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Breakfast Topic: Moments of regret
Whether playing WoW while intoxicated, tired or simply under the weather, we all make mistakes. We vendor items we didn't mean to vendor, we destroy quest items thinking they're trash; it happens to everyone, sooner or later.One of my least favourite things to do is accidental disenchantment. It sounds hard - after all, you have to click on the Disenchant skill, then an item you're probably wearing - but after disenchanting several items in a row and then deciding to enchant a worn item, it's all too easy to click Disenchant by mistake. This happened to me, yesterday, for the second time; I disenchanted my tier 0.5 bracers rather than giving them a stamina enchant.Should this happen to you, don't worry -- it's not the end of the world. You can get the item restored, though the European GM I spoke to warned me that this process was only available once per account. Knowing that I'll be getting some better gear very soon, I decided not to choose this option, but since the tier 0.5 quests are non-repeatable I'm stuck in tier 0 for the time being. I'm happy it was only the bracers, which are blue, and not any of my epic items -- I'd have a hard time deciding whether epics today were more or less valuable than epics I might get tomorrow.Have you ever danced the disenchant tango? Had any other moments of regret? All I've learnt from this story is to install a "safe disenchanter" addon, and to be doubly careful when playing late at night.
Breakfast Topic: Jack of all trades, master of none?
As a druid, I often find it hard to figure out my place in life. Sometimes I'm up there with the tanks, soaking up damage and dancing in bearform; sometimes I'm sneaking around with the rogues; and sometimes I'm standing at the back with the Priests healing.Druids truly are a jack-of-all-trades class, in my opinion. However, with the right gear and talents, they can master one -- or all of them -- too. My main is a mostly-feral druid, but I recently popped on the Test Server to try out the new Swiftmend talent. The premade characters are restoration-specced with healing gear, and I found myself out-healing priests in instances as a result.I also tried playing a priest and rogue, and found my experience with druids led me to grasp these other classes quickly. So, while some may criticise the druid for being an all-rounder, that all-round experience is valuable in some circumstances. It's certainly good to know what being a tank feels like when one is stood at the back trying to keep said tank from dying. Is this jack-of-all-trades approach valuable for other classes, too? Or is it unique to the shapeshifting druid?
Breakfast Topic: The N-word
There's one word that gets my goat in WoW: "noob". With spellings as diverse as "nub", "n00b" and "nubcakes", dropping the N-bomb is seen by many players as a way to enhance their own social standing -- often with the opposite effect.I'm tired of "noob" being the default insult -- of Trade, General, LFG and local channels filling up with the word time and again. Of being called a "nub" for reasons as diverse as refusing a duel, wanting to find a group and capturing the flag in WSG. Of course, sometimes we do behave in ways that deserve reprimand -- but can't anyone come up with a more original insult? Perhaps that should be the next Blizzard competition.
Breakfast Topic: The crazy things we do
I've been having fun with sheep recently. Admittedly, I am Welsh, but I'm talking WoW -- and odd behaviour. While skilling up in Engineering I made several mechanical sheep; I tried making them attack nearby Horde players, who were thankfully laughing too much to retaliate. There's nothing like an angry sheep in the morning to get your blood boiling.I also wasted valuable minutes of my life repeatedly polymorphing a sheep, just to see what would happen. No prizes for guessing the result! So, what are some of the weirdest things you've found yourself doing in WoW -- with or without farm animals?
Breakfast Topic: Alts for odd reasons
While many of us have alts to try out new styles of gameplay, or to make accessing the Auction House easier, many players create new characters with specific ideas in mind. A friend of mine recently created a pink haired gnome simply because he wanted one the moment he saw one -- instead of levelling up, he just runs around with her and enjoys whatever there is to enjoy about gnomes.After giving one of my new characters a name inspired by a series of books, I decided to create some alts with more "book-inspired" names to give her some company, but I'm sure there are far crazier reasons for making particular alts. What's your story?
Breakfast Topic: Shifting professions
Professions are an interesting sideline in WoW, and allow us to make money as well as some interesting items. However, there comes a point when the professions we've chosen become expensive and slow to level, and we face a decision: continue or change?Changing profession isn't something to be done lightly -- you lose all acquired skill in your existing professions, as well as any recipes you've learnt. On the other hand, switching can have its benefits -- if you're not needed as a guild enchanter after all, you can save money by picking up gathering professions and loading the AH up daily. If you're bored of running around levelling a gathering profession, you can switch to a crafting profession, though you'll probably need some spare cash to make the change.Have you ever changed professions? Did you regret it or have you not looked back since?
Breakfast Topic: Ding!
Some dings mean more than others. Across all my alts, I've heard the noise and seen the yellow flashes over two hundred times -- yet few of them are memorable. I find odd-numbered levels particularly boring, as nothing really happens (some armour and quests become available, but even numbers are where it's at).However, some dings are memorable enough to make up for the monotone of the majority. Hitting 60 (see right) isn't an experience most of us forget; my first "big ding" was at 40, after beating up some STV gorillas for those last few XP. What's your best ding memory?
Breakfast Topic: Acts of kindness
Sometimes encounters in WoW leave me with a deep loathing for the entire human race, but other times I'm left with a warm fuzzy feeling towards fellow homines sapientes. Fly-by buffs are still fun to give out and to receive -- I would be lying if I said I didn't buff fellow players in the hope that I will receive similar services back, but I tend to rely on global karma, buffing anyone and everyone who crosses my path.After being beaten up by a nasty elite roamer (Son of Arugal, I'm looking at you, though Borelgore gets honourable mention) there's nothing nicer than a random resurrection. Standing at the graveyard facing a long and depressing corpse run -- or even a short one -- the magic words "<Player> wants to resurrect you" can do a lot to lift my tortured spirits. The last time it happened, a passing priest dismounted, resurrected me, then rode away before I could thank them properly. Back at the mailbox I sent a present, thinking all that karma -- the similar resurrections I'd done on my alts -- had finally paid off.Ever had a little act of kindness make your day? Do you like or loathe fly-by buffs and resurrections?
Breakfast Topic: Disgruntled spouses
Following on from the love letter we saw yesterday, we return to the topic of couples playing together. Do you play WoW with your spouse or partner?I know of many couples who play together, varying from those with separate mains who share a single computer to those who sit side-by-side and take part in the same raiding guild. I also know of relationships where only one half plays WoW, though it hasn't caused any break-ups as far as I know. I think either can have its happy moments. My other half refuses to play games at all, but we share so much else that having a few different hobbies makes life more interesting. He listens patiently to my babble about dinging and a good night's loot, which is about all I could ask for. Does your partner put up with WoW with gritted teeth, or with a smile?
Breakfast Topic: Explaining to newbies
As is my wont, I've been helping a couple of brand new WoW players get addicted lately, and it's been interesting. One comes from a heavy MMO background and is fairly happy to be left alone and get on with it; the other is a console FPS gamer who has needed a lot of hand-holding.In helping the latter, I've had to answer some questions which might seem commonplace to any WoW veteran but can be confusing as heck to newbies. Why is the run from Darnassus to Ironforge so unfriendly? Why do animals routinely carry weapons, armour and food, whereas humanoids with no known economy carry cash and cloth? Why does the pattern of night and day follow real time, so players who only have time at night never see places in blazing sunlight? How come a cloth armour merchant can repair my pointy sword? Why, if Alliance and Horde are sworn enemies, is there even a mechanism whereby they can't attack each other?Some have easier answers than others -- we're not on RP servers, so coming up with plausible explanations isn't too taxing. However, it's almost like introducing a child to a new world. Things which we take for granted can suddenly seem strange and quirky. Obviously, a lot of the less-logical gameplay choices make the game ultimately more fun, if less realistic; what are the weird questions you've been asked by newbies (apart from "gief gold pls")?
Breakfast Topic: First loves
How many characters did you go through before you settled on one to take to 60? Is your first your only character, or have you hopped from class to class and race to race before you felt comfortable?The first character we create can hold the fondest memories; we made newbie mistakes together, we learnt the game and explored the world. On the other hand, sometimes mistakes made as a newbie can have far-reaching effects; especially if that high-powered guild leader is someone we accidentally stole a mob from who still bears the grudge. Unlikely, but there are times we wish we could rewrite those first bumbling steps, go back and give ourselves all the expertise we have now.My first character was, maybe predictably, a Night Elf. I chose a Druid because shape-shifting sounded unbelievably cool, and after a few nasty experiences with spiders and getting lost in Teldrassil, I made it to Darnassus, then undertook the pilgrimage to Ironforge. After leaving the character there for months so I could play around with everything else the game has to offer, I recently dusted her off and it's a lot of fun coming back to that very first creation, even if it does mean dealing with a bank full of rubbish and extremely ill-suited equipment.
Breakfast topic: Guild drama
The phrase "guild drama" is one that crops up a lot in WoW; the necessary consequence of a large group of individuals all working towards a few common goals seems to be tension, strife and disagreement. From personality clashes to mergers and alliances, you need to deal with a lot of other people's business to get far in the endgame. Even if you choose to bypass raiding and focus on your PvP, more politics come into play over rank and honour.I've had a pretty easy time of it so far -- my guild is reasonably small, so we're part of a larger alliance which is working out well for now. However, I'm well aware that the inevitable will happen; one day someone's goals will change, and the peace will shatter. Guild drama can't be avoided -- in fact, some guilds like to wear past problems like badges of honour on their sleeves, showing the world that they can stick together through thick and thin. Others stay mostly drama-free, through choice or design, but delve into even the quietest guilds and you may find more than you bargained for.Do you prefer life with the added complications of guild politics, or have you given up on the drama and gone for a quieter life elsewhere?
Breakfast Topic: Gaming the game
It's a late breakfast today, and the topic is play styles. What do you do when normal WoW playing becomes too easy for you? You start creating meta-games, challenges within the game that add new levels of achievement and complication to the equation. Whether you've roped in some friends to see who's the first to 60 on a new server, or you're trying to beat your own high scores in terms of number of pulls or HKs, there are times when we all set arbitrary targets for ourselves ingame.Especially if you've already taken one or two characters to 60, the game content becomes less of an interesting distraction and more a means to an end. You know all the best grinding spots, areas with decent drop rates and fast-spawning mobs that are especially susceptible to your class skills. You're gaming the game -- plotting the most efficient route through a minefield of quests and levels. If you don't level by the end of today's session, you consider it an inefficient use of your time.Do you find you fall into this behaviour? Do you try to beat your own times to level 10, 20, etc? Or do you sit back and enjoy the ride, whichever character you're on, not caring much about what you get done in a single session?
Breakfast Topic: Fun with campers
The humble camper is a life-form frequently encountered amongst the many zones -- often found in great numbers throughout high-level areas in particular. By sticking to one particular spot based on a number of factors -- primarily aiming to harvest particular drops for fun and profit -- campers cause high-level questers a lot of trouble. I've had numerous encounters with level 60 campers who decide that pulling every mob in the area, all at once, is a good tactic to maximise drops -- indeed it is, but when there are other players there waiting to complete a quest, it's not a particularly nice tactic. Of course, on PvP servers you can add ganking into the equation, making it often more fun for the would-be quester to give up rather than waste several hours on one quest.Have you had bad camping experiences? Any tips to deal with those who just refuse to budge? Or are you a camper, and willing to defend your stance?Asking politely is one way to deal with campers, but it only gets you so far -- nowhere, when it comes to the opposite faction. Irritating them so that they'll give up is another tactic that I've seen employed, but can't bring myself to try. Ultimately, there isn't much you can do to stop people camping, especially when they ignore you -- but don't dismiss them all as gold farmers without a second glance. Some may be questers just like you.
Breakfast Topic: Hidden gems
From an out-of-the-way inn my guild uses for meetings, to the time I finally managed to watch a race in the Shimmering Flats, Azeroth has many well-kept secrets. How many times have you stumbled across a location or piece of scenery and wondered what on earth it was there for? Aside from the game's easter eggs, which are fun to track down, some places seem to hold unfulfilled potential.I've found that RP gives me a whole new outlook on these places; every one suddenly suggests several possible storylines, although I've acquired the habit of dismissing a lot of the empty-looking content by saying "oh, that's only for RPers". Do you think this is true? Are the deserted buildings and empty locations there for RP enjoyment alone, or to lighten the hearts of the players who love running around into every nook and cranny? Have you found a particular spot that surprised or delighted you?
Breakfast Topic: Quest Questions
Love 'em or hate 'em, quests are an integral part of life in Azeroth. However, they come in many different types -- from the "mindless quota killing" sort to the "cross your fingers and hope for a drop" variety. When I'm levelling, I always try to incorporate quests -- travelling from place to place to turn them in might reduce my XP per hour, but it ultimately makes the game more interesting for me and drives me to seek out new places.What's your preferred play style? Do you try to stack up as many quests as possible for efficiency? Sprinkle collection quests in with some errand-running and challenging higher level quests? Or do you grind the night away, staking out rare mobs and good drop areas?I tend to think the different characters I play drive my questing behaviour. My druid always seeks out new adventures and gets bored when in the same area for too long, my rogue tries to do quests that are way above her level by stealthing past most of the mobs, and my warrior just charges in and kills things for fun. It's interesting to push the limits of the different classes, and quests are one way to measure yourself against the game's idea of your skill -- having an addon that shows the quest levels is invaluable for this
Breakfast Topic: A whole new (international) world
Having recently obtained an American WoW subscription to go alongside my European one, I've been spending some time playing internationally. Surprisingly, the lag isn't a factor (at least at newbie level, because--of course--I've had to start from scratch), and the five-hour time difference hasn't come into play yet.It's a weird mix of the familiar and unfamiliar--I'm used to seeing all sorts of European languages flashing past in General, as newly created characters seek out their countrymen. That's gone, but the countryside and quests are the same. These days, General is filled with shouted insults and puerile behaviour fit more for Xbox Live than WoW. Perhaps my Live experiences should have prepared me for people's ability to be entirely rude to complete strangers--or a zone full of them--but my WoW experiences hadn't.When I move from European server to European server, I get a sense of disorientation when I walk around the cities and miss the familiar faces. Bereft of my guild, I feel defenceless and lost. Moving from European to American servers, however, is even odder. The cultures on the servers are different, as the patchwork amalgamations making up East and West in real life are different. From new in-jokes to a new Chuck Norris obsession, it's a whole new world.Am I just particularly unlucky, finding a server whose General channels (Elwynn and Stormwind) were filled with insults and abuse? Is it culture shock, or something more reflective of the fact that only kids would be playing at 5AM server time? Is the bad behaviour of characters likely to put off complete WoW newbies, entering Northshire Abbey only to be greeted with a 'your mom' joke?
Breakfast Topic: Most satisfying kill
We all have those satisfying moments when we overcome challenges that we'd previously thought too difficult, or perhaps when we go back and exact our revenge on tormentors of the past. Even in PvE, there are plenty of fights that give a real sense of accomplishment at the end. What's your story?Personally, I have all the usual go-back-and-kill-Son-of-Arugal moments, but also a couple of proud achivements when faced with two elites (one add)--the last time that happened I survived with 5 health! I also have the embarrassing flipside -- /cheering after a fight only to realise I've been poisoned. Unfortunately the Spirit Healer didn't see the funny side.[Thanks, Eric]
Breakfast Topic: Enchanting Prices
We've all seen the trade channel peppered with advertisements for various enchanting services, and perhaps some of us have even dabbled in the skill ourselves. Having played on multiple servers, the disparity in prices is often surprising, with some glowing enchants going for 7g on one server and over 20g on another.As an enchanter with a fairly low skill, I don't get too caught up in the price wars, but what are your experiences? Are you annoyed that identical enchants go for more on other servers? Or do you think it is a healthy sign of the individual economies? What sort of prices do you see or set?[Thanks, Mark]
Breakfast Topic: Competition Over!
Another Tuesday, another maintenance day, and today's brings with it an end to the Public Test Realm contests as well as patch 1.10. For the last few weeks players have been frantically levelling, grinding, and PvPing in their quest to be in the top 1000. Did you take part, and how did it go?I popped on to the Honor Contest EU realm last night to gauge the atmosphere and I was surprised at how few players were online. When I visited, only one battleground was open, which makes me wonder if Blizzard will even find the 1000 players they need for their prizes. However, that puts anyone who created a character on the realm in with a good chance. Some players were definitely nervous, boasting about their amount of honour without explicitly detailing their achievements. I didn't get a chance to check out the other two contest realms; have you been watching the competitions unfold? Do you think you will win a spot in the Burning Crusade beta?
