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Breakfast Topic: Did you meet your Brewfest goals?
Brewfest was over. It was fun. It was extended. But now it's gone. I was able to get my Brewmaster title this year and caught it on video. I also enjoyed a couple of events with the It came from the Blog guild. Because we had Achievements this year, I find that the event was more fun than previously. But now I must admit that I'm Brewfested out.Were you able to accomplish all of your Brewfest goals? Did Coren give you the gear you wanted? Answer our poll below and then tell us your goals and challenges in the comments.%Poll-35135%
Breakfast Topic: Have you tried the Pit of Saron?
The PTR has been out for several days now. It's loaded with the latest build of the upcoming patch 3.3 which will feature the Icecrown raid and several smaller 5 man instances. The first instance that's up for testing is the Pit of Saron. I know some players do not like to be spoiled and would rather take in the moment when they first encounter it on their own. Others like myself crave information and wish to know every possible detail on a particular boss or instance. There's no right or wrong answer. PTRs are designed to be a testing ground and it offers a cool preview of what is to come. Some of the other bloggers on the staff along with myself jumped on during the weekend to give the place a shot. I had a fun time in there and learned a few interesting things. I don't think the instance is entirely finished yet, but there's enough in there to keep me busy healing. Have you taken a look around the place yet? If not, do you intend to at some point?
[1.Local]: Garrosh Goulash
Reader comments -- ahh, yes, the juicy goodness following a meaty post. [1.Local] ducks past the swinging doors to see what readers have been chatting about in the back room over the past week.We interrupt this edition of [1.Local] for this declaration on the state of the world post-Icecrown, just in from reader "Garrosh" (whom we suspect may be the Orc himself, given the abrasive use of capslock): IN CELEBRATION AND HONOR OF THE GREAT VICTORIES THE HORDE HAS AND WILL SECURE UNDER MY LEADERSHIP, WE ARE GOING TO BE RENAMING MANY OF OUR FINE CITIES AND TOWNS:ORGRIMMAR SHALL NOW BE CALLED GARROMARHAMMERFALL IS NOW CALLED GARROSHIRETHE CROSSROADS SHALL FOREVER BE KNOWN AS THE GARROSHROADSALL COMMON OBJECTS SHALL REFLECT THE SUPERIORITY OF THE HORDE. NO MORE REFERENCES TO THE ALLIANCE:WESTFALL STEW SHALL HENCEFORTH BE KNOWN AS GARROSH GOULASHSTORMWIND BRIE IS NOW CALLED GARROSH GOUDADWARVEN SNOW BOOTS SHALL BE KNOWN AS GARROSHESBLOOD AND THUNDER! LOK'TAR OGAR!Join us after the break for less caps lock and more reader comments from the past week at WoW.com.
Breakfast Topic: The Lessons of the Wrathgate
I was interested to find out via our very own Mike Schramm the Fleshcrafter that Blizzard has a YouTube channel now. The main reason I was interested? Because I can watch the Wrathgate cinematic several times a day and not get tired of it. It's simply one of the things I enjoyed most about Wrath of the Lich King, a potent, powerful and personally experienced series of soloable quests that leads to an awesome rampage through Undercity that creates more tension and drama than it solves. No matter what toon, I've made sure to go through this complete quest chain as soon as I can, as both Horde and Alliance get to see some fantastic lore goodness and interact as near equals with the big figures of their respective factions.Who gets to escort Jaina to her meeting with Thrall? You do. Think of it this way: remember in WCIII when Rexxar and Thrall met up with Jaina? This time, it was you and Thrall. It really did an amazing job of injecting immediate, powerful connection between your character and the great figures of the factions, as well as bringing the war against the Lich King (and the presence of other forces seeking to take advantage of it, ala Putress and Varimathras) back home to the cities of old Azeroth. Who can forget seeing Orgrimmar crowded with refugees?Moreover, watching the Alliance soldiers rally around Bolvar and the Horde come sweeping in under Saurfang the Younger always gives me a bit of a nostalgic feeling. This was the culmination of the 'This threat's so big we have to work together' mindset that saw us form the Might of Kalimdor under Saurfang, that united us against Kil'Jaeden at the Sunwell. This was the last, best hope for peace and unity. Had Bolvar and Saurfang not fallen, had the Forsaken not been split by civil war, if a unified front persisted against Arthas at this critical moment who knows? We might well be looking at the first steps of real detente between the factions, perhaps even a pan-Azerothian league of states and powers that includes all of the Horde and Alliance races as Putress strangles it aborning.
Breakfast Topic: Worgen and Goblin dances
Reader Andy sent us a good topic to talk about this morning: dances for the new Cataclysm races. Every time we've sat down to play the new expansion, we've punched in the /dance and /silly emotes, and we haven't seen a single thing implemented for Worgen or Goblin males or females, so as far as we know, it's completely up in the air on what dances they'll choose for each one. You have to think that Blizzard has some idea already (or maybe they'll just be included in those long awaited dance studios), but we haven't seen it, so what do you think?Andy says Goblin males should go for a West Side Story-style classic number, while Worgen should definitely do Thriller. For some reason, I see Goblins breakdancing, but I have no idea what the Worgen might be doing. If it's something befitting their starting area, I have to think something boring like ballroom. But they may actually have different dances for their human and wolf forms (at least you'd hope so -- surely they'd be able to do more in Worgen form than in normal human form, right?). What do you think? World of Warcraft: Cataclysm will destroy Azeroth as we know it. Nothing will be the same. In WoW.com's Guide to Cataclysm you can find out everything you need to know about WoW's third expansion. From Goblins and Worgens to Mastery and Guild changes, it's all there for your cataclysmic enjoyment.
Breakfast Topic: I think this combat just might be mortal
I'm still running AV.Before you alert my local mental health professional (I saw him this weekend, actually, he was pretty jazzed about a Wintergrasp string of wins he'd pulled off this week) let me explain: I like AV because I like the total mass chaos potential. Sure, a lot of times we end up with both Horde and Alliance zerging to their objectives and very little PvP, but that's not what I enjoy. What I enjoy is sitting in a tower with a buddy and waiting for the enemy and then seeing them come running in the door, six against two, and doing my level best to Bladestorm their faces off before they manage to cap the bloody thing back. Or going prot and becoming the most annoying man alive, zipping around with Warbringer and popping Shockwave in the middle of a pack before throwing every defensive cooldown I have up to annoy them even more.I enjoy Flame Shocking a DK from behind just as he's about to take Dun Baldar North back from us. Orcs just look cool shocking people.
[1.Local]: How?
Reader comments -- ahh, yes, the juicy goodness following a meaty post. [1.Local] ducks past the swinging doors to see what readers have been chatting about in the back room over the past week.No summons, no buffs, we're not even going to clear the trash. [1.Local]'s going hardcore and pulling the reader e-mail of the week right away.Name: [redacted]URL:Subject: howRelated URL: http://You can practically smell the desperation on [redacted]'s breath as he pecks out an agonized cry for help, painfully tapped out with three searing characters. But never fear, there's a new warlock in town. Currying favor as the new kid on the block, Dominic Hobbs lets it be known that he's up to the task by dropping this DoT on the WoW.com team list:I'll look into this one.You have fun with that, Dom. After the break, the WoW.com staff points out some of the week's more remarkable reader comments.
Breakfast Topic: Great expectations
So as BlizzCon fades further and further from view in the rear window, I'm getting more and more excited and impatient for news of Cataclysm, so much so that I've sort of forgotten to get excited about Patch 3.3. I want Worgen, and new conflicts, and new lore, and a redesigned old world that offers a massive leap forward in the story as things change forever and the Horde and Alliance finally shrug off all pretense of peace and rush headlong into a war that has really never truly ended. But then I start thinking. The combo I really wanted to play, Worgen Paladin, looks like it won't make it in. It seems like Worgen may not get their own capital city (instead, said city will become a battleground under siege by the Forsaken), which may put a damper on how much their awesome quasi-Victorian scenery and architecture actually features in game. While some zones are getting complete revamps, others are only getting minor tweaks, which makes me fear there may be some zones that still feel out of place and some old lore story lines that still remain unresolved or out of place.
Breakfast Topic: What do you want to see in Icecrown Citadel?
While a lot of us (myself included) have been starving for Cataclysm news lately, it would behoove us to remember that we still have one more patch to go: Patch 3.3, the (hopefully) epic showdown with one of the most iconic figures in Warcraft lore, the Lich King himself. We've actually learned very little about it so far. We got Ghostcrawler admitting there's not 31 bosses, and a few other BlizzCon tidbits, but beyond that, what do we know?The other day, Zarhym at least gave us a small hint or two, saying that the 5-man dungeons would be epic and essential to the overall fight against Arthas, that they would be separate content from the raids, and that neither dungeons nor raids (Thank Elune) would have vehicular or mounted combat (the airship battle will not be a vehicle fight, it seems). Of course, that does give us hope, but doesn't get us to the meat of the dungeon so to speak. So I'm sort of wondering: What do you want or expect to see in Icecrown Citadel, both the raids and the dungeons? Are there certain bosses or boss encounters you want to see? What type of storylines would you think epic enough for the 5 mans? I'm still hoping for the completely ignoble, futile death of Tirion Fordring, but that could just be me.
Breakfast Topic: Violet relief
Some of you might have already gotten your Violet Proto-Drakes, a long, strange trip that spans one full year of playing World of Warcraft. Some persistent and conscientious players have already gotten their Brewmaster title along with the meta-Achievement, and I'm pretty sure it must feel pretty good. There's no more pressure to do all the holiday achievements now, is there? It's time to kick back and chillax.For those of you who've completed the meta-Achievement, how do you feel? Does it feel good to ride around on that 310% mount? Are you among the first on your server to sport that dragonfruit-hued mount? What are you looking forward to in terms of World of Warcraft holidays now, considering you no longer have to chase after achievements? Are you excited for the new holidays and are you psyched to complete those Achievements, too, even though they're not required for the Violet Proto-Drake? Share your thoughts this morning. As for those who haven't gotten theirs, what else do you need to complete the meta?
Breakfast Topic: What race would you change to?
My first end game character was a Tauren Hunter. It was also the first character I created. When I made him, I didn't know much about the races, starting zones, or characterization quirks. The Tauren care for the world around them and hesitance when it comes to the battle. They're a calm and steady race that, while powerful in battle, prefer peaceful methods in their balance with nature and the elements. While that may be nice for a while, I've come to enjoy the mysticism and voodoo of the Trolls. From putting heads in cauldrons to get dead men to speak their awful truths to offering advice on not cutting off body parts to get them to regenerate bigger, they've offered an interesting and sick sense of humor that I enjoy. Also, the crit strike bonus to bows wouldn't be all that shabby either.With the race changes announced and apparently on the horizon (aka: 'soon'), as well as the race/class combinations coming in Cataclysm, what race would you change to if you had the opportunity? Voting after the break.
Breakfast Topic: What do you want from your faction leader?
Well, one thing I learned yesterday: people have some very strong opinions on what they expect from their faction's leader. Since there are rumors of a shakeup on that score, it seems like a good time to ask you, the readers, exactly what you want from your faction leaders come Cataclysm.For myself, I've never been really all that worried about the War between Horde and Alliance and its role in World of Warcraft. Possibly because I came to the MMO without the influence of the RTS series compared to some folks, I just accepted that Horde and Alliance didn't like each other and that was effectively that. The only time it really impacted on me before the introduction of Battlegrounds was in trying to level in Southshore while a Horde Druid kept coming into town and killing all the quest givers. But for some players, it's clear that the animosity between factions is very real, very personal and is one of the things that keeps them playing. They really hate the filthy Alliance/Horde and want to rally behind a leader who'll actually lead them in combat with their chosen enemies. Still other players see the conflict between the two factions as a dangerous distraction (or just plain silly) as threats like the Burning Legion, the Scourge, and now Deathwing demanded a united front.So what about you, gentle and not so gentle readers? Who do you see as your faction's natural leader, and what role should he or she play in the ongoing story of WoW? Do you want to crush, mangle, and maim or are you more focused on reaching rapprochement? And who do you think should be the overall top dogs of the Horde and Alliance? Does the Alliance really need a 'Warchief' of its own and who should it be, or is it time for the Horde to seek diversity in government? Only time will tell what happens in Cataclysm, but you can speculate all you want right here.
A critical examination of Garrosh Hellscream
I hate to admit it, but he's starting to grow on me. Yes, he's an arrogant, petulant, mercurial and often ridiculously bellicose orc who has no direct reason for his ridiculous hatred of humans, but he's also out there doing things, which is more than certain other orc heroes can claim. Even if some people think a basic campfire could lead the Horde better than he could. It's possible that the fact everyone hates him made me want to give him another look, I'm weird that way.Yes, I'm talking about Garrosh Hellscream. Everyone's favorite "Oh I hate that guy" guy. And to be frank from the first time my Tauren Warrior stepped off of his kodo in front of the fire in Garadar I've kind of disliked him. He was whiny, dismissive, and petulant, (yes, I said it twice, you're lucky I didn't just type it 3000 times) and frankly even after I went through one of the longest (in terms of what it had me do, anyway) quest chains in BC to finally, finally get Thrall to come out and slap some sense into the kid (which he did with a kicking lightshow - remember Laser Floyd? Yeah, even Laser Floyd didn't have demon lords) I didn't like the new, reinvigorated Garrosh any more than I liked him before. Granted, I didn't expect to ever see him again.
Breakfast Topic: The gap
It's no secret that I have Horde and Alliance Warriors at 80. I took a long break from the Horde to raid aggressively on my Alliance Warrior as part of my endless waffling over Horde vs. Alliance. Lately, however, the rumors about Cataclysm and what's going to happen to Horde leadership have, paradoxically perhaps, made me suit up again as the Tauren and play the Horde side again. (I'm weird that way.) One of the results of that is to remind me that there's a big difference between a Ulduar/TotC 25 geared prot warrior and one barely in Naxx 10 gear. I have been chain running TotC 5/Heroic as much as possible to try and catch up and frankly, wow, the difference in every aspect of play is astonishing. You forget just how much of a difference it all makes, until you suddenly find yourself effectively back in time on a character with the stats you used to have when things were hard. Going from a 35k health pool to a 27k one (up to 30 now, thanks to TotC) was a huge wake up call that made me adjust my pulling strategies, use of my cooldowns, and even how I go about generating threat. As all my stats improve I'm finding myself lowering my foot to the floorboard, so to speak, but in a way I think it's a good thing to be reminded every now and again that you can't just tell people starting out in blues and greens to do what you do in your full raid epics. It's an experience you can have in other ways, of course: taking your alt rogue to DPS a heroic and being shocked at how much lower his DPS is than your DK main, for instance. So I posit to you, gentle readers, how have you found yourself minding the gap?
Breakfast Topic: Happy Pirates' Day, ye landlubbers!
Yaaaaaar maties, it be me again, Cap'n Phineas Blackbeard (ye may remember my old guide to the most piratical o' quests), and I be back again, today, September the 19th, because today, ye scurvy dogs, be Pirates' Day! My old flame Dread Captain DeMeza will be hanging out in Booty Bay and causin' all kinds of trouble under the nose of old Baron Revilgaz, so ye can head down to the southern shores, listen to some shantys with those old swashbucklers, and maybe even win some loot. If ye like, ye can even go and visit DeMeza with the scallywags from this here WoW.com site (though between you and me, some of them smell like the inside of a whale's belly, especially that landlubber Schramm). And of course, all of ye yellow-bellied scallywags should spend the whole day talking like a pirate as best ye can, and maybe even wear an eyepatch. Y'know, for the nightvision.And just in case ye don't get enough grog today -- HA! Get it? "Enough grog"? A good pirate knows ye can never have enough grog! -- don't forget that Brewfest starts tomorrow. Stay tuned to this here vessel for more information about how ye can get all of the achievements and titles and dragons and treasure chests ye desire. Have a great Pirates' Day, and then get back to swabbing the poop deck, ye peg-legged, pox-faced mutinous cur! Dead men tell no tales! Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!%Gallery-32280%
Breakfast Topic: I miss trash
Before you have me committed, I'll say right now that I was expecting to be thrilled with the lack of trash in the new Coliseum raids. Who wouldn't be? No more endless waves of, say, Death Knights or Spectres or that horrible two-pull on the way to killing Auriaya or what have you. And you know what? I don't miss that stuff. I don't miss any of the trash we've yet seen in Wrath of the Lich King.In fact, what the trashless boss gauntlet that is Trial of the Crusader/Grand Crusader has done for me is to show me that I've been missing trash, real trash, since after we moved out of Mount Hyjal, and even then it was in slow decline. No, I hate to admit it, but in a blazing moment of honest to Murgatroyd old fogeyism, I came to realize that what I miss was the brutal, punishing trash pulls in Blackwing Lair. Blackwing Spellbinders were harder to deal with than some of the bosses that followed them! You could wipe multiple times before you even had the room cleared enough to pull a drake!Yeah, it sounds ridiculous that I'm nostalgic for that. And to be honest, it's a nostalgia tinged with a certain amount of relief that I don't have to go clear it again any time soon (and if I did, well, I'm level 80 now). But what I miss, and what I feel like we've been moving away from since Hyjal (which may have taken trash pulls to a height so ridiculous that the pendulum had to swing back this way) is trash with personality. Trash that sets the story, that makes you really feel like you're actually raiding an ancient lair of evil. That being said, I'm glad TotC is trashless. Just please, let Icecrown bring back trash that counts.How about you? Never want to see it again? Looking forward to its return? Where do you stand on trash?
Breakfast Topic: Feats of Fail
The other night, I dinged while dead. I was waiting to be resurrected by the Spirit Healer in the cave of Alterac Valley and leveled. This is happening a lot now that Battlegrounds give experience, so I'm sure many of you have done the same.I am not normally a Dinger in guildchat -- that's just so EQ -- but this time, I had to announce the dubious honor of dinging while dead. A guildie suggested that Blizzard implement Achievements specifically to commemorate events like this: Feats of Fail. The Achievement for leveling while dead could be called "Better Late than Never". (See what I did there?)I would love to see this implemented and there would be so many I could easily get, like an Achievement for dying in the Undercity Elevators X number of times. (It's a Doozie!) I'd also easily earn one for how often I've shape changed on my druid in a small space and gotten stuck. (Time to Change Classes.) The Spousal Unit has accidentally drowned so frequently, he deserves a "Not a Witch" Achievement.What Feats of Fail would you earn?
Breakfast Topic: The one-of-every-class club
A friend of mine just dinged 80 again the other day, and it put him into a community that we joked about: the "one-of-every-class" club. Like a few of our readers (including William B, who emailed us a while back), he now has ten 80s, one of every single class in the game. It's not something I'd ever do, or ever want to do, but certainly there are probably quite a few people out there who've gone all the way to the highest level with every single class.As Turpster would say, it definitely gives you a nice overview of how all the classes work and what their strengths and issues are. And of course it'd be handy to run instances with -- you can roll into endgame instances playing whatever role you want or your guild needs to have.
Breakfast Topic: Awesome animations
There have been some truly spectacular visual moments in Azeroth; scenes that make you gasp and glee. I'm thinking of occasions like the Scourge Invasion of Stormwind and Orgrimar or Kael'thas blowing up his room in Tempest Keep. Who can deny Wrathgate was incredible. However, there are also some awesome little animations that really add so much to the game. It's these little things that we can take for granted but sometimes jump out at us as something wonderful.Even on a hard night of raid wiping in our guild, if someone chugs a stack of Pygmy Oil and /cower's it's bound to bring a laugh. Many a machinima has featured a /dance, from one race or many, with variously spectacular and humorous results.Who's /flex is better, Draenei or Blood Elf? Have you ever left one of your characters alone for a while and then had their idle-animation surprise you? Are there any actions or animations you wish were in the game? What animations bring a smile to your face?
Breakfast Topic: I hate
The interesting thing about World of Warcraft for me is that it can create such feelings of loyalty, solidarity, faction pride, and sometimes, raw, visceral, demonic hatred welling up from within. As an example, as an old school warrior player, I despise the Cyclonian with every fiber of my being. Mind you, I loved the quest chain, it felt epic and I kept the sword forever and a day (might even still have it somewhere in that mess of a bank) but the mob? Hate hate hate hate hate hate hate. I still stop whatever I'm doing and ride down to see if any warriors are trying to solo him whenever I'm anywhere near Southshore or Chillwind Point. And if they are, they suddenly find themselves assisted by a level 80 warrior who wishes nothing more on earth than to kill that windbag!Seriously, kudos to Blizzard, you managed to make me hate a mass of pixels more than some people I've had reason to dislike over the years. If sentient whirlwinds ever manifest and begin speaking to us, they'd best do so very far away from me.So this fine morning I ask you: what do you hate?
