde, and each had its own reasons for doing so. But the pandaren pose a different kind of problem for roleplayers, because they can choose either side to ally with. So how do you roleplay a pandaren character who's allied with one side or the other?
EVE Online's Alliance Tournament X starts tomorrow
Huge player numbers are the name of the game for CCP this weekend. Fifty thousand pilots are poised to take part in EVE Online's massive player-run Delve war. It's also time for Alliance Tournament X, which starts on Saturday, June 30th, at 11:00 a.m. EDT. The tournament will be streamed and will include live commentary. The first-round matchup will be Agony Empire vs. Exiled Ones, with 15 more pairings following at 20-minute intervals. The pre-qualifying rounds will continue on Sunday as well as the following weekend. For a full listing of events and information on streaming, check out the official schedule. [Source: CCP press release]
