Post/Author/DateTime	Post
LGMoses 01-16-07, 02:02 PM	I've noticed WoW mentioned a lot around here. Sometimes positive, more often negative. I just wanted to hear some opinions and feedback of the game. I personally don't have the patience to do all that dam walking and I think the quests are stupid and contrived, but ur going to see that everywhere. Also, how does WoW interact with dnd. I know if I've been playing Magic all week and a bad guy does something to me I'll sometimes say, "o yeah, in response I counterspell his spell" or something similar. What is the impact of WoW on Dnd. Does it steal possible players? etc. Nething you want to say about/concerning WoW say it here.
Britt 01-16-07, 02:50 PM	I used to play WoW a lot but got bored by it, as I have with every MMO (I'm a big MMO fan :)). I don't have time to play right now, and I'm waiting a bit to see if I want to play BC, but I doubt I'll get back into it. I tried playing the beta some and just didn't get that into it. Unfortunately, WoW is the least bad MMO out there. I think they have a horrible design philosophy, but there's nothing else out there that's as good, barring Second Life ;) Maybe Vanguard or some other upcoming MMO will be what I've been looking for, but I doubt it. I had high hopes for Tabula Rasa, with Richard Garriot and Starr Long working on it, but that's morphed into something I won't likely enjoy. As for competition, it definitely steals players from D&D and LG in particular. When WoW came out, we had many veteran players leave LG to play that. Some of the reasons they cited I've kept in mind to try to fix things in LG now that I'm in a position to do so. I see some of them coming back slowly over the past six to twelve months, probably due to burnout on WoW, but not everyone. Unfortunately, WoW just appeals to different aspects of gaming than LG, and some people are going to like that more. I could go on and on about topics like this, but I should get back to the paper I have to write today :)
Alpha_Nerd 01-16-07, 02:51 PM	Can't comment. Too busy playing WoW.
Morgen 01-16-07, 04:32 PM	Ummm, it's a game. I'm sure most of us would rather play Dungeons and Dragons rather then any game on a console or a PC. It's a good game of course, one of the best MMO games out there.
clannagh 01-16-07, 05:17 PM	the closest i ever got to D&D in an online game environment was the NWN Richterm Retreat world.
LachlarlanIII 01-16-07, 05:22 PM	WoW is probably the best MMO of all time. I have an active account, but probably haven't played in about 3 weeks. I've been busy with other games (NWN2).
CrystalBlue 01-16-07, 05:26 PM	WoW sucks. There, I said it. It flat-out sucks. Due to too many reasons to count and explain. However, for the benefit of everyone here, I shall outline a few of the top reasons why WoW is a parasite that must be burned from this earth in a wash of hellfire and apocolyptic hampsters. 1.) The Horde. Is there anything good to say about the horde? They're broken, shamans are broken, and their races have no negetives to speak of. They also get the coolest transport. A zeplin. That's so unfair on so many levels. And for those of you playing the horde...stop. Trust me, the light in your souls WILL return...and it'll be a much warmer and fuzzier feeling then the tingle you get when you cheese 3 60 level allience players. 2.) Depth. It has none. No intricate story, no reason for the quests, and not very good locations with history or culture. And I've been to most, if not all, of the instances that are around level 46. It's all bland and the same. And the monsters are all the same as well. More creativity and story line needs to be injected into this game. I mean, Warcraft 3 had a great story. That's what I was hoping for. Instead, I get this crap. 3.) Leveling. It's impossible for some classes and way too easy for others. Try playing a healing cleric. Go on, try it. It won't work. Holy clerics get hosed because, before level 50, no one wants you. You're not powerful enough. If you were shadow-speced, then maybe you might help out. But no...straight healing is just super dumb...however...50+ is all holy. And if you're NOT holy spec, then you can go do something else. Cause raids and guilds don't want you. Speaking of raids and guilds... 4.) Raids. Unless you're an elite, upper-crust person...or just a whiny 13 year old hacker, then you're not going to get into a guild. And you know what? No raid for you. That's right. You don't get to raid. At least, not what you want to. Don't expect to get invitations to raids till level 59. And then, don't expect to get them unless you're the perfect spec they're looking for. And guilds are the same too. Guilds are uppity, high class people that don't give a crap about you or your enjoyment. All they want is another pawn to do their job to get THEM (read the officers) a high level item...and then shut you down. There... *rant over* ...I think my work here is done. On an unrelated note, Britt's on Second Life! I must find him now and surprise pounce/tackle him for cuteness points. ^.^;; *giggles and scampers off*
Britt 01-16-07, 05:47 PM	For the record, I want this VERY clear, I am NOT on SL! That was a joke above! :) I think WoW has a lot of problems and there are other games that have done individual aspects of MMOs better than WoW has. That said, I think WoW is, overall, the best or one of the best MMOs ever made. My main complaints against WoW revolve around the basic structure of the game and the design/marketing philosophy of Blizzard. For the first, I don't like levelling systems in MMOs. For the second, Blizzard is following a design philosophy that uses increased grinding to require players to spend more time in the game. I think this is a horrible idea. BC is helping things somewhat by reducing raid sizes and adding content, but it's also adding even more grinding aspects, such as for the heroic instances. Grinding is the worst aspect of WoW, not the best, and Blizzard is trying to emphasize it! I think UO about 6 months to a year before the Trammel split is one of the other main contenders for best MMO ever.
_m_ 01-16-07, 07:01 PM	if you like d&d, liked wow (i no longer play), and wish wow was more d&d like: try vanguard. best mmo yet imo. comes out jan 30th (im in beta, hence th knowing alrady how good it is)
LGMoses 01-16-07, 11:41 PM	WoW sucks. There, I said it. It flat-out sucks. Due to too many reasons to count and explain. However, for the benefit of everyone here, I shall outline a few of the top reasons why WoW is a parasite that must be burned from this earth in a wash of hellfire and apocolyptic hampsters. As much as I agree with you I can't help but think of how much your words remind me of that one crazy guy off the recent "Satanism in D&D" thread. The one who made that page it linked to.
_metz_ 01-16-07, 11:44 PM	WoW is a computer game, therefore despite a lot of attempts to create the equivalent f unlimited imaginination and a peice of paper at a drop of hat, its hard, cos its got to be coded, etc etc. BUt ts still looks like a fun game, tho I have never played it, and IF you are one of the players who is after hard mods, wants to be killed, and know exactly what their character can do, bypassing the oft point of roleplaying, than try it out. Its a different game, and it caters for differeing tastes. Personally not mine, but I know a lot of people who enjoy it.
Britt 01-16-07, 11:48 PM	try vanguard. best mmo yet imo. comes out jan 30th (im in beta, hence th knowing alrady how good it is) From what I've read, the specs are too high for most game systems and the performance is still problematic even with a good gaming rig. I would consider trying it if that weren't a concern for me.
_m_ 01-17-07, 12:07 AM	From what I've read, the specs are too high for most game systems and the performance is still problematic even with a good gaming rig. I would consider trying it if that weren't a concern for me. well, i just spent 5k on my new set up, so im not worried about the specs :D Thermaltake Kandalf Silver $339 Thermaltake 750W Toughpower Modular @ $229 XFX GeForce 8800 GTX 768MB DDR3 $1025 Intel Core2 Duo E6400 $379.50 ASUS Striker Extreme 680i SLI $579 Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400 Pro (2x1GB) 4-4-4-12 $539 Zalman CNPS9700 NT $95 Pioneer DVR 111DSV Internal DVD/CD Writer Silver $69 x2 Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200rpm SATA II $155 x2 Saitek Eclipse II Gaming Keyboard $109 Logitech MX Revolution $139 Dual Cold Cathode Kit - UV $25 Round IDE Cable, 60cm, UV Green $11 Serial ATA Cable, UV Blue 90cm $6.50 x2 thats what it looks like for those who care.
clannagh 01-17-07, 12:18 AM	well, i just spent 5k on my new set up, so im not worried about the specs :D Thermaltake Kandalf Silver $339 Thermaltake 750W Toughpower Modular @ $229 XFX GeForce 8800 GTX 768MB DDR3 $1025 Intel Core2 Duo E6400 $379.50 ASUS Striker Extreme 680i SLI $579 Corsair TWIN2X2048-6400 Pro (2x1GB) 4-4-4-12 $539 Zalman CNPS9700 NT $95 Pioneer DVR 111DSV Internal DVD/CD Writer Silver $69 x2 Seagate Barracuda 320GB 7200rpm SATA II $155 x2 Saitek Eclipse II Gaming Keyboard $109 Logitech MX Revolution $139 Dual Cold Cathode Kit - UV $25 Round IDE Cable, 60cm, UV Green $11 Serial ATA Cable, UV Blue 90cm $6.50 x2 thats what it looks like for those who care. i told you !!! PINK for the IDE cables .. PINK whats with this green crap ... geez
Britt 01-17-07, 12:19 AM	Please tell me that's 5k AUD. Though even in AUD, I'm not willing to spend half that on a system. 1k for a GPU? That's insane!
clannagh 01-17-07, 12:41 AM	Please tell me that's 5k AUD. Though even in AUD, I'm not willing to spend half that on a system. 1k for a GPU? That's insane! not for an 8800 they are ludicrously better than anything else around at the moment and people spend heaps more than $k5 a year maintaining motocross bikes or joining an exclusive golf club or ski-ing and lets not even talk about yachts :) PC gaming is a cheap hobby relatively speaking !!
_m_ 01-17-07, 12:48 AM	Please tell me that's 5k AUD. Though even in AUD, I'm not willing to spend half that on a system. 1k for a GPU? That's insane! actually, that pile there is 4k aud. the monitor's another thousand.
CdrcJsn 01-17-07, 03:28 AM	WoW sucks. There, I said it. It flat-out sucks. Due to too many reasons to count and explain. However, for the benefit of everyone here, I shall outline a few of the top reasons why WoW is a parasite that must be burned from this earth in a wash of hellfire and apocolyptic hampsters. Funny how every single thing you've just listed has been addressed in the expansion... Well, except for the holy priest levelling thing. But then again, it's extremely easy to level as a shadow priest and respec when you get to max level...that is if you want to. Shadowpriests now have a place in a raid. Looks like Blizzard is actually listening to people's complaints. As for how WoW interacts with LG, I also saw many people drop out of the LG scene and play WoW, myself included. WoW is just too convenient. Feel like playing a game? Just log on. No need to set up a game with 4-6 other people and wait a few days. I've cut down on playing WoW though and playing more LG again. I still enjoy WoW, but don't feel the need to raid 3 times a week anymore.
Britt 01-17-07, 04:38 AM	not for an 8800 they are ludicrously better than anything else around at the moment and people spend heaps more than $k5 a year maintaining motocross bikes or joining an exclusive golf club or ski-ing and lets not even talk about yachts :) PC gaming is a cheap hobby relatively speaking !! I know it /can/ be expensive (I was a computer consultant for several years), but that doesn't mean I have to be willing to spend that much money to game :) I've never spent more than 2k USD to build a machine, and I probably wouldn't spend more than 1,500 USD to build one now, sans monitor. And no matter how good the 8800 is, it's not worth 1k when it's going to be the average in one year.
Britt 01-17-07, 04:43 AM	Funny how every single thing you've just listed has been addressed in the expansion... IMO, they've only addressed the fourth point, raiding, and that was probably more to address lag and server load than to really deal with the complaint listed. Shaman are still broken (a tiny bit less so, but still broken), blood elf racials are insane (though Dranei are crazy, too), and the other races are all the same. Although, personally, I never thought the horde were broken at all, other than shaman. It's still vastly different levelling as some classes opposed to others. The story is actually worse off than it was before, as they tried to shoehorn in the BE and Dranei stories. I actually liked some of the existing stories. There's a lot of depth there, unfortunately, a lot of it you have to learn out of game. If they were to put all the background actually in the game (they do it sometimes, but not enough), it would really help hook some people.
CrystalBlue 01-17-07, 07:24 AM	I just don't feel like becoming a dark and brooding priest, then all of a sudden change to a shining scion of light and hope. It really makes no sense to me. That said, I don't know if I'd even want to pick up the expansion. I mean, even if I did pick it up and try to play it, you have to realise that unless you're in a guild...good luck leveling. Priests, even shadow, burn through mana so damn quickly that you'll be out after 2-3 battles. That's assuming you survive. And don't give me this crap about the increased mana regen after killing something. I've seen that already. It doesn't do you jack. You MIGHT get back enough for one casting of Mind Blast...and that's it. You want a blaster? Play a mage. They'll blast the hell out of a large elite mob 3 levels higher then them, and won't even break half their mana in doing it. Mage's are another really broken class. And people used to tell me that Shadow Priests were scarier then any of the casting classes because of Psychic Shout + Shadow Weave + Mind Blast. No. Just no. Most everything can resist my Psychic Shout now and Mind Blast needs to be cast 5 times to make Shadow Weave work effectively. I might get one or two castings off, but then I'm down, cause the fighter Charged me and did massive damage, plus they stunned me. All melee types own priests. And mages just blast the hell out of them. No amount of shadow damage is gonna stop them. Plus, things like warlocks get to bug the hell out of me with their pets while I get DOTed after DOTed. And I'm not gonna even talk about hunters and shamans...cause they just do everything about me better...and they don't go down See, I would play WoW, if it was fair. But it's not. Healing is crap in that game, priests aren't what they should be, power balancing is on the Horde side all the time, and no one wants to help anyone. Everyone that's 'in the know' already has level 60 characters that can do everything. They don't have the time to sit down with a 'noob' like me and help me along. Unless I'm a personal friend or in a guild. And that's another thing! There's no friendly guilds in WoW! *continues to rant, cause no one wants to hear him anyways*
ranagrande 01-17-07, 10:02 AM	As I'm someone who plays and enjoys both WoW and LG, I thought I would chime in here. I think overall I prefer playing LG, but games are few and far between here, usually require a bit of travel, and often don't fit my schedule anyway. WoW is much more convenient. Now I'll post a long, rambling list addressing various points brought up by other people (mostly CrystalBlue :P ). Of the three MMORPGs that I have played, World of Warcraft is undoubtedly the best. Star Wars Galaxies was a good game until the "New Game Enhancement" removed everything that made it fun and unique. City of Heroes/Villains is also a great game, and the total lack of equipment results in players that are generally friendly and more helpful, but the game lacks depth and long loading screens and a pesky memory leak often make it unplayable. WoW has problems of its own, of course, but it's the best available. Yes, the Horde have better racials and are generally overpowered when compared to the Alliance. Believe it or not, this is balanced by their appearance. The majority of WoW players are rather shallow, and only want to play the "pretty" races. This is why, despite the faction imbalance, Allies outnumber Horde characters by almost two to one. This is also one of the main reasons that Blood Elves were added to the Horde. I've actually been quite pleased with the story. Once I started really reading quest descriptions, and the various books and things that are scattered around, I discovered that there is a whole wealth of information there. I haven't read any of the novels or anything, so the only background I had on the story came from playing the original Warcraft games. Some things do seem a bit disconnected at times, but to be fair, I've found that in LG too. I think it's a rather common problem in open-ended RPGs. Leveling up a holy priest solo is annoying, (although I think a protection warrior is worse), but it can be done. It just requires a lot of patience and a good wand. If you want to level up a holy priest, you're much better off doing it in a group. Fortunately, priests can always find groups because healing is the single most demanded ability in the game. The threat system takes a while to get used to, as it is a bit counterintuitive that things attack you as soon as you heal someone who is attacking them. Being a healer can be incredibly frustrating, but it can also be fun. On raiding, I pretty much agree. The grinding can be tedious, it requires a significant time commitment, and it generally requires membership in an exclusive raiding guild. I don't think raiding is a problem though. Some people really like it. I don't, so I don't raid. Yes, that means that my characters don't necessarily have all the best gear, but I don't really care. That's not why I play the game. Unfortunately, friendly and helpful people do seem to be the exception in WoW, rather than the rule. I think that this is encouraged by the highly competitive nature of the game. However, there are still nice people there, and finding some can make it much more enjoyable. Playing on an RP server can help. I went to a party on an RP server once. For four hours, well over a hundred characters were hanging out in the middle of nowhere in a low-level area so it could be accessible to all. There was a lot of socializing. A guild performed a play that they had written. There was a grand fireworks display at the end. Prizes were given to everyone who attended. Best of all, it was fun!
CrystalBlue 01-17-07, 10:41 AM	*NEW CHALLANGER HAS ARRIVED* Yes, the Horde have better racials and are generally overpowered when compared to the Alliance. Believe it or not, this is balanced by their appearance. The majority of WoW players are rather shallow, and only want to play the "pretty" races. This is why, despite the faction imbalance, Allies outnumber Horde characters by almost two to one. This is also one of the main reasons that Blood Elves were added to the Horde. I don't know what stat's you're looking at...but there are MANY more horde then allience, at least on my server. And even if we outnumber them, they still outclass us every time. It's almost like all the classes in the game were esspecially designed to niche well with all the races in the Horde. And you know why the developers did this? It's cause the Blizzard staff ALL PLAY HORDE! They're playing favorites. I've actually been quite pleased with the story. Once I started really reading quest descriptions, and the various books and things that are scattered around, I discovered that there is a whole wealth of information there. I haven't read any of the novels or anything, so the only background I had on the story came from playing the original Warcraft games. Some things do seem a bit disconnected at times, but to be fair, I've found that in LG too. I think it's a rather common problem in open-ended RPGs. All of the quests that I'm given seem like mundane fetch quests or kill quests. None of them seem to have anything to do with the story. I want to know why Gnomenger had a radioactive leak. I want to hear the history of the Scarlet Monestary. I'd like to see the epic battles on Battlegrounds have some signifigance or impact. But no. If you want story, you have to dig for it. And I don't know if I want to waste even more of my time having to dig for something that I should get automatically. And I understand that Blizzard has been known for the light humor and cartoony look in their games like this...but it's over the top and sometimes makes me feel like this world doesn't even take itself seriously. Ever. Leveling up a holy priest solo is annoying, (although I think a protection warrior is worse), but it can be done. It just requires a lot of patience and a good wand. If you want to level up a holy priest, you're much better off doing it in a group. Fortunately, priests can always find groups because healing is the single most demanded ability in the game. The threat system takes a while to get used to, as it is a bit counterintuitive that things attack you as soon as you heal someone who is attacking them. Being a healer can be incredibly frustrating, but it can also be fun. And this is where I have to, unfortunately, tell you that you're utterly wrong. First off, a Paladin seems to have as much (if not more) healing power then a priest at lower levels. Plus, a Paladin can tank and do damage. A priest is a soft squishy. There are also Druids that I've seen that can push out heals that sometimes overtake mine. They cast quicker, harder, and use less mana for their heal spells. Their heal-over-time spells are better then a priest's too. And, a Druid can back up with a few damage spells. Oh, and let's not forget changing into a back-up tank or a back-up rogue. Another class beats me out yet again. I'd also get into shamans, but everyone agrees that those are broken beyond repair, so let's move on. On raiding, I pretty much agree. The grinding can be tedious, it requires a significant time commitment, and it generally requires membership in an exclusive raiding guild. I don't think raiding is a problem though. Some people really like it. I don't, so I don't raid. Yes, that means that my characters don't necessarily have all the best gear, but I don't really care. That's not why I play the game. And that's fine. But I want to group up. I want to be in a raid. I'm a healer and that's supposed to be my place. But, as I've already listed above, so many classes can beat me out on what I do...that I become worthless. Healers, universally, are put down, disrespected, and never appreciated. That's why druids and paladins do better. Because they can do other things besides healing, they're useful. A holy priest? All he's invested in is healing. That's his strong point. To put him down because of that? That's one of the reasons I quit WoW and am thinking of quitting some LG. Clerics are never, NEVER, EVER appreciated... Unfortunately, friendly and helpful people do seem to be the exception in WoW, rather than the rule. I think that this is encouraged by the highly competitive nature of the game. However, there are still nice people there, and finding some can make it much more enjoyable. Playing on an RP server can help. I went to a party on an RP server once. For four hours, well over a hundred characters were hanging out in the middle of nowhere in a low-level area so it could be accessible to all. There was a lot of socializing. A guild performed a play that they had written. There was a grand fireworks display at the end. Prizes were given to everyone who attended. Best of all, it was fun! And I'm wonderfully happy that you've found a small group of people to play the game with. This is not that norm, as you said, and it's a big put off of the game. No one wants to help you along because they're all doing their own thing and have no time for a new player. Case in point...my priest is level 49. I'm an enchanter and tailor. And because I have to disenchant all the time, I have no gold at all. I think, to my name, I have 4 gold at the moment. My gold total has never exceeded 10. This is because both enchantment and tailoring are expensive trade skills with little to no return. But I still try to ply my trade. Except...if you don't have the very absolute best enchantments, no one wants you to enchant their stuff. Furthermore, even if you sell an enchant, you barely get back the material costs. My profit for my highest enchantment, which is a level 275 enchantment, is 4 silver. I don't have my mount yet because people are greedy bastards...and the same people ask me why I don't have a mount... This...is another big reason why I quit WoW...and why it's not even close to being a good game.
Madfox11 01-17-07, 11:59 AM	There are a few things I dislike about WoW, most importantly the fact that it becomes more fun the more time you invest in it. If you play more, you befriend more people, and it becomes easier to find a group, and it is simply more fun to play that game in a group. I still like it though, and I had some very fun moments. Like Britt I did grow bored with it, and there are just other more important things I need to do as well ;) There is one thing though that always makes me laugh. I know Horde players and I know Alliance players and they are virtually always *****ing about the strength and maturity of the other side and the lack of brains on their own side. You see, power in this game does not only stem from power of the class and the race, but much more importantly from the items, talents and tactical skills of the player as well as the player's knowledge of the game. Personally I always think that these players take the game too seriously ;) For example, you complain about gold, but my first character had more than enough even without ever getting gold from his friends. I realized very early on, that crafting skills are worthless on low levels (engineering and alchemy excepted perhaps). I took mining and skinning, and just sold all that stuff on the auction.
ranagrande 01-17-07, 12:37 PM	*NEW CHALLANGER HAS ARRIVED* And the debate is on! :P I don't know what stat's you're looking at...but there are MANY more horde then allience, at least on my server. And even if we outnumber them, they still outclass us every time. It's almost like all the classes in the game were esspecially designed to niche well with all the races in the Horde. And you know why the developers did this? It's cause the Blizzard staff ALL PLAY HORDE! They're playing favorites. According to the latest census, Horde outnumber Alliance on 24 out of 199 servers. Across all servers, the Alliance to Horde ratio is 1.6:1. Yes, the Horde racial traits are generally better than the Alliance ones, but over time, class abilities and equipment tend to minimize the differences. War stomp is always the best ability in the game. Will of the Forsaken is good, but Fear Ward, which is only available to Dwarf priests, is better. All of the quests that I'm given seem like mundane fetch quests or kill quests. None of them seem to have anything to do with the story. I want to know why Gnomenger had a radioactive leak. I want to hear the history of the Scarlet Monestary. I'd like to see the epic battles on Battlegrounds have some signifigance or impact. But no. If you want story, you have to dig for it. And I don't know if I want to waste even more of my time having to dig for something that I should get automatically. And I understand that Blizzard has been known for the light humor and cartoony look in their games like this...but it's over the top and sometimes makes me feel like this world doesn't even take itself seriously. Ever. Most quests are just the fetching and killing sort, but if you read the descriptions, the story can come through. Sometimes, there are racial restrictions on these. For instance, if you play a Gnome and do all of the Gnome quests, you'll soon learn all about what happened in Gnomeregon. The most insight I've gotten into the background of the Scarlet Monestary came from a quest that was only available to Orcs and Tauren. The comical and cartoony nature of the game is certainly a valid argument, but ultimately it's a matter of opinion. I tend to agree with you, but the silliness can be fun at times. And this is where I have to, unfortunately, tell you that you're utterly wrong. First off, a Paladin seems to have as much (if not more) healing power then a priest at lower levels. Plus, a Paladin can tank and do damage. A priest is a soft squishy. There are also Druids that I've seen that can push out heals that sometimes overtake mine. They cast quicker, harder, and use less mana for their heal spells. Their heal-over-time spells are better then a priest's too. And, a Druid can back up with a few damage spells. Oh, and let's not forget changing into a back-up tank or a back-up rogue. Another class beats me out yet again. I'd also get into shamans, but everyone agrees that those are broken beyond repair, so let's move on. With the right talent specs, all four healing classes can be effective. Overall, however, priests are the best. They are the most versatile in their healing. Paladins and shamans suffer from much smaller mana pools, and they also have more healing problems that arise from talent allocation. Even a priest with no points invested in the holy tree will be a very good healer, but as in your example above, the paladin who wants to tank and do good damage is unlikely to have very strong healing. Druids are, in my opinion, one of the most powerful classes in the game, much as they are in Living Greyhawk. They are also probably the only class that can truly rival a priest in terms of healing ability. However, many people don't like them due to the long cooldown of their resurrection, and when a group is looking for a healer, they will almost always take a priest over a druid. Priests do have a few other tricks that they can use too. They can contribute decent damage just by using a wand. They have a few spells to help with battlefield control. Mana burn can be quite useful too. It can turn a tough battle with an enemy caster into a ridiculously easy one. And that's fine. But I want to group up. I want to be in a raid. I'm a healer and that's supposed to be my place. But, as I've already listed above, so many classes can beat me out on what I do...that I become worthless. Healers, universally, are put down, disrespected, and never appreciated. That's why druids and paladins do better. Because they can do other things besides healing, they're useful. A holy priest? All he's invested in is healing. That's his strong point. To put him down because of that? That's one of the reasons I quit WoW and am thinking of quitting some LG. Clerics are never, NEVER, EVER appreciated... It may be different on your server, but I have never had trouble finding group with any character capable of healing, least of all with a priest. Healing is in such demand in this game that most people will take whatever they can get. As for healers being unappreciated, that unfortunately is a problem with the way people think, and not with the games themselves. It's also due to the nature of the class itself. When you do a good job, people don't notice. When something goes wrong, they immediately blame the healer. Most people who play healers know this, so they take the time to compliment good healing. Sadly, the majority of people are ignorant and inconsiderate. And I'm wonderfully happy that you've found a small group of people to play the game with. This is not that norm, as you said, and it's a big put off of the game. No one wants to help you along because they're all doing their own thing and have no time for a new player. Case in point...my priest is level 49. I'm an enchanter and tailor. And because I have to disenchant all the time, I have no gold at all. I think, to my name, I have 4 gold at the moment. My gold total has never exceeded 10. This is because both enchantment and tailoring are expensive trade skills with little to no return. But I still try to ply my trade. Except...if you don't have the very absolute best enchantments, no one wants you to enchant their stuff. Furthermore, even if you sell an enchant, you barely get back the material costs. My profit for my highest enchantment, which is a level 275 enchantment, is 4 silver. I don't have my mount yet because people are greedy bastards...and the same people ask me why I don't have a mount... Most of the time, I solo or I play with a few real life friends. I don't even really play on that RP server I mentioned, although I may start doing so because it was so much fun. I just heard about the party, so I rolled up a new character and went. It was great. Tailoring and enchanting is actually a very profitable combination. The trick is to sell the enchanting materials themselves rather than waiting to sell enchants. You can grind humanoids for cloth, tailor them into some nice items, disenchant them, sell the results, and make obscene amounts of gold. This...is another big reason why I quit WoW...and why it's not even close to being a good game. Those are good reasons, and I'm not going to try to convince you to start playing again, but I have to disagree. It's a great game.
Britt 01-17-07, 02:54 PM	Wow, Crystal, you must be living in some freaky world where Spock has a goatee or something. Horde outnumber Alliance, Priests and Clerics get no respect, Paladins outheal Priests, Shadow Priests oom, Mages can solo elites higher level than them, Druids are broken...wait, that last one is normal :) Seriously, on most servers, Alliance greatly outnumber Horde. Similarly, I've never had a problem with my priests being disrespected and never felt disrespected as a cleric (except my gnome, when they found out he was a compulsive liar that cast all debuff spells and rarely had healing :)). If you want to do damage as a priest and heal well, go Holy/Disc and focus on Holy Smite and Holy Nova (very mana inefficient, but does a decent job). I did that with one priest that I played up to level 45 and I was doing more DPS than my shadow priest friend, and there is no way any other class would ever outheal me. My shadow priest friend, though, was never out of mana. With high SPI gear and Spirit Tap, his mana regen was high enough to regen everything between fights in the time it took to get to the next mob. Mages trying to solo something three levels higher, let alone elite, get wtfpwnedbbq, as the mob resists everything they throw. They might do a lot of damage, but it doesn't scale well up past their level very far. Just for background, I've played ever class in the game to at least 20, leveled a prot warrior to 60, warlock to 55, mage to 50, several priests to the 30s and 40s, rogue and druid to the 30s, and raided through BWL and AQ. I quit playing my main when Naxx came out, as I didn't want to do the stupid grinding just to be able to raid.
Japangirl 01-17-07, 06:41 PM	Good for you Britt! I unfortunately played my warlock through quite a bit of Naxx, and it was lots of grinding and pain. That is in fact why I no longer play, though I never quit playing LG for WoW, just told my guild I was unavailable on Saturdays and they could go raid AQ40 without me. Crystal, I have a 60 gnome warlock, 60 NE priest (don't laugh at me please), 59 human warrior, and 23ish undead mage, all on PVP servers. The priest had the easiest time BY FAR finding groups, and gets guild invites randomly in her mostly blue gear. I leveled as shadow/disc, and could still heal some but mostly did damage when I soloed. I find that if people start yelling at me for doing a poor job healing, I can tell them exactly what went wrong and ask them what I should have done, and they shut up really fast. Healing is rather boring most of the time so you can pay attention to the fight as a whole and see who is f***ing things up. And I have found that good pvp priests pwn warlocks, mages, other priests, rogues, druids, and paladins. They have trouble with warriors and hunters who get the drop on them, but . . . that's not very many people. Of course, horde priests have a huge advantage, as they don't have to deal with Will of the Forsaken, but I shall not fully express my displeasure with that ability here. WoW is far from perfect, but I liked playing it and am still debating whether to buy the expansion or not. I like LG better though, as there's better story and actual roleplay and dealing with real people.
_m_ 01-17-07, 07:02 PM	my thoughts on classes: i have (all rank 11 or above) 60 troll shaman 60 troll hunter 60 human mage 60 human priest 60 night elf priest 60 gnome warlock (gm) 60 ud warlock (hwl) 60 ud rogue 60 dwarf paladin 47 human warrior i dont really raid (i have, but i hate it), i only play pvp. the human priest (holy) is deffinately the most loved of the toons i have, followed by the paladin, and then the shadow priest. everyone just loves healers. the rogue is down the bottom of the loved list. they were all fairly easy to lvl. its not like its a very difficult game to grind in. as for combat effectiveness, in pvp particularly... the warlocks rule. i played, since beta, destruction warlocks, and i ahve to say, no class is, imo, better in pvp than a destruction warlock. sb crits at up to 5k, and soulfires at up to 8k (even more back in the day when elements dropped people to neg resistance). immolates at 2 to 4, conflagrates at 3 to 4.... also, i think people are going a little ahrd on mages. arcanists with slow can kite just as well as hunters can these days, so soloing hardcore mobs is deffinately alot easier. ... and shamans arent overpowered. they used to be, but now... they just arent :D
LGMoses 01-17-07, 10:10 PM	O FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. Don't derail this mod into a tips and tricks on WoW. M.... I thought u were trying to get better at this sort of hting :nonono:
_m_ 01-17-07, 10:34 PM	O FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. Don't derail this mod into a tips and tricks on WoW. M.... I thought u were trying to get better at this sort of hting :nonono: awww. ok, il try. though im sorely tempted to cry... M!>? its m!!! anywho, its pretty bloody clear, when it comes to wow in relation to d&d, that, wether intentionally or not, wow gets most of its inspiration from it. i mean, you could claim they are just drawing from popular fantasy and the like, but mechanically, the game plays out like an easy, realtime, reaction based solo d&d.
Britt 01-17-07, 10:36 PM	Or vice versa, like the Knight class. It's just a D&D implementation of prot warriors. And if someone starts a sentence with your name, shouldn't it be M?
_m_ 01-17-07, 11:02 PM	Or vice versa, like the Knight class. It's just a D&D implementation of prot warriors. And if someone starts a sentence with your name, shouldn't it be M? nope, cuz my name is m. if you think about it britt, a name is capitalised regardless of where in a sentence it appears... so if it aint in caps mid way, it shudnt be in caps to start with. besides, its technically easier to do it in lowercase.
Britt 01-17-07, 11:10 PM	But those are two different grammatical rules. One says you should capitalize names and the other says you should capitalize the first word of a sentence. Since there's usually never a situation where you have to figure out if the second applies despite the first, we never have to think about it. But in this case, we have to wonder if the second rule applies even if the name isn't capitalized normally. I mean, if you think about it, names don't have capitalization on their own; that's just a rule we apply when we /write/ a name. Hmm, that brings up the question of if your name can be 'm' and not 'M'. If it's just a rule we apply to the written form of the name, while the name itself is something else other than the text, then saying it's one but not the other is nonsense. For example, there's no difference when saying the name. How's that for thread derailment?
NiTessine 01-17-07, 11:21 PM	But those are two different grammatical rules. One says you should capitalize names and the other says you should capitalize the first word of a sentence. Since there's usually never a situation where you have to figure out if the second applies despite the first, we never have to think about it. But in this case, we have to wonder if the second rule applies even if the name isn't capitalized normally. I mean, if you think about it, names don't have capitalization on their own; that's just a rule we apply when we /write/ a name. Hmm, that brings up the question of if your name can be 'm' and not 'M'. If it's just a rule we apply to the written form of the name, while the name itself is something else other than the text, then saying it's one but not the other is nonsense. For example, there's no difference when saying the name. How's that for thread derailment? There is an example of a part of a name that is not usually capitalised: the particle of nobility. De, di, da, von, van, af, and so forth. These are always capitalised when they appear at the beginning of a sentence. Therefore, we may deduce that even parts of names usually written in lowercase must be capitalised at the beginning of a sentence. End derailment, carry on.
_m_ 01-17-07, 11:41 PM	There is an example of a part of a name that is not usually capitalised: the particle of nobility. De, di, da, von, van, af, and so forth. These are always capitalised when they appear at the beginning of a sentence. Therefore, we may deduce that even parts of names usually written in lowercase must be capitalised at the beginning of a sentence. End derailment, carry on. hey, this is MY derailment... so i get a quick say in it before the trains goes back on course. both of you did, indeed, make correct assertations. however, this is not that case in all languages. whos to say m is an english name at all? if someone's name is spelt in a manner incongruous to english standards, it doesn't get changed just to fit, so regardless of when in a sentence my m appears, it must be lowercase. In the event that i am the first letter of the sentence, and you simply cannot bring yourself to type a lowercase m, then Em, or Emy are acceptable. *pulls lever* *watches thread-train divert back on course*
LGMoses 01-18-07, 01:04 AM	awww. ok, il try. though im sorely tempted to cry... M!>? its m!!! . no offense but this is the net. Here formal grammar rules take a backseat to comfort and convenience. I typed it as M cuz thats what my hands felt like typing. Seeing as how u've returned the thread back to where it was suppossed to go I shall endeavor to type m.
_m_ 01-18-07, 01:05 AM	no offense but this is the net. Here formal grammar rules take a backseat to comfort and convenience. I typed it as M cuz thats what my hands felt like typing. Seeing as how u've returned the thread back to where it was suppossed to go I shall endeavor to type m. aww. thanks lgjesus.... whoops *grin*
LGMoses 01-18-07, 01:11 AM	that is just my feeling when it comes to grammar on the net in general. The only real problem is it can sometimes lead to bad grades on english papers(teachers don't like it when you spell "you" "u".) I just don't like seeing peple argue over little nothings in grammar. But then its probably because I'm irritable from taking stinking english classes. :banghead:
_m_ 01-18-07, 01:16 AM	that is just my feeling when it comes to grammar on the net in general. The only real problem is it can sometimes lead to bad grades on english papers(teachers don't like it when you spell "you" "u".) I just don't like seeing peple argue over little nothings in grammar. But then its probably because I'm irritable from taking stinking english classes. :banghead: u wudnt believe it from my typing, but im an absolute stickler for grammar. u know those annoying people who correct every sentence you say, know all the right synonyms, and fun rediculously conviluted puns in every line... im one of them. i just dont use it when im typing, bcuz ive spent the last 10 years playing online games... speed is the key. no time 4 spelling, or gramar, when ur being shot at / stabbed / fireballed / chased etc. i do, whoever, endevour to get peoples handles right. if u want me to say LGMoses, instead of moses, im happy to. its interesting, its the only thing i ever really complain about. ive just always been lwoercase m, in all the game systems ive played. /shrug, pet hate, what can i say. crud... this train has basically crashed.
LGMoses 01-18-07, 01:26 AM	yeah its gone.... its ok. It lived a good life tho brief. yeah speed is key in those sort of games. I'm not that fast a typist and I often correct my typo's by backspacing habitually. I haven't played enough online games to have a permanent handle yet. Currently, what has worked for these threads has been "campaign" + name = handle. maybe I should change my name to M :D
Britt 01-18-07, 01:46 AM	See online games have just encouraged me to type more quickly :)
CrystalBlue 01-18-07, 08:40 AM	Ok...can I at least tell you some of my trouble so you understand why I feel this way? I started out WoW as a Night Elf. Yes, I know she's not the best for priests, but the ability to sit there with Shadowmeld makes going AFK so much easier. But, that's not the point. At the start of my career, I knew I wanted to be a healer. That's what I've always played in D&D and Everquest and that's what I'm gonna play on here. So, from 0-20, the levels went pretty well soloing. I died a bit, the horde ganked me in PvP...generaly though, I was ok about it. It wasn't untill level 23 that I noticed my gear just...sitting there. I believe that I had level 14 or 15 gear, which was bad. So, I started to look for groups to go run instances. Nothing... Then I looked for groups doing quests. Nothing... I sent a message asking for groups for anything. Nothing. No one wanted me. And I couldn't see why. My healing was great, I was going full holy. But when I asked to be a part of a group, I just got these weird looks from everyone and was told, "Why do we need a priest? We've got healing already." And there they go with their paladin/druid. I got more groups around level 31. Before this, all I was able to do was solo grinding...which sucks for holy priests. It was long, tedious, borning, and I died a lot. So I hated it. I also continued to level up my trade skills, and because they were tailoring and enchanting...I had no money at all. :( So finally I get asked to start running things like Gnomergon. I plainly listed that I was a healing priest, and most groups understood that. We had a lot of very tough battles and I was frequently oom because I was always grouped with the stupidest tanks and blasters in WoW. The blasters would pull ALL the agro from a mob and the tanks wouldn't use any of their skills to pull back the agro. But I had a few successes in that instance. However, every time we all died and had to run back to the instance, everyone complained about the healing. They all said that I should have been focusing on so-and-so more, or that I shouldn't be casting my long-cast heals that much, or I should be dropping down Shields on the tank to protect him better. And at this time, I was still very much a noob to team tactics. So I took this advice. I started to rely on my heal-over-times and Flash Heal. I never touched my Heal or Greater Heal, cause I was always told they took too long. And I started to shift my Power Word: Shield to the tank of the party. And we wipe. And now I get yelled at for using dumb tactics that I was told, by everyone, that I should use. Finally I got sick of groups and tried to solo, respecing to Shadow. I was surprised that my casts for damage spells were faster, doing more damage, and that Shadowweave wasn't useless. Everything was going great till level 40. I thought, "How about I start taking on level 39 and 40 mobs. I should be able to handle that." So I find a nice level 40 mob. I start out with a Mind Blast, then a Power Word: Pain, and then I shield myself. I then Psychic Scream the mob and turn on that little teather shadow spell that slows and does DOT. And then I finish up with a Mind Blast, if I have to. I got wasted before I could start the second Mind Blast. One mob at my level owned my ass. I wondered what I was doing wrong. My gear was all repaired and, at the time, was only 3 levels behind me. I had invested in all the good shadow traits on the tree. And I opened up with a combo that shouldn't have let the enemy even hit me. So I started to do lower level things again...and guess what? Spirit Tap is pointless. Within 3 mobs, I needed liquids. I mean, my mana was tanked. After only 3 mobs at level 36-38. So now I'm level 49 and the game is very pointless. When I do a good job as a priest, I never get appreciated. When I screw up, I'm yelled at...even when it's not my fault. No guild wants me cause I suck very much. And soloing isn't a possibility, because I just drain too much mana all the time. So...what am I doing wrong? Obviously, vets of WoW should be able to see glaring flaws. What are they, and why can't I see them?
CrystalBlue 01-18-07, 08:53 AM	Oh and as a side note to PvP...never tell me that my Shadowpriest should own anything. I've seen horde that were 5 levels under me just completly tear through my Shield, disrubt all of my casting, and then drop me in a few seconds. And I'll let everyone know why for each class. Fighter: Come on...Charge. A move that closes the gap, does neat damage, AND stuns me. And me without actual armor. Rogue: This is just silly. Sneak, Cheap Shot, Backstab, Vanish, repeat till I'm blue in the face. Mages: All of them are blaster types, all of their spells hurt me more, they are never inturrupted when casting, and I can't get off a single shot. Warlocks: Wow...a pet that will disrupt me while you DOT me to death...that's great. Wish I could do that. Paladins: Heavy armor, can hit like a fighter, and we have some healing. That's just a mockery of me, really. Druids: They don't have to think of how to kill me. Just what to kill me with. A tiger, a bear, entangle, spells. Kiting is fun. >.< Shamans: They have an "I Win!" button. Totems are broken, they get to wear mail...come on!? >.< Shaman's need to be taken out of the game if you want anyone to try and be effective. Every single class can kill me, quickly, and not break a sweat. I can never get a heal or a damage spell or a shield off in time to even run away, let alond fight them.
Madfox11 01-18-07, 12:03 PM	Grinding as a priest is boring and easy. You shield yourself, and start using a wand. When the shield is going down, you shield yourself again and so on. Make sure you have that shadow talent that kicks in when you kill something and increase mana regen and you can go on and on and on. Boring as hell, since it is relatively slow, and you only use 2 buttons, but you get there ;)
LGMoses 01-18-07, 02:15 PM	NOOOO Britt Delete this thread. Destroy it. Its turned into WoW tips and tricks. for the love of god destroy it. :censored:
Britt 01-18-07, 02:18 PM	First, I have no powers in these forums. Second, you should have known this would happen :)
LGMoses 01-18-07, 02:26 PM	hindsight is 20/20. Call a moderator! NOOOOOOO... :surrender:
Shandronas 01-18-07, 02:51 PM	Not to sound apathetic, but I just can't get enough of the tale of the jilted Night Elf. The first server I played on, according to wowcensus, had an alliance/horde ratio of about 4.1/1. At one point, there were more Night Elf hunters than there was all races and classes in the entire horde. That has since leveled off, but I would be hard pressed to agree with you that no one plays alliance, instead favoring the Horde. And I can't help but laugh when I hear you say that no one wants a holy-specced priest in their group. Bad luck is a force in this world that I have a firm belief in, and maybe the people who 'don't want a priest', just simply have a group already formed. I, for one, would never expect a group to kick a member to let me join just because I was a certain class. Oh, and of course you had difficulty leveling, you were specced holy! A resto specced druid or shaman is a pain in the rear to level as well. I have a 60 priest on a PvP server, and burned through levels. Spirit kit and talents and a good wand and I never really had a problem. Not to sound mean, but there comes a point when someone has to stop blaming mechanics and get grip on the fact that they don't have the skill that they think they do.
CrystalBlue 01-18-07, 03:09 PM	Alright! Fine! I don't have the skill to play with you 'elite' WoW players! But no matter how hard I try, no matter how many times I ask nicely, none of you damn people will help me out! I don't know why I don't get invited to groups. Maybe I do really suck at healing. Great! I don't see any of you (in the game, not on here) helping me a damn bit with it! You're all self centered and greedy, always doing things for you and no one else. You care about your loot, your gold, and your exp. To hell with everyone else! They can't keep up, screw 'em. You obviously don't need us. :blush:...sorry I yelled like that. You don't understand how frustrating it is to try and be effective and get no positive feedback or help. The reason I can't get into a guild is...because I'm not in a guild already. And that's the only way I can think of to help get me better. But everyone on WoW just seems so hell-bent on themselves and raiding and never takes the time to teach me what I'm doing right or wrong.
Britt 01-18-07, 03:25 PM	:blush:...sorry I yelled like that. You don't understand how frustrating it is to try and be effective and get no positive feedback or help. The reason I can't get into a guild is...because I'm not in a guild already. And that's the only way I can think of to help get me better. But everyone on WoW just seems so hell-bent on themselves and raiding and never takes the time to teach me what I'm doing right or wrong. Yep, that's the majority in WoW. That was a contributing factor when I left my old guild, when they started acting that way towards pretty much everyone that wasn't on their A list, even within the guild.
CrystalBlue 01-18-07, 03:30 PM	Hey Britt...we should play Vanguard together. And make our own guild called the "NOT YOUR GUILD" guild. ^.^;; I'm glad that in Everquest 2, I have a very friendly RP guild. Though, I really need to get back into that game. I've been away for almost a month. O.O;;
LachlarlanIII 01-18-07, 03:31 PM	Crystal, I'm on the Aggramar realm. On Horde I have a BE Paladin named Lachlarlan. On Alliance I have a Draenei Mage named Bastaari. If you really want help/advice look me up. I'll help ya :) I'm not usually on until after 6:30 PM Central though.
Britt 01-18-07, 03:34 PM	I don't have my account anymore, but if you want help, tell me who and where you are and I'll logon to a friend's account when I'm at his apartment.
Japangirl 01-18-07, 05:59 PM	Agreed. What server are you on? My main alliance toons are on Azgalor and my horde mage is on Kel Thuzad, though I'm almost never on there. I also have a baby warrior on Eldre'Thalas.
_m_ 01-18-07, 07:09 PM	If anyone actually wants to play vanguard, pvp side, ive got a guild running in beta, that will relaunch when the game launches, ur all welcome to join in.
Britt 01-18-07, 07:41 PM	I'm pretty sure my system won't handle vanguard in its current state, especially in PvP. I was looking over stuff and it seems like something I'd like, but I'm going to have to wait for them to streamline the rendering and possibly get a new system.
RedKnightofKet 01-18-07, 07:47 PM	Well, m, I might consider it in a few months.. I'm a fiercely loyal Mac guy, but my comp is nowhere near up to par. I'm getting one of the latest iMacs in a few months, when I get my tax money back, and I am considering running Windows (gasp!) off of it, so I can play some of those other MMORPGs, among other things. I'll look for advice in that area when the time comes :) If anyone actually wants to play vanguard, pvp side, ive got a guild running in beta, that will relaunch when the game launches, ur all welcome to join in.
CdrcJsn 01-19-07, 12:57 AM	To Crystal, Try the following tactics: * Don't grind on elite mobs * Concentrate on items that give you Stamina and Int while levelling up. * At around level 50+ try gathering as much +dmg gear as you can * Try this cycle for grinding: 1) Shield before the fight (use lower tiers to conserve mana if needed) 2) Mind Blast (at Max distance) [substitute Holy Fire if not full Shadow spec] 3) Shadow Word: Pain (back up as you cast) 4) Mind Flay [substitute smite if not full Shadow spec] 5) Repeat number 4 until the mob is down to 1/3 HPs 6) Wand mob until dead By the time the mob is dead, you'll be out of the five second rule and thanks to Spirit Tap, you shoud be at full mana by the time you reach the next mob. Also, starting at max distance of your spells is important. Most non-elite mobs should drop in 20 seconds or less. * Just make sure that your wand is upgraded at all times. * If you want tips on how to heal effectively in a party, go to the main WoW website, look up the forums and see the sticky posts on top (Healing 101, etc.) I don't play as much as _M_ above, but I play a fair amount. Gnome Warlock 61 Human Shadowpriest 60 (named Weejas) Tauren Shaman 60 Human Holy Paladin 52 (named Hieronious) and at least one of every other class to 20 (including one undead discipline/smite priest named Pholtus)
Madfox11 01-19-07, 04:37 AM	Crystal, I think your real gripe with the game is exactly the same as mine. You play a healing cleric, suggesting you like the group aspect a lot. The problem though is that finding fun groups to play with require a strong investment of time, and if you don't have the time than you tend to be in bad luck. I always find it ironic when people complain about the healers, while they themselves are even more crap. I never expact wonders from my fellow players. As for the need for holy priests, I once was begged by a level 40 group to join them in instance while my priest was level 32. They needed a healer (even though they had a paladin in the group), and what is more, I had played with some of them before, and they knew I was in the game for the same reason as them: to have fun, to not complain if things went badly, not to leave midgame and not to nag about equipment. My healing was hardly up to the task, and we died a lot, but we had fun. It are moments like that that you know why you play the game ;) I just wish there were more players like that and that they played at the same time as I...
CrystalBlue 01-19-07, 07:36 AM	All of my allience characters are on Azgalor. Though, I have to reinstall the damn thing...and I'm gonna have to download or buy the expansion...otherwise people will call me useless. *sigh* I've tried the above grinding patteren. Usually, though, I don't Mind Flay multiple times. After my Mind Flay, I'll Mind Blast till it's dead, which only takes one or two shots left. And that's for mobs that are at my absolute minimum to kill. And why do you want me to use wands? They're slow, do no damage, and have terrrible range. I'm been using my staff and it's done so much more damage. Then again, my wand is level 30...but it's not like I can go buy a new one. And, as I've already said, I can never get into raids, so I have no access to gear.
LachlarlanIII 01-19-07, 10:24 AM	All of my allience characters are on Azgalor. Though, I have to reinstall the damn thing...and I'm gonna have to download or buy the expansion...otherwise people will call me useless. *sigh* Why would they do that? There's actually not much new content for the mid-game. Most of it is the Outlands and new races/starting areas, and you just can't get to them if you don't have the xpack. You can still see Draenei/BElf players running around and all that jazz. Unless you're at the end-game and have exhausted everything to do in Azeroth, there's really no good reason to buy the xpack. I've had the game since release and my highest level character is 36 :rolleyes:
Japangirl 01-19-07, 12:30 PM	CrystalBlue, wands are wonderful. The AH is full of green and blue wands that do a lot of damage, so upgrade your wand ASAP. The strat I used on a Disc/Shadow priest (so sue me, I wanted silence but also good healing talents, respecced Disc/Holy once I hit 60) was shield, renew, smite, SWP, mindflay, wandwandwandwand, fear, flash heal, shield, renew, SWP, mindflay, wandwandwandwand dead. It takes forever to kill something, but you are always at full mana and never have to stop going after the next mob. It doesn't work terribly well on mobs higher level than you, but I was able to kill two on-level mobs at a time with this strat by SWP and fear bouncing them. Azgalor, eh? Let me know when you're going to be on, that's where my epic'ed out warlock and blue/purple priest and 59 warrior are all at. I'll go help you murder things for awhile if you want.
Britt 01-19-07, 03:09 PM	Azgalor. I've always loved that server name :p Yeah, definitely wands. Put the 5 points in improved wand damage and keep your wand upgraded at every opportunity. Wands are awesome!
KarmaInferno 01-25-07, 12:03 PM	According to the latest census, Horde outnumber Alliance on 24 out of 199 servers. Across all servers, the Alliance to Horde ratio is 1.6:1. Note that the increase in Horde players has really only happened in the past couple of weeks or so as the new expansion raised interest in the Horde. Prior to that there were zero servers with a Horde majority. The closest were the PvP servers with almost 1:1 ratios. The PvE and Roleplaying servers were anywhere from 2:1 up to 5:1 in favor of the Alliance population. Basically the only reason for lots of Horde players now is the new Blood Elf race, and their ability to be Paladins, previously a class unavailable to the horde. Yes, the Horde racial traits are generally better than the Alliance ones, Depends on what you're doing. Horde racials tend on average to be better for PvP. Alliance racials are greatly PvE focused. Which follows the overall trend of the Horde being tweaked towards player-vs-player activities, while many find the Alliance easier at player-vs-environment content. -karma
Japangirl 01-25-07, 05:16 PM	Azgalor is currently one of the more balanced servers (it's PVP), but it started out has very horde-dominated. Horde outnumbered and outleveled alliance for the first six months or so after release. I heard horror stories about other servers though, where the number of Night Elf rogues outnumbered all the Horde players combined.
CdrcJsn 01-25-07, 07:50 PM	Another thing you have to look at when looking at server numbers is the actual number of people playing versus the number of characters on the server. I remember on my PvP server, alliance characters dominated horde characters by close to 2:1, but for actual characters played, it was much closer at 1.1:1. But back to Crystal, Get a wand. Upgrade it and get the talents for it. Use it when the mob is at 1/3 life. This will make grinding, even as a holy priest (not recommended), so much faster.