Preview of Patch 1.12

What can we expect from Patch 1.12? Check out the Under Development page which outlines:

Cross Realm Battlegrounds

Coming in patch 1.12 are cross-realm PvP Battlegrounds

World PVP

objective-based land battles as Horde and Alliance vie for control over important strategic positions and resources around Azeroth

Rogue Review

One thing I like about Blizzard - If you mouse over the picture at the top of the Under Development Page each character in the pic has a funny quip. (Thanks to this post that mentioned that little Easter Egg.) The Orc's mouseover-text has been updated because people must have felt the Tauren was confusing. (Unfortunately the mouseover-text didn't copy over to this post.... go on over to the Under Development page to check it out.)

"Technically I Am. I guess I am."

A great new video find -



Thanks to this post from livejournal for pointing it out.

Are these WoW Reference Sites in your Rotation?

Have you checked out these WoW Reference sites?

wowhead.com with their excellent Talent Calculator

These two are built off of reader contributions:

wowbreak.com which is like a Digg.com for World of Warcraft. Read and vote on submitted WoW stories.

wowwiki.com A great compilation of information - for example look at the Fire Festival and Scourge Invasion pages. (I updated the post on the Lesser Mark of the Dawn post based on what I learned there.)

p.s. If you like the thought of contributing consider this post from wowinsider.com who is looking for bloggers.

Penny Arcade Makes me Laugh out Loud

Two great Penny Arcade Comics Recently:

Treachery Manifest "This is a picture of my son! He needs his father."

Gremlins Are A Rich Source of Gremlinium - about the Blizzard Downloader

And don't forget to visit this all WoW comic - Dark Legacy Comics.

Juxtaposition

Is it bad luck that the Scourge invaded in the middle of the Summer Fire Festival or good luck because we need the buffs?
A sight I caught in Stormwind:

Some Decorations In Darnassus:

And the Undercity:

Blizzard responded in the forums when someone mentioned the timing:

The Scourge Invasion was slated to begin when Naxxramas became available, which meant the launch of 1.11.

Unfortunately, that date happened to fall one day before the summer solstice, which is when the Midsummer festivals occur (in the real world, as well).

While it is a bit odd at first, clearly this is a display of the peoples of Azeroth going forward with their traditions and celebrations in spite of the dark times that threaten their lives, an act of defiance for the Scourge invaders.

...but I'll look into getting the sun patched so it hits its highest point later next year. ;)

Low Level & High Level Quests

I'm addicted to alts.

I must have 20 or 30 of them, both Alliance and Horde. Well, imagine my delight to find out that they can participate in the The Entry Level Scourge Quest.



Unfortunately it turns out that's about all I'll be able to participate in. Blizzard confirmed that the Scourge Invasion benefits certain, but not all levels:

While we're aware that there isn't a great deal of Scourge Invasion-specific content for those below level 50, we didn't leave the mid-levels out, either. There are new bosses in many dungeons for the duration of this event, and we included many level ranges. If you're looking to find the specific instances we chose... think Undead. ;)

I have one character who is (just barely) level 50 or higher (apparently when I'm bored I create an alt... and apparently I'm bored a lot). I also don't prefer the dungeons because I can't do them solo. Maybe I should be looking at the Fire Festival Quests:

The Scourge Invasion is weighted towards the high end, for example, while the Midsummer Fire Festival is more evenly distributed but is less complex.

I looked at one of the Fire Festival quests outside of the Undercity and I balked when he wanted me to visit fires in Alliance areas. Instead I think I will wind up doing some War Effort quests. War Effort you say? Yup. On the Steamwheedle Cartel Server it just started up. And turning stuff in is about my speed.

Update 6/29/06:

Small Scourge Invasion Walkthrough of the higher level quests.

Scourge Invasion FAQ from the Forums (via wowinsider.com)

WoWWiki's Scourge Invasion page

Lesser Mark of the Dawn

I found these guys (Argent Dawn Paladins/Initiates) hanging near the Argent Dawn teams in major cities on SOME of the servers I visited:

If you talk to them they'll give you a stack of 3 of these:

Pretty neat addition. Unfortunately for the one in Ironforge, his generosity apparently cost him his horse:
Update 6/25/06: a lot of horses.
Who now will apparently have to transfer to Orgrimmar:

I'm guessing their appearance is tied to the progression of the Scourge Invasion on that server.

Update 6/28/06: Thanks to wowwiki's Scourge Invasion Page I learned that depending on the number of Scourge Battles won there are different items available. So far they've seen:

Battles Won	Item	Bonus
50	Lesser Mark of the Dawn	10 Stamina for 1 Hour
100	Mark of the Dawn	20 Stamina for 1 Hour

Drop LFG Channel

I read a lot of complaints about the global Looking For Group Channel.
Update 6/27/06: This one was pretty funny.

And they were right. So some people are putting it on it's own tab. Or /ignoring the worst offenders.

I just turned it off since I don't use it anyway. I just right mouse clicked the chat tab and selected the "Join New Group" section and unchecked the Looking For Group chat:



Update: Blizzard Post on the Functionality of the Channel

We feel that it definitely provides a helpful advantage; however we are evaluating its current implementation and likely changing its function slightly in the near future.

WoW Movie Post Collection

Back in May with all the E3 hoopla, Blizzard announced there would be a Live Action Warcraft Movie (press release). Since then I've collected a few posts about it. Some are pretty funny. Enjoy:

Warcraft movie comes into focus from gamespot.

GUComic fun here or here.

Movie Comic

Spielberg Rumor ~ NOT!

Superman in Azeroth

Update: 7/29/06

The HSX Warcraft Movie Stock currently trading at $25.45

imdb link - currently undeveloped

wowwiki page

Midsummer Fire Festival

Kudos to watchingwow.com for being the first of the blogs I read to identify this gem: The Midsummer Fire Festival June 21-July 5.

I can't wait to learn more about it. Although by the looks of some pictures I think we're in for Maypoles of Deathly Lasers! Remind me not to check my mail from SW.

6/21/06 Update: Link to the new Blizzard Midsummer Fire Festival website. Based on my read - here are the takeaways:

Dance around the death pole (my term, see picture - seriously take a good look at it) and get a fire resist buff

Go near the bonfires and get a positive buff

Today is Patch Day - 1.11

Link to Post with all the Patch Day Links.

It's Patch Day!

Patch Summaries from: WoW Insider (brief) and WatchingWoW.

If the test realm patch notes hold, here are my highlights for this patch:

Mage & Shaman Updates (free talent respecs)

The cost to unlearn talents will decay over time. (-5 gold per month to a minimum of 10 gold)

Keyrings

New Flight Paths

Stack Size Improvements (Skinning Items, Enchanting Items, Rogue Items)

Raid interface updates

and of course... the The Scourge Invastion

Shadow of the Necropolis
The day many have feared for years has finally come: the Scourge has launched a direct attack on the lands of Azeroth! Reports of necropolis sightings are coming in from all over the world, the massive structures looming ominously on the horizon, ready to move at Kel'Thuzad's command.

I'm not sure if I have to remind everyone NOT to trust the floating cities...

Patchy Convenience

This is the post I will go to on patch days with all the links I need:

Realm Status Page

To remind yourself of what will be in the next patch check out the test-realm-patch-notes.

Read the official Patch Notes Page to see the Patch details once updated.

Download the patch from gamespot to get it faster. (Other Patch Mirrors including full and Mac patches here.)

Archive of Blizzard Posts

See you on the other side and don't forget to check your mods!

Blizzard Updates Its Websites

It looks like Blizzard isn't just patching the game but also updating their web presence. Sounds like a good idea. Here are some links that also include preview shots of the new sites:

New WorldofWarcraft Forums from wowinsider

New WorldofWarcraft Website from warcry

Update 7/6/06: WatchingWoW says the new worldofwarcraft.com is now up. I finally got it to load (took a while). Here's what the new website says:

The new main page design is now officially online! The official World of Warcraft community website has undergone a complete redesign to improve both accessibility and user friendliness. We have expanded the left side menu so that all web content is now just one mouse click away, allowing you to find exactly what you’re looking for within seconds. The main page has been restructured as well, making it much easier to keep track of the most recent news, events, and updates to the game.

Keyrings

Here are my notes on the keyrings we can expect to see in Patch 1.11:

Dark Legacy Comic (Being a solo player I can relate to this one.)

Key Rings: The Final Frontier! from warcry

When a player first acquires a key, they will automatically acquire a keyring that will hold permanent dungeon keys.

Official Patch 1.11 Notes

Keyrings are automatically available to players once the patch goes live.

Levels 1-39	4 Slots
Levels 40-49	8 Slots
Levels 50-60	12 Slots

Update 6/25/06: Here's a mod called Keyring for those of you with customized interfaces that need a keyring icon.

Update 7/3/06: Screenshot from my brother's Rogue:

Darkmoon Faire Guide

Thanks to Marc's World of Warcraft Blog for pointing out this Guide to the Darkmoon Faire.

This is the kind of guide I love. It includes:

• A list of quest items and quantities. Including those targeted at Blacksmiths, Engineers and Leathercrafters.
• A list of ticket rewards. (Turn in x tickets and get this prize.)
• Darkmoon Card information
• (Drum roll for this one) ... aaaaand... a table telling you the buff you will receive from the Fortune Teller based on the answers you give.

p.s. Thanks for the linkage Marc!

I couldn't control my finger

Have you ever been horrified by your own actions? It happens to me more than I'd care to admit.

Most recently I was at work waiting outside the General Counsel's office for a very important meeting. Huge, important meeting. I see this article on the front page of a Wall Street Journal: To Find a Mate, Raid a Dungeon Or Speak Like an Elf, scoffing of course, and my boss and her boss, the General Counsel, walk up. "What's so funny?" they ask and turn toward the article I'm looking at.

I'm screaming inside my head, "Don't say it!, make something up!" but I didn't. I'm too darn honest (or not clever enough to come up with anything else). I was caught. I was about to be outed for the gamer that I was.

In what felt like an eternity of lag, I just point to it. Whhhhhy did I do that? I think at the last minute I tried to wave my hand like it was the whole of the front page and not just the article smack dab in the middle. "Too funny," I said. Too funny? That's my brilliant cover?

I walked into the office mentally willing them to follow and not ask. In my head I imagined their looking at each other and one of them silently mouthing "WTF?" to the other. Hopefully they just shrugged. There was no mention of it further as I jumped into the content of the meeting.

Post RoundUp - May

I'll be on vacation for the next week so I'm leaving you with some of my favorite posts over the past few weeks:

Dining With Devilsaurs - Beautiful Move by these players.

MMO Statistics Show WoW Wins - Holy Market Domination Batman!

The Truth about IGE and the gold industry - a BRILLIANT article sharing the history of the Gold Industry

Kinda Funny:

Humour lifted from the forums - um... that's NOT an aggro bar

Blizzard gets pwned at E3 - Not my choice of titles but a good screenshot.

Best Comment on Draenei

Grinning Dog

In Orgrimmar there is a dog. A grinning dog, in fact. I found him with the Weapon Masters. Here is their pic:

And a closeup, because I wanted to see him grinning:

I can't figure out if he's either a really GOOD dog or a really BAD dog. Is this weapon, the Bludgeon of the Grinning Dog, lovingly crafted in his honor or is it the method they had to use to keep him tame:


Update 10/16/06: A forum poster asks about the grinning dog and Drysc doesn't know the reference either. Or does he?

Mule Names

I love the names of these alts I came across while playing.

I too operate a central "hub" character where all my characters can mail their Auction items too. I also send extra quest items to her and then when a more junior character needs to do the same thing quest they can get some of the items from her. I have a full set of the Green Hills of Stranglethorn on her.

Read more on "Mules" on:Wowwiki.com.


Update: September 25, 2006
More Mule Names:

Stratics Caption Contest - Through June 11

WoW News network pointed out this Stratics Caption Contest.

There are four screenshots and you submit your captions conveniently through the online form. You can submit entries until June 11th then Stratics users will vote until June 25th. Prizes include branded t-shirts and hats.

Update: Check here to vote on the responses.

Quick - Front or Back?

Salvage Company

I was running through Orgrimmar and saw the Droffers and Son Salvage Company:

Hmmm, Fred and Lamont Sanford, anyone? Lots of Sanford and Son pictures here.

The fun now is to trace back the names that Blizzard chose. For example, the two Fight Club NPCs were named "Edward" (presumably for the Actor Edward Norton who played him) and "Tyler," the name of the alter ego in the movie.

"Malton" - looks like it's based on Ray "Galton" who was a writer on "Steptoe and Son" which was the original British version upon which Sanford and Son was based. It also looks like a mix-up of "Lamont" which was the name of the son played by Demond Wilson.

I haven't found the inspirations for Dran or Droffers yet.

His Kong-ness

WoW just warps my view of everything...


King Kong Photo Opportunity info at thestudiotour.com

Sell-O-Matic Add-On

One of my favorite add-ons is Sell-O-Matic. Download it at curse-gaming.com. I haven't found it on some of the other mod websites that I check.

Automatically Sell
Essentially what it does is instantly sell all your vendor trash (grey text items) any time you bring up a vendor's interface. Here's a picture of an item with grey text (meaning it has no value to anyone for any quest or recipe):

Won't Sell Darkmoon Faire Items
As you may know, there are a few items that, although they have grey text, they are wanted by NPCs at the Darkmoon Faire. The good news is that Sell-O-matic won't sell these automatically:
Add items to the Sell List:
One additional thing you can do is add any item to the list. Just type "/som add" then shift click the item you want to add and hit enter. Sell-O-matic will now also sell this whenever you visit a vendor. The command looks like this:

/som add [Raw Rainbow Fin Albacore]

Notice how it now tells me it will automatically be sold as I mouse over the item:

Global Settings
The settings you enter are effective for all of your characters. If you have a character who happens to WANT that item then you can remedy the situation by just visiting the "buy back" portion of the vendor's interface and purchase it back. Find more information about buying back items on the worldofwarcraft Merchant page.

If you think this mod is for you download it at curse-gaming.com. I'm glad I did.

2006-June Events

From the Events Calendar for June:

Darkmoon Faire (Elwynn) June 5 - June 11

Call to Arms: Alterac Valley! June 9 - June 12

Call to Arms: Warsong Gulch! June 16 - June 19

Call to Arms: Arathi Basin! June 23 - June 26

During a Call to Arms, emmissaries from that Battleground will be found in the major cities, and honor/faction rewards for performing objectives in that battleground are increased.

June will be a little boring for the lack of any special events. The next annual event is the Engineers' Explosive Extravaganza which is currently scheduled for July 4th. That nicely coincides with the US Holiday but it'll be on a Tuesday. I would suggest they line it up with Canada Day (July 1st) which is a Saturday this year. But that's just one player's opinion.

Hollywood and Bollywood

I love this post: World of Warcraft Dances.

The author made links to all the real life dances that have inspired the in game dances. One thing that I noticed is that the new male Draenai dance has what I call a Bollywood influence (Tunak Tunak Tan) and the new male Blood elf dance has a Hollywood influence (Napoleon Dynamite).

Video treat - WoW/Guild Wars Dance off Video:


Hey, they have pumpkin heads!

Update 7/31/07:
This video gives me a strange feeling of completeness --
World Of Warcraft: Dancing 3:22