TweetCurrent | WoW News » WoW.com

Know Your Lore: The Council of Tirisfal and the last Guardian

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 21:00:00 +0000

The World of Warcraft is an expansive universe. You're playing the game, you're fighting the bosses, you know the how -- but do you know the why? Each week, Matthew Rossi and Anne Stickney make sure you Know Your Lore by covering the history of the story behind World of Warcraft.

He was the last Guardian and one of the most influential people in Azeroth -- but he never meant to be either one. Of all of the myriad and varied heroes in World of Warcraft, there is one man who is responsible for the majority of the events we see in Azeroth today. This man was solely responsible for the presence of orcs, responsible for the Horde, responsible for the ever-evolving conflict between Horde and Alliance. He was responsible for the original destruction of Stormwind, for the death of Anduin Lothar, King Llane Wrynn and many other heroes whose exploits didn't make it into the annals of history. He was responsible, indirectly, for the corruption of Arthas and the subsequent death of King Menethil, the razing of Stratholme and the rise of the Scourge. He arguably has more blood on his hands than any other being in Azeroth.

And yet he was also responsible for the first tenuous threads of peace stretched between Alliance and Horde. He was responsible for the rise of some of Azeroth's greatest heroes -- he was the man that made Varian Wrynn who he is today, he was the man who turned Thrall from an orc with dreams of peace for his people into a leader of action. He was responsible for saving Azeroth from being razed and torn asunder by the Burning Legion. He was a man of many talents, and a man of many regrets. His name is Medivh.

Continue reading Know Your Lore: The Council of Tirisfal and the last Guardian

Filed under: Lore, Know your Lore

Know Your Lore: The Council of Tirisfal and the last Guardian originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Cataclysm Beta: Engineers provide new version of Fish Feast

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 20:00:00 +0000

The sun is shining, the birds are singing and the humidity is down to a comfortable percentage. It is truly a beautiful day for a raid. What do you say we break out the picnic tables, slam down a Fish Feast and then fire up the ol' goblin barbecue. Wait, what? Goblin barbecue?

Datamined from the next beta patch, engineers will now be able to craft a Goblin Barbecue, an engineering version of the fisherman's best friend, the Fish Feast. Giving well fed group and raid members 60 stamina and another 60 points in another useful stat, this barbecue promises to be delicious in all the right ways. In my opinion, engineering has been getting some amazing love this expansion, truly cementing the profession as the utility-focused trade. I cannot wait for the graphic to show up. Sing it with me, engineers: Engineering, best profession.

Filed under: News items, Cataclysm, Goblin

Cataclysm Beta: Engineers provide new version of Fish Feast originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Guest Post: Confessions of a noob hunter

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 19:00:00 +0000

This article has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to WoW Insider.

As a prot paladin, I've learned my place in the world (of Warcraft). True, that place is usually face-deep in the crotch of some monster, but that's beside the point. When I'm tanking, I know I'm here to do one thing and one thing only: to piss off bad guys so they'll leave you alone. Strapping on my shield and a mace keeps me in a Zen-like comfort zone where everything seems to just come naturally.

Like many others, though, I've found myself looking for more to do as Cataclysm lurches ever closer. After all, there are only so many things to get beaten by each week. This has left me joining a growing percentage of players in a less-than-exclusive club: "Hi, I'm Brian, and I'm an altoholic."

Most classes I've tried have felt fairly natural. I've leveled my DK and priest with no problems and have really been enjoying the early levels of both my mage and warlock (which, as you'd imagine, leaves me with quite an internal struggle). There's one class, however, that has managed to bewilder me at every turn. A class that, for whatever reason, seems so counterintuitive to me that It's taken me over a year and a half to hit level 27. My friends, I am -- cue dramatic music -- the worst hunter in the world.

Continue reading Guest Post: Confessions of a noob hunter

Filed under: Hunter, Guest Posts

Guest Post: Confessions of a noob hunter originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Sunday Morning Funnies: Lions and tigers and dragons

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 17:00:00 +0000

Comic news: Fyreuni announced that "Daily Quests is on hold while I work on Emergency Kindergarten Lesson 2!" I am definitely a little disappointed, but I think the project will be worth it.

Tokkar was also kind enough to point out that Shawn Tommelleo of Coffin Comics has a new project called What's Shakin' that Tommelleo (aka Coffinshaker) described as not set in "WoWland," but it does feature the same characters. Sorry I missed it; the end of August and beginning of September were very hectic!

To answer tr_rrr, Cru the Dwarf and other comics that do not update very often will not necessarily show up on the list as soon as they update, because I don't have the time to check every comic that ever posts something WoW-related each week. I rely on tips and comments and my own whims to learn about them. This is also why Kuo was only added again last week, for example. Thanks for tipping me off that it has updated, though!

Continue reading Sunday Morning Funnies: Lions and tigers and dragons

Filed under: Comics, Sunday Morning Funnies

Sunday Morning Funnies: Lions and tigers and dragons originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Light and How to Swing It: Holy paladin changes in beta build 12984

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 16:00:00 +0000

Every Sunday, Chase Christian of The Light and How to Swing It invites you to discuss the finer side of the paladin class: the holy specialization. This week, we examine the changes in the latest beta patch.

Recently, I read a great thread on the official healing forums. Ghostcrawler, the lead systems designer for WoW, posted several times with interesting information and a few explanations regarding the new healing model in Cataclysm. I've talked about the idea of triage healing before, but there were a few specific points that Ghostcrawler made that really resonated with me.

One of the commenters referred to the idea of "auto attack" heals, relating spells like our cheap Holy Light to the automatic attacks of the physical classes. It's a very succinct way to think about it, since we're used to raiding in environments where we never stop casting. It's true, most paladins on the beta have just been spamming Holy Light. I'm guilty of it as well. It almost feels like the old Flash of Light days back in TBC, where FoL was the only spell we used because we'd never run out of mana. Blizzard saw this as a problem, and so the latest Cataclysm beta build contains a major nerf to Holy Light. Ghostcrawler's statement that healers shouldn't be spamming one heal seems almost prescient now.

Continue reading The Light and How to Swing It: Holy paladin changes in beta build 12984

Filed under: Paladin, (Paladin) The Light and How to Swing It

The Light and How to Swing It: Holy paladin changes in beta build 12984 originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Around Azeroth Beta Edition: Don’t blame me, I voted for the lizard people

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 15:00:00 +0000

Someone call David Icke, stat! The lizard people have finished interfering with Minnesota politics and are now invading World of Warcraft. Beta tester Sara was attempting to change her male worgen into a female, and instead revealed the hideous true reptilian form hidden beneath the fur. She writes that when she logged back in, the character was a normal worgen female, but don't be fooled by the exterior appearance. The lizard people have shown their true faces, and we will not be fooled again. No, we won't.

Gallery: Around Azeroth

Want to see your own screenshot here? Send it to aroundazeroth@wow.com. We strongly prefer full-sized pictures with no UI or names showing. Please include "Azeroth" in the subject line so your email doesn't get marked as spam, and include your name, guild and server if you want to be credited.

Filed under: Around Azeroth

Around Azeroth Beta Edition: Don't blame me, I voted for the lizard people originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Queue: Road dog

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 14:00:00 +0000

Welcome back to The Queue, WoW Insider's daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Mike Sacco will be your host today.

Don't ask how this worgen got his hands on a goblin trike. Just don't. Because it's not very interesting. ... Fine. He got it by accident, thanks to Blizzard's messing around with worgen mount stuff this beta patch. There. Are you happy now? Way to ruin the magic. Your mother and I are very disappointed in you.

Rin asked:

What are player health levels looking like in Cataclysm? I would assume they're getting pretty ridiculous at this point. I saw a video with a warlock with 80,000 health ...

My level 83 rogue has 55k HP. A tank in level 85 gear with buffs has roughly 100k.

Continue reading The Queue: Road dog

The Queue: Road dog originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Breakfast Topic: Do you prefer to be the off tank?

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 13:00:00 +0000

This Breakfast Topic has been brought to you by Seed, the Aol guest writer program that brings your words to our pages.

Most tanks (and aspiring tanks) want to be the main tank of a raid. It is upon this prestigious player's shoulders that the success or failure of the raid is often considered to rest.

Screw that.

First of all, we know that stereotype is untrue. Healers and DPS both play critical roles in raid success, even though they are sometimes forced to argue for their significance. But I don't often hear praise for the off tanks. While the healers heal, the DPS damages and the main tank tanks, these "wannabe main tanks" play critical roles in most every fight. Whether they have to pick up adds or share the burden of boss tanking with the main tank, these intrepid heroes have to work just as hard to keep the raid alive.

I first tasted off-tanking back in Naxxramas (10-man) when I stepped up to the task of being one of the rear tanks on my elemental shaman during the Four Horsemen fight. Here, I received my first taste of the special joy of adapting my skill set to new situations for every fight. I pined to be the one who would kite the zombies on Gluth, but my shaman lacked the capability, and one of our mages shouldered the responsibility. You can rest assured, however, that I was always back there to assist by laying down my Stoneclaw Totem.

My guild fell apart for a while after Ulduar was released, and I was too poor for more WoW. Once I wasn't poor anymore, I leveled a feral druid, and we all got back together just recently and started raiding Icecrown. Now I'm the off tank, and I'm loving it. Being an off tank lets me flex and show how creative and adaptable I am.

Do any of you tanking types out there prefer the off-tank role?

Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts

Breakfast Topic: Do you prefer to be the off tank? originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

"Return to Graveyard" button appears in latest Cataclysm beta build

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 09:30:00 +0000

Picture this: You're an innocent, wide-eyed goblin, exploring the Ruins of Gilneas in Cataclysm. You're minding your own business when all of a sudden, a hideous, jaggedly polygonned female worgen leaps out of the bushes and assaults you! You fight valiantly, but -- QQ! -- your chosen class has been nerfed to the ground in beta patch after cruel beta patch! You clutch your chest, cursing Ghostcrawler with your final breath. You fall to the ground as a sassy little green corpse.

"No problem," you think. "I'll simply run back to my corpse!" And so you try. But ... you can't find it. I mean, it's there somewhere, but you're on the wrong side of a moat, and ... well, you've never been here before. Wait, this doesn't look familiar at all ... I mean, it sorta looks familiar but ... it's different. You think you've seen that tree before but ... no, wait, it looks exactly like all the other trees around here. And ... dammit, your ghost just fell into this deep trench. Crap. You're nowhere near your corpse or the Spirit Healer. How the hell are you going to get out of this?

The answer: The brand new Return to Graveyard button. It's a new feature in the latest beta build, and it does exactly what you think it does.

Continue reading "Return to Graveyard" button appears in latest Cataclysm beta build

Filed under: Cataclysm

"Return to Graveyard" button appears in latest Cataclysm beta build originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 04:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Cataclysm Beta: Worgen female models

WoW.com — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 07:00:00 +0000

While I don't yet seem able to load one into the game for whatever reason, beta build 12984 has indeed allowed us to at least see the new female worgen models. And we have 'em! A lot of them, in fact. I tried to get every new skin color, hair style, ear configuration and face I could arrange for your viewing pleasure. Not being perfect, I probably missed a few, but it's still a fairly comprehensive photo set, all told.

Gallery: Worgen female models

Filed under: Cataclysm

Cataclysm Beta: Worgen female models originally appeared on WoW.com on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments