Ragnaros, Big Fiery Dude (from wowwiki.com)

So this weekend, my raid group headed back into the Firelands. We were on Alysrazor from last time and it only took a new tries to get her down, with surprisingly few deaths. For us, killing a boss is a win. Killing a boss with everyone still alive is a \o/ MAJOR WIN \o/. I quite enjoy that fight because it’s interesting and kind of challenging at the same time. Plus if our mage is having technical difficulties (or dies yet again), I get to fly around and pew pew the big fiery bird. >.>

Then it was back to Lord RNGolith, which made everyone groan. There was a wipe on the gauntlet on the way to him because we wouldn’t be Bloodriver if we didn’t wipe on trash about as often as we wipe on bosses. Once our tank (who had never tanked this before) figured out the best way to pick up adds and how to place them, the big guy went down fairly fast and easily. I can only hope that we will never ever have to kill him again.

Majordomo Staghelm was up next, which was exciting because he was the second last boss and hey, what Hordie doesn’t love the sound of a dying night elf? It took us only one wipe to fully understand the strategy, with the problem being too many people running out at once to deal with Burning Seeds and making him shift back to cat form before we were ready. Our second attempt had him dead. It…was almost disappointingly easy.

I forget the name of that trash mob on the way to Ragnaros, the one that summons random sections of lava on the walkway. Either way, we sucked at that dance, except for Kazi on his blood DK who ended up soloing him for most of the fight. Got to love those self-heals.

Anyways, we eventually got through and standing before us was Ragnaros. As someone who has run Molten Core many, MANY times in an effort to help Kazi get the Sulfuras lengendary (which he still hasn’t been able to finish by the way), I hate this guy. I really do. And meeting him again in the Firelands has not changed that opinion.

We managed to make it to the first transition phase once but for the most part, we’re still have problems in the first phase. Our melee seems to enjoy either being squished by the giant hammer or dying to the subsequent waves from it. It’s a work in progress in other words.

Oh yeah, our rogue pointed out that with his hair/horns/? like that, he looked like Dee Dee from Dexter’s Lab.

WHAT IS SEEN CANNOT BE UNSEEN!

Anyways, let me start at the beginning. I began by scraping most of the requirements that I had listed previously and wrote up a simple macro to spam in General chat.

Want to raid but don’t want to leave your non-raiding guild? Tired of PUGs and want to raid at the same time every week? I’m putting together a regular raid group for people who want to have crazy fun while killing big bad bosses. PST for more info

I was actually surprised by the turn out that I got. After using it irregularly for only two weekday evenings and a Saturday, I got 7 people who were interested in the idea as well as the weekend raiding times. So I set up the first raid for that Sunday and between them and my guild, I had 16 confirmed players.

We ended up clearly all but Chimaeron and Nef in BWD on the first time. I had to sheepishly admit over Mumble that I hadn’t read the strats for half of the bosses because I didn’t want to go in with high expectations in case we failed, so I had assumed we wouldn’t get this far this fast.

Chimaeron proved to be a thorn in our side as it took us 3 raid nights to get him down. But every night everyone agreed that they wanted me to carry over the raid lockout so we could make our attempts again and again. It was a relief for everyone to finally see him die.

It was still early in the night and everyone was in high spirits so we continued onto Nef. This also took us several tries for several reasons: switching which tank goes on which boss (hey, maybe a pally would be better for Ony since she has a shadow debuff!), switching out players because my healer fell asleep mid-pull (WTF?), a tank learning that you need to constantly be moving when kiting the adds on phase 3 (oops, my bad), etc. Because of the player switches, I ended up bring Saraku to tank, which I was perfectly happy with because Niqora had already gotten the achievement anyways.

Each time we were making progress though, until he finally keeled over and gave up his dragon-flavored loot. Which was a good thing too because Kazi (who had been healing me) had died and I was out of cooldowns. I <3 Kazi’s shammy heals. Plus I think he died because I dragged us through Nef’s flame breath but THAT’S BESIDES THE POINT.

We have killed the dragon! ...Again. Was Blackwing Lair merely a setback?

So now that BWD is done and over with, we’ll be continuing to BoT this weekend and see how far we get. I suppose it’s back to reading strats for me.

Things that I’ve learned from this:

• MS/OS/Greed rolls are the way to go. If only the items that dropped were useful for anyone. (Cloth drops when we have a single mage who’s geared to the teeth. Why, RNG?)
• Generally I’m pretty open with varied strategies but sometimes I need to set my foot down. On Chimaeron, I was originally going to go with a Break tank and an offtank that takes the Double Attacks. The tanks didn’t like this idea because of all the taunting and wanted to try taking 4 breaks/switching or taking 1 break/switching. That didn’t work out so well because the tanks kept dying. >.< Eventually I insisted on my strat and it worked out. Not to say I R RAID LEADER, I IS ALWAYS RITE because lord knows 9 heads can be better than 1.
• I can’t multitask. Or at least not very well. Trying to call out when to taunt on Chimaeron, calling out when to collapse for System Failure, and dpsing at the same time does not work. I have to let others take responsibility sometimes.
• Everyone will be whispering me when it comes to raid invites. EVERYONE.
• I’m expected to know everything about every encounter, including trash. What, do I look like some sort of leader to you people? >.> Unfortunately with my poor memory, it’s impossible for me to retain all the information I just read and we will be essentially winging it the first time. Once I know how to “do by doing”, life gets a lot easier.
• I’ve never been nitpicky over talents and gear, and I will generally bring anyone who wants to fill a slot. However, I have found some limits. A death knight tanking in all PvP gear? Sorry, no. A warrior tank alt in blue gear because “this character could actually use the upgrades”? Also no. Maybe it seems callous and I shouldn’t be picky but what I’m worried about here is the fun AND success of the raid as a whole. Wiping over and over again because of bad gear is not going to get us anywhere.
• You can find some freaking awesome people this way. There’s a healer who insisted at the beginning that she wasn’t geared enough and should probably be replaced, but she has been fantastic at her job and a pleasure to play with. She has also signed up and shown up on time for every raid so far. I want to keep her forever.
• Our mage refuses to die, even when I order him to just wipe it. Except when he’s kiting adds, then he dies all the time! (Still love you, Keys.)

Things that I still need to work on:

• I may need to get better at scheduling regular breaks and making sure people know that there shouldn’t be AFKs in between. Or I at least need to get people to TELL me when they’re going AFK. Seriously, is it too hard to type “brb bio” or “brb baby”?
• WHY U NO TELL ME THAT UR SO TIRED, UR FALLING ASLEEP MID COMBAT?
• Getting some folks to sign and be on time is still a bit of a trial. :-/ Unfortunately (or fortunately), I haven’t had any people warming the bench to take their places. At least it hasn’t lead to any drama yet.
• It can be really hard at times to keep everyone’s spirits up. What can I do short of breaking out into a comical song about how we should keep trying again and again?
• I’ve had both non-guild and guild members who have signed up multiple times and not showed altogether. I should probably just not invite the non-guild people again but what about the guildies?
• I’ve got to learn a better way of absorbing strats. So far Tankspot videos have not been cutting it.

As a side note, I’ll be participating in NaNoWriMo for the first time ever so I think it’s safe to say that I won’t be posting here much, if at all, in the month of November. Nice to know for once that I’ll be busy ahead of time, eh?

The strangest thing of all was that I had really wanted to play my baby rogue. Yep, I came back because I wanted to play an alt. I’ve barely ended up spending any time on her since, as the rest as been filled with all sorts of other activities on other characters.

I realized how much I missed my characters. When I went on hiatus, I sort of thought of them as taking a break too, that they were world-weary like me. But then I came back and discovered that my quiet, gentle Niqora had become angry and was pacing like a caged animal. She wants to shoot things in the face, particularly Deathwing and Garrosh. Saraku’s gone to new levels of awkwardness. Aroqin is hitting on everything that’s male (okay, that’s not new but it’s happening a lot more often). Niqo’s son Tuyok is growing up, getting stronger and bolder. Here I thought they were all resting peacefully but it turns out that time as been marching by for them as well.

I’d missed the familiar sights and sounds, the music, the lore I know at least marginally well. I missed the crazy roleplaying and the silly jokes. But most of all I had missed my friends and was elated to see that they had missed me as well. It was kinda awkward coming back to the guild I had been a part of for 2 1/2 years and see a bunch of people that I didn’t know. But I think I’ve found my place in it again.

ALL HAIL THE LEADERSHIT

Yep, making immature jokes at the expense of my guildmates (especially the guild leader). But hell, that’s what ALL of our jokes are like and I love it!

So, this is letting everyone know that I’m not dead (yet) and that I’m truly enjoying my play time. And all while still playing Minecraft on the side (ghasts are the bane of my existence).

So let all know that Faeldray has returned and that my new warcry shall echo throughout the halls: FOR THE LEADERSHIT!

As I mentioned before, Kazi flew all the way up to the Great White North to spend his holidays with me. He got to meet my family (which went rather well, there was minimum interrogation) and got his arse kicked at pool by my cousins. Although I didn’t get the chance to take him snowmobiling or sledding, both of which he had never done (such a Southern boy), we had a great time with my family overall and he did get to eat all the Ukrainian food he wanted. For my birthday we went out for a movie and supper with my family, and for New Year’s we went down to Spar Games and played video games with the owner, the owner’s friend, and my brother until late into the night. Oh yes, and pigged out on way too much Chinese food. We probably shouldn’t have ordered 11 dishes for 5 people…in our defense, we were expecting more people to show.

For presents, Kazi bought me a new power supply for my computer, The Shattering and The Zombie Survival Guide books, and the only girly gift of some special hand lotion that I had just been too lazy to get myself. Geeky presents for a geeky girl, and I love him for it.

The rest of the days were mostly spent relaxing: watching movies, playing Munchkin, eating out, those sort of things. We honestly barely touched WoW, as my computer is the only one that can run it reasonably well, which Kazi can attest to from attempted to heal a dungeon on my brother’s computer. It was really sad for him to have to go back home, but in the very least, he could use his own computer again, heh.

Where do I hit level 85? Of course in some musty old tomb surrounded by bugs...

So it’s only been in the past week or so that both of us have really returned to WoW. Niqora is of course level 85 now and through quite a bit of leatherworking/rep grinding and a handful of dungeons, she is geared enough for heroics and has completed a few now with Bloodriver. Her main spec may be BM but for dungeons, she’s usually found in Survival for the better traps and Wyvern Sting to help with CC. It’s become a standard now for her to Camouflage (as I announce over Mumble “I’m the predator, b*tches!”) and begin pulls with a Freezing Trap and a Wyvern Sting if needed. The Lock and Load proc from trapping has led me to plead to our tanks “Can I trap this one pleeeeeease?” Having said that, BM is not without its uses as for two boss fights, I’ve pulled out a tanking pet and have successfully offtanked some adds which have been particularly troublesome (I’m looking at you, High Prophet Barim).

I want to say this about Cata dungeons: I really do appreciate that skill and CC are extremely helpful if not required in a lot of them. It really shows who knows their class and plays them well. But dear lord, do they have to be so long? If I want to do a heroic with my guildies, it should not take us 4 HOURS like it did one night. Most of the dungeons take us at least 1 hour, usually 2 or 3 depending on the difficulty. I want to run dungeons but I don’t want to spend a single evening on just one. I believe that’s what’s led me to feeling a little burnt out already on them. Me, who would run Wrath heroics all day for several days in a row.

Another thing that I’ve been grumbling about and I’m sure every leatherworker is doing the same is the distinct lack of good places to farm leather. Unfortunately there is no equivalent of Sholozar Basin in Cata. The best I’ve been able to find is the Cradle of the Ancients in Uldum, at least after they nerfed the stone bats in Deepholm and the tigers in the Lost City.

Between farming leather, dungeons, and questing with Kazi the rest of the time, I am honestly feeling a little burnt out on Niqo at the moment. I’m sure it doesn’t help that all this work was to make sure Niqo was raid ready, only to hear that half of our raid time will be absent for one reason or another and so it might be a while before we actually raid. I understand the reasons behind all these breaks but it leaves me a little crestfallen, you know?

So as such, it looks like Niqo will be moving at a slower pace now, leaving more time for alts that have been poorly neglected. I’ve also had an odd hankering for some RP lately, something I haven’t really felt strongly since Bloodriver began raiding in earnest in Wrath. Like a guildie pointed out, it was probably because raiding just took up so much time and effort. So now I’ll just have to try and shift my focus a little off raiding until we can get everyone back in, and onto RP and alts. Not that I can really complain about something like that.

With any luck, in a couple days you’ll see Kazi post a new RP story I know he’s been working on. From what I’ve seen, it’ll turn out to be another excellent piece from him. I’ll try to keep things more up-to-date here (as I always loosely promise with no real changes ) and if I can find the time, I’m going to try and wrap my head about the events of The Shattering and find Niqo’s and Saraku’s place within it.

Until next time, happy hunting, folks!

As of the Shattering, Kazi and I took full advantage of the new race/class combinations and rolled a bunch of alts. I now have a new tauren priest (who ICly is Anuniaq 2.0) who is being protected by Kazi’s new tauren prot paladin. I kind of scoffed originally at the tauren pallies’ racial mounts but I find now that they’re growing on me more, the level 20 ones more so than the level 40 ones. After some half-hearted grumbling, Kazi convinced me to try out smite healing on my disco priest and I have to say…I thought healing was interesting before, smite healing makes it even more fun! And more amusingly, I’m often 2nd or 3rd on the DPS meters thanks to heirlooms and spam-smiting.

I also rolled a troll rogue (after a failed troll druid who only made it to level 5) to go with Kazi’s orc mage, only to decide I want an orc warrior instead to instance tank. So the group then evolved into my warrior, Kazi’s mage, and one of our friends who we managed to convince to finally make an alt,  so he created a troll priest to heal our sorry arses.

Saraku has joined the ranks of holycows as I switched his race to tauren. There will be some RP stories to come about all of that once I go out and buy The Shattering novel and figure out what the hell happened in the year (or is it 3 years?) since the Cataclysm actually happened. I really do wish they hadn’t glossed over all of it in-game. I feel like I’ve missed whole sections of my characters’ lives, especially Niqora’s.

Once Cataclysm actually came out, I was saddened to find out that my Collector’s Edition preorder was shipped on December 7, instead of arriving on the 7th. Despite me protesting that I’d be fine without it for a couple days, Kazi bought me the digital version and I was able to play that night because of him. What a sweetheart. <3

The first thing I did was buy old world flying and archaeology so I could begin my digging frenzy. Because of Kazi’s work hours, we weren’t able to play until the weekend and we had decided beforehand to quest together on Niqora and Kazimierz. So we spent the work week leapfrogging each other in experience through archaeology/mining/cooking and fishing dailies until the weekend. Then…we quested our hearts out together.

So far we’re just shy of level 84 and have made our way through all of Vash’jir and the majority of Deepholm. The quality of the quests have just floored us and the scenery is completely and utterly amazing. Getting a free seahorse mount is epic. Being able to play as a naga both made us wish that nagas were a playable race. >.> And the cut-scenes in some of the quests are a fantastic idea! Both the zones have just been…wow. And I am eagerly looking forward to seeing the other three. All of our alts will likely be put on the backburner until we’ve at least gotten to level 85.

As a guild, we’ve managed to max out Bloodriver’s leveling every day so far, and we’re not by any means a large guild. Quite a few people are already at level 85, so Kazi and I are hoping to catch up with everyone this weekend and start running dungeons with them to gear up. I’m also really excited to start raiding come January, as we’ll be splitting our raids into casual raids that are open to everyone like before, and progression raids that are made of select members who have proven their skills and who will tackle current content. I am definitely ready to wipe over and over again in the name of progression.

There’s a debate currently going on over which loot system we should use for our progression raids. We’ve been using Suicide Kings in the past and I’ve seen very little complaints about it. However, DKP has been suggested for the progression team and it’s been met by some backlash. It seems that half the members have never been in a raid that used it and the other half that has thinks it’s a horrible idea. I personally have never seen it in use so I’d gladly welcome any comments about DKP here.

As I only plan to get even more preoccupied as the month wears on (including Kazi coming to spend Christmas/my birthday with me! GLEE!), I wouldn’t expect too many updates here. There’s just too much to do and so many things to see right now!

This is my home.

This was not where I was born, or where I live now.

Here is where I grew from a child to a woman.

Where I honed my skills as a hunter and befriended my first beast.

Where I learnt what it meant to be a warrior for my tribe, a protector.

I  have splashed around with my younger sister on a hot day, wearing no more than leather breech clothes and chest bands.

I have rough-housed with other hunter’s beasts, my fur becoming as dun-coloured as the earth beneath us.

I have napped in the shade of a thorntree, my father snoring softly with my mother curled up at his side.

I have spilled blood here, that of my own, my enemies, and my kills.

This land has seen my joy, my sorrow, my fury, my excitement.

This is the land I hold close to my heart.

It enraptures me, ensnares me, refuses to let me truly go.

Wherever I may wander, here is where I always find myself.

I can feel its rhythm from hoof to horn tip, creeping through my blood.

The center of the Earth Mother is in this place for me.

Now the ground shakes with violence, rousing me from my rest in Thunder Bluff.

I cannot explain to my parents why I must go, nor can I to my son Tuyok.

I trust that they understand nonetheless.

But for all my sharp eyes and sensitive ears, I cannot find the source, only the effects.

I think I shall rest here for the night, and hope that tomorrow will make things clearer…

The black Shu’halo dropped the gun as if it were a glowing red coal and scrambled past the centaur corpses to the fallen warrior. She cried out with all her might for help as her hands fluttered around in an attempt to stem the bleeding. But the wounds were too long and deep and the sword was still impaled in the warrior’s body, blood bubbling up around its edges with each wheezed breath the adult Shu’halo took. The young one’s body trembled as she screamed out again for aid, praying and hoping with every drop of her essence that someone, anyone, would hear her.

—

Niqora watched the Lich King’s body clatter to the ground with feeling nothing really more than surprise and a sense of finality. The world around her seemed to fade to mere background noise as her clanmates cheered, ghosts of those fallen spoke, and the ice crackled into being around Bolvar on the throne. In this numbness she vaguely heard herself reassure everyone that she was all right and simply needed some time to herself, Blacky circling around her in agitation the entire time to drive the point home. Suddenly her clanmates were gone and the only living souls remaining on the platform were the hunter, her pet, and Tirion. Both humanoids were lost int their own thoughts and might as well have been on different planets for all they acknowledged each other’s presences.

The wind was still vilely cold this high up but its edge had since disappeared, leaving it feeling almost empty. Niqora’s hoofs felt heavy and rung sharply against the stone as she took the few steps towards the center of her platform. All that remained was the shattered blade of Frostmourne, Arthas’s body having been removed sometime when the Shu’halo had been trapped in her own world. Weariness overcame her and she fell to one knee before the sword, not even daring to touch it. Blacky slowly inched forward to her side, stretching her neck out to sniff the air around the sword tentatively and then pull herself back with a whimper. Niqora’s hand automatically reached out to soothingly stroke the wolf’s fur. Frostmourne shone dully as her own memories of her friends and family slain by the Lich King spilled forth unbiddingly…and it was then that the tears came.

—

The warrior had lived only long enough to bear her child, a healthy little boy with the largest brown eyes. Niqora had overheard her mother talking with another druid later, telling her how the warrior had used all her strength and will to keep herself alive so her child could survive. Upon seeing and hearing the crying baby, she had let herself go knowing she had accomplished her final task, falling still and quiet with a gentle smile on her face.

It was many moons later that Niqora sat with her father before a small fire that snapped in response to the silence of the night. Cain had offered to watch the baby that night and after feeding it some zhera milk, it was now snoring softly in a bundle next to another baby, Niqora’s new sister Anuniaq. Niqora, unable to sleep from nightmares involving the flash of centaur blades, was watching the fire even more quietly, hugging her long legs to her chest.

“Each death diminishes us, Niqo,” her father’s deep voice said softly and smoothly as not to wake the babies. They had been sitting in silence so long that him speaking had surprised Niqora and she whipped her head around to look at him. It was in his eyes that saw sympathy and worry for her and she quickly lowered her gaze.

“That is why we can not live forever, why it is unnatural to,” he continued. “We must kill to eat, we must kill to survive, and we cannot stop others around us from dying as well. Death ages us. It makes our bones weary and our minds addled. But where there is death, there is also life. The beasts of the land feed on the plants and we in turn feed on them. And then one day, we shall grow old or be wounded and join with the Earth Mother, our bodies turning to earth and birthing new plants. The cycle then begins anew, and we can rest peacefully knowing that we will provide for our descendants.”

Niqora could feel his eyes follow her expression as she turned to watch the two sleeping babies. “So the more death we experience, the sooner we will die?” Her words surprised her with their weariness as soon as she spoke them.

She could sense Cain shake his head even though she could not see it. “The Shu’halo are long lived for a reason, my little Niqo, even with all the death we see.” He paused, the snap of burning wood the only sound to fill the gap. When he began to speak again, his voice was so soft, it was almost a whisper. “Honor your ancestors and friends since passed, keep them alive and happy in your memories. Make each kill as quick and as clean as possible, with respect for the life you have taken. Learn to forgive those who have wronged you, and learn to forgive yourself when you must slay to ensure your survival and the survival of your tribe. And then pass these words onto your children, and your children’s children when you are old and frail. It is in these ways that you will walk in the Grace of the Earth Mother. And while death may diminish our bodies still, her Grace will forever keep your spirit alive.”

Cain fell silent as he watched his eldest daughter simply stare at the two bundles beside them. The little boy suddenly yawned and squirmed a little before falling back into peaceful sleep again.

“His name Halruum, what does it mean?” she finally asked in a quiet voice.

Her father smiles softly and reached out to squeeze her shoulder gently. “His mother chose it herself. It means ‘life given’.”

Seeing Niqora blink quickly and hastily turn back to the fire with bright eyes, her father very carefully gathered the two sleeping bundles in his arms as not to wake them and carry them back to their tent. In the morning he would find his daughter sleeping peacefully before a dying fire, not a single nightmare haunting her dreams.

—

These many years later, her father’s words still echoed in Niqora’s head, just as they did now as she swiped her hand across her eyes. Memories of her husband, of other lives cut short at the hands of the Lich king flashed before her, and though they did hurt and weigh down upon her, she could now feel that the load was not as heavy. Only time would help soften the ache of the wounds now but there were other things to consider now. She could recall the dying words of Arthas, the last words of the ghosts, and the exchange between Tirion and Bolvar. She stood slowly without her eyes leaving the broken Frostmourne, though when she spoke, she was not speaking to it at all.

“I forgive you. May you walk now with the Earth Mother.” She closed her eyes and let her head fall a little lower as she whispered, “And I am sorry for what I had to do.”

It was in silence she ascended the stairs to the Lich King’s throne and stood uncontested before Bolvar seated upon it. Blacky tilted her head back and let forth a soulful howl, but Niqora had already said all the words she needed to.

Only the wind blew after that, and not even in response to what had been said. So the hunter and her companion simply left, never once looking back over the frozen platform.

It was so much warmer back in Mulgore that Niqora had to remove many of her fur layers from her armor and cram them into her packs. Blacky’s pink tongue lolled out the side of her mouth, partially from not being used to mild weather and partially from the rather pleasant mood she was in. Together they watched the windmills of Thunderbluff slowly turn in the lazy wind, merely the span of a small valley separating them from the structures. The hunter absentmindedly patted Brakk’s shoulder in thanks, her worg mount jostling a little under her happily.

Somewhere inside the Shu’halo city were Niqora’s mother, father, and younger sister, all of them keeping a watchful eye on her adopted son Tuyok. It was there that her family waited (our family she corrected herself as she glanced down at Blacky and Brakk), anxious for news of her clan’s raid into Icecrown Citadel. A sharp pain in the center of her chest reminded her that her husaband, Mysthowl, would not be there waiting with her and her hands involuntarily clenched Brakk’s reins. Blacky perked her ears towards the Shu’halo and whimpered softly, to which Niqora quietly murmured that she would be all right. She then realized that she truly believed she would be all right.

Keep them alive and happy in your memories. She knew she could never forget him, forget any of them, for as long as she lived. And she would never forget a warrior who had given so much to try and save a group of children not her own, and then give everything for one little baby. But she also knew she had ones who cared for her in Thunderbluff, in her clan, and standing with her at that very moment. Life and death were mere parts of a cycle, arms of a great turning windmill.

“We are home,” she said with a soft smile. “Let’s walk into it with Grace.”

Congratulations to Bloodriver for taking down the Lich King!

We all worked really hard on every fight in there, especially on the Lich King. It was tough sometimes but in the end, we did it! I am particularly thankful for those of you who helped us through the other bosses but couldn’t be there for the LK kill. Don’t worry, we’ll get him again for you guys too.

She straightened up and her muscles ached in retaliation. Despite being still in her prime, the events of the past few weeks had taken their toll on her, physically and emotionally. Too long they had been in this retched citadel and all the while her heart pressed against the inside of her chest, wistfully remembering open plains and dense forests. Still, she did not leave to wander the countryside. Part of it was the promise she had made to Towateke, that she would aid him and their clan in their raids on the citadel. But the other part was to see a certain blight wiped from the face of Azeroth.

Niqora was not the vindictive sort. Even in the years she has spent battling the centaur in the Barrens for her and her family’s very survival, she never hated them. Of the countless foes she had cut down, it had never been out of hatred or revenge, but a sense of duty or simple perseverance. Now though, the deaths of friends and family weighed down on her shoulders and she felt a heat glowing like an ember deep inside her, growing hotter the further her clan traveled into Icecrown.

Blacky whined softly, her quivering ears cupped in the direction the other members had went. So Niqora gathered her packs and together the pair ascended the last set of stairs in the citadel. With each step the Shu’halo would gain speed until she was striding up them two or three at a time. Picking up on the hunter’s tension and anticipation, Blacky darted back and forth, whining and barking her enthusiasm.

Then suddenly there were no more stairs and a platform stretched out before them. The wing howled and bit into layers of fur and hide but neither of the pair took notice of it. Blacky’s hackles rose like a warning flag and a deep growl started in her chest and squeezed out between her bared teeth. Niqora grimly fell into position with her clanmates, her hands having already notched an arrow in her bow out of complete instinct. If she had not been reliving the pains of all her loved ones’ deaths, she would have been surprised at the low gruff voice that came from her mouth.

“I will allow but one more death for me to bear, Arthas,” she growled at the Lich King looming before them on his throne. “And by the Earth Mother, it will be yours.”

It’s been a long while since I’ve written any stories about Niqora and since she just had a dramatic turn in her in-character life, I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to revisit her again. I’ll let the story speak for itself now.

The air was thick with moisture despite being rather cool, gathering in soft mists in basins and shallow dips in the ground. The clouds may have closed themselves up again but the droplets of rain were still filtering down through the many layers of leaves and branches that composed the canopy. One large drop slipped down a broad waxy leaf and plopped wetly onto a furred black ear. Niqora flicked her ear instinctively, not truly irritated by the dampness.

Moss and a few sprigs of hardy grass softened her hoofsteps rather gracefully, springing back into place as soon as she took her next stride. Here far below the canopy, a soft breeze wound its way between the massive tree trunks and brought with it the scent of damp soil and the fresh rain. Occasionally Blacky would pick up the scent of some beast or another and would wander off with her nose glued to the ground. As soon as she would be about to leave her hunter’s sight, she would conveniently become disinterested and trot back to the Shu’halo’s side.

Niqora’s packs bulged on her back now that they contained the many layers of fur and leather that she had been wearing underneath her armor in Northrend. Feralas was noticeably warmer than the slopes of Icecrown so the hunter had opted to wear a single layer of water-proofed hide under her mail. Her crossbow and halberd were fastened securely to her back as well as evidence that she was not worried about being ambushed in such a place. The creatures here knew well enough to keep a safe distance from the dark-furred pair as they wandered aimlessly among the trees.

The sun was still a couple of hours away from setting when they stumbled across a small stream. Evidently it was usually little more than a trickle but now the rain had fed it and the water gurgled pleasantly as it made its way towards the nearest river.

It was with automatic motions that Niqora gather dry bits of wood, built a fire, cooked a pot full of stew for herself and her beastly companion, and laid out her bedroll. And it was by habit that she kept on her armor as she sat before the small fire, staring into the flames but not truly seeing them. She saw instead her son Tuyok smashing a chair against a stone wall after she told him of Mysthowl’s death. And she saw the bold lines of anger and grief that now formed his back and shoulders as he stormed from the apartment, intent on finding something more useful to unleash his rage upon. She had not followed, for she had recognized the same look in his eyes that she knew was in her own…the need to be alone with only his thoughts, to work his own way through the pain he felt. There were no words she could think of to comfort him either, for she did not take comfort in them herself. And who was she to say she knew what he was going through anyways? She had lost her husband; he had not only spent most of his life in an orphanage, knowing that his family was dead, but now one of only two parents he had ever known was gone as well.

A twig snapping brought her out of her thoughts and caused Blacky to raise her head from where it had been resting on her paws. Both the wolf and the Shu’halo realized who their follower was so Blacky laid her head back down with a sigh while Niqora rekindled the dying fire.

“You look famished,” the hunter said to a hazelnut bush, raising the half-full stew pot to it in offering. Blue flashed over green eyes as a sheepish-looking Saraku pushed his way through the bush and accepted the food with a grateful nod. He settled on the free side of the fire in his plate armor, the three of them forming a triangle with the warm flames at its center.

The dragonling ate the stew in silence as Niqora watched him thoughtfully. His armor appeared as unkempted as her own, making it all the more apparent that he had been trailing her since she had set off from Thunderbluff many days ago. The light of the fire only highlighted the dark circles under his glowing eyes and the deep lines of strain around his usually smiling lips. The Shu’halo only shook her head as she stirred the fire; only Saraku would take her misery so hard.

Blacky’s ears pricked up and her tail thumped against the ground as she sensed the blood elf in diguise had finished eating his fill. He passed the pot to Blacky out of habit more than anything, the wolf happily licking it clean.

The two humanoids did not speak, Niqora because she was not the one to pour out her feelings in such a way, Saraku because he knew her well enough to know that sympathy and pity would ring hollow on her ears. So distant howls of wolves and hooting of gorillas were the only backdrop noises for the soft murmurings of the stream nearby and the snaps of the flames. It was in this silence that Niqora took a little bit of comfort in being with her two closest friends.

Blacky was the first to drift off, sleeping with the half-alertness that only beasts seem capable of. Saraku followed shortly after, curling up on the hard ground without caring to remove his bulky armor first. Niqora only slept in fits where she was sitting, her bedroll laying untouched beside her. Her dreams were dark and empty so it was with many starts that she opened her eyes during the night, relaxing again at the sight of the wolf’s ears twitch in her own dreams and the gentle rising and falling of the netherdrake’s chest.

The sky was just tinged with the pink of dawn’s twilight when the Shu’halo began to quietly clean up the camp. Blacky rose with her, gently bumping her head against Niqora’s hand on occassion and drawing a small smile to the hunter’s lips as she softly petted the wolf’s coal-black fur. Saraku slept through the entire process and Niqora did not mind at all, relieved to see food and sleep had softened his features and returned a little colour to his cheeks.

All her belongings slung onto her back, she looked down at the still ashes left by the fire and unbiddingly was reminded of the small apartment in Dalaran that belonged to Mysthowl and her. How the fireplace must be sitting cold and empty after she had gathered her packs and left shortly after Tuyok had. Blinking rapidly, she forced the thought from her mind and took fierce hold of her need to travel, to wander, to impress self-exile on herself once again.

She couldn’t help but pause and stoop down to lightly brush Saraku’s black hair, fully aware that he would be on her trail again as soon as he woke. She was like his own personal geas, never letting himself rest while she was so restless herself. She closed her eyes briefly and shook her head again as she straightened. Inclining her head slightly towards Blacky, the pair set off as quietly as the breezeless trees around them, leaving the sleeping dragonling to wake with the coming of the dawn.

Anyways, the reason I couldn’t think of a title is because this is an update on all my characters and stuff. I’ll try to keep it short and sweet so I don’t bore you all.

My troll shaman Zulrea hit level 80 oh…a couple months ago now. >.>Yes, I’m that bad at making these updates. Regardless, this makes her third level 80 and although she’s fun to play, I haven’t been gearing her as aggressively as I did Niqo and Saraku. I blame it on heroics burnout. But I did get her the Noble title and completed all of the other Noblegarden achievements in 2 days. Not bad for a casual. I enjoy healing on her the most so the couple of T9 pieces I have been getting her have been for that spec. Her elemental set…languishes greatly.

Raiding recently has been awesome for Niqora. The other weekend Bloodriver took on OS, EoE, and Onyxia all in one night and didn’t have too much trouble smashing them all into the ground. Malygos and Onyxia had given us problems before so they took a few tries. Niqo can now proudly boast her Champion of the Frozen Wastes title.

Then last weekend we entered TotC-10…and completed the entire dungeon in a single night. I personally had never seen beyond the spiky worm beasts and apparently the furthest some of them had gotten before were the Faction Champs. So it was quite a thrill to make it through all of it in the first night, even if we had wipes. We just bulldozed through it like we always do. As my guildmate Cedd commented to me: “Bloodriver: we hit our heads against the wall until we make a hole.” We are tenacious if nothing else.

Yesterday I got it into my head that I wanted Ashen Verdict rep with Saraku so he could make Niqo the epic arrows she’s come to love. It was surprisingly easy to get enough people to come with me for trash runs. We had to switch out people a couple times (RL comes first after all) but we killed enough trash so that people who had been there since the beginning went from completely neutral to friendly by the end. They all seemed pretty happy to get their rings, happy enough to even want to come back tonight for some more.

Niqora’s little sis Anuniaq is now level 60 and in the Outlands, having been reunited with her childhood friend Halruum (Kazi’s tauren warrior).  She’s been sitting at level 40-ish for a long time and it’s good to get to level a hunter again (but oh how I missed Steadyshot).

Tuyok the warrior, and Niqora’s adopted son, has gone from fury to prot since I discovered that I liked tanking with him the best. Figuring out how to stance-dance was a huge factor in making that decision. >.> He’s in his early 30s now and has made friends with a Forsaken priest called Ghislan (Kazi has discovered a love for discipline priests). Together they make quite the odd couple…a frail-looking undead man next to a hulking tauren bull.

You’ve already seen Aroqin the night elf druid featured here in some RP sessions that Kazi and I have been having. She’s also in her early 30s and she is happily bounding about as a kitty. As happily as a grumpy sarcastic elf can be that is. I’ve discovered that I also like tanking with her on the side (kitty is her first love, bear comes second). Apparently I’m fairly good at it, if the pug person who told me that I’m the best low level tank he’s ever seen is any indication.

I really have developed this gravitation to tanking, haven’t I? >.>

In all of these, some characters have gotten deleted, namely my bank character Valraen who never got past level 10 and my draenei hunter Brighit who I never could find the perfect pet for. In my defense for deleting Brighit, I intend to have at least a goblin hunter once Cataclysm comes out, possibly a worgen depending on what forms the worgen druids will get. A hunter for a hunter is okay, right? >.> I swear I’m still a petoholic!

And last but not least, a shameless plug for my guild. Bloodriver on Wyrmrest Accord-H is now recruiting. We invite anyone of any level or class who wants to join our wonderful family. We do light roleplaying, raid casually, play lots and lots of alts, run random heroics, and hang out in guild chat. Sometimes we even break out into song on vent.

For you Alliance folks, our sister guild Obsidian Phoenix is also growing and is a military style light-medium RP guild who is focused on the whisperings of the coming Cataclysm, ignoring the petty squabbles between the Alliance and the Horde. Players who don’t roleplay are also welcome. And check out the cool website that I’m making for them.

If you’re interested or want to ask questions, just comment on this post or find me on any one of my characters on Wyrmrest (they are listed on My Characters page).

Edit: I forgot to mention that I managed to sell my Battered Hilt for a nice chunk of gold. Here’s to endless possibilities!