Less Than Two Hours

3:30 pm Eastern is the time we’re all waiting for. Well, there are other things of enjoyment but for most players it’s the “What’s Next” for WoW. In the Mythic Hall at that time is when we will find out the next expansion for the game. There are a lot of rumours and speculations about what the 7th(!) expansion will hold for the denizens of Azeroth. Ships? Kul Tiras? Naga? The Void? Old God? All of these things have been whispered for the last 3-6 months and we know some of it will be true. Some of it will be completely off the mark, but that’s ok too. The fun is in the speculation and there is even more excitement in the delivery.  Personally I expect N’zoth and Jaina will be this expansion’s versions of Deathwing and Thrall (though hopefully not as obnoxious in the case of the latter).

Enough rambling and excitement for now. The moment I get a link for the new trailer or cinematic, you can bet I will post it and share my further thoughts then.

Dee King…Has Returned

From the onset, let us just get it out of the way now that Vol’jin has not returned. Last we saw, he was passing on the Warchief mantle to Sylvanas and was on his way to hang with the Loa. Why? We’re honestly not really sure. The mantle of Warchief and the fallout of it played next to no major part in the overall Legion story. Khadgar and Illidan basically ran the show and we got to tag along. Anduin becoming king was a much bigger development and had more depth to his ascension. With the Banshee Queen she vowed to avenge Vol’jin and that was that. It rallied most of the Horde. And then Genn broke her nightlight.

But this isn’t about Sylvanas today. The focus is on the Warchief we barely had. When Vol’jin took over as leader of the Horde at the end of Mists it was an excellent moment and well developed (given all the crap he went through). Plus, it was the choice most players seemed to agree on after the whole Garrosh mess. Warlords came and we went back in time (in another time, no less) and left Vol’jin in the present. So he basically relaxed while we were gone. Then we came back and he died almost immediately. If that doesn’t leave a bitter taste in a person’s mouth, I don’t know what does.

At this point, we’ve established that him passing on the mantle to Sylvanas before he died (from a spear…) accomplished nothing. It has lead to nothing. But giving the benefit of the doubt, surely there must be a reason this took place and the writers have that mapped out for the next expansion.

“In our darkest time, you would be the one to save us.”

Those were Vol’jin’s words to the Forsaken leader as he died. Well, so far it’s been all the Mary Sue’s of Azeroth that seem to be doing the saving. Thrall, Malfurion, Illidan, Khadgar…heck, what has transpired to qualify as the Horde’s “darkest time?” Again, nothing. At least on the Alliance side, they lost their actual king. So is something coming in the next expansion? It has to, otherwise what’s the point.

There’s no disputing how fond I am of the Sylvanas character, but what had great potential has been underwhelming for an entire expansion because nothing was done with it. So in the next expansion something has to happen, as I just mentioned. But what exactly would it be?

Well, I still believe Vol’jin wasn’t necessarily talking to the loa at the time of his death. With the potential involvement of N’Zoth in the upcoming stories, part of me wonders if it was actually the whispers of an Old God that convinced Vol’jin to choose the successor he did. And if that’s the case, what else has the Old God been up to? I’m thinking much, but that’s a story for another day. But there’s definitely been manipulation going on. So as a result of that, our something major happening to the Horde should come from that source. And that’s where I see the proverbial prophecy coming true with Sylvanas.

I don’t think she’ll directly save the day. I think she’ll bring back Vol’jin to do it. Hear me out. First off Vol’jin wasn’t burned like most trolls are when it comes time for their funeral. Also, it wouldn’t be the first time Vol’jin came back from the dead (read Shadows of the Horde if you haven’t already). So at this stage the window hasn’t been closed yet. Not to mention, any time anyone asks who the leader of the Darkspear Trolls is the answer is more or less circles around Vol’jin.

While I love Sylvanas, she is not going to be Warchief for long. I think it’s great from a fanboy perspective, but all wrong from a somewhat realistic perspective. As pointed out, no one trusts her…and she has done nothing in this expansion to change that. She always has her own agenda, sometimes even revolving around her people. Windrunner is a great advisor or council member but she shouldn’t be leader.

As far as Vol’jin goes, again, he was never really Warchief. Garrosh was spared. That’s pretty much all he did. So are we just going to thank him for getting a Garrison? Seems very underwhelming. He was also the most respected of the Horde leaders. Even the Alliance held him under high regard. So you have his own people, his enemies, and the players all pleased with a leader and he was gone in a breath. Blizzard has even recognized the fans were not at all happy with this and it seems early on that some of the content that was written was done so based on Vol’jin just going MIA again and that clearly did not happen this go around.

As for the how or the why she brings him back, the circumstances could be one of dozens. Again, I think something or someone is going to push the Horde to the brink of disaster under Sylvanas’ reign and all the distrust she has earned will make it impossible for her to overcome. Instead, she’ll bring back Vol’jin as a beacon for the Horde because she knows they’ll rally behind him and that will be the “darkest hour” rescue. How she does it could be simple. A bargain with Bwomsamdi. Performing another act like she did with Nathanos Blightcaller. Eh, that one seems less likely. Doubtful the Trolls would be happy about that and the Forsaken don’t seem keen on bringing back non-humans.

The how and why could make for excellent questing on the Horde side in the next expansion and it really does need to happen. Vol’jin should have the chance to be a proper Warchief. Unless Blizzard goes to a Horde council, him leading the faction is the right choice to make because there’s no one else that should hold the mantle. As I said before, not even Sylvanas. That’s why I strongly expect it to happen in whatever expansion gets announced in a few weeks. And that’s why at some point, “Dee King Will Have Returned.”

Lollygagging In Legion

Normally by this time I am easily level capped, or very close. The first week is often a blur as I fly to the maximum level on a character. But this time, that’s not the case. Things have been live for nine days now and I don’t even have a character at 101 let alone 110.  Time has been part of that, as we were a bit busy on the weekend when I would have had the most to devote to the game. But also I’ve just been puttering about and doing a bit at a time. Some of that was due to turning the Legendary chain of the Druid into a short story, but otherwise I’ve just been taking things in.

Unlike other occasions, I’m also doing it as spoiler free as absolutely possible. I haven’t been checking out any videos on YouTube and I’ve certainly avoided the forums (learned my lesson after a couple of major death spoilers). I’ve even gone so far as to stop reading blogs for the short term. I really do want to discover the expansion on my own. I feel like I will enjoy it more for what it is if I do so spoiler free and without the emotional input of others. Once I reach a certain point I will certainly play catchup, but for now I’m just going to stroll through the entrance and hide out in my den for a little while and just peek out at Azeroth.

Thanks Invaders

 

It’s almost time to say farewell to our visitors of Azeroth. In just a few short hours the Legion expansion will be upon us and that means the invasions will be no more. I have to say, it was a fantastic event. For the first time since Wrath of the Lich King, the event really was solid and offered a variety of tasks (the pamphlet collection might be the exception). Of course more importantly for everyone, the invasions were an incredible source of leveling. The experience awarded was vast, with even a vanilla toon (no xp buffs) able to gain a level or more in a single invasion. At higher levels, it might have taken two.

I used this as an opportunity to branch out the number of capped toons I had. It’s no secret I’d like one of each at 100 so that I can do the eventual legendary chains for each class. As you can see from the photo, I managed to get three in the time available. Shaman, Mage, and Death Knight can be stroked off. That leaves Demon Hunter, Warrior, Warlock, and Monk. Well, Demon Hunter obviously won’t be an issue and I am leaning towards using my 100 boost on a Monk. Unfortunately, time was not kind to me the past two weeks so I wasn’t able to get the other two to the end mark. The Warrior sits at 65 and the Warlock got to 40 earlier this evening. I could get a few more levels on either one but my energy is fading and I’m realistic the benefit just isn’t there at this point. Still, the Army is certainly ready to kick down the doors of the Broken Isles.

For Blood And Honor, Warchief

Let’s just get this out of the way right now. Rather large spoilers ahead if you’ve not done the pre-Legion event.

30 Days In The Hole

To be fair, it’s more to the effect of “30 Days Back In Azeroth.” Miss me? Heck, remember me?

Indeed my friend, I have been back in World of Warcraft for just over a month now (though I was gone away for one week in that span). There is a great deal to discuss in terms of the game, the future, even yours truly as it pertains to the two.  I suppose I will take the easy route and tackle the last one first.

When I stopped playing WoW earlier this year it wasn’t because of the game itself (unlike a clear number of other people based on subscription numbers). I simply didn’t have time for the game. If I didn’t have time…why was I paying for it then? So off I went. I can’t say that I missed the game, but at the same time there were things I missed doing. More importantly there were people I missed talking to. But don’t get me wrong, that wouldn’t be reason enough to bring me back (as awesome as those individuals may be).

So why did I come back? That’s easy. I can play the game for free. Yes, the well-known WoW token. Some individual buys the token in the real world and all I have to do is hand over some gold for a month of play time. That means zero cash comes out of my pocket. I just spend a few hours generating some coin and I’m in the game as long as I want to be. Of course, there was a catch to getting back that myself and Flagsworth (remember that lad as well?) found as we both considered this option: how do we start playing for free without first paying to do so? Oh Blizzard, you have impeccable timing.

Shortly before I was set to go on holidays I got a Facebook notice inviting me back to the game for a free 7-days. Well, problem solved. So back I came and just before I went away at the beginning of August I purchased my first 30-day token. I just picked up my second one Sunday, and since I came back I still have enough for two more months. I do plan to share my means of doing so but that will be at another time.

In game, as of today, flying in Draenor is officially a possibility. Honestly, I’ve never had issue with us not being able to fly at any point during the game. I don’t see why folks have been so adamant over the issue, but when the realms come back online later it won’t matter. It is what it is and those who are excited may rejoice over the issue.

The aggravation I do understand, however, is over the Garrison. Well specifically that every character you send through the portal must do the chain and go down the same tedious path every time roughly until you’ve gotten your Garrison to level 2. There are ways around it, yes, but they aren’t necessarily viable or free of agony. I do wish we could be at the very least come through the portal and choose to take an “x” amount of experience (less than what you would get doing the quest chain) and appear at that moment after the Garrison is complete.

While Blizzard seems to have learned from some of the mistakes of the Garrison, it looks like they aren’t ending any time soon as the new Class Headquarters sound to be very similar if not identical. Time will tell. To be honest, the Legion expansion seems to be a mixed bag. I like the idea of the Demon Hunter, though I have no certainty whether I’ll play the class much (who am I kidding, I have to have one of every class). The artifacts mechanic is also interesting. Particularly for us Feral Druids! Some say the expansion is a bit of everything people want, but does that mean Blizzard shoots the moon in one shot? I hope not because it’s likely that being a bit of everything means not being enough of any one thing in particular (kind of like my play style…which works for me, but not millions of others). I plan to get it either way, but I’m uncertain if it will be at launch. That will depend on the release date as I have a bigger hobby now and it involves some pricey kickstarters coming down the pipe.

I haven’t written in so long because I had nothing to write about. I’ve said before no matter how excited you might be about something, if you aren’t active in it then it’s very hard to completely relate when sharing your thoughts on the matter.  Now I find myself and the Amateur Army deep in the world again, and the interest to write and share my thoughts is definitely there. But I shall provide no timetable. Whenever the mood suits me or there’s a topic worth mentioning then I certainly will. Who knows, others will spur topics for me. I do have a post I plan to start writing today, as the first of the month allows me a launch point to get a clear picture. It’s one I will share at the end of the month, though, and will hopefully provide insight into how to start acquiring your own WoW tokens.

With any luck you’ll be playing for free as well, or perhaps just find a new way to supplement a shopping spree now and again. Either way, so long as I can keep bringing in the tokens I have returned and will be staying. At the very least, I suspect that’s for the rest of 2015. How often I share my ramblings, I cannot say. But when in doubt, rest assured I am always up for a chat in game.

Cheers,
JD

Hearthstone -Android Style

It’s something that many have been clamoring for and for some time all we ever heard was December, and in a couple of cases a mention that it’s release might coincide with the expansion launch.  But sometime last month, the talk stopped and there was nothing for weeks…until suddenly it went live this week.

Strange thing is, to me anyway, it did so with little noise.  Sure, on the Hearthstone Forums it was announced, but that would be to a small portion of your player base.  There was nothing in the Battlenet launcher that I saw, unlike when GvG went live.  Perhaps I missed it, but the only reason I only know about it is thanks to Mrs. Amateur informing me yesterday.

I haven’t had the chance to play a game via tablet just yet, but I’m happy to be able to whenever I want.  I know the game has gotten some negative feedback over the expansion and its effect on general play.  The few games I’ve played I have certainly noticed a difference, even in my ranked play which consists of the lowbie 20’s.

What about you?  Have you been playing more since the launch of the expansion?  Are you excited to now have the option via Android tablet?