New Server

It's been a few weeks on the new server, Vashj.  So far....it's okay.

I was a bit bummed, when my Alliance guild was deciding where to move and the vote seemed to be going for Vashj and I jumped the gun, then it swung to the Malorne server.  Malorne is CST, and I just didn't want to get trapped into that again - raid/group at 4pm PST - sorry not going to work!  I'll miss a number of people from that guild, but not the frustration of trying to play with East Coast players that log out before I'm ever on - missing raids/instances/old content because of time difference was not fun.  Bid them all farewell, good luck and exchange of text info, and off to make my way on a new server.

I've put a couple of alts in different guilds, but haven't found the 'fit' yet.  I'm not a guild hopper, and don't really mind being guildless as no guild is better than the mindless chatter/drama filled ones.

I keep thinking I should be lonely, but after the past year or so of both Alliance and Horde guilds restructures, dramas, people coming and going - I'm actually enjoying the solitude, leveling alts that have been sitting around for awhile instead of the pressure to be on or go do/run something I'm really not in the mood for - so all in all I've had a relaxing time.  These are all characters that I have wanted to try the different professions on as well as 'eventually' get a couple to end game before Cataclysm.  So that is what I'm doing!

Two hunters - a dwarf and draenei 35/36 (I know but I love this class its an addictive sickness!), the druid 46 (my only male character), the gnome warlock 37 (my original WoW Alliance character!) are working on their professions (enchanting, engineering, alchemy, tailoring and the assorted gathering professions).  Next on the list is the shaman sitting at 28, and the pally at 23 for jewelry and blacksmith professions. 

Ziboo (gnome rogue bank alt), has been freed from duty and is leveling slowly too.  Level 12 right now, I'm finding rogues are fun to play - lol! 

Therefore, the plan for the next couple months, is to continue leveling with a mix of questing, grouping and bgs (okay lots of bgs), while having the death knight run higher instances for mats to level up their skills if needed.


The dungeon finder is a godsend - thank you Blizzard - as LFG is no longer the PiA it use to be!  I've been in more level appropriate dungeons in the past month than in the previous two years!  Love it!


 A slight digression, but I have to say with WoW, I haven't found a class that I don't like to play - well maybe Warriors.  Not that I dislike them, just seem to have no talent that direction.

Twice I've made it to level 20 and deleted the character!  Getting, maintaining rage - yikes!

I may try again I have a gnome warrior at level 5 that may one day....

This in truth is followed by Mage's.  I don't know why but I can't get into playing a Mage.  My original WoW character is a Mage.  2 1/2 years later she's 23.  I just can't/don't play her.  So, if I get the rest moved along I may try to level a Mage and a Warrior - just to see if I can!!!


So, thoroughly loving my Alliance group - even on a Horde heavy server - where winning Wintersgrasp is usually an activity after 2 a.m., and world PvP is abundant.  I'm enjoying Vashj.  It's a medium population server, trade is trade, the people have been mostly friendly, so all in all a nice place for the gang to hangout while I level along.

(Feels like a scene from 300 in most WG's - outnumbered in a sea of red)

Now that I've said all that, a blogging community guild has been started - Single Abstract Noun on both US (alliance) Argent Dawn server  and EU (horde) Argent Dawn server, so I've been highly tempted to roll yet another character there.  Time for that Mage, Warrior or Rogue to level ...hmmm, or Hunter #1,155... rofl!

Hello Dalaran - Horde side!

Sassi dinged 74, and received the invite quest to head to Dalaran. (I know I'm weird, but no early ports - they have to earn in the hard way!)

So, off she went.

I was very intrigued to see the 'Horde' digs, as the Alliance side are a but austere and boring. Well the Horde's seem much larger and grander - even the bone strewn main hall with the African themed music.

The inn keeper even titled 'The Beast' was very Horde! I don't think I'd try to get past her - since when did Orc's come in Super-size?

Sas, took the tour picking up her first cooking and fishing daily (both in Dalaran ftw!) - Infused Mushroom Meatloaf and Jewel of the Sewers, so knocked those out quickly. Earning a couple more Achievements with Jewel being her 1000th quest completed. Considering she's NOT exalted with any races there are a whole bunch of quests to still do!

Off to Silvermoon for training her new skills, and a few Battlegrounds before heading back to Warsong Hold in preparation for the next leveling session.

I'm not sure if I mentioned this in a past post or not, but I'm following Jame's Horde Leveling Guide over at Wow-pro.com. I've used parts of his leveling guides before and one day I'm going to role a new character on a new server and follow the whole thing completely through. Jame does a great job of combining quest circuits to maximize xp and minimize travel back and forth.

Check it out, lots of useful guides for leveling and instances.

Horde cast of characters

Life has been a bit busy but squeezing in some WoW time, but not blogging time!

State of the cast of characters -  I haven't been on my Alliance at all, so they're all gaining rested xp (and I'm losing the accelerated gain from the RaF program).  I have been back on BWL (Black Wing Lair) after an extended absence.  I couldn't figure out why (or forgot), I stopped playing on BWL, but this week reminded me - the lag!  

For some reason I have the worst lag spikes on that server.  But I have missed the guys I've played with on and off the past year or so (they're all level 80 now and consumate raiders) while I'm still dinking around with the level 40-70 toons as I'm not committed to one character (toon ADD?).   They're hilariously funny in vent though and I thoroughly enjoy listening to them.   I've always appreciated that they work hard at raiding and other aspects of this game, but all with a sense of humor and in a non-stressful way.  They're all very versed in WoW lore and game play so I always am learning!

On to what's been up!

Sassi - Shadow Priest

 I dusted Sassi off, after almost 10 months of not playing (I'd get her out fly around SC and log out) and had to face the realization that I haven't a clue how to now!  Not that I was ever that good as I've had a huge learning curve on the roll of a SP other than a mana battery pre Wrath.   

So, I found her still in her PvP set that I worked so very hard to get (call it welfare epics all you want - that was hundreds of BGs to earn them - maxing 75K honor more than twice - so not a freebie set!) 

I've, spec'd her what I think will work (shadow/disc) and realize she still needs glyphs, new macros, lots of practice and the player (me!) to remember her spell rotation!  I'm going to level her to 80, some what unwillingly, but I will - I say that but it could be 2010 before I do as much as I'm not wanting to.  I'll dread giving up her matched set to wear better gear that will make her look clownish - thank goodness for shadowform!

Right now she's in Desolace to level fishing as I thought her cooking skill was higher but it's not, so she cant' cook for herself or the DK's.  Fishing and cooking is in order while the DKs level.

I am working on her achievements too - very slowly.  I'm really thinking to see how she plays with one of the DK's - I'm not sure how I'd set up the keybindings, but it could be fine - or a total wipe - lol!

Sithi, Hunter

The last one I'm working on on BWL is Sithi (another hunter).  She's at level 40 right now and when I logged on one of my friends found me in Orgrimmar.  I asked how he found me so quickly and he said because of the funny clothes my characters are always wearing! Hey I don't design this stuff and it looks hysterical on blood elves!

Death Knights - Biya and Greaf

This past week I decide to work on the Death Knights as they've been sitting at 58/59 since creation other than running a couple of the lower levels through instances to get them geared up. I've been working on them this week and they're at 62/63 - I'm not a fast leveler as I tend to stop for so many things on the way and I read quests - even the ones I've done a few times before.  (I truly appreciate the effort the designers/developers/writers have put into the details!)

The ladies took the flight to Swamp of Sorrows, rode down and through the portal to Outlands (I always go the old fashioned way - silly but I do!),  flew to Thrallmar, then rode (yea for those fast mounts) to Falcon Watch to Swamprat and finally to Shattrath City to set their hearthstone with the Scryers.  I know Aldor is easier but Horde I do Scyer.

They had the Khadgar tour of Shattrath.  I think this is a bit fun - you feel so noobish on this tour.  It's so out of date now, but I get a kick out of it anyway.

Death Knights really feel OP even post patch, as I've only died to either an epic boss or to a lag spike (very irritating) or by going in the wrong BG - that was really stupid!  I forgot they'd dinged over to the next tier and they were getting slaughtered!  Painful slog that one.

Biya did get her achievment for 100 quests - surprising as I didn't think she'd done that many.  

They've almost completed Hellfire, so on to Zangermarsh.  I think we have three-four things left in Hellfire - all the hard quests.  I'm going to try and see if they can two man Cruel's Intention as I've always found that the hardest quest in Hellfire.  If they cant' and getting a group won't work it will save for level 70!

The biggest problem I'm facing with the DK's is earning enough $$ before 70 for flying mounts!  I've always made money easily in WoW, but haven't been trying on this server so, need to knuckle down and get some cash flowing again!!  

BTW - I don't just play blood elves - I have a legion of orcs, taurens, and undead too.  The only thing I'm missing is trolls.  Love the racials but that's about it for me!!!

89% to Level 70

Yes I'm at 89% to level 70 - use to be an achievement dinging 70, but now its just another level on the road to endgame . . . or so I'm told! I've been slowly leveling as there have been other things to do.

• Farming low level leather for alts gear (SFK for leather and greens works well)
• Running instances for the enchanter to have stuff to d/e (Why am I leveling an Enchanter I keep asking myself!!!)
• Exploration - Eastern Kingdom almost done (STV left)
• Farming mats for a few leather upgrades for Sithi (knothide/clefthide . . . argh)
• Battlegrounds - they're definitely more fun when you're in the '9th level of a bracket! Even with the overabundance of Death Knights - which have really imbalanced BGs - I'm grinding AB/WG! Yes I said grinding (I normally enjoy BG's, but lately . . . argh), as I want the last two mounts for yet another achievement! I need 45 more AB marks and 24 more WG ones for those two. I repeat albino drake, albino drake while I play/die/play/die! Sitting at 35 mounts right now, with the flying ones to come!

I also had a lucrative pet selling business, until last week, with Kreliss, my horde shopper/bank as he went to toon heaven.  Having Krel buy and put on the neutral AH, buy and resell on the Alliance side started not to make money but to get the darn pets for the Pet Achievement (43 companions and counting!), but when I found out how much I could make and how easy . . . well its turned into a nice money-maker this past month on a second account! 

It also has been nice to access both sides AH - Darrowmere the low pop server I transferred to - is NOT Wildhammer by any means! But that's another long QQ post!  Between WoW's laggy performance and my fitful DSL line, there have been many #$%#$% moments!!!

Krel's other parting gift to my Alliance hunters - I ran all three over to tame Echaykee as I do think it's a pretty kitty and as it's a Horde only quest line to summon him, I tamed him on ALL three just in case!!!!

So here I sit at 89% to level 70.  I've been collecting gear and enchants for the day I ding.  Money's in the bank for flying skills and mounts.  But I want to finish the Explorer portion of Azeroth before dinging - flying will make Outlands easy to finish.

Then the decision - do all the Outlands quests or off to Northrend and save Outlands for later . . . decisions, decisions.

Back in WoW

Back to WoW! I've been having a ball the past few weeks - doing the not obvious. I've been busy on a PvE realm - now that is a wow of much easier. It's refreshing to NOt be looking over your shoulder all the time. The weird part though is questing next to the opposition . . . they can't kill me and I can't kill them without someone flagging. Just isn't normal - lol!!!

Other changes, I moved my alliance gang from Wildhammer/Shadowmoon to Scilla. Server lag, disconnects and (for me a new experience) instances being to busy - that was enough. Bliz offered free transfers to two low populations servers so I checked them out and though why not! I hadn't found a guild on Wildhammer that I truly clicked with and had primarily been slowly leveling my Sithi, (hunter) Keggard (hunter) and Greaf, (death knight). Keg I've been toying with twinking - what a job that is, but I've been collecting the gold and gear just in case. Sithi is 45% to level 70 and her flying mount! She's also 3000 rep points from Exalted with the Gnomes (what a grind that is!) to get her Ambassador title and buy those darn mechanostriders. (She wants an albino drake!)