World of Warcraft General Discussion

[Shot_From_Guns]

Woooooooohoo! This week’s raid was Malygos, and I happened to catch someone advertising in trade chat for a tank or a healer. Now, I really hate tanking Maly, but I really wanted those five Frost badges, and given who was putting it together, I knew it would be a competent group. So I said, “Fuck it,” tanked the hell out of that bitch, and came away with an Abyss Crystal and the quest completed. Which, with the 56 Frost badges I already had, meant…

Trinket time! Yes, ladies and gents, I have finally replaced that Bubbling Brightbrew Charm from Brewfest that made up part of my MaxEH set, which is what I wear most often while tanking. Behold: the Corroded Skeleton Key. <3<3<3

I’m so happy, I think I peed myself. And not just a little bit, oh no.

In other news, my Mage now has her four-piece T9. Whee! I also had some moments of complete retardation regarding her gear last night. First, I noticed that I’d been running around with one of my rings unchanted. The next (and most painful, in terms of cost) d’oh moment involved gemming. While I had limited gem slots, I’d been running with an Ember Skyflare meta. But now that I had extra slots to tweak, I was upgrading to a Chaotic Skyflare, which is hands-down the best meta for a Mage. I picked up two new gems… and then failed to double-check my gear to see if I should regem anything I already had socketed in order to pick up socket bonuses, based on the gem mix I needed to activate my meta. With the end result that I left a red gem in my shoulders (blue socket) and put a purple gem in my pants (yellow socket). :smack::smack::smack: When I noticed, I bit the bullet, bought two new gems (so long, several hundred gold), and resocketed them properly. I then checked over my gear one more time to make sure I wasn’t missing anything else. It was then that I noticed… Well, remember when I said I chanted that ring? Somehow, I’d managed to put Attack Power on it. What. The. Fuck? So, I rechanted that over to Spell Power, like it should have been.

I guess that’ll teach me to try to put gear together at midnight.

@Yeticus_Rex

I ran H Occulus last night with an excellent group

Grats on the new achievement! Was it a random (how was the shiny shiny extra loot bag?) or did you pick it yourself?

@lizardling

brb makin macro n rearrangin bars

When in doubt, /tar.

Thanks for the extensive notes SFG and Jas09!

You’re welcome! My usual process for learning a boss before going in is to watch a video (Tankspot makes really awesome ones, and they’re not just for tanks), then read the WoWWiki/Wowhead pages, then go back and watch the video again and/or read its transcript. I then break down what’s happening into what I, personally, need to watch out for, possibly also making notes about what players in other roles need to focus on, especially if it’s a raid I’m leading and will need to explain.

Really, it’s that last part that helps a lot. There are so many boss abilities and quirks that it’s easy to get overwhelmed–until you remember that a lot of them won’t be aimed at you, but at someone else, and they won’t all be happening at once. You can usually break a fight down into a few simple things to remember.

@Skammer

Burning Dog Legion classic dungeon run tonight - either LBRS, Statholme or Scholomance. My only familiarity with Strat is the Cavern of Time version, but how different could it be?

Elllllllll oh el. Think CoS Strat. Now, imagine that all of those little one-shot zombies are regular elites. Only there’s more of them. And not just zombies, but gargoyles, Nerubians, banshees, etc. And that’s just the dead side. Lots of patrols that will catch you unaware if you’re not careful. And many more bosses. So, it’s like CoS on really, really bad crack. Which isn’t to say it’s not fun, it’s just really fucking huge and long.

The thing you have to keep in mind is, this used to be end-game five-man content. The Vanilla 60 instances were designed to suck up massive amounts of time, because they were what anybody who wasn’t raiding or PvPing would be doing, and they were what people who *wanted *to raid ran to gear up. Blizz may have been planning the first expansion, but I’m sure there were no guarantees yet–for all they knew, this could have been the end of the game, where people would stay forever, so they put a lot of work into it. (Blackrock Mountain still blows my mind every time I step inside.)

[Skammer]

Thanks for all the dope on Strat - I was being a bit facetious; I figured it would be pretty challenging. I like the idea of only doing half at a time, that’s likely what we’ll do if we end up there tonight.

[Bosstone]

@Shot_From_Guns

(Blackrock Mountain still blows my mind every time I step inside.)

I know. I went through Blackrock Depths and I wept a little. This gigantic, amazing underground city that almost nobody goes into any more (aside from Direbrew and the occasional soloer). There’s just no reason for it now. Ironically, because the ex-endgame stuff is so convoluted and difficult, the midlevel stuff sees a lot more use than it does these days. People run Hellfire Ramparts all the time, but who bothers with Tempest Keep or the Black Temple at-level?

[Ferret_Herder]

@Bosstone

I know. I went through Blackrock Depths and I wept a little. This gigantic, amazing underground city that almost nobody goes into any more (aside from Direbrew and the occasional soloer). There’s just no reason for it now. Ironically, because the ex-endgame stuff is so convoluted and difficult, the midlevel stuff sees a lot more use than it does these days. People run Hellfire Ramparts all the time, but who bothers with Tempest Keep or the Black Temple? (I know there are people who do, but they’ve got to be so very few.)

Yeah, I hit BRD the other night on my lvl 80 mage, to pick up the Fiery enchant, and was disappointed to think about how many dungeons have been deserted. My husband often wistfully suggests that a run of certain dungeons ought to be nearly required to “unlock” higher levels/other dungeons.

The last time we hit CoS, I got nostalgic and said I wished there were scaled-up versions of the old-school dungeons. I’m sure it’d be hell to balance, but I kind of liked the old places sometimes.

[Bosstone]

@Ferret_Herder

The last time we hit CoS, I got nostalgic and said I wished there were scaled-up versions of the old-school dungeons. I’m sure it’d be hell to balance, but I kind of liked the old places sometimes.

Well, with the new Dungeon Finder, the old dungeons are seeing a lot more play. I continue to be stunned that I haven’t had any trouble finding a group for classic dungeons at all. I never saw the inside of most of them without an 80, so it’s been a real treat to go through at-level.

And, of course, Cataclysm promises heroic Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep.

[Tom_Scud]

@Bosstone

And, of course, Cataclysm promises heroic Deadmines and Shadowfang Keep.

Looking forward to heroic SFK. Deadmines I just found annoying when I ran it at-level, but of course everyone was kind of bored with it and I was trying to deal with it as a noob.

[Bosstone]

@Tom_Scud

Looking forward to heroic SFK. Deadmines I just found annoying when I ran it at-level, but of course everyone was kind of bored with it and I was trying to deal with it as a noob.

I love Deadmines, but I’ve never run it at-level. There’s always been someone at least level 30 or higher tagging along. The mines section all the way up until you enter the dock is pretty tedious, but the entire dock section, from Smite yelling his tauren ass off to the sheer size of the cavern to fighting your way up the boat is just awesome.

[Yeticus_Rex]

@Skammer

Burning Dog Legion classic dungeon run tonight - either LBRS, Statholme or Scholomance. My only familiarity with Strat is the Cavern of Time version, but how different could it be?

For those of you familiar with these instances - how are they in terms of length? Can we do them at level in less than two hours?

IF I just happen to be on, I wouldn’t mind punching my way through Strathome or LBRS since I need those achievements, but only IF I find my way on early enough tonight and IF you had an open spot for me…or I could shorten the run dramatically if totally geared up.

I think I can finally retire my Titansteel Destroyer since a party member (from H TotC) gave me the Marrowstrike that he won on a need roll. Really cool of him. Although I’m losing 125 strength switching to this, the +34 DPS, the 3% boost in crit and the socket (which I gemmed for +20 strength) helped in the overall boost in stats…but I’m still hanging on to the Titansteel just in case until I am thoroughly convinced.

SFG, the bag DID not drop…or I totally brainfarted and forgot…but I’m pretty sure there was just a frozen orb and two epic items (weapon and armor) that accompanied it…and it was a random…(scratching head)

[Mister_Rik]

Sigh. I’m 527 rep away from Exalted with the Argent Crusade and thus [The Argent Champion] achievement as well as whatever achievement it is you get for being Exalted with the Argent Crusade and all 5 faction capitals (I already have the Ambassador title, so I just need the Argent Crusade rep. That will get me the “Crusader” title and open up the Silver Covenant dailies, right?) Anyway, gonna have to wait til tomorrow, I guess.

Anyway, just made Exalted Champion of Gnomeregan yesterday, to go with SW and IF, and started working on Darnassus today.

Cracked the 10,000 gold barrier today and decided to splurge on the helm I’ve been coveting for a while now: Iron Riveted War Helm. Found it for the low low price of just 2,500g And huzzah, it’s my first piece of gear with an iLvl higher than 200. I need some socketing advice, however. The best prismatic gem I see on the AH is the Nightmare Tear (+10 All Stats). I have a yellow +20 Hit Rating gem in my belt buckle, but aside from that I don’t have any other gear with sockets, so I’m obviously going to be a bit limited in what I can put in the helm’s Meta socket. Should I go with another +20 Hit Rating gem, like the Rigid King’s Amber? Or should I gem for Strength? (This is for my 80 ret pally, of course.) I have access to the Arcanum of Torment from Ebon Blade rep, so my helm enchant is taken care of. My Hit Rating is currently 221, and I don’t know offhand what the cap is for an 80 ret pally.

[Yeticus_Rex]

@Mister_Rik

My Hit Rating is currently 221, and I don’t know offhand what the cap is for an 80 ret pally.

263…Now everywhere I turn, all the ugrading gear I’m looking at has +hit to it and I’m sitting at 352! (Down from 380+ something) Where the hell is the +expertise stuff…where the hell are they hiding it?

[Yeticus_Rex]

@Yeticus_Rex

SFG, the bag DID not drop…or I totally brainfarted and forgot…but I’m pretty sure there was just a frozen orb and two epic items (weapon and armor) that accompanied it…and it was a random…(scratching head)

Let me add that I already had Papa’s New Bag from H FoS, not to be confused with Papa’s BRAND New Bag. I wonder if having this on me disqualifies me from the H Occ Bag? Or worse yet, did I SELL it without realizing that I had it? :eek:

[Shot_From_Guns]

@Yeticus_Rex

SFG, the bag DID not drop…or I totally brainfarted and forgot…but I’m pretty sure there was just a frozen orb and two epic items (weapon and armor) that accompanied it…and it was a random…(scratching head)

1.) Did you manually loot the chest yourself, or just click the various roll buttons from the items that popped up? I’m gonna assume it won’t auto-loot.
2.) Was it regular or Heroic? Pretty sure you said Heroic, but…
3.) That sucks

@Mister_Rik

I need some socketing advice, however. The best prismatic gem I see on the AH is the Nightmare Tear (+10 All Stats). I have a yellow +20 Hit Rating gem in my belt buckle, but aside from that I don’t have any other gear with sockets, so I’m obviously going to be a bit limited in what I can put in the helm’s Meta socket. Should I go with another +20 Hit Rating gem, like the Rigid King’s Amber? Or should I gem for Strength? (This is for my 80 ret pally, of course.) I have access to the Arcanum of Torment from Ebon Blade rep, so my helm enchant is taken care of. My Hit Rating is currently 221, and I don’t know offhand what the cap is for an 80 ret pally.

Meta sockets *only *take Meta gems. Looking through the list of Northrend metas, you’re probably going to want a Relentless Earthsiege Diamond (+21 Agi, +3% Crit Damage), which requires one gem each of Red, Yellow, and Blue, which would be filled by putting a Prismatic gem in the helm’s other slot. (The other nice thing about putting the Pris gem in the helm is that you can do whatever the hell you want with your other gear and not worry about screwing yourself out of the meta activation.)

For any other sockets you get along the way, gem +Hit until you reach the cap (8% for a single melee weapon, including any talents that increase your ability to hit, which I can’t remember if Ret Pallies get). +Hit is the single biggest per-point increase in DPS for any damage class/spec, up until the cap.

[Bosstone]

@Yeticus_Rex

Let me add that I already had Papa’s New Bag from H FoS, not to be confused with Papa’s BRAND New Bag. I wonder if having this on me disqualifies me from the H Occ Bag? Or worse yet, did I SELL it without realizing that I had it? :eek:

No, it doesn’t. You just might have run Oc before the changes were put in place.

Papa’s New Bag is just a standard bag. The bag you get for Oc is more like a Bag of Fishing Treasures or a Spice Bag from the fishing and cooking dailies; it’s just a handy way to give you a collection of random items as a standard reward.

Edited to add Yeti’s quote for context. Guns, you sneaky person.

[Shot_From_Guns]

@Yeticus_Rex

Let me add that I already had Papa’s New Bag from H FoS, not to be confused with Papa’s BRAND New Bag. I wonder if having this on me disqualifies me from the H Occ Bag? Or worse yet, did I SELL it without realizing that I had it? :eek:

I think there’s some confusion here. The end loot chests drops a bag, not a container that you can equip, but a holding unit for extra loot that disappears once you recieve the goodies inside. Like when you do your Champion-level dailies at the Argent Tournament, and you choose the loot bag instead of the rep scroll–once you open the bag for your 10g and maybe a Seal, the bag is gone.

Edited to respond to Boss: I’m like a ninja. But not one fast enough to beat you to Yeti’s question, apparently.

[Skammer]

@Yeticus_Rex

Let me add that I already had Papa’s New Bag from H FoS, not to be confused with Papa’s BRAND New Bag. I wonder if having this on me disqualifies me from the H Occ Bag.

Isn’t the New Bag the same size (20 slots) as Frostweave bags? Are there folks running the new dungeons who don’t already have a full complement of Frostweave bags? I guess so, but it seems weird to me. Maybe because I’m a tailor, so even my low-level alts have a full complement of Frostweave bags. I passed on the New Bag when it dropped in my group.

Now the Brand New Bag – that I could see, since the Glacial Bags are pretty expensive – I sell those instead of keeping them.

[Tom_Scud]

@Skammer

Isn’t the New Bag the same size (20 slots) as Frostweave bags? Are there folks running the new dungeons who don’t already have a full complement of Frostweave bags? I guess so, but it seems weird to me. Maybe because I’m a tailor, so even my low-level alts have a full complement of Frostweave bags. I passed on the New Bag when it dropped in my group.

Now the Brand New Bag – that I could see, since the Glacial Bags are pretty expensive – I sell those instead of keeping them.

I have a full complement of Frostweaves on my character, yeah, but still have some Deathweaves (free 12-slot bags DKs start with) in my bank slots =).

[Yeticus_Rex]

@Shot_From_Guns

1.) Did you manually loot the chest yourself, or just click the various roll buttons from the items that popped up? I’m gonna assume it won’t auto-loot.
2.) Was it regular or Heroic? Pretty sure you said Heroic, but…
3.) That sucks

1. I was the only player that survived Eregos at the end and I do remember looting the chest.
2. Heroic.
3. Maybe it did auto-loot and I wasn’t paying too much attention…anyways I really don’t remember what happened…and maybe Boss is right…I did this early a.m. on the 5th, just an hour or two before the dreaded Tuesday update.

And now I see that it’s similar to a Fish Treas or Spice Bag…something I didn’t know until now.
After piecing this all together, I am pretty much convinced that it did not drop at all due to the fact that I ran H Occ just before the update.

[Skammer]

@Tom_Scud

I have a full complement of Frostweaves on my character, yeah, but still have some Deathweaves (free 12-slot bags DKs start with) in my bank slots =).

:smack: Forgot about bank slots, I still have some Netherweave bags in there. Not that I really need all that space.

[Bosstone]

@Yeticus_Rex

I did this early a.m. on the 5th, just an hour or two before the dreaded Tuesday update.

Oh, yeah, definitely the changes weren’t in yet, then. The Tuesday updates are when these fixes go through.

[Shot_From_Guns]

@Skammer

Isn’t the New Bag the same size (20 slots) as Frostweave bags?

50-80g or whatever Frostweave Bags are going for on your server is still a lot of money for some people, apparently. When you factor in bank bag slots, too, it adds up. I’m not even sure I have 20-slotters left in my bank slots anymore (I know I remember vendoring Frostweave bags that I was replacing with something bigger, so I might have all Glacials by now), so the bag drop doesn’t do me any good, but I’m sure it’s made some fresh 80s happy.

WTB some way to expand my Backpack, BTW. Having a bag that’s limited to 16 slots when the rest of yours are 20-22 slots is a little… ridiculous. Especially when you’re a hybrid who travels with an obscene amount of gear.