Glyphs were added with the Insciption profession in Wrath of the Lich King, and they have added a new dimension to character customization. Because there are many druid glyphs, I figured it would be a good idea to write a guide to which ones I think are best. (However, because of the wide number of roles druids can fill and the fact that we don't have many more abilities than other classes, we don't have many glyphs to choose from for each role, so the decision isn't as difficult as it is for other classes.) That said, this is just my opinion, and if you feel you would get more use out of a glyph not mentioned here, feel free to use it.
Major
Balance (Leveling/Solo)
Glyph of Entangling Roots
Considering that Entangling Roots is the one thing keeping a mob from getting all up in your grill (I apologize for using that phrase), the utility of this glyph should be obvious.
Glyph of Wrath
Sometimes, however, no matter what you do, mobs will attack you, in which case its nice to have a spell that you can use without being interrupted frequently.
Glyph of Monsoon
Of course, sometimes you just want to get those pesky mobs out of melee range, and this glyph will help you do that more frequently. (Note: If you don't take Typhoon in your leveling build, then take either Glyph of Innervate or Glyph of Starfall.)
Balance (PvP)
Glyph of Wrath
Though you will have some interruption protection from Nature's Foucs, the fact that many people will probably be attacking you means that an uninterrupted stream of Wrath casts will certainly be helpful.
Glyph of Monsoon
You'll want to keep those players out of melee range as much as possible, so you'll want to be able to knock them back as much as possible.
Glyph of Barkskin
Of course, you will take damage no matter what you do, but with this glyph and with Barkskin up, you'll take less, especially from those stun-happy rogues.
Balance (Raiding)
Glyph of Moonfire
Since most raid battles tend to go on for a long time, Moonfire will do more damage with its DoT than its instant damage, so this glyph is a no-brainer.
Glyph of Starfire
Combine this glyph with Glyph of Moonfire and your Moonfire will be doing very mana efficient damage in no time.
Glyph of Insect Swarm
This one is a bit trickier. If you have a hunter using Scorpid Sting in your raid, then you have nothing to worry about, but otherwise you're tank will be taking a bit more damage. Still, it's worth it to make one of the most mana efficient spells in the game even better.
Feral (Leveling/Solo)
Glyph of Claw
Useful while leveling. However, the moment you get Mangle, replace this glyph with something... anything! (Except for Glyph of Mangle. Since you'll probably be solo-ing in cat form, you'll be using Mangle a lot anyways, so there is no point in getting a glyph that increases its duration.
Glyph of Rake
Keeps your enemies from running away. This way you won't need to chase after those runners to keep them from bringing some of their friends back with them.
Glyph of Berserk
Makes our only offensive emergency ability even better. Berserk is fantastic, so five more seconds of it is even better. That's three more multi-target mangles or 100 more free energy.
As for your third glyph after you hit 80, just take your pick from any of them. These are the only glyphs that directly benefit solo-ing ferals.
Feral (PvP)
Glyph of Berserk
PvP is all about burst damage, so now you can make your burst damage last even longer.
Glyph of Barkskin
This glyph is useful to all specs in PvP, so take it.
Glyph of Survival Instincts
For when you need to be that much harder to kill. Survival Instincts is a great way to add a bit more fight to your druid, so this glyph allows you to add even more fight to your druid.
Feral (Tanking)
Glyph of Frenzied Regeneration
Since this is one of our two defensive cooldowns in Bear Form, why not make it even better? It's going to be draining your threat anyways, so you may as well get the most out of it.
Glyph of Maul
Tanking two targets is a tricky game, but this glyph makes it a bit easier. Since you'll be using maul a lot, you may as well get the most out of it.
Glyph of Survival Instincts
While I personally don't use Survival Instincts, and thus have no use for this glyph, I know that many tanks do, so if you do use Survival Instincts, take this glyph. (If you don't, just take Glyph of Growl.)
Feral (DPS)
Glyph of Savage Roar
You should have Savage Roar up all the time as a raid DPS, so this way you will increase all damage you do by 3%. That's pretty damn good.
Glyph of Rip
Rip is an incredible finishing move, so this glyph makes it even better and gives you more time energy for Shreds of even the occasional Ferocious Bite.
Glyph of Shred
And speaking of Shred, since you will be using it so frequently, you may as well get the most out of it. This glyph makes Rip even better, allowing for a full 22 seconds of bleeding goodness.
Resto (PvP)
Glyph of Barkskin
Because they always seem to go after the healer, for some reason.
Glyph of Regrowth
In the frenzied pace of PvP, I usually end up throwing Regrowths on people whom I have already cast it on, so this glyph will be helpful for you if you do the same thing.
Glyph of Swiftmend
In PvP, you don't have the extra time to re-apply to HoT, so this glyph will be invaluable.
Resto (5-Mans)
Glyph of Swiftmend
So you never need to worry about sacrificing healing later for healing now.
Glyph of Nourish
Though PvE can get very frenzied, you should be collected enough to be able to cast Nourish on your targets with Regrowth active on them, so the Glyph of Regrowth will have limited utility. Thus you'll want to take this glyph instead.
Glyph of Innervate
This is more of a filler glyph than anything, since the really gem of a resto glyph isn't useful until you move on to 10-mans or 25-mans
Resto (Raids)
Glyph of Wild Growth
Ah, here we go. Though this is admittedly more useful in 25-mans than 10-mans, the fact is that it makes one of the best raid-healing spells in the game even better.
Glyph of Nourish
Raid bosses usually end up doing a lot of damage to the tank, damage you can't heal with just your HoTs, so this glyph will be even more useful than it is in 5-mans.
Glyph of Swiftmend
Saves time and saves mana. You know why you love this glyph.
Minor Glyphs:
Since these are mostly matters of personal choice, I'll simply say who I think each glyph is good for and leave the choice up to you. I have ordered these in what I see as order of usefulness, with the most useful ones on the top.
Glyph of Unburdened Rebirth
Though the reagents for Rebirth don't cost very much, this glyph frees you up from needing to carry them around. Although you can drop this glyph if you want three of the glyphs bellow, I recommend it for any druid.
Glyph of Thorns
This glyph is a life saver for any solo-ing or leveling druid. I highly recommend it. Anyone who has ever solo-ed without this glyph knows what a pain it is to keep shifting out of your forms to cast Thorns. It's also pretty useful for tanks in 5-mans, but if you have a druid with spellpower gear on in your group (which is more likely in raids), they should be casting Thorns on you instead
Glyph of Dash
Invaluable for PvP as any spec. Also good as a filler glyph for raiders for those long runs back after wiping on a boss far in the instance.
Glyph of Aquatic Form
This can be a pretty good glyph for people leveling, but its still more of a filler glyph than anything. Take it if you don't want anything else.
Glyph of the Wild
Nothing more than a filler glyph, but still worth taking if you are a raider and have an empty glyph slot to fill.
And those are what I think are the best druid glyphs. This is just opinion and you can take it with a grain of salt if you want, but I think you'll agree with at least some of what I say here. As for which order you take your glyphs in while leveling, I leave that up to you. By the time you unlock you first glyph slots at level 15, you should know enough about your playstyle to know which glyphs will help you the most.
Monday, September 28, 2009
My top 25 favorite songs. Part 2: 10-1
Here's the second part of my list. I did this list in two parts due to time constrains. Here's the first part if you haven't read it yet. Without further ado, lets start the home stretch.
10. Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin
What can I say about this song that hasn't been said before? I first started listening to this song one summer when I took up walking as my main form of exercise. As such, I listened to it mostly while walking, and thus found the lyrics about finding one's path through life to be quite appropriate. I also enjoy the slow buildup from the relaxed intro to one of the best rock and roll outros of all time. Ah, hell, it's Stairway! Do I need to explain it?
9. Nemo – Nightwish
Unlike many of the previous songs on the list, this one doesn't have a special meaning for me because of its lyrics. I actually first heard it when I watched a video of an all druid raid taking down Onyxia back in the days of vanilla WoW, and then raiding the horde capital cities afterward. That said, I don't actually associate this song with the awesomeness of the druid class; I just like it because it is a great song. It's a symphonic metal song that slowly builds up from a mellow beginning to a more energetic conclusion without ever loosing its mystic mood. That, and Tarja's voice is just beautiful.
8. Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins
I don't know why, but I really love this song. The lyrics don't mean much to me, but perhaps its the fact that, like ...And Justice for All, the various instruments on this track all have a similar rhythmic structure. Meh, it's a mystery to me. I just know that I like it now as much as I did when I first heard it, and a song that I can describe that way gets major points in my book.
7. 18 and Life - Skid Row
Sure, the lyrics to this song a pretty good, but I think the reason I like this song is the mood it creates. It starts out sad to match the protagonist's sad life, then gets angry as his anger at the world grows, but loses its angry edge when our protagonist kills someone. It's a sad song, without a doubt, but its deeper message about how there are no victims in the world of drunken townies and that everything that happens to them is pretty much their fault means that the flip side is that, if you make smart decisions, bad things won't happen to you. To be honest, I never liked this song because of the lyrics; it's just a good, slow rock-out song.
6. Going Under - Evanescence
Remember how I said that I interpreted My Immortal to be about two parts of yourself, one of which you were trying to let go of? I interpreted this song as the other side of that story. I saw it as the story of someone recalling their descent into this "other" part of themselves. This was actually a repeating theme I saw in their songs, whether it is there or not, and that's probably why they meant so much to me. I also really like how the songs melody complements the mood of the lyrics: sad, but not the saddest it could be, meaning the worst is yet to come.
5. Turn The Page (Live) - Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band
Now this is a perfect rock song. The lyrics, though specific to the theme of being a rock star, are truly about needing to put up a front when people expect you to be more than you can be, and how torturous it can be to keep that front up. Thus this song can have meaning to anyone who has ever pretended to be something they aren't. It also has, in my opinion, some of the best build-up of any song I have ever heard. It starts out mellow but intensely sad, and though the song gains more of a hard rock feel as it continues, it never loses that sad melody. It's just a really great song. 'Nuff said.
4. Through the Fire and Flames - Dragonforce
I'm probably going to get a lot of flack for putting this so high on the list, but I really do love this song. No matter what mood I am in, this song gets me pumped up, and few songs can do that. In fact, I'd say this is the best song for that purpose that I know. It also has a lot of meaning to me because I have tried dozens of times to beat this on Guitar Hero 3 and failed. (My best time is 83%.) But regardless of that, this song is the epitome of power metal, and Dragonforce deserves all of the fame that this song brought them.
3. Disarm - Smashing Pumpkins
And back to the sad songs. Though some people have interpreted this song to be about abortion, I see as being about the depression that comes with the loss of childhood innocence and the fact that even with all the pain we may be feeling, we still try to put on a happy face for others. Both of these themes resonate with me strongly, and the minimalist structure of the song helps to facilitate the somber mood the lyrics create. Corgan's pleasing vocals are the one happy thing about this song, but they are enough to make me able to listen to it and not cry every time. Really, it's that sad. If his voice was depressing as well, the song would be too sad to listen to.
2. Zombie - The Cranberries
Oh boy, where do I begin with this song? I first heard this song when I heard a snippet of it in some commercial for some album collection. It stuck with me after I heard it, and when I finally figured out what song it was and downloaded it, I was really glad to have finally found it. Its bass riff is right up there with the one in Rhinoceros as one of my favorites of all time, and every instrument on the track can be heard distinctly, something I love. The lyrics never played an important role in this song for me, but they are still great; though they are technically about the Troubles in Ireland, the lyrics could be applied to any situation where a group is fighting for control of your thoughts, something our culture seems to do all the time... but that's neither here nor there. In the end, I love this song. Dolores O'Riordan's vocal work is fantastic, the instruments all work really well together; I just can't say enough good things about this song.
1. Lithium - Evanescence
Ah yes, the song that defined my childhood. Before I transferred all of my songs to my new computer, this one had more play counts on my old one than any other song; at least fifty more than the next one on the list, and quite possibly a hundred. (That's no hyperbole; I loved this song that much.) So, what is so great about Lithium? Like many of my favorite songs when I was young, it was a sad song, but Lithium went beyond sad. The lyrics, the mood, the tone of Amy Lee's voice, the melody, everything about this song was meant to convey a feeling of deep depression, and I loved every second of it. However, even more importantly, the lyrics really spoke to me back then, and looking back on my youth, they speak to me even more now. In Lithium, Amy sings about how she is very sad, but finds a sort of ironic comfort in that sadness, and as such, the sadness is too familiar to let go off. If literally interpreted, the song is about a failed relationship that Amy refuses to leave, but as you can tell by now, I wasn't big on literal interpretations of Evanescence songs. Anyways, every line of the song speaks somehow to the theme of finding more comfort in the familiar emotion of sorrow than the unfamiliar one of joy. As sad as it is to say, that sentiment defined my childhood. I was not a happy child, and even when I was finally able to be happy, sorrow was too constant of a companion for me to let go of. It took me a long time to finally let go of my constant sorrow, and until I did, this song was the song that epitomized what I was feeling. To this day, this song still brings back memories of that dark place. It's haunting, really.
Honorable Mention: In Bloom - Nirvana
Nirvana is a great band, but I didn't put this on the main part of the list just because I don't like this song as much as I used to. I still enjoy the layering of the various instruments and pleasant melody the song provides, and Cobain's mysterious lyrics still boggle my mind to no end, but the fact that the song slowly speeds up over its duration always ticked me off a bit. The song has, in my opinion, a perfect speed at the beginning. Why they needed to speed it up was beyond me. Still, I won't deny that this is a fantastic song, because it is.
Well, there you go. I certainly enjoyed making this list, because I had to listen to all of these songs over and over again to put them in the order of how much I like them, and I hope you enjoyed reading it, at least a little.
10. Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin
What can I say about this song that hasn't been said before? I first started listening to this song one summer when I took up walking as my main form of exercise. As such, I listened to it mostly while walking, and thus found the lyrics about finding one's path through life to be quite appropriate. I also enjoy the slow buildup from the relaxed intro to one of the best rock and roll outros of all time. Ah, hell, it's Stairway! Do I need to explain it?
9. Nemo – Nightwish
Unlike many of the previous songs on the list, this one doesn't have a special meaning for me because of its lyrics. I actually first heard it when I watched a video of an all druid raid taking down Onyxia back in the days of vanilla WoW, and then raiding the horde capital cities afterward. That said, I don't actually associate this song with the awesomeness of the druid class; I just like it because it is a great song. It's a symphonic metal song that slowly builds up from a mellow beginning to a more energetic conclusion without ever loosing its mystic mood. That, and Tarja's voice is just beautiful.
8. Cherub Rock - Smashing Pumpkins
I don't know why, but I really love this song. The lyrics don't mean much to me, but perhaps its the fact that, like ...And Justice for All, the various instruments on this track all have a similar rhythmic structure. Meh, it's a mystery to me. I just know that I like it now as much as I did when I first heard it, and a song that I can describe that way gets major points in my book.
7. 18 and Life - Skid Row
Sure, the lyrics to this song a pretty good, but I think the reason I like this song is the mood it creates. It starts out sad to match the protagonist's sad life, then gets angry as his anger at the world grows, but loses its angry edge when our protagonist kills someone. It's a sad song, without a doubt, but its deeper message about how there are no victims in the world of drunken townies and that everything that happens to them is pretty much their fault means that the flip side is that, if you make smart decisions, bad things won't happen to you. To be honest, I never liked this song because of the lyrics; it's just a good, slow rock-out song.
6. Going Under - Evanescence
Remember how I said that I interpreted My Immortal to be about two parts of yourself, one of which you were trying to let go of? I interpreted this song as the other side of that story. I saw it as the story of someone recalling their descent into this "other" part of themselves. This was actually a repeating theme I saw in their songs, whether it is there or not, and that's probably why they meant so much to me. I also really like how the songs melody complements the mood of the lyrics: sad, but not the saddest it could be, meaning the worst is yet to come.
5. Turn The Page (Live) - Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band
Now this is a perfect rock song. The lyrics, though specific to the theme of being a rock star, are truly about needing to put up a front when people expect you to be more than you can be, and how torturous it can be to keep that front up. Thus this song can have meaning to anyone who has ever pretended to be something they aren't. It also has, in my opinion, some of the best build-up of any song I have ever heard. It starts out mellow but intensely sad, and though the song gains more of a hard rock feel as it continues, it never loses that sad melody. It's just a really great song. 'Nuff said.
4. Through the Fire and Flames - Dragonforce
I'm probably going to get a lot of flack for putting this so high on the list, but I really do love this song. No matter what mood I am in, this song gets me pumped up, and few songs can do that. In fact, I'd say this is the best song for that purpose that I know. It also has a lot of meaning to me because I have tried dozens of times to beat this on Guitar Hero 3 and failed. (My best time is 83%.) But regardless of that, this song is the epitome of power metal, and Dragonforce deserves all of the fame that this song brought them.
3. Disarm - Smashing Pumpkins
And back to the sad songs. Though some people have interpreted this song to be about abortion, I see as being about the depression that comes with the loss of childhood innocence and the fact that even with all the pain we may be feeling, we still try to put on a happy face for others. Both of these themes resonate with me strongly, and the minimalist structure of the song helps to facilitate the somber mood the lyrics create. Corgan's pleasing vocals are the one happy thing about this song, but they are enough to make me able to listen to it and not cry every time. Really, it's that sad. If his voice was depressing as well, the song would be too sad to listen to.
2. Zombie - The Cranberries
Oh boy, where do I begin with this song? I first heard this song when I heard a snippet of it in some commercial for some album collection. It stuck with me after I heard it, and when I finally figured out what song it was and downloaded it, I was really glad to have finally found it. Its bass riff is right up there with the one in Rhinoceros as one of my favorites of all time, and every instrument on the track can be heard distinctly, something I love. The lyrics never played an important role in this song for me, but they are still great; though they are technically about the Troubles in Ireland, the lyrics could be applied to any situation where a group is fighting for control of your thoughts, something our culture seems to do all the time... but that's neither here nor there. In the end, I love this song. Dolores O'Riordan's vocal work is fantastic, the instruments all work really well together; I just can't say enough good things about this song.
1. Lithium - Evanescence
Ah yes, the song that defined my childhood. Before I transferred all of my songs to my new computer, this one had more play counts on my old one than any other song; at least fifty more than the next one on the list, and quite possibly a hundred. (That's no hyperbole; I loved this song that much.) So, what is so great about Lithium? Like many of my favorite songs when I was young, it was a sad song, but Lithium went beyond sad. The lyrics, the mood, the tone of Amy Lee's voice, the melody, everything about this song was meant to convey a feeling of deep depression, and I loved every second of it. However, even more importantly, the lyrics really spoke to me back then, and looking back on my youth, they speak to me even more now. In Lithium, Amy sings about how she is very sad, but finds a sort of ironic comfort in that sadness, and as such, the sadness is too familiar to let go off. If literally interpreted, the song is about a failed relationship that Amy refuses to leave, but as you can tell by now, I wasn't big on literal interpretations of Evanescence songs. Anyways, every line of the song speaks somehow to the theme of finding more comfort in the familiar emotion of sorrow than the unfamiliar one of joy. As sad as it is to say, that sentiment defined my childhood. I was not a happy child, and even when I was finally able to be happy, sorrow was too constant of a companion for me to let go of. It took me a long time to finally let go of my constant sorrow, and until I did, this song was the song that epitomized what I was feeling. To this day, this song still brings back memories of that dark place. It's haunting, really.
Honorable Mention: In Bloom - Nirvana
Nirvana is a great band, but I didn't put this on the main part of the list just because I don't like this song as much as I used to. I still enjoy the layering of the various instruments and pleasant melody the song provides, and Cobain's mysterious lyrics still boggle my mind to no end, but the fact that the song slowly speeds up over its duration always ticked me off a bit. The song has, in my opinion, a perfect speed at the beginning. Why they needed to speed it up was beyond me. Still, I won't deny that this is a fantastic song, because it is.
Well, there you go. I certainly enjoyed making this list, because I had to listen to all of these songs over and over again to put them in the order of how much I like them, and I hope you enjoyed reading it, at least a little.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Should Blizzard buff/nerf classes based on popularity?
This question has been on my mind ever since I read a WoW.com post that said that because druid tanks were the least popular kind of tank, Blizzard was hesitant to nerf them. This was part of a longer article about the relative popularity of certain tank classes, which showed that warriors were the most popular tanks by far, with druids being the least popular. The article speculated that the reason for this was that warriors have always been viable as tanks, but paladins and druids only became popular as tanks with the advent of Burning Crusade. Even then, paladins were arguably better tanks than druids, and only recently have druids become truly viable as tanks. Death Knights have been popular ever since they were added to the game, which explains why they had no problem carving out a part of the tanking community for themselves.
But I digress. The fact that Blizzard was hesitant to make any changes to an unpopular class got me thinking: should Blizzard buff or nerf classes based on how popular they are? Although the popularity of a class can be viewed as an indicator of its relative strength compared to other classes, such a comparison is misleading. After all, for the longest time, hunters were the most popular class in the game due only to the fact that they were a good class for newbies. Death knights are now by far the most popular class, but I would argue that this is due to their newness, and not their relative strength compared to other classes. The popularity of a class can be based on many things, meaning you cant take it to be an indicator of that class's relative strength.
This means that Blizzard can't use class popularity as a guide on how the classes should be buffed and nerfed, but does that mean that it shouldn't factor in at all? In an ideal world (of warcraft), it wouldn't. The classes would all be able to stand out on their own merits because they would all be fun to play, and thus you would have players dedicated to their class who would play it come hell or high water, even if their class were nerfed into the ground. Thus, if every class is fun to play, then Blizzard doesn't need to factor their popularity in how they buff/nerf them, since that class's devotees would continue to play as that class.
This begs the question, though; are the classes fun to play? Having limited experience with the various class, I can't truly say. I suppose the fact that, aside form death knights and paladins, the other classes have more or less equal representation at level 80 could be a sign that people enjoy playing all of them. Each class and each class's specs are unique in their own way, meaning there is something about each the ten classes and 30 specs in the game that appeals to some kind of player. That said, there are certainly specs that are more limited than others in terms of how they can perform their role (holy paladins, balance druids) and perhaps they could be fleshed out a little bit more, but people still play them, so they must be enjoyable in some way.
But I digress. The fact that Blizzard was hesitant to make any changes to an unpopular class got me thinking: should Blizzard buff or nerf classes based on how popular they are? Although the popularity of a class can be viewed as an indicator of its relative strength compared to other classes, such a comparison is misleading. After all, for the longest time, hunters were the most popular class in the game due only to the fact that they were a good class for newbies. Death knights are now by far the most popular class, but I would argue that this is due to their newness, and not their relative strength compared to other classes. The popularity of a class can be based on many things, meaning you cant take it to be an indicator of that class's relative strength.
This means that Blizzard can't use class popularity as a guide on how the classes should be buffed and nerfed, but does that mean that it shouldn't factor in at all? In an ideal world (of warcraft), it wouldn't. The classes would all be able to stand out on their own merits because they would all be fun to play, and thus you would have players dedicated to their class who would play it come hell or high water, even if their class were nerfed into the ground. Thus, if every class is fun to play, then Blizzard doesn't need to factor their popularity in how they buff/nerf them, since that class's devotees would continue to play as that class.
This begs the question, though; are the classes fun to play? Having limited experience with the various class, I can't truly say. I suppose the fact that, aside form death knights and paladins, the other classes have more or less equal representation at level 80 could be a sign that people enjoy playing all of them. Each class and each class's specs are unique in their own way, meaning there is something about each the ten classes and 30 specs in the game that appeals to some kind of player. That said, there are certainly specs that are more limited than others in terms of how they can perform their role (holy paladins, balance druids) and perhaps they could be fleshed out a little bit more, but people still play them, so they must be enjoyable in some way.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
A guide to basic instance etiquette
Having run dungeons more frequently recently, I am convinced that a new guide on what is acceptable and what is not in an instance is necessary. The unspoken rules that we expect everyone to just know can no longer serve our purposes. As such, I have written down a list of instance sins I see committed far too often. Follow the advice bellow, and you will make many friends and few enemies... ok, I can't promise the many friends part, I can promise the few enemies part.
1. Know the encounters
Even if you have never run the instance before, this is the digital age, and we have things like WoWWiki to help us. Look up a dungeon before you run it, and read the strategies for each boss. That said, it's ok to ask for a reminder about what a boss does, as long as a short reminder makes you remember all the strats you read.
2. Stay behind the tank
If you happen to accidentally aggro a patrol, if the tank is in front, the patrol will attack him. The tank may also know something about the aggro radii of the mobs in the instance that you do not. If you are the tank, don't get too close to the enemies unless you are familiar with the instance and the mobs' aggro radii.
3. Never use the greed button unless you are the disenchanter
This is a personal pet peeve here. The easiest way to go about distributing loot in a 5-man instance is this: you need on an item if you need it, pass if you don't, and greed only if you are the disenchanter. Not A disenchanter, THE disenchanter. Saying "I'll greed for DE" is enough to designate you as the disenchanter, but only greed after saying you are going to. It will behoove you to have only one disenchanter, as it makes passing out the shards at then end easier. If no one in your group is a disenchanter, then you can find that out the hard way and roll on the item no one won. After that, and only after that, everyone can greed if they don't need an item.
I should add as an aside that we are in the middle of Brewfest, and that any loot you get from Coren Direbrew cannot be DE'ed, so he is the exception. Greed if you don't need it, need if you do, pass if you have absolutely no use for an item.
4. Stick to your designated role
As I healer, I have sometimes contemplated trying to cast damaging spells in caster form or using easy instances as an opportunity to level my weapon skill. These are the kind of ideas that kill groups, which is why I have never done them. They all distract me from my real role: keeping the group alive. We all know the three roles: tank, DPS, and healer. While in an instance, you should stick to your role and not try to partake in another role just because the run is going smoothly. Now, there is one exception to this rule: it is ok for a plate wearing DPS to taunt a mob off of the healer if the healer is a squishy, but keeping the aggro afterward, even when the tank is trying to pick up aggro, is dangerous and can lead to wipes. Similarly, even if you can take the damage, no DPS should ever strive to out-aggro the tank and, if you find that happening, you should tone down your damage.
5. Chill out
It is just a game. Every piece of loot that causes drama is, in the end, nothing more than a string of zeroes and ones. These days, if there is a bad roll, the item can be traded, so there is rarely just cause to freak out at someone for anything. Even if someone is doing their job really badly, just give them some advice. If they are just completely bad, you can always ask the leader to kick them from the group. If the bad player is the leader, well, you have better things to do with your time, anyways. Also, no matter what may be the cause of your anger, these is still a keyboard between you and other players knowing you are angry. Thus there is no reason to impulsively write about how angry you are.
6. Don't run an instance if you know you may not have time to complete it
I feel stupid even writing this, but two people in just the past few weeks have left groups I was in during the run, and they knew they needed to leave. This shouldn't require any explanation. Instances take time; factor that into your schedule.
7. Join the vent channel and get a microphone
This only applies to raiders, but there is little reason to not download Ventrilo and join your guild's channel during a raid. It always helps to hear that boss strats before the fight, in case you forget, and if you disconnect, you can let your guild know what happened so they won't replace you. I often find that the people in our raids who disconnect are the people we PUG who said they didn't need to listen to the Vent because they "knew the fights." These are the same people who act indignant after taking fifteen minutes to log in again and loosing their spot. Yes, that has happened.
8. Don't cause a wipe in Heroic Violet Hold
It's a really short, easy instance, but the fact that you need to do the whole thing over if you wipe means no one wants to run it twice. It may be pretty easy, but keep your wits about you regardless.
1. Know the encounters
Even if you have never run the instance before, this is the digital age, and we have things like WoWWiki to help us. Look up a dungeon before you run it, and read the strategies for each boss. That said, it's ok to ask for a reminder about what a boss does, as long as a short reminder makes you remember all the strats you read.
2. Stay behind the tank
If you happen to accidentally aggro a patrol, if the tank is in front, the patrol will attack him. The tank may also know something about the aggro radii of the mobs in the instance that you do not. If you are the tank, don't get too close to the enemies unless you are familiar with the instance and the mobs' aggro radii.
3. Never use the greed button unless you are the disenchanter
This is a personal pet peeve here. The easiest way to go about distributing loot in a 5-man instance is this: you need on an item if you need it, pass if you don't, and greed only if you are the disenchanter. Not A disenchanter, THE disenchanter. Saying "I'll greed for DE" is enough to designate you as the disenchanter, but only greed after saying you are going to. It will behoove you to have only one disenchanter, as it makes passing out the shards at then end easier. If no one in your group is a disenchanter, then you can find that out the hard way and roll on the item no one won. After that, and only after that, everyone can greed if they don't need an item.
I should add as an aside that we are in the middle of Brewfest, and that any loot you get from Coren Direbrew cannot be DE'ed, so he is the exception. Greed if you don't need it, need if you do, pass if you have absolutely no use for an item.
4. Stick to your designated role
As I healer, I have sometimes contemplated trying to cast damaging spells in caster form or using easy instances as an opportunity to level my weapon skill. These are the kind of ideas that kill groups, which is why I have never done them. They all distract me from my real role: keeping the group alive. We all know the three roles: tank, DPS, and healer. While in an instance, you should stick to your role and not try to partake in another role just because the run is going smoothly. Now, there is one exception to this rule: it is ok for a plate wearing DPS to taunt a mob off of the healer if the healer is a squishy, but keeping the aggro afterward, even when the tank is trying to pick up aggro, is dangerous and can lead to wipes. Similarly, even if you can take the damage, no DPS should ever strive to out-aggro the tank and, if you find that happening, you should tone down your damage.
5. Chill out
It is just a game. Every piece of loot that causes drama is, in the end, nothing more than a string of zeroes and ones. These days, if there is a bad roll, the item can be traded, so there is rarely just cause to freak out at someone for anything. Even if someone is doing their job really badly, just give them some advice. If they are just completely bad, you can always ask the leader to kick them from the group. If the bad player is the leader, well, you have better things to do with your time, anyways. Also, no matter what may be the cause of your anger, these is still a keyboard between you and other players knowing you are angry. Thus there is no reason to impulsively write about how angry you are.
6. Don't run an instance if you know you may not have time to complete it
I feel stupid even writing this, but two people in just the past few weeks have left groups I was in during the run, and they knew they needed to leave. This shouldn't require any explanation. Instances take time; factor that into your schedule.
7. Join the vent channel and get a microphone
This only applies to raiders, but there is little reason to not download Ventrilo and join your guild's channel during a raid. It always helps to hear that boss strats before the fight, in case you forget, and if you disconnect, you can let your guild know what happened so they won't replace you. I often find that the people in our raids who disconnect are the people we PUG who said they didn't need to listen to the Vent because they "knew the fights." These are the same people who act indignant after taking fifteen minutes to log in again and loosing their spot. Yes, that has happened.
8. Don't cause a wipe in Heroic Violet Hold
It's a really short, easy instance, but the fact that you need to do the whole thing over if you wipe means no one wants to run it twice. It may be pretty easy, but keep your wits about you regardless.
Monday, September 21, 2009
My top 25 favorite songs. Part 1: 25-11
Warning: This post contains one instance of PG-13 language (for those outside of the US, that means vulgar language that is fine for most teens, but may be inappropriate for younger children). Hide your infants and tweens.
An internet comic whose material I quite enjoy recently put up a video where he talked about his twenty favorite movies, and I thought I'd do the same for my favorite songs. Why make such a list? Because it gives you an insight into who I am, but it is more fun than writing a biography, which serves the same purpose. Why not movies? Because my taste in movies is pretty limited, but my taste in music is diverse enough that I can make such a list. Why twenty five? Because I narrowed it down to 25 and couldn't pick five to kick off of this list.
I should tell you now that I do not necessarily think that all of these are good songs, and this is not meant to be a "greatest songs" list. This is just meant to list the songs I like the most. Some of them have special meaning to me because of when I heard them, while others speak to me on a really deep level. Also, these are not my 25 current favorites, but 25 songs that I have continued to like long after I heard them, so there aren't many recent songs on here. In fact, only one has been released in the past few years. So, without further ado, let's begin.
25. ...And Justice for All - Metallica
Although this song doesn't draw out the same level of emotional reaction from me that the other songs on the list do, it does have something I am always a sucker for: during the breaks and the verses, the vocals, drums, and guitar all have similar or near identical rhythms. That earns big points in my book, and it is the main reason ...And Justice for All is on this list. Actually, there's an even longer story behind it, but I'll give you the short version. I bought Guitar Hero 3 and liked One. I bought Rock Band and was disappointed by Enter Sandman. After months of trying to figure out how to do it, I finally hooked my XBox 360 up to the internet to download songs for Rock Band and downloaded the Metallica pack, and I loved it, especially ...And Justice for All. Since then, this song has continued to please me just as much as when I first heard it.
24. Killing In the Name - Rage Against the Machine
I suppose I may be a bit biased about this one. I first heard this song in Guitar Hero II, and the cover of it was so abysmal that when I heard the actual song, I was blown away by the raw power of it. I also have to say that Zach's "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me," sounds a lot better than the lyrics Guitar Hero used to replace them, "(Now you're under control) I won't do what you tell me." The fact that the lyrics overlapped took away a lot of this song's power, so the song wowed me to no end when I first heard it. That said, the repetitive nature of the lyrics has made me like it less than I used to, but I still love this song.
23. Bulls On Parade - Rage Against the Machine
Like Killing in the Name, I first heard this song in Guitar Hero 3, and I really liked it. Though not very fun to play, this song's raw power had the same appeal to me that Killing in the Name had. After I heard this song, I tried getting into Rage's other songs, but they were more rappy than the songs I had heard, so this song stands out in my mind as the last Rage song I ever loved.
22. Angel of Death – Slayer
I can't put my finger on what I love about this song. The lyrics aren't terribly good, the guitar is fast but not complex, and ditto for the drum beats. I don't know, its one of those mysteries that I'll probably never figure out. I like it just as much as I did when I first heard it, and that's quite rare among songs I listen to, especially metal songs, so I put it on the list
21. Painkiller - Judas Priest
I first heard this song in Rock Band 2 (are you noticing a pattern yet?), and like Run to the Hills before it, it was the hardest song in the game, and that probably contributed to me liking it so much. I also have a soft spot for songs with a male singer that sings in a high octave, and this song definitely fits that category. Seriously, listen to it some time. No man should be able to get his voice that high. It's also just an all around great metal song, with every member of Judas Priest in full form. It has two guitar solos and two drum solos in the span of six minutes. Can you think of any song that tops that?
20. The Camera Eye - Rush
As great as this song is, it is very long, which can make it a bit tiring on one's patience. That said, the length could be what makes this song so good. It allows for the song to go through many different parts with different melodies, and each one is very enjoyable. The amazing thing is that the song is structured like a normal, regular length song. Despite being eleven minutes in length, The Camera Eye never feels like it could be split up into more than one song, like many other songs of great length. This never ceases to amaze me, and it's one of the many reasons I love The Camera Eye. Also, the chorus, as short as it is, is one of my favorite moments in music. Everything about it is just perfect and incredibly enjoyable.
19. Sabotage - Beastie Boys
This song has a special place in my heart because I heard it while I was going through my rap phase. I liked rock and roll before my rap phase (though it was more popular rock than genuine rock, but not pop-rock by any means), but once I entered my rap phase, I stopped listening to rock and roll. This song's hybrid nature between the two genres made me consider listening to rock again, and it was the first step on my road to recovery. (If you are curious, the second step was Guitar Hero II. That pretty much did it for me.)
18. My Immortal - Evanescence
A very sad song, no doubt, but those were the kinds of songs that spoke to me in my youth, as evidenced by all of the Evanescence on my list. Although I am usually not a fan of vocals+piano numbers, I think what made me like the song was its lyrics. Though the lyrics could easily be interpreted as being about trying to get over an ended relationship, my interpretation was that it was about trying to let go of a part of you that you have held on to for too long. Perhaps it was a part of you that hid the real you because you were afraid to be who you really are. Perhaps it was a part of you that you hid behind because the world was too scary to face head on. Either way, even though you want to move past that part of you, even though you want to let it go, it has not left you. That message speaks to me even more now, which is why this is truly one of my favorite songs of all time. That said, the style is one I am usually not a fan of, which is why I put it so low on the list.
17. Rhinoceros - Smashing Pumpkins
The meaning of this song still eludes me, but I find the first half very relaxing, with one of the best simple bass riffs I have ever heard. I also quite enjoy the second part of the song, though not as much. That said, I love the solo, which perfectly complements the transition from a more chilled out alternative melody to a more hard rock melody. It just sounds good; there's not much else I can say to explain it.
16. All the Things She Said - t.A.T.u.
Despite the fact that their lesbian relationship ended up being fake, t.A.T.u's story about forbidden love speaks to anyone who has ever felt guilty about something they knew couldn't be wrong because it felt right. It doesn't even need to be a relationship; it could be something that breaks gender stereotypes. It's also a good pop-rock song; not much else to be said.
15. Pretty Noose - Soundgarden
I really don't know why I like this song so much. It could be that I am a sucker for songs where every instrument is distinct and clear, and this song definitely fits that category. The lyrics, about a bad idea that looks good from the outside (according to Wikipedia), are also applicable to many of life's situations. The guitar solo is also great. Eh, what can I say? I like this song now even more than I did when I first heard it, and that rarely happens with any of the songs I listen to.
14. Nobody's Home - Avril Lavigne
Alright, now before everyone crucifies me for listing an Avril Lavigne song in my top 25 songs list, know that I used to be a big fan of her music, but this is the only song of hers that I have continued to like, and if you listen to the song, you can see why. The theme is a timeless one, for Nobody's Home tells the story of a girl who feels abandoned and, because of it, can't seem to find a place she calls home. Try as she might, she is so jaded by the world that she sees no redeemable qualities in it. I know I have felt that abandoned before, and this song helped me see that the world was not worth rejecting. It's also a very beautiful pop-rock song. The melody is sad at its core, with not hint of any happy emotions, but it is not quite sad enough to be considered depressing. As such, the melody itself implies that life may be bad, but it could always be worse. And you know what? This song may have my favorite line of all time from a song: "She's lost inside." She is lost in the world around her because she herself is lost. That is true poetry.
13. Viva la Vida – Coldplay
This is the only song my list that has been released within the last few years, but I think it is one of the few truly great songs to have come out of this era of music. The lyrics are about the darker side of being a king, although they could be applied to any position of power. The melody, which is grand and sad at the same time, fit this theme quite well. It's just an all-around good song.
12. Today - Smashing Pumpkins
In case the lyrics don't make it obvious, this song is about suicide. Yep, it is a happy song about suicide. This songs speaks to me in two ways. It reminds me that many times in my own life, I felt like I had a lot to be sad about, but life itself was still good, just like how the song's lyrics are very sad, but the mood is very happy. It also reminds me that a life may look pretty from the outside, but everyone is fighting their own battles. The song also just has a great melody that really carries the listener through the whole song. And it's just a little touch, but I love the signature drum fill of this song, the one where Chamberlin starts by hitting the snare and the floor tom along with the beat of the song, then does a roll on the snare.
11. The Only One - Evanescence
As much as I love the dark yet hopeful nature of this song, the lyrics are what really made me like this song. They spoke to me when I was growing up and felt abandoned by the world. The lyrics talk about how people who feel abandoned by the world often feel alone, but there are many other people in the same situation as them, and what they need to do is band together and fight back against the force that made them feel alone in the first place. The song also seemed to me to end with the singer confronting the force that made her feel abandoned. It really is a very hopeful song, and the hard-rock influences of its nu-metal style means that there is almost a hint of vengeance in the singer's intentions. Like many of Evanescence's songs, this one spoke to me at a very personal level, and Amy Lee's ambiguous writing style means that this song and many others of theirs will continue to mean a lot to me, since that meaning can evolve to apply to whatever I am facing in my life.
Unfortunately, I had a very busy weekend and couldn't finish the list. Expect part 2 next week.
Edit: Here's the link to part two for your convenience.
An internet comic whose material I quite enjoy recently put up a video where he talked about his twenty favorite movies, and I thought I'd do the same for my favorite songs. Why make such a list? Because it gives you an insight into who I am, but it is more fun than writing a biography, which serves the same purpose. Why not movies? Because my taste in movies is pretty limited, but my taste in music is diverse enough that I can make such a list. Why twenty five? Because I narrowed it down to 25 and couldn't pick five to kick off of this list.
I should tell you now that I do not necessarily think that all of these are good songs, and this is not meant to be a "greatest songs" list. This is just meant to list the songs I like the most. Some of them have special meaning to me because of when I heard them, while others speak to me on a really deep level. Also, these are not my 25 current favorites, but 25 songs that I have continued to like long after I heard them, so there aren't many recent songs on here. In fact, only one has been released in the past few years. So, without further ado, let's begin.
25. ...And Justice for All - Metallica
Although this song doesn't draw out the same level of emotional reaction from me that the other songs on the list do, it does have something I am always a sucker for: during the breaks and the verses, the vocals, drums, and guitar all have similar or near identical rhythms. That earns big points in my book, and it is the main reason ...And Justice for All is on this list. Actually, there's an even longer story behind it, but I'll give you the short version. I bought Guitar Hero 3 and liked One. I bought Rock Band and was disappointed by Enter Sandman. After months of trying to figure out how to do it, I finally hooked my XBox 360 up to the internet to download songs for Rock Band and downloaded the Metallica pack, and I loved it, especially ...And Justice for All. Since then, this song has continued to please me just as much as when I first heard it.
24. Killing In the Name - Rage Against the Machine
I suppose I may be a bit biased about this one. I first heard this song in Guitar Hero II, and the cover of it was so abysmal that when I heard the actual song, I was blown away by the raw power of it. I also have to say that Zach's "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me," sounds a lot better than the lyrics Guitar Hero used to replace them, "(Now you're under control) I won't do what you tell me." The fact that the lyrics overlapped took away a lot of this song's power, so the song wowed me to no end when I first heard it. That said, the repetitive nature of the lyrics has made me like it less than I used to, but I still love this song.
23. Bulls On Parade - Rage Against the Machine
Like Killing in the Name, I first heard this song in Guitar Hero 3, and I really liked it. Though not very fun to play, this song's raw power had the same appeal to me that Killing in the Name had. After I heard this song, I tried getting into Rage's other songs, but they were more rappy than the songs I had heard, so this song stands out in my mind as the last Rage song I ever loved.
22. Angel of Death – Slayer
I can't put my finger on what I love about this song. The lyrics aren't terribly good, the guitar is fast but not complex, and ditto for the drum beats. I don't know, its one of those mysteries that I'll probably never figure out. I like it just as much as I did when I first heard it, and that's quite rare among songs I listen to, especially metal songs, so I put it on the list
21. Painkiller - Judas Priest
I first heard this song in Rock Band 2 (are you noticing a pattern yet?), and like Run to the Hills before it, it was the hardest song in the game, and that probably contributed to me liking it so much. I also have a soft spot for songs with a male singer that sings in a high octave, and this song definitely fits that category. Seriously, listen to it some time. No man should be able to get his voice that high. It's also just an all around great metal song, with every member of Judas Priest in full form. It has two guitar solos and two drum solos in the span of six minutes. Can you think of any song that tops that?
20. The Camera Eye - Rush
As great as this song is, it is very long, which can make it a bit tiring on one's patience. That said, the length could be what makes this song so good. It allows for the song to go through many different parts with different melodies, and each one is very enjoyable. The amazing thing is that the song is structured like a normal, regular length song. Despite being eleven minutes in length, The Camera Eye never feels like it could be split up into more than one song, like many other songs of great length. This never ceases to amaze me, and it's one of the many reasons I love The Camera Eye. Also, the chorus, as short as it is, is one of my favorite moments in music. Everything about it is just perfect and incredibly enjoyable.
19. Sabotage - Beastie Boys
This song has a special place in my heart because I heard it while I was going through my rap phase. I liked rock and roll before my rap phase (though it was more popular rock than genuine rock, but not pop-rock by any means), but once I entered my rap phase, I stopped listening to rock and roll. This song's hybrid nature between the two genres made me consider listening to rock again, and it was the first step on my road to recovery. (If you are curious, the second step was Guitar Hero II. That pretty much did it for me.)
18. My Immortal - Evanescence
A very sad song, no doubt, but those were the kinds of songs that spoke to me in my youth, as evidenced by all of the Evanescence on my list. Although I am usually not a fan of vocals+piano numbers, I think what made me like the song was its lyrics. Though the lyrics could easily be interpreted as being about trying to get over an ended relationship, my interpretation was that it was about trying to let go of a part of you that you have held on to for too long. Perhaps it was a part of you that hid the real you because you were afraid to be who you really are. Perhaps it was a part of you that you hid behind because the world was too scary to face head on. Either way, even though you want to move past that part of you, even though you want to let it go, it has not left you. That message speaks to me even more now, which is why this is truly one of my favorite songs of all time. That said, the style is one I am usually not a fan of, which is why I put it so low on the list.
17. Rhinoceros - Smashing Pumpkins
The meaning of this song still eludes me, but I find the first half very relaxing, with one of the best simple bass riffs I have ever heard. I also quite enjoy the second part of the song, though not as much. That said, I love the solo, which perfectly complements the transition from a more chilled out alternative melody to a more hard rock melody. It just sounds good; there's not much else I can say to explain it.
16. All the Things She Said - t.A.T.u.
Despite the fact that their lesbian relationship ended up being fake, t.A.T.u's story about forbidden love speaks to anyone who has ever felt guilty about something they knew couldn't be wrong because it felt right. It doesn't even need to be a relationship; it could be something that breaks gender stereotypes. It's also a good pop-rock song; not much else to be said.
15. Pretty Noose - Soundgarden
I really don't know why I like this song so much. It could be that I am a sucker for songs where every instrument is distinct and clear, and this song definitely fits that category. The lyrics, about a bad idea that looks good from the outside (according to Wikipedia), are also applicable to many of life's situations. The guitar solo is also great. Eh, what can I say? I like this song now even more than I did when I first heard it, and that rarely happens with any of the songs I listen to.
14. Nobody's Home - Avril Lavigne
Alright, now before everyone crucifies me for listing an Avril Lavigne song in my top 25 songs list, know that I used to be a big fan of her music, but this is the only song of hers that I have continued to like, and if you listen to the song, you can see why. The theme is a timeless one, for Nobody's Home tells the story of a girl who feels abandoned and, because of it, can't seem to find a place she calls home. Try as she might, she is so jaded by the world that she sees no redeemable qualities in it. I know I have felt that abandoned before, and this song helped me see that the world was not worth rejecting. It's also a very beautiful pop-rock song. The melody is sad at its core, with not hint of any happy emotions, but it is not quite sad enough to be considered depressing. As such, the melody itself implies that life may be bad, but it could always be worse. And you know what? This song may have my favorite line of all time from a song: "She's lost inside." She is lost in the world around her because she herself is lost. That is true poetry.
13. Viva la Vida – Coldplay
This is the only song my list that has been released within the last few years, but I think it is one of the few truly great songs to have come out of this era of music. The lyrics are about the darker side of being a king, although they could be applied to any position of power. The melody, which is grand and sad at the same time, fit this theme quite well. It's just an all-around good song.
12. Today - Smashing Pumpkins
In case the lyrics don't make it obvious, this song is about suicide. Yep, it is a happy song about suicide. This songs speaks to me in two ways. It reminds me that many times in my own life, I felt like I had a lot to be sad about, but life itself was still good, just like how the song's lyrics are very sad, but the mood is very happy. It also reminds me that a life may look pretty from the outside, but everyone is fighting their own battles. The song also just has a great melody that really carries the listener through the whole song. And it's just a little touch, but I love the signature drum fill of this song, the one where Chamberlin starts by hitting the snare and the floor tom along with the beat of the song, then does a roll on the snare.
11. The Only One - Evanescence
As much as I love the dark yet hopeful nature of this song, the lyrics are what really made me like this song. They spoke to me when I was growing up and felt abandoned by the world. The lyrics talk about how people who feel abandoned by the world often feel alone, but there are many other people in the same situation as them, and what they need to do is band together and fight back against the force that made them feel alone in the first place. The song also seemed to me to end with the singer confronting the force that made her feel abandoned. It really is a very hopeful song, and the hard-rock influences of its nu-metal style means that there is almost a hint of vengeance in the singer's intentions. Like many of Evanescence's songs, this one spoke to me at a very personal level, and Amy Lee's ambiguous writing style means that this song and many others of theirs will continue to mean a lot to me, since that meaning can evolve to apply to whatever I am facing in my life.
Unfortunately, I had a very busy weekend and couldn't finish the list. Expect part 2 next week.
Edit: Here's the link to part two for your convenience.
Friday, September 18, 2009
What I think Wrath of the Lich King did right
Judging by my previous philosophy posts (this one and this one), you can probably guess that I feel that Wrath of the Lich King is a fairly flawed expansion pack. That said, there are very few dark clouds with no silver linings (just as there are very few silver clouds with no dark linings... work with me people), so I want to talk about what I think Wrath did correctly and talk about all of the good things it did for WoW, and believe me, there are many.
Although I do believe that Burning Crusade was not as bad for class balance as people say it was (see my second post that I linked above), it was far from perfect, as any feral DPS who tried to move beyond tier 4 content will tell you. When Wrath was released, all of the classes found themselves on more or less equal footing. Sure, its still not perfect, and death knights were pretty overpowered when they first came out, but any veteran player will readily tell you that class balance is a hell of a lot better than it used to be. In fact, in the class Q&A's, Blizzard flat-out admitted that class balance was not a concern of theirs in vanilla WoW. Luckily for all of us, that has changed.
I also think that championing was a good addition to the game. It allows for much more flexibility in how one gets to exalted with a faction, and it forces Blizzard to make dungeons interesting, rather than requiring players to run certain difficult or boring dungeons in order to get rep with a certain faction. (Steamvaults, I am looking at you.) It also allows players to choose to run dungeons based on gear, and though that could be seen as a way to force players to run a certain dungeon, at least there is more flexibility in gear than there is when it comes to factions. You can't really make the comparison between gear and factions, since you can eventually replace your gear from heroics, but certain reputation items like head enchantments remain necessary no matter how good your gear gets. As such, getting reputation with factions is less negotiable than getting good gear, so making the factions easier to get exalted with is a good change in my book.
An even bigger change, however, was the switch to make all raid dungeons either 10- or 25-man. This allowed players to run raids the way they want to, and allows more casual players to see the content. Like I implied above, it's a really good idea for Blizzard to try to make content for as many players as possible, and having two versions of each dungeon prevents players from needing to overcome the raiding hump encountered in Burning Crusade, where many guilds couldn't make the jump from 10-man Karazhan to 25-man Gruul's Lair. Thanks to Wrath of the Lich King, they don't need to make such a jump.
Another good thing I think Wrath brought to WoW was the addition of hard modes, which I already covered in this post. To give you the TLDR version, the presence of hard modes allows more players to see content without taking away the challenge that hard-core raiders look for in their raids. As I said in the first post mentioned in the first paragraph, many of the changes in Wrath seem to have been aimed at getting players in raids sooner, and the idea of making raids challenging but not difficult while allowing hard-core players to still have their difficult content definitely fits in with this idea. It allows more players to see the content that Blizzard put so much effort into making, which makes sense from a business standpoint; after all, why spend so much time on something so few players will see?
As for achievements, while I don't see them as a particularly outstanding addition, I do feel they added something positive to the game. If nothing else, they give players something to do, and reward them for doing things in the game. Thanks to the achievements, raiding and PvP are no longer the only ways to gain titles. (I wear my chef title with pride.) They also make it easier to look back on your past accomplishments and feel proud of them, since you have a tangible manifestation and record of said accomplishments that you can peruse with ease. Besides, if nothing else, that ding makes everything feel a bit more satisfying.
So there you go. I have opened up and shown that my opinions are not as one-sided as my previous posts seem to suggest. That said, I am looking forward to Cataclysm because many of the features being added will change many things I perceive as flaws with Wrath of the Lich King, like Path of the Titans, which will give solo-players a way to make their characters more powerful, and Reforging, which will give the armor-making professions some use again. Yep, it's going to be a good time.
Although I do believe that Burning Crusade was not as bad for class balance as people say it was (see my second post that I linked above), it was far from perfect, as any feral DPS who tried to move beyond tier 4 content will tell you. When Wrath was released, all of the classes found themselves on more or less equal footing. Sure, its still not perfect, and death knights were pretty overpowered when they first came out, but any veteran player will readily tell you that class balance is a hell of a lot better than it used to be. In fact, in the class Q&A's, Blizzard flat-out admitted that class balance was not a concern of theirs in vanilla WoW. Luckily for all of us, that has changed.
I also think that championing was a good addition to the game. It allows for much more flexibility in how one gets to exalted with a faction, and it forces Blizzard to make dungeons interesting, rather than requiring players to run certain difficult or boring dungeons in order to get rep with a certain faction. (Steamvaults, I am looking at you.) It also allows players to choose to run dungeons based on gear, and though that could be seen as a way to force players to run a certain dungeon, at least there is more flexibility in gear than there is when it comes to factions. You can't really make the comparison between gear and factions, since you can eventually replace your gear from heroics, but certain reputation items like head enchantments remain necessary no matter how good your gear gets. As such, getting reputation with factions is less negotiable than getting good gear, so making the factions easier to get exalted with is a good change in my book.
An even bigger change, however, was the switch to make all raid dungeons either 10- or 25-man. This allowed players to run raids the way they want to, and allows more casual players to see the content. Like I implied above, it's a really good idea for Blizzard to try to make content for as many players as possible, and having two versions of each dungeon prevents players from needing to overcome the raiding hump encountered in Burning Crusade, where many guilds couldn't make the jump from 10-man Karazhan to 25-man Gruul's Lair. Thanks to Wrath of the Lich King, they don't need to make such a jump.
Another good thing I think Wrath brought to WoW was the addition of hard modes, which I already covered in this post. To give you the TLDR version, the presence of hard modes allows more players to see content without taking away the challenge that hard-core raiders look for in their raids. As I said in the first post mentioned in the first paragraph, many of the changes in Wrath seem to have been aimed at getting players in raids sooner, and the idea of making raids challenging but not difficult while allowing hard-core players to still have their difficult content definitely fits in with this idea. It allows more players to see the content that Blizzard put so much effort into making, which makes sense from a business standpoint; after all, why spend so much time on something so few players will see?
As for achievements, while I don't see them as a particularly outstanding addition, I do feel they added something positive to the game. If nothing else, they give players something to do, and reward them for doing things in the game. Thanks to the achievements, raiding and PvP are no longer the only ways to gain titles. (I wear my chef title with pride.) They also make it easier to look back on your past accomplishments and feel proud of them, since you have a tangible manifestation and record of said accomplishments that you can peruse with ease. Besides, if nothing else, that ding makes everything feel a bit more satisfying.
So there you go. I have opened up and shown that my opinions are not as one-sided as my previous posts seem to suggest. That said, I am looking forward to Cataclysm because many of the features being added will change many things I perceive as flaws with Wrath of the Lich King, like Path of the Titans, which will give solo-players a way to make their characters more powerful, and Reforging, which will give the armor-making professions some use again. Yep, it's going to be a good time.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
How to level Northrend reputations without championing
As I mentioned in my last advice post, it is possible to get exalted with all of the Northrend factions without entering an instance. The easiest way to gain reputation with many of these factions is championing, wherein you where the tabard of the faction you are championing in a level-80 5-man instance and gain reputation with them as a result. However, this approach requires to you have good gear (the main purpose of raising your reputations) and be subjected to PUGs, which are really hit and miss. This guide is concerned with getting exalted with each of the Northrend reputations, including the ones that can be championed, without resorting to championing. Some are harder than others, but it is possible to get exalted with all of these factions without entering an instance, and that's what this post concerns.
Alliance Vanguard/Horde Expedition
These two are pretty easy. The Silver Covenant/Sunreavers dailies that you get from the Argent Tournament are one way to raise your rep. You can also do the dailies on your faction's floating ship in Icecrown, The Skybreaker and Orgrim's Hammer, respectively. That should be enough for you to get exalted in a timely manor.
Argent Crusade
This faction used to be much harder to reach exalted with without championing, but it's easier now. Before, the only repeatable way to get Argent Crusade rep was the daily Troll Patrol, but now the Argent Tournament quests also give Argent Crusade rep, making this grind much easier. If you are a Death Knight, however, then the Argent Tournament quests with give you rep with the Knights of the Ebon Blade, leaving Troll Patrol as your only option.
Frenzyheart Tribe/The Oracles
Nothing special here; just do the dailies.
Kirin Tor
Whoo-boy! This is not an easy faction to get exalted with without championing. Make sure you use wowhead to find all of their one-time quests so you can make this grind as short as possible. Once you have exhausted that option, you have only three left to you:
1. Fishing dailies (given by the Dalaran fishing trainer)
2. Cooking dailies (given by the Dalaran cooking trainers)
3. Jewelcrafting dailies (given by the Dalaran jewelcrafting trainer)
If you ever needed an excuse to level your cooking and fishing, here it is. You can also watch the auction house for a Sealed Vial of Poison, which can be turned in for 250 rep, but it is really expensive (at least on my server) and uncommon, so don't count on buying a lot of these for easy rep.
Knights of the Ebon Blade
Once you complete their Icecrown questlines, the Knights of the Ebon Blade will have two areas with dailies for them. Three dailies can be found in the Shadow Vault in northern Icecrown. Three more can be found on Death's Rise, a little ledge part-way down the cliff southwest of Jotunheim. Doing all of them will net you 1500 rep a day. If you are a Death Knight, then the Argent Tournament quests will also net you Ebon Blade rep, making this grind much faster.
The Kalu'ak
This little faction does have some nice goodies to reward those who get exalted with it. They have quests in Borean Tundra, Howling Fjord, and Dragonblight, and each area has a Kalu'ak daily quest, each of which gives you 500 rep. The daily quests are unlocked as you complete the questline in each area. You can use the turtle boats to shuttle between the three areas if you don't want to spend the money to fly there.
The Sons of Hodir
In order to even start gaining rep with these guys, you need to do a long quest chain starting with They Took Our Men! Once you finish the quest chain, you can do dailies to get rep with the Sons of Hodir, and you unlock more as your rep gets higher. Individual quests will unlock similar dailies, so make sure you do all of the one-time quests they offer. You can also look for Everfrost Chips in The Storm Peaks, which can be turned in for Sons of Hodir rep, as can Relics of Ulduar, which can be bought on the Auction House.
The Wyrmrest Accord
Aside from their one-time quests, these guys have three dailies you can do. Two are in Coldarra in Borean Tundra, and one is in Dragonblight. The two low-level ones are unlocked after quests, but the level-80 one can be started almost immediately. They are Drake Hunt, Defending Wyrmrest Temple, and Aces High!
Note: Aces High! starts with the quest Corastrasza, which is started in the Transitus Shield, the same area where you start Drake Hunt.
There you have it! Some factions are easier than others to gain rep with without championing, but only the Kirin Tor is really difficult. Good luck!
Alliance Vanguard/Horde Expedition
These two are pretty easy. The Silver Covenant/Sunreavers dailies that you get from the Argent Tournament are one way to raise your rep. You can also do the dailies on your faction's floating ship in Icecrown, The Skybreaker and Orgrim's Hammer, respectively. That should be enough for you to get exalted in a timely manor.
Argent Crusade
This faction used to be much harder to reach exalted with without championing, but it's easier now. Before, the only repeatable way to get Argent Crusade rep was the daily Troll Patrol, but now the Argent Tournament quests also give Argent Crusade rep, making this grind much easier. If you are a Death Knight, however, then the Argent Tournament quests with give you rep with the Knights of the Ebon Blade, leaving Troll Patrol as your only option.
Frenzyheart Tribe/The Oracles
Nothing special here; just do the dailies.
Kirin Tor
Whoo-boy! This is not an easy faction to get exalted with without championing. Make sure you use wowhead to find all of their one-time quests so you can make this grind as short as possible. Once you have exhausted that option, you have only three left to you:
1. Fishing dailies (given by the Dalaran fishing trainer)
2. Cooking dailies (given by the Dalaran cooking trainers)
3. Jewelcrafting dailies (given by the Dalaran jewelcrafting trainer)
If you ever needed an excuse to level your cooking and fishing, here it is. You can also watch the auction house for a Sealed Vial of Poison, which can be turned in for 250 rep, but it is really expensive (at least on my server) and uncommon, so don't count on buying a lot of these for easy rep.
Knights of the Ebon Blade
Once you complete their Icecrown questlines, the Knights of the Ebon Blade will have two areas with dailies for them. Three dailies can be found in the Shadow Vault in northern Icecrown. Three more can be found on Death's Rise, a little ledge part-way down the cliff southwest of Jotunheim. Doing all of them will net you 1500 rep a day. If you are a Death Knight, then the Argent Tournament quests will also net you Ebon Blade rep, making this grind much faster.
The Kalu'ak
This little faction does have some nice goodies to reward those who get exalted with it. They have quests in Borean Tundra, Howling Fjord, and Dragonblight, and each area has a Kalu'ak daily quest, each of which gives you 500 rep. The daily quests are unlocked as you complete the questline in each area. You can use the turtle boats to shuttle between the three areas if you don't want to spend the money to fly there.
The Sons of Hodir
In order to even start gaining rep with these guys, you need to do a long quest chain starting with They Took Our Men! Once you finish the quest chain, you can do dailies to get rep with the Sons of Hodir, and you unlock more as your rep gets higher. Individual quests will unlock similar dailies, so make sure you do all of the one-time quests they offer. You can also look for Everfrost Chips in The Storm Peaks, which can be turned in for Sons of Hodir rep, as can Relics of Ulduar, which can be bought on the Auction House.
The Wyrmrest Accord
Aside from their one-time quests, these guys have three dailies you can do. Two are in Coldarra in Borean Tundra, and one is in Dragonblight. The two low-level ones are unlocked after quests, but the level-80 one can be started almost immediately. They are Drake Hunt, Defending Wyrmrest Temple, and Aces High!
Note: Aces High! starts with the quest Corastrasza, which is started in the Transitus Shield, the same area where you start Drake Hunt.
There you have it! Some factions are easier than others to gain rep with without championing, but only the Kirin Tor is really difficult. Good luck!
Monday, September 14, 2009
What I am doing in-game
Since I am at a loss for something miscellaneous to write about and I recently went through a sort of revelation when it comes to my way of thinking about the game, I decided to detail what I am currently doing in-game.
I recently went through a phase where I was seriously considering why I was playing WoW. The only thing I ever did with any consistency was the fishing dailies. I found (and still find) the Argent Tournament dailies incredibly boring, and I have done the other dailies (at least the ones that give good money) to death, so I no longer enjoy them, either. I went over my general disapproval of Blizzard's dependence on dailies for Wrath solo content in this post, so read that if you want to know why I am so jaded toward daily quests. Anyways, because of my reluctance to do most dailies, especially the Argent Tournament ones, I have pretty much exhausted the Wrath solo content.
For some reason, the possibility of doing group content more rigorously never occurred to me, but when I thought about it, I realized that that was what I enjoyed most about WoW. Helping other people succeed, seeing new content, and experiencing new battles was what I enjoyed most about the game, and my comfort and aptitude with being a healer can certainly help me do that. As such, I am currently focused on getting better healing gear so that I can eventually move past Naxxramas and see Ulduar. There is really one thing about my healing set that I need to address more than the rest: my trinkets.
Currently, the two trinkets I am using in my healing set are both low-level green trinkets I got from some of my first quests: Futuresight Rune and Infused Coldstone Rune. They may be bad, but what I like about them is that they are both on-use trinkets, rather than random proc trinkets. This allows me to use them when I really need them. Still, I really need to replace them, and frequently running Trial of the Champion on normal mode has allowed me to obtain Tears of the Vanquished. It might not be an on-use trinket, but the fact that I don't need to worry about activating it probably makes it more useful. The other trinket I would like to get is the Winged Talisman from Heroic Halls of Lightning, but because of the lack of popularity of that instance, I'm not holding out hope of getting it any time soon.
The rest of the items that I want are all available through emblems, so I plan on running a lot of heorics, especially the daily heroics, since I will need 110 emblems of triumph to buy every piece of EoT gear I want. That's 55 daily heroic quest, and I have only done two since Blizzard added EoTs to them. Anyways, here's the gear I want, arranged by what emblems they take and how much I want them.
Emblems of Triumph:
Idol of Flaring Growth (25)
Band of the Invoker (35)
Talisman of Resurgence (50, this is my backup in case I can't get the Winged Talisman)
Emblems of Conquest:
Evoker's Charm (19)
Emblems of Valor:
Band of Channeled Magic (25)
Disguise of the Kumiho (25)
Once I have gotten all the items I want that I can buy with a certain emblem, I'll use any more I get to upgrade my armor, which is pretty good currently and doesn't warrant immediate replacement.
So, those are my plans for upgrading my gear. They originally included running normal Trial of the Champion a lot (the heroic version has nothing I can use aside from a marginal upgrade to my chest armor), but I have already gotten everything I want from that instance, so it's on to getting badges for me. The nice thing about doing the daily heroics is that I'll be able to see all the work Blizzard put into making those dungeons, which is, in my opinion, one of the best reasons to run instances. This was especially true when I ran Halls of Stone today, and I have to say, though we did rush through it (that DK tank was really impatient), I'm glad I got to see the work Blizzard's art department put into that dungeon.
I recently went through a phase where I was seriously considering why I was playing WoW. The only thing I ever did with any consistency was the fishing dailies. I found (and still find) the Argent Tournament dailies incredibly boring, and I have done the other dailies (at least the ones that give good money) to death, so I no longer enjoy them, either. I went over my general disapproval of Blizzard's dependence on dailies for Wrath solo content in this post, so read that if you want to know why I am so jaded toward daily quests. Anyways, because of my reluctance to do most dailies, especially the Argent Tournament ones, I have pretty much exhausted the Wrath solo content.
For some reason, the possibility of doing group content more rigorously never occurred to me, but when I thought about it, I realized that that was what I enjoyed most about WoW. Helping other people succeed, seeing new content, and experiencing new battles was what I enjoyed most about the game, and my comfort and aptitude with being a healer can certainly help me do that. As such, I am currently focused on getting better healing gear so that I can eventually move past Naxxramas and see Ulduar. There is really one thing about my healing set that I need to address more than the rest: my trinkets.
Currently, the two trinkets I am using in my healing set are both low-level green trinkets I got from some of my first quests: Futuresight Rune and Infused Coldstone Rune. They may be bad, but what I like about them is that they are both on-use trinkets, rather than random proc trinkets. This allows me to use them when I really need them. Still, I really need to replace them, and frequently running Trial of the Champion on normal mode has allowed me to obtain Tears of the Vanquished. It might not be an on-use trinket, but the fact that I don't need to worry about activating it probably makes it more useful. The other trinket I would like to get is the Winged Talisman from Heroic Halls of Lightning, but because of the lack of popularity of that instance, I'm not holding out hope of getting it any time soon.
The rest of the items that I want are all available through emblems, so I plan on running a lot of heorics, especially the daily heroics, since I will need 110 emblems of triumph to buy every piece of EoT gear I want. That's 55 daily heroic quest, and I have only done two since Blizzard added EoTs to them. Anyways, here's the gear I want, arranged by what emblems they take and how much I want them.
Emblems of Triumph:
Idol of Flaring Growth (25)
Band of the Invoker (35)
Talisman of Resurgence (50, this is my backup in case I can't get the Winged Talisman)
Emblems of Conquest:
Evoker's Charm (19)
Emblems of Valor:
Band of Channeled Magic (25)
Disguise of the Kumiho (25)
Once I have gotten all the items I want that I can buy with a certain emblem, I'll use any more I get to upgrade my armor, which is pretty good currently and doesn't warrant immediate replacement.
So, those are my plans for upgrading my gear. They originally included running normal Trial of the Champion a lot (the heroic version has nothing I can use aside from a marginal upgrade to my chest armor), but I have already gotten everything I want from that instance, so it's on to getting badges for me. The nice thing about doing the daily heroics is that I'll be able to see all the work Blizzard put into making those dungeons, which is, in my opinion, one of the best reasons to run instances. This was especially true when I ran Halls of Stone today, and I have to say, though we did rush through it (that DK tank was really impatient), I'm glad I got to see the work Blizzard's art department put into that dungeon.
Friday, September 11, 2009
What purpose should talents serve?
With the upcoming mastery effects, which talent tree you invest in is, more than ever, going to be the indicator of what role you are spec'ing for. Players will be forced to spec one way to perform a certain role, although this might not apply as much for the pure-DPS classes. This is not a break from the norm. For almost as long as WoW has existed, each talent tree was associated with a specific role, with the exception of feral combat and the earlier incarnations of discipline. (Tanking/DPS and DPS/healing, respectively) Each spec played differently, and even though you may have pined for protection to feel more like fury, or for restoration to feel more like elemental combat, there wasn't much you could do about it.
Death Knights changed all that. The three death knight specs are all viable as tank, DPS, and PvP specs, though some more so than others. The thing that set DK's apart was that, rather than use their talents to pick their role, they chose which presence they would use (similar to the warrior's stances), and the bonuses of each presence were what differentiated a tank from a DPS. This was a pretty big departure from the other classes, for while the death knight specs certainly had talents that hinted at the intended roles of each tree, each spec catered more to a specific play-style than a specific role. Blood is centered around grinding and self-healing, frost is centered around snares and defensive talents, and unholy is centered around diseases and your ghoul pet. Because each tree contains both offensive and defensive talents, it is not too rare to see frost DPS or blood tanks. In the end, the process picking which talents to take as a DK is all about play-style.
That got me thinking: is it possible for the other classes to play that way as well? What if other classes simply used their talent trees as a way of adjusting their play-style while using something like presences to decide which role they would play? It would certainly require a general overhaul of the talent system, something I doubt Blizzard is ready to do, but the possibility is still there. Some classes already have the abilities they need to make such a thing possible. Druids have their shapeshifting forms and warriors have their stances. The other classes also have abilities that could be expanded upon to serve the same purpose. Priests have Shadowform, and I imagine adding some sort of Holyform couldn't be too difficult. Paladins have Righteous Fury, which could evolve to give more tanking bonuses, and Blizzard could add a healing and a DPS equivalent; perhaps Righteous Wisdom and Righteous Vengeance. Shamans are a bit tougher to figure out. They currently have no self-buffs that give them a bonus to their DPS or healing. Perhaps their weapon buffs could be expanded to fill the purpose. Windfury would be the melee DPS one, with Flametounge, Frostbrand, and Earthliving being the spell DPS, PvP, and healing, respectively.
You may notice I did not include Hunters, Mages, Rogues, or Warlocks in my ruminations. What you need to keep in mind is that the purpose of the talent overhaul that I am considering is that it would make a player's role (tank, DPS, healing) independent of their talents. Since the four aforementioned classes can only DPS, such an overhaul would only have a minor effect on them.
So, suppose we were able to tie each of the multiple-role classes's roles to a self-buff. What purpose would the talent trees serve, then? Again, I look to the DK talents as my model. Because the DK talents are based around the kind of play-style that accompanies their implied role, the other talent trees and class abilities could be changes in a similar way. Here are my ideas for the druid talent trees.
Druids would be able to learn all of their forms, including Moonkin and Tree of Life Form, from a trainer. Because Balance has long been considered the PvP tree, it would contain a lot of PvP talents, including the ones in other trees, like Infected Wounds. Because PvP is all about controlling your opponent, that would be what this tree is concerned with. As such, a Balance tank would perhaps focus more on kiting his target than simply standing still, while still causing a lot of threat from far away. Feral combat is currently associated with all of the druid's melee combat, and as such, ferals currently end up take more damage than the other specs. Thus, this tree would become more of an all-around defensive tree. It could thus get talents like Improved Barkskin. Resto is currently associate with healing, but this could be expanded to include any sort of survival, making it more applicable to tanking and PvP. Whereas a feral tank would be focused on taking less damage, a resto tank would be focused on healing his own damage to assist the healer.
I know I usually save posts containing ideas for Monday, but I just wanted to include that example and the examples in the third paragraph to show that a change like this feasible, even if it isn't probable. Still, is a change like this even necessary? Now that we know what kind of changes we are talking about, I can start answering that question.
The main issue that determines whether such a talent overhaul is called for is whether the changes is would bring are necessary. There are two changes that I can see happening as a result of this overhaul:
1. Tanks and healers would be able to do moderate DPS without switching specs. Inversely, your DPS could switch to being a tank or a healer in an emergency or when the first requires it.
2. Picking which talent tree you choose to invest in would be less about what role you wish to perform and more about which nuances of the class your play-style emphasizes.
Let's consider the first one. I know there are raid fights where it helps to have multiple tanks sometimes, while other times you only need one. The same can be said of healers, in that some phases of a fight require more than others. On the surface, a change that lets you change your raid line-up on the fly seems like a good thing. However, you need to consider the pure DPS'ers: the hunters, mages, rogues, and warlocks. These guys are all DPS, no matter what their spec, so they are already experiencing the reality that I am talking about. Thing is, they can't become a tank or a healer in an emergency, so any change to make the hybrid classes more valuable than the pure DPS classes could see their representation in raids drop. Blizzard could prevent this by giving them better raid utility than the hybrid DPS'ers. As I found in my post on what classes bring what buffs and debuffs to raids, the pure DPS classes, especially mages and rogues, are pretty limited in terms of what buffs they can bring. In the olden days, this was offset by the fact that they brought the highest DPS to raids, but now that every class is on more or less equal footing when it comes to DPS, that excuse no longer cuts it. If Blizzard were to give the pure DPS classes more raid buffs, they could motivate raid leaders to bring pure DPS'ers without needing nerfing the buffs that hybrid DPS'ers already bring to raids. Still such a change probably isn't necessary, since you can only have so many players acting as tanks and healers before you loose DPS, so the roles of the pure-DPS classes weren't really in jeopardy. Thus, the first effect of this talent overhaul would be a positive one. Necessary? Well, it would certainly help.
The other effect of this change would be that choosing talents would be more about play-style than utility. Every class's spec would thus play differently, yes still be able to fulfill the same roles, allowing there to in effect be thirty classes in the game. I know that's a bit of hyperbole, but I can tell you that playing a blood death knight is quite different from playing an unholy one, despite the fact that the two can both be DPS'ers. The same can be said of discipline and holy priests; both are healers, but both play and feel quite different. The same can be said of the four pure-DPS classes and how their specs play. They fulfill the same role in raids and they do them (arguably) equally well. In the end, it's all about player choice. That's really what a change like this would be about; letting players who play a Druid, Paladin, Priest, Shaman, or Warrior choose how they wish to approach their role. I see no downsides to this.
So, should Blizzard do it? Should Blizzard redo the Druid, Paladin, Priest, Shaman, and Warrior talent trees to make them more like the Death Knight trees? As much as I hate to say it, probably not. Think about it: it took Blizzard twelve patches, an expansion pack, four more patches, and another expansion pack to get class balance right. They have said that they weren't very concerned with perfect class balance in vanilla WoW, but still, that means it took them two expansion packs to get it right. Could you imagine if they were to start over? I don't know about you, but I don't want to wait until after Cataclysm and what ever is next (Emerald Dream?) for class balance to be good again.
Still, even if Blizzard were to somehow get it right the first time, a system like this would make class balance even more difficult than it is now. Imagine if a holy paladin could be a DPS'er, a tank, or a healer. That's three times as many sub-classes (which are basically what the talent trees are) to balance against the rest. I won't do the math to see how many more sub-classes that would mean, but trying to balance that many specs for that many roles would be a pain in the neck for Blizzard, especially considering how much people already complain about class balance. As much as I would love to see a change like this, I don't see it happening.
So, going back to the original question, though it would be awesome if talents let you augment the nuances of your class, I think it is better for Blizzard to stay with the current systems. I know it's not good form for a writer to argue against an idea that he himself came up with, so I apologize for that. Here, have some cute to make up for it. Here's some more for good measure.
Death Knights changed all that. The three death knight specs are all viable as tank, DPS, and PvP specs, though some more so than others. The thing that set DK's apart was that, rather than use their talents to pick their role, they chose which presence they would use (similar to the warrior's stances), and the bonuses of each presence were what differentiated a tank from a DPS. This was a pretty big departure from the other classes, for while the death knight specs certainly had talents that hinted at the intended roles of each tree, each spec catered more to a specific play-style than a specific role. Blood is centered around grinding and self-healing, frost is centered around snares and defensive talents, and unholy is centered around diseases and your ghoul pet. Because each tree contains both offensive and defensive talents, it is not too rare to see frost DPS or blood tanks. In the end, the process picking which talents to take as a DK is all about play-style.
That got me thinking: is it possible for the other classes to play that way as well? What if other classes simply used their talent trees as a way of adjusting their play-style while using something like presences to decide which role they would play? It would certainly require a general overhaul of the talent system, something I doubt Blizzard is ready to do, but the possibility is still there. Some classes already have the abilities they need to make such a thing possible. Druids have their shapeshifting forms and warriors have their stances. The other classes also have abilities that could be expanded upon to serve the same purpose. Priests have Shadowform, and I imagine adding some sort of Holyform couldn't be too difficult. Paladins have Righteous Fury, which could evolve to give more tanking bonuses, and Blizzard could add a healing and a DPS equivalent; perhaps Righteous Wisdom and Righteous Vengeance. Shamans are a bit tougher to figure out. They currently have no self-buffs that give them a bonus to their DPS or healing. Perhaps their weapon buffs could be expanded to fill the purpose. Windfury would be the melee DPS one, with Flametounge, Frostbrand, and Earthliving being the spell DPS, PvP, and healing, respectively.
You may notice I did not include Hunters, Mages, Rogues, or Warlocks in my ruminations. What you need to keep in mind is that the purpose of the talent overhaul that I am considering is that it would make a player's role (tank, DPS, healing) independent of their talents. Since the four aforementioned classes can only DPS, such an overhaul would only have a minor effect on them.
So, suppose we were able to tie each of the multiple-role classes's roles to a self-buff. What purpose would the talent trees serve, then? Again, I look to the DK talents as my model. Because the DK talents are based around the kind of play-style that accompanies their implied role, the other talent trees and class abilities could be changes in a similar way. Here are my ideas for the druid talent trees.
Druids would be able to learn all of their forms, including Moonkin and Tree of Life Form, from a trainer. Because Balance has long been considered the PvP tree, it would contain a lot of PvP talents, including the ones in other trees, like Infected Wounds. Because PvP is all about controlling your opponent, that would be what this tree is concerned with. As such, a Balance tank would perhaps focus more on kiting his target than simply standing still, while still causing a lot of threat from far away. Feral combat is currently associated with all of the druid's melee combat, and as such, ferals currently end up take more damage than the other specs. Thus, this tree would become more of an all-around defensive tree. It could thus get talents like Improved Barkskin. Resto is currently associate with healing, but this could be expanded to include any sort of survival, making it more applicable to tanking and PvP. Whereas a feral tank would be focused on taking less damage, a resto tank would be focused on healing his own damage to assist the healer.
I know I usually save posts containing ideas for Monday, but I just wanted to include that example and the examples in the third paragraph to show that a change like this feasible, even if it isn't probable. Still, is a change like this even necessary? Now that we know what kind of changes we are talking about, I can start answering that question.
The main issue that determines whether such a talent overhaul is called for is whether the changes is would bring are necessary. There are two changes that I can see happening as a result of this overhaul:
1. Tanks and healers would be able to do moderate DPS without switching specs. Inversely, your DPS could switch to being a tank or a healer in an emergency or when the first requires it.
2. Picking which talent tree you choose to invest in would be less about what role you wish to perform and more about which nuances of the class your play-style emphasizes.
Let's consider the first one. I know there are raid fights where it helps to have multiple tanks sometimes, while other times you only need one. The same can be said of healers, in that some phases of a fight require more than others. On the surface, a change that lets you change your raid line-up on the fly seems like a good thing. However, you need to consider the pure DPS'ers: the hunters, mages, rogues, and warlocks. These guys are all DPS, no matter what their spec, so they are already experiencing the reality that I am talking about. Thing is, they can't become a tank or a healer in an emergency, so any change to make the hybrid classes more valuable than the pure DPS classes could see their representation in raids drop. Blizzard could prevent this by giving them better raid utility than the hybrid DPS'ers. As I found in my post on what classes bring what buffs and debuffs to raids, the pure DPS classes, especially mages and rogues, are pretty limited in terms of what buffs they can bring. In the olden days, this was offset by the fact that they brought the highest DPS to raids, but now that every class is on more or less equal footing when it comes to DPS, that excuse no longer cuts it. If Blizzard were to give the pure DPS classes more raid buffs, they could motivate raid leaders to bring pure DPS'ers without needing nerfing the buffs that hybrid DPS'ers already bring to raids. Still such a change probably isn't necessary, since you can only have so many players acting as tanks and healers before you loose DPS, so the roles of the pure-DPS classes weren't really in jeopardy. Thus, the first effect of this talent overhaul would be a positive one. Necessary? Well, it would certainly help.
The other effect of this change would be that choosing talents would be more about play-style than utility. Every class's spec would thus play differently, yes still be able to fulfill the same roles, allowing there to in effect be thirty classes in the game. I know that's a bit of hyperbole, but I can tell you that playing a blood death knight is quite different from playing an unholy one, despite the fact that the two can both be DPS'ers. The same can be said of discipline and holy priests; both are healers, but both play and feel quite different. The same can be said of the four pure-DPS classes and how their specs play. They fulfill the same role in raids and they do them (arguably) equally well. In the end, it's all about player choice. That's really what a change like this would be about; letting players who play a Druid, Paladin, Priest, Shaman, or Warrior choose how they wish to approach their role. I see no downsides to this.
So, should Blizzard do it? Should Blizzard redo the Druid, Paladin, Priest, Shaman, and Warrior talent trees to make them more like the Death Knight trees? As much as I hate to say it, probably not. Think about it: it took Blizzard twelve patches, an expansion pack, four more patches, and another expansion pack to get class balance right. They have said that they weren't very concerned with perfect class balance in vanilla WoW, but still, that means it took them two expansion packs to get it right. Could you imagine if they were to start over? I don't know about you, but I don't want to wait until after Cataclysm and what ever is next (Emerald Dream?) for class balance to be good again.
Still, even if Blizzard were to somehow get it right the first time, a system like this would make class balance even more difficult than it is now. Imagine if a holy paladin could be a DPS'er, a tank, or a healer. That's three times as many sub-classes (which are basically what the talent trees are) to balance against the rest. I won't do the math to see how many more sub-classes that would mean, but trying to balance that many specs for that many roles would be a pain in the neck for Blizzard, especially considering how much people already complain about class balance. As much as I would love to see a change like this, I don't see it happening.
So, going back to the original question, though it would be awesome if talents let you augment the nuances of your class, I think it is better for Blizzard to stay with the current systems. I know it's not good form for a writer to argue against an idea that he himself came up with, so I apologize for that. Here, have some cute to make up for it. Here's some more for good measure.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
How to gear up a druid at level 80 without ever entering an instance
One of the things that many guides for gearing up a druid assume is that you are willing to run heroics to get gear. Nothing against 5-mans, but I'm not ready to depend on a chance drop for gearing up. That's why I give you this guide. It gives you ways to gear up your druid without ever needing to run an instance. In other words, you can do do it all alone (with the exception of crafted items). I'll also give you multiple options for a specific slot when your best choice is either expensive or takes a long time to get.
Disclaimer: Some of these items are difficult to get if you don't enter an instance, as it will be more difficult for you to get the associated reputation. It is possible, though, to get exalted with the associated factions without running an instance, and that's the point. If you need help on getting exalted with those hard-to-level factions, check out my guide on said topic here.
Weapon(s):
Balance: Titansteel Guardian or Titansteel Spellblade* (Blacksmithing), Flameheart Spell Scalpel (Kirin Tor, revered), Gavel of the Brewing Storm (Wyrmrest Accord, revered)
Feral (tank): Silvery Sylvan Stave/Staff of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament), Whale-Stick Harpoon (Kalu'ak, revered)
Feral (DPS): Silvery Sylvan Stave/Staff of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament), Titansteel Destroyer (Blacksmithing), Argent Skeletal Crusher (Argent Crusade, revered)
Resto: Dagger of Lunar Purity/Scalpel of the Royal Apothecary (Argent Tournament), Titansteel Guardian (Blacksmithing), Gavel of the Brewing Storm (Wyrmrest Accord, revered)
Off-hand:
Balance: Faces of Doom (Inscription), Prison Manifesto (BoE)
Resto: Faces of Doom (Inscription), Prison Manifesto (BoE)
Idol:
Balance: Idol of Arcane Terror (Grizzly Hills PvP)
Feral (tank): Idol of Perspicacious Attacks (Grizzly Hills PvP), Idol of the Plainstalker (Borean Tundra quests)
Feral (DPS): Idol of the Plainstalker (Borean Tundra quests)
Resto: Idol of Pure Thoughts (Grizzly Hills PvP)
Head:
Balance: Helm of the Majestic Stag (Kirin Tor, honored)
Feral (tank): Helm of the Avenging Protector (Scholazar Basin quests)
Feral (DPS): Helm of the Avenging Protector (Scholazar Basin quests)
Resto: Helm of the Majestic Stag (Kirin Tor, honored)
Neck:
Balance: Chain of Latent Energies (BoE), Titanium Spellshock Necklace (Jewelcrafting), Choker of Spiral Focus/Necklace of Stolen Skulls (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): Titanium Earthguard Chain (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (DPS): Titanium Impact Choker (Jewelcrafting), Choker of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament)
Resto: Titanium Spellshock Necklace (Jewelcrafting), Necklace of Valiant Blood/Pendent of Emerald Crusader (Argent Tournament), Dragon Prow Amulet (BoE)
Shoulders:
Balance: Dark Runic Mantle (BoE), Purehorn Spaulders (Leatherworking)
Feral (tank): Trollwoven Spaulders (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Spaulders of Egotism (BoE), Trollwoven Spaulders (Leatherworking), Spaulders of Frozen Knives (Sons of Hodir, honored)
Resto: Runecaster's Mantle (BoE)
Back:
Balance: Deathchill Cloak (Tailoring), Dark Soldier Cape (Knights of the Ebon Blade, honored)
Feral (tank): Durable Nerubhide Cloak (Leatherworking), Cloak of Peaceful Resolutions (Wyrmrest Accord, honored)
Feral (DPS): Ice Striker's Cloak (Leatherworking), Cloak of Holy Extermination (Argent Crusade, honored)
Resto: Whispcloak (Tailoring), Reanimator's Cloak (BoE), Shroud of Dedicated Research (Kirin Tor, honored)
Chest:
Balance: Ebonweave Robe (Tailoring), Robes of Crackling Flame (Kirin Tor, exalted), Black Duskweave Robe (Tailoring)
Feral (tank): Exotic Leather Tunic (Utgarde Pinnacle quests)
Feral (DPS): Darkheart Chestguard (Knights of the Ebon Blade, exalted)
Resto: Moonshroud Robe (Tailoring) Robes of Crackling Flame (Kirin Tor, exalted), Ymirjar Physician's Robe (BoE)
Wrist:
Balance: Wraps of the Astral Traveler (BoE), Wound-Binder's Wristguards (Knights of the Ebon Blade, revered)
Feral (tank): Drake-Champion's Bracers (BoE)
Feral (DPS): Dragonfriend Bracers (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted) Drake-Champion's Bracers (BoE)
Resto: Bands of the Great Tree (BoE), Wound-Binder's Wristguards (Knights of the Ebon Blade, revered)
Hands:
Balance: Ebonweave Gloves (Tailoring), Awakened Handguards (BoE)
Feral (tank): Seafoam Gauntlets (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Seafoam Gauntlets (Leatherworking)
Resto: Moonshroud Gloves (Tailoring), Sterile Flesh-Handling Gloves (Ebon Blade, revered) Awakened Handguards (BoE)
Waist:
Balance: Ghostflicker Waistband (Kirin Tor, exalted), Wrap of the Everliving Tree/Wasteguard of Equine Fury (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): Trollwoven Girdle (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Trollwoven Girdle (Leatherworking)
Resto: Sash of Jordan (BoE), Belt of Dark Mending (Knights of the Ebon Blade, exalted)
Legs:
Balance: Windripper Leggings (Leatherworking), Giant Friend Kilt (Sons of Hodir, revered)
Feral (tank): Chain Gang Legguards (BoE)
Feral (DPS): Chain Gang Legguards (BoE)
Resto: Earthgiving Legguards (Leatherworking), Giant Friend Kilt (Sons of Hodir, revered)
Feet:
Balance: Windripper Boots (Leatherworking), Sandles of Crimson Fury (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted)
Feral (tank): Boots of the Neverending Path (Argent Crusade, exalted), Treds of Nimble Evasion/Treads of the Earnest Squire (Argent Tournament)
Feral (DPS): Boots of the Neverending Path (Argent Crusade, exalted), Treds of Nimble Evasion/Treads of the Earnest Squire (Argent Tournament)
Resto: Earthgiving Boots (Leatherworking), Sandles of Crimson Fury (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted)
Rings:
Balance: Titanium Spellshock Ring (Jewelcrafting), Signet of Hopeful Light (Argent Crusade, exalted), Ring of Northern Tears (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (tank): Titanium Earthguard Ring (Jewelcrafting), Ring of Earthen Might (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (DPS): Titanium Impact Band (Jewelcrafting), Stained-Glass Shard Ring (BoE), Ring of Scarlet Shadows (Jewelcrafting)
Resto: Signet of Hopeful Light (Argent Crusade, exalted), Titanium Spellshock Ring (Jewelcrafting)
Trinkets:
Balance:** Cannoneer's Fuselighter (Icecrown Quests), Jouster's Fury (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): (If you have any trinkets from BC, use those. Otherwise...) Medallion of Heroism (Dragonblight quests), Crusader's Locket (Icecrown Quests)
Feral (DPS)**: Fezzik's Pocketwatch (Icecrown Quests), Jouster's Fury (Argent Tournament)
Resto:** Cannoneer's Moral (Icecrown Quests)
*If you can get hit-capped with your other gear, take the Guardian; otherwise, take the Spellblade.
**Check this list for green-quality trinkets you may have missed while leveling up. Use it if you don't have enough trinkets to fill your two slots.
Disclaimer: Some of these items are difficult to get if you don't enter an instance, as it will be more difficult for you to get the associated reputation. It is possible, though, to get exalted with the associated factions without running an instance, and that's the point. If you need help on getting exalted with those hard-to-level factions, check out my guide on said topic here.
Weapon(s):
Balance: Titansteel Guardian or Titansteel Spellblade* (Blacksmithing), Flameheart Spell Scalpel (Kirin Tor, revered), Gavel of the Brewing Storm (Wyrmrest Accord, revered)
Feral (tank): Silvery Sylvan Stave/Staff of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament), Whale-Stick Harpoon (Kalu'ak, revered)
Feral (DPS): Silvery Sylvan Stave/Staff of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament), Titansteel Destroyer (Blacksmithing), Argent Skeletal Crusher (Argent Crusade, revered)
Resto: Dagger of Lunar Purity/Scalpel of the Royal Apothecary (Argent Tournament), Titansteel Guardian (Blacksmithing), Gavel of the Brewing Storm (Wyrmrest Accord, revered)
Off-hand:
Balance: Faces of Doom (Inscription), Prison Manifesto (BoE)
Resto: Faces of Doom (Inscription), Prison Manifesto (BoE)
Idol:
Balance: Idol of Arcane Terror (Grizzly Hills PvP)
Feral (tank): Idol of Perspicacious Attacks (Grizzly Hills PvP), Idol of the Plainstalker (Borean Tundra quests)
Feral (DPS): Idol of the Plainstalker (Borean Tundra quests)
Resto: Idol of Pure Thoughts (Grizzly Hills PvP)
Head:
Balance: Helm of the Majestic Stag (Kirin Tor, honored)
Feral (tank): Helm of the Avenging Protector (Scholazar Basin quests)
Feral (DPS): Helm of the Avenging Protector (Scholazar Basin quests)
Resto: Helm of the Majestic Stag (Kirin Tor, honored)
Neck:
Balance: Chain of Latent Energies (BoE), Titanium Spellshock Necklace (Jewelcrafting), Choker of Spiral Focus/Necklace of Stolen Skulls (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): Titanium Earthguard Chain (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (DPS): Titanium Impact Choker (Jewelcrafting), Choker of Feral Furies (Argent Tournament)
Resto: Titanium Spellshock Necklace (Jewelcrafting), Necklace of Valiant Blood/Pendent of Emerald Crusader (Argent Tournament), Dragon Prow Amulet (BoE)
Shoulders:
Balance: Dark Runic Mantle (BoE), Purehorn Spaulders (Leatherworking)
Feral (tank): Trollwoven Spaulders (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Spaulders of Egotism (BoE), Trollwoven Spaulders (Leatherworking), Spaulders of Frozen Knives (Sons of Hodir, honored)
Resto: Runecaster's Mantle (BoE)
Back:
Balance: Deathchill Cloak (Tailoring), Dark Soldier Cape (Knights of the Ebon Blade, honored)
Feral (tank): Durable Nerubhide Cloak (Leatherworking), Cloak of Peaceful Resolutions (Wyrmrest Accord, honored)
Feral (DPS): Ice Striker's Cloak (Leatherworking), Cloak of Holy Extermination (Argent Crusade, honored)
Resto: Whispcloak (Tailoring), Reanimator's Cloak (BoE), Shroud of Dedicated Research (Kirin Tor, honored)
Chest:
Balance: Ebonweave Robe (Tailoring), Robes of Crackling Flame (Kirin Tor, exalted), Black Duskweave Robe (Tailoring)
Feral (tank): Exotic Leather Tunic (Utgarde Pinnacle quests)
Feral (DPS): Darkheart Chestguard (Knights of the Ebon Blade, exalted)
Resto: Moonshroud Robe (Tailoring) Robes of Crackling Flame (Kirin Tor, exalted), Ymirjar Physician's Robe (BoE)
Wrist:
Balance: Wraps of the Astral Traveler (BoE), Wound-Binder's Wristguards (Knights of the Ebon Blade, revered)
Feral (tank): Drake-Champion's Bracers (BoE)
Feral (DPS): Dragonfriend Bracers (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted) Drake-Champion's Bracers (BoE)
Resto: Bands of the Great Tree (BoE), Wound-Binder's Wristguards (Knights of the Ebon Blade, revered)
Hands:
Balance: Ebonweave Gloves (Tailoring), Awakened Handguards (BoE)
Feral (tank): Seafoam Gauntlets (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Seafoam Gauntlets (Leatherworking)
Resto: Moonshroud Gloves (Tailoring), Sterile Flesh-Handling Gloves (Ebon Blade, revered) Awakened Handguards (BoE)
Waist:
Balance: Ghostflicker Waistband (Kirin Tor, exalted), Wrap of the Everliving Tree/Wasteguard of Equine Fury (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): Trollwoven Girdle (Leatherworking)
Feral (DPS): Trollwoven Girdle (Leatherworking)
Resto: Sash of Jordan (BoE), Belt of Dark Mending (Knights of the Ebon Blade, exalted)
Legs:
Balance: Windripper Leggings (Leatherworking), Giant Friend Kilt (Sons of Hodir, revered)
Feral (tank): Chain Gang Legguards (BoE)
Feral (DPS): Chain Gang Legguards (BoE)
Resto: Earthgiving Legguards (Leatherworking), Giant Friend Kilt (Sons of Hodir, revered)
Feet:
Balance: Windripper Boots (Leatherworking), Sandles of Crimson Fury (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted)
Feral (tank): Boots of the Neverending Path (Argent Crusade, exalted), Treds of Nimble Evasion/Treads of the Earnest Squire (Argent Tournament)
Feral (DPS): Boots of the Neverending Path (Argent Crusade, exalted), Treds of Nimble Evasion/Treads of the Earnest Squire (Argent Tournament)
Resto: Earthgiving Boots (Leatherworking), Sandles of Crimson Fury (Wyrmrest Accord, exalted)
Rings:
Balance: Titanium Spellshock Ring (Jewelcrafting), Signet of Hopeful Light (Argent Crusade, exalted), Ring of Northern Tears (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (tank): Titanium Earthguard Ring (Jewelcrafting), Ring of Earthen Might (Jewelcrafting)
Feral (DPS): Titanium Impact Band (Jewelcrafting), Stained-Glass Shard Ring (BoE), Ring of Scarlet Shadows (Jewelcrafting)
Resto: Signet of Hopeful Light (Argent Crusade, exalted), Titanium Spellshock Ring (Jewelcrafting)
Trinkets:
Balance:** Cannoneer's Fuselighter (Icecrown Quests), Jouster's Fury (Argent Tournament)
Feral (tank): (If you have any trinkets from BC, use those. Otherwise...) Medallion of Heroism (Dragonblight quests), Crusader's Locket (Icecrown Quests)
Feral (DPS)**: Fezzik's Pocketwatch (Icecrown Quests), Jouster's Fury (Argent Tournament)
Resto:** Cannoneer's Moral (Icecrown Quests)
*If you can get hit-capped with your other gear, take the Guardian; otherwise, take the Spellblade.
**Check this list for green-quality trinkets you may have missed while leveling up. Use it if you don't have enough trinkets to fill your two slots.
Monday, September 7, 2009
New mastery skills I would like to see in Cataclysm
For those of you who don't know, we will not be getting new talents with the next expansion pack. Instead, each tier will gain three "mastery skills," which will be passive buffs given once you have put enough points in a tree. Since my musings on new talents are now irrelevant, I figured I would muse on what we druids could get for mastery skills, since Blizzard has yet to reveal what we will get. I have worded each bonus the same way Blizzard has worded the ones for the other classes.
Balance:
+Spell Crit Damage 100%
This would replace the Vengeance talent. Although you may think this is too powerful of a bonus to put as the first mastery skill, Blizzard did put it in tier 4. Also, it isn't as useful at lower levels as it is at higher levels, since it takes fewer spells to kill an enemy when you are at low levels, so big crits aren't as important.
+Spell Hit 5%
This would replace the spell hit bonus of Balance of Power, a necessary talent considering that balance druids share much more gear with Resto druids than they used to. Since spellcasters only need 5% hit rating to be hit capped in PvP, this would eliminate the need for +hit on Balance PvP gear, allowing Boomkins and trees to share the same kind of gear. Although they would probably need different set bonuses on the 5-piece sets, it would mean they could share boots, belts, and gloves.
+Spell Damage 10%
This would replace Moonfury, and all Balance druids will benefit from it, be they leveling, raiding, or PVPing. I don't really need to explain this, do I? You know you want it.
I didn't included mana regeneration while casting because Blizzard has said they plan to make spirit a healer stat, so DPS won't need to worry about it. Although Boomkins will probably need to role healing armor, they'll probably be able to turn the spirit into something more useful with reforging.
Feral:
+Melee Crit Chance 5%
This would replace Sharpened Claws. I considered turning Ferocity into a mastery skill, but it dropped the idea for many reasons.
-Mastery skills are supposed to be boring but necessary, and although ferocity comes close to fitting that category, the fact that is directly lets you use your abilities more frequently means it makes your fights more interesting. Thus, it only fits the second criterion.
-I couldn't find a suitable replacement for its spot. I considered Furor, but its effect does not fit the above criteria, and moving Furor our of the resto tree would prevent ferals and boomkin from having a good talent to start investing in the resto tree.
-To be a true mastery skill, Furor would need to apply to all of our abilities. Could you imagine all of our abilities getting -5 energy/rage cost? That would be huge, especially for tanks. I'd call it OP.
+Stamina (Bear) or Attack Power (Cat) 10%
This would partially replace Heart of the Wild. I didn't include the intellect buff because I don't see it as completely necessary, although I do think it should be rolled into another talent, since some ferals, especially solo-ers and PvP'ers would certainly still want the increased mana pool. Perhaps Primal Tenacity? The increased mana pool benefits PvP feral druids the most, so it would make sense to put that bonus in a PvP talent.
+Melee Damage 10%
This would replace the melee portion of Naturalist, a talent all ferals need to take but usually end up taking after investing fully in the feral tree. This would probably turn Naturalist into a filler talent, unless Blizzard made it reduce the cast time of other spells, which I think would actually make it pretty cool. Anyways, become of its position in the resto tree, many ferals end up taking this at their level 65-69 talent, so I see it as the perfect final mastery talent for us.
Restoration:
+Spirit 15%
This would replace Living Spirit. Since spirit is on all trees' gear now, this would be useful to everyone, though more-so to raiding trees than PvE trees. Still, it's definitely a "necessary but boring talent," so I think it fits the bill.
+Mana Regen while Casting 50%
This would replace Intensity and put mana regen firmly in the ownership of trees. Why? Well, if this bonus is the second one, then balance druids couldn't get it by just investing a few points in resto (see my note at the end of the balance section). Like I said above, every tree has spirit now, which means that PvP trees need to get their mana from it as well.
+Healing 10%
This would replace Gift of Nature. Again, who wouldn't want this?
Balance:
+Spell Crit Damage 100%
This would replace the Vengeance talent. Although you may think this is too powerful of a bonus to put as the first mastery skill, Blizzard did put it in tier 4. Also, it isn't as useful at lower levels as it is at higher levels, since it takes fewer spells to kill an enemy when you are at low levels, so big crits aren't as important.
+Spell Hit 5%
This would replace the spell hit bonus of Balance of Power, a necessary talent considering that balance druids share much more gear with Resto druids than they used to. Since spellcasters only need 5% hit rating to be hit capped in PvP, this would eliminate the need for +hit on Balance PvP gear, allowing Boomkins and trees to share the same kind of gear. Although they would probably need different set bonuses on the 5-piece sets, it would mean they could share boots, belts, and gloves.
+Spell Damage 10%
This would replace Moonfury, and all Balance druids will benefit from it, be they leveling, raiding, or PVPing. I don't really need to explain this, do I? You know you want it.
I didn't included mana regeneration while casting because Blizzard has said they plan to make spirit a healer stat, so DPS won't need to worry about it. Although Boomkins will probably need to role healing armor, they'll probably be able to turn the spirit into something more useful with reforging.
Feral:
+Melee Crit Chance 5%
This would replace Sharpened Claws. I considered turning Ferocity into a mastery skill, but it dropped the idea for many reasons.
-Mastery skills are supposed to be boring but necessary, and although ferocity comes close to fitting that category, the fact that is directly lets you use your abilities more frequently means it makes your fights more interesting. Thus, it only fits the second criterion.
-I couldn't find a suitable replacement for its spot. I considered Furor, but its effect does not fit the above criteria, and moving Furor our of the resto tree would prevent ferals and boomkin from having a good talent to start investing in the resto tree.
-To be a true mastery skill, Furor would need to apply to all of our abilities. Could you imagine all of our abilities getting -5 energy/rage cost? That would be huge, especially for tanks. I'd call it OP.
+Stamina (Bear) or Attack Power (Cat) 10%
This would partially replace Heart of the Wild. I didn't include the intellect buff because I don't see it as completely necessary, although I do think it should be rolled into another talent, since some ferals, especially solo-ers and PvP'ers would certainly still want the increased mana pool. Perhaps Primal Tenacity? The increased mana pool benefits PvP feral druids the most, so it would make sense to put that bonus in a PvP talent.
+Melee Damage 10%
This would replace the melee portion of Naturalist, a talent all ferals need to take but usually end up taking after investing fully in the feral tree. This would probably turn Naturalist into a filler talent, unless Blizzard made it reduce the cast time of other spells, which I think would actually make it pretty cool. Anyways, become of its position in the resto tree, many ferals end up taking this at their level 65-69 talent, so I see it as the perfect final mastery talent for us.
Restoration:
+Spirit 15%
This would replace Living Spirit. Since spirit is on all trees' gear now, this would be useful to everyone, though more-so to raiding trees than PvE trees. Still, it's definitely a "necessary but boring talent," so I think it fits the bill.
+Mana Regen while Casting 50%
This would replace Intensity and put mana regen firmly in the ownership of trees. Why? Well, if this bonus is the second one, then balance druids couldn't get it by just investing a few points in resto (see my note at the end of the balance section). Like I said above, every tree has spirit now, which means that PvP trees need to get their mana from it as well.
+Healing 10%
This would replace Gift of Nature. Again, who wouldn't want this?
Friday, September 4, 2009
Should raiders be angry about the Emblem of Conquest change?
Disclaimer: Everything I say in this post in my own opinion, and though I make sweeping generalizations about raiders in this post, I am not making an assault on your own character with this post. In other words, don't take what I say personally.
The last major patch brought a pretty big change to the game: emblems of conquest now drop from heroic instances. Many raiders who got these emblems the hard way through Ulduar were not happy about this change, as they saw it as trivializing the gear they had worked so hard to obtain. Were they justified? It's a difficult question, but it begs an even bigger one, in my opinion: what is the purpose of gear? After all, the purpose that gear serves is fundamental to how valuable it is.
The way I see it, the only practical application of gear is to make encounters easier and thus allow the player to see more of the game. However, if that were the gear's only purpose, then the Uduar raiders wouldn't feel as indignant about non-raiders sharing their gear. They may feel that Blizzard's making good gear easier to get makes the encounters easier and thus trivialized their achievements, but as Windwalkêrs's recent downing of Yogg-Saron in only blues shows, gear only plays a small role in raid success, and thus making good gear available to more players does little to make the encounters themselves easier. Thus, this could not be the reason that raiders are so indignant about the emblem change.
So, what's the purpose of the gear? Since skill is really more important than gear in determining a player's usefulness to a raid than gear, the only reason left is one that's pretty obvious: the gear is the best way for raiders to show off that they raid and that they raid successfully. Achievements do serve the same function, but they are inferior to gear as a way to show off successful raiding. It's easier for a player to admire his gear than his achievements, and gear is much easier to show off to other players than achievements.
Of course, the idea that gear can be used to show off raiding achievements begs the question of why raiders should want to brag about their conquests at all. This is an easy one to answer; anything that a person puts a lot of work into, that person is going to feel proud of, and pride generally leads to a person wanting to some how show off what they have achieved. Still, many a wise man will tell you that genuine pride results in humility, and only hubristic pride leads to bragging. In fact, those who brag often do so because they have doubt in themselves and need to reaffirm their baseless self-esteem. Whether this theory applies to WoW, I'm not qualified to say, but my suspicion is that it does.
Bringing that all together, are the raiders who want to keep raid gear to themselves selfish? No, they're probably just insecure about their achievements and fear that their gear (which symbolizes their success in raids) becoming more common will somehow trivialize what they have accomplished. Will it? Not really, because gear has nothing to do with what you have achieved. It may symbolize it to you, but that's your own thinking, not that of the player-base as a whole.
The last major patch brought a pretty big change to the game: emblems of conquest now drop from heroic instances. Many raiders who got these emblems the hard way through Ulduar were not happy about this change, as they saw it as trivializing the gear they had worked so hard to obtain. Were they justified? It's a difficult question, but it begs an even bigger one, in my opinion: what is the purpose of gear? After all, the purpose that gear serves is fundamental to how valuable it is.
The way I see it, the only practical application of gear is to make encounters easier and thus allow the player to see more of the game. However, if that were the gear's only purpose, then the Uduar raiders wouldn't feel as indignant about non-raiders sharing their gear. They may feel that Blizzard's making good gear easier to get makes the encounters easier and thus trivialized their achievements, but as Windwalkêrs's recent downing of Yogg-Saron in only blues shows, gear only plays a small role in raid success, and thus making good gear available to more players does little to make the encounters themselves easier. Thus, this could not be the reason that raiders are so indignant about the emblem change.
So, what's the purpose of the gear? Since skill is really more important than gear in determining a player's usefulness to a raid than gear, the only reason left is one that's pretty obvious: the gear is the best way for raiders to show off that they raid and that they raid successfully. Achievements do serve the same function, but they are inferior to gear as a way to show off successful raiding. It's easier for a player to admire his gear than his achievements, and gear is much easier to show off to other players than achievements.
Of course, the idea that gear can be used to show off raiding achievements begs the question of why raiders should want to brag about their conquests at all. This is an easy one to answer; anything that a person puts a lot of work into, that person is going to feel proud of, and pride generally leads to a person wanting to some how show off what they have achieved. Still, many a wise man will tell you that genuine pride results in humility, and only hubristic pride leads to bragging. In fact, those who brag often do so because they have doubt in themselves and need to reaffirm their baseless self-esteem. Whether this theory applies to WoW, I'm not qualified to say, but my suspicion is that it does.
Bringing that all together, are the raiders who want to keep raid gear to themselves selfish? No, they're probably just insecure about their achievements and fear that their gear (which symbolizes their success in raids) becoming more common will somehow trivialize what they have accomplished. Will it? Not really, because gear has nothing to do with what you have achieved. It may symbolize it to you, but that's your own thinking, not that of the player-base as a whole.
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
How to most effectively arange your abilities on your action bars
I should tell you right now that this is a guide for people who are just going to use the 1-10, -, and = buttons as key-bindings, with the rest being placed on extra bars. If you want a guide on using the letters on your keyboard to use your abilities, look elsewhere.
Like many of my advice posts, the topic covered in this post will be a no-brainer to experienced players, but new ones will find it informative, I hope. I often notice that when people try WoW on my computer, they often put their abilities on the action bar in the order they get them in. While this is alright, it is hardly an effective way of doing things. Thus I decided to write up some guidelines on effective placement of abilities.
For starters, you will probably want to have more than twelve abilities available to you at any given time, and you won't want to keep them on a separate toolbar, which will force you to cycle through them. Instead, add some more via the options menu.
Game Menu (escape key) -> Interface -> Action Bars
This moves those extra action bars onto the screen so that you can use them without needing to cycle through them. You will want to put abilities here that you don't use frequently, meaning situational abilities and emergency abilities with long cooldowns, as well as any abilities that are mostly used out of combat. I put these abilities in order form left to right based on how frequently I use them, although I keep the emergency abilities that could save my life close to the left, even if I rarely use them, so that I can have easy access to them.
However, you will want to put the abilities you use frequently on the action bar itself. If you use the WASD keys to move, you can only reasonably expect to be able hit the number keys 1 through 6 with your left hand.* Anything beyond that, you will probably need to click to use. As such, put your six most important abilities here. These include the abilities you use most frequently, as well as any emergency abilities that you need to keep within a keystroke. As a tank, I keep Growl and Feral charge - bear on keys 1 and 2, respectively, so that I can press them at any time when I need to. Note that this only really applies to tanks and healers; if you are a DPS'er or are solo-ing, you probably won't have any emergency abilities that you will need to use with any level of frequency. As a rule of thumb, any abilities with cooldowns longer than thirty seconds, you will probably want to put on the additional action bars. Putting it on the main bar is just a waste of space.
Once you have your emergency keys bound (if you do bind them), you should order your remaining abilities with a combination of priority and frequency of use. As a tank, I usually use Lacerate the most, followed by Mangle (bear), Swipe, and Maul. However, after growl and feral charge, I arrange those abilities on my main action bar like so: Mangle, Lacerate, Maul, and Swipe. I put mangle first because it is my highest threat ability, so I try to use it every time it is off of its cooldown. I then put Lacerate because I use it so frequently. Maul comes next because I need to be able to spam it when I use it, so it's needs to be within my reach, but I don't spam it so frequently that it warrants being before the other two abilities. Swipe comes last because I don't use it too frequently and when I do need to spam it, I can usually see the situation coming and can prepare myself by getting ready to click it. Although I used physical necessities as my priorities on my bear form bar, you can also prioritize your abilities by damage or mana efficiency. For example, on my druid, I have my healing abilities organized so that the most mana efficient ones are furthest on the left.
To give another example, on my Shaman, with whom I mostly solo, I place Stormstrike first, then Lava Lash, then Earth Shock, then Flame Shock. I place stormstike first because it is my highest damage ability and I want to use it whenever it is off of its cooldown. Lava Lash, however, is my lowest damage ability, but I put it second because I frequently use it twice in a fight, sometimes three times. Earth shock and flame shock are both high on my priority list, since they both cause more damage than Lava Lash but less than Storm Strike, but I rarely use either more than once in a battle, so I put them after the other two. I usually start a battle by pulling an enemy with Flame Shock, and I usually use Earth Shock in battle, so I put Earth Shock in an easier-to-reach position than Flame Shock. The rest of my abilities on my action bar are all situational, so I put them after my main abilities.
One last note: It's helpful to keep similar abilities together on your action bars. On my shaman, all of my shocks are together, and ditto for my lightning and healing spells. On my druid's cat form bar, all of my abilities that give combo points are together, as are all of my abilities that use them. On my paladin, I keep all of my buffs and all of my seals grouped together. You get the idea. If you are really familiar with your class's abilities, then you may wish to disregard this advice; it's your choice.
*Some people change their movement keys to be ESDF, which opens up more of the keyboard for your use. You can do this if you wish, but remember to remap the R and F functions.
Like many of my advice posts, the topic covered in this post will be a no-brainer to experienced players, but new ones will find it informative, I hope. I often notice that when people try WoW on my computer, they often put their abilities on the action bar in the order they get them in. While this is alright, it is hardly an effective way of doing things. Thus I decided to write up some guidelines on effective placement of abilities.
For starters, you will probably want to have more than twelve abilities available to you at any given time, and you won't want to keep them on a separate toolbar, which will force you to cycle through them. Instead, add some more via the options menu.
Game Menu (escape key) -> Interface -> Action Bars
This moves those extra action bars onto the screen so that you can use them without needing to cycle through them. You will want to put abilities here that you don't use frequently, meaning situational abilities and emergency abilities with long cooldowns, as well as any abilities that are mostly used out of combat. I put these abilities in order form left to right based on how frequently I use them, although I keep the emergency abilities that could save my life close to the left, even if I rarely use them, so that I can have easy access to them.
However, you will want to put the abilities you use frequently on the action bar itself. If you use the WASD keys to move, you can only reasonably expect to be able hit the number keys 1 through 6 with your left hand.* Anything beyond that, you will probably need to click to use. As such, put your six most important abilities here. These include the abilities you use most frequently, as well as any emergency abilities that you need to keep within a keystroke. As a tank, I keep Growl and Feral charge - bear on keys 1 and 2, respectively, so that I can press them at any time when I need to. Note that this only really applies to tanks and healers; if you are a DPS'er or are solo-ing, you probably won't have any emergency abilities that you will need to use with any level of frequency. As a rule of thumb, any abilities with cooldowns longer than thirty seconds, you will probably want to put on the additional action bars. Putting it on the main bar is just a waste of space.
Once you have your emergency keys bound (if you do bind them), you should order your remaining abilities with a combination of priority and frequency of use. As a tank, I usually use Lacerate the most, followed by Mangle (bear), Swipe, and Maul. However, after growl and feral charge, I arrange those abilities on my main action bar like so: Mangle, Lacerate, Maul, and Swipe. I put mangle first because it is my highest threat ability, so I try to use it every time it is off of its cooldown. I then put Lacerate because I use it so frequently. Maul comes next because I need to be able to spam it when I use it, so it's needs to be within my reach, but I don't spam it so frequently that it warrants being before the other two abilities. Swipe comes last because I don't use it too frequently and when I do need to spam it, I can usually see the situation coming and can prepare myself by getting ready to click it. Although I used physical necessities as my priorities on my bear form bar, you can also prioritize your abilities by damage or mana efficiency. For example, on my druid, I have my healing abilities organized so that the most mana efficient ones are furthest on the left.
To give another example, on my Shaman, with whom I mostly solo, I place Stormstrike first, then Lava Lash, then Earth Shock, then Flame Shock. I place stormstike first because it is my highest damage ability and I want to use it whenever it is off of its cooldown. Lava Lash, however, is my lowest damage ability, but I put it second because I frequently use it twice in a fight, sometimes three times. Earth shock and flame shock are both high on my priority list, since they both cause more damage than Lava Lash but less than Storm Strike, but I rarely use either more than once in a battle, so I put them after the other two. I usually start a battle by pulling an enemy with Flame Shock, and I usually use Earth Shock in battle, so I put Earth Shock in an easier-to-reach position than Flame Shock. The rest of my abilities on my action bar are all situational, so I put them after my main abilities.
One last note: It's helpful to keep similar abilities together on your action bars. On my shaman, all of my shocks are together, and ditto for my lightning and healing spells. On my druid's cat form bar, all of my abilities that give combo points are together, as are all of my abilities that use them. On my paladin, I keep all of my buffs and all of my seals grouped together. You get the idea. If you are really familiar with your class's abilities, then you may wish to disregard this advice; it's your choice.
*Some people change their movement keys to be ESDF, which opens up more of the keyboard for your use. You can do this if you wish, but remember to remap the R and F functions.
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