Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Which playable race would you like to see come to WoW?

Today's Breakfast Topic, asked by Elizabeth Harper, is "Which playable race would you like to see come to WoW?". This topic follows an interview with Greg Street in which he spoke about Naga being a playable race (more on this here).

I think Naga would be a pretty cool race to play, I do like how they slither along and their movements in general. But I can see how this causes a number of problems - especilly when it comes to gear! After all Naga don't need shoes as they don't have feet! Obviously there would be the possibility of removing unnecessary gear slots for certain races but inevitably this would make them easier (or possibly) harder to gear effectively.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Random Group Tools - The Results

A couple of days ago WoW Insider's Breakfast Topic, asked by Lisa Poisso, was Love 'em or hate 'em, do you use random group tools? I decided that rather than blogging about my thoughts on this topic on the day that I'd wait for the results.

 

First off my answer to the poll was "I use them, and I think they're a fantastic addition to the game." Quite simply if it wasn't for these tools I'd never see a lot of the content - in particular raids. I've only recently gotten into raiding (well LFR) and I am enjoying it. But I can safely say that real raiding (as so many people like to call it) probably wouldn't work for me. If I'm perfectly honest I don't think I'm cut out for it and I could see myself getting stressed - which is not what I want to achieve from the game!!

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Potential Virtual Realm Headaches

Todays WoW Insider Breakfast Topic is about Potential Virtual Realm Headaches. Elizabeth Harper asks:

"are you looking forward to virtual realms or are you frustrated that they'll crowd your realm? Are you racing to get farming done before patch 5.4 -- and virtual realms -- arrive?"

I'm really looking forward to virtual realms!

My Alliance home server is medium population and it suits me just fine as it is. But it's quite stagnant. It's the same names selling the majority of stuff on the AH at stupid prices. There's the same trolls spamming anal jokes (though I don't find them particularly funny). The guilds are much the same aswell with the odd new one popping up and dying off.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Do unlikely race/role combos disturb you?

Todays WoW Insider Breakfast Topic is "Do unlikely race/role combos disturb you?". Lisa Poisso asks "Whether your reasons are aesthetic or practical, have you found any particular race/class combinations to feel a bit dodgy? Is there a race/roll combination in game that just doesn't work for you?"

Lisa talks about her dislike of Gnome warrior tanks. I do get her points entirely; theyre small which doesnt help when it comes to locating them amongst masses of baddies and the meager size doesn't exactly inspire confidence. But as a Gnome DK owner I love how, despite their size, they can still kick some serious ass!

Personally, I'm a bit iffy about certain races being healers. I don't know why exactly this is but I can envisage some races as healers but not others. For example; Night Elfs, Trolls and Tauren's are what I imagine to be healing races whilst Dwarfs, Orcs and Undead are not. I guess that the races I see more as healers are slightly more in touch with nature etc. compared with the other (more) destructive races.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Zookeeping

Last night I managed to complete the World Safari achievement and it happens to be the subject of todays WoW Insider Breakfast Topic - so brilliant timing all round!

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: How Did You Choose Your Guild?

Todays WoW Insider Breakfast Topic, asked by Elizabeth Harper, is "How did you choose your guild?".

For me this is fairly simple - I didn't really choose. I've been in the same guild since I started playing in February 2012. It's the guild that my boyfriend (who has yet again returned to blogging) was in. At the time I started playing WoW properly he was an officer in the guild. I knew maybe one or two of the people from when I'd been allowed to play on the boyfs account. So it seemed a fairly locigal step to join the guild, atleast until I'd found my feet in Azeroth.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Why Can't I...?

Today Elizabeth Harper asked 'Why Can't I...?' play a Gnome druid, hunter or paladin amongst other things and what unanswered WoW questions the readers have.

Firstly, talking about Gnomes I really love them as a race. Now I know there's Gnome haters in Azeroth but at the end of the day they're the one's missing out on having a green beehive hair-do and awesome squinty faces whilst dancing (see pics).

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: What are you embarrassed that you didn't know?

Earlier I was reading today's WoW Insider Breakfast Topic in which Robin Torres asked "What are you embarassed that you didn't know?". There's a fair few dumb things that I've not known about in my short time playing WoW but by simply reading the comments I've learnt a whole load more!

Robin recently discovered that Bind on Account (BoA) items can be sent cross-faction but not cross-server. Something that I had no idea about! I don't have many BoA items as it goes and I tend to keep all my Alliance chars on my main server and have Hordie's dotted all over the place so it's not overly important to me that you can do this. Nonetheless, it's handy to know.

From the comments:

That gear decay comes from being in combat and not from being hit! Just yesterday I was in LFR and suddenly my ranged weapon (bow) appeared as damaged - I had no idea why as I hadn't been hit or died for some time.

A couple of people commented about how you can put any colour gem in a gem slot. For example, you could out a red gem in a blue slot if you wanted. I honestly thought the colours were fixed to those displayed on the gear.

That monks can roll forwards (which I knew) and sideways and backwards! Similarly, the mage ability Blink can be glyphed with Glyph of Momentum so that it ports you the direction you're moving and not facing.

A couple of recent discoveries:

There is no doubt a lot of stupid things that I didn't know about and have gradullay become aware of. In all honestly I can't think of many right now but here's something I read about today and one from not that long ago...

Having just read Soco (from Vault of Light)'s recent post about character transfers I've learnt that there is a transferrable gold limit of 50k per character. This really doesn't seem a lot to me (not that I have that much gold myself) but I can see why others, like Soco, woould have trouble with this.

Not that long ago, just after Patch 5.3, I went to do one of the new scenarios as requested by Lorewalker Cho. Upon finishing the scenario I received my Greater Cache of Treasures which I opened to loot and found I was Valor capped. The cache then remained in my bags containing the VP's that I couldn't loot. I needed to spend some VPs but I knew that I didn't want anything from the vendor Commander Oxheart. I then asked in guild what I could do about my situation and explained that I seem to spend most of my time capped when it comes to both valor and Justice points. In the past I've wasted hundreds, probably thousands, of both not knowing what to do with them or how to spend them when I don't want to buy from the vendors. And then a guildie told me I could upgrade my gear!! I'd heard people talk about these gear upgrades but just assumed none of my gear was suitable. I felt pretty stupid. I even took a screenshot so I knew where to go in future to upgrade gear.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Could you step into your character's shoes? & Do you play WoW with a family member?

A two-in-one Breakfast Topic Thoughts today as I didn't finish my thoughts on yesterdays topics yesterday and I thought today's topic was worth a ponder to.

Yesterday's WoW Insider Breakfast Topic (asked by Lisa Poisso) is "Could you step into your character's shoes?". Lisa asks:

"Could you effectively step into your character's shoes in Azeroth? Like my mage, could you get the work done if you could find a non-combat position? Or do you play any characters whose jobs simply aren't a fit in any sense for the real you?".

I have a range of characters from an assortment of classes and with a variety of professions. I don't think any of them fit the real me perfectly. That said I've never really tried to make a character that's like me in every possible aspect - appearance, class and profs. Appearance wise I'm certainly a mix of my Gnome mage and Dwarf warlock.

I don't think I could step into a combat role. I'm really not the athletic type! Running around isn't my thing and nor is swinging swords and axes. My main is a hunter and when I was a guide I was quite a fan of archery & I wasn't that bad at it so I guess that's something that would stand in my favour of being a hunter. I guess I could cope as a caster such as a mage, warlock or druid.

As I'm into science I think I could do fairly well as a herbalist and/or alchemist like my mage. I'm no expert on terrestrial plants but it has to be said I'm not too shabby with seaweeds! Being a marine biologist I think the druid Glyph of the Orca would allow me to carry out my job a lot better (if I an get over the whole diving thing). So maybe I could be a mash-up of my mage and druid.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today's WoW Insider Breakfast Topic (asked by Robin Torres) is "Do you play WoW with a family member?"

For starters it depends what you class as family. None of my blood relations play WoW, to be honest I think most of them would be quite baffled by the game concept alone let alone all the buttons etc.

I do however play with my boyfriend who is essentially family. Up until recently we were in the same guild and would do scenarios, dungeons and old raid runs (for pets) together. However, he left the guild a week or so ago and I haven't seen him in-game since. That's not to say that we won't continue to do the occassional thing together - primarily farming for raid pets.
 

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: Do You WoW-Craft?

On Sunday (yes, I'm a little behind) WoW Insider's Breakfast Topic by Elizabeth Harper was "Do you WoW-Craft?". Personally I do quite enjoy crafty stuff but it's finding the time to get it done that causes me issues. A few of my work colleagues are also ino crafty stuff and we attempt to have weekly craft nights (aka Crochet Club). However, as I struggle with crochet I have been cross stitching instead. I am currently working on my first WoW-Craft and whilst it's a work in progress I am really happy with it. Hopefully it will be finished fairly soon and then I need to decide what exactly to do with it!

Stage 1:

Stage 2:

Stage 3:

Breskfast Topic Thoughts: How do you start a new character?

This morning's WoW Insider Breakfast Topic by Elizabeth Harper was How do you start a new character? I'm a bit of an alt-aholic and have made a dozen or so characters in the short time I've been playing WoW. I don't have a serious problem or rather addiction to making alts like some players but it's still a large part of my in-game experience and enjoyment.

Night Elfs have an awesome array of hair colours.

Normally when I'm making a new character it's because I've already decided to roll a particular class and/or race. If I've only chosen the race (for example) then I set about picking a complementary class. There has been one case where I had my heart set on a Pandaren paladin (Palminglee) but sadly Panda's can't be paladins so I made a shaman (Shaminglee). Now that's the relatively easy part over with.

Tauren horn style can be changed.

I find picking the character features can vary from being quite tricky to almost too obvious. As I'm sure we're all aware the customisable options vary between races, some have lots of options and others only a few. For me, this can pose an issue. If we take the faces for example - some I don't like, others I love and some I'd pick but they don't jump out at me. I, therefore, usually go for the one's that really appeal to me. I also try to keep each characters features unique - so when I have two or more of a single race I try to pick different features etc.

Goblin ear customisation also alters the nose and chin.

My final step during character creation is the naming. I don't follow any particular naming convention and so there's no limit or criteria that I need to follow. In a way I have shot myself in the foot by not having one. I am yet to think of a character name during the creation process that I've then chosen and has been available. There are so many names already taken, yet the number available is still enormous. Nonetheless, it's incredibly hard to pick the right name. I'll admit to having created a new character, played for a bit, decided I don't like the name and re-rolled the character exactly the same bar the name! For me, paying to change a character's name isn't a financial option and so I give myself until level 20 to make the delete/re-roll decision.

I'm really intrigued how others create new characters and would definately recommend reading the comments section of the original article.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts: What type of character would your mother play in WoW?

It turns out that yesterday (Sunday 12th) was Mother's Day in various countries but not here in the UK. Our Mother's Day was back in March and to celebrate I did a post on in-game Mummys (mounts) and their kids (pets) which you can view here.

Yesterday, WoW Insiders Dawn Moore asked What type of character would your mother play in WoW? and I thought this was a pretty neat question. It really provoked some thought as well as I'd never considered my mum playing WoW or even what race/class she is most like in personality etc.


Firstly, what would my mum play? Well it's safe to say my mum isn't the best with computers. She's approaching 60 and whilst she is suitably skilled to do a lot, with computers, I don't think games is her thing. However, if she ever did play I think she'd enjoy pet battles and leveling professions - much like myself. I think she'd find the combat a bit too much - too many buttons, too much going on etc. (again, a little like myself!). As such I can't really say what class or race she'd play out of choice but...

 

What is she most like? Race is easy - a (ginger) dwarf, much like my warlock Boltzy whom I pride on looking most accurately like myself. Class is slightly more tricky. She's got a range of qualities; good with plants, nature and mending (like a healer [primarily druid]), a stubborn battler (which I imagine to be a tank-like quality) yet she can be a bit of a witch. Overall, I guess my mum is more like a druid but dwarfs can't be druid. I guess the next best thing is a shaman - she can heal but can also deal some serious damage!

WoW Insiders asks: Why Do I Still Play WoW? & How Do You Pay to Play?

A couple of days ago WoW Insider asked via Twitter: Why do you still play WoW?

I thought this was an interesting question and have been thinking about my reasons for playing ever since. Now I haven't been playing for that long, in fact it wasn't that long that I celebrated my first year playing. So, I suppose the game is still reasonably fresh to me. For long-term players the game can become stale with the expansions being the only major changes and I understand why players take a break (or even quit) if said expansion isn't to their liking.

Anyway, I'm meant to be writing about me and not other players.

I've always played computer games and WoW filled a niche for me. I play a variety of games from god-games (Sims, Black & White, Theme Hospital, Zoo Tycoon etc.) to adventure and Sci-Fi (I own a lot of Star Wars games and am a big fan of the Lego games!). Anyway, WoW involves adventure, questing and fantasy - all of which I love.

In addition, WoW incorporates a social element. It's not just a case of inviting your friends over to play on a console - it's different. I get that consoles do now allow you to socialise but I'm a little old school when it comes to consoles and don't play any online. I've met some awesome people via playing WoW - not to mention those I've met subsequently via blogging - and I want to maintain contact with these people and the awesome community. They're my virtual friends and it doesn't matter where you live, what you do etc.

And finally - it's like an addiction. I have quite an addictive personality and I'm a creature of habit and routine. So it's not surprising that I got hooked. Yes I go though days where I don't want to log in so I don't. But most of the time I want to play. I want to do something, to complete this, to finish that. It has become part of my life and it fits in just perfectly!

I guess in conclusion I play WoW because I enjoy it on many levels! Perhaps it is just because I'm still such a newbie but I think that I will be playing for a while yet. Truth be told I'm not sure if I'd ever be able to properly quit (like forever).

Today, WoW Insiders Breakfast Topic by Elizabeth Harper asks How do you pay to play?

Tonight I am a little sad it has to be said. I thought my game time ran out on the 25th. However, when I went to log in I found that it had ran out today *cries*.

Normally I pay a month at a time as I'm never sure how busy I'll be and if I'll have the time to play enough to warrant paying. Most of the time I have plenty of spare time. Recently, however, I've been rather busy at work and outside of work meaning my in-game time has suffered. I don't feel like I've paid for nothing but I do wish I'd had chance to play more.

So why don't I just buy another months subscription and be done with it? Well I'm going on holiday on Monday for 5 days then it's Easter weekend meaning I probably won't have a chance to play until early April. I'm reluctant to buy game time when I'll potentially not play for 7-10days.

Having said that I really want to be playing right now and dreading a long free weekend (the first in a long time) without it. I wonder if I'll last until Monday or not...

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.

Breakfast Topic Thoughts

This morning WoW Insiders Breakfast Topic (by Michael Gray) was 'Do you talk about WoW at work?' and I thought this was a really interesting topic and deserved a mini-blog.

Personally I think Michael poses a very good question. He is completely right when he says that "being a geek isn't quite the mark of shame it once was". But I don't think that necessarily makes it easy for everyone to come-out of the gaming closet.

I've never hidden that I'm a geek. I have always been open about my obsession with Star Wars, in particular, and my collection of memorabilia. For those that knew me, my progression to playing WoW was somewhat natural and almost a given thing. I don't think anyone was shocked or confussed and so I was completely open.

For those that I have subsequently met or got to know it's a little different. I started playing properly at the beginning of my Master's degree. I knew a few people very well (having studied at undergraduate level with them) but the majority were new faces. Whilst I never shouted about my virtual gaming life, I never lied if someone asked me if I played WoW or any other games. I even managed to recruit someone from my Master's who is still playing now.

More recently I have been volunteering at a (degree related) institute, within their data team (whom I am due to start a temporary contract with shortly). Working within a data team, as I'm sure you can imagine, is quite a computer based job and the staff are all a little geeky. It also turns out that one guy plays WoW and I have spoken to him in some depth about WoW etc.