September 2010

Now The Game Really Starts (So They Say)

stargrace September 3, 2010 5Comments

I indulged in my gaming yesterday, having completed everything that required my attention here at home. The weather has been absolutely miserable (42c or 108f) and I’ve been under the weather this week so I decided why not. I spent almost the entire day questing in Icecrown. This area has a LOT of quests. In order to get the quest achievement for it you’re required to complete at least 140 quests within the zone. Yesterday I managed to get 120 of those done – and I also dinged level 80. That’s right, I went from 77 to 80 in that one area there were so many quests.

I racked up so many achievements I lost count. First came the level 80 one (woot), then I did a few randoms. Utgarde Pinnacle (fun instance), The Oculus (instance I dislike the most where you spend most of it flying around on dragons and getting lost), and The Culling of Stratholme (another fun one where you’re a human for most of it). I also racked up my first 100 Stone Keeper’s shards and indulged in a few extra mounts to get the achievement for owning 10 of them. ‘

I was incredibly excited to have hit level 80 and be able to join my friends in their reindeer games. My gear isn’t quite up to par (snickers) for the harder things, but my gs (gear score) is slightly over 3k, so it’s not horrible either. I only mention this because the game itself decides whether or not you have the gear to enter some instances. Leveling up my warlock and doing dungeons has taught me one very neat thing – gs does NOT equal skill. In most instances I retain the 1st or 2nd spot on the parse, being well below where others are gear wise (this depends on encounters, on single target I typically fall to the 3rd spot). Last night a dps spec’d paladin with a gs of almost 6k was in our dungeon for Stratholme, and I managed to keep very close to his dps, if not beating him once or twice. No, parse is not everything. No, gear score is not everything – but these are small indications to me personally on how well I know my character, and how well I play the class.

Mages give me a run for my money, or used to at least. I’ve not really had any issues with them since I hit 80 but I haven’t done any heroics so I’m not sure if that will change. I do have an odd talent built, but it really seems to work for me and as long as it does, I’ll keep using it.

Apparently this is when the real game begins. There are lots of little things I want to work on (silly things, like achievements, fishing, cooking) and I’m looking forward to them all. Most of all, I’m glad that the massive quest grind I did in order to get from 71-80 is completed. I’m pretty sure I OD’d on questing yesterday and I need a little break from it.

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

A Nice Pair of.. Assets.

stargrace September 2, 2010 1Comment

Quests that morph you into some other race for a given amount of time are great. Over the years I’ve been practically everything, and the only down side to this is that they very rarely take my characters sex into consideration. I have been transformed into a male more times then I can remember, in other words. It was incredibly nice to come across this quest last night that turned my entire group into massive blue women, for once. Pictured above is myself smushing my flying mount, as well as Toargo – who has a wonderful set of assets. Ah, and his pug, of course. Can’t forget the pug. I want one of those so bad.

As others suggested I’ve been sticking it out with the warlock, attempting to gain one level a day (if I get more that’s just a bonus, but it’s happened so rarely I don’t expect it) through questing. A sure indication that I’m really (really) enjoying the warlock is the number of quests she’s completed. For a little break I decided to do some fishing in the Dalaran sewers yesterday and managed to fish up the giant rat companion. Another achievement obtained. Since WoW lacks housing, I’ve been working on finding other methods to personalize my characters. To make them more then just ‘toons’ and turn them into more personal characters. Minxes (my warlock) has decided she has a thing for the vanity pets that you can obtain in game. My collection so far is slightly over 25, adding the phoenix from the heroic magister’s terrace the day before yesterday. They serve no real purpose but they are fun to collect.

That all being said – the warlock is 77, and almost 78. Sticking with the leveling is paying off, and questing instead of trying to dungeon grind is certainly the way to go from 71+.

Now if only I could find a talent build that I enjoy more then the others. I’ve tried a LOT of different builds, and have no idea which one is ‘best’ for PvE dungeons at level 80. Right now I’ve taken a Seeds of Corruption spec that works on AoE damage, and it’s a 38/33/0 spread between affliction and demonology. I know a lot of warlocks go 0/13/51 in destruction, but for some reason I just can’t seem to pull off the parses with that talent spread. With the one I’m using, on 3+ targets I’m usually around 4-7k and around 1k on single targets (at level 77 mind you). I guess I’ll just keep experimenting until I find a spread that works for me.

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

Feeling Like a Hero

stargrace September 1, 2010 3Comments

I’m not a very big quest person, as much as I may try to be. I get into my moods where I’ll spend a day grinding them out but after that one day I want a week off so I can do something else. As an indication to how much I am enjoying the warlock – I’ve been questing on her. Not just questing but questing a LOT. I finished the achievement for all 130 quests in Dragonblight yesterday, which finished up with the amazing chain pictured above. I was sent back with Thrall and Sylvanas Windrunner (pictured above) to take the Undercity back. I LOVED this quest. It was great. Imagine you’re sent back to Freeport after it lay in ruins to battle the void and free Lucan D’Lere. Imagine there’s a Freeport version of this quest and then a Qeynos version. It’s quests like these that make me feel like a hero. As though I am actually helping to change the tides in favor of my side.

Sure, thousands of other players are walking that exact same hero path that I am – but the method in which these quests are implemented still leave me with that warm fuzzy feeling. It was great. I wanted to stand up and scream ‘For the Horde!’ – except my neighbors were home and well. Yeah.

The warlock? Level 76. Only FOUR more levels to go! I’m excited. Of course that’s still countless numbers of quests to complete, but I’m getting used to it, slowly.

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!