I started a Goblin hunter earlier this week and after totally completing the starter zone I have to say I’m pretty happy with what Blizzard has developed for The Horde’s newest allies.  You start out in Kezan, a colorful area which is chaotic as only a goblin zone can be.  Architecture is very similar to what you see in the current Venture Company areas or in the Shimmering Flats, and mishaps by the residents is not an uncommon occurrence.  Goblins start out with two very nice racial skills; Rocket Jump (activates your rocket belt to jump forward) and Rocket Barrage (launches belt rockets at an enemy, dealing fire damage). Those who choose Alchemy as a profession will start with a 15 point skill advantage, and the Time is Money skill gives you a 1% increase in attack and casting speed. Perhaps the best racials though are Best Deals Anywhere, which gives you the best discount regardless of faction, and the parting gift you get as you exit the zone, a “pack hobgoblin” which allows you to call your very own banker, no matter where you are! He’s good for 1 minute and has a 30 minute cooldown.

Progression is managed though a pretty standard series of quests which will seem all too familiar to veteran players. First you get an introduction from the guy standing directly in front of you, who then sends you off to the next quest giver, located very close by. The sequence continues, with quests being a mix of kill, collect, deliver, and report, all designed to allow you to enlarge your realm of familiar territory without getting totally lost. I didn’t find any of it terribly challenging, but neither was it boring. “Cute” is the word that keeps coming to mind.

One very cool thing that makes this experience different than any of the previous starter areas is that after the first half dozen quests you’re given a Hot Rod to jet around in. It makes exploring the starter area much more fun and the comments you get from citizens when you accidentally run over them are classic. The fact that you’re given a quest in which the task at hand is to run over a series of “bad guys” makes it even more fun. You keep the Hot Rod for the rest of the time you’re in the “noob” area, which mean for some two dozen quests. The down side is that when you move to the next zone level, you lose your wheels and are back to walking.

Moving from the starter area to the full Lost Isles experience involves being teleported to the beach at Shipwreck Shore, which is on the second largest island. After a cut-scene plays through you start the first of another two dozen quests which include bomb-throwing monkeys, a gyrochoppa bombing run, and a couple of missions to help Thrall, as well as an escort quest through a cavern. Once done with these you’re sent off to Town-In-A-Box in a most goblin-esque way – launched through the air to land in your next new home, the largest of the three islands. The center of this island is a volcano and there are just over 50 more quests that can be obtained before you’re finally sent by boat to the newly constructed docks outside of Orgrimmar (on the beach, near Skull Rock).

A few things I noticed that are different from all the starter areas in the pre-Cataclysm races:

• There are a lot of phased quests, meaning you can’t get future quests until you’ve done the quests which come before. Anyone who’s completed Icecrown will recognize the pattern, and it works well in such a high level zone. How this will play out with veteran players who’ve already completed other starter zones numerous times, or even those who’ve completed the entire Goblin experience once or twice and don’t want to do it again remains to be seen.
• Rather than quests frequently being clustered, most of them were sequential. There were times when you could pick up three or four quests all together, but for the most part you obtained a quest, completed it, and turned it in before the next quest giver showed that she had quests available. Power players who rush through content by doing quests in clusters will find this frustrating.
• It doesn’t appear to me that you can leave Lost Isles until you’ve completed most of the quests. The NPC who gives you the exit quest is phased and there’s no way off the island except by boat…a boat which won’t leave the dock until you’ve got the exit quest. I’ll play through this at least once more to insure that this is actually a fact.

So, in a nutshell that’s Kezan and the Goblin race. It’s fun, colorful, and zany and should appeal to Horde-minded players who need a bit of change. I’ve tried during the week to think of the downsides to the Goblin race and all I’ve come up with is — they’re short!

The introduction of cross-realm grouping was an attempt by Blizzard to remedy these problems, and for the most part, I would agree that they were successful. But with any solution of this nature there is always a rather large margin for error.  Every single WoW player has dealt with some jerk who thinks he knows everything about the game, or perhaps a player who doesn’t work as hard as other members in the group. I have come up with a list of what I believe to be the top 5 most annoying things about the random dungeon system, and possible solutions to these problems.

5. Players who skip bosses.

This is more of a personal annoyance of mine, which is why I have put it as the least most annoying of the five.  As it stands right now, random dungeon running is one of the most effective ways to level your toons, and part of the reason for this is the gear you attain from killing bosses.  The only time where  I believe it’s acceptable to skip bosses is when you’re at level cap, and your only reason for running random heroics is for your daily 2 frost badges. I’ve been in that boat myself.

• Possible Solution: If you do not wish to skip any bosses during a run, make it known to the rest of the group as soon as you start the run.  Also, if there are specific pieces of gear you require, research where it drops and off of what boss. After that, politely let your party know which bosses you do not wish to skip.
• Possible Solution: Another solution to this problem is to run with people you know.  Try and get a group together who will help you kill the bosses you require.
  

4. The wait as DPS.

Let’s face it – DPS is a dime a dozen when it comes to random dungeons. If you play on a decently populated server, the wait for a random dungeon group as a DPS may take anywhere from 10-30 minutes.  The wait can be an annoyance, so much in fact that it may even discourage players from queing up altogether.  But never fear! There are ways to make the wait a little more tolerable.

• Possible Solution: If you’re lucky enough to play a class that can re-spec to a tank or a healer, you can bite the proverbial bullet and at least get into random’s much quicker. This may not be preferable for a player who loves to DPS, but at least said player can attain badges much quicker for their DPS set, or if they aren’t at level cap, gain XP at a faster rate.
• Possible Solution: If, for any reason you hate either tanking or healing, or perhaps you play a class that is unable to do anything else but DPS – here’s another idea.  If you have yet to reach level cap, you can quest while you wait, or perhaps work on your professions. If questing is out of the question, then there is always farming if you have a gathering profession. Low on gold? Do some dailies! The fact that a lot of WoW players tend to overlook is the vastness of the game they have grown to love. WoW is huge! There is always something to do while you wait.
  

3. Players who drop group during the run.

There are very few things more annoying than waiting to get into a random dungeon (especially as a DPS), and having someone drop group.  I can understand if it’s a valid reason, but most of the time players will leave without even saying a word. Not only is that rude, but it’s bloody annoying.

• Possible Solution: The only real way to ensure that this doesn’t happen is to group up with people that you know and trust.  Not only does this make for a smoother, less complicated run, but it avoids players randomly dropping group and leaving you hanging. Apart from that, there really isn’t much you can do other than que up for a random, and pray to God that it goes smoothly.
  

2. Players who don’t carry their weight.

This, unfortunately, is a very common annoyance when it comes to random dungeons.  A lot of players (especially DPS) are notorious for joining a random dungeon, and not pulling their weight.  I can’t count how many times I have run dungeons where the hunter is only right-clicking the mob and letting the auto fire do its job, or a tank who refuses to hold decent agro on multiple mobs.  I think the most annoying thing for me is a healer who refuses to heal anyone else except himself and the tank.

I can understand if a player is new to the game and doesn’t really know what he/she is doing. WoW, like anything else, has quite the learning curve and it takes a while to fall into your own no matter what the class you play. But there is no excuse for people who join a random heroic, and don’t pull their weight.  By then you should know how to play your class, and how to work as a team. Too many times have I seen people who are under-geared enter heroics and expect everyone else to carry them through.

• Possible Solution: There really isn’t much that can be done about this. My only advice is to do the level best you can and let the chips fall where they may. Either that or try to run with people you know can hold their own.  The sad reality is that one bad apple can spoil the whole bushel when it comes to this game. Ask any serious raider and I’m sure they will agree.

1. The know-it-all/rude players.

This, by far, is the most trying thing when it comes to random dungeons.  If you’re an experienced player you can almost sense when someone like this is in your group, even before they open their mouth. I can understand when the rest of the group is doing something foolish and screwing around, resulting in a wipe. I’m a patient man but even that would upset me.  But unfortunately most times, that’s not the case.  Too many times have I been in a group where for no reason someone is insulting other players, or ordering people around like everyone else is stupid. People need to realize that this is a game, not a job, and most certainly not the be all and end all of human existence.

• Possible Solution: Sorry, there’s no cure for being an asshole.

- Prince Achilles

What would you do for a pair of Blizzcon 2010 TIX??

blizzcon tix

So you wanna go to Blizzcon huh? Well get in line and line up early! These tix go so fast it will make your pet murlock’s hat spin…

There should be some great cool new gaming stuff on top of the costumes and cool gear that sponsors bring every year… As their press release says … “In addition to serving as a gathering place for Blizzard Entertainment gaming communities, BlizzCon will offer attendees a chance to enjoy:

-Hands-on play time with upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games
-Discussion panels with Blizzard Entertainment developers
-Competitive and casual tournaments for players to showcase their talents
-Community contests with great prizes
-Commemorative merchandise based on Blizzard Entertainment’s game universes
-More exciting activities and attractions to be announced ”

Here are the Deets for attendees off the Blizzcon website:

When and where is BlizzCon 2010? BlizzCon 2010 will take place on Friday, October 22, 2010 and Saturday, October 23, 2010 at the Anaheim Convention Center, located at 800 West Katella Avenue, Anaheim, CA 92802. The hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Pacific Time on both days (Friday and Saturday).

How much does a BlizzCon 2010 ticket cost? Details about BlizzCon 2010 ticket availability and pricing will be announced on the official BlizzCon website, www.blizzcon.com, as the event draws closer.

Where and when can I buy BlizzCon 2010 tickets? To attend BlizzCon, you must purchase tickets in advance through the online Blizzard Store once they go on sale. Details about BlizzCon 2010 ticket availability and pricing will be announced on the official BlizzCon website, www.blizzcon.com, as the event draws closer.

What activities will be at BlizzCon 2010? In addition to serving as a gathering place for Blizzard Entertainment gaming communities, BlizzCon will offer attendees a chance to enjoy discussion panels with Blizzard Entertainment developers, competitive and casual tournaments for players to showcase their talents, hands-on gameplay featuring your favorite Blizzard Entertainment games, community contests with great prizes, commemorative merchandise based on Blizzard Entertainment’s game universes, and more. We’ll share more details about these and other events and activities on www.blizzcon.com as the event draws closer.

ride em' turtle girl?

How will ticket sales operate this year? The ticket-sales process for BlizzCon 2010 will be conducted through the online Blizzard Store, and will function similarly to the ticket-queue system used for BlizzCon 2009 ticket sales. We’ll have more details to share about BlizzCon 2010 ticket availability and the purchasing process in the near future, so please keep an eye on www.blizzcon.com for updates.
Can I order BlizzCon tickets over the phone? You will only be able to place BlizzCon ticket orders online through the Blizzard Store. We will not be accepting BlizzCon ticket orders over the phone.

What can I do ahead of time? Purchasing tickets requires a Battle.net account. If you do not have a Battle.net account and wish to create one in advance of ticket sales, click here to get started. Prior to ticket sales beginning, you may wish to visit Battle.net Account Management to ensure your contact and stored credit-card information are up-to-date, and to verify your e-mail address.

What do I get for the cost of a ticket? Each BlizzCon ticket includes a BlizzCon badge that grants access to BlizzCon. Attendees will also get a BlizzCon goody bag containing exclusive swag. More details on the contents of the goody bag will be revealed in the weeks ahead. Please be aware that transportation and hotel accommodations are not included with the cost of any BlizzCon ticket.

For the Board!!

Is BlizzCon open to attendees outside the United States and Canada? Yes. International attendees will be able to purchase tickets at the same time as domestic attendees. We have not yet announced when tickets for BlizzCon 2010 will go on sale, so please keep an eye on BlizzCon.com for more information.

What should I do about hotel accommodations and transportation? Several hotels within walking distance of the Anaheim Convention Center will be providing guest rooms at a special BlizzCon group rates. Transportation to the event will be up to you. Please check the Travel Info page on www.blizzcon.com in the coming weeks for further information on nearby hotels and how to take advantage of the special group rates, as well as information about car rentals and shuttle buses from nearby airports. If you plan to drive to the Convention Center for the event, we suggest you carpool. Please visit our parking page in the coming weeks more information.

Is there an age restriction for attendees? Some content at BlizzCon may not be suitable for children. Anyone under 13 must be accompanied by an adult. Absolutely no children 5 years of age or under will be permitted to enter. Tickets are required for all attendees, and the child ticket price is the same as the adult ticket price. Please note that no strollers will be allowed in the Anaheim Convention Center.

Whom should I contact if I have a question about accommodations for people with disabilities at BlizzCon? If you are disabled and require special services, please contact blizzconsupport@blizzard.com to identify your special needs. All requests should be received by August 20, 2010 in order to ensure the availability of services. Please include your contact information in your email.

I am planning on carrying my costume and some water in a backpack to BlizzCon. Is this OK? Any bags being brought into BlizzCon should be smaller than 20 inches x 10 inches (roughly the size of two sheets of paper side by side). Anyone with a bag larger than this may be refused entry. If you are taking part in the costume competition and require a larger bag to store your costume, please check with the information kiosk in the lobby on your arrival. Blizzard Entertainment reserves the right to search any bags being brought into BlizzCon and to refuse entry if they are found to contain prohibited items (see below).

the mighty shall strike victory

Will there be a place to store a costume and/or bag at any time during the event? There will be no general storage space available to show attendees. Please leave anything you don’t wish to carry in your car, at home, or at your hotel. If you are taking part in the costume competition, please check with the information kiosk in the lobby on your arrival.

Can I bring my video camera/camcorder into BlizzCon? Video cameras are permitted for use in the BlizzCon exhibit halls. However, you may not record gameplay from any of the screens (with the exception of tournament gameplay), and recording the BlizzCon closing concert on Saturday evening is strictly prohibited.
Can I bring my iPod? MP3 players are permitted in the BlizzCon exhibit halls. However, personal equipment may not be connected to any computer for any reason at any time.

Can I bring my computer/laptop to BlizzCon? General attendees will not be able to bring desktop computers, laptops, and electronic storage devices into the BlizzCon exhibit halls. Please leave these devices in your car, at home, or at your hotel. Members of the media who have a press badge will be able to bring a laptop onto the show floor.

I’m planning on wearing a costume to BlizzCon. Are there any items I cannot bring into the event? Costumes may not include or otherwise utilize any edged weapons (such as knives, daggers, and swords); actual clubs, maces, or other crushing weapons; or projectile weapons of any kind, even if unloaded or nonfunctional (this includes firearms of any kind including air guns, longbows, crossbows, etc.). Acceptable costume weapon props are limited to air-filled or soft plastic melee weapons (swords, daggers, maces, clubs, etc.) and wooden staves that are not shod with metal.

Is there anything else that I can’t bring? Attendees will not be allowed to bring weapons, alcohol, fireworks, glass bottles, cans, or large containers into BlizzCon. **Any attendee found to have violated the prohibited items list may be removed from BlizzCon.**
Will BlizzCon be broadcast on TV or available to view on the Internet this year? We haven’t announced any plans for television or Internet broadcasts of BlizzCon 2010. Keep an eye on the official BlizzCon website, www.blizzcon.com, for any event-related announcements as the convention draws closer.

Here is how Blizzard describes it:

Here are some examples or previews of the wow mag:

PETS: http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1M4b2f964fedde4303.cde/page/9

COMMUNITY: http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1M4b2f964fedde4303.cde/page/33

5th ANNIVERSARY DETAIL: http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1M4b2f964fedde4303.cde/page/23

BATTLE OF SYLVANAS AND ARTHAS AND THE SIEGE OF ICECROWN CITADEL: http://cde.cerosmedia.com/1M4b2f964fedde4303.cde/page/15

The votes are in and a whopping 15 out of 24 contestants won prizing. Congrats to all who brought both excitting and sometimes heart wrentching stories to the Tales of Azeroth Contest!

1st Place - Lost but will never be forgotten (animeguru08)
“A beautiful story of friendship. A tale that shows that real honor is still left in the world…”

2nd Place - Priest killing Gruul (emancipator)
“Brilliant! Just goes to show how even squishies can dish it out in a time of crisis!”

3rd Place - How I got ganked IRL… (GankedIRL)
“This was a riot to read. Tip her well! For the alliance!”

4th Place - A Simple Paradise (Jdumoulin)
“Beautifully written! Really a moving story.”

5th Place - One morning on my way to work… (barf)
“Short but sweet! Where can I get one one of those stickers! *grin*”

Honorable Mention-The tale of Darkened Felstar (Darkened)
-diseased hunter (mross)
-Retaking the Undericty (Scythe8911)
-The amazing Leroy run! IRL (bigmanXX)
-The epic struggle (Zhek)
-Khasha (narsyn)
-Life,Love and World of Warcraft (Eclipsknight)
-Snow, Explosions, and Love (cursedseishi)
-Dedication to test the game (calis)
-Which would you choose? (webslider)

Read all the tales here. Continue to post your stories on TotallyWarcraft, we will be awarding random prizes ongoing….

~The TotallyWarcraft Guild~

• Icecrown Citadel: The Frozen Throne
• Icecrown Citadel: The Forzen Halls
• Tier 10 Armour Sets
• Cross-Realm Dungeon Finder
• Quest Tracker

To look at the newest patch notes check out Blizzards official patch notes. Here We’ll leave you with the newly released Trailer for Patch 3.3. Enjoy

Who cares about achievements right? I mean its like we all play the game adn get achievements for talking to someone or walking into an area… So what?? Well finally a real achievement…. This guy completed every achievement in World of Warcraft – a meta-achievement. Everything,! that’s ALL:

• Quests
• PVP
• Reputation
• Instances… Raids
• World Events
• Professions
• Exploration

All 986 achievements were completed and every area in the game was visited by this level 80 Tauren named 小灰 (”little ash”), as reported by MMO Champion. This total of achievements includes everything prior to the launch of Wrath of the Lich King… so Fets of Strength are not included and rightly so as they are impossible ! A slow adjustment by Blizzard on their Achievement Table I might add …

So here we are again, on the verge of the final major patch of this expansion. It feels like only yesterday when we were all raging at M’uru wipes. Here’s a brief overview and reaction to the upcoming patch.

There are a LOT of changes coming to the new player experience system. Believe it or not there are still people out there that don’t play this game. I know it’s hard to believe! Between not getting dazed any more in the first five levels and rogues starting out actually dual-wielding, I’d say this is a welcome improvement for new and old players alike. Updated tooltips will help better explain what your abilities actually do to a newbie. These changes are awesome and will vastly improve new player experience.

Scrolling through the notes here… blah blah blah AOE damage cap blah blah blah… “Pet Resilience: All player pets now get 100% of their master’s resilience.” … HURGH. Holy sweet Jesus it’s about time they did that. How long has this been wanted? Probably ever since resilience was introduced with the Burning Crusade. Continuing on, we see ANOTHER will of the forsaken change. Are you freaking kidding me? This ability has to be the most messed with, toyed around, tinkered mechanic in the game. It seems like every patch they change it in some minute way. This time it shares cooldowns with similar trinkets. Neat, I wonder what the next patch will hold for WotF. I guess this is the reason they added “Will of the forsaken nerf” to the dropdown box of reasons when you try to close your account.

Unique totem art is cool. Aesthetics, while petty, do play a huge role in the “presentation” of the game. “Players no longer need to kill the final bosses in all four wings of this dungeon in order to teleport to Sapphiron. Teleportation orbs have been added to allow players access back and forth from Sapphiron’s lair.” Betrayer of Humanity runs, anyone? This is awesome. So far so good.

Some of the class changes are pretty mundane. DKs are getting a threat boost with Rune Strike. Druids get more haste in resto. A lot of hunter pet changes, mostly to improve avoidance and streamline the pet’s talent trees. They also doubled the speed at which hunter pets level. It seems like we get a lot of help with leveling in these final patches. Not much in the way of changes for mages, some mana cost improvements in fire which will be welcomed. Now as for paladins, something that made me raise an eyebrow was lay on hands causing forbearance – if used on yourself. Making it a 20 minute cooldown is a little much also. Paladin’s already don’t have many “Holly Crap!” abilities, so having to choose between 50% less damage and a full heal sucks the big one.

Priests get some shadow improvements, with haste now affecting their DOTs. Rogues don’t really have anything of note, except when ‘deadly’ is stacked to five stacks, your offhand poison will proc. That’s a nice addition. For shaman, you can now ankh every 15 minutes if you have it talented. Also elemental mastery in the elemental tree has been changed to 15% haste instead of crit chance. This is an AWESOME change, since elemental shaman are already stacked on crit. Warlocks have a bunch of talents switching around and changing. Conflag has been redesigned as has the talent Molten Core. Honestly, I have no idea what these changes mean because a warlock is one of the few classes I’ve never leveled. Sorry, kids. Oh, and warriors. Let me summarize your class changes:

Right, now that I’ve completely summarized the warrior class changes with the blank space above, let’s move on to the Icecrown content. As far as the “gated” entry to the multiple wings, it confuses me to a point. Elite guilds are going to spend two weeks clearing the first wing and the rest farming the crap out of it until the second wing is opened. They’ll have a substantial amount of gear and will probably blow through the second wing in just one raiding week. I could be wrong, because I have no idea of the difficulty level of Icecrown Citadel. From years of raiding experience and watching what the top guilds do, however, it’s pretty easy to guess what’s going to happen. I truly hope someone does blow through the fast wing, be it Ensidia or vodka or whoever, because I am dying to see what happens to the Lich King at the end. Arthas is a personal favorite villain of mine. Anyway, moving on. The new, NEW looking for group system features cross-realm pick-up groups. This idea is awesome, and I really hope it works out. Some things that could hold it back include laggy transitions, bad group make up and lack of leadership. I for one hope the launch goes smoothly.

This by far is not coverage for the entire load of patch notes. It just covers the most pertinent issues and changes. If you have any questions or comments, please follow the link here to discuss it on the forums.

For the full listing of patch notes, follow this link.

Here is the text version:
“World of Warcraft is celebrating its fifth anniversary, and we’re inviting you back to Azeroth to take part in the festivities. Your account has been selected to receive 7 days of FREE game time – simply click below to claim your time and rejoin the adventure.

While you’re back in Azeroth, you’ll be able to enjoy the following new additions to World of Warcraft:

• Grab your own 5-year anniversary pet, the Onyxia Brood Whelpling, just for logging into World of Warcraft during the celebration.*
• Find the Night Elf Mohawk to get your Mohawk Grenades… and help make Azeroth look “goooood”.
• Battle the newly updated level-80 version of the fearsome dragon Onxyia in Dustwallow Marsh.
• Answer the Call of Crusade in Icecrown, and take on all-new dungeon and raid content.
  And more to come… including the epic final confrontation with the Lich King himself.

We hope you join us for the World of Warcraft fifth-anniversary fun! – The World of Warcraft Team

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