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Shifting Perspectives: Answers to questions nobody asked
Every Tuesday, Shifting Perspectives explores issues affecting feral/restoration druids and those who group with them. This week, we get a beta key, and maybe a little sloshed. After getting a beta key, it was my intent to hit the servers and write an FAQ/reader mailbag-type column, but I'm not going to do that today. I'm going to answer my questions, not yours. I don't care about any of you. Well, that's not true. I do care. But I've been in the beta for less than a week and: Half the stuff we've read about has been scrapped or just hasn't been implemented. The other half is a writhing mass of angry, toxic bugs. The servers crash like that drunk buddy who swore he'd only be on your couch for a few days but is still there weeks later and you poke him with a stick every morning to make sure he's alive and unfortunately he is. About the most I could do without pulling several consecutive all-nighters was level a worgen and troll druid to level 13 as quickly as I could. Oh, and wipe a Blackwing Caverns group several times over. Readers beware: while I may not answer any useful questions past the cut, there are still a few serious spoilers here.
A look at the new WoW figures at SDCC 2010
Last weekend saw one of the greatest comic book conventions in North America, the San Diego Comic Con, come and go. One of our own WoW.com crew attended the great event and came back with photos of DC Unlimited's newest (and some older) World of Warcraft action figures. These displays featured many from the Premium Series 2 and 3, along with the regular series 6 and 7. I personally have a few of these around my apartment. They're of superb quality, and the regular series usually costs around or under $20. The larger premium series goes for quite a bit more (usually hovering around the $50 mark) but is undoubtedly worth it. You can actually preorder some of these (including those not show, like the Lich King) right from DC Unlimited's website. Check out the full gallery below! %Gallery-98354%
Cataclysm Beta: Genn Greymane receives his voice
Last night's beta patch implemented a number of new sound files, but this is certainly the coolest: King Genn Greymane, leader of the Gilnean people, now has unique lines of dialogue. While working through the worgen starting experience, it's quite strange to hear King Greymane talking about [spoiler redacted] before you ever experience it first hand, but it's cool nonetheless. Gilnean NPC Lord Darius Crowley has received a line of his own as well. He gives a hearty, "We will prevail." Sadly, that's the only line he has so far, and the sound quality on it is far worse than what we've heard so far in Cataclysm. He probably isn't finished and hey, that's OK! It's a beta. The video after the break, for people who don't mind being spoiled.
Cataclysm Beta: Worgen /silly and /flirt sounds
Cataclysm beta is active, as you might have guessed, and we just keep getting more great info thanks to diligent dataminers. Case in point: someone dug up the voice clips for male and female worgen doing /flirt and /silly emotes. If you were hoping for jokes about bacon, hairballs, butt-sniffing, and multiple nipples, you basically won the emote lottery on this one. If some of the flirts seem a little risqué, you're probably not alone; sadly, all of the best (read: most suggestive) draenei and blood elf flirts never made it past beta, either. More clips after the break.
J!NX releases exclusive shirt designs for Europe
They already get self-cleaning public toilets, over a thousand distinct kinds of cheese and Kelly Brook. This time around, Europeans get more cool things by way of J!NX, those purveyors of geek couture, who have released three new World of Warcraft shirt designs exclusive to Europe. One design features a poster promoting an arena match between a gnome and a tauren in the style of a bullfight. It's nice and funny, but probably not something I'd mind not being available in my region. On the other hand, the two other designs feature the upcoming new races of Cataclysm -- the worgen and goblin, complete with claw scratches for the former just to add a little more badassness. If you're a fan of the promotional art for these two new races, this probably isn't good news if you live in one of the other six continents. For the Europeans, the shirts are available for ordering at €17.99 to €20.99, depending on your size. The shirts are available only in black in both men's and women's sizes. For everyone else -- or everyone else in the United States, anyway -- get back at the Europeans by walking into a nearby Hot Topic and pick up an exclusive Save the Murlocs shirt. Sorry Asians, Africans, Australians, South Americans and even that one lone dude living in Antarctica -- we'll have to make do with all the basic stuff.
Cataclysm Press Event: Older heirloom items to work for goblins and worgen
Here's some good news for everyone planning to roll a goblin or worgen, or even a human hunter or troll druid, when the expansion hits: Your heirlooms will still work, but only until level 80. At the recent Cataclysm press event, Blizzard confirmed that heirlooms from the Wrath era will still work for new characters in the Cataclysm era, and specifically even for goblins and worgen. Since you earned them, you should still get to use them. However, they also note that the heirlooms will only work up to level 80. At level 80, you'll have to start using new heirlooms that will be added in Cataclysm itself. So go ahead, buy that Bloodied Arcanite Reaper for your new holy cow or worgen warrior; it'll still work just fine, at least until you get level 80.
Female worgen preview
Have you, like our own Mikhail Saccovich, been dying to see what the new female worgen models are going to look like? Die no more! The Escapist has you covered, my friends, in detail. Copious screenshots of the new lady worgen models in cloth, leather, mail and plate gear to give you a general idea of what they'll look like when you roll one. The article emphasizes that these are works in progress, but I dig them. I really like how sinuous they are. My worgen rogue just might be a lady after all. [Thanks to many tipsters!]
Female worgen models and animations datamined
Posters on MMO-Champion's boards have gotten into the Cataclysm alpha and started datamining female worgen models and animations. While the models don't have textures yet (i.e. you're only going to see a bunch of black and not their faces or anything) and some of the animations are placeholders borrowed from existing models (mostly female draenei), this is the first look we're getting at one of Cataclysm's most hotly anticipated features. WARNING: This post is stuffed full of spoilers. It is a spoiled piece of concentrated awesome wrapped in spoiled paper boxed and shipped to Spoilertopia courtesy of Spoiler Express. Don't click below if you don't want anything to do with unofficial information.
World of Warcraft: Cataclysm Friends and Family Alpha client leaks
Despite what we presume are Blizzard's best efforts (they lasted pretty long this time!), the Friends and Family Alpha client of the upcoming World of Warcraft: Cataclysm expansion has leaked out into the world, and the forum denizens over at MMO Champion are busy digging through it for all kinds of spoilers. They've uncovered maps and screenshots for both revamped Old Azeroth zones and the new high-level dungeons, as well as pictures of the new Goblin and Worgen starting areas. Additionally, they've got information on new achievements and abilities, and the completely revamped class talent calculator now active in the alpha. Keep in mind that, as closed alpha information, none of this is official, and most of the stats are likely to change before the expansion actually releases later this year. All of this information would have come out soon anyway, as Blizzard is planning an open beta on this expansion soon (things are a little busy right now with some other testing), and is slowly releasing information officially as well. But if you want to gorge yourself on spoilers before dinner starts, head on over and feast, my children, feast! [via WoW.com]
The Queue: Goblins and worgen
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com's daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Whoa, Cataclysm questions that we might be able to answer? No way! I'm in shock. Truly. Look at the shock on my face. Do you see it? Yeah, pretty sweet, I know. Babaloo asked: "Will places like Gilneas be available to other races in Cataclysm, also, will they function as towns and stuff or for one time, one race staging zones? I'm really worried because it seems like they could've done a lot for those."
Ask a Faction Leader: Genn Greymane redux
WoW.com's prestige in the community has afforded us the opportunity to speak with major Azerothian leadership figures on any subject, and we're letting you, the reader, Ask a Faction Leader! We recently spoke to High Tinker Gelbin Mekkatorque, king of the gnomes, and he shed light on several key issues, including ADD, spontaneous gnomish combustion, mobilizing Ironforge, threatening letters and interior decorating. In this installment of Ask a Faction Leader, we'll be once again sitting with Genn Greymane, king of Gilneas. Our first reader question... King Greymane, I have recently found a book in Dalaran that states you told the great Alliance of Lorderaon that it was better to just kill all the orcs after the second war. When you meet the leaders of the Alliance of Stormwind, who will you most likely say "I told you so" to when they bring up the encroaching orcs in Ashenvale forest? Valerii Human Paladin Ghostlands Genn responds: I did discuss this matter the last time your group had an audience with me, and my opinion hasn't changed. I'd prefer not to know orcs from a hole in the ground. Because they'd be in the hole. In the ground.
All the World's a Stage: Roleplaying the wolf
Friday night was a special evening for me, as I finally got around to watching New Moon. I admit that the movie really wasn't my cup of tea, and I mostly watched it out of a sort of morbid curiousity. I felt a clear, unnatural compulsion to see what Dakota Fanning's performance was like, and I will report that she was definitely a shining point for the movie. The Volturi portions of the movie were fairly cool, but the rest of the movie really didn't work out for me. I don't know, just not my thing. Ironically, one of the biggest issues I had with New Moon was the performance of the werewolves. I'm sure there's a few dozen people who will tell me that they're not technically werewolves or whatever. But as a relatively uninitiated viewer, Jacob and his pack were indistinguishable from your general furry, toothy werewolf. But they just didn't act that way. Nothing about the pack really struck me as wolfish, and the lack of that canine behavior totally kept me from buying these guys as lupines. So, of course, I couldn't help but think about our own upcoming Worgen in Azeroth. There's already a few different avenues built into the lore for roleplaying "beasts." The longest standing option, of course, is roleplaying a druid who spends a lot of time as a cat or bear. But, even aside from that, you can assume some hunters probably spend more time with their pet wolf than other humanoids. And you always have the odd baby lost in the woods who ends up raised by the local pack. (It's amazing how many character one comes across who's raised by wolves.) So, ultimately, if we're going to roleplay canine-like characters, here's some tips on how to make it a little convincing. I think we can do better than Twilight. I'm not claiming to be a wolf expert here, I'm just talking about the literary and connotative ideas of playing a wolf-inspired character.
Breakfast Topic: Preparing for the storm
This Breakfast Topic is brought to you by WoW.com's guest blogger program! Want to participate in a future call for guest posts? Read up on how to contribute, and keep an eye on the site for program announcements! When faced with warnings of imminent change, what do you do? Do you stockpile and organize, or do you let it just happen? Cataclysm is fast approaching and preparing for it in-game can be as much a part of the process as pre-ordering a copy of the game in real life. There's several new things coming in the expansion that certainly may go smoothly if you take the time to plan for it -- two new races (worgen and goblin), new level cap, and a lot more classes opening up for the existing races. In the past, people also stockpiled things like cloth for bandages or mats for new tradeskills that were being introduced. Some players have given up doing anything in general and stopped playing WoW until Cataclysm hits. I myself tend to be more of the planning type, especially now on the horizon of my third expansion -- I am stockpiling a lot of gold in the event of some ridiculous new transportation cost. I also recently completed Loremaster on my main character as many of my favorite quests or zones in the old world might be changed or gone entirely by the time the expansion rolls around. I also might sink a little bit of money into buying a Traveler's Tundra Mammoth. Having a portable repair-bot and vendor will ease the burdens of leveling considerably. Some new character names might have also been reserved on my server in preparation for a cute little gnome priest or worgen rogue in the future. So what have you been doing to brace yourself for another (possibly your first) expansion? Is it grinding out badges for BOA gear for a new toon? Perhaps you are sitting around Dalaran doing nothing!
BlizzCon Roundup: Last year's fun and games
BlizzCon 2010! Anaheim! October! Players are buzzing about the new announcement, and already making travel plans -- but what can a person expect to see at BlizzCon? What kind of stuff is there to talk about? Last year's BlizzCon was all about Cataclysm -- a trailer, playable demos of the new races, lore information, and of course the usual cavalcade of costumes and dance routines. Here's a quick roundup of what you missed at last year's BlizzCon, to give you an idea of what to expect this time around: Pre-show guides and activities: Preparing for BlizzCon -- a quick pre-con checklist Guide to BlizzCon 2009 The goody bag! The WoW.com meetup, including the cast of The Guild The BlizzCon 2009 show floor The official program
WoW Moviewatch: Gilnean Like Me
Gilnean Like Me is the newest movie by legendary machinima creator Gnomechewer. It is the story of an army of Forsaken who seek to raze Gilneas, only to discover something far more vicious than they were expecting. This video is absolutely astounding and is a lot of fun to watch. The visual work by Gnomechewer is riveting, and the way he lets his story unfold is clever and perfectly paced. I think this kind of story is going to be more common when Cataclysm is released, but I'm glad Gnomechewer is helping to lead the charge. His instinct for visual techniques brings a lot of moodiness and horror to the tale of Gilneas, and helps frame the story of Greymane for new-to-lore audiences. If you have a friend who asks about the story of Gilneas, I think this movie is a great place to get them started. It not only shares bits of the story, but it communicates the genre of the lore. Check out Gilnean Like Me, and let us know what you think! Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an e-mail at machinima AT wow DOT com.
Is the Alliance aiming to retake lost lands in Cataclysm?
Derthelz on the official forums asked a good question -- why is the Alliance prepared to kill Arthas but not to try to retake their lost city of Lordaeron? After all, the upper half of the Eastern Kingdoms is almost completely lost to the Alliance, despite the area being the former home of some of Azeroth's most powerful nations. Why doesn't the Alliance try to take them back? Crygil says that, actually, they just might: "Who said that the Alliance wouldn't attempt to reclaim these lands? That is a very dangerous assumption to make, especially if you're of the forsaken persuasion. The Lich King is a threat to all the inhabitants of Azeroth and, as such, he needs to be put down before territorial disputes can be resolved. Leaving those claims for the future only makes sense; far easier to fight one war at a time. For now, it's better to focus on the task at hand."
The Queue: Puppies
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com's daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Mike Sacco will be your host today. Puppies. Puppies. Aliceness asked ... "Where might Blizzard go in terms of (maybe) implementing a new class for the next expansion? What kind of class haven't we seen?"
Russian commercial rips off Lich King trailer
As if it weren't enough that we have to tolerate protection warrior dominance in PvP as the first sign of the impending apocalypse, we started getting tips about a somewhat...odd-looking Russian commercial two days ago featuring Evgeni Plushenko, an Olympic gold medalist and three-time World Champion. By now, YouTube's gotten in on the joke with the Related Videos sidebar as well. Finished watching it? Yep -- what you're seeing above is a riff on Blizzard's Wrath of the Lich King trailer as envisioned by Oriflame, a cosmetics company advertising their Glacier Ice cologne. If they're not actually riffing on the trailer, then apparently their marketing department shares a hive mind with Blizzard's cinematics team, which may become troublesome around the time the latter starts storyboarding the Cataclysm trailer. I am stricken by a sudden vision of Burma-Shave advertisements in Gilneas: This cooling shave / Will never fail / To stamp its user / Alpha male / Burma-Shave.
WoW.com's top ten stories of 2009, part 2
In mid-August, Blizzard released patch 3.2.2, which re-introduced Onyxia, the game's first raid, as a special anniversary encounter. Blizzard told us all sorts of stories about how they did it, from the early trepidation (soothed by one of their bosses saying that they'd have "a million subscribers" someday), to the first launch night and the subsequent scrambling for more and more servers to keep players in the game.
WoW.com's top ten stories of 2009, part 3
If you were reading the site earlier this year, you'll remember that our first word about what was in the new expansion came long before BlizzCon did -- multiple leaks, some believable, some not, shaped our idea of what we'd be getting in the game's third add-on. Way back on July 1st, reader Ryan noticed for us that Blizzard had applied for a Cataclysm trademark, and from there, things spiraled out into rumors and speculation. Obviously, Cataclysm will already be one of the biggest stories of 2010, but it took up a lot of 2009 as well.
