Breakfast Topic Thoughts: The Funny Side of WoW

I've had a busy weekend so I've spent much of this evening catching up with blogs etc. So, this is a little late but fortunately Starre (of Warcraft Trading Post) posted a response today which made doubley sure that I saw this Breakfast Topic.

On Saturday Lisa Poisso posted WoW Insider's Breakfast Topic asking When was the last time WoW made you laugh out loud? For me this was a just a few days ago. It's a bit of a weird and wonderful story to be honest.

I was hanging around outside Orgrimmar trying to complete Fistful of Love as part of Love is in the Air. I had two race/class combinations left - Undead Warrior & Troll Rogue. Anyway, I was on my hunter, mounted on my sparkle pony searching through the crowd of Hordies. It was a really busy night and most of them were duelling each other.

I noticed this DK (I think he was a Blood Elf) running around me in circles. I dismounted and waved. He waved back. A whole series of emotes (all friendly) later and there I was virtually naked dancing with this guy outside Org. There was quite a crowd looking, pointing, cheering, winking at me by this point. Sadly my friend had to go so we waved goodbye.

I'm not entirely sure what it was about this whole experience that I found so funny but it really did make me laugh. Not to mention my miss-type of "laugh" in guild chat as opposed to "/laugh" which resulted in my guildie thinking I'd lost it a little. Only for me to casually explain that I was naked dancing with a Hordie outside Org! On a side note it restored my faith in the player community and proved that inter-faction relations don't always have to revolve around /spit.

Love is in the Air in Review plus a Quick Theme Team!

I have now officially taken part in every in-game world event once! Yes, I did receive WoW during last years Love is in the Air but I was too busy creating characters and leveling to bother about the world event.

So, for the 2013 event I really wanted to complete the achievement Fool for Love and get the Swift Lovebird mount and Peddlefeet (companion pet). I managed to get enough Love Tokens to buy Peddlefeet within a couple of days. I then started aiming for the mount which I got not too long after. I should also point out that I got the Toxic Wasteling from the daily dungeon but am yet to even see, let alone get the Big Love Rocket.

 

Up until this point I had negelected to work on the sub-achievements that count towards Fool for Love. These achievements then became my main focus and late Friday night I got the achievement and the title "...the Love Fool".

 

I'm really glad that I managed to tick this world event off! I've had a quick look and I just need to finish off For the Children, Brewmaster and Hallowed Be Thy Name to get What a Long, Strange Trip It's Been and the Reins of the Violet Proro-Drake (hopefully in October!).

I need to work on / change my Theme Team logo as it doesn't
work now my blog background is purple not white :(

You may have noticed that I missed doing a Battle Pet Theme Team for Valentines Day. I haven't even reviewed my Chinese New Year team. Truth is things have been pretty hectic and I haven't done a lot of pet battling. Love is in the Air also makes creating a Theme Team a little tricky as it only offers two pets. It just so happens that Peddlefeet is a humanoid pet and the Toxic Wasteling magic so they do balance well. This does mean that there's a lot of freedom when choosing the third pet for your team - you could pick a pet that you really love or one that you think will add a useful/interesting ability to your team. It's really up to you!

Blog Azeroth: Collections

It's been a while since I've taken part in a shared topic but and only did this question catch my eye but I saw it before the week was over!
Noahdeer of Be MOP has posted a shared topic question on Blog Azeroth about collections:

World of Warcraft has added many different items for players to collect, whether it be collecting pets, mounts, transmog gear or knickknacks about the lore. This week’s topic asks what you do collect in the game and what is your prized item from that collection?

I collect things both in real life and in-game. It's part of being a hoarder. I also like to be thorough and so once I start something I like to finish it. I'm also stubborn which helps. In-game I collect a number of things both physical items and non-physical.

Battle Pets
This one is pretty obvious to anyone who reads my blogs (but if you're new to my blog then maybe not. Also Hey!). Even before the announcement of pet battles I collected companion pets buying them as and when I could. When pet battles was announced I worked really hard to get as many of the then available pets as I could. Since MoP I have continued collecting pets. I manage my collection on warcraftpets.com and you can view my collection here. I currently have 413 unique pets. Obviously, I still have a number of pets to collect and level. I also need to complete Raiding with Leashes.

Oscar's Transmog: Star Wars

To celebrate her birthday Matty (of Sugar & Blood) is hosting an Oscars themed transmog contest aka Matty's Movie Mog Contest. The idea being to create transmog outfits for three characters from your favourite film.

I decided that I wanted to take part when I first saw Matty's post. Picking the movie was easy - I love Star Wars and probably a little top much. I have a collection of memorabilia worth thousands of pounds. I've attended numerous conventions and have been lucky enough to meet the likes of Mark Hamill, Kenny Baker, David Prowse, Peter Mayhew to name a few.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand. Initially I envisioned doing the iconic Princess Leia's slave girl look but couldn't make it 100% perfect. At this point I almost gave up on Star Wars and thought about doing LOTR - after all WoW has dwarves, elves and humans. But it just wasn't right and so I've battled through the MogIt catalogue to produce these:

The Jade Forest - A Gnomes-Eye View

The last few days I've been working on leveling my Gnome mage through the Jade Forest. This is my second character that I'm leveling in Pandaria so it's still rather new to me. Especially, as my hunter was virtually level 87 when I got into Pandaria (thanks to the 10-day free trial and lots of farming) so I went straight into the Valley of the Four Winds.

I'm not particularly worried about getting to 90 asap so decided to take my time. I completed the Upjade Complete achievement, although it bugged out a little, and headed to Kun-Lai (I was already level 87).

Overall, I really enjoyed leveling through the Jade Forest and took a ridiculous amount of screenshots - even more than usual! I've picked out the best and have included them below. Due to not being level 90 I can't fly in Pandaria yet so some of the screenshots don't look as good as they would from an elevated height hence it's a Gnomes-eye view.

Around Pearlfin Village

Watersmith working hard.

 

 

20 Days of Gold Making: Day 20

This is my last post for the 20 Days of Gold Making. I'd like to thank Nev for organising it and writing the questions. I've really enjoyed taking part and it's safe to say that I've learnt a lot! It's been especially interesting to read what more serious gold makers answer and compare it with my own. I've picked up some great new blogs to read and some handy tips - like using Trade Skill Master (I have now started using it but quite often forget that I have it! It will take time).

Just incase you missed any of my previous 20 Days of Gold Making posts I'll put links to them all at the end.

Lets spread some blog love - which are your 'must read' or 'go to' gold blogs or even other places you go for information & reading matter?

Prior to taking part in this community event I only read a couple of gold making blogs such as Nev's Auction House Addict and Xsinthis' The Golden Crusade. Aside from reading these blog's most of my knowledge about gold making came from a combination of Google searches, my boyfriends knowledge and playing things by ear. When it comes to professions I use wow-professions to find good farming spots etc.

So, since I started taking part I've found a lot of new gold-related blogs to read. A full list of participants can be found here. In addition to discovering established blogs such as Phat Lewt's Gold Blog, The Overcut and Power World: Gold I have discovered Selltacular of Copper to Gold. Mr Selltacular is relatively new to blogging with just a handful of posts to date. Nonetheless, he has left me a load of comments with helpful links, which I'm really appreciated of. If you're reading this, thanks again and the rest of you - check out his blog!!!

Links to my other 20 Days of Gold Making posts:
Day 1 - When did I start gold making & what triggered it?
Day 2 - Goals
Day 3 - First techniques/tips and tricks
Day 4 - Balking alts: do you use one?
Day 5 - Banking alts: same one or different?
Day 6 - Biggest gold-making market
Day 7 - Starting over
Day 8 - Did I achieve 'Day 2's' goal?
Day 9 - Favourite niche market
Day 10 - Farming materials
Day 11 - Addons
Day 12 - Biggest 'oops'
Day 13 - Biggest 'Yay'!
Day 14 - Dedication to gold making (or lack of)
Day 15 - Professions
Day 16 - Flipping!
Day 17 - Pets
Day 18 - Advice
Day 19 - Rewarding myself with... Pierre

Valentine's Comic

For Valentine's Day I wanted to do something different. I wanted to show some inter-faction love! For a while now I've been looking for an excuse to put together a bit of a storyline of my own. I've been really inspired by the comics that Lorelei does for her Zazzy Mogs so this evening I've pieced together my own.

But before I show you my creation I'd like to thank a few people. Firstly, Lorelei for inspiring me. Secondly, my boyfriend - who's account I used to create one of the stars and Kachlor GM of 'Application Denied' the Horde guild that I joined on Draenor!

I should also note that I originally intended the star to be a Tauren but I kept dying - turns out Mulgore to Ratchet is a long way! Also, thank you to the Horde guild I joined then - 'Hipsters of Somalia'.

 

Original Alliance-Horde image available here.

20 Days of Gold Making: Day 19

Here we are, the penultimate day of Nev's 20 Days of Gold Making...

Have you bought yourself anything really expensive as a reward for earning all that gold? Or do you have a self-present in mind for when you reach your goal?

On Day 2 I spoke about how my gold making goals are usually the acquisition of a certain expensive mount and on Day 8 about when I achieved two such mounts - the Sandstone Drake and the Mekgineer's Chopper.

Since achieving these two mounts I haven't really had a goal. I've been continuing to sell items here and there and my bank balance has been steadily growing - for no real purpose. So, today's question has got me thinking about the upcoming Patch 5.2 and a certain pet called Pierre.

For those of you who don't know, Pierre is a companion pet who also acts like a mini stove making him very handy! Plus, he has a moustache!! Anyway, he can be made by an engineer and the materials required are Stabilized Lightning Source (from Ghost Iron Bars) and Living Steel.

Whilst I can get my hands on most of the materials (i.e. the ghost iron) I'm not sure if I'll get me Mage to being able to Transmute: Living Steel in time. I am currently leveling her for this purpose, it all depends on how fast I level her and when the Patch arrives. Anyway, I've realised that if the worst happens and I don't have any/enough Living Steel I will be digging into my savings and buying them.

Pierre will be mine!

A Year WoWing Azeroth!

As of today I've been playing WoW for a whole year! It's been an interesting journey with both highs and lows. I like to feel that I've WoWed Azeroth as much as it's WoWed me, but I'm not so sure. For this one year of playing post I'm going to talk about what I've achieved and a little about where I'd like to be this time next year.

The beginning...
As I've mentioned in previous blogs my first experience of the game took place over a year ago. I had a mage on my boyfriend's account that I occassionally played and I got her to level 85. Anyway, I was getting into the game and really enjoying it (it was something different to the usual games I played such as Zoo Tycoon and Theme Hospital). For Valentine's I got my very own WoW account and I was super happy - I had everything up to and including Cataclysm.

I started off by re-making my mage. She is an exact replica of her original self - hair, face, piercings, the lot. Sadly, having leveled her alter-ego (i.e. the original) so recently I decided to leave her and create a new character. I had so much choice - so many races and classes not to mention the number of character slots! I liked how the Draenei looked and my hunter, who is now my main, was born. Since, I have been leveling and making new alts which brings me to talking about...

20 Days of Gold Making: Day 18

What is the most important bit of advice you could give to a new gold maker? (not a game newbie though, just a newbie gold maker)...

Well I don't really have a notebook full of tips for gold making so I'll keep it short with three simple tips....

1. Be patient! It will take you a while to work out what sells well on your server and what doesn't. Don't expect to hit the gold cap in a weeks time unless you're willing to put the time in and even then I'm not sure if it would be possible.

2. As you've already been playing the game you'll have some characters. They may not be max level but a few levels is better than nothing. Assuming you've chosen to level your professions as you're going you'll also have some valuable skills. It's just a case of working out what you can make/gather that's worth selling. Note: don't dismiss items just because they're low level - the beauty of WoW is that there's always someone leveling a prof!

3. Find a market that you enjoy. This is a bit of a weird one but I think it's pretty important. If you're going to spend all or some of your time in the AH browsing and listing items why not focus on something you enjoy - after all it's a game and meant to be fun!

And ofcourse - Good Luck!

Lunar Festival in Review

This was my first Lunar Festival and so I had a lot of places to visit. I was determined to get the title (Elder) and my determination was rewarded. Along the way, whilst travelling between the Elders, I noticed that the evening sky in Azeroth can be quite stunning. So, I took some screenshots on my travels and have included them below for you to see/enjoy aswell.

Above Stormwind.

Looking over Brill.

Dun Morogh.

Wetlands coastline.

In between the Plaguelands.

 

Eastern Plaguelands #1.

Eastern Plaguelands #2.

Borean Tundra.

Sholazar Basin.

Mulgore and Thunder Bluff.

 

 

20 Day of Gold Making: Day 17

Pets - Did you used to do the Vendor pet sales? How have pet battles changed things for you?

I very briefly dabbled in selling vendor pets on the AH. Before MoP hit I was busy collecting as many pets as I could ready for pet battles. This included flying around getting any vendor pets I'd missed.

I was missing the three moth pets from Sixx in The Exodar. These moths can be purchased for 50 silver each as the Yellow Moth Egg, White Moth Egg and Blue Moth Egg. I remember that I asked in guild chat if anyone wanted me to grab them one of each whilst there and one person said yes. So I bought myself one of each, my guildie one of each and a couple of each spare - to try out selling vendor pets. I sold them on the AH for around 15g each - which I was fairly happy with.

I went back to Exodar and ended up buying some more and re-sold them. I'm not sure how many of each I re-sold but I stopped when someone else also started selling them and under-cutting me - they were inevitable spending more time at the AH than I was.

Since MoP and pet battles I haven't tried to sell any vendor pets. I guess I was just experimenting with the market and it went well for me. Now there's a lot more people trying to sell vendor pets on the AH so I probably won't try it again until the markets less saturated.

Battle Pet Theme Team: Chinese New Year

As I'm sure you're all aware this Sunday (10th Feb.) is Chinese New Year. In my previous Battle Pet Theme Team post (for Lunar Festival and the very first of it's kind) I said that I would be doing a special team for this weekend's festivities and here it is!

The pet images presented below are taken from warcraftpets.com. The pet names serve as links to the pets respective pages at warcraftpets.com so you can look in greater depthy at their abilities if you wish.

Contenders...

I've based my selection on the 12 animals associated with Chinese New Year.

 

Rat - Giant Sewer Rat

 

There's numerous rat pets available, all sharing the same set of abilities, but my favourite is the Giant Sewer Rat. I really like the fact that it's giant and being a fishing-fan had two in my collection (I've since given my second away). He's from the critter family and has largely critter abilities, with only one being non-critter (beast).

 

Ox - Clefthoof Runt

 

There's no Ox pet in-game so I've gone with the Clefthoof Runt which I think is the closest to it (and one of my favourite looking pets). Clefthoof Runt's are from the beast family and have a combintaion of beast and critter abilities (ration 4:2).

 

Tiger - Winterspring Cub

Whilst there's no pets in game that look like a real tiger (Panthera tigris) there is a number of big cat models (mostly in the form of cubs). Only three pets are named specifically as tigers, the Jade Tiger / Spectral Tiger Cub / Zipao Tiger and these pets are from promotions / TCG loot so I've chosen to discount them. Instead I've gone for the Winterspring Cub, which is purchasable in-game, has entirely beast abilities.

 

Rabbit - Darkmoon Rabbit

Again, theres numerous rabbit models in-game and I've opted the Darkmoon Rabbit. After all who's to say that it's blood around it's mouth and not sweet and sour sauce!?! This critter has a variety of abilities including three non-critter ones spread throughout the three slots allowing real ability-flexibility.

 

Dragon - Mechanical Pandaren Dragonling

Mists of Pandaria brought a whole new oriental feel to WoW, including new mounts and pets. It share's it's model with some other hatchling's and is very similar to the Celestial Dragon but is unique in the sense that it's mechanical - which is why I've chosen it. Unsurprisingly it's from the mechanical family, sub-family mechanized critters. What I especially like about this pet is that it has abilities from four different families: dragonkin, elemental, flying and mechanical (x3) making it great for battling a range of pets.

 

Snake - Zooey Snake

2013 is the year of the snake! The game is filled with various snakes, adders, vipers etc. which share the same abilities. I've chosen the Zooey Snake as I like it's name and skin pattern (above). Snakes are beasts and have mostly beast abilities with one humanoid ability.

 

Horse - Sea Pony

Not a true horse but who doesn't love the Sea Pony?? It's also a chance to bring an aquatic pet into the mix. All it's moves are aquatic making it an excellent pet to take on elementals. Also has the aquatic heal cleansing rain.

 

Sheep - Black Lamb

Black Lamb's can be found an captured in Elwynn Forest. They're critters with 100% critter abilities. Has the ability Chew which I personally find quite amsuing.

 

Monkey - Darkmoon Monkey

If he's good enough for Jeremy Feasel's team then he deserves to be mentioned! I'm sure most of you have encountered Mr. Monkey and his terribly annoying Banana Barrage. It quite often bugs out when I'm fighting him and either deals mental amounts of damage or doesn't stop. He has 5/6 beast abilities with one humanoid ability. 

 

Rooster - Westfall Chicken

Again, there's a few varieties of chicken in-game which share the same abilities. I've gone with the Westfall Chicken which you get for completing the quest CLUCK! It's from the flying family and has mostly flying abilities a couple of critter abilites.

 

Dog - Core Hound Pup

The Core Hound Pup isn't exactly a dog but I like it. If you don't have one they're easy to get and come free when you get an authenticator. He's one of the four pets in the elemental sub-family of mythicals. Whilst the Core Hound is from the elemental family it only has one elemental ability mixed with three beast, a critter and a humanoid ability - giving it a good variety.

 

Pig - Mr Wiggles

Mr Wiggles can be acquired as a quest reward during Children's Week and is a very cute little piggy! He's from the critter family and has mostly critter abilities (four in total). He also has an undead and a beast ability. One of his critter abilities is called Buried Treasure which sounds pretty cool.

 

Final Three...

 

 Having 12 contenders has made choosing a final three quite tricky but it does mean that I've got a range to pick from. I've chosen the Clefthoof Runt because despite my love for it's appearance I've never leveled mine. My second choice is the Mechanical Pandaren Dragonling because I love how the mechanized critters look in general and I could do with leveling another mechanical pet. The Sea Pony is another pet that I love and I worked really hard to get but have never leveled so now is his chance to shine!

Exalted Status', Mounts & Screenshots Galore!

Since hitting level 90 on my hunter I've been working on three faction reputations: the Tillers, the Anglers and the Klaxxi. Back at the end of January I managed to reach exalted status with the Tillers and posted some screenshots from my travels with them.

Since then I've been working away doing dailies getting ever closer to exhalted status and the awesome mounts associated with these two factions. This week my hard work has finally paid off and I've been rewarded!

Angler-ific!
Early this week I reached exalted with the Anglers and got the Azure Water Strider mount and the tabard. I had previously bought the Fishing Raft upon reaching revered. I haven't taken may screenshots whilst doing the Anglers dailies as there's not much to see. I have taken a picture of my strider and I even experimented with bandicam.com and video'd myself running around on it (but as I don't have a youtube account you can't see it).

 

 

 

 

 

 

En route from the Anglers to the Klaxxi. Stormstout Brewery.

 

Klaxxi Krazy!

I thought Tuesday was the night I'd hit exalted with the Klaxxi. I settled down and did my dailies with my goal in mind - the Amber Scorpion! Once I'd handed in my dailies I was just short of the mark - it was gutting! Last night I logged in and did the one quest I needed to tip me over the edge and to exalted status. I immediately bought my scorpion mount and took a few screenshots. I then finshed off the Klaxxi questing to get the Seal of the Windreaver. I'd taken quite a few Klaxxi-esque screenshots so I've included the best below.