Onwards and upwards

The dust has settled and Brack has emerged from battle a changed man.

He's made his way across the realms from his original home and has found himself in a new place, where even though everything is the same, it is all different. His hair has greyed and he no longer sports what used to be his trademark beard. The rounded protective shell of his defensive armour has morphed into a covering of spiked titansteel and where he used to shield himself from an aggressor's blows he now wields a formidable, pain-bringing mace.

I've moved Brack from Nagrand to Saurfang and have found that I am enjoying the game more now after a bit of a break. I'm not sure I'll ever be as into WoW as I used to be for numerous reasons, but nevertheless I am having fun doing my own thing. After conversation with a friend of mine I will be moving Brack again, this time to Dreadmaul to join the ranks of the Nightwatch.

At the moment though, he's working towards obtaining some of those more tedious achievements - reputation and PvP ones specifically and just doing his own thing. I can't pug into an instance or raid not because I lack confidence, but because I'm just totally over dealing/working with others.

At the moment though, I'm just totally blown away by the news I've received - apparently Blizz is going to bring down the land mount level requirement yet again - this time to level 16! Where's the insta-80 button Blizz?

So... Things have changed.

It may have been noticed that my blog vanished for a period recently.

Basically, it seems that a number of members of my Guild have been unhappy and despite my best endeavours to promote communication and feedback, they had chosen to remain silent until a situation arose that allowed them to walk away without having to go into specific reasons.

I won't go into great detail here, but when some Guildies decided to take down new raid bosses without the Guild Leader, myself and a couple of other devoted Officers naturally we were upset. All of us had gone to great lengths to make Guildies happy and it seemed that we were making a big deal out of nothing by being mad that they'd downed Sapphiron and had an excellent shot at Kel'Thuzad without a second thought to us. A great many guildies left almost immediately and walked into another Guild that they'd created and over the next week or so they drafted whoever they could from Ex Aequo to their ranks.

Both the Guild Leader and I walked away from the game. We posted the dissolution of the Guild and while a few stayed, the majority left to join the new Guild. It was harsh, but it was a good thing.

Now I'm wondering about what to do. I've played Brack for as long as I've had the game and even though I've come to realise that the game is just that - with absolutely no tangible or even intangible rewards (I know there are the in-game rewards, but there's no REAL sense of accomplishment or validation IMO), I do enjoy playing and I hope to keep it as a hobby.

So, for me at this stage I'm thinking about changing server. I've deleted all my Alliance toons except for Brack and I am not really interested in staying on Nagrand.

Does anyone have any suggestions for this disillusioned warrior?

I think I also need to change the theme of this blog. It needs less black I think.

Reputation matters

I don't like to player bash. I'm not the most l33t player there is and I can respect all players that are better than me. I also have plenty of time for players who are still learning and getting comfortable with their toons and game.

Today though, I'm going to let loose that part of me that takes sick pride in kneecapping idiots.

Yesterday I was reminded why I hate PuG'ing.

We've had a few new guildies join us lately which is awesome. So when one of our guildies asked if anyone would be up for the daily heroic - Utgarde Keep I put my hand up to tank. One of our new guildies was also coming with us and in the end we were 4 guildies and 1 PuG healer.

Now I don't really follow Guild rep myself. I believe in giving every guild a chance to show who they are not by their achievements (which I DO completely respect) but mainly by the way they play.

We'd advertised for a healer. We got a guy called Megahealzor, a Paladin from a Guild called Supernova. I'd never heard of Supernova and Megahealzor immediately tarnished both his own and his Guild's reputation for me.

A couple of Guildies had whispered that Supernova is a Guild full of egocentric kids and Megahealzor ceratinly seemed to fit that mould perfectly. As soon as he was in the group he was talking about himself. He was saying that he was glad there were no plate DPS players in the group as he wanted to get his hands on the Staggering Legplates. I didn't mind because I am a tank and I already have them. Then he proceeded to tell us that he would love to link his tanking gear, but it's in the bank. Poor us, not being able to benefit from knowing what a healer's tanking set is like..

Things just got better as we started.

So we're on the first pull and I'm tanking away, and suddenly the ground beneath me glows with the holy fire of consecration. "That's odd," I thought to myself as my health began to slip..

Suddenly the group on the other side of the corridor was interested in getting a piece of us! We killed half of them before they took us down, thanks to our DPS'ing healer.

Naturally he was the first to complain. Apparently he's been level 80 for three months and has NEVER wiped in a heroic before. We just shrug it off and get back into it. It happens. Although by now I'm watching him VERY carefully because he doesn't seem to be doing his job.

A few pulls and too many flashing red screen edges later I have to ask him - " Mega, are you healing or DPS'ing?"

To which he replies "lol both"

At this point the white hot rage is at eyeball level but I calmly respond "Well, can you please choose one?"

He seems to choose healing..

We work our way to the first boss's chamber and we do the four pull. Three go down and on the last one we manage to somehow trigger the boss. Naturally I run to pick him up and keep everyone on me but we wipe again, at which point Megahealzor promptly spits his dummy.

With a simple "Well, 2 wipes b4 the 1st boss is enough for me" he leaves the group. Ah, youthful tenacity.

We got another healer and completed the run very successfully.

Unfortunately I will never give anyone from Supernova a chance now. Thanks to Megahealzor, a tool of a Paladin who never lived up to his name.

As a player who has been level 80 since shortly after WotLK was released and having been a 70 for a long time as well, I still understand that people may not yet be fully at ease with their toons. I will, even in a PuG, endure countless wipes because I believe in hanging in there. Back in BC I, like many others no doubt, once had a session in Slabs that lasted over 6 hours. Even when I get totally frustrated, I will persevere. Not just for myself, but for the 4 or more others in there persevering right beside me. To me it's about the final success, not the ease by which you get the gear.

More on track here, people's actions in PuGs are VERY important. Just because your guild might clear heroic Naxx during their lunch-hour doesn't give you the right to be an ass. If you've never had anything go wrong in your gaming life, I pity you more than anyone else because you never learned how to cope or to use the experience. Most players know that their actions in a PuG reflect not only on themselves but on their Guild. Later on in Guild chat a few people replied that Mega's behaviour is apparently standard for members of Supernova. It's a shame that those people who are arrogant and egocentric will never realise that they are damaging themselves and their guild far more than anyone else ever could.

Big bad Thadd

My Guild rocks.

We're not hardcore raiders. We play to enjoy the game and while we do have our moments of doubt, tension and frustration we know how to get our game on.

So last night we hit up Naxx again after a very successful weekend of raiding. At the moment we're progressing steadily, time is our only real problem. We're clearing 8 or 9 bosses in 2 sessions since making the decision to have a dedicated team of raiders until we clear Naxx, rather than trying to rotate DPS and using whoever was available to make a team.

Part of our dedicated team is an ex-guildie who joined one of the most successful raiding Guilds on our server. He's seen pretty much everything and his experience has helped us to no end. This weekend we've achieved a couple of firsts, downing new bosses with comparable ease and last night we cleared the Construct Quarter!

On Sunday night we had a couple of shots at Gluth before we called the raid due to the late hour. Last night that was where we started and the big dog tasted Ex Aequo death instead of zombie chow. I'll admit now that I quite like that dog. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but that steel jaw of his is pretty cool!

For me this was all new ground. I'd watched the videos but it's never the same as stepping pixelated foot into the area. We moved forward and cleared the few mobs that tried to stand between us and Thaddius and in short order we were standing across the room from him, preparing to down his "guardians".

Our seasoned veteran went over the strategy again for us. He's the kind of guy who readily steps up and lets everyone know what to do. His approach can easily be mistaken as authoritarian, but he's just trying to give the team the greatest chance at success, even if he doesn't put things as delicately as some might like.

So we lined up our DPS, healers and tanks and took on Feuren and Stalagg. Now Ex Aequo has a history for not being the most co-ordinated bunch of raiders. I remember a few occasions where we fought Romulo and Juliann for nigh on 15 minutes. But these two behemoths were almost too easy for us.

Thaddius himself was a bit of a pain, although the greatest issue was quickly identified as some kind of lag-monster that devoured our hunter Grimace. Without him on board we were down one DPS’er and in this fight it wasn’t really something that we could get through – or was it?

With Grim battling the lag beast we determined to press on without replacing him – like everyone in our Guild, we prefer to stick with original members as long as possible before sub’ing. It’s because we like to finish together what we started together. So we carried on with Grim there – and not there, and after two wipes on Thadd, the third time was a charm. The monstrosity fell to our overwhelming power and we completed the clear of our third quarter of Naxx!!

-[ There is a screenshot of us and Thaddius. I will post it as soon as I edit it. I just didn’t get a shot of the Achievement going off :( ]-

A quiet night on the front (or - My reply to Fri's tag!)

The cold wind bit through his woollens, and Brackarn moved a little closer to the bonfire. Night watch at the Argent Vanguard was rarely exciting, and this was much like every other night. As he rubbed his hands in the warmth of the fire, Brackarn noticed the thick canvas flap of a nearby tent open and a young man came strolling out into the dark."The man strode casually towards the fire, eager to warm himself and as he stopped close, he started chatting.

"Hail good sir, I have not seen you in the camp before. Are you new here?" the young man began, smiling at Brackarn as he awaited an answer.

"I have been here once or twice before, I am Brackarn Santhor and I hail from the Arathi Highlands."

-[Brack's name is originally from my days as a MUD'er! I can't remember how I came up with the name, but he's been with me in one form or another for the past 12 years]-

"Ah, well you are far from home then! I myself hail from Dalaran. Mykel's the name and it's a pleasure to meet you. You look like a man with experience; tell me, if you don't mind my asking, how many years have you been with the military? You will have missed a few birthdays serving in Northrend."

Sighing in rememberance of the years that had passed since he was last home, Brackarn nodded. "Indeed I have missed a few Mykel. I will be twenty-seven this year, three weeks before the Feast of Winter Veil."

Mykel shuffled his feet a little to keep the blood flowing through his legs.

"And have you left someone behind Brackarn? Is there a wife or lover you hope to return to when your time here is done?"

"Ah Mykel, such a common question amongst the men and women who are far from the comfort of their own homes and the love of their families. In answer to your question, I do not have such a blessing in my life. Instead I carry with me a memory of something that I had once, and doubt I shall ever have again. She saved my life in more ways than one, although she never saw me in the same light as I saw her."

Laughing nervously, Mykel changed the subject knowing that to pursue details was futile and, more importantly, disrespectful.

"So, out here in the wilds it pays to have a strong steed to bear you into battle. I've seen pretty much everything, from Elekks to those gnomish mechanostriders! Do you have a mount that you prefer Brackarn?"

Brackarn tossed another log onto the fire and hot embers danced up into the sky. "On the ground I cannot go past my steed Bellarion. He is a fine warhorse, bred for battle and between you and me he possesses a skill and intellect that some find disconcerting. In the air I will ride my gryphon Arturus if ever I can choose it."

"I see. Well at least the food they give us out here is reasonable. Mind you, it's no baked manta ray is it?!"

Brackarn laughed aloud. "Well Mykel, if they let me near the mess I'll cook you up a batch of Worg tartare that will put hair on your chest! It's a specialty of mine, and one of my favourite dishes. If you haven't tried it before I suggest you do so when you can!"

With a smile and a nod Mykel looked around the camp. All was quiet except for the odd rumble of thunder in the hills to the north.

"So, have you ever been to Zangarmarsh in your travels Brackarn? I was there once helping the Cenarion Expedition deal with a nasty Naga infestation and I have never seen such enormous mushrooms! Have you seen them? How do you think they ever got that gigantic?!"

"I have been through Zangarmarsh myself, it seems that the Naga seek to take over the area. Why I'll never really understand, but those mushrooms are quite a sight to behold! How they got that large I don't think I'll ever know for sure, but with all the strange spores floating around the place, no doubt some of them have mutated or reacted with the water to cause such an amazing growth."

Stretching his hands above his head, Mykel yawned and hugged himself to ward off the cold.

"Well my friend, I'm goung to get back down on my cot for the night. Take care of yourself out here, we are on the Lich King's doorstep. On the crazy chance that he happened to wander this far from his icy throne, what would you do? I'll leave you with that thought and will certainly see you at breakfast in the morning. Sleep well Brackarn, your watch will be over soon."

"Goodnight Mykel, the conversation has been a pleasure. I'll see you in the mess tomorrow."

Turning back to the fire, Brackarn thought to himself as he surveyed the night for signs of attack.

"If the Lich King came down here Mykel, I would give my last breath to defeat him if I could. That I swear."

The 6th(s)

Ok, so I've been tagged by Fri and for anyone who isn't aware of this little pass-around, the rules are very simple.

All you have to do is dig into the 6th folder in your WoW screenshots folder, grab the 6th shot and post it up. If you don't have at least 6 folders, grab the 6th shot in the folder that comes closest to being the 6th.

My case is a little special. And a little sad too. A couple of weeks ago my PC suffered every gamer/PC user's nightmare. A power surge managed to sneak past my Eaton Powerware 3105 UPS/Surge protector and shock the life out of my computer.

Long story short - I got a new PC. And a new surge protector. So here's my one and only screenshot, for your enjoyment:


I'm a bit sad that I haven't been able to get an older screenshot to add. It would've been nice to reminisce about times spent in Hillsbrad or Stranglethorn Vale. Ah well, onwards and upwards!

Now given that I'm only following a few blogs at the moment, everyone I could think to tag has already been tagged! So I'll leave that part out for now, and maybe in the future I'll bust out my tagging mitt when I make a few more acquaintances!

Lunar Festival, achievements and other madness

I'm an Achievement hound. I'm not chasing them all down in a mad rush, but I want to achieve as many of those little golden messages of recognition as possible because I'm a completist.

So on the day Lunar Festival began I went absolutely nuts running from one side of Azeroth to the other, ducking in and out of dungeons and breathing fireworks in a crazed frenzy to meet every Elder around. I haven't yet done all the Northrend Dungeons but mark my words I will!

I also took the time to become Loremaster of Kalimdor, something that on its own was quite a feat for this child of the Arathi Highlands. Brack rarely set foot on Kalimdor soil during his growth, but he ever so slowly made his way across the continent helping everyone who needed it and now there are only two zones in Northrend that he needs to finish before being known as Loremaster Brackarn. I'm really looking forward to that!

I personally think that the Achievement system Blizz has introduced is a pretty good one. It gives everyone new things to do and additional goals - not just those level 80s who are yawning at the thought of running down Heroic Naxx or wherever again.

From simple things like showing some love to the local fauna, catching 25 fish or just purchasing your Guild Tabard to accomplishing the most amazing feats like clearing Heroic Naxx within one reset timer AND losing not a single body in the process, everyone has something more to do to add a little spice to the questing grind.

It seems to me that the Achievement system has added a new dimension to the game. I'm on a PvE server and the number of raids from both factions has increased I would say almost exponentially since the Achievements came out. It's good in a way because it encourages a bit more adventure - dare I say it even a bit more "realism" by having the two factions seemingly falling into their "natural state" of tenuous and strained treaty. On a PvP server this is obviously much more the status quo, but on PvE the difference is a bit more noticeable. I'm no good at PvP, never have been and never will be, but even I have enjoyed the exhilaration of racing through Orgrimmar on my armoured horse, finding a hidden spot in the Valley of Honor to fish up Old Crafty before a passing Blood Elf, Tauren, Orc, Troll or Undead looks at me and realises that "Hey, that's a HUMAN fishin' from our pond!"

So I'm looking forward to completing more Achievements in the future. It's good to have them there as an extra incentive to go somewhere and do something. Since the 3.0.8 patch I've got new bunnies to love, new bugs to squash and there's always the more traditional Dungeon Achievements!

This weekend just gone members of our Guild gained the Achievement for clearing the Arachnid Quarter on Normal Naxx. I'll post something about that later on, I have a couple of screenshots to add but I'm so very proud of everyone who was there! Very well done!!! :D