WRUP: Panda and demon betas reign

Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW Insider staff and ask them, "What are you playing this week?" -- otherwise known as: WRUP. Join us to see what we're up to in and out of game, and catch us in the comments to let us know what you're playing, too!

Whoa ho ho, ladies and gentlemen. Did you know that Blizzard has two betas going on at the same time, right now, while you read this? It's a Blizzard Beta Bountiful Bonus Weekend, with Diablo III's mega stress test and public beta arriving to destroy Blizzard's servers, as well as another 400,000 invites to the Mists of Pandaria beta, rounding out the Annual Pass holders still not with beta access.

We're playing all sorts of games around here this weekend, but the real question remains: What is your absolute least favorite ability currently in the game? What ability in WoW is just so offensive to you, so gut-wrenchingly awful, that you can't fight the disgusted scoffs that accompany the mere mention of it?

Adam Holisky (@adamholisky) I'm going to pick Skyrim back up and play through that a bit. That seems like fun. I didn't get my heroic Lightning Rod this week, so I'm a little crabby at WoW.

My least favorite, and favorite, ability is Dark Intent.

Alex Ziebart (@AlexZiebart) Out of absolutely nowhere, I got hit with a Civ IV bug. I spent the entirety of my Friday night playing it, and I expect that'll last the weekend. When I'm not playing that, I'll be trying to get some more fiction writing done.

My least favorite ability is any spell cast by a moonkin.

Allison Robert (@allisonrobert) Beta, beta, and more beta -- I'd like to run around a lot on both the guardian and resto specs. If I have time for the live realms, probably more forlorn archaeology in pursuit of the Crawling Claw. As for least favorite ability, it'd have to be Cheap Shot. I have too many memories of its being the herald of endless misery in Battlegrounds and Arena.

Anne Stickney (@Shadesogrey) This weekend will be spent fiddling with the beta and a little raiding, but that's about it really -- I have family coming into town, so I'll be busy amusing them. My sister is running a renaissance festival this weekend, so I may go check that out too. Least favorite ability? Probably bandaging -- the amount a bandage heals you for is fairly minimal compared to health pools these days, and the fact that you have to stand there and channel it makes it one of my least-used abilities ever. I keep a stack of 20 bandages on me at all times; I've used maybe a handful over the course of Cataclysm.

Dan Desmond (@antigen_) Hopefully, I'll be getting my Alliance paladin into Outland, though I wouldn't be surprised if I log in and find the fact that my character is in Winterspring incentive enough to go do something, anything else. There's just something about starting a new zone and having a giant list of quests to do that makes me want to find excuses not to play.

I have always wondered why Turn Evil is still around. I know, PvPers like fearing DK pets and what not -- but holy limited usage, Batman!

Josh Myers (@PostColloquial) This week, my guild wrapped up heroic 25-man raiding until MoP drops (and I got a heroic Rathrak and a Reins of the Blazing Drake to show for it too!), so I've got a lot of time on my hands in the foreseeable future. This weekend? Wrapping up writing before I leave for Michigan and hopefully getting my shaman to level 87 on the beta.

For the bonus question: Earth Shock. It's boring and does awful damage and is only in our priority because there's nothing better to use in its place.

Fox Van Allen (@foxvanallen) He was at my house and then he left for the great west.

Mathew McCurley (@gomatgo) WoW and LoL this weekend. It's going to be a very, very low-key weekend, which is exactly what I need. There needs to be an extra day for me to catch up with my life. Oh, and least favorite ability in game is Heroic Strike. It's been changed so many times in so many stupid ways that I don't even know or care what purpose it still has. Just give me something less flakey.

Kelly Aarons (@Cadistra) I've sadly been officially diagnosed (?) with carpal tunnel in both wrists, so that means no typing, drawing, computer, gaming, reading, and ... well, anything outside of my job. ... Regardless, I'm still going to play at least something. I hope. Maybe? I did just buy Legend of Grimrock and Skullgirls, so hopefully I'll get to have some fun.
Least favorite ability? Hmm ... I'm OK with all of them. No one likes to be singled out.

Megan O'Neill (@slowpoker) Beta! Maybe they'll fix that FLOAT_MULTIPLE_TRAPS bug; otherwise, I'll be testing destro, which seems to cast okay without crashing. Otherwise in Cata WoW, I'm running Firelands again to beat Majordomo in the face for a friend's firecat staff, and maybe leveling some more of a baby shammy on another friend's realm. Also fishing for eel for my bear. Mmm, Fathom Eel. ... Bonus: Soul Fire. Although it's cool when Decimation is up, there's just too many memories of pre-4.3 ISF (Ugh!).

Chase Hasbrouck (@alarondruid) Messing around with monks on the beta, and some Arkham City, perhaps. Least favorite ability: Cower. Nothing like having a threat reduction that only reduces it by 10% and has a chance to miss. Of course, threat doesn't matter much anymore, so it's all good now.

Lisa Poisso (@lisapoisso) Leveling my PvP rogue, trying to make it back to my PvE priest -- whatever works around the furniture refinishing projects I need to start this weekend. Some of them are fun (a dresser on which I plan to cover the drawers with some ancient, yellowed D&D pages, another that's getting some old sheet music with crazy credenzas); some, not so much (chairs -- ugh, the crevices ...). Least favorite ability: Hammer of Justice. I'm still traumatized from being hit with this for hours on end -- literally sought out, camped, and hammered hour after hour in the old, day-long Alterac Valleys -- on my original priest. Whenever I make a paladin, I end up wasting #$%^-tons of time because I run around Hammer of Justicing everything just so I can be on the hammer end of that sound.

Michael Gray (@writegray) This weekend's going to be a little exciting. Having finished renovation, I'll be playing an exciting game of "clean all the things." Aside from that, I aim to get caught up on some Netherwing action because having done it on four characters isn't enough. I need the fifth. That's my favorite mount in the game still, so you know.

My least favorite ability in they game is Cheap Shot because deep, Arena emotional baggage.

Olivia Grace (@oliviadgrace) Still playing write the essay, although there is a light at the end of the tunnel of essays! On top of that, gearing PvP toons. I'm loving the fact that people are getting tired of the raiding grind and turning to PvP! Yesss, join us. Resistance is futile! Speaking of which, the warlock shadow resistance buff for the bonus. I remember it once in a blue moon; it's short and generally irritating! And I love Turn Evil! People so rarely see it coming!

Daniel Whitcomb (@danielwhitcomb) This is actually the first relatively relaxing weekend I've had in a while, so I'm going to try to take it easy as possible. I'll do some more beta leveling, probably as unholy, and play a bit of Mass Effect MP and see if I can't get the new Geth SMG. So far it's been all Striker and Geth Engineer cards. As far as least favorite ability goes? Probably Unholy Blight, because I weep with barely contained tears of sadness and regret when I remember the AoE DoT fourth-disease juggernaut it used to be.

Joe Perez (@lodurzj) League of Legends, more time on the Mists beta and celebrating the success of my best friend on his new job. Least favorite ability: Holy Radiance.

Dawn Moore (@dawnwow) I don't care for Wild Mushroom and not because I have anything against the spell or balance druids. The spell just aesthetically doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the game. Whenever they pop up, I can't help but thinking they look out of place. It would be nice if the mushrooms that sprouted change based on the environment you were in, so they didn't look so comical in the darkest, dankest dungeons of Azeroth.

The weekend is the perfect time to kick back, relax and enjoy some game time. Are you an achievement junkie? Can't get enough raiding? Rolling a new alt? Considering taking the leap into roleplaying? Whatever your favorite way to play

World of Warcraft, let us know in the comments what you're playing this weekend!