Petoholics Anonymous

Lame update title because I can’t think of anything funny

// February 2nd, 2010 // 3 Comments » // Hunters and Pets, Non-hunters, Random Stuff

My updates have been a little…lacking, so here’s a summary of all the things that have been happening.

On Saturday, we had our memorial for Vinny. Over 25 people showed up at the Shrine of the Fallen Warrior in the Barrens and we spent a couple hours recounting stories about him and giving a “KungalooooOOOOooooOOOooosh” salute. It was very nice.

My shammy Zulrea is level 78 as we speak, as well as Kazi’s warlock Basia. A destruction warlock and an elemental shaman are a scary combination. We keep lamenting about how we can only get 2 spells off each before a mob dies. >.> On that note, having Lava Burst always crit is awesome. Also, she dropped skinning and took up inscription…partially because I wanted a scribe and partially because Basia is a tailor/enchanter. So Kazi gets all my weapon/armor vellums.

Saraku is finally exalted with Netherwing (with much help provided by Kazi searching for eggs). So now he can transform back to his original drake form in character. Still working on Crusader dailies with him but not with much enthusiasm. He also has his complete T9 tanking set. I started getting his T9 healing set together but then I found out that I like healing on Zulrea better anyways.

Niqo has 4 pieces of T9, the Orca-Hunter’s Harpoon, the Felglacier Bolter, the Pauldrons of the Devourer,  the Crusader’s Dragonscale Bracers (a Christmas gift from Kazi), and the Recovered Scarlet Onslaught Cape. In short…she looks like just about every other hunter who’s done a ton of randoms. I’m quite satisfied about my 3.7-4k dps with a BM spec in heroics, with it spiking on the bosses when I pop my cooldowns and trinkets. Also, the redesigned Misdirect + Volley is sooooo nice. It really helped tanks in H-HoR before they nerfed the damage. Oh, and she got her “the Patient” title which is quite suitable for her RP-wise.

I rolled a fury warrior called Tuyok who now is level 25 and has 4 pieces of heirloom gear equipped. In character, he is Mysthowl’s and Niqora’s adoptive teenage son and his full first name is Issorartuyok. Try saying that five times fast. It’s the Inuit word for “leader dog”. He’s pretty much the character that I play solo when I’m not doing something with the people of BR.

Kazi and I have been talking about what characters we’re going to roll when Cataclysm comes out. I’m going to roll a worgen druid to be paired with his worgen hunter (with a wolf pet of course!) and a goblin hunter with his goblin priest/mage. We decided to reserve our names and because my 10 character slots on Wyrmrest Accord where already taken…I needed to clear up two spots. The first one to go was Fawnel, my tauren druid who wasn’t getting played anyway. My hope is that the worgen will have some sort of wolf-like cat form which will help me enjoy playing a druid more. Choosing the second character to delete was tough but I finally settled on Brighit, my draenei hunter. I play her even less than Fawnel and once I do start playing a little bit on Alliance side with the expansion, my focus is going to be solely on my druid. So it was hard to let her go but at least I’ll be making a goblin hunter, right? Right? >.> I’m currently debating between a raptor or a bear for her. I do love raptors and they have similar personalities to goblins. On the other hand, a giant bear with tons of explosives strapped to it does make a rather intimidating and funny image. Have I mentioned that the goblin is going to be half out of her mind?

Bloodriver as a guild is working on making our way through Ulduar and we’ve dipped our toes in TotC and Onyxia. We’ve come up to Freya on our last Ulduar run and we haven’t tried to get Ony down again since 3.3.0 came out. So I think that next time we go in there, we’ll be able to take her down. We also have a sister guild on Alliance side called Obsidian Phoenix that is slowly filling up with people who have Ally characters. That’s where our worgens will find their home.

And last but not least…I got a Logitech G11 keyboard. The blue LED lights are so very pretty and shiny. Plus the macro keys have given me a noticeable improvement in Niqo’s dps. I’d be completely pleased with it if the keys didn’t seem to randomly stop working when I switch characters (I blame the program, not the keyboard itself).

Patch 3.3.2 is all loaded up and I’m eager to get home for work and see what new things await for me. I heard there’s been a buff for elemental shamans.

Now hopefully my next update will come before Cataclysm is released. >.>

Tauren paladins: More thoughts on Cataclysm

// September 18th, 2009 // 14 Comments » // Non-hunters, Roleplay

Better late than never, am I right?

So over the past couple of weeks, I’ve had time to think about all I’ve heard about the next expansion. No, I don’t have any juicy new rumors to leak out to everyone. All I have are my opinions on the new content.

One that seems to have caused the most controversy is the new race/class combinations. Now gnome priests and dwarf shamans don’t seem to be that outrageous to a good number of people…but the very mention of “tauren paladins” seem to make everyone foam at the mouth. They cry out “lore rape” and that Blizzard has gone too far and whip themselves up into a frenzy.

I’d have to disagree. It makes perfect sense to me. Here’s my reasoning.

One thing people have pointed out is that taurens have never been paladins, hence the lore rape. But Blizzard isn’t going back and changing the lore to say “Hey, we found this rogue group of tauren paladins in Tanaris and they’ve come to join the Horde.” No, what’s happening here is that tauren culture is evolving. Think about it. After being isolated for who knows how many centuries on Azeroth (with only the centaur to interact with, and fight for that matter), in the last five years or so they have allied themselves with 4 other races and have found their possible ancestors (the Taunka) in Northrend. Any interaction with a new race and culture is bound to change anyone’s views on life.

I’m not saying that the tauren have turned their backs on what they’ve always believed in. They are not the type of people to do that. Nor are they like the blood elves, stealing Naaru for their own purposes. But they are a people always seeking balance, like the balance of nature. Now the taurens worship the Earth Mother, who they see as the creator of everything, including them. She is considered a sort of universal consciousness, a multi-faceted gem whose sides represent different elements or parts of nature. She is also seen in the sky. From Wowwiki:

The sun (An’she) and moon (Mu’sha) are her eyes.

Mu’sha, the moon, is often associated with the tauren druids (Moonglade, moonkin, the night elf druids worshipping Elune, etc.). An’she on the other hand seems to be missing from the various tauren classes. The aspect of the sun is missing from tauren culture. Don’t believe me? If you have a Horde character, travel to Elder Rise in Thunder Bluff and look for Tahu Sagewind and Aponi Brightmane. If you don’t have a Horde character, here is the conversation they have (P.S. the An Injured Colleague quests leads you to this pair as well):

Aponi Brightmane says: I see that thoughtful frown, Tahu.
Tahu Sagewind says: Sorry, sister. It’s nothing to worry about.
Aponi Brightmane says: But something is on your mind, right?
Tahu Sagewind says: I’m thinking about the front to the north. The one you’re so eager to return to.
Aponi Brightmane says: What about it?
Tahu Sagewind says: I know I’m counseling patience, Aponi, but I don’t like remaining here any more than you do. Times are bleak, and failing to act only makes me worry that my idle hand may have been the one to turn the tide.
Aponi Brightmane says: Talk to me, Tahu. Something. Anything! I’m going stir-crazy.
Tahu Sagewind laughs softly.
Tahu Sagewind says: All right, Aponi. I’ve enough on my mind to share. Have you ever spoken to the elves of Moonglade?
Aponi Brightmane says: Not much.
Tahu Sagewind says: The elves speak of a moon goddess, did you know? They put great stock in the light given by the moon.
Aponi Brightmane says: Like Mu’sha.
Tahu Sagewind says: Just like her. The parallels I’ve heard are interesting. And it’s no secret all druids, Shu’halo and elf alike, can call upon Mu’sha’s light.
Aponi Brightmane says: Where are you going with this?
Tahu Sagewind says: I wonder. Hamuul has guided us well, and I’ve learned so much from him. The legends say that our people were druids when time began…
Aponi Brightmane says: I hear the “but” in your voice…
Tahu Sagewind says: …but what Hamuul teaches is what the elves know. The night elves. They put such stock in their moon goddess, as creatures of the night.
Aponi Brightmane says: Do you think his teachings are wrong?
Tahu Sagewind says: No! No, nothing like that. He is an elder for good reason, sister. Mu’sha is one of the Earthmother’s eyes, and she watches over us. That isn’t sinister.
Tahu Sagewind says: But we’re nothing if not people who strive for balance. Our warriors fight only when there is need. Our hunters take only what the tribes require to live, and use all they can when they do. The shaman stand as guide and mediator to the elemental spirits.
Tahu Sagewind says: And while we, as druids, are guardians of nature, I wonder if we’ve overlooked a key aspect of balance in all things.
Aponi Brightmane says: So are you going to bring this up to the elder?
Tahu Sagewind says: No, no. No need for him to trouble about a student’s idle philosophizing while he entertains a friend.
Aponi Brightmane says: I suppose so. It’s not silly, though, what you said.
Tahu Sagewind says: Well, it isn’t exactly a new thought, sister.

During this conversation, Tahu summons images of first the moon, then the sun, overlaping them in an eclipse. I believe he has a very valid point. An’she has been overlooked and it’s time to change that. As he says, it’s not a new thought and has probably been in the back of some taurens minds for a long time. And now that the tauren have seen and fought beside the blood elf paladins, why not incorporate that into their lives in their own way?

I’ve heard some argue that paladins use holy energy, which makes a lot of people think of churches and crosses. I’m not going to delve into a religious debate but let’s just say that “holy” is a matter of perception. Taurens believe that the world around them is sacred, and part of that world is the sun. Why would that aspect not give them “holy” power in the form of light? Isn’t that what paladins really are, warriors of the Light?

So as you can see, in my mind tauren paladins are certainly not a stretch, but merely a progression of culture and ideas coming to life. I’d say that it’s about time that they’ve discovered that there was a imbalance in their lives.

Still a petoholic at heart

// June 15th, 2009 // No Comments » // Gripe, Hunters and Pets, Non-hunters

This blog has been somewhat neglected, not due to the fact that I’m abandoning it (obviously because I’m writing a post up right now…) but because I haven’t have the inclination to make a post about anything. I think it’s partially because I feel the need to make these HUGE posts instead of just short little ones with just one update at a time. I really have to get out of that mentality.

Surprisingly, other than Niqora I haven’t really been playing my hunters. Instead I’ve been leveling my little dragonling pally Saraku. He’s level 36 now, running around and completing quests in Desolace on top of his handsome charger. I gotta say, it feels sooooo much better to have a mount (although I’d still kill for a flying mount, I’m spoiled that way). He’s coming along quite nicely as a tank. I’m still learning the class (but we never really stop learning, do we?) so something I’ll forget things like turning OFF Righteous Fury when I’m not the tank. They still keep bugging me about that one.

Niqora has now got all the Horde faction titles from the Argent Tournament. Only “Crusader” remains for her to get so I’m still doing the Champion dailies. She already has her Staff of Feral Furies and I’m undecided what to spend the rest of the Champion’s Seals on. Knowing me, probably some mounts. >.> I finally started doing Hodir dailies so I can get the mining bag LW pattern and my shoulder enchant. So far I’m only honoured though. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong but I seem to be incapable of completing Thrusting Hodir’s Spear (although the inneundo still makes me chuckle ). I’ve been able to get into a couple Naxx runs…and I’ve discovered that I don’t have much patience with them. There aren’t enough people from Bloodriver for us to form our own raid so we’ve formed a raid alliance with a couple other guilds. Being the shy person I am, I’m not able to really get into the conversation with these people I don’t know too well. Couple that with THE longest boss fight explanations in the world…I have patience for a lot of things, these raids aren’t one of them. Not 4-5 hours worth anyways.

I did have a blast last night when we got a group together to run some regular Northrend dungeons to help level some guildies. We did 2 Violet Holds and a Gundrak with a 77 DK tank (who wasn’t def-capped) and a 74 priest healer. No wipes to speak of and the one time the tank did die in VH, myself and another 80 hunter were able to pick up the trash mobs and pet-tank them until the priest could rez. In that kind of group, where we can joke around and really feel like we’re working together, that is what I love. When we got a VH boss that none of us knew the strategy to, we just winged it. And what do you know, he was down in about 3 minutes. Now that is some good fun.

I briefly mentioned my troll DK Githinji previously. He’s gone. Kaput, nixed, deleted, etc. Honestly I was not playing him at all and he was such a depressing character that I was getting depressed just playing him. So I stripped him down, gave away/sold all his stuff, and then he said a few last words over guild chat before impaling himself on his own sword (Like I said, very emo). He has already been replaced by…another hunter. >.> Actually a remake of Machalor, since I’ve been itching for some time now to have a hunter with hyena pets. I’ve decided that RP-wise, she will be very harsh and battle-oriented character, which is very different from my other characters. But with a name derived from Macha and Balor, it’s to be expected really. War is in her blood.

And for my last character update, I created a little druid to level with my brother through the Refer-A-Friend program. For some reason, the idea of playing a druid appeals to me but when I actually do play her, I feel…meh. I don’t know why, flexibility always appealed to me before. Only time will tell if I end up keeping her around.

Time for some linkbacks

// April 8th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // Random Stuff

I really do have the worst memory. For example, a classmate asked me what I did two Fridays ago after school. For the life of me, I cannot remember. That entire evening is gone from my brain. Anyways, here’s some blog links that I’ve been forgetting about until now…

Mama Druid – She’s been sitting there on my blogroll for quite a while and it’s about time she got a callout

World of Matticus – He needs no introduction…because everyone knows him already

Random Ravings of Warcraft – Random ravings of any kind are always good

Legends of the Beast – I may not be on the “Lengenday Hunters” short list today but one day…one day…

A Little WoW for Me – Congrats on your own domain name

Is it that obvious?

// March 12th, 2008 // 1 Comment » // Hunters and Pets, Random Stuff

While I was going through my 600-something new items in my Google Reader (see what happens when I go away for a while?) and I came across Pike’s You Know Your Main Is A Hunter When…

It was very amusing, and very true. I feel uncomfortable if the mob gets too close. And what do you mean imps can’t take all those hits? Isn’t it suppose to tank for me? More than once I’ve panicked because I suddenly couldn’t find ant of my up-the-sleeve tricks like Feign Death and freezing trap and OMGIAMDEAD Oh, do I ever miss tracking when I don’t have it. And yes, I do try to compensate by learning herbalism or mining but it’s just not the same. I feel sad and jealous when I see other hunters gallivanting around with their pets and I’m not. And good lord, does it ever bother me when I see a hunter who melees on purpose, doesn’t have a pet, and/or doesn’t feed or teach new skills to their pet.

Of course, this works both ways. As evidence I bring forward the time where I was playing a little druid and Bursthoof was playing a little hunter and we were questing together. It was interesting to watch us play each other’s favorite classes…

Me: What rank of Bite does your wolf have?…What do you mean you don’t know?…Send in your pet first…for pete’s sakes, manage your shots so you don’t take aggro from your pet…DON’T RUN IN THERE AND MELEE IT!
Bursthoof: Hey, you need to buff me again…No, that buff can only be used on you…Spam Moonfire dangit…Heal…HEAL!
Me: What?!
Bursthoof: You’re a druid, you can heal yourself…and me!
Me: …oh yeah. Which is the better healing spell again?