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Adventures in Azeroth: Collecting unique pets
Welcome to another episode of Adventures in Azeroth, where I document my misadventures as a new Hunter on a new server. (Want to check up on my progress? You're welcome to join me and a whole group of readers in the It Came from the Blog guild on Zangarmarsh!) But this week I'm not really talking about playing (I haven't leveled much since the last episode of Adventures in Azeroth) -- instead, I'm talking about the crazy lure of hard to find Hunter pets, and my new-found pokemon-esque desire to catch-em-all.However, practical concerns have limited my collecting. After all, one pet is quite enough work to keep leveled on its own -- much less if I had a pair. But, after noticing that every last Blood Elf hunter with an Eversong Woods cat identical to my pet Mittens, I decided I had to do something about it. I didn't want to be just-another-Blood-Elf-Hunter -- I wanted to be... well... unique! So I went searching for a new pet, one that every run-of-the-mill Hunter wouldn't have.
It came from the Blog: Hide & seek, and this week's adventure
This last Saturday, the Undercity on the Zangarmarsh server saw an odd assortment of people running wildly amok. And no, it wasn't because of the Fire Festival or Apothecary Faranell's red light special on body parts. The onslaught of rampaging Hordies was purely made up of members of the Wow Insider guild, <It came from the Blog>, all out to hide and seek as best they could! For the first round, Roark and Charcuterie agreed kindly to help me hunt down members of the guild. I'll tell you this much: there are some serious nooks and crannies in the Undercity. However... there are a few places you don't ever want to try to hide. Those hanging out under the elevators, in coffins, and most of the folks in the slime in the sewers were largely the first caught in the initial sweep. However, after a good half-hour of searching, there were five folks who were still nowhere to be found...
It came from the Blog: Tabard design contest! [Updated]
If you aren't familiar with WoW Insider's own guild, It came from the Blog on Zangarmarsh, let this be your introduction. We're a relatively new guild -- only a few weeks old -- and what that means is that we don't have a tabard yet! And I know everyone in the guild is eager to have one, but in order to get the coolest looking tabard possible, we're asking you to design them for us. Here's what you've got to do: Visit the tabard designer (near the guild master in any major city) and play with the tabard designs until you find one you like. (You can also use IGN's tabard designer) Take a screenshot of your work E-mail it to us at icftb@wow.com before 11:59 PM EST on Thursday, June 28th. Over the weekend, we'll vote on the finalists to determine the winners, with the top three each taking home a "I'm Only Here Because My Server is Down" t-shirt from J!NX! (You know, your out of game tabard.) Of course, the top tabard will be immortalized forever as the official tabard of It came from the Blog. Be sure to check out the contest's official rules, but if you've already done that, what are you waiting for? Get designing!Update: Sorry, everyone -- but as of 11:59 PM EST Thursday, the entry period is closed. Check back on Saturday to vote for winners!
Aventures in Azeroth: Lizzy's first instance
By now I'm sure you've read about last week's instance runs in the It came from the Blog guild on Zangarmarsh. And, maybe, if you looked through the galleries, you noticed that my newbie Hunter, Lizzie, was there in RFC. I've got to say, I've run quite a few instances in my day, but never as a Hunter, and it was an interesting learning experience as Mittens and I tried to do the best we could in a group setting.Now, I've got to say -- I have high expectations for Hunters in an instance setting. My main is a Priest, and my favorite instancing partner is always a good Hunter. Why? Because a Hunter stays back from the action, usually near where I am. And if an add runs after me, a tank, who's busy tangling with the main target of the group, might not even notice. But a good Hunter will always notice. They'll send in their pet with Growl, Intimidation, or Bestial Wrath and have that thing off of me in a flash. (Trust me, I heal very little while being smacked around by a mob -- and by saving me, an open-eyed Hunter can easily save the entire group.) So, despite being rather low level, I tried to emulate all the best Hunters I'd played with in the past. And what did I learn from all of this? Playing a good Hunter isn't as easy those Hunters make it look!
It came from the Blog: Into the portals we go wrap-up!
If you missed last week's guild instance-stravaganza in It came from the Blog on Zangarmarsh, you missed out on some real fun. Most of us are pretty low level still and many of us are playing unfamiliar classes -- but I have to say we had a blast storming Ragefire Chasm and the Deadmines in all-guild groups. (And when things broke up, some of us took the party into Warsong Gulch.) But even if you missed out, you can experience some of the fun vicariously through our event screenshots. (I know looking through them brings back memories of many a nostalgic Deadmines run for me!)And even if you haven't yet joined us on Zangarmarsh, you're still welcome to hop on for some good times -- there's no level requirements and no class restrictions and whatever you want to play, we'd be happy to have you. Our next event is coming up this Saturday, at 10:00 AM server time, when we're going to be playing hide and seek in the Undercity. (And after that? Who knows!)%Gallery-4105%
Adventures in Azeroth: Introducing Cat
Last time we talked about my adventures as a newbie hunter running around Zangarmarsh with my pals in WoW Insider's It came from the Blog guild, I was a newly minted level ten trying to figure out what pet to tame. And knowing little of what I was doing, I asked for your advice on what I ought to tame. From the image above and the title of the post, I'm pretty sure you can guess what the results are, but I'll break it down for you anyway. Out of a total of 762 votes, cat won out with a total of 198 votes. However, boar was very close behind with 190 votes. And in third place, the noble owl, with 82 votes. (If you want to see the full results, check here.)So, as you can see, I went out and tamed a cat in Eversong Woods -- and I have to say, it's a completely different game after getting a pet! With a pet doing the tanking, I didn't have problems with monsters rushing up into melee range, where I can't use my bow, and beating on me. (Really, I'm hopeless once something gets into melee range!) And if something does get into melee range? I can just call my faithful cat in to pull it away. Oh yes, it seemed like the game was going to be eeaassssy sailing from here out. But of course nothing's ever easy...
It came from the Blog: Into the portals we go
Yup, as you can see, our little Zangarmarsh guild, It came from the Blog, is growing and growing-- we've made it to 188 members, and a good 90% of them are really fun people (the remaining 10% of them is me, and then some BigRedKitty haterz). If you'd like to find out personally who's who, just come over and roll a Horde character on Zangarmarsh, then whisper anyone in the guild for an invite. You can also come by our new forums and leave a note there, and we'll look for you ingame.We're trying to have one big guild event per week, and this week's event is going to be this Friday evening, June 15th, at 8pm server time. This time around, we're going to run some instances! Most of us are still fairly low, and all of us are Horde, so there'll probably be a lot of Ragefire Chasm and Wailing Caverns, but hopefully we'll also get a group into Deadmines, and maybe even try Blackfathom Deeps (one of my favorite instances) or Shadowfang Keep. Unfortunately I won't be there (I'll be off covering the Darkmoon Faire in Chicago, so look for pictures and reports from that this weekend), but if you join us, you'll have the chance to play alongside "Krystalle" Voecks, Robin "Robiness" Torres, and Elizabeth "Lizzie" Harper. You may also see Dan O'Halloran, Amanda Riviera, and Lisa Poisso there in some form as well. Not to mention that you'll get to play alongside up and coming IctfB superstars like Pingles, Hudson, Mogwai, and, if you're lucky, Zungaba. Shoutouts for the win! (Don't worry, rest of the guild, I'll get you in later.)So please come join us this Friday when we finally take the guild into some instances. Wipes for everyone, and loot for most!
Around Azeroth: A face only a mother...
...and if a mother could really love that face, I have to admit I'd be surprised. What's it a picture of, you ask? Well, this is picture of Xeletha, a quest monster you can summon in Zangarmarsh, deceased courtesy of Samalas on Eitrigg who sent us this shot.Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
It came from the Blog: We killed Hogger
... and died to tell about it. Yup, on Wednesday night a whole bunch of WoW Insider readers and writers took our Horde guild on Zangarmarsh to Elywnn Forest to visit the Darkmoon Faire, and much, much fun was had. To get there, we congregated in Grom'gol, and along with the help of Krystalle's lock and another nice lock named Dartruby, we summoned up. When we numbered about 30 or so, we ran out onto the road in STV and.. died.We didn't last long. But once we got up to Elwynn, we did kill Hogger! After a little PvP (read: getting killed by a 70 Pally), we headed up to Stormwind as ghosts, and took some nice pictures of our ghostly selves outside the Cathedral. Finally we rezzed and avoided the guards long enough to visit the Darkmoon Faire (I'm surprised I remember it, as I had a little too much Shpecial Resherve, if you know what I mean). Afterwards, Brab and I took a small group into WSG where, just to finish off a perfect evening, we died over and over again.But I think good times were had by all, so we're going to do it again! Next Friday, June 15th at 8pm Server (we're switching up the times constantly so more people can join us), we'll finally take ICftB into those swirly portal things-- we're going to be running Deadmines, Wailing Caverns, SFK, RFC, and any other instances you crazy people want to run with us. And as always, you can join us if you haven't yet-- just roll Horde on Zangarmarsh and /whisper anyone in the guild for an invite. Check the gallery below to see what we did on Wednesday, and join us next week for a little Instancy fun.%Gallery-3739%
It came from the Blog: Invading Darkmoon Faire
It's been over a week since we last got together to play together in the It came from the Blog guild on Zangarmarsh realm -- which means it's high time to get together for another night of fun! If you'd like to join us, log on to Zangarmarsh realm tonight starting at 7:00 PM EST. (If you haven't gotten a guild invite yet, message any of us in-game. We're happy to invite you -- all you have to do is ask!) We'll be grouping up and making the long run from horde-lands to Elwynn Forest to check out the Darkmoon Faire. Yes, some of us may die along the way -- but that's just a sacrifice we have to be willing to make to get our fortunes told! This week, you'll be hanging out with Mike Schramm (Mikril), Robin Torres (Robiness), Amanda Rivera (Moomandie), Krystalle Voecks (Krystalle), Daniel Howell (Sebboh), Matthew Porter (Matthius), Barb Dybwad (Brab), Christopher Grant of Joystiq, Dave Caolo (Ecarg) of TUAW, and Ryan Carter (Toastie) of Download Squad. And if you happen to stay around late (around midnight EST), you can also expect to run into Elizabeth Harper (Lizzie) and David Bowers (Davh).Sound like fun? Join us tonight!
Around Azeroth: Fly me to the moon
Reader Daveyp sends in an interesting Outland shot taken on the border of Terokkar Forest and Zangarmarsh. Sure, sure, it's a perfectly ordinary Zangarmarsh mushroom shot (and if history tells you anything, it's that I love Zangarmarsh mushroom shots) until you look across the sky, and see the only-in-Outland image of the flying mount in the moon. It's probably not that unique of a shot, but it is, amazingly, the first such image to arrive in my mailbox.Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
Insider Trader: A primal urge to roll for Primal Nethers
Each week, Lisa Poisso brings us Insider Trader -- your weekly inside line on making, selling, buying and using player-made products.In the wake of the avalanche of item and crafting tweaks ushered in by patch 2.1, Insider Trader takes a look at the much-maligned Primal Nether. How do you get one? Do you even need one? Should you roll for one? And keep reading for an Insider Trader tip on a special tactic engineers -- yes, engineers! -- can use to get certain types of motes. But first things first: Primal Nethers. These glowing globules of crafting goodness have about a 5-10% chance of dropping from final bosses in non-heroic Burning Crusade instances, and they're a guaranteed drop from final bosses of heroic instances. Post-2.1, you can also purchase them for the bargain price of 10 Badges of Justice from G'eras in Shattrath City.
Adventures in Azeroth: Introducing Lizzie
Despite how much I love World of Warcraft, I've got to say that leveling through the same zones over and over gets old after a while if you're an alt-a-holic like myself. So, when faced with the prospect of starting a new character on a new realm, I decided to try a different approach: I picked up a copy of Joana's 1-70 Horde Leveling Guide. For those of you unfamiliar with Joana's guide, it walks you through the fastest way to level up in World of Warcraft with a combination of grinding and questing. Joana's time of 4 days and 20 hours /played to level 60 sounded good to me, so I decided to give it a go, and when we all created new characters on Zangarmarsh to play together in It came from the Blog, I created a blood elf Hunter (though I have little experience playing Hunters, they seem to be best equipped for this speed leveling game) with plans on following Joana's guide and seeing how quickly I could get to level 60.After leveling my new hunter, Lizzie, up to level 11, I've pretty much decided I'm not going to be breaking any major records -- though I may beat some personal bests. Interested in hearing about Lizzie's newbie Adventures in Azeroth? Keep reading!
New noncombat pet found in Zangarmarsh
I'm no noncombat pet completist (I am proud to have gotten Willy on my Shaman, but all of my other alts run with storebought pets), but the aptly named mfirefly of WoW_Ladies has uncovered a pet I've never seen before. Firefly must have come in with patch 2.1 (or was it in with the expansion, and I just haven't seen it till now?): It's a [Captured Firefly] that drops from the bugs in Zangarmarsh. How... cute?She says she got this "very rare" pet after 586 Bogflare Needler kills, which seems like a lot, but then again, it might be worth it: the flavor text on the pet says "Still flying..", which is a great reference to the super fun and canceled-before-its-time Joss Whedon TV show that this little guy seems to be named after. If you don't want to kill bugs for the rest of your life, the pet is BoE, so you might keep an eye on the Auction House as well. Grats to mfirefly for such a cool pet!With all the crazy pets that are coming out lately, can anyone really be a noncombat pet completist any more? Is there anyone out there that really has caught them all?
It came from the Blog: Serving Azeroth's orphans
Big thanks to everyone who came out and played with us, the WoW Insider staff, in our new guild on the Horde side of Zangarmarsh last night. I'm playing an undead priest named Mikril, and I had a good time questing around with a shaman named Gambu (he made a good tank). All told, we picked up almost 60 guildmembers in our first night, and even rolled a few people to 10 so they could run orphans around Azeroth for the last day of Children's Week. We'll continue to keep the guild running for some fun and casual gameplay, so If you want to join up, just roll a toon on the Horde side of Zangarmarsh and send a whisper to anyone in "It came from the Blog."We are keeping it totally and completely casual -- I don't want to give up on my own usual characters, and you likely don't want to give up yours -- so there's absolutely no pressure to level up at all. We're just planning on making it a fun place to hang out once a week or so. While we will probably be around at various times throughout the week (I'll be working my way up to 19 so I can get a good WSG group going), our next organized game night will be Wednesday, June 6th at 7 pm EST. The Darkmoon Faire will be in Elywnn Forest then, I'm told, so we'll lead a Horde lowbie party into the Human starting area to run some tonk wars, shoot the cannon, drink some ale (and start some drunken fights with Alliance), and have a grand ol' time.So mark your calendar, and in the meantime feel free to roll your own alt and come join us on Zangarmarsh. When you need a break from hardcore endgame raiding, or just want to come meet and greet all of us here at WoW Insider, we'll see you there.
It came from the Blog
Whether we are Horde or Alliance, trolls or dwarves, paladins or rogues, we all have one thing in common: our love of the game. Wouldn't it be great if we could all play the game we love together? Excellent idea. In the spirit of togetherness we are proud to announce the WoW Insider guild, It came from the Blog. Formed on the Horde side of the Zangarmarsh server, it's a place for us all to unite and put the Massively Multiplayer back into MMORPG. We want a chance to get to know our readers beyond just the comments and the odd email suggestion. Now, we all have home servers with mains and alts that need love and attention. This guild is uber casual, so don't feel any pressure to level another alt to 70 in three weeks in time for the Karazhan runs. We are just coming together for a social hour, as it were, to chat, run some quests, and enjoy each other's company. Not sure what to expect? See our official guild rules for more information. If you are interested in joining us, our first group night will be tonight at 7 PM EST. Roll a hordie and meet us on Zangarmarsh. Whisper anyone in the guild and you'll get yourself an invite. Come play with WoW Insider!
Around Azeroth: What a way to go...
Reader Adam sends in this shot taken in Outland zone Zangarmarsh, and I have to agree with his commentary -- what a way to die. Not that we know precisely how this former denizen of Zangarmarsh met his or her end, but it's fun to speculate. Did he put his eye out, perhaps?Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
Around Azeroth: Does this look stable to you?
I've walked across this mushroom bridge in Zangarmarsh (in case you've never been, it leads you to Ango'rosh Stronghold) on more than one occasion. But I have to say that in this screenshot sent in by reader Rick, that mushroom looks like it could fall into the abyss below at any second. I wonder if the ogres of Ango'rosh have to replace their mushroom bridge on a regular basis, as their building material deteriorates. (And, if so, how many ogres are lost because of it?) Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
Around Azeroth: A mushroomy sunset
Maybe I haven't spent enough time adventuring in Zangarmarsh (I do seem to jump straight from Hellfire Penninsula into Terokkar Forest on most characters), but I've never seen the sky quite this shade of pink. However, reader Humata of Twisting Nether (EU) managed to snag this impressive shot of the brilliant Zangarmarsh sky. Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! Or perhaps you'd just like to see more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
Around Azeroth: Twirly!
Reader Mike sends in this nifty screenshot taken in my personal favorite Outland zone, Zangarmarsh. I've apparently never run into this particular twirly, but Mike tells us it can be found in the southwestern part of the map, near the path into Nagrand. It's an odd little thing to be out in the wilderness -- is there a story here, or was it just something a Blizzard designer added to break the monotony of mushrooms, mushrooms, mushrooms?Do you have a unique shot of Azeroth or Outland that you'd like to show off to the rest of the world? Tell us about it by e-mailing aroundazeroth@gmail.com! You can attach a picture file or send us a link to one -- and don't worry about formatting, we'll take care of that part. See more of your pics from Around Azeroth. %Gallery-1816%
