Beginner's Zone
Globetrotting – Azuremyst Isle
Hello! Welcome to this week’s edition of Globetrotting! This is the weekly post where I take a region or zone in World of Warcraft and analyze it!
This Week's Zone – Azuremyst Isle
Level Range – 1-10
Status: Alliance Territory
Neighboring Zones – Bloodmyst Isle and Darkshore (By Boat)
Questing Hubs – Ammen Vale, Azure Watch, and Stillpine Hold
Dungeons/Raid Encounters – None
Battlegrounds – None
Major Cities – The Exodar (Draenei Home City)
Before the crash of the Exodar, the Azuremyst Isles were rather remote and off the beaten path for most creatures. However, since the ship crashed, the wildlife has been corrupted and has begun to mutate. Powerful crystals, cast off from the ship as it landed, dot the landscape, and powerful electrical storms travel through the skies. Other than the Draenei, a clan of furbolgs lives on the island, uncorrupted from the taint on the tribes in Kalimdor. There is also evidence that a night elf family lived here, although all that remains now is their house.
Azuremyst Isle is still off the beaten path because it is so hard to get to. The Horde seldom travel here to bother anyone, and that makes it a favored starting zone for some people on PvP servers.
Since this is a starting zone for the Alliance, there are no quests here for the Horde. The Alliance quests will take the player all over the island, where they will try to cull the effects of the crash on the local wildlife.
Profession Materials Found Here Include:
Cloth – Linen Cloth
Herbs – Peacebloom, Earthroot, Silverleaf
Leather – Ruined Leather Scraps, Light Leather, Light Hide
Ore – Copper Ore
There are no rare mobs to be found in this zone, which is interesting, considering there is at least one in every other starting zone, if not more.
Armor Penetration Set to Recieve a Nerf in 3.2.2
The nerf to armor pen in 3.2.2 is intentional. Compared to the recent buff where we increased the value of armor rating to 125%, this nerf would take it back down to 110%. While we are still evaluating the effects of this change in the 3.2.2 build, we did want to let you know of the possibility in case you were about to spend a lot on armor pen gems.
In fact, this was really the point. Several melee specs (and Marksman hunters) had begun to focus on armor pen at the expense of all other stats. Gear without armor pen was being passed over and gem sockets were increasingly being filled with just this one stat. While every spec has stats that are more valuable than others, this one felt like it was starting to trump everything. Not coincidentally, characters stacking lots of armor pen were starting to do more damage than their peers and more damage than we were comfortable with.
This change is largely for PvE reasons, though we won't cry at all if melee damage in PvP drops a little as a result.
We're letting you know now so that this doesn't feel like a stealth nerf, assuming it goes live. While you might disagree or be frustrated by the change (though I also suspect it won't come as a surprise to many players), we ask that you try and keep your response to something appropriate for these forums. (source)
Globetrotting – Azshara
This week's zone is truly one of my favorites in the entire game. It is hugely packed with lore, and the scenery is beautiful. This week, I am proud to cover Azshara, and all the far, vast reaches it has to offer.
This Week's Zone – Azshara
Level Range – 48 – 55
Status – Contested
Neighboring Zones – Winterspring, Ashenvale, Durotar
Questing Hubs: Horde – Valormok
Alliance – Talendris Point
Mage – Archmage Xylem
Hunter – Ogtinc
Note: Other classes may have class specific chains in this area too.
Dungeons/Raid Encounters – The outdoor raid boss Azuregos can be found wandering on the southern tip of Azshara if he is up. His spirit also wanders and is a separate mob entirely.
Battleground Portals – IF Azshara Crater is ever implemented, it will be located here.
Once a great night elf city, the lands of Azshara now stand shattered and all but abandoned by the inhabitants that once called it home. Those that survived the fall of the city and the Great Sundering, named the lands after their great queen, who was driven insane from demonic influence. Much of Azshara has fallen into the sea since its fall during the War of the Ancients, and the land is now overrun by angry ghosts, malicious satyrs, bloodthirsty naga, and the furbolg tribes that also guard the passageway into Moonglade.
Since its fall, Azshara has given birth to may strange legends and tales. It is stuck in an eternal autumn, and in the farthest corners of its jagged reach, clues to the land and it's queen's fate can be found. Some say that Azshara wasn't drowned, but instead was changed into a hideous aquatic beast, waiting for her time to return and claim her throne once more. Others think the demons were not fully banished, or that the dark portal that brought them here to begin with lies under the sea, waiting to be opened once more. Others whisper that The Sundering awoke something even more terrible and great. Any way you put it, most night elves agree that this place is cursed.
The geography of this zone is unique. As you first enter, it is a forested area, and many ruins dot the landscape. The farther in you go, the more unique it gets. There is a vast naga populated set of ruins that hold many secrets, and the long stretch of beach along the coastline plays host to many small islands, outcroppings, and hidden places. The ends of the peninsulas are very hilly, and have old, rickety bridges that lead to further ruins, which are also inhabited by naga. This place is a natural maze, and it would take a while to explore it all.
Questing in this area is widespread, but most of the Horde Quests come from Camp Valormok, which is near the massive naga ruins. Talendris Point is where the alliance will pick up their quests, and it is located right as you cross the bridge from Ashenvale on your right. Mages will need to speak to Xylem's assistant to get teleported to the top of his tower. From there, they can pick up quests that will help them hone their skills. Ogtinc is near the Furbolg encampments which are to the west of the expansive naga ruins.
This area has a plethora of natural resources, and is a favorite for people gathering things. Many kinds of fish can be caught along the expansive coastline, including: stonescale eels, darkclaw lobsters, firefin snappers, raw glossy mightfish, raw summer bass, raw spotted yellowtail, and raw rockscale cod. These fish will sell for quite a bit of gold on the Auction House, because they are needed to level cooking and are rarely fished up. Herbalists can gather strangekelp, goldthorn, khadgar's whisker, purple lotus, sungrass, golden sansam, dreamfoil, and mountain silversage. Leatherworkers can skin both worn and blue dragonscales from the blue dragons in the zone, as well as normal leather from the natural creatures, and miners will find the nodes of gold, mithril, truesilver, and thorium particularly plentiful.
Several Rare Mobs can be found in this zone, including:
Antilos – Level 50 – Beast – Rare Drops: Battlecaller Gauntlets, Warmonger – Location: Northwest of the first highborne ruins on the left side of the road leading from Ashenvale, as well as on the northern peninsula, in the forested areas
Gatekeeper Rageroar – Level 49/50 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Furbolg camp near the closed off gates to Timbermaw Hold – NOTE: If you kill him, you lose 125 rep with the Timbermaw Faction!
General Fangterror – Level 50 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: Joonho's Mercy(this sword only drops from this mob, and is one of the better ones in it's level range) – Location: The Temple of Zin-Malor in the Ruins of Eldarath
Lady Sesspira – Level 51 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Ruins of Eldarath
Magister Hawkhelm – Level 51 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Blood Elf encampment in northern Azshara
Master Feardred – Level 51 – Demon – Rare Drops: None – Location: northern Azshara
Monnos the Elder – Level 54 – Giant – Rare Drops: None – Location: Can be found wandering on the southern and northern tips of Azshara's peninsulas
Scalebeard – Level 52 – Beast – Rare Drops: None – Location: Islands in the Bay of Storms
The Evalcharr – Level 48 – Beast – Rare Drops: Wyrmslayer Spaulders – Location: The forests of the western part of Azshara
Varo'then's Ghost – Level 48 – Undead – Rare Drops: Horizon Choker – Location: Highborne Ruins in the western part of Azshara
There are three achievements specific to this zone, and one is a feat of Strength. The first is "Explore Azshara," which simply requires you to fill in the map. The second is to gain an exalted reputation with the Hydroxian Waterlords, and the third is called "The Fifth Element," and requires you to gain an Aqual Quintessence. This is a feat of strength, and is nearly impossible to complete now.
Some Trivia About Azshara (taken from www.wowwiki.com)
Azshara is one of the most common spots for gold farmers, who feast upon the large collection of thorium veins in the zone.
Azshara is well-known for its beautiful fall-like vegetation. In a game without much in the way of weather and seasons, Azshara is a gorgeous and very unique departure from the WoW-norm.
Azshara was supposed to be the location of the game's fourth battleground, Azshara Crater. This was put on ice when the issues with the current battlegrounds became too much to handle at the same time. After the release of the Burning Crusade, Eye of the Storm has taken Azshara Crater's spot for fourth battleground.
A Few Notes on Druids' Battle Resurrection
Currently, Druids are the only class that can ressurrect friendly players while in combat. The spell, called Rebirth, is trainable at level XX and can be used by any Druid, regardless of their talent spec. With a reagent requirement and a twenty-minute cooldown, Rebirth is a spell that, much like a Paladin's Divine Intervention or a Shaman's Reincarnate, should be used sparingly and only as a last resort. More often than not, when and how to use Rebirth is a split-second decision that can make the difference between a successful boss kill or a wipe.
Here are a few points to consider for all you raiding Druids.
– It's good to carry a few reagents for Rebirth, regardless of your spec. Starleaf Seeds aren't that expensive, and your battle resurrection might become necessary at some point, particularly in progression fights. Alternatively, if you can spare a minor glyph slot, consider getting a <Glyph of Unburdened Rebirth>, which eliminates the reagent requirement altogether.
– Another useful glyph is <Glyph of Rebirth>, especially if you're a healer. The utility of this glyph is arguably limited to situations where one of the tanks dies and needs to be brought back to life and pick up the boss straight away; however, it can also give you a few extra seconds to throw some spot buffs on whoever you've just brought back without having to worry about heals.
– If there is more than one Druid in the raid, decide the order in which to use your Rebirth cooldowns in advance. Make sure that your spells don't overlap and essentially waste a cooldown. On that note, remember to set up a macro to announce that you used your Rebirth, and also call it out on Vent if possible. The basic macro should look something like this:
/cast Rebirth
/yell Resurrected %t!
* %t will display the name of your current target
Alternatively, instead of /yell, you can use /rw if you're the raid leader or have assist.
– Be mindful of when you resurrect; if there is any kind of AoE damage going around, the player might die again before you get a chance to bring them to full health, they'll eat a hefty repair bill afterwards, and you've just wasted an essential cooldown.
– Last but not least, always use your better judgement to decide who to resurrect. Take into consideration the specifics of the fight and resurrect accordingly. As a general rule, it's a good idea to save your Rebith for a healer or tank, but there are always exceptions.
Raider's Guide: Finding a Guild
So you've decided you want to raid! Unfortunately, this means you need at least 9 and as many as 24 other people. While it's not too hard to hit Looking For Group and find people for easier raids or partial raids these days, if you want to go farther your best bet is finding a guild.
Your first step is picking a guild (or three) that you'd like to apply to. Check out the raiding guilds on your server–sites like wowprogress.com and wow.guildprogress.com are good places to look. Or maybe you've run with members of a particular guild and like their style and attitude. Look up the guilds' websites and see where they're at in raids. Remember to keep your own level in mind–if you're in heroic gear you may not want to apply to the guild with multiple Ulduar hard modes on farm, but if you've already pugged your way to some better gear there's no point in applying to a guild still struggling with Naxxramas. Talk to some guild members if you haven't already and make sure the guild will match your own personality as well. Some guilds raid hard and often, moving fast with penalties for repeated mistakes, while others take a more laid-back approach but may not be progressing as quickly.
Next, the application. Just keep this in mind: Too much detail is better than too little. Explain your choice of talents, your gems, and so on. Make it clear that you know your class and role well. You need to sell yourself as an asset to the guild, but don't come across as arrogant.
If everything else has gone well, most guilds will invite you along to a raid on a trial run. Bring your own food buffs, flasks, and any reagents you might need–this isn't the time to rely on a Fish Feast! Find out from the raid leader what fights will be happening during your trial, and if you haven't done them yet, read up and have an idea of what to do going in. Then put out your best possible performance!
Good luck finding a raiding guild–it's not as hard as it looks!
Mountain O' Mounts (With <= 5 People)
The achievement system has allowed many different World of Warcraft players to set their own goals. One goal I have set for myself is getting the Mountain O' Mounts achievement, however I am not a major end-game player and I mainly do 5-Man instances. Below is a list of the mounts obtainable with <= 5 people. This list is not all comprehensive; many mounts have been omitted due to class requirement, profession requirement, or raiding requirement. In other words, with enough work everyone can get this achievement by trying for most of the mounts listed below. (If I have missed any that meet the above criteria please let me know so I can modify the list.)
| Where/What | How | Number |
| Darnassus/Orgrimmar | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 7 |
| Gnomeregan/Silvermoon City | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 7 |
| Ironforge/Darkspear Trolls | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 6 |
| Exodar/Thunderbluff | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 6 |
| Stormwind/Undercity | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 7 |
| Flying Mounts | Buy – Gold | 7 |
| Armored Brown Bear | Buy – Gold | 1 |
| Wooly Mammoth | Buy – Emblems of Heroism | 1 |
| Travelers Tundra | Buy – Gold | 1 |
| Armored Snowy Gryphon/Blue Wind Rider | Buy – Gold | 1 |
| Kurenai/The Mag'har | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 8 |
| Wintersaber/Ravasaur Trainers | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 1 |
| Silver Covenant/The Sunreavers | Exalted & Buy – Champion Seals | 2 |
| Netherwing | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 6 |
| Sha'tari Skyguard | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 5 |
| Cenarion Expedition | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 1 |
| The Sons of Hodir | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 2 |
| The Wyrmrest Accord | Exalted & Buy – Gold | 1 |
| The Oracles | Revered & Buy – Gold/Luck | 1 |
| PvP Mounts | PvP Marks & Wintergrasp | 7 |
| Halaa | Tokens and Dust | 2 |
| Temple of Ahn'Qiraj (40) | Luck | 4 |
| Zul'Grub | Luck | 2 |
| Heroic Magisters' Terrace | Luck | 1 |
| Heroic Sethekk Halls | Druid Party Member & Luck | 1 |
| Heroic Old Stratholme | Timed Event & Luck | 1 |
| Heroic Utguard Pennicle | Luck | 1 |
| Karazhan | Attumen – Luck | 1 |
| Stratholme | Barron Run – Luck | 1 |
| Time-Lost Proto Drake | Rare Spawn – Luck | 1 |
| Fishing | Northrend Pools – Luck | 1 |
| Argent Tournament | Faction & Buy – Champion Seals | 11 |
| White Polar Bear | Hyldnir Spoils – Luck | 1 |
| Mekgineer's Chopper/Mechano-hog | Buy – Gold | 1 |
| Total | 107 |
Argent Tournament Jousting
I am sure we have all heard of the Argent Tournament. One of the main things the tournament focuses on is mounted combat, at least after you have achieved Valiant status. At first, mounted combat can be quite difficult. This guide will quickly transform you into a worthy opponent for the Black Knight.
First, we need to review the abilities at your disposal. (Each number label corresponds to the abilities numeric key in game.)
1. Thrust: 6yd Range, Instant, 2 sec CD, A melee attack that inflicts 3250 damage.
2. Shield-Breaker: 5 – 30 yd Range, Instant, 2 sec CD, A ranged attack that inflicts 2000 damage and removes one layer of Defend from the opponent.
3. Charge: 8 – 25 yd Range, Instant, 6 sec CD, A charging attack that inflicts 8500 damage and removes 1 layer of Defend from the opponent.
4. Defend: Instant, 4 sec CD, Reduces damage taken by 30%. Strikes by Shield-Breaker or Charge remove 1 layer of Defend! Up to 3 layers of Defend may be stacked.
5. Refresh Mount: Melee Range, Instant, 1min CD, Heals your mount. Can only be used out of combat.
6. Duel: 10 yd Range, Instant, 1sec CD, Challenge another combatant to a mounted duel!
Before you attempt to best your mounted opposition you need to build up your defenses. Use Defend three times. Keeping Defend maximized on yourself and minimized on your opponent is very important, so keep Defend as close to maximum as possible. Approach your enemy and start the joust. The enemy will get into position; DO NOT MOVE. As soon the enemy is in range of your Charge ability use it. After you run through the enemy you have a keen opportunity to use Shield-Breaker, but you must turn around very fast.
The best way to do this is to jump and turn around mid-air using your keyboard turning keys or mouse movement. You will have enough time to spam Shield-Breaker until you hit your enemy with one. After you shield break close the distance on your enemy as soon as possible. After the distance is closed, spam Thrust as much as possible and renew any lost Defend buffs. When your enemy tries to get into position again remain still and use Charge when it is in range again, or back-pedal to get in range quicker. The entire process repeats from here on out until you have bested your opponent.
Even with this guide it will take some practice; don’t get discouraged. Good luck jousting!
Server Types – Come for the Types, Stay for the Fun
When you first make an account on WoW, seeing the huge list of servers sitting there can be kind of intimidating. It seems like there's so many to choose from! Where does one even begin?
Hopefully I can help you a little with that. Today I'll be going over the different server types, and giving an overview on a few of them. I hope it will make selecting a server easy, whether you're new to the game or just want to experience a different aspect of the game on an alt.
First and foremost, there are three types of realm lists to pick from. The first set which, if you live in the United States or Canada will be your default list, are realms that operate and are hosted in the United States. Realm times operate off the four time zones found in North America.
The Oceanic list is typically for those that live overseas or in other countries. Their realm times operate differently, and people playing on them may speak several other languages.
Occasionally there will be an option of Tournament Realms open. These are created especially for Blizzard's arena tournaments, or other special events. You cannot create characters on these unless you are participating within the tournaments or the events being hosted.
The realms are named after people or places important to the Warcraft Lore, and their population ranges from New, Low, Medium, High, Full, and Locked. Low population realms will always be recommended to new players over high population realms. This in no way means you can't make a character on a high population realm, it's just Blizzard's way of trying to even out the population of their realms.
As I live in the United States, I'll focus mainly on the realms of that list.
The first type of realm is referred to as PvP, or Player versus Player. Before the most recent patch, players could only create characters of one faction or the other on a PvP realm, and couldn't switch between the two factions unless they had two accounts. Now, that restriction has been lifted, due to the up and coming paid faction transfers Blizzard will be offering. Another defining feature of PvP realms is being flagged for PvP. Players have the option to unflag themselves, which means players of the opposite faction cannot attack them unless they attack them first, but once the unflagged player steps into contested or hostile territory, they are automatically flagged for PvP. Typically these realms are very competitive, and some of the most fierce PvPers can be found competing against each other in the Battlegrounds and Arenas, as well as world PvP. Typically, items that are valuable in PvP situations are higher priced on the auction house than usual in this economy.
Examples of PvP Realms:
Aegwynn, Akama, Altar of Storms, Archimonde, Arthas, Blackwing Lair, Bleeding Hollow, Coilfang, Crushridge, Deathwing, Dragonmaw, Eredar, Frostmourne, Gorefiend, Gorgonnash, Gul'dan, Hakkar, Kalecgos, Kel'thuzad, Kil'jaeden, Korgath, Laughing Skull, Mal'ganis, Nathrezim, Onyxia, Rivendare, Sargeras, Scilla, Shadowmoon, Thaurissan, The Forgotten Coast, The Underbog, Thunderlord, Ursin, Vashj, Warsong, Wildhammer, Ysondre, and Zuluhed
The second realm type you'll encounter is called "Normal" or "PvE," which stands for Player versus Environment. In theory, these servers were created for players who would rather focus more on raiding than PvP. Typically raiding guilds that clear content first are on these servers. Items valuable in a raiding situation, such as buff food, flasks, potions, and other things cost more in this economy. Nyhm and Summergale, famous for their WoW music videos, come from a normal server.
Examples of Normal Realms:
Aerie Peak, Alleria, Area 52, Blackhand, Bloodhoof, Cairne, Cenarius, Dalaran, Duskwood, Elune, Eonar, Exodar, Fenris, Ghostlands, Gilneas, Gnomeregan, Greymane, Grizzly Hills, Hyjal, Icecrown, Kael'thas, Kargath, Khadgar, Khaz Modan, Lightbringer, Llane, Lothar, Malygos, Moonrunner, Nesingwary, Proudmoore, Quel'dorei, Quel'Thalas, Ravencrest, Silvermoon, Terokkar, Thrall, Uldum, Undermine, Uther, Vek'nilash, Windrunner, Winterhoof, Ysera, and Zul'jin
The next type of server is called a "RP," or role-play server. These servers were designed with a certain group of people in mind. People on these servers don't just create characters, they create back stories, plots, and personalities to go along with them. It is not uncommon to see Grey, white, or even low level green items fetching a decent amount of gold on these servers, because people like to have certain costumes and props for their characters. There are, of course, non-role players on these servers as well. There are extra terms of service put in place by Blizzard on these realms to allow role players to interact without fear of griefing from non role-players. It doesn't always work, but most rp servers have a healthy community of creative individuals that weave their own stories. People on this server are likely to speak as their characters, and use proper grammar, which in a game like WoW, is somewhat of a miracle. Special add-ons are also commonly seen on these realms to enhance the rp experience. A few examples are: flagrsp2 or myroleplay, which allows you to write a description for your character which other users of the add-on can see, tongues, which allows you to speak in other languages and be understood by people with the add-on, and GHI, or Gryphonheart Items, which allows you to create your own items, which can be traded, sold, or used by other people with the mod.
RP Realms:
Argent Dawn, Blackwater Raiders, Cenarion Circle, Earthen Ring, Farstriders, Feathermoon, Kirin Tor, Moon Guard, Scarlet Crusade, Sentinels, Shadow Council, Silver Hand, Sisters of Elune, Steamwheedle Cartel, The Scryers, Thorium Brotherhood, and Wyrmsrest Accord
The final type of realm is known as a "RPPVP" realm, or Role-Play plust Player Versus Player. It pretty much serves as a place for role-players who also wish to engage heavily in PvP. There are very few of these types in existance, and realm economies vary from realm to realm, depending on how much focus there is on role-play in each realm.
RPPVP Realms:
Lightninghoof, Maelstrom, Ravenholt, The Venture Co., and Twisting Nether
If the first realm you try doesn't suit you, don't give up! It honestly is the people that make the realms. If you want to research your realm before you roll a main on there, make an alt, head to a city, and ask around. See what the realm is like, and see if it has what you're looking for. That way you won't waste your time getting frustrated. With so many realms available, you're bound to find one that suits you best!
An Introduction to Addons
Greetings all, I'm Si and I'm here to give you an insight into the world of addons.
But first a little about myself; I've been playing WoW since 2005, I'm also the developer of the addon Comix (not the original developer, but I have been adding to it for some time). I live in Melbourne, Australia, and I'm currently trying to get a job in the game development industry. Whats that? You don't want to hear my life story? Alright, well onto the addons.
It crossed my mind to make my first post entirely self serving and write about my own mod but I thought that might be a bit on the lame side so instead I thought I'd write about one of the more necessary mods for the game:
Threat Meters
Combat is all about threat, you make the mob more angry at you than it is at someone else and it will go after you first. Therefore it's a good idea to have a visual representation of how much threat you are generating in respect to others in your group.
This is what threat meters are for, they show how much threat each party member (or a specified number of people) is generating on the current target.
There are two categories of targets that will show up in any threat meter:
- The Tank – Should always be at the top, that's what the tank is there for
- Everyone else – It's in your best interest to stay under the tank unless you want to die a horrible, painful death
For anyone that wants to raid, it's generally assumed (and most of the time required) that you will have a threat meter installed. There are a few around but here is a small list:
- Omen – most likely the number one threat meter, has multiple modes for showing information, plenty of configuration options and is my threat meter of choice.
- Simple Threat Meter – shows your threat on the current target, nothing more nothing less, perfect for those who don't care about having a lot of info and just want to make sure they don't pull aggro
- NoThreat and MyThreat – minimalistic threat meters that show you a percentage display of your threat on the target, perfect for those who don't like any sort of clutter on their screen
There is also an in built threat display system that uses the floating combat text style of display to inform you about your threat, so if you don't want to install a threat meter, or don't use addons (in which case you may be reading the wrong article) then you can still get the information you need.
PvP Realm Cross Faction Character Creation Restriction Removed
Players are now able to create both Alliance and Horde characters on any given PvP realm. The recent change was implemented to begin getting players ready for the upcoming faction change service, which will allow players to pay to have their Alliance characters swapped to Horde, and viceversa.
We’re in the process of developing a new service for World of Warcraft that will allow players to change their faction from Alliance to Horde or Horde to Alliance. To prepare for this new service, we've removed the restriction that prevents players from creating both Horde and Alliance characters on a PvP realm.
Globetrotting – Arathi Highlands
Welcome to this week's edition of Globetrotting! As I sit here waiting for the new patch to download, I'll be going over this zone and all it has to offer! So lets get started, shall we?
This Week's Zone – Arathi Highlands
Level Range – 30 – 40
Status – Contested
Neighboring Zones – The Wetlands, Hillsbrad Foothills
Questing Hubs – Horde: Hammerfall
Alliance: Refuge Pointe
Dungeons/Raid Encounters – None
Battleground Portals – Arathi Basin
The Arathi Highlands were once the center of human civilization within the Eastern Kingdoms. It was here that the elves and humans first had any real contact. During the second war, the Alliance forces of Stromgarde, led by prince Thomas Trollbane were instrumental in their defense, but sadly couldn't hold their ground. The forces of the Horde overran the place, forcing them to all but abandon their great capital, which now lays home to members of the Syndicate and a band of ogres that have encroached from the nearby mounds.
After the second war, Hammerfall was used as an internment camp for the leftover orcs, but when the Burning Legion invaded the humans were forced into a small canyon today known as Refuge Pointe, and remain there today. With the aid of the Alliance, they battle for control of their lands against legions of ogres, forest trolls, the Syndicate, and the Horde Itself, each faction vying to carve out a piece for themselves.
Similar in features to the Wetlands, Arathi's landscape is dotted with may circles of binding, which are used to keep an unknown entity asleep. While there are no instanced dungeons here, this land plays host to two of the more famous uninstanced dungeons: the ruins of Stromgarde Keep, and The Tower of Arathor.
Virtually all of the Horde quests will come from Hammerfall, and will lead players into areas inhabited by ogres, forest trolls, the Syndicate, and the ruins of Stromgarde Keep. The Alliance will find most if not all of their quests in Refuge Pointe, and will be directed into Stromguarde Keep, against ogres, forest trolls, the syndicate, and to a farm just outside Hammerfall home to many orc peons.
Many herbs are available in this zone, including: Strangekelp, Bruiseweed, Wild Steelbloom, Grave Moss, Kingsblood, Liferoot, Fadeleaf, Goldthorn, and Khagdar's Whisker. Miners will find Tin, Silver, Iron, Gold, Mithril, and Truesilver Ore, as well as Lesser Bloodstone deposits, which are only mineable in this zone.
Several Rare Mobs can be found in this zone, including:
Darbel Montrose – Level 39 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Stromgarde Keep (Syndicate Side)
Foulbelly – Level 42 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Stromgarde Keep (Ogre Side)
Geomancer Flintdagger – Level 40 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Drywhisker Cave
Kovork – Level 36 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Ogre Mound across from Stromgarde Keep
Molok the Crusher – Level 39 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Ogre Mound in the south
Nimar the Slayer – Level 37 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: Dark Hooded Cape, Nimar's Tribal Headdress – Location: Forest Troll Village in the East
Prince Nazjak – Level 41 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: Tidal Charm – Location: Southwestern Coast (Bands of Naga)
Ruul Onestone – Level 39 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: None – Location: Stromgarde Keep (ogre side)
Singer – Level 35 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: Zealot Blade, Necklace of Harmony – Location – Syndicate Farm
Zalas Witherbark – Level 40 – Rare Drops: None – Location – Witherbark Troll Village
There is one achievement specific to this zone, and that is Explore Arathi Highlands, which requires you to fill in the entire map of the Highlands.
Some Trivia about Arathi Highlands (taken from www.wowwiki.com)
April 2005 Patch: "Kinelory in Arathi Highlands is now PvP-enabling, so Horde players who attack here will be flagged for PvP."
It is possible to swim along the southeastern edge of the zone to get to the undefined brown area southeast on the zone map. This area is in fact an isolated plains containing a couple of crops, two male dwarven farmers, cats, rams, rats, and a wooden chair that you can sit in. The region has no name, and visiting it will not reveal it on the zone map.
The Arathi Highlands were one of the locations featured in South Park's "Make Love, Not Warcraft" episode.
What's interesting is that the Arathi Highlands bears resemblance to medieval England with the grasslands and the Circles of Binding bearing resemblance to the historical Stonehenge.
Bring the Player, not the Class
Recently Blizzard has been addressing that some classes are simply more powerful than others in certain aspects of the game, and players have expressed that it should be them determining this, and not the class, a representative responded earlier in the week:
"We don't think that's true. Some of you guys seem to always head for a purity of game design where things would look very neat in a table or plotted on a graph. But we're not trying for a design where every possible raid comp is equally viable. We don't need to support a design where the raid of 8 mages and 2 dps warriors is as effective as the raid with 10 Holy paladins.
All we need to accomplish is to give groups enough flexibility to be able to bring the players they want while still getting all of the big buffs and enough of the smaller buffs. And we've done that. In the Sunwell days, the rosters of most progression-oriented raiding guilds (basically the ones trying today's equivalent of hard modes) were very similar. Now they are quite diverse. We don't have 30 specs represented yet, but we have 4 tanks, 5 healers and at least one dps spec of every class. That's more class diversity in raiding than WoW has ever had before. If you look at the guilds doing hard modes, they have pretty different rosters these days and that's even more true of the normal modes.
If you're new to raiding in WoW, that's awesome because a lot of people are and we made a big effort in LK to make that happen. But talk to the groups that did Sunwell and the frustration they had in trying to build their raids. The first thing these guys said to us when they heard about a new class was "There's no room in my raid to take any."
If you're looking for that one thing that's going to get you a raid spot, I'd shoot for a reputation that you know what the blank you're doing and some good friends."
Globetrotting – The Borean Tundra
Hello! Welcome to this week's edition of Globetrotting! This is the weekly post where I take a region or zone in World of Warcraft and analyze it!
This Week's Zone – Borean Tundra
Level Range – 68-72
Status – Contested
Neighboring Zones – Sholazar Basin and Dragonblight
Questing Hubs – Horde: Bor'gorok Outpost, Taunka'le Village, Warsong Hold
Alliance: Fizzcrank Airstrip, Valiance Keep
Neutral: Amber Ledge, Transitus Shield, D.E.H.T.A. Encampment
Dungeons/Raid Encounters – The Nexus, The Occulus, Eye of Eternity
According to the ruins present, the nerubians were the first inhabitants of the Borean Tundra, followed closely after by the Tuskarr, and in more recent times, the Drakkari Trolls. Since the Lich King's reappearance, the Scourge have begun to encroach on this land, and both the Horde and the Alliance have risen to the cries of war that echo from this land. With the establishment of the Horde's outposts in The Tundra, the Tauren have recently been reunited with their ancestors, the Taunka, which were thought to be extinct.
Malygos, the leader of the Blue Dragonflight, and guardian of magic, stages his war against the mages from Coldarra, an island off the coast of the Tundra. Brave adventurers that seek to aid the Kirin Tor in their fight against him will find no shortage of tasks to complete along Amber Ledge and the Transistus Shield. Naga also make their home along the coastline, but their plans to melt the ice caps and cause a great flood have been put on hold by the Vykrul raiders that plague both the naga and the Tuskarr people.
Many of the quests for the Alliance will come from Fizzcrank Airstrip and Valiance Keep, but other questing places include Amber Ledge, the Transistus Shield, D.E.T.H.A.'s Encampment, and Kaskala. The Horde will find most of their quests spread all across the map, with the main hubs being Bor'gorok Outpost, and Warsong Hold. The Neutral quest zones are, of course, available to them as well.
Profession wise, miners will be able to gain access to Cobalt nodes here. Herbalists can collect Tiger Lilly and Goldclover here, and Frostweave cloth drops off the humanoid mobs. Borean Leather will also be able to be skinned from the various beast mobs in the area.
The Rare Mobs that can be found in the Tundra Are:
Fumblub Gearwind – Level 71 – Mechanical – Rare Drops: Fumblub's Seat Cushion, Abandoned Adventurer's Satchel – Location: Around Fizzcrank Airstrip
Icehorn – Level 71 – Beast – Rare Drops: Mammoth-Hair Crown, Abandoned Adventurer's Satchel – Location: The snowy area around Death's Stand
Old Crystalbark – Level 71-72 – Elemental – Rare Drops: Crystalbark's Toenail, Abandoned Adventurer's Satchel – Location: Coldarra
Note: Abandoned Adventurer's Satchels drop off of every rare elite mob in Northrend. For a list of what comes in a Satchel, see:
http://www.wowhead.com/?item=44663#contains
There are three achievements available for this zone. The first is Nothing Boring about Borean, which requires you to complete 130 quests in this zone for Alliance, and 150 quests in this zone for Horde. The second is Explore Borean Tundra, which requires you to fill in the map. The third is D.E.T.H.A.'s Little P.I.T.A. which requires you to complete the quest chain at the D.E.T.H.A. Encampment.
Globetrotting – Blades Edge Mountains
Welcome to this week's edition of Globetrotting! I'll be taking a zone from WoW and analyzing it for your reading pleasure! (and hopefully give some useful info too.. :D)
This Week's Zone – Blade's Edge Mountains
Level Range – 65-68
Status – Contested
Neighboring Zones – Netherstorm and Zangarmarsh
Questing Hubs -
Horde: Thunderlord Stronghold and Mok'Nathal Village
Alliance: Sylvanaar and Toshley's Station
Both: Evergrove and O'grila
Dungeons/Raid Encounters – Gruul's Lair
Arenas – The Circle of Blood
Outland… Nothing more than the remnants of the once mighty Draenor, home to the original orcs and to the Draenei. This unforgiving place features jagged, sharp spikes that shoot out from every mountain peak, and deep crevices that serve as homes to the waring ogre clans of the area. Demons of the Burning Legion have also set up their camps here, dotting the landscape and staining the soil black. Yet even here there is hope. There are still areas of lush forest, and wildlife that has yet to be corrupted. Various tribes of Arakkoa make their homes here, performing their strange rituals. There is also tale of an ogre heaven, if you believe that sort of thing. Dragon cults also exist within various caves burrowing in the mountains.
Most quests you pick up will be in your questing hubs. There is also a quest chain you can get from the ogre tribes to turn you into the king or queen of the ogres. When you complete this chain, all ogres in Blade's Edge Mountains become neutral to you. You can of course, still kill them, but it makes getting around a lot easier.
Profession wise, this is a miner's dream. Four types of ore can be found here: fel iron, eternium, khorium, and adamantite. Leatherworkers will be able to skin fel hide, knothide leather, knothide leather scraps, and nether dragonscales from the creatures roaming about. Herbalists won't have much of a selection here, since the only two herbs that grow in the region are felweed and dreaming glory.
The biggest difference between basic Azeroth and Outland and Northrend is the quantity of rare mobs. There are not nearly as many that roam Outland and Northrend as there are in Azeroth. For this reason, they are far more rare and carry quite a bigger reward on them. Listed here are the rare spawns to be found in Blade's Edge Mountains.
Hemathion – Level 68 – Dragon – Rare Drops: Drakescale Breastplate, Drakeweave Raiment, Drakescale Hauberk, and Drakehide Tunic – Location – The untainted area around O'grila
Morcrush – Level 68 – Giant – Rare Drops: Felstone Epaulets, Felstone Pauldrons, Felstone Mantle, Felstone Spaulders – Location – Eastern Blade's Edge Mountains, in the area surrounding and north of Death's Door
Speaker Mar'grom – Level 68 – Humanoid – Rare Drops: Nethersteel Reinforced Gauntlets, Nethersteel Handguards, Nethersteel Gauntlets, Nethersteel-Lined Handwraps – Location – Various ogre camps in the center of Blade's Edge Mountains
There are three achievements for this zone. The first requires you to explore it fully. The second requires you to complete 86 quests. The third is to complete the Gruul's Lair raid encounter.
BlizzCon 2009 Live Stream Orders Open
This year, for the first time, you'll have the opportunity to enjoy a live Internet stream of BlizzCon coverage from the comfort of your own home. The stream includes the same content as the DIRECTV pay-per-view event, but you do not have to be a DIRECTV subscriber to purchase it. It consists of over 16 hours of video, including interviews and commentary, main stage presentations, and tournament coverage. It’s now available to order for $39.95, and purchasers will also receive the BlizzCon 2009-exclusive in-game pet, Grunty the Murloc Marine (not available in all regions). Head over to the BlizzCon 2009 Live Stream website to get more information, to test video playback on your system, or to place an order. (Source)
