shattered-sun-offensive
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Burning Legion server either exploits us.gorgonnash.info or is first to Phase 4
Apparently, the Burning Legion is either as deadly and implacable as the army they are named for, or as false and tricky. Us.gorgonnash.info is now reporting them as having come from behind to unlock Phase 4 the first of all servers. Given that they are a PvP server, this would be an especially amazing show of determination and server togetherness. However, given that, until only a few hours ago, they were only 37% according to the site, according to Trade chat on the Burning Legion server (Thanks, Zulama), and according to a poster on this thread, it seems more likely that someone tampered with their upload file to fool the site. It's honestly rather disappointing that someone has decided to tamper with a trustworthy group effort like the gorgonnash.info website. I know we're all better than that. So to all of you who've been faithfully uploading legitimate info to the site, and to all of you who have been working hard to help your servers unlock each phase, I say congratulations, and thank you. Hopefully, one jerk from the Burning Legion server doesn't dampen our spirits. %Gallery-19980% Edit: Thanks to Unagieater of the Burning Legion server for confirming via screenshot in the comments that this is a hoax. The server is only about 41% complete with Phase 3 as of this edit.
Investigation into missing spell haste gem cuts is "underway," says blue poster Syndri
So when patch 2.4 came out, you might remember a certain line in the patch notes: "Added several new tradeskill items to the new Sunwell Daily faction vendor: Three jewelcrafting recipes to cut gems with spell haste from Dawnstones, Talasite, and Noble Topaz." Here's the problem: Those recipes actually don't currently exist anywhere in game, or at least haven't found their way to any Jewelcrafters. You can find Quick Dawnstone, Reckless Noble Topaz, and Forceful Talasite on all the WoW item database sites, but the recipes themselves seem to have gone missing, and aren't on Eldara Dawnrunner, nor do they so much as appear to drop from any mob. Don't worry though, Jewelcrafters, all hope is not lost.
Breakfast Topic: Most hated daily quests
In light of the recent inquests against our least favorite races, mobs, mob abilities, or tankadin writers, it seems only fitting to ask; what is your least favorite daily quest?Now that the cap has been raised to twenty-five, and a slew of dailies has been added as of patch 2.4, many players are finding themselves spending a few hours on daily quests each day. Personally, there are a few that I enjoy doing most days, including the bombing runs, and some that I'd rather avoid if I didn't need the gold to fuel my rather Outlandish habits.I'm not sure if I could pinpoint a single culprit though. The longer quests bother me up front, because I get bored spending half an hour each day mowing through the same exercise. As such, the Shadowmoon Valley quests might be my least favorite, because aside from the competition, they take forever.Which daily quests are giving you a daily headache, and why?
Shattered Sun Offensive exalted reputation pendants make some regret their faction choice
While Blizzard has made some steps to homogenize the playstyle of the Horde and Alliance a bit with the whole Paladin/Shaman swap, they've also done a bit of experimenting in the Burning Crusade with allowing people to make choices about certain paths, namely the Aldor and Scryer factions. While patch 2.4 has bought as an "end" to the Aldor/Scryer rivalry lore-wise, the mechanics remain the same: You cannot enter the other side's tier without being attacked, you can't use the other side's bank, and the item and shoulder enchant vendors will still only sell to those with proper faction. In addition, there's a new twist to the sides from this patch: At exalted reputation with the Shattered Sun Offensive, you can purchase 4 different neckpieces that have seperate bonus that depending on whether you're Scryer or Aldor.
Sunwell griefing runs rampant
Patch 2.4, much like most other things in WoW, has managed to bring the worst out of some people. The mask of anonymity strikes again!No, I don't mean the node-stealing, ninja-tapping, mob-training stupidery(which is a word as of right now) you see all over the Isle of Quel'Danas. I refer to the standing-on-NPCs-while-PvP-flagged griefing. If you're lucky and haven't seen this happen on your server, what most servers are seeing is a bunch of Blood Elf and Draenei players standing directly on top of Shattered Sun Offensive NPCs, so players accidentally, unknowingly, right click on them instead of the quest NPC. This results in inadvertently hitting the player, and then getting destroyed by the SSO guards.
Sunwell Phase 4 daily quest walkthroughs
As many servers approach Phase 3, we're going to be one step ahead as always and make sure you're all prepared the day Phase 4 hits. It'll be some time before anyone reaches it I'm sure, but if you're anything like me, you always want to know what is on the horizon.Phase 4 concludes the taking of Quel'Danas and the progressive content, thus some of the quests are simple things like putting the finishing touches on the new Shattered Sun Stronghold. However, there are still a few things that need some work. This phase will focus on an Alchemy Lab and a super cool statue to plant in the middle of the freshly taken town.Read on for more information on Phase 4, as well as links to guides for each of the new quests you'll encounter!%Gallery-19191%
Phase 4 Dailies: Open for Business
Once you've opened up the Alchemy Lab through many turn-ins of Discovering Your Roots, the quest Open for Business becomes available.If you've been looking at those sparkling bushes scattered through Quel'Danas funny since patch 2.4 hit, be confused no longer! Those bushes are for this quest. Dear Mar'nah has discovered a new elixir here on the Isle! Bloodberries are a naturally growing plant in the wilds of Azeroth, but it seems being exposed to the Sunwell has made the ones in Quel'Danas special.Mar'nah needs five Bloodberry samples to show you what it is that she found. This quest is hit or miss. Sometimes you can get strong circuit around the island and get the five you need in under a minute, sometimes you go batty competing with others for bushes. If there's one quest on Quel'Danas you want to do in hours other than peak time, this is it.My recommendation is that you shouldn't pick just this one quest up and set out to do it. When you have access to this quest, progression on the island is just about over, so no need to stop and do just this quest. If you're going to do it, do it with some of the other quests. The frustration of the bushes being camped melts away if you have other things to occupy your time. Since these grow on the entire island, you can be sure you'll end up with five before you're done.Unfortunately for you, the elixir is not as unique and she leads you to believe. The elixir, the Bloodberry Elixir, is identical to the Elixir of Mastery, adding a flat 15 to every stat. The Bloodberry Elixir can also only be used on Quel'Danas. I suppose it is good to use in Magisters' Terrace, or perhaps save for the following day's round of daily quests. Even if the potion is lackluster, the other rewards are about equal to the others. 11 gold, 99 silver, and 250 Shattered Sun Offensive reputation.As always, if you need further information you should take a look at Wowwiki or Wowhead!
Phase 4 Dailies: Discovering Your Roots
The first daily quest of Phase 4 of the reclaiming of Quel'Danas is Discovering Your Roots. This quest begins at the newly unlocked Alchemy Vendor, Mar'nah. Of course, she has been unlocked, but not her stock. She claims to need a special reagents for that: Razorthorn Root. She says it's fairly difficult to harvest, but this quest shouldn't give anybody too much trouble.After accepting this quest, fly out to Razorthorn Rise. This region is directly on the border between Terokkar Forest and Hellfire Peninsula, up in the mountains. If you cant find it, just look at the picture above.This is similar to the quest I Was A Lot Of Things... from Shadowmoon Valley, in that you need to use some local beasts to dig up your plants for you. Luckily, you don't need to rely on the intelligence of some dumb pig that gets massacred by all of the nearby monsters and turns on you if you accidentally hit an AOE. You get to control the Ravager you'll use to dig up your five required Razorthorn Roots.
Phase 4 Dailies: Disrupt the Greengill Coast
Disrupt the Greengill Coast opens up as soon as Phase 4 begins, and is given by Captain Valindria. She can be found on board the ship(known as Silvermoon's Pride) parked in the Harbor which you took in Phase 3.Captain Valindria is apparently the SSO operative in charge of dealing with the Naga infestation on the southeastern section of Quel'Danas. Like most people in Azeroth, she needs our help. This isn't just another kill quest, but it is a kill quest in disguise. I recommend doing it alongside Don't Stop Now... because you'll be killing the required mobs simultaneously.It turns out the Darkspine Sirens are mind controlling the Murloc slaves you see throughout their camps, and they're doing it using some fancy orbs. An Orb of Murloc Control is what you want, and they drop off of the aforementioned Sirens. You want to throw and smash them into a camp of murlocs to release them from their control, and turn them on their Naga masters.What these means is the Orbs work like grenades, targeted AOE spells, et cetera. When you right click the item, you'll get a targeting circle that the previous bombing quests have trained you to use, and throw them at a pack of murlocs. You need to free a total of 10 murlocs, so try to get as many of them in the ring as possible to cut down on Orb hunting.Simple quest, and fantastic to do alongside Don't Stop Now... as I mentioned before. Doing them together will net you some easy money. Even if you don't do the other quest with this one, you'll still get a pretty decent reward. 11 gold, 99 silver, and 250 Shattered Sun Offensive reputation. Note that this quest doesn't help to progress anything on the island, and will not change once the Alchemy Lab is acquired and the Monument to the Fallen is completed.If you need more information on this quest, please head on over to Wowwiki or Wowhead!
Phase 4 Conclusion: A Magnanimous Benefactor
Unfortunately for Anchorite Ayuri, it seems that not so many people were willing to donate 10 gold to her thoughtful cause. Luckily, Anchorite Kairthos is here to tempt those of us with overflowing wallets to donate a little more.A Magnanimous Benefactor is a one time only quest found at the top of the Sun's Reach Harbor inn that can only be acquired at Exalted reputation. If A Charitable Donation was a money sink, A Magnanimous Benefactor is a money black hole. The reward is very, very cool, though. For the low, low price(donation!) of 1,000 gold, you will be awarded a title, 'of the Shattered Sun.' For example, I would become Alex of the Shattered Sun. Sweet.Now, a thousand gold is a steep price, but in my opinion this is one of the cooler titles in the game. My main has Hand of A'dal, but Of the Shattered Sun sounds way, way cooler, even if Hand of A'dal has more prestige. This title is also unique in that you can acquire it purely through solo play. Justicar/Conqueror can be gotten through semi-solo play, but you need to join groups and raids in Battlegrounds. Plus, it takes way longer to get.If you're Exalted with the Shattered Sun Offensive, you probably have far more than 1,000 gold. All of those daily quests(and/or Magisters' Terrace runs) up to Exalted? Go ahead, spend 1,000 gold. Have something to show for that work.
Phase 4 Dailies: A Charitable Donation
Acquired from Anchorite Ayuri just outside of Sun's Reach Sanctum, A Charitable Donation marks the final step on the reclaiming of Quel'Danas and the construction of the Shattered Sun Stronghold. It isn't a daily quest so much as it is a daily reputation vendor.It's easy to look at the quest and get angry, because it's a fairly obvious money sink. Give 10 gold, get 150 reputation. Keep in mind that it's completely optional, and the only thing it unlocks is a little flavor for the world. If you don't want to do it, don't do it, don't feel bad avoiding it. It won't hurt anybody.If you do want to contribute, though, donating that 10 gold moves the server toward earning a pretty neat thing. After enough donations, a statue will be built commemorating those that died in the battle for the Sunwell Plateau, and the friends and family they left behind. It is also a sign of unity between the Aldor and the Scryers; the monument has two sides, one with a Draenei and one with a Blood Elf. It has no real effect on the world, but it's pretty cool to look at.As I mentioned, this quest is basically a reputation vendor. You buy reputation, and this can only be done once a day. You pay 10 gold and get 150 SSO rep, so if you run one of the easy dailies(such as Distraction at the Dead Scar) for roughly 10 gold and 250 rep, you can turn that into a total of 400 rep. That sure beats buying Coilfang Armaments for 25 gold each, to turn in for 75 reputation. If you do this quest regularly, you can shave a few Magisters' Terrace runs off of your grind to Exalted.As always, if you need to know more about this quest, take a look at Wowwiki or Wowhead!
US server Proudmoore is the first to hit Phase 3 of the Shattered Sun Offensive
Phase 3 is now upon us! According to us.gorgonnash.info, Proudmoore has now just barely hit the Armory phase of the Shattered Sun Offensive. As of 9:07pm PDT, April 2nd, Cenarius is behind them at 95%, with Zul'jin behind them at 90%. Congratulations, Proudmoore.Of course, the biggest thing this means is that they've unlocked the quest Making Ready, which will allow them to eventually unlock the new Badge of Justice loot. Good luck to them, and may the unlocking go fast! For everyone who needs to catch up to Proudmoore, be sure to check out our phase 1 and phase 2 quest walkthroughs. For all you Proudmoore inhabitants, and all the rest of you raring to go, be sure to check out our phase 3 walkthroughs for all the information you'll need to forge ahead with the offensive, and look out for the Phase 4 walkthroughs coming soon from Alex.
Breakfast Topic: Fun surprises
As many of you are, I've been doing my duty to my server and pocketbook by completing the Shattered Sun Offensive daily quests every day. I have to admit, I was pretty disappointed that the reward for many of the quests is [Shattered Sun Supplies]. Before opening it, I was excited. I expected some nifty food and potions, maybe gems or herbs, and greens. I like to be surprised by some things, so I hadn't looked up the current loot list. Needless to say, after a few days, and a bag full of useless 68 greens with + resistances on them, I became discouraged. Then I opened my first one of the day, and voila! A [Badge of Justice]! Because I rarely have much time to spend in-game these days, I hadn't collected any of these yet (sad I know). The experience actually reminded me of the two times that [Wall of the Dead] dropped for me, and the time that [Kang the Decapitator] fell into my hands, and the roll came out in my favor. The two rarest pets I've ever farmed and received, the [Captured Firefly] and the [Tiny Crimson Whelpling], also definitely gave me a natural high.What warm and fuzzy memories do you have of surprising drops and good fortune? Patch 2.4 sounds great, but what's in it for you? Find out on our Sunwell Isle page where we list the impact on classes, professions, PvP, Raiders and many other playstyles and interests including walkthroughs on the new Sunwell Daily Quests. Looking for more great info? Check out the WoW Insider Directory for the best of our guides and analysis.
Report Card: Phase 2 daily quests
So, now that phase 1 of the Shattered Sun Offensive is over on many servers, phase 2 is in full swing. Phase 2 is a little bit smaller than phase 1, but you can still do all the phase 1 quests just fine, so it's more of a question of deciding how many you want to fit into your daily rotation. So what about the phase 2 quests? Progression needs aside, are they worth doing?
WRUP: First week of Spring edition
Yes -- whether you noticed it or not, we are now officially one week into Spring of 2008, which means we're one season closer to the biggest releases of this year, Warhammer Online and Age of Conan. But as is our custom on Friday afternoons, it's time to focus on something happening a little sooner: What aRe yoU Playing this weekend?Azeroth has taken up most of my time, personally -- since the patch 2.4 release earlier this week I've been enjoying the new Sunwell Isle, as well as pushing my 62 Hunter up towards 70 to get in on the fun as well. Massively's own Elizabeth Harper is also pushing towards the Shattered Sun Offensive with her paladin. And Tateru is playing SL (of course) as well as a little bit of CoH and Lord of the Rings Online when time allows.So what are you readers up to this weekend? Let us know what you're playing in the comments below!Previously on WRUP...
Phase 3 Dailies: Making Ready
Though the Sun's Reach Armory has been taken by the Shattered Sun Offensive, it is still not fully stocked and equipped. This is where you come in. Smith Hauthaa just outside of the Armory needs you to gather ore so she can make the Armory an Anvil.Supplies are on the way, she says, but she doesn't want to waste time while she waits. She sends you to retrieve three pieces of Darkspine Iron Ore. You won't be mining for this ore, nothing as simple as that. You need to kill Darkspine Myrmidons along the eastern coast of Quel'Danas. They drop Darkspine Chest Keys which are then used to open chests along the naga encampments. The Myrmidons fight like really boring Warriors, using Sunder Armor and Demoralizing Shout. The area is also lousy with Darkspine Sirens, which fight like Frost Mages. Ice Armor, Frostbolt, Frost Nova, that sort of thing.You'll likely need to do quite a bit of fighting to get your three pieces of ore, simply because there are so many mobs in the area. Once you work into a rhythm, it should only take as long as 'Arm the Wards!' does each day. While this quest may seem like one of the more time consuming Quel'Danas dailies, it is certainly worth the effort. Why? Because when this quest is completed a certain number of times, it unlocks the Anvil. Unlocking the Anvil unlocks the new Badge of Justice rewards, and yet another daily quest. If you're itching to make a purchase from Smith Hauthaa, encourage your friends to do this quest as often as they're able.Aside from unlocking the next step of Quel'Danas, this quest has another reward. Upon completion, you will receive 11 gold, 99 silver, and 250 Shattered Sun Offensive reputation. Once the anvil and Badge of Justice rewards have been unlocked, this quest becomes 'Don't Stop Now...' and retains the same objectives. For further information on this quest, you can head on over to Wowwiki or Wowhead.
Phase 3 Dailies: Ata'mal Armaments
After completing the anvil for Sun's Reach Armory, Smith Hauthaa of the Shattered Sun Offensive needs a little more help gathering materials. We've been gathering Darkspine Iron Ore for her, and now she needs a more pure metal to create an acceptable alloy.In this quest, you're sent to the Ata'mal Terrace in Shadowmoon Valley, to gather Ata'mal Armaments. This metal was once used by the Draenei living in Karabor, but has since been taken by the Fel Orcs, corrupted, and abused. The anvil you just helped Hauthaa make has been blessed by the SSO's clerics, and just happens to be capable of purifying that metal.So what you do it gather up five of those armaments, then head back to the Isle of Quel'Danas. Stand near Smith Hauthaa's anvil just outside of the Armory, and use the Armaments. This will cleanse them and break them down, making Cleansed Ata'mal Metal.On the Ata'mal Terrace, the Armaments drop from any of the fel orcs there. The Shadowmoon Chosen, Shadowmoon Slayers, and Shadowmoon Darkweavers. These mobs aren't especially difficult, we've been killing them since the Burning Crusade launched. Nothing scary about them. The only thing to worry about are the Shadowsworn Drakonids, the wandering elite... drakonids. They're not as unforgiving as their Netherwing Ledge counterparts, but can still be a thorn in your side. This is the final quest in phase 3 of the retaking of Quel'Danas. Its rewards reflect that and are a step up from all of the others. Not only do you get 18 gold, 28 silver, and 350 Shattered Son Offensive Reputation, you also get a choice between two neat weapon oils. Physical DPS can choose the Righteous Weapon Coating, and casters can choose the Blessed Weapon Coating.As always, for more information on this quest, you can always check out Wowwiki or Wowhead.
Phase 3 Dailies: Taking the Harbor
This quest is likely as straightforward as the Shattered Sun Offensive dailies could possibly get. What is it? A kill quest. You get it from Magister Ilistar within the Sun's Reach Armory, which has become friendly at the conclusion of phase 2.Magister Ilistar wants you to thin the ranks of the Dawnblade on the island itself. Specifically, he wants you to kill six Dawnblade Summoners, six Dawnblade Blood Knights, and three Dawnblade Marksmen. Their names are good indicators of what they can do. Summoners are warlocks, Blood Knights are... Blood Knights, and Marksmen are hunters. In my experience, these mobs are a little more difficult than the Wretched and Robots of the earlier dailies, but alone they still shouldn't be too hard. The only threat they truly pose is the fact that they are fairly tightly packed, so single pulls might be hard if you're the only one doing this quest. However, Quel'Danas probably won't be underpopulated at any point while trying to complete phase 3, so you'll be just fine.Once you finish that up, head on back to Ilistar and turn it in! Easy! You'll be rewarded with 11 gold, 99 silver, and 250 Shattered Sun Offensive Reputation. When phase 3 is completed, his quest is replaced with Crush the Dawnblade. The name of the quest is the only thing that changes. Same objectives, same reward. For further information on this quest, you can also check Wowwiki and Wowhead.
Phase 3 Dailies: Intercept the Reinforcements
This quest begins on the Isle of Quel'Danas from Vindicator Kaalan. You'll find him inside of the newly acquired Sun's Reach Armory. He sends you back over to Ayren Cloudbreaker for a Dragonhawk to use. If you remember, he's the same Blood Elf you spoke to for the quest Distraction at the Dead Scar.Yes, this is another 'bombing run' quest, though slightly different. Your goal is to bomb the three Elven Destroyers just off of the coast and kill six Dawnblade Reservists to... well, intercept reinforcements. When your dragonhawk takes off, it'll fly past each of the three boats(Dawnchaser, Blood Oath, and Sin'loren). You'll use the Flaming Oil provided to you by the NPCs, and throw it at the sails of the ships. Big, easy targets. You should have more than enough time to hit them all. Eventually your dragonhawk will land on the Sin'loren, where you begin slaughtering Blood Elves again. You can migrate over to the other two ships, but your ride back is on that particular boat. You chat with the dragonhawk when you're done because he was kind enough to wait for you, and you're taken back to the mainland.You should have no difficulty hitting all three ships with the Oil on one pass, and while the Dawnblade Reservists aren't especially numerous, they respawn very quickly. This quest should only take you a few minutes assuming there aren't dozens and dozens of people trying to do the quest at one time.For your minor inconvenience of needing to sit astride an undulating dragonhawk yet again, you will receive 7 gold, 59 silver, and 250 Shattered Sun Offensive reputation.Once Phase 3 of retaking Quel'Danas is complete, this quest will be renamed "Keeping the Enemy at Bay," but the objectives and road to completion remain the same. For more information on this quest and others, you can check out Wowwiki or Wowhead.
Report Card: How do the new phase 1 dailies measure up?
Having had a chance both on the live and test servers to do the Shattered Sun Offensive dailies, I think I can safely say that Blizzard has thoroughly outdone themselves. There's variety, there's travel (instead of staying in the same small area all the time), there's excitement, there's good loot, there's all kinds of varied quests that make me think that I may never go back to Ogri'la or Skettis ever again unless I really need something from the vendors. There's still things that could be slightly better, but for the most part, Blizzard has shown that they've taken valuable lessons from previous content and stepped up their design for patch 2.4.
