Eddie Carrington

Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: Picking the right hunter loot, part 1

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, the weekly hunter class column. This week we begin our series "Picking the right hunter loot." Where we will review what truly makes something qualify as hunter loot, and not just loot hunters can use. We'll also review the drops off of each major raids starting with Naxxrammas and ending with the PTR Patch 3.3 raid, Ice Crown. So join me, Eddie Carrington, aka Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge, as we explore what loot we should put on our watch lists. Things on the patch 3.3 PTR are getting closer and closer to wrapping up, so I thought it might be a good idea to review hunter stats and how they help you select the right gear for you. In the past we have talked about how to use iLevel to do a gear check. Also, we've talked about how to use the different hunter tools and resources out there to select an upgrade for your hunter. What we really haven't talked about was what makes up good hunter gear, and in each of the different raids in Wrath of The Lich King makes up some good hunter gear. And a recent comment on the Damage Dealing forum from Ghostcrawler got me thinking that it might be a good idea to make sure to first review how stats impact our gear choices, and how they impact both our and our pet's raid performance. Just like the hunter leveling guide, I'd like to set a few discussion guidelines.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a hunter - Levels 71-80

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, the weekly World of Warcraft Hunter class column. This week we wrap up our "So you want to be a hunter" leveling series as we look at Levels 71-80 and see what makes up the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie Carrington, Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge blog and podcast, as we explore what's in store for us hunters. Hey gang! Welcome to the last installment of the "So you want to be a hunter" leveling series. It's been a long and windy path through grassy plains, sweltering tropics, and fractured planets to finally end up in the frozen wastes of Northrend as we prepare to face the Lich King and hope to get a flying horse when PTR Patch 3.3 is dropped. As we do every week, we'll review the skills you'll learn. Suggest talent builds for both you and your pet. And help you with finding some solid gear choices by recommending some of the Northrend 5-man instances to run through. And what trek through new territory and levels would be complete without identifying rare tamable beasts along the way? If you've missed a previous edition, I've outlined below what we have covered in the 7 previous installations of this leveling series.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a hunter, Part 7 Levels 61-70

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, the weekly World of Warcraft Hunter class column. This week we continue our "So you want to be a hunter" leveling series as we look at Levels 60-70 and see why I really feel they're the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie Carrington, Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge blog and podcast, as we explore what's in store for us hunters. Maybe one day hunters being able to tame duids as their very own pet. Wouldn't that be awesome? I want to thank Dwarffinator and Lissana of Restokin.com for making this picture and sending it in for me to use. This is part six of our, now eight part "So you want to be a hunter" leveling guide series. In what was originally to be our final guide, we will now instead cover 10 levels, 60-70, with levels 71 through 80 coming next week. Part of this change is in response to your feedback wanting a bit more information on the skills. As we do in each, this week we'll review what skills you learn, suggest talent builds for both you and your pet as you level, we'll highlight some suggested dungeon quests that match your current level. We've 6 previous installations in this series. Here's what we've talked about so far. Part 1: We reviewed racials and their impact on the hunter class. Reviewed each of the current races and what the benefits were of each racial. Part 2: We quickly talked about the first nine levels. We also went on to talk about each of the three hunter talent trees and their basic play style. Part 3: Last week we discussed what happened from levels 10 through 20. We also went over the quests to learn how to tame your first pet. Part 4: We covered some of the covered attacks, buffs and spells. We also began looking at how to teach your pet new skills by applying pet talents. Part 5: We covered levels 21 through 40. We ended up with you getting your epic riding mount and you now can wear mail. From now on completing quests and gaining levels will be much faster. Part 6: Is where we started to see that we were learning more new ranks than new spells as we leveled from 41 to 60. We ended our time in Outlands with our first flying mount. That's where we've been. But where are we heading? This week we'll be levels 60 to 70. We'll wrap up Outlands, head out to Northrend. Next week we'll wrap it up by reaching level 80. Then we'll focus on gearing up join everyone having fun storming the castle to tackle the Sindragosa, the Lich King and his Scourge minions and anything else Blizzard can through our way as part of Patch 3.3.

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Patch 3.3 PTR: Meet Arcturis, the newest and coolest Spirit Beast

I was listening in on the Twisted Nether Blogcast and heard Nibuca mention that the new Spirit Bear image we reported earlier this week had been identified. Sure enough, I head over to the one place I knew would have the answer, Mania's Arcania. Sure enough there it was, Mania had a long post giving all the details. Mania's Arcania member safrienaer reported that they had found the new spirit beast on the PTR Patch 3.3 in Grizzly Hills, north of Amberpine Lodge. Along with some really cool screenshots, safrienaer went on to describe that at the moment Arcturis doesn't have any special sounds. However, Mania thinks, and I have to agree, that we'll probably see some polishing of the graphic with some special glowing effects and sounds before the completion of the testing of Patch 3.3 on the PTR. On a final note, Mania noted that Jangalian did some research on Wikipedia and found that it seems our new Spirit Beast might be a reference to Arcturus Mengsk from StarCraft. Anyways, I'm excited about the prospect of taming Arcturis. My only problem will be stable slots and having to pick a new Elvis related name that matches his personality. (Edit: I owe Jangalian an apology for overlooking that she had originally provided Mania the information about the different possible references for Blizzard choosing Acturis as the name for this really cool Spirit Beast.) Patch 3.3 is the last major patch of Wrath of the Lich King. With the new Icecrown Citadel 5-man dungeons and 10/25-man raid arriving soon, patch 3.3 will deal the final blow to the Arthas. WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.3 will keep you updated with all the latest patch news.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a hunter - Part 6 Levels 41-60

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, the weekly Hunter class column. This week we continue the "So you want to be a hunter" leveling series.So join me, Eddie Carrington, Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge, as we explore what's in store for us hunters as we go through 20 levels of information, starting at 41 and ending at 60.. This is part six in our seven part leveling guide series. As we do in each, this week we'll review what skills you learn, suggest talent builds for both you and your pet, highlight some quests and instances that might be of interest, as well as show you which rare pets are tamable for your level. As every week we'll recap what we have covered up to now. Part 1: We reviewed racials and their impact on the hunter class. Reviewed each of the current races and what the benefits were of each racial. Part 2: We quickly talked about the first nine levels. We also went on to talk about each of the three hunter talent trees and their basic play style. Part 3: Last week we discussed what happened from levels 10 through 20. We also went over the quests to learn how to tame your first pet. Part 4: We covered some of the covered attacks, buffs and spells. We also began looking at how to teach your pet new skills by applying pet talents. Part 5: We covered levels 21 through 40. We ended up with you getting your epic riding mount and you now can wear mail. From now on completing quests and gaining levels will be much faster. Now that we know where we have been, let's focus on where we are going. This week we'll be covering 20 levels as we work our way from level 41 though 60. We'll also take our first tentative steps off Azeroth as we head into Outlands.

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Patch 3.3 PTR: Why are Northshire wolves getting sick

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Patch 3.3 full of diseased wolves! D.H.E.T.A. protesting Abbey over wolf hunts! Extra! Extra! Okay, maybe changing this isn't the most earth shattering news. Seeing Blizzard change quests or even add new animal skins is something we normally expect with each patch. But this one is different. Going back to the starting areas and changing the quests and mobs there isn't something we see as every day. As such, it begs the question as to why now? Or maybe more intriguingly, what does it mean? In the current Wolves Across the Border quest, you're asked to go get 8 pieces of Tough Wolf Meat for Eagan Peltskinner. We've now seen that this has changed on the Patch 3.3 PTR. Now it looks like Eagan's favorite meal is being threatened. Instead of killing those healthy, howling, wolves for their meat, Eagan is talking about some mysterious disease. Disease? What disease?

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PTR Patch 3.3: Potential new spirit beast

There hasn't been much new news on the Patch 3.3 PTR for us hunters the last couple of weeks. Then all of a sudden in the latest build something intriguing popped up over on MMO-Champion. Shown above, it looks to be a blue glowing ethereal bear. Looking eerily like a bear form spirit beast. This got me thinking that there are 3 possibilities (okay, I'll admit there are a lot more than 3). First, Blizzard has been secretly planning on allowing shamans learn a new ability called spirit bear that will finally allow them to tank. Next, maybe night elf druids will be able to Shadowmeld in bear form. Finally, my personal favorite, could this be a new spirit beast? The idea of a bear form spirit beast isn't out of the question. So far we've had a couple of cat forms and one wolf. Adding a bear form would fit right in with the standard pet forms. I don't know, but I can't wait to find out. If it does turn out to be new tamable spirit beast, I'll call him DeadElvis. If not, maybe this is what a tamed druid will look like after they learn hunter form. Either way, stay tuned and as Patch 3.3 develops we'll let you know what we find out. Patch 3.3 is the last major patch of Wrath of the Lich King . With the new Icecrown Citadel 5-man dungeons and 10/25-man raid arriving soon, patch 3.3 will deal the final blow to the Arthas. WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.3 will keep you updated with all the latest patch news.

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PTR Patch 3.3: Report Lag option added to the default UI

Are you frustrated with your friends running in place? Finding it difficult to get a good spot for the Dalaran costume contest? Are you tired of having to set your hearth in the dark and dank sewers of Dalaran? Have you ever thought, "Man! I wish I could report how bad the lag is right now!"? Well, if you're like millions of other players that have experienced lag, then maybe you'll be interested in what Blizzard has announced hitting the PTR! You can now use the "Report Lag" feature announced in the latest patch notes for Patch 3.3 as part of the latest PTR Build (Build 10676). No longer are you forced to submit endless GM Support Requests or post hundreds of lag reports on the forums. In three easy steps you can now have peace of mind, knowing your lag will be successfully reported. Looking at it, it seems pretty easy to use. Click the Knowledge Base/Help button. Then click Report Lag. Then you just select the type of lag you are experiencing. Which will most likely to be either "Movement" or "Spells and Abilities." When you're all done you get a "Your lag report has been successfully reported" message. Now, Blizzard will know exactly when you experienced your lag so they can track down the cause and resolve it. My only fear is they will have so many reports from Dalaran we'll get a "No Lag Reporting Servers Available" for the first few days it's used. %Gallery-76428% Patch 3.3 is the last major patch of Wrath of the Lich King . With the new Icecrown Citadel 5-man dungeons and 10/25-man raid arriving soon, patch 3.3 will deal the final blow to the Arthas. WoW.com's Guide to Patch 3.3 will keep you updated with all the latest patch news.

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Scattered Shots: Catching up with the Patch 3.3 PTR, Part 2

Cower: Redesigned. This ability no longer affects threat, and instead reduces damage taken by the pet by 40% for 6 seconds with a 45-second cooldown. While cowering, the pet's movement speed is 50% of normal speed. Cower now only has a single rank and is available at pet level 20. Here's an interesting fix to the Cower bug we've been complaining about forever. Instead of just making Cower turn off, let's make it a damage reducing ability. Sure why not. This way it can default to autocast and we probably won't really care as much. But really, why add a speed reduction? Improved Cower: Redesigned. This ability now reduces the movement penalty of Cower by 50%/100%. Well what do you know, Blizzard already thought of that and is now going to make us rethink were we spend our pet's talent points. This seems to apply more to PvP than PvE but it's nice to know that there is an ability to reduce the movement penalty associated with the new Cower. Demoralizing Screech: The attack power reduction from this ability has been increased by 40%, equaling the maximum possible attack power reduction from the abilities of other classes. All I can say is, it's about time Blizzard figured out that there needs to be equal love spread among all of the hunter pets. Seeing the maximum Attack Power reduction increased from 410 to about 574 is nice. Pet Leveling: Hunter pets now need only 5% of the experience a player needs to level, down from 10% Now back in my day, we had to level our pets barefoot in the snow, up-hill with a 50 pound pack on our back. Okay, maybe it wasn't that bad, but believe me, it was pretty bad. Nowadays having the pet automatically jump within 5 levels is a huge relief compared to when we had to train some pets like The Rake from level 10 all the way to 60. Now by halving the required experience requirement, it should be a lot less painful. Of course I still don't understand why warlocks get their pets earlier and they're at the same level all the time, but I digress. Venom Web Spray: Range increased from 20 yards to 30 yards. & Web: Range increased from 20 yards to 30 yards. Nice, with Web Spray and Web having their ranged increased to 30 yards it now can be used in both PvE and PvP attacks without having to be right in on the fight. Add either of these abilities in a macro and we might now see Silithids or Spiders as pets of choice in non-pet friendly encounters. Of course that's just one use. I'm sure the arena hunters will find all kinds of nifty uses for these changes. It could be a way to keep a Ret Pally stuck in one place while firing off a Silencing Shot? Maybe even used as another trap in Arenas and tying up 2 targets? Wolverine Bite: This talent is now enabled when the pet lands a critical strike rather than from the target dodging the pet's attacks. In addition, this talent no longer has a prerequisite. I can see cunning pets becoming more and more useful. Especially when you think about Wolverine Bite giving you pet level * 5 + 5 (eg. 80*5+5=405) points of unavoidable damage when your pet lands a critical strike. Couple this with a Silithid or Spider for the changes to Venom Web Spray and Web and you really have a nasty little surprise for any druid or shaman trying to hide behind those pillars. Now those are all of the official changes. We're seeing some bug fixes as well. Glyph of Immolation Trap: Now properly increases damage by 100%. Concussive Barrage: This ability is no longer subject to spell reflects. Point of No Escape: This ability no longer stacks and now only functions for the hunter. Now that we've talked about all of the official changes to our class, how about we take a look at our snazzy new Tier 10 gear? Okay, maybe it isn't really snazzy, you can't fault the graphic designers for not coming up with something unique. Then again, when you look at it in HD (thanks to our friends at MMO Champion) the detail on the male and female versions look pretty sweet in my opinion. (At least better than what we've been having.) The 2 piece Tier 10 bonus will give our Auto Shots a 5% chance to cause both us and our pets to deal 15% additional damage for a yet to be determined set of time or until canceled. That's a ton of damage for even a short period of time. True 5% is pretty small chance, but still I'll take it so I can have the chance to deal out an additional 15% damage. The 4 piece Tier 10 bonus gives you a 5% chance to gain 20% attack power for 10 seconds when your Viper Sting, Serpent Sting, and Wyvern Sting abilities deal damage. Do you get the feeling that Blizzard is falling in love with the Random Number Generator? I admit that at the 2 piece level we can live with a chance at increasing damage. But if we're going to spend the time and effort to get all 4 pieces don't you think we'd be deserving of at least a guaranteed damage modifier? Yes, I know, what's the chances that Viper, Serpent or Wyvern sting won't deal damage. Think of it more like hitting a single number in roulette? You think it's bound to happen, but really you start out even with each spin of the wheel. The same happens with each attack. The chance of the RNG giving you the 20% AP bonus starts over with each attack, it doesn't increase just because you do more attacks. Oh well, it could be worse right? All I know is with all this Hunter love going on, I'm really worried about Blizzard to dropping the nerf hammer after Patch 3.3 is finally released. Let's just hope that somehow they don't notice how awesome all of this is and let it go through until the major class redesign of Cataclysm. It would really be nice to see Beast Mastery and the other pet families become raid viable again. So, what do you guys think? Does this make you as excited to be a hunter as it does me? Or do you think that there's something waiting in the wings that's just biding its time and will jump out and say, "Gotcha!" at the last minute? Let's hear it, really what's your take on all of these changes? <<< Part 1 You want to be a Hunter, eh? Well then you came to the right place. Scattered Shots is the one column dedicated to helping you learn everything it takes to be a Hunter. Each week Scattered Shots will cover topics to help you Fix Your DPS, Choosing the Right Spec, Gear Selection, Macros and Pet Selection, Pet Specs and Management.

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Scattered Shots: Catching up with the Patch 3.3 PTR, Part 1

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, the weekly Hunter class column. This week we review all of the changes in Patch 3.3. and see what effect they'll have on the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie Carrington, Brigwyn from The Hunting Lodge, as we explore what's in store for us hunters. We've been living with Patch 3.3 on the PTR for a few of weeks now. During that time we've been able to see first hand that the Blizzard development team has been busy working on ways to improve World of Warcraft. Not only have they introduced new 5-man instances and the new Ice Crown Citadel raid, they're even showing us some hints at what might be in store us Hunters in the hopefully near future. I'm sure if you were like me and when the initial changes for Patch 3.3 were announced we all kinda knew that there was more in the works. But I'll have to admit, I'm shocked at the amount of stuff that has been released so far on the PTR. We have everything from reducing cooldowns on Call Stabled Pet and buffing Deterrence for the hunter, to buffing and changing our pet's talents by removing Avoidance and making Resilience work on both hunter and pet. Heck, they even found a nifty way to fix the nasty Cower bug that was still cropping up. (I'll be honest, I had just come to expect it was always going to be there. You know like that creepy cousin at every family get together?) Blizzard has even been working on the Tier-10 set bonuses and actually made them look, well, different? Yeah, that's it, different. There's so much to discuss, it's probably better to just get on with it and discuss all of the changes.

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Scattered Shots: Patch 3.3 - What's on the horizon for hunters

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots. Instead of continuing the So You Want to be a Hunter series, this week I thought it would be good to take a break and review the changes in Patch 3.3. So join me, Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge as we explore the ins and out of what's instore for us hunters. Patch 3.3 is on the PTR and as we download the patch we've been busily reviewing the patch notes along with the unofficial information from posted up over on MMO-Champion. Without giving everything away in the first paragraph, let's just say that this is looking to be one awesome patch. Without going on about how good it is, let's take a look at what's being said.From the PTR Patch notes we got to see some insight where Blizzard's development team is taking our class. Hunters Misdirection: Redesigned. Instead of having finite charges, it now begins a 4-second timer when the hunter using Misdirection performs a threat-generating attack, during which all threat generated by the hunter goes to the friendly target. In addition, multiple hunters can now misdirect threat to the same friendly target simultaneously. Now I'll admit when I first saw this change I was a bit hesitant. Changing one of core abilities is always disconcerting. But then I started thinking about it a bit more.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a Hunter - Part 5 Levels 31-40

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, So you want to be a Hunter series. This guide is intended to help new Hunters better understand how to play the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge as we explore the ins and out of how to be a Hunter. Welcome back to the fifth installment of the So You Want to Be a Hunter leveling guide. This week we'll take a journey from 31 through 40. As you journey through these 10 levels you'll have the opportunity to see many of the great vibrant landscapes that will be changed in Cataclysm. Also, if you want you can quest in Dustwallow Marsh and see brave adventurers tackle the revamped Onyxia courtesy of Patch 3.2.2. As every week we'll recap what we have covered up to now. Part 1: We reviewed racials and their impact on the hunter class. Reviewed each of the current races and what the benefits were of each racial. Part 2: We quickly talked about the first nine levels. We also went on to talk about each of the three hunter talent trees and their basic play style. Part 3: Last week we discussed what happened from levels 10 through 20. We also went over the quests to learn how to tame your first pet. Part 4: We covered some of the covered attacks, buffs and spells. We also began looking at how to teach your pet new skills by applying pet talents. With that out of the way, let's mount up and head on out of here.

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Patch 3.2.2 sees stealthed Hunter nerfs

I guess it was all just a dream after all. Here I thought that maybe, just maybe we could see the beginning of Cataclysm and somehow see Blizzard sneak worgen hunters into Patch 3.2.2 and give them the ability to tame dwarves. (Just in case my attempt at sarcasm fell flat, you need to know I fully understand we won't see worgen hunters until Cataclysm.)Although worgen didn't manage to sneak in, we did see some other changes that somehow slipped under the radar. Their is only one downside to these undocumented changes. There's some good news and bad news. Since it's always better to end on a happy note, we'll start off with the bad news.It seems that what we all noticed on the PTR and hoped beyond all hope actually managed to make it into the recent patch unscathed.

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Patch 3.2.2 Hunters see changes to Bestial Wrath

Ghostcrawler has reached into his mysterious bags of tricks and drew out the Hunter card once again it seems. Last week we discussed the recent change to Armor Penetration. While we all agree that it is a nerf to Marksman Hunters and will reduce their DPS. The jury is still out on whether it is a game mechanics correction (which I tend to believe) or some evil plot to cause Hunters to spend more gold.Well the changes continued to happen. Last Thursday we heard more from Ghostcrawler regarding a new change that will be hitting Beast Master Hunters in Patch 3.2.2. The interesting thing about this recent change is it is both a buff and a nerf. To help explain what I mean let's take a closer look at how Ghostcrawler explained the change on the Damage Dealing Forums.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a Hunter - Part 4 Levels 21-30

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, So you want to be a Hunter series. This guide is intended to help new Hunters better understand how to play the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge as we explore the ins and out of how to be a Hunter. Howdy gang! Glad you decided to come back and join in on another week of So you want to be a Hunter. This week we work our way up to level 30 on our quest to becoming ready to raid the endgame content.Now that I think about it, there seems to be an ever increasing push to just quickly level and hit the end game content. But really, there's a lot of fun and interesting stuff in the game that we won't get to see any more after the next expansion. Maybe I'm a bit sentimental, but honestly considering that many of the zones all of you will decide to go off and level today either won't exist in Cataclysm or will be radically different than they are today. Here's a bit of advice for you as you level up. Take some pictures. Get a group together of players at the same level and run through some of the instances like Razorfen Kraul, Stockades, or even the ever hated Gnomeregan. In the meantime, we'll continue onward with Part 4 of So you want to be a Hunter.Just a quick recap of what we've covered so far:

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Hunter thoughts on the Patch 3.2.2 Armor Penetration nerf

Well folks, we recently heard that Ghostcrawler announced the upcoming nerf to Armor Penetration in Patch 3.2.2. I'll be honest with you. I'm not sure why this is turning into such a big deal is to everyone. I'm not saying I don't understand the mechanics of the change. And I do see the impact to us Hunters, especially endgame raiding Marksman Hunters. But really, let's take a step back and look at the reasoning behind the change.Ghostcrawler said that they implemented this change after noticing everyone was picking up Armor Pen at the expense of their core stats. Really? And somehow we're surprised that when a secondary stat becomes more important than a class' primary stat and it forced a nerf? It seems more of a correction in my opinion.If you're a raiding Marks or Survival Hunter you should be focusing on picking up as much Agility (Attack Power if you're a Beast Master) as possible. Hence why in Cataclysm we're seeing things like Armor Penetration removed from the itemization.

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Scattered Shots: So you want to be a Hunter - Part 3 Levels 10-20

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, So you want to be a Hunter series. This guide is intended to help new Hunters better understand how to play the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge as we explore the ins and out of how to be a Hunter. Welcome back my Hunter compadres! We've made it to Part 3 of So you want to be a Hunter. I know we have had lot's of things happening of late with BlizzCon and Cataclysm, so it's probably a good time to give a quick recap on what we've done so far. Part 1: We reviewed racials and their impact on the Hunter class. Going over each of the factions races and what the benefits were of each racial. For now we haven't talked about the new races that will be added to the Hunter class in Cataclysm (Worgen and Goblins). We'll have to address that when the new expansion is released. Part 2: We discussed each of the Hunter talent trees and their basic playstyle. We talked about Beast Mastery being the partnership between Hunter and pet. We also reviewed the Marksmanship and Survival trees and how they are more about the individual Hunter, their offensive power, utility and flexibility. We also discussed what stats you will want to consider as you level. Though this might seem a bit out of place, knowing what to expect early on will hopefully help you make better decisions later on. However you shouldn't worry, we'll make sure to give a refresher course later on. Now we are in Part 3 of our weekly series. We will continue reviewing leveling your Hunter from level 10-20. We'll talk about taming your first pet. We'll also review some of the more interesting pets and where they can be found. Having a unique is one of the perks of being a Hunter. We'll also talk about placing those first talent points. Building on the lessons we learned last week. We'll be able to make a decision on how to craft a solid leveling talent build. One that will offer us enough power to down mobs, but also enough bonuses to help protect and keep our pet alive as it plays the role of tank. As a reminder, here's some guidelines for using this guide. So you want to be a Hunter is for the new player and/or a new Hunter. This guide is not a "How-to get to 80 in less than 3 days" leveling guide. It's more of a "What to expect as you level" guide. Except where highlighted, this guide does not take into account Recruit a Friend or heirloom bonuses. Since most players tend to level by themselves, all talent build suggestions will focus on a solo leveling/grinding build. This guide focuses on the leveling the PvE Hunter. We will discuss PvP and raiding in other guides. One of the joys of being a Hunter is being able to run around with your best friend right by your side. And believe me, your pet is truly your best friend. I can't tell you the number of times that my turtle FatElvis has charged back and rounded up several elite mobs giving me the crucial few moments I needed to survive. The only drawback to having a pet is you can't tame one until level 10. What's up with that Blizzard?

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BlizzCon 2009: Initial thoughts on the Hunter changes

We have only experienced the first day of BlizzCon and my mind has already been blown. We have heard so many amazing details about Cataclysm and they're promising more for today. The changes are not just to our old favorite instances or to the zones around Azeroth. Implementing terrain phasing is going to change everything we know about leveling and running around our favorite zones. Also, who doesn't love the idea of Gnomes finally get to be Priests and as Ghostcrawler put it, "Be self-sufficient." (Well, they still don't have Hunters but that's okay.)We got confirmation from Chilton that it in fact Goblins and Worgens will be added to the game in Cataclysm. We also learned that Goblins and Worgens will both get to play Hunters. But they're not the only new races added to the Hunter ranks. We also got confirmation that Humans and Undead will both be able to play Hunters. So all in all we got some really good additions to the Hunter community.What about those awesome changes to the Hunter class? Well, how about the removal of Armor Penetration for one? We aren't going to have to worry how Armor Penetration works or when should stack for it...

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: So you want to be a Hunter - Part 2 Levels 1-9

Welcome back to the Scattered Shots, So you want to be a Hunter series. This guide is intended to help new Hunters better understand how to play the best class in the game. So join me, Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge as we explore the ins and out of how to be a Hunter. Hail fellow Hunters! Welcome to Part 2 of So you want to be a Hunter. We started off in Part 1 by reviewing racials and their impact on the Hunter class. It was interesting to hear everyone's thoughts and preferences on the best race to play. Although many seemed to prefer Orcs and Trolls for the Horde and Dwarves and Night Elves for Alliance, there were a few that spoke up for the Draenei and Tauren as well. This week we'll be reviewing what to expect as you level your Hunter from 1-9. Yes, we'll eventually get all the way to Level 80, just not today. No, this isn't a speed leveling guide. However, I will provide some tips on how to make leveling less of a grind. Just to make sure we're all on the same page here's some guidelines for using this guide. So you want to be a Hunter is for the new player and/or a new Hunter. This guide is not a "How-to get to 80 in less than 3 days" leveling guide. It's more of a "What to expect as you level" guide. Except where highlighted, this guide does not take into account Recruit a Friend or heirloom bonuses. Since most players tend to level by themselves, all talent build suggestions will focus on a solo leveling/grinding build. This guide focuses on the leveling the PvE Hunter. We will discuss PvP and raiding in other guides. Before we discuss how to level our Hunter, it might be a good idea to review the role a Hunter plays and the talent trees that help us accomplish it.

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: So you want to be a Hunter - Part 1 Racials

Good day folks and welcome to Scattered Shots. The column that takes a good look at what it takes to be a Hunter in the World of Warcraft. I am Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge. This week we'll be starting our "So you want to be a Hunter" class guide series. I have to admit something, I'm a chronic leveler. I do it over and over. Yes, I know it's not the typical play style. Yes, I also know it's highly unorthodox. By now you are probably thinking, "Who in their right mind would want to be a chronic leveler?" That someone would be me. See when I get bored, and the game starts to become a bit of a drag I can't help myself. It only becomes a matter of time till I feel the need to scratch an itch to start over. Yes, I know it's crazy. But you can look at it this way, at least I know how the game works for the beginning Hunter just as well as the raiding one.Having done this a few times now, I thought it would idea to put this experience to some practical purpose. It seems to be a waste and not at least write up a Hunter guide for new Hunters. So I thought I'd create a new series of posts entitled, "So you want to be a Hunter."Before we get started, I need to make sure we're all on the same page by setting some ground rules. This series is intended for the new player and/or a new Hunter. Since most new player won't have a rich uncle in game, nor does everyone use Recruit-A-Friend, I'll just focus on leveling up the old fashioned way. When discussing zone and levels, I'll only highlight some key quests along the way. Except for when we reach the "getting ready to raid" guide, all guides will focus on using a solo-leveling/grinding build. So there, with some ground rules set. Let's get started on making you the best Hunter possible.

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PC Gaming By Eddie Carrington

World of Warcraft Patch 3.2 Hunter Guide

WoW.com has covered patch 3.2 extensively. Everything from the surprising changes to flying mounts, to the latest and greatest loot, and all the changes in between. In our patch 3.2 class, raiding, and PvP guides we take a look at exactly what changes and how the changes will affect your playing. Patch 3.2 will be on the live servers sometime today (or as Blizzard might say, "Soon®"). Given all the hype and excitement with the release of the different Class Q&A's, Hunters have a bit to look forward to.. Seeing that the inevitable changes has either already, or is about to happen on the live realms, I decided to go back and re-read the patch notes and revisit my initial thoughts about them. As I re-read the changes in the recent light of the Hunter Q&A, I think the changes make even more sense than they did originally. Not that I necessarily agree with all of them, but just that they make sense. See, it seems to me, that the changes are in line with Ghostcrawler's strategy laid out in the Hunter Q&A. And with that in mind I thought it would be a good time to rethink the changes and discuss them below.

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: Hunter Q&A Part 2

We continue to review Ghostcrawler's response to the Hunter Q&A. In the Hunter Q&A Part 1 we reviewed what role the developers think Hunters should play. We also discussed how PvP influences class balancing. There was also some interesting discussion on Hunter Ammo changes. In the Hunter Q&A Part 2 we review the following discussions: Ghostcrawler says no to removing the movement penalty from Auto Shot. Developers open to new Hunter resource system to replace mana. Min/max and best in slot play frustrates developers. Hunters are too cooldown dependent. Developers considering how to keep AoE Damage from affecting Hunter pets. No changes on the horizon to Cunning pets Petbar UI changes on the drawing board Pets and stable slots

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: Hunter Q&A Part 1

Good day folks and welcome to Scattered Shots. The column that takes a good look at what it takes to be a Hunter in the World of Warcraft. I am Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge. This week we'll be reviewing the recently released Hunter Q&A. The Hunter Q&A was like the other Class Q&As, a mixed bag of frustration, tease, and interesting concepts. It shouldn't be a surprise that we didn't get the details we wanted. Nor should it be a complete shock to you that some Hunters would feel disconnected between what players want versus what the Developers are concentrating on. Given all that, I still felt that this Q&A was overall pretty decent. There is so much to review and discuss I've decided to break the Q&A out into 2 parts. Here's a quick highlight of the main things discussed in Part 1: Developers feel Survival Hunter spec is currently performing within normal operating parameters. Crowd Control still needs work. PvP has a big influence on PvE Class Balance Ammo remains a consumable because of technical difficulties. Ammo is a focus point on Hunter damage progression. Blizzard is hoping to cut the cost of Ammo to address the cost burden for Hunters. The Hunter "No Fire" zone will remain in effect. Development considers enhancing Hunter melee attacks. All that is just in Part 1! So let's see what Ghostcrawler had to say.

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: Cunning PvP Pets

Good day folks and welcome to Scattered Shots. The column that takes a good look at what it takes to be a Hunter in the World of Warcraft. I am Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge. This week we'll be discussing the best pets to use while playing solo. So grab your traps, check your ammo and let's go Hunting! This is our last installment in our series exploring the different pet families. In the first post we explored raiding with a Ferocity pet. We identified the current recommended raid pet for each raid build. The next post in the series discussed why Tenacity pets have become the pets of choice for while grinding and farming. This week I'm going to talk about Cunning pets. I like to think of them as the "Fun Pets." I think of Cunning pets as fun because of the different abilities they have. If you're lacking a particular ability or need an extra debuff, stun, even snare, the Cunning pets are there to help fill in the gaps. Because of this utility Cunning Pets have often found it difficult to secure a regular place in the PvE world of raids. However, some of the more popular ones are starting to see some success in PvP. So let's take a closer look at these unique pets.

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Gaming By Eddie Carrington

Scattered Shots: Running solo with Tenacity

Good day folks and welcome to Scattered Shots. The column that take a good look at what it takes to be a Hunter in the World of Warcraft. I am Eddie "Brigwyn" Carrington from the Hunting Lodge. This week we'll be discussing the best pets to use while playing solo. So grab your traps, check your ammo and let's go Hunting! For the last couple of weeks I have been going over raiding specs. First, we reviewed the suggested specs for each all the Hunter talent trees. And last week we discussed how to spec Ferocity pets to partner with you as you raid and down bosses.But we all know that there is much more to World of Warcraft than just running round min/maxing your character with best in slot items and downing bosses. For example, what do you do when you are out there leveling content? How about some way to take on multiple mobs at a time as you grind through for those twelve dozen Murloc eyes or maybe you are farming Arctic Fur for that Death-warmed Belt. So I thought this week it might be a good idea to look at our options, and pick out some pets that would make really great companions when out farming and playing solo. Let's get started by taking a look at what are Tenacity Pets and how we can use them.

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