An article I ran across and something I wanted to share:
It will take a guild about two nights per week to raid. And a guild to raid usually take three to four hours of one night.Some guilds have longer raid nights than that. The more nights a guild sets aside for raiding, the faster it will progress.
The key to being successful in WoW without it taking over one's life is scheduling raids. Certain nights are typically less socially demanding than others - for example, Friday and Saturday nights are usually spent going out with friends, seeing movies, dates, events, and other social functions. Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursday nights, however, are typically less active. Notice that these are sweeping generalizations, so this might not be true of everyone, but they are true of most people. Raids must be coordinated to fit the schedules of either 10 or 25 different people, so it's important to keep in mind that scheduling for raids needs to fit everyone's needs, not just a few individual's needs.
Self-discipline is also important in keeping a distinct barrier between one's real life and raiding life. There are several guilds on my server that push their members until they physically cannot stay awake any longer and keep raiding. These guilds raid up to 6 nights per week and are extraordinarily demanding of their members. While they have seen much success as far as reaching and pushing far into Sunwell Plateau, raids leave most members drained both physically and mentally.
It's important to set limits. While it's tempting to keep pushing or to re-clear the instance when mobs start to repop so one can get another few cracks at a boss, sometimes it's best to simply call it a night and try again another night. One problem many guilds face from time to time is that of "burn out," when players are simply so tired of a particular instance that they stop showing up, or even stop playing.
On one of the loading screen tips, it says, "Remember to take all things in moderation (even World of Warcraft!)." This is something to keep in mind; sometimes to prevent burn out, it's best to cancel a raid. If many of the regular players in a raiding guild are getting tired of a particular instance, it may be a good idea for that guild's raiding leader to instead schedule a different instance, or perhaps to cancel the raid altogether and give his or her raiders an off night. This is obviously not a practice that is directly helpful in downing a raid boss nor something that should be done regularly, but it is helpful in keeping morale up, especially if said guild is halfway through a new progression instance and there hasn't been a new boss kill (or at least reasonable progress on a new boss) in weeks.
One mod that is very helpful in maintaining a regular schedule or in planning guild raids is Group Calendar. It's a mod that adds a calendar to the clock interface, accessed by clicking on the clock in-game. This allows for the creation of events, with detailed description of said event, scheduling the time, and what restrictions one can put in place as far as who can sign up and who can't. This allows everyone to keep track of what days and times raids will be taking place, as well as give the raid leaders a head's up on who will be coming and who won't.
*** Edit: we use Rapid Raid for signups. ****
It is also necessary to decide how high of a priority you wish to make raiding. Some players make raiding a very low priority and consider any night spent raiding free for doing anything at a moment's notice. Others may choose to keep their raid nights free in order to ensure that they can log on. In all honesty, if you wish to see consistent progress, it is probably best to try and keep your raid nights free. Obviously, things such as dates and important family events are things that would take priority over a raid, but when planning to do things with friends ahead of time, it's usually a good to consider your raid nights as nights where you are busy.
***This is why we ask what to expect on attendance. This is also why we have two ranks- casual and raiding.***
If you want to see some progression, then you must make raid attendance something of a priority, especially if your guild only spends one or two nights a week raiding. Raiding doesn't require a fanatical devotion every night in order to make it to the highest instances of progression, but it does require some time spent and effort, so consistent attendance is necessary.
Keeping raid nights under control rather than allowing them to control one's life is key to maintaining a healthy "real world" life. As long as you maintain a schedule and set limits, as well as goals, there's no reason you can't spend time raiding the World of Warcraft without it becoming your whole world.
http://ffxi.ffxi-gil.net/News/game-news-15086.html
Monday, December 29, 2008
Friday, December 26, 2008
Grouping - What you need know
In guild, or out, grouping is a must for completing heroics, instances, and some quests. There are a few things that I would not normally think would need to be discussed, but I believe at this point, they should be covered.
Let's start with Pick Up Groups- or PUGS. When you pug a group, you rarely know what you are getting into. The most important thing here is that if you find a person you like to group with- add them to your friends list, with a note- such as, awesome tank. Likewise, if you find someone who just plain is really bad at their class, or a habitual whiner, etc- you can also add them to your friends list with the same type of note- terribad player, etc.
With any PUG, the first thing is to decide how loot is going to be determined. If you pug alot, macro it. I used to have a macro of standard loot rules- such as greed all blues unless an immediate upgrade for your current character, greed all greens, pass on all epics, etc. This leaves NO ONE guessing and no hard feelings.
If the pug falls apart, or you are having a bad time, or if for any reason you get removed from a group, then just leave quietly. Don't put up a fight, or make things hard by not leaving the instance, just quietly leave. The old motto you can't make everyone happy all the time comes to mind. If you have had a bad grouping with a pug member, make a post. I will start a thread for this so that you save the repair bills or attitude chafing from your fellow guild members.
GUILD GROUPS
Guild runs are great because we usually know exactly what to expect. There are some things that should be covered though. It is NO ONE's personal responsibility to run you through a specific heroic to have a chance for your drop. What you determine as this person is "doing nothing" but won't run with me is in fact your opinion. Maybe that person is farming mats, working on rep, but regardless that person may feel it is worthwhile and important- which could be a difference of opinion.
We have a few husband/wife guild members so it stands to reason these guys like to group together. Kallon and I usually don't because neither of us want to gimp our groups but the other husband/wife groups contain tank/dps sets- so expect to see those people grouping frequently.
Run heroics for other people as well, not just yourself. Sure, the loot you want doesn't fall out of Heroic UK, but a nice caster ring does and so so needs it. Regardless of where you are going, even if a specific piece of loot does not fall for you, badges do, and you can always get reputation gains by doing the clear. The main thing I am trying to point out here, is that a guild is a relationship: it is give and take, and you can't be one sided no matter which side of you stand on. If all you do is run heroics for where you need loot, people will be less apt to want to group with you. If all you do is run stuff for other people, you will likely get resentful. The key here is to compromise and run a few heroics for what you need and what other people need.
Don't be afraid to pug. It's how you meet people in this game and it can expand your horizons. Whining does not become any one. If you are whiner, then we missed something in the screening process, and you will probably find yourself looking for a new guild. It's something this guild has low tolerance for. If you have something specifically you need help with, post! That's why we have the website, and you can always say "I have had no luck getting through Heroic Gundrak and I'd like to put together a group for it on Dec x, at 5 CST PM." I'm sure people will help you!
Let's start with Pick Up Groups- or PUGS. When you pug a group, you rarely know what you are getting into. The most important thing here is that if you find a person you like to group with- add them to your friends list, with a note- such as, awesome tank. Likewise, if you find someone who just plain is really bad at their class, or a habitual whiner, etc- you can also add them to your friends list with the same type of note- terribad player, etc.
With any PUG, the first thing is to decide how loot is going to be determined. If you pug alot, macro it. I used to have a macro of standard loot rules- such as greed all blues unless an immediate upgrade for your current character, greed all greens, pass on all epics, etc. This leaves NO ONE guessing and no hard feelings.
If the pug falls apart, or you are having a bad time, or if for any reason you get removed from a group, then just leave quietly. Don't put up a fight, or make things hard by not leaving the instance, just quietly leave. The old motto you can't make everyone happy all the time comes to mind. If you have had a bad grouping with a pug member, make a post. I will start a thread for this so that you save the repair bills or attitude chafing from your fellow guild members.
GUILD GROUPS
Guild runs are great because we usually know exactly what to expect. There are some things that should be covered though. It is NO ONE's personal responsibility to run you through a specific heroic to have a chance for your drop. What you determine as this person is "doing nothing" but won't run with me is in fact your opinion. Maybe that person is farming mats, working on rep, but regardless that person may feel it is worthwhile and important- which could be a difference of opinion.
We have a few husband/wife guild members so it stands to reason these guys like to group together. Kallon and I usually don't because neither of us want to gimp our groups but the other husband/wife groups contain tank/dps sets- so expect to see those people grouping frequently.
Run heroics for other people as well, not just yourself. Sure, the loot you want doesn't fall out of Heroic UK, but a nice caster ring does and so so needs it. Regardless of where you are going, even if a specific piece of loot does not fall for you, badges do, and you can always get reputation gains by doing the clear. The main thing I am trying to point out here, is that a guild is a relationship: it is give and take, and you can't be one sided no matter which side of you stand on. If all you do is run heroics for where you need loot, people will be less apt to want to group with you. If all you do is run stuff for other people, you will likely get resentful. The key here is to compromise and run a few heroics for what you need and what other people need.
Don't be afraid to pug. It's how you meet people in this game and it can expand your horizons. Whining does not become any one. If you are whiner, then we missed something in the screening process, and you will probably find yourself looking for a new guild. It's something this guild has low tolerance for. If you have something specifically you need help with, post! That's why we have the website, and you can always say "I have had no luck getting through Heroic Gundrak and I'd like to put together a group for it on Dec x, at 5 CST PM." I'm sure people will help you!
Thursday, December 25, 2008
The Sons of Hodir or your way to shoulder enchants
Unless you are a scribe, this is one faction you will be grinding. During BC, you found that your faction choice granted you shoulder enchants. In WotLK, it's a bit different. Unless you are a scribe and have inscription, then this is one faction you will need to unlock.
The quest line itself is not so hard as it is long and tedious. It begins in Stormpeaks with a quest you get from Gretchen Fizzlespark They Took Our Men!
This quest sends you to Sifreldar Village. Goblin prisoner cages can be found around the Sifreldar Village at 41, 70. Keys to the cages drop off the local storm maidens.
Once you complete this quest, visit Gretchen again, and she will give you Leave No Goblin Behind.
Basically, Gretchen is still missing her brother and sends you into the Forlorn Mine to find more information. You need to enter the mine using the entrance at 42,70. You need to locate Lok'lira the Crone. If you enter at the coordinates about, then you'll find her on your first left turn.
Lok'lira the Crone gives you the next quest The Crone's Bargain. You need to retrieve her runes from Overseer Syra. You can find Overseer Syra up the ramp the direction Lok'lira is facing, and to the right. 44.0, 69.8. Once you get the runes, return to Lok'lira.
At this point, you strike a bargain with Lok'lira to try and gain her freedom. She gives you the next quest Mildred the Cruel. You've probably already spotted Mildred from when you killed the Overseer Syra. Go back up the ramp, and speak to Mildred. She is up the stairs.
Mildred gives you the quest Discipline. You are to use the disciplining rod on exhausted vyrkul. You can find these guys in the tunnels to the sides of Mildred. Be warned though, sometimes they don't take lightly to being disciplined and will attack you.
Once you turn this quest back into Mildred, you get Examples to be Made. Basically you learn that by disciplining the males, a small uprising has happened. Mildred wants you to slay
Garhal. Garhal is directly behind Mildred. You may have to look for him since he gets beat regularly by a couple of guards. Once you slay him, return to Mildred.
Finally, at this point, Mildred's next quest is A Certain Prisoner. Mildred basically tells you to slay Lok'lira as painlessly as possible and gives you the key to Lok'lira's shackles.
After returning to Lok'lira you will receive the next quest: A Change of Scenery . You are to meet up with Lok'lira at Brunnhildar Village is 47.2, 68.5. You can head through the mine to it.
At this point, if you want to save Gretchen's brother, you start the next quest Is that your Goblin? You have to challenge Agnetta Tyrsdottar in order to save Zeev Fizzlespark- and Agnetta is directly ahead of Lok'lira at 48.2, 69.7.
Once you've done this, you have basically entered The Hyldsmeet. This is your next quest. You just need to listen to Lor'lira to complete this quest. She has a proposal for you. She wants you to continue to compete in the Hyldsmeet.
The next quest you get from Lok'lira is Taking on All Challengers. She wants you to defeat 6 victorius challengers. Look for friendly mobs with a dialog bubble available; talk to them. Click "Let's do this, sister" and beat the crap out of them. They are not lootable and do not give kill xp, if you are doing this quest line while leveling. This can also give you the daily of Defending Your Title from which it's basically the same quest, but you get a Hyldnir Spoils bag- which has a very small chance to contain The Reins of the White Polar Bear.
The next quest you get to proceed in this questline is You'll Need a Bear. To get through the next round of competition you will have to go speak to Brijana. Brijana outside Brunnhildar Village in Storm Peaks 53,66.
Brijana gives you the quest Going Bearback. You have no real control over the bear other than to speed it up but to complete this quest you need to burn 7 Frostworgs and 15 Frost Giants.
Completing this quest, and returning to Brijana gives you Cold Hearted. This quest will probably be very confusing to a lot of people. What you need to do is fly on your mount to Dun Niffelem at 64,59. Once inside, look around for drakes attached to chains and fly straight up to one. Your cursor should then allow you to click and mount one. From there, fly around looking for Brunnhildar Prisoners encased in ice. You need to zap them once with the frostbolt and then they should automatically be picked up by the drake. One prisoner will appear mounted behind your character and the other 2 will be in the drakes claws.Once you have picked up 3 prisoners, fly back to Brunnhildar Village and eventually the game will take over flight and deliver the prisoners and the drake. Repeat this 3 times and the quest will complete.
Finally at this point, Brijana gives you the quest Deemed Worthy. It's another "go talk to quest" but you're almost through the long questline so chin up. You need to talk to Astrid Bjornrittar at Brunnhildar Village in The Storm Peaks 49,71.
Astrid gives you the quest Making a Harness. Basically you need to go and slay the Yetis around 48.3, 74.9. You are after 3 Icemane Yeti Hides. Then go back to Astrid.
Ok, now smile, and pat yourself on the back.. you survived the first chain... now it's time for the second. (no frowns!)
Astrid will start you on the next chain The Last of Her Kind. Astrid wants you to find a surviving icemaw matriarch. To complete this quest, enter the cave at 55,63.Take the far left path and fight mobs along the cave wall.Eventually you will stumble across a large white bear laying on the ground which you are able to ride.Simply hop on the bear, it is a vehicle and it will automatically ride back to the quest giver.
Astrid gives you The Warmup when you return. She basically compliments you on the bear, but tells you to practice on Kirgaraak. Kirgaraak is inside Brunnhildar Village chained up at 50 , 67. This quest has a few known bug issues, so if this happens to you, check the link for ways to counter the bug issues- and be careful of the knockback.
Once you have completed the Warmup, you get Into the Pit. It's pretty straight forward, Use [Reins of the Icemaw Matriarch] to 6 Hyldsmeet Warbear then kill him inside the Pit of the Fang in The Storm Peaks 49,68. This quest also becomes a daily called Back to the Pit. You can pick up this quest from Gretta the Arbiter. When you complete this daily, you get a spoils sack just like the other quest.
Astrid sends you back to see Lok'lira with the quest Prepare for Glory. Turn in quest to Lok'lira the Crone in Brunnhildar Village in Storm Peaks 47,69
Lok'lira gives you Lor'lir'a Part Gift and sends to Gretta the Arbiter. ( yes I know, more running around.) Gretta the Arbiter is standing right next to the Hyldsmeet Proto-Drakes. Coords are 50;65.
Gretta gives you the Drakkensryd. When you pick it up from Gretta, she will hand you a harpoon and pack you up on a proto-drake. The drake will fly west to the Temple of Storms, which rests on a very tall mountain peak. There you will enter formation with other riders, doing laps around the temple itself. At this point, dismounting is inadvisable, as there's no parachute.To begin the quest itself, target one of the other proto-drakes (not the riders), and use your harpoon. This will launch you to the back of the drake, where you and its rider will fight. So, yeah, there you are, on the back of a dragon, a mile above the ground, battling to the death. When you defeat your opponent, she falls to her doom, arms and legs flailing. Continue jumping from dragon to dragon until you've killed all ten, and when you're done, use your harpoon on one of the column ornaments. That will get you into the temple itself, so you can turn in to Thorim.
This brings you to Thorim. (yes, it's almost over.. finally). Basically the next quest is listening to Thorim's story Sibling Rivalry . He gives you Mending Fences once you listened to his story. Mending Fences has you slaying Fjorn slain and 5 Stormforged Iron Giants slain. From wowhead:
Step 1: Fly to the lake east of Dun Niffelm. Look around the east bank of the lake, or the path leading eastwards from the lake (there are dots on the map denoting the path).
Step 2: Find Granite Boulder on the ground. Click to pick one up.
Step 3: Use Thorim's Charm of Earth on these guys: Stormforged Iron Giants, then kill them. The dwarves that spawn will periodically taunt before they die, so go hog wild on DPS.
Step 4: Your first or second giant should drop Slag Covered Metal. Start the quest and kill Seething Revenant (non-elite) until you have 10x Furious Spark.
Step 5: By now, you should have killed 5 giants. Pick up another boulder and kill Fjorn. After he's dead, make sure to turn in The Refiner's Fire to the anvil. If you forget to do so, Fjorn will respawn and camp the anvil. Also, make sure to pick up the follow-up quest from the anvil.Step 6: Fly back to Thorim, turn in both quests. Both quests will award you 22000 reputation with the Sons of Hodir (each), taking you from Hated to Neutral.
Some things worth noting- you can purchase shoulder enchants at honored, but they aren't upgrades but comparative to the Aldor/Scryer exalted enchants. (the upside is that if you aren't exalted, you can buy these enchants here). There are some patterns available with reputation from this faction.
The quest line itself is not so hard as it is long and tedious. It begins in Stormpeaks with a quest you get from Gretchen Fizzlespark They Took Our Men!
This quest sends you to Sifreldar Village. Goblin prisoner cages can be found around the Sifreldar Village at 41, 70. Keys to the cages drop off the local storm maidens.
Once you complete this quest, visit Gretchen again, and she will give you Leave No Goblin Behind.
Basically, Gretchen is still missing her brother and sends you into the Forlorn Mine to find more information. You need to enter the mine using the entrance at 42,70. You need to locate Lok'lira the Crone. If you enter at the coordinates about, then you'll find her on your first left turn.
Lok'lira the Crone gives you the next quest The Crone's Bargain. You need to retrieve her runes from Overseer Syra. You can find Overseer Syra up the ramp the direction Lok'lira is facing, and to the right. 44.0, 69.8. Once you get the runes, return to Lok'lira.
At this point, you strike a bargain with Lok'lira to try and gain her freedom. She gives you the next quest Mildred the Cruel. You've probably already spotted Mildred from when you killed the Overseer Syra. Go back up the ramp, and speak to Mildred. She is up the stairs.
Mildred gives you the quest Discipline. You are to use the disciplining rod on exhausted vyrkul. You can find these guys in the tunnels to the sides of Mildred. Be warned though, sometimes they don't take lightly to being disciplined and will attack you.
Once you turn this quest back into Mildred, you get Examples to be Made. Basically you learn that by disciplining the males, a small uprising has happened. Mildred wants you to slay
Garhal. Garhal is directly behind Mildred. You may have to look for him since he gets beat regularly by a couple of guards. Once you slay him, return to Mildred.
Finally, at this point, Mildred's next quest is A Certain Prisoner. Mildred basically tells you to slay Lok'lira as painlessly as possible and gives you the key to Lok'lira's shackles.
After returning to Lok'lira you will receive the next quest: A Change of Scenery . You are to meet up with Lok'lira at Brunnhildar Village is 47.2, 68.5. You can head through the mine to it.
At this point, if you want to save Gretchen's brother, you start the next quest Is that your Goblin? You have to challenge Agnetta Tyrsdottar in order to save Zeev Fizzlespark- and Agnetta is directly ahead of Lok'lira at 48.2, 69.7.
Once you've done this, you have basically entered The Hyldsmeet. This is your next quest. You just need to listen to Lor'lira to complete this quest. She has a proposal for you. She wants you to continue to compete in the Hyldsmeet.
The next quest you get from Lok'lira is Taking on All Challengers. She wants you to defeat 6 victorius challengers. Look for friendly mobs with a dialog bubble available; talk to them. Click "Let's do this, sister" and beat the crap out of them. They are not lootable and do not give kill xp, if you are doing this quest line while leveling. This can also give you the daily of Defending Your Title from which it's basically the same quest, but you get a Hyldnir Spoils bag- which has a very small chance to contain The Reins of the White Polar Bear.
The next quest you get to proceed in this questline is You'll Need a Bear. To get through the next round of competition you will have to go speak to Brijana. Brijana outside Brunnhildar Village in Storm Peaks 53,66.
Brijana gives you the quest Going Bearback. You have no real control over the bear other than to speed it up but to complete this quest you need to burn 7 Frostworgs and 15 Frost Giants.
Completing this quest, and returning to Brijana gives you Cold Hearted. This quest will probably be very confusing to a lot of people. What you need to do is fly on your mount to Dun Niffelem at 64,59. Once inside, look around for drakes attached to chains and fly straight up to one. Your cursor should then allow you to click and mount one. From there, fly around looking for Brunnhildar Prisoners encased in ice. You need to zap them once with the frostbolt and then they should automatically be picked up by the drake. One prisoner will appear mounted behind your character and the other 2 will be in the drakes claws.Once you have picked up 3 prisoners, fly back to Brunnhildar Village and eventually the game will take over flight and deliver the prisoners and the drake. Repeat this 3 times and the quest will complete.
Finally at this point, Brijana gives you the quest Deemed Worthy. It's another "go talk to quest" but you're almost through the long questline so chin up. You need to talk to Astrid Bjornrittar at Brunnhildar Village in The Storm Peaks 49,71.
Astrid gives you the quest Making a Harness. Basically you need to go and slay the Yetis around 48.3, 74.9. You are after 3 Icemane Yeti Hides. Then go back to Astrid.
Ok, now smile, and pat yourself on the back.. you survived the first chain... now it's time for the second. (no frowns!)
Astrid will start you on the next chain The Last of Her Kind. Astrid wants you to find a surviving icemaw matriarch. To complete this quest, enter the cave at 55,63.Take the far left path and fight mobs along the cave wall.Eventually you will stumble across a large white bear laying on the ground which you are able to ride.Simply hop on the bear, it is a vehicle and it will automatically ride back to the quest giver.
Astrid gives you The Warmup when you return. She basically compliments you on the bear, but tells you to practice on Kirgaraak. Kirgaraak is inside Brunnhildar Village chained up at 50 , 67. This quest has a few known bug issues, so if this happens to you, check the link for ways to counter the bug issues- and be careful of the knockback.
Once you have completed the Warmup, you get Into the Pit. It's pretty straight forward, Use [Reins of the Icemaw Matriarch] to 6 Hyldsmeet Warbear then kill him inside the Pit of the Fang in The Storm Peaks 49,68. This quest also becomes a daily called Back to the Pit. You can pick up this quest from Gretta the Arbiter. When you complete this daily, you get a spoils sack just like the other quest.
Astrid sends you back to see Lok'lira with the quest Prepare for Glory. Turn in quest to Lok'lira the Crone in Brunnhildar Village in Storm Peaks 47,69
Lok'lira gives you Lor'lir'a Part Gift and sends to Gretta the Arbiter. ( yes I know, more running around.) Gretta the Arbiter is standing right next to the Hyldsmeet Proto-Drakes. Coords are 50;65.
Gretta gives you the Drakkensryd. When you pick it up from Gretta, she will hand you a harpoon and pack you up on a proto-drake. The drake will fly west to the Temple of Storms, which rests on a very tall mountain peak. There you will enter formation with other riders, doing laps around the temple itself. At this point, dismounting is inadvisable, as there's no parachute.To begin the quest itself, target one of the other proto-drakes (not the riders), and use your harpoon. This will launch you to the back of the drake, where you and its rider will fight. So, yeah, there you are, on the back of a dragon, a mile above the ground, battling to the death. When you defeat your opponent, she falls to her doom, arms and legs flailing. Continue jumping from dragon to dragon until you've killed all ten, and when you're done, use your harpoon on one of the column ornaments. That will get you into the temple itself, so you can turn in to Thorim.
This brings you to Thorim. (yes, it's almost over.. finally). Basically the next quest is listening to Thorim's story Sibling Rivalry . He gives you Mending Fences once you listened to his story. Mending Fences has you slaying Fjorn slain and 5 Stormforged Iron Giants slain. From wowhead:
Step 1: Fly to the lake east of Dun Niffelm. Look around the east bank of the lake, or the path leading eastwards from the lake (there are dots on the map denoting the path).
Step 2: Find Granite Boulder on the ground. Click to pick one up.
Step 3: Use Thorim's Charm of Earth on these guys: Stormforged Iron Giants, then kill them. The dwarves that spawn will periodically taunt before they die, so go hog wild on DPS.
Step 4: Your first or second giant should drop Slag Covered Metal. Start the quest and kill Seething Revenant (non-elite) until you have 10x Furious Spark.
Step 5: By now, you should have killed 5 giants. Pick up another boulder and kill Fjorn. After he's dead, make sure to turn in The Refiner's Fire to the anvil. If you forget to do so, Fjorn will respawn and camp the anvil. Also, make sure to pick up the follow-up quest from the anvil.Step 6: Fly back to Thorim, turn in both quests. Both quests will award you 22000 reputation with the Sons of Hodir (each), taking you from Hated to Neutral.
Some things worth noting- you can purchase shoulder enchants at honored, but they aren't upgrades but comparative to the Aldor/Scryer exalted enchants. (the upside is that if you aren't exalted, you can buy these enchants here). There are some patterns available with reputation from this faction.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Holiday Raiding and Rebuilding!
Well, it's been a couple weeks since our small fracture, and despite the holidays and shortage of healers, we've managed to keep things going at a great pace. This atmosphere has made a dramatic change, and everyone is actually very happy that the separation occured. It is really for the best. We've been raiding successfully on our own, and recruiting quality people to complete the guild's roster for 25 man content.
Everyone's in a festive mood, as you can see from our last bosskill pictures on the main page, we are decked out in our Winter Veil Clothes, complete with hats that we got from farming Nexus.
We've been clearing Nax with our guild, and we wiped all progression and we've been readding it as we re-clear. Sartharion is of course easy and an encounter will begin attempting to leave a drake up and build from there. We've picked up quite a few new people, and they are some awesome additions. We should be re-starting heroic content immediately after the holidays. Even with yesterday being Dec 23, we had so many wonderful people signing up that we actually had to bench a few. Kallon and I took the night off to finish our Christmas shopping, and the raid cleared two wings. Not too shabby for our normal 3 hour raid, and a fair amount of new people in the raid.
We've taken a few nights off for the holidays. Our next scheduled raid is for Dec 28. We will also raid on December 30 but we have taken the 31st off. The new year will rock guys!
Dalaran Cooking Dailies
Cooking... it's that 7 letter word people hate leveling. In BC, there were a few reasons to level cooking- the main one being to have a readily available supply of food buffs without paying the high AH prices. There were also the daily quests that you could complete in hopes of gaining one of the recipes that could only be obtained this way.
With this expansion, cooking takes on a whole new level. Instead of waiting for random recipes when you complete the quest, Blizz has implemented a new system of "cooking awards" that you gain by completing the daily cooking quest. These awards can be used to purchase Northrend recipes or Northrend spices.This is the only way that you can purchase Northrend spices. Naturally the awards are BoP. This means you have to have a high enough cooking to do these quests. There are five cooking quests, which one get daily is random. You can pick up the daily cooking quests from Katherine Lee in A Hero's Welcome (the other inn in Dalaran close to Violet Hold).
Mats for these quests vary. The easiest material to obtain is the chilled meat. This can be obtained by killing any Northrend animal. Rhino meat for the rhino dogs drops from any rhino type creature. You can find them in the Borean Tundrea northwest of starting area. Amazingly enough, the calves seem to drop the meat the best, but this is by far the best area to farm. The rhinos are grouped in 4 and 5 packs. They die fairly easy, and the greys that drop vendor nicely.
Cheese for Glowergold
Ranid Glowergold in the Leatherworkers shop in Dalaran has had a sudden craving for wine and cheese.Collect cheese which is on the shelf at "One More Glass" in central Dalaran and half full wine glasses found on tables all over the city. Pour the wine together into a bottle and serve it with the cheese to Ranid.
This quest is nice because you do not need any meat and everything is located in Dalaran. The wine glasses can be found in any inn (check the bedrooms as well) and the One More Glass shop. The cheese is usually on the table on the right when you enter the One More Glass shop.
Convention at the Legerdemain
Arille Azuregaze at the Legerdemain Lounge has a convention coming in and needs a feast pronto!You need to provide 12 Northern Stew and a Jug of Wine from the cheese shop "One More Glass" in central Dalaran. The owner of the cheese shop, owes me the wine and you should find it somewhere around the shop.
This quest is one of the most mat intensive quests you can get. It takes 12 chilled meats to complete this quest. You have to make Northern Stew, which is a trained cooking recipe. The jug of wine is located upstairs in the One More Glass shop.
Infused Mushroom Meatloaf
We have an important order that needs to go out! Orton Bennet in Curiosities & Moore needs a mushroom meatloaf.Get 4 Infused Mushrooms that are found in the Dalaran sewers and 2 Chilled Meats and cook them in the pot at any fire and deliver it to Orton.
This quest requires 2 chilled meats and a trip to the sewer to get the mushrooms. They randomly spawn around the sewers, especially look in the corners.
Mustard Dogs!
Archmage Pentarus likes to watch the occasional game of battle ball and is preparing to go, but needs food for the trip.You need to fill his picnic basket with 4 rhino dogs that you cook and then 4 wild mustard that are found in grassy areas of the city.Bring him his picnic basket so he can be ready to go see the big game.
For this quest, you need four pieces of rhino meat to make rhino dogs. The rhino dog recipe is trained. Once you have the rhino dogs, you need to run around the city to all the grassy areas, and look for sparklies =) The yellow plants should be shimmering. Behind the inn where you get the quest is a beer garden where some spawn. Any of the grassy areas can contain these mustard plants. Also, close to the flight path, in that round area is a great spawn point for at least two plants, and they do respawn quickly. The NPC to turn in the basket is right here as well.
Sewer Stew
Ajay Green the innkeeper in the Dalaran sewers needs a vegetable stew for his customers as they are running low on food down there.Collect 4 Crystalsong Carrots from the Crystalsong Forest and cook them together with 4 Chilled Meat.You can get to the Crystalsong Forest from the portal chamber in the eastern corner of Runeweaver Square.Once the vegetable stew is ready, bring it to Ajay.
Once again, you need four chilled meats. If you take the portal down to the Crystalsong Forest and head east right past the river, and look for the carrots. I linked a map but if you head east from the Violet Stand, you should run into them. This quest turns in at the innkeeper in the Sewer.
HINTS:
Sewer Stew and Infused Mushroom Meatloaf both need to be "combined" by a cooking fire or stove/oven. I'm usually pretty cheap about this, and hit one of the inns- since both above surface inns have cooking ovens/fires. The rhino dogs and northern stew components need to be cooked as well. Once those items are cooked, you need to click on the basket or platter to combine into the quest item.
Once you have completed all five daily cooking quests, you earn the achievement Our Daily Bread. Completing this achievement is also a prerequisite for Hail to the Chef, which will earn you the title Chef.
With this expansion, cooking takes on a whole new level. Instead of waiting for random recipes when you complete the quest, Blizz has implemented a new system of "cooking awards" that you gain by completing the daily cooking quest. These awards can be used to purchase Northrend recipes or Northrend spices.This is the only way that you can purchase Northrend spices. Naturally the awards are BoP. This means you have to have a high enough cooking to do these quests. There are five cooking quests, which one get daily is random. You can pick up the daily cooking quests from Katherine Lee in A Hero's Welcome (the other inn in Dalaran close to Violet Hold).
Mats for these quests vary. The easiest material to obtain is the chilled meat. This can be obtained by killing any Northrend animal. Rhino meat for the rhino dogs drops from any rhino type creature. You can find them in the Borean Tundrea northwest of starting area. Amazingly enough, the calves seem to drop the meat the best, but this is by far the best area to farm. The rhinos are grouped in 4 and 5 packs. They die fairly easy, and the greys that drop vendor nicely.
Cheese for Glowergold
Ranid Glowergold in the Leatherworkers shop in Dalaran has had a sudden craving for wine and cheese.Collect cheese which is on the shelf at "One More Glass" in central Dalaran and half full wine glasses found on tables all over the city. Pour the wine together into a bottle and serve it with the cheese to Ranid.
This quest is nice because you do not need any meat and everything is located in Dalaran. The wine glasses can be found in any inn (check the bedrooms as well) and the One More Glass shop. The cheese is usually on the table on the right when you enter the One More Glass shop.
Convention at the Legerdemain
Arille Azuregaze at the Legerdemain Lounge has a convention coming in and needs a feast pronto!You need to provide 12 Northern Stew and a Jug of Wine from the cheese shop "One More Glass" in central Dalaran. The owner of the cheese shop, owes me the wine and you should find it somewhere around the shop.
This quest is one of the most mat intensive quests you can get. It takes 12 chilled meats to complete this quest. You have to make Northern Stew, which is a trained cooking recipe. The jug of wine is located upstairs in the One More Glass shop.
Infused Mushroom Meatloaf
We have an important order that needs to go out! Orton Bennet in Curiosities & Moore needs a mushroom meatloaf.Get 4 Infused Mushrooms that are found in the Dalaran sewers and 2 Chilled Meats and cook them in the pot at any fire and deliver it to Orton.
This quest requires 2 chilled meats and a trip to the sewer to get the mushrooms. They randomly spawn around the sewers, especially look in the corners.
Mustard Dogs!
Archmage Pentarus likes to watch the occasional game of battle ball and is preparing to go, but needs food for the trip.You need to fill his picnic basket with 4 rhino dogs that you cook and then 4 wild mustard that are found in grassy areas of the city.Bring him his picnic basket so he can be ready to go see the big game.
For this quest, you need four pieces of rhino meat to make rhino dogs. The rhino dog recipe is trained. Once you have the rhino dogs, you need to run around the city to all the grassy areas, and look for sparklies =) The yellow plants should be shimmering. Behind the inn where you get the quest is a beer garden where some spawn. Any of the grassy areas can contain these mustard plants. Also, close to the flight path, in that round area is a great spawn point for at least two plants, and they do respawn quickly. The NPC to turn in the basket is right here as well.
Sewer Stew
Ajay Green the innkeeper in the Dalaran sewers needs a vegetable stew for his customers as they are running low on food down there.Collect 4 Crystalsong Carrots from the Crystalsong Forest and cook them together with 4 Chilled Meat.You can get to the Crystalsong Forest from the portal chamber in the eastern corner of Runeweaver Square.Once the vegetable stew is ready, bring it to Ajay.
Once again, you need four chilled meats. If you take the portal down to the Crystalsong Forest and head east right past the river, and look for the carrots. I linked a map but if you head east from the Violet Stand, you should run into them. This quest turns in at the innkeeper in the Sewer.
HINTS:
Sewer Stew and Infused Mushroom Meatloaf both need to be "combined" by a cooking fire or stove/oven. I'm usually pretty cheap about this, and hit one of the inns- since both above surface inns have cooking ovens/fires. The rhino dogs and northern stew components need to be cooked as well. Once those items are cooked, you need to click on the basket or platter to combine into the quest item.
Once you have completed all five daily cooking quests, you earn the achievement Our Daily Bread. Completing this achievement is also a prerequisite for Hail to the Chef, which will earn you the title Chef.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Raiding Basics
Things that experienced raiders never really think about because they've done it so long are obvious to all old school raiders. The ranks do contain a few folks that have never played or raided, and we're their first experience. I was thinking about this the other night. It's things most of take forgranted as common knowledge, but if you've never walked those steps, you don't know what the scenary is like.
First, let's start with gear.
Yes, it may be temporary gear, and you don't want to spend a fortune on it, because you have no plans on keeping it for long, but if you are raiding in it, there are some things you should do. At least put green gems in, according to your spec and what gives you the best advantage for how you play your character. The guild bank has some gems- they're on the second tab, and we have raw gems on another tab. If you need something cut, talk to Kheprii. If she can't cut it, at least we can look to see if we have the mats to help offset the cost. This is for any gear you would use during a raid. Main spec gear will get priority for rarer gems.
Enchants. These can vendor bought, free from someone leveling enchanting, or Dallorn - who's our guild enchanter. If you can't arrange to meet him, we can also make some vellums and send you the enchant via the mail. Again, something is better than nothing- it shows you are doing your best to maximize your abilities, in an affordable fashion. If we have the mats, we can assist but some enchanting mats aren't easy to come by. My suggestion is keep your greens and have Dallorn disenchant them for you and bank your mats. A few of the officers and members throw the greens in the bank, and we send them to Dallorn to disenchant. He's still leveling his enchanting. Stam, spell power, stats, if there is something you need, don't hestiate to ask him if he has it, or something comparative. If you are wanting the absolute best, just let him know and he can help.
Along the lines of enhants are the spell threads available for legs. Often the step down is a ton cheaper than the absolute best- again, something is better than nothing.
Gear- crafted items, heroics, figure out what you need and where it drops and throw a post up. Everyone needs badges =) http://www.wow-loot.com as well as EJ's site usually has a good list as well for immediate upgrades.
Glyphs- something benefiical is better than nothing. I'm almost maxed on Inscription. If you need something, let me know.
Raiding Etiquette
Promptness - Ok, this is something that can be irritating to the other members of your raid. Our raid times are posted in CST, so for example 6:30 CST PM ( equals 7:30 CST PM, 5:30 MST PM, 4:30 PST PM) is 1 hour behind of EST, 1 hour ahead of MST, and 2 hours ahead of PST. If the raid is supposed to start at 6:30, you should be online, ready with consumables at the instance at 10 til raid start time. Invites will more than likely start at this time. You should NOT expect a summons, as it's not always an option. We've been kinda lax on this, and that's fine. A summons here or there is nice, but please try and make a habit of being at the instance for your invite- it could determine whether or not you go.
Ranks- We have ranks in the guild. They aren't hard to understand, but let me elaborate a bit more. Swabbies are initiates- these players could be casuals or raiders, and should be noted that they joined to be such. Pirates are casuals. These people are here to raid when there is a spot, and for the community and atmosphere. Swashbucklers are raiders. Why am I going over ranks? It's because of priority in the raid.
We try to figure out how things went wrong. If it gets quiet, and we are having problems, we may be typing away. We may speak up in vent, and ask what's going on. This is only to figure out what happened. Don't take it personal. I promise it isn't personal, we just need to figure out the issue and correct it. If it's a wipe, run back. We are all running, don't expect a rez. If you don't know how to get someplace, ask. Everyone has to learn the way around sooner or later, and there's no shame in asking. Don't expect a repair bot- it's a luxury. Depending on the instance, there's usually someone close by that can repair you. If your durability is that low, say something. If we've all been wiping, odds are we all need to repair. This will save some time. We can all repair at once. You should have gold to repair. If you don't, speak up. It's not a great thing to admit to, but it beats checking raid durability and seeing you didn't repair. (Yes, raid leaders can do that ;)
Consumables
Flasks/exilirs/health potions/mana potions/bandages/food buffs/reagents
These things are things you should have in your bags. Food buffs- you will find fish in the guild bank on the first tab, some of it is cooked, and some isn't. Depending on what you need, there are many cooks in the guild. We can assist you. If you are pulling out buff food from the guild bank, keep this in mind because it has to be replenished. A donation would be nice, but regardless food buffs are easily available. There's no reason not to have one.
We have multiple alchemists in guild- if you need pots, talk to one of them. If it isnt on the AH, maybe they have mats, and can make it for you and cut you a deal, or maybe you can barter- or buy the mats and have the pots made.
Strategies
We do not raid blind. This also means that we don't take one strategy over another as the way it has to be done. You should be familiar with each encounter for the instance we are raiding. We can try to post strats, and links, but we can't guarantee what order we will be going through the instance in, due to composition.
Situational Awareness
You should know where you are. Lag happens, it sucks but it does happen and we all have to cope with it. You need to be aware you are standing in something icky, and you should be moving. This doesn't mean we may not warn you you are going to die. This kind of stuff can happen but strive to not let it happen to you. Make sure if you are supposed to be cozy to the tank you are, or if we are moving alot, and it's a high movement fight, you know where you should be.
Mods/Addons
Omen- this is a threat meter. This isn't here just to look pretty, it's also here for you to watch. We have some awesome tanks, but you need to give them a moment to get aggro. Alive and DPS > than burst awesome dps + wipe due to aggro pull. Let the tank establish aggro, and watch it closely.
Bigswigs/Deadly Boss Mods- this provides a warning and timers for different events in the instance. This can be very beneficial but don't believe it to the law. Timers can be off. Pay Attention. A little common sense can go a long way. If the timer says you have 6 seconds, but the guy turned red like an enrage, believe the guy turning red.
First, let's start with gear.
Yes, it may be temporary gear, and you don't want to spend a fortune on it, because you have no plans on keeping it for long, but if you are raiding in it, there are some things you should do. At least put green gems in, according to your spec and what gives you the best advantage for how you play your character. The guild bank has some gems- they're on the second tab, and we have raw gems on another tab. If you need something cut, talk to Kheprii. If she can't cut it, at least we can look to see if we have the mats to help offset the cost. This is for any gear you would use during a raid. Main spec gear will get priority for rarer gems.
Enchants. These can vendor bought, free from someone leveling enchanting, or Dallorn - who's our guild enchanter. If you can't arrange to meet him, we can also make some vellums and send you the enchant via the mail. Again, something is better than nothing- it shows you are doing your best to maximize your abilities, in an affordable fashion. If we have the mats, we can assist but some enchanting mats aren't easy to come by. My suggestion is keep your greens and have Dallorn disenchant them for you and bank your mats. A few of the officers and members throw the greens in the bank, and we send them to Dallorn to disenchant. He's still leveling his enchanting. Stam, spell power, stats, if there is something you need, don't hestiate to ask him if he has it, or something comparative. If you are wanting the absolute best, just let him know and he can help.
Along the lines of enhants are the spell threads available for legs. Often the step down is a ton cheaper than the absolute best- again, something is better than nothing.
Gear- crafted items, heroics, figure out what you need and where it drops and throw a post up. Everyone needs badges =) http://www.wow-loot.com as well as EJ's site usually has a good list as well for immediate upgrades.
Glyphs- something benefiical is better than nothing. I'm almost maxed on Inscription. If you need something, let me know.
Raiding Etiquette
Promptness - Ok, this is something that can be irritating to the other members of your raid. Our raid times are posted in CST, so for example 6:30 CST PM ( equals 7:30 CST PM, 5:30 MST PM, 4:30 PST PM) is 1 hour behind of EST, 1 hour ahead of MST, and 2 hours ahead of PST. If the raid is supposed to start at 6:30, you should be online, ready with consumables at the instance at 10 til raid start time. Invites will more than likely start at this time. You should NOT expect a summons, as it's not always an option. We've been kinda lax on this, and that's fine. A summons here or there is nice, but please try and make a habit of being at the instance for your invite- it could determine whether or not you go.
Ranks- We have ranks in the guild. They aren't hard to understand, but let me elaborate a bit more. Swabbies are initiates- these players could be casuals or raiders, and should be noted that they joined to be such. Pirates are casuals. These people are here to raid when there is a spot, and for the community and atmosphere. Swashbucklers are raiders. Why am I going over ranks? It's because of priority in the raid.
- Swashbucklers get priority. This guild is here to raid, and while we have a casual side, the basis was formed to raid.
- Initiates who are here to be swashbucklers get second priority for raid spots. These people joined the guild to be able to raid with the guild. We need to know what these people are capable of and how they perform.
- Pirates-these folks are part of community, and we love having them. They can't commit to raiding or they really don't want to raid. They are here for atmosphere, and maybe to raid when they have the opportunity.
- Initiates who are here to join as a Pirate. These folks get the lowest priority rating.
We try to figure out how things went wrong. If it gets quiet, and we are having problems, we may be typing away. We may speak up in vent, and ask what's going on. This is only to figure out what happened. Don't take it personal. I promise it isn't personal, we just need to figure out the issue and correct it. If it's a wipe, run back. We are all running, don't expect a rez. If you don't know how to get someplace, ask. Everyone has to learn the way around sooner or later, and there's no shame in asking. Don't expect a repair bot- it's a luxury. Depending on the instance, there's usually someone close by that can repair you. If your durability is that low, say something. If we've all been wiping, odds are we all need to repair. This will save some time. We can all repair at once. You should have gold to repair. If you don't, speak up. It's not a great thing to admit to, but it beats checking raid durability and seeing you didn't repair. (Yes, raid leaders can do that ;)
Consumables
Flasks/exilirs/health potions/mana potions/bandages/food buffs/reagents
These things are things you should have in your bags. Food buffs- you will find fish in the guild bank on the first tab, some of it is cooked, and some isn't. Depending on what you need, there are many cooks in the guild. We can assist you. If you are pulling out buff food from the guild bank, keep this in mind because it has to be replenished. A donation would be nice, but regardless food buffs are easily available. There's no reason not to have one.
We have multiple alchemists in guild- if you need pots, talk to one of them. If it isnt on the AH, maybe they have mats, and can make it for you and cut you a deal, or maybe you can barter- or buy the mats and have the pots made.
Strategies
We do not raid blind. This also means that we don't take one strategy over another as the way it has to be done. You should be familiar with each encounter for the instance we are raiding. We can try to post strats, and links, but we can't guarantee what order we will be going through the instance in, due to composition.
Situational Awareness
You should know where you are. Lag happens, it sucks but it does happen and we all have to cope with it. You need to be aware you are standing in something icky, and you should be moving. This doesn't mean we may not warn you you are going to die. This kind of stuff can happen but strive to not let it happen to you. Make sure if you are supposed to be cozy to the tank you are, or if we are moving alot, and it's a high movement fight, you know where you should be.
Mods/Addons
Omen- this is a threat meter. This isn't here just to look pretty, it's also here for you to watch. We have some awesome tanks, but you need to give them a moment to get aggro. Alive and DPS > than burst awesome dps + wipe due to aggro pull. Let the tank establish aggro, and watch it closely.
Bigswigs/Deadly Boss Mods- this provides a warning and timers for different events in the instance. This can be very beneficial but don't believe it to the law. Timers can be off. Pay Attention. A little common sense can go a long way. If the timer says you have 6 seconds, but the guy turned red like an enrage, believe the guy turning red.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Switch Spec's Alot? This is the Mod for YOU!
Ok, so obviously two healers can't group together which means at least one of them will be flipping spec's. Holy/Disp priests used to BG as shadow, and flip back for raid nights- this is a pretty common scenario- even today. We all keep wishing Blizz would come out already with dual specs, but no one is holding his/her breath.
Enter Talented. This is one sweet addon, which makes re spec'ing sweet and painless. Two clicks and you're done- don't forget to train while you are at it though =)
This addon is compatible with patch 3.0.2 and WotLK
Talented is a replacement to the default Talent UI, with a lot of added features. Feature List
See the complete talent tree on a single frame.
Create templates, for your class and, optionally, other classes too.
Set a specific template as a target, and see it when you're spending your next talent point on level up.
Apply complete templates with a single click, after a talent wipe.
Share your current build with other, or any template you've made.
Import templates directly from the Blizzard Talent calculator, or from wowhead.
Export templates as URL to wowhead or the Blizzard Talent calculator.
See other's template if they have LibRockComm installed.
Enter Talented. This is one sweet addon, which makes re spec'ing sweet and painless. Two clicks and you're done- don't forget to train while you are at it though =)
This addon is compatible with patch 3.0.2 and WotLK
Talented is a replacement to the default Talent UI, with a lot of added features. Feature List
See the complete talent tree on a single frame.
Create templates, for your class and, optionally, other classes too.
Set a specific template as a target, and see it when you're spending your next talent point on level up.
Apply complete templates with a single click, after a talent wipe.
Share your current build with other, or any template you've made.
Import templates directly from the Blizzard Talent calculator, or from wowhead.
Export templates as URL to wowhead or the Blizzard Talent calculator.
See other's template if they have LibRockComm installed.
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