Apparently this massive dragon is a rare occurrence on my server of Argent Dawn, and last night was my first time seeing the event. From trade chat I gather that this event takes place as a player obtains their legendary weapon, but aside from those few details I know absolutely nothing about it. Anyone else able to shed some light for me? Nonetheless it was really neat to see.
This weekend was one of those weekends where I almost hate to admit that I play (and enjoy) World of Warcraft. That’s how heavy the snark was that hung in the air. It’s not the first time I’ve dealt with this situation, but it’s yet another reminder of how judgmental people can be. Especially people who are passionate about their hobby (which in this case happens to be gaming). I’ve been on G+ for a little while now (you can find my profile here if you want to add me) and I have a few ‘circles’ of people that I post to. One happens to be a general gaming circle, which I’ve diversified into an EVE Online circle + general gaming, because as it turns out EVE players do NOT like to see posts about other games. Especially not games called WoW. During one post that was actually about social interactions and the lack of finding a ‘home’ in an MMO some random player decided to tell me that since I had posted about WoW, they were going to remove me from their circle. This was the first comment I had seen like that – but not the last. It didn’t matter that I consider myself a nomadic gamer bouncing from game to game, or what I actually had to say. They saw the words “world of warcraft” and panic set in.
Blizzcon lead the way to the announcement about the next expansion which is going to introduce a new race and a new class as well as some interesting vanity pet combat games. Personally, I think the race is an interesting concept and one that has been around for quite some time. EQ2 also has a panda race, and players can quest for illusion items in order to ‘play’ them. The monk class reminds me of a combination between druid and paladin. Able to tank, dps, and heal, but wears leather and is melee combat focused. I haven’t decided if I’ll create one yet but I think it’s pretty safe to say that I will. I don’t find the expansion all that incredible but of course I’m going to wait until it actually launches (or I can test it) before I pass too much judgement. It doesn’t surprise me that Blizzard is feeling some pressure now in the MMO market, after all they’ve been ‘top dog’ for quite a long time and probably don’t know anything else. Years have passed and eventually they’ll have to fall. How they handle themselves during the next little while will make all the difference in the world.
Right now the Halloween event is in game and I’ve been trying to win the headless horse mount which comes from the daily reward. So far, no luck. Last year my warlock managed to win one but the priest just has really bad luck when it comes to that sort of thing. Alterac Valley happened to be the battleground for the weekend, which is my favorite battleground of all time so I spent most of my evening grinding honor points and purchasing a few more upgrades. I picked up the helm and now I’m working towards the honor required for a weapon. 3500 is a long way to go, but I think I can do it. Once I’ve finished of my dps set I’ll continue working on a heal spec. I’ve got a few pieces collected so far (back, shoes, weapon, and pants) but would really like to finish the set off.
In the mean time there’s always archaeology to finish off and crafting to be done. I still haven’t maxed out my tailoring or enchanting, although I have a number of other crafts that are currently finished. There’s lots to do (as always) and I’m enjoying the fact that I split my time between WoW and EVE, two VERY different games but both equally fun and relaxing to me. I hope everyone else had an amazing weekend, no matter where you found yourself.
Happy gaming!
A conversation last night with Dusty Monk from Of Course I’ll Play It spurred on the following post, so thank you Dusty! This is what he had to say:
“The thing is, grinding gets a really bad rap in our genre, but it’s only partially deserved. Spending time running around gathering things, for whatever reason, can easily be construed as a grind – whether you’re doing it for resources, or faction rep, or just for quests. And the thing is, if it’s the only think you’re doing, and then it becomes a grind.
But too many players would have you get rid of all the repetitive tasks in an MMO, to make it as exciting and thrill-filled for every possible playing moment as possible. And I think too many fail to realize that quite often that very low key turn-your-brain-off and relax kind of play is extraordinarily important to a huge variety of players. Even the most hard core, long term players.
I’ve been singing the praises of keeping a little bit of grind mixed in with your content for a long time – so it’s nice when I come across other players that recognize you don’t always want to throw out cut out that “low involvement” playing, and that it’s not always a bad thing. ”
I have a ritual in the evenings when I want some calmer form of gaming. I log in and spend an hour or so flying around from node to node, harvesting. I find harvesting a very relaxing act and a viable method of ‘playing’ a game, especially in WoW where you earn experience for it (unless you’re skinning). I don’t have to deal with other players on a personal level (of course there are always others flying around harvesting too, but interactions are minimal) and I rarely have to deal with large encounters of mobs. The entire experience is quite therapeutic, giving me time to step away if I need it and leaving me to my thoughts.
These quiet moments in video games are important if you’re in it for the long haul. It’s great to go out and scream your frustrations at the top of your lungs, but there always comes a time where you’re looking for a quieter method of ‘escape’. Plus who doesn’t like all the money you can make from harvesting!
My shaman reached level 81 last night, this will be the third time I’ve worked my way through the cataclysm content and I’m loving every minute of it. I still haven’t ‘completed’ everything in cataclysm, and since I switched over from horde to alliance it’s almost like new as far as quests go. The paladin is almost 70, having finally inched her way out of Burning Crusade which I dislike to the very core of my being. I typically try to dungeon grind my way through 60-68 because I dislike BC zones that much. I’m looking forward to questing with her through the lich expansion although with so many characters and so much to do in game I’m certainly in no rush.
I’ve also been playing loads of Glitch, which I mentioned in a previous post here on MmoQuests, working my skills up so that I can milk butterflies and squeeze chickens remotely. Ah, the possibilities.
As always, happy gaming no matter where you find yourself! I really want to stress that point, too. There’s a lot of conflict going around lately from people who hate one or more games and hence the people playing those games. Honestly, it doesn’t matter what you’re playing in your free time. It’s your choice. You shouldn’t feel bad if you spend it playing facebook games or WoW or EQ2 or AoC or any other title out there. It doesn’t mark who you are as a person, it’s just a pastime, and we all spend them differently. I’ve been concerned these past few days because it seems like more and more people are getting hurt because of the video games they play (emotionally hurt I mean). Tolerance is an easy thing to preach, but we have to remember that it’s not supposed to be about tolerance when it’s convenient for you. It’s supposed to be tolerance over all.
I’ve spent the last week or so getting involved in the PvP (via warfronts) aspect of WoW and I have to say if you’re looking for a way to develop a thicker skin in your gaming, PvP is the way to do it. You’d never know that it’s the opposing team you’re supposed to be fighting if you listen to any of the comments in the battleground channel. The only time people are not screaming about how much the whole team sucks is when you’re winning – which for me, especially lately, has been rare. I own a few pieces of season 10 pvp gear now, and while I’m certainly not the best and I have lots to learn I can also hold my own in a lot of situations. I’m a few honor short of earning my 7.2k for the season which is something unheard of for me. I’ve set a goal of 1k honor a day, but I’m sure it’s quite easy for people to earn far more then that if they so choose. Why anyone would want to subject themselves to that mental abuse for longer then required I have no idea.
I converted my honor to justice last night and purchased some PvE gear because I dislike being one of “those” people who boost their ilevel via pvp gear. I queued for a few dungeons starting with heroics and ending with one of the newer dungeons but neither of them ended up well, and the groups ended up leaving frustrated and upset. I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s just easier if I heal in heroics (since I queue with a tank) instead of leaving it up to a PUG. Of course that doesn’t guarantee a smooth run, dps still has to do above a certain number in order to succeed, and stay out of crap that spawns on the ground (WHY do people never do this?!) and move out of the way during particular events. I always talk about how easy I find these type of encounters, and I don’t understand why others find it so hard. Despite those types of issues I rarely if ever vote someone out of a group – I vote out for poor attitudes but not for poor game play. If someone is swearing and being rude and obnoxious it’s much easier for me to leave a group rather then if they’re simply bad. After all it’s supposed to be a game, and games are supposed to be fun. Like online bingo.
Why am I playing a game that seems to have such a bad reputation for community? Despite all of this and the lack of ‘family’ I’ve found in the game, I’m still having fun. I still find a lot to do in game and lots to keep me busy. Or maybe I’m just a sucker for punishment. Either way.
Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!
Even though I’ve played World of Warcraft since release, I’ve never ever found myself within a ‘community’ on any of the servers I’ve played on (a small handful of them now) and it looks like with the latest patch, I won’t ever have to. Blizzard is introducing their first raid finder which will work much the same as the dungeon finder, although (to start) it’s only for a very specific raid. Notice that I said ‘to start’. I’m going to predict that given some time this will extend to other raids, and I bet it will be quite popular. In World of Warcraft I can level from 1-85 without ever speaking to another player – while doing group content the entire time (via the LFDungeon tool). I can be teamed up with hundreds of strangers from multiple servers, and never learn a thing about them (although that doesn’t prevent players from going on about their drug habits or spouting out rude comments to trade chat). One of the main reasons I ever play a game is for the social aspect which is why I typically ‘quit’ WoW after a month or two – because there’s simply no social aspect.
Is this what people these days want in their MMOs? I can’t help but wonder. With Rift adding their LFDungeon tool and then solo / duo dungeons, and EQ2 following close behind adding their LFDungeon tool, the days of having to actually go out and speak with others on your server in order to find a group are slowly dwindling.
Then again when I look at public channels I wonder if these are the sort of people I even want to get to know to begin with. How do you go about finding the gems that must reside in your game of choice?
A Pixel Nomad 