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BigRedKitty: For Ezra and Make a Wish
Ezra Chatterton has gone on to a better place, and we are all better for having known of him, his struggles, and the honor and dignity that he and his family displayed throughout their ordeal. Our most sincere and heartfelt love and wishes for a happier future go out to them all. May they find the peace and comfort they so richly deserve.We have received emails from his guild, telling us that he read BigRedKitty.net. He was a hunter, and we are proud to have had him among our ranks. Now we are not the best hunter in Warcraft, nor the one with the most PvP kills, nor the best gear, nor anything else that elevates us to any high standard. But we do have two things that we can use to honor the memory of one who has fallen before his time:A great big mouth and an extremely large and disturbed cult following.It is with great pride and humility that we announce an event in which you can participate. Where you can join us as we humbly, and with tremendous joy, stand and proclaim our kinship with Ezra, and the Make-a-Wish foundation which gave him so much joy.We're going to burn Stormwind to ashes.
Death Knights at the Dawn
Okay, this is so massively spoiler ridden for Death Knights, their role in the lore, and how you will be experiencing their gameplay that I cannot in good conscience post it without first warning you, and more than once. This is pretty darn epic, and thanks to the folks at DeathKnight.info, I can finally say I now actually want to play a Death Knight. (If you follow that link you may well see spoilers, so be warned.)No, I'm completely serious here. This is levels upon levels of spoilers that deal with years of Warcraft lore. If you want to see this fresh when you first roll your new Death Knight, then you don't want to read any further. It involves factions and characters we've all come to know. I personally love this kind of thing, but if you're someone who just can't stand finding out before you get to experience it yourself, then you shouldn't read any further.You still here?Okay. I'm not going to post the link or explain what I'm talking about here on the front page. I don't think that would be cool. So we're going to take this into the dark, shadowy places Death Knights are pretty at home in anyway. Follow me, if you will... after the jump.(Cue diabolical laughter.)
All things Wrath of the Lich King
Over the past week, particularly in the last few days, the crisp Internet air has been abuzz with news from the upcoming expansion, Wrath of the Lich King. Fear you're out of the loop? Here's a quick round-up of all the information being released, along with analysis and opinion. Don't forget to keep checking back, as this page will be updated as information becomes available:Dungeons and raids An analysis on Arthas as a ten-manned event, including its impact on the 25-man raiding structure, as well an exploration of its consistency with the lore. Did you know that all expansion raids will have a 10-man setting, as well as a 25-man? Read through some of our initial impressions on the 10-man raiding set-up. We also wrote up a concise overview of the ins and outs of dungeons post-expansion, including a new token system, similar to [Badge of Justice]. The Nexus has been announced on the official site as one of the new dungeons. The WoW Insider Show discusses 10-manning Arthas. Zones, factions, and relevant lore Alex has written an excellent overview of the Grizzly Hills, a soon-to-be zone for low to mid-seventies. With old factions reappearing, along with other surprises, it's definitely something to look forward to! If news of the Dragonblight has intrigued you, you'll be pleased to know that more information has been made available. While we're brushing up on our lore and learning about new areas and factions, Alex thought it fitting to illuminate the lore behind Azjol-Nerub, as the Nerubians will have their own role in the expansion. Alex asks us about lore figures we'd like to see in the expansion. %Gallery-20386%
Probable factions in Wrath of the Lich King
Jikiyami from Kul'tiras dropped a tip asking us about all the different factions that might be in the Wrath of the Lich King expansion when it comes out. Unfortunately, Blizzard hasn't completed design on most of Northrend, so I'd bet that the actual list of factions isn't really determined yet. But that won't stop us from speculating who you might be working for from level 70-80. There will most likely be Horde and Alliance starting factions, just like Honor Hold and Thrallmar. For Horde, Forsaken seem to be taking the spotlight (according to what we saw in the playthrough), so an "Apothecaries' Guild" faction might be up there. For Alliance, I'm betting the Dwarves will lead, so an "Explorer's League" type of group might be a good guess. Dalaran will be up there, of course, so we'll either see the Violet Citadel make a return, or another Mage-based faction. The Tuskarr, a new race, are supposedly fighting against Naga trying to melt their grounds, so I bet we'll see a faction for them. Lake Wintergrasp is a World PvP zone, so expect a Horde and Alliance faction for each side. We know Gnomish flying machines will be available in the expansion, so I'd guess there's a Gnomish faction to rep up for in order to gain access to those. In Dragonblight, the rumor is that Deathwing is setting up shop, so there may be a new faction fighting against him. And that same faction may be situated around the Nexus, an instance hub in which Malygos is running things. Then again, we've heard that Dalaran is fighting Malygos' campaign against magic, so this may overlap with the Mages there. Jikiyami points out, rightfully, that supposedly some Nerubians are fighting against Arthas, so outside Azjol-Nerub we may find a faction ready to give us rep for fighting in there. And finally, someone's got to lead the battle against Arthas and his Scourge, right? Blizzard seemed kind of opposed to this at BlizzCon, but I would be very, very disappointed if the Argent Dawn didn't have some role to play near Icecrown Citadel or the new Naxx. Or maybe Arthas will have his own rep to grind-- how else would we get access to a Death Knight? So there's about ten guesses at different factions right there. And who knows if older factions might show up-- since so many players are now allied with the Scryer or the Aldor, will they come back through the Portal and have a place in Northrend? Either way, there'll be no shortage of rep to grind in the cold north.
Breakfast Topic: What's your realm's motto?
Banefire started an interesting thread the other day on the forums. He asked what your motto would be for your realm. Here are some of the responses posters offered: Argent Dawn: We know drama Tichondrius is not for you (evidently this was also on a sign held up at Blizzcon 2005) Warsong: 40% Brazilian, 80% retarded Palehoof: We are not a rock band, we are a World of Warcraft server Feathermoon: The official serve of love Boulderfist: The Idaho of WoW servers Dalaran: The Purple Bubble of Love I figure mine would be "Elune: Can't throw a gnome without hitting a night elf." If you were to come up with a motto for your realm, what would it be? [via WoW forums]
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Realm cultures
Realms in World of Warcraft are supposed to be like different, although identical, worlds. You choose one and live under its rules, and if you want to live in a different world, you have to put in a lot of work to get there. But quick glance at the WoW Realm Forums shows that each server might better be described as its own little high school. Realms have nicknames, whether they be good ("TichOWNdrius") or bad ("Argent Down," "Lagging Skull.") They have celebrities both famous for their exploits (Death and Taxes on Korgath, Sebudai on Doomhammer) or infamous for screwing up (Overrated on Black Dragonflight, Avatar on many servers but originally Warsong.) They have private dramas and screrenshots that will be funny only to residents of that realm. Servers are known for different things: Argent Dawn has good roleplaying (and entertaining Goldshire cyber stories), Mal'Ganis has innovative world PvP, and Black Dragonflight and Korgath have some top raiding guilds. Some servers have rivalries -- Arthas and Mal'Ganis have been sniping at each other about server population since transfers opened up, denizens of Blackrock regularly invade RP servers when Blackrock itself goes down, and informal competitions develop within battlegroups. And a couple servers even have official mottoes. The two I can remember right now is "Tichondrius is not for you" and "Mal'Ganis KICKS!" My server, Magtheridon, was released shortly after launch. Our only celebrity is Xzin, we don't have any earth-shattering guilds, and we're not the best at PvP. People talk a lot about the "Magtheridon way," which as far as I can tell involves Alliance outnumbering Horde and liberal use of the server's unofficial motto, which is three words long, begins with "go" and ends with "yourself." Still, it's a nice place in spite of the lag, and I wouldn't want to transfer anywhere else. What's the culture of your server? Is it populated or quiet, dramalicious or kind, vicious to outsiders or welcoming to new players?
Getting Tabard of the Protector at the BC World Event
Have you checked out the ongoing BC World Event yet? I've heard things are happening all over Azeroth. but so far the big draw is right down where Blizzard said it wouldn't be, in the Blasted Lands. Down there at the Dark Portal, there's a questgiver who gives you a really, really simple quest-- all you have to do is take out 6 of the felguards coming out of the portal, and the reward is a neat "limited edition" Tabard of the Protector-- it's black, which is cool, but it's also got a fun little proc that makes you flex and give off the priest AOE animation. Not bad for just a few minutes' work.Unfortunately, there's a lot of QQing already-- apparently the Dark Portal area is packed with people on most realms, and especially on PVP realms, there's plenty of PVP happening. I'm on a PVE realm, and yet a few hordie buds of mine and I couldn't keep from killing flagged Alliance-- we cleared that place out, and it felt awesome to be fighting them in among all the Argent Dawn and Burning Crusade NPCs running around. There's a few different mobs that are flowing out of the portal-- felguards and voidwalkers, and also a few mini core hounds, and every once in a while, a 63 elite Dreadknight shows up with an AOE Shadowbolt, but he gets cut down to size pretty quick even with just the AD troops fighting.But it's definitely a sight to see. There's no telling how long this will all be going on (I'd guess the mini-war itself is a permanent fixture, but the tabard might be gone within a week or two), so even if you have to go later at night when it's not so darned crowded, make sure you check it out.A few more pics I took after the jump.
More Scourge Invasions?
Remember the huge scourge invasion that accompanied the roll-out of patch 1.11? After a few weeks of undead-slaughtering fun, the scourge invasion points across Azeroth vanished - whether your server had finished the invasion event or not. The "end" of this event was somewhat disappointing, as it occurred without any fanfare, and left me with a heck of a lot of now useless necrotic runes in the bank. However, there's now some suggestion from Blizzard that this invasion won't be a one-time event - though as to how often the scourge may become restless and attempt to invade Azeroth, no one yet knows. Like the invasion or not, it was an excellent way to rack up Argent Dawn reputation, and the rewards (consecrated sharpening stones, blessed wizard oil, +damage versus undead armor), while situational, were useful. And, while I'm glad the invasion isn't a permanent thing, I think having it back on some regular basis will make for an entertaining diversion.
Venturing Inside Naxxramas
There are a number of players out there, myself included, who haven't had an opportunity to see the inside of Naxxramas. This video doesn't show any players defeating any bosses, but gives us a look at the dungeon's design and what to expect in terms of creatures within - with the help of a dream vision potion.
At War With the Dawn
I really hope I never get this bored...Then again, your options do get pretty limited once you reach level 60; the same raids & dungeon crawls over & over, the endless grinding for reputation. Or you can do what this guy did, and just say to hell with it all & declare war on the Argent Dawn. And he photoblogged the whole thing over at notaddicted.com.Yes, I guess it can be pretty annoying to other players when quest NPC's & the like are killed...especially by members of your own faction. But after all, that 'at war' tab IS there for a reason, is it not? It would be a shame to let it just go unused forever...or not.In any case, it's something I would never do or never hope to encounter, but it does make for some funny reading over your cornflakes....
New tabards are all the rage
I play on a number of servers, and a fashion is spreading through them -- players are donning new tabards everywhere from Ahn'Qiraj to Zul'Gurub. The two items, Tabard of the Argent Dawn (left) and Tabard of the Scarlet Crusade, surfaced in the last patch.The Argent Dawn tabard is obtainable as a result of the invasion event. Initially, you have to take ten Necrotic Runes to the Argent Quartermaster at Light's Hope Chapel. Finishing this quest will activate an Argent Quartermaster, and you can then trade more Necrotic Runes for items like mana potions and Consecrated Sharpening Stones (+AP against undead). For ten runes, the tabard is yours. I found this tedious to solo, but when grouped with a mage and a couple of others the runes flow heavily.
Breakfast Topic: Reputation grinding
At 60, one of the many things on my to-do list is "grind reputation". I didn't really start caring about reputation before I hit 60 (save for some furbolg slaughter to appease the Timbermaws), so I have had a long way to go with all the game's factions.The recent Scourge invasion and expansion of Light's Hope Chapel now mean there's even more you can do to get the Argent Dawn to like you. However, I'm torn. I'm saving up for an epic mount, and the various turn-in items (Crypt Fiend parts, Dark Iron scraps, Bone Fragments, etc) are fetching high prices on the auction house. So I've been splitting my spoils -- selling some, and turning in others.Do you see this as taking advantage of reputation grinders? Or is it merely profiting from the game's mechanics? If I manage to save enough for my mount this way, I'll stop; but I've seen lots of spam in the Trade channel advertising the same items, so it isn't just me who thinks this way.
Public Test Realms Closed
Once again it's been a fun run on the PTRs, but they have, officially, closed. Of course, the real news here is that this means patch 1.11 has been mostly finalized, and that we should expect patch deployment soon - possibly as early as this week. On the matter of a release date, Tigole tells us, "No promises as to when the patch is going live, but if I were you, I'd start working on that Argent Dawn rep by tomorrow -- either that or pillage the guild bank while the pillaging is good." Of course, what that means is up in the air, but if you'll excuse me, I think I need to be getting a Scholomance run together about now...
New Argent Dawn Reputation Rewards
Blizzard has updated their Argent Dawn page with some new reputation rewards that will be available in patch 1.11. For the armor rewards, it looks like we can expect another token system, but the only thing reputation seems to impact is the cost of the goodies. There are six blue items and six epic items (not sets, but assorted items available). Also, epic-quality tailoring, leatherworking, and blacksmithing patterns with high amounts of frost resistance (for Naxxramas, presumably) available at revered reputation and higher.
