npcscan
Latest
How to defeat the pandaren rare spawns
One thing I noticed while leveling was how much of my inventory was being filled with zany flavor items and mountains of random stat food. Between that and the pandaren racial bonus, Epicurean, I formed this preconception that all panda-shaped people loved to eat food and do kooky things, so imagine my surprise when NPCScan informed me that a pandaren rare was within my scanning range just waiting to go toe-to-toe. I like to believe that maybe these particular pandaren are just looking for A Worthy Opponent (see what I did there?), and that I just get so caught up in the exchange of punches and blows that I forget not to kill them. Like the jinyu, and the rest of the rare spawns, the pandaren rares all share the same set of abilities: Spinning Crane Kick - A whirlwind of feet and pain, the 3-second cat for this attack can't be interrupted, but the target can be stunned or crowd-controlled during the animation. Just to be safe, make sure that you don't engage the pandaren in an enclosed area. Chi Burst - The pandaren will only use this ability if you are more than 15 yards away from them, a mechanic surely designed to force you to deal with Spinning Crane Kick in some fashion. And at over 200,000 damage per cast, I would say it's pretty effective. Healing Mists - The one ability you will want to save your interrupt for, Healing Mists heals the pandaren for 30% of their maximum health. Stuns and crowd control should also work if you find your spellbook lacking a reliable interrupt. The main strategy here is to stay close to the target for the most part, only moving away from it during Spinning Crane Kick. Also, interrupting Healing Mists will prevent you from dulling your blades against the bears' furry backside while you race to outpace the healing.
Could We Find More Like That? Defeating the jinyu rare elites
While leveling through Pandaria on opening night, Dan Desmond and I made a point of tracking down and killing any rare elites that haplessly wandered into our path, eventually earning us the Could We Find More Like That? achievement by the time we hit the level cap. A key part of our setup was the addon NPCScan, which would alert us to any rare elite within targeting range, and of course the plucky gumption that only a retribution and a protection paladin can bring. While the rare elites aren't nearly as difficult as their denomination may imply, they're also not to be taken lightly. Each type of champion has a skill set of three abilities which can prove to be very deadly if the proper precautions are not taken. The rare elites that hail from the jinyu have the following weapons in their arsenal: Water Bolt This is an ability with a cast which, despite the temptation, should not be interrupted. You'll need that 15 second cooldown for the next ability which is far deadlier. This is the ability that the jinyu will be throwing at you the most. Torrent This channeled attack does 28% of the target's maximum HP as damage every second. It must be interrupted immediately, or you'll be dead in no time. Rain Dance The jinyu will channel this spell (it cannot be interrupted) and toss balls of water into the air, which will then come crashing down around you. Don't stand in one place, to avoid getting hit. Each ball of water will deal 65% of the target's maximum HP as damage. So, essentially, the way to defeat the jinyu elite is to keep moving during Rain Dance and be sure to interrupt Torrent ASAP. The key to fighting one is more awareness than anything else.
The OverAchiever: 3 achievements to stop slacking on and do right now
Every Thursday, The Overachiever shows you how to work toward those sweet achievement points. This week, our laziness catches up with us. There are a few achievements in every expansion that manage to get away from us. I'm not talking about stuff that we shouldn't reasonably expect to get (your completion percentage on dungeon and raid achievements will inevitably nosedive if you can't make raids anymore), but there's always some stuff that people feel they should have gotten or worked at for ages that never turned up. Now, you're reading OverAchiever because you're a dedicated achievement hunter or enormously entertained by the people who are -- and I think you know what this is like. There's almost a sense of hostile guilt as you look at the stuff you don't have, because those unfinished percentages taunt you. Sometimes it's not your fault. Sometimes, however, you just need to get off your arse. These are three achievements -- easy, medium, and hard -- that players often put on the back burner while occupied with other pursuits. Two of them just got a lot easier -- or at least faster -- to do after patch 5.0.4, and all three will get more inconvenient when Mists of Pandaria hits. Oh, and for pet collectors, we have some welcome news inside about Tol Barad.
Addon Spotlight: Grab bag 5
Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which focuses on the backbone of the WoW gameplay experience: the user interface. Everything from bags to bars, buttons to DPS meters and beyond -- your addons folder will never be the same. Grab bags are always popular Addon Spotlight columns. The amount of email I get after each grab bag spotlight is usually leaps and bounds more than any other type of Addon Spotlight article. Why, you may ask? People love lots of addon recommendations in one spot! It's a plethora of new, fun things all in one space. This week's grab bag is truly a diverse collection of addons, each providing players with a unique function. Do you have any favorite addons that belong in the grab bag? Grab bag addons are usually addons that don't really need too much explanation or write-up to fully grasp. Little utilities, quality-of-life tweaks, and other minor novelties are great for grouping together. If you've got a suggestion for the grab bag, please email it to mat@wowinsider.com with a subject referencing addons!
