All the Ninja Raiders

*hums to herself*
QQ QQ QQ QQ QQ QQ

Have a great New Year. May this one be better for you then the last.

Yes, Hydra, there is a Porn Claus

*Disclaimer: topic maybe inappropriate for work and for some TMI.*

Apparently when you ask Husband for Porn as a gift you get the actual gift you ask for. It comes with the video you wanted, two freebee videos that Hustler threw in, a book of Penthouse letters, sexy see-through nightgown from Victoria Secrets and knowledge that a few friends helped Husband to put it together.

Men listen to EXACTLY what you say. You just have to say something they feel like paying attention to. Repetition if not the answer … Content it.

A few weeks ago I was watching a TV special on the porn industry. I wish I could recall the name of it. It was extremely interesting. It was talking about how the DVD sales have plummeted with all the free porn on-line. It talked about the ways people like Vivid and stars like Jenna are changing. One of the topics was to compete with all the youtube home videos was the big budget porn Pirates 2: Stagnetti’s Revenge.

I didn’t know it was out!!

Screaming for Husband ensued and yelling and pointing at the TV happened. “Tell Porn Claus that is what I want!!” I was a fan of the first one if you couldn’t tell.

Porn Claus is actually a person. A name I have for a great friend. He is a long time friend for almost two decades. I don’t remember when it started but he gets me books, videos, and toys for gifts. It must have started after a few trips to LA stores.

Seriously if you have to be your own Porn Claus I highly recommend one.

He is also one of my Husbands comic book friends. This is only relevant because there is a group of guys, five including my husband, that are always looking out for me.

Husband told Porn Claus who told the other guys. They had to take multiple trips to pertinent stores just so I could have the gift I wanted. We are talking about places being sold out or completely overpriced.

Pirates I was told by all of them “The most expensive porn you could have asked for.” And one even said it was pretty standard porn. YES! Put they are pirates! Pretty dresses. And wigs. And sword fighting. And actual dialog. It is a 4 disk extravaganza.

With my new video in my hands I started reading all the packaging.
[Hydra] So it says 600 AMAZing special effects. You think any of the penises were special effected?
[Husband] *thinks* Only naturally effected.

I love the holidays.

RL Quest Nerf

I had wrote this great epic post in my head. It was going to be about how my Mom-in-law sent me on this collection quest. 

I went all over looking. Every vendor I went to was out. I poked around seven HUGE instances looking for the item. The quest item respawn timer was beyond worse then the Time-Lost Proto Drake. The RL quest tracking map was completely borked. 

Then the quest designer realized the quest was impossible to do at this time and nerfed the item. So instead of the epic item we ended up with the nerfed version.

Now, Husband just got home early. Yeah!! I am done here and you get the abridged story.

EJ Warlock UI Discussion

While poking around the interweb for addon help I came across this discussion on the Elitist Jerks forum on addons for Warlocks.


Warlock UI & Addon Discussion

It might just give you an idea for the nagging issue you have been having.

Even better ... how to utilize the addons you already have installed.

This Arena Season

I have kinda ignored the last few arena seasons at 80.

Also, It has been a long time since I twinked regularly. The one thing twinking did do was get me connected with a lot of friends that enjoy a PvP rumble now and then. That is where all my arena partners have come from.

A Ret Pally friend and I did 2s this season for the fun of it. We got to 1115 rating. Not so bad for a team with no real healer. Both of us enjoyed it for the challenge of the games. We were really an unlikely duo to do well.

I learned to watch for his stuns. I tried to time my Shadowfury for the best affect. I learned the effect of a well placed Demonic Portal. I repeatedly learned the death by whirlwinding warriors and stunlocking rogues.

Then over a month ago he decided to take some time off from WoW. No more partner around to dabble in arenas.

A friend, PvP Holy Pally and his partner have 2000 plus rating for the fun of it attitude. Season 7 they can no longer get the titles and rewards in 2v2. So they have been carrying people to help get them some gear. I could really use a 1300 rating for some new boots.

Unfortunately I didn’t have lead on my 2v2 team before my friend left the game. I really didn’t want to start all over at a zero rating.

So we thought and thought about what to do. Then he had the brilliant idea that I join their 3v3 team.

I didn’t want to mess with their rating or anything. Apparently they have been trying a bunch of 3s partners. Things have not worked out. This would get me my boots while they figured out what they wanted to do. Sounded like a great fit.

Off we went.

So even if you don’t PvP you should know this… team consists of …
Holy Pally
Warrior
Warlock

Who will be targeted first 80% of the time?

Yea… I found that out quick.

Most of our games consist of me trying to stay alive for the first three minutes. CC the healer. Let the warrior actually kill them. LOS the ranged. Not LOS my healer. And screaming in vent “I FOUND THE ROGUE!!!! GET IT OFF!!! GET IT OFF!!! GET IT OFF!!!”

That brings us to only a few weeks of 3v3s at a rating of 1675.

I am amazed since that puts us at 862 in the Emberstorm Battlegroup.

I heard that my partners were asked to go off and play with another. DENIED.

Which is kinda sweet of them… so I guess I can take arenas a little more seriously… since well at this point it was natural knowledge of the class and past PvP experience.

Some things I need to start looking at to help us improve.
1. Stop apologizing for dieing.
2. Actually maximize keybindings for PvP.
3. Get real PvP macros.
4. Actually READ something on PvP.
5. Start at Arena Junkies.
6. Work on more pet control.
7. Consider an affliction spec.
8. Glyph solely for PvP and not PvE dual usage.
9. Actually get all the honor gear I qualify for with our current rating.
10. Pay more attention to my Warriors health bar.
11. Figure out how to CC, DPS, move, and live all at the same time.
12. Make sure it stays fun!

We are way past the rating for me to get my boots. I totally get to laugh at the Warrior when he rages. I imagine it is something like this... J/K (kinda)



As for the name of my team and the fact that the tabard is a cheery… it is what I get for joining a team created by teenage boys.

Keypad Belkin n52te

Consider the Belkin n52te SpeedPad for that last minute gift for the gamer on your list. I first heard about this from Nibbles.

One day completely redoing my Warcraft keybindings in frustration, I realized this would help a lot. So I asked for one last holiday season. Then Husband jumped on the wagon and asked for the identical gift. A year later I could not game without it.

It was pretty easy to set up.

Pairing the keypad with the addon Dominos has made Warcraft keybinding easy. Not only easy but this last year has been so much more comfortable.

Now it did take me about two weeks to get use too. After that initial settling in period it has been instinctive to use. Plus any tinkering has all been in the addon in-game.

Before I had about 12 keys easy assessable. Plus I would constantly have to reset my hand position because I would get off by a key. I don't have that issue because of my hand sits comfortably on the palm pad.

I have the n52te set up with 33 keys set up. Nibbles set hers up here. If I get to it I will tell you how I have it set up. I have it set up a little bit different. My Tab, Ctrl, and Alt set up to the left. 

It is always good to evaluate the amount of time you do something. Then look if you can do something to enhance your experience. I never would have thought I would buy a keypad. But with how much Warcraft we now play, I highly recommend looking into something like computer accessories.

I am now an Amazon Affiliate! I am sure I will mess with it some more down the road. The first thing I listed was the Belkin n52te. I use to approve affiliates from another online retailer. Now feels very full circle.

Evil Check: If you DARE

I was chatting with Lady Jess about her scrapbooking. Her husband is away to Afghanistan or her technical term was “Afghanisuck”. You can check out more over at A Touch of Tude.

She was linking stuff to me. Pages she has finished with neat little boxes. Places next to pictures for her husband to fill out when he gets back form being deployed. There are news article pages. A bunch of stuff that made me feel warm and fuzzy about how much she loves her man.

THEN …

Then I saw it again.

She has done it before.

Tempted me.

I couldn’t resist. *click* Bahahahaha

Now should I share it with you? My dear wonderfully bored readers.

Yes! Because you have free will to NOT click. I am telling you to NOT click on it.

May the song be stuck in your head randomly as you drive home.

Glass Half Full

I am not sure if this is celery in my red and green M&Ms ...... or if this is my attempt to make celery taste good without slathering peanut butter on them.

Ready for Winter Veil

This year I am relieved that I don't have do any holiday achievements. If I do any on a toon it is for the enjoyment and not for the meta achievement.

This year I have a personal Meta-achievement.

Prior to a holiday I am stocking up on a few goods that can be sold in the auction house. This way I can take advantage of all the impatient people who just want to BUY IT NOW.
For Winters Veil I have stocked up in Runecloth and Wool Cloth. If you remember last year I went and picked up the pattern from Orgrimmar for the Green Winter Clothes.

A day or so before the holiday started I made 20 each of the Green and Red Winter Clothes. I started the bid at about 65 gold. As expected they sold well.

I am almost sold out.Because I am on Alliance side the Red Winter Cloths have plummeted in price. I saw some up for 10 gold. There looks to be only one other seller for the Green Horde clothes.

I may have been able to make more gold on that first day. But I don't want to have a lot of stock returned from the auction house. So a 400% markup seems ... "fair" doesn't seem like the correct word.

Another thing I have been collecting for this Holiday was small eggs. I had a few stacks and on the first day sold them for 2-4 gold EACH. I highly recommend telling low level friends to go farm and sell these.

We should get a good few days of high prices from the auction house. I don't expect many will continue with the achievements at high prices after the 25th. Those are not the individuals you are selling too. Like all good merchants after the 25th you need to think about unloading your stock.

Hope your Winter Veil is profitable. *grin*

What I learned from Deathbringer Saurfang

First thing first.

You all smell.

That is right.

So that I don’t have to smell you STAY 12 YARDS AWAY FROM ME.

Which I can tell if you are not in the 11 yard area of /distance or /range that my boss mod is telling me. The only time I tolerate your smell is if I am being chased by a beastie.Deathbringer Saurfang is the fourth boss in Icecrown Citidel, as locks our role is easy in this fight. Kill stuff.

We eventually had the hunters, boomkins, and healers toward the middle. Those of us with less reliable CC for the beasts were on the outside.

Some things I learned.

1. Constantly check your /distance from fellow raiders. There is actually a handy beep in DBM (I am sure in the others too.) Activate the beep if you think you will forget to constantly check.
2. Conflagrate works on the beast. The stun effect is a waste on bosses because of their immunity. Change up your timing so you will have the stun for when beasts spawn.
3. If you have Shadowfury it will work as an AOE stun on beasties.
4. Beasts are immune to fear and horror effects.
5. Demonic portal can be used to mark your spot.
6. Don’t get territorial in your spot. That healer in your 11 yards may have a raid living reason for standing there. Adjust your spot.
7. If chased, move. Use portal to get back to your spot quickly.
8. Dead mages are a pain to assist off (but funny.)
9. Being all the way to the side can make it difficult to hit all the beasties. Being all the way to the right side of the platform I was only able to dps 2 or 3 if lucky. Do as much as you can.
10. This is a healer fight. They have to heal each person with Mark of the Fallen Champion until the boss dies. Plan life taps with this in mind.
11. Make sure you have life tap rank 1 available. If you have been marked make sure it is what you are primarily using. NO DIEING because you tapped.
12. The difference between when I was DPSing only the boss verses when I was on the boss and adds was anywhere from 500-800 dps. This seemed across the board for all classes.
13. Managing the adds is way more important then anything.
14. Remember this is not supposed to be easy. It was designed as a challenge.

When I saw who the boss was it made me immensely sad. Deathbringer Saurfang was the son of High Overlord Vorok Saurfang. We just saw High Overlord Saurfang as the leader of the Horde battleship Orgrim's Hammer in the Icecrown Gunship Battle.

Both men had key involvement in Wrathgate. I saw the battle from both the Horde and Alliance side. Seeing them here made it all more poignant. It really is the start of the end of this epic story we are playing called Wrath of the Lich King.

Addon: Too Many Addons

While poking around my new guild forums I came across a great discussion on managing addons.

The problem is prior to raid having individuals log out to deselect non-essential addons for raiding and log back in. If you happen to forget to do this your frame rates would plummet to the single digits during a fight.

A solution is the addon Too Many Addons. You open the interface with /TMA. You can then make profiles for addons you want to set up for at the time.I installed it and it was very intuitive to set up. You can load profiles from characters on other realms. If you have pre-raid routine you can also set up a macro to one click with “/TMA aProfileName”.

My raiding profile eliminates any questing, auction, trade skill, and data addons I use. It only includes those addons I use for my UI, DBM, and anything needed to make killing easier. While raiding I truly don’t care that a guildie just picked Kingsblood in STV.

My general profile contains most of my addons, with a few exceptions.

My bank characters profile includes UI and banking related addons. It doesn’t include the only-for-use-in-raiding addons. This helps with loading between characters.

The addon had an “Always Load These Addons” profile. This should overwrite all selections in the other profiles. The must have in the profile is Too Many Addons itself checked. You will want to be able to get back to modify selections even if you want to disable it all.

If I have a new warlock I can easily import profiles from Hydra from a drop down menu. This makes setting up characters a little bit easier.

Frozen Halls Short Boss Explanations

With patch 3.3 we were given three 5-man dungeons in the Icecrown Citadel called the Frozen Halls. You can find the entrance to all three and the summoning stone on the upper path to the west. With these new dungeons we were also given the new LFM, or Looking for More tool.

You initially must complete the dungeons in order to open the next ones.
1. The Forge of Souls (FoS)
2. Pit of Saron (PoS)
3. Halls of Reflection (HoR)

There is an optional quest you can pick up in Dalaran. I never made it to Dalaran before heading over to the new dungeons. So I can attest that you can pick up the quest line start just at the entrance of The Forge of Souls.

I don’t ever pug. But I wanted to give it a chance with the new system. I really like the new system. Particularly the idea if you get in a bad random one you can get into another one to still finish your daily. So far I have been really lucky. I must thank Xxl of Nazgrel for two great runs.

The key to any encounter can be having someone who could sum up the fights in a quick paragraph. This paragraph should highlight the group killers or tricky game mechanics. So here is my attempt to do that here. There should be just enough for a copy and paste at the right times. Please let me know of anything needs to be added or changed.

The Forge of Souls
Bronjahm
It is mostly shadow damage. Tank kites boss away from sphere. DPS with Drain Soul move away from boss. Kill the sphere spawn. At 30% is Soulstorm, stay in the middle. Healer, a feared target will take a lot of damage if they get into the Soulstorm.

The Devourer of Souls
Tank and Spank. Interrupt as many Phantom Blasts as possible. Stay away from adds when they spawn, you cannot target them. Don’t stand in stuff. Healer, the person with Mirrored Soul will be taking a lot of damage.

Pit of Saron
Forgemaster Garfrost
Tank and Spank. It is mostly frost damage. Boss throws boulders doing damage when they land. Once boulders land they can be used to line of site the boss letting your Permafrost stack debuff drop off.

Krick and Ick
When he emotes "close" get out of melee range. If you get targeted kite the boss. Watch for poison clouds. Stay away from exploding bad orbs. Don’t stand in stuff.

Gauntlet
Stay out of dropped runes (like Hodir). Tank agro to first giant. Don’t DPS until tank has giant THEN kill everything. The giant is about half way. Tank at the medallion on the ground. Move together to end of hall. Again no dps until tank has adds.

Scourgelord Tyrannus
Tank be ready to pick him up. Keep spread out. Move if you're targeted. DPS with Overlord’s Brand needs to STOP DPS. You kill the tank. Healer with brand try to minimize healing (heals boss), but don’t let us die.

Halls of Reflection
Falric and Marwyn
Tank up front. Let tank get mobs. Kill the priest mob first. Don’t pull agro. Healer watch feared group members they can take a lot of damage. Stay out of stuff.

The Lich King
Run! Tank to stay up front. Let tank get mobs. Kill casters first. Stay together. Don’t pull agro. Kill stuff. Keep moving as soon as the wall is down!

Patch Issues

So apparently when the game patched it broke my wow.exe file. It goes nowhere. I now need to revert to a prior version of the game. ... I sure hope I don't have to reinstall the entirety of patch 3.3 but I suspect so.

Hope your patch day is going better.

Update. So I uninstalled the Norton Antivirus on my machine (it was an old copy anyway. ) I saved my Screanshot, WTF, and interface folders. I then did a wow repair. I then had to reinstall all patches since 3.0.2. An hour and 36 minutes and 54 seconds to download the new patch I could get back into wow.

At that point I was so annoyed with it all I didn't log in.So far I have Icecrown Citadel has not started on a good note and I am actually not excited about logging in tomorrow. ... But I am sure I will. ... eventually.

Patch 3.3.0 – Icecrown and Newbies

Remember these are me butchering the notes for my own purposes. Full notes can be found here and/or here.

Personally I would have wanted another week for the patch. I was messing with a lot of Hydra’s gear and would have liked to see if I could get a test in TOC25 before all the new Icecrown upgrades. *shrug* Oh well.

At this time some realms are up. You can check here. Good luck in Icecrown!

General

* Icecrown Citadel
o All three wings of the 5-player dungeon are currently available for testing.
o Select encounters in the 10- and 25-player raid dungeon are available for limited testing.
o Additional Icecrown Citadel raid content will be made available in future test builds.
* Quel'Delar Quest Chain: The Battered Hilt, the item needed to start this quest line, can now be purchased from all glyph vendors on the public test realms . //This is that epic quest chain for the weapon. Maybe interested in it depending on your luck in raids or a good thing for alts. Starts here and ends way over here.
* Character Creation: //Updated for new toons.
* Dazed: Creatures attacking a player from behind can no longer cause players level 1-5 to be dazed, and have a reduced chance to cause players level 6-10 to be dazed. //These low level changes are for new players when the expansion comes out. Not for those of us that have playing for 3 years They are good changes.
* Knockbacks no longer dismount players. //Sure.
* The existing /welcome emote now greets/welcomes targets (character says "hello"), while the new /yw is for saying "you're welcome." //How many poople are going to try this all night. Lol.
* Many of the tail sweeps with knockback effects will no longer hit players' pets. //Aww. No more flying puppies, kitties, and minions.
* Level 1 characters no longer start with food or water in their inventory. //Ok. I always sold mine to the vendor right off anyway.
* Attack is now called Auto Attack.
* Meeting Stones: To use any Meeting Stone, it is only required that the character's minimum level be 15. There is no maximum character level requirement for any Meeting Stone. //THANK YOU!! This is a fantastic change… which is back to what it originally was. Will be great for twinkiing and Holiday events.

Classes: General

* Area-of-Effect Damage Caps: We've redesigned the way area damage is capped when hitting many targets. Instead of a hard cap on total damage done, the game now caps the total damage done at a value equal to the damage the spell would do if it hit 10 targets. In other words, if a spell does 1000 damage to each target, it would hit up to 10 targets for 1000 each, but with more than 10 targets, each target would take 1000 damage divided by the number of targets. 20 targets would be hit for 500 damage each in that example. //This is a fundamental change to our Seed of Corruption. Think Whelp in Ony. It will scale with your spell power more. Saresa told me it was a mage nerf. .. Not sure on that but sounds go to me.
* Attack: Level 1 druids, mages, priests, and warlocks will no longer start with the Attack button placed on their action bars by default. //Remember the new players.
* Default Equipment: Starting weapons are now more uniform. Rogues now start with a pair of daggers equipped. All other classes except shamans start with a 2-handed weapon equipped and the required skill already known. Shamans start with a 1-handed weapon and a shield, as they benefit more from the shield than they would from a 2-handed weapon. //Remember the new players.
* Glancing Blows: The mage, warlock, and priest classes no longer have an increased chance for their melee attacks to be glancing blows; and the damage penalty due to their glancing blows is the same as for other classes. //Melee lock!
* Health and Mana Regeneration: These regeneration rates have been increased by up to 200% for low level characters. As a player's level increases, the regeneration rates gradually reduce, returning to normal rates at level 15. //Remember the new players.
* Pet Resilience: All player pets now get 100% of their master's resilience. //PvP minion buff.
* Spell Mana Costs: These costs have been reduced for almost all lower level spell ranks. In general, if a spell decreased in cost with a higher level rank in patch 3.2.0, that spell now has the decreased cost at all ranks. In addition, spells learned before level 20 with reduced cast times and/or durations have even further reduced mana costs, proportionate to their reduction in cast time or damage. //Rememeber the new players. This will help in reducing downtime while leveling.
* Taunt Diminishing Returns: We've revised the system for diminishing returns on Taunt so that creatures do not become immune to Taunt until after 5 Taunts have landed. The duration of the Taunt effect will be reduced by 35% instead of 50% for each taunt landed. In addition, most creatures in the world will not be affected by Taunt diminishing returns at all. Creatures will only have Taunt diminishing returns if they have been specifically flagged for that behavior based on the design of a given encounter. //Limit to bosses and not while leveling.

Races: General

* Orc and troll shamans now have their own unique totem art. //Yea!!
* Racial Attribute Bonuses: These bonuses have been recalibrated to even out the amount of starting health on the various races. All races start with a standardized level of stamina, except for orcs, dwarves, and tauren who now start with 1 extra point of stamina. For each class, bonuses and penalties to all attributes have been adjusted so that each race has an equal attribute total.
* Will of the Forsaken now shares a 45-second cooldown with similar effects, including the Medallion of the Horde, Titan-Forged runes, Insignia of the Horde, etc.

PvP

* Arenas
o All abilities that have base cooldowns of 10 minutes or longer cannot be used in Arenas, down from 15 minutes. //More abilities out of luck. Most likely because of some cooldown changes. … but doesn’t effect locks since we don’t have those kinds of cooldowns.
* Battlegrounds
o Battleground Experience: Battleground experience gained is now based on the level of the player gaining experience, rather than the highest possible player level in that Battleground.
o All level 71-80 Battleground daily quests will now award 25 Arena points in addition to their current rewards. //Sweet! I will be all over that before they nerf it. Typically a low ranking team gets 200-300 points a week. This adds another 175. Reducing the time to get a few pieces by a lot.
* Wintergrasp
o You must now have the following ranks to build or pilot siege vehicles:
+ Rank 2: Build/pilot Catapults.
+ Rank 3: Build/pilot Demolishers.
+ Rank 3: Build/pilot Siege Engines.

Dungeons & Raids

* Naxxramas
o Players no longer need to kill the final bosses in all four wings of this dungeon in order to teleport to Sapphiron. Teleportation orbs have been added to allow players access back and forth from Sapphiron's lair. //For the raid weekly quest.
* Oculus //Trying to make this dungeon more tempting. Oculus... I don’t think Blizzard gets why people don’t like Occulus. It is not the mobs... it is the vehicle mechanic. So the only real change that will make people want to run it is the scaling on drakes by item level.

Death Knights

* Army of the Dead: The cooldown on this ability has been reduced from 20 minutes to 10 minutes. Army Ghoul damage dropped by 50%. Cannot be used in Arenas. //This is fantastic. How many raids where you had to wait till army was available.

Druids

* Prowl: This ability no longer has multiple ranks and penalizes movement speed by 30%. //I like.
* Rebirth: The cooldown on this spell has been lowered from 20 minutes down to 10 minutes. Cannot be used in Arenas.
* Rejuvenation: The base duration on all ranks of this spell is now 15 seconds.
* Tranquility: The cooldown on this spell has been reduced to 8 minutes, down from 10 minutes. // I forget that even as feral I have this spell.
* Talents
o Feral Combat
+ Predatory Strikes: The Predatory Swiftness buff from this talent now has an 8-second duration.

Hunters

* Call Stabled Pet: Cooldown reduced from 30 minutes to 5 minutes. Cannot be used in Arenas. //I need to straighten out my stable.
* Deterrence: Now also increases the chance for ranged attacks to miss the hunter by 100% while under its effect. //Oh… fun. Hunter evasion.
* Misdirection: Redesigned. Instead of having finite charges, it now begins a 4-second timer when the hunter using Misdirection performs a threat-generating attack, during which all threat generated by the hunter goes to the friendly target. In addition, multiple hunters can now misdirect threat to the same friendly target simultaneously. //The multiple hunter part will be really nice in 25s. Silly that it was not already that way.
* Talents
o Beast Mastery
+ Intimidation: If the hunter's pet is in melee range of its target, the stun from Intimidation will now be applied immediately instead of on the pet's next swing or attack.
* Pets
o Avoidance: This talent has been replaced by Culling the Herd. Hunter pets now innately take 90% less damage from area-of-effect abilities like all other class pets. This does not apply to area-of-effect damage caused by other players.
o Cower: Redesigned. This ability no longer affects threat, and instead reduces damage taken by the pet by 40% for 6 seconds with a 45-second cooldown. While cowering, the pet's movement speed is 50% of normal speed. Cower now only has a single rank and is available at pet level 20. //Pet talent change. Seems good to macro into other abilities.
o Culling the Herd: This pet talent has replaced the Avoidance talent in the pet trees (Hunter pets now gain that benefit automatically without expenditure of talent points). Culling the Herd increases pet and hunter damage by 1/2/3% for 10 seconds each time the pet deals a critical strike with Claw, Bite, or Smack. //DPS is good.
o Demoralizing Screech: The attack power reduction from this ability has been increased by 40%, equaling the maximum possible attack power reduction from the abilities of other classes. // Carrion Birds only.
o Improved Cower: Redesigned. This ability now reduces the movement penalty of Cower by 50%/100%. //talent taken will eliminate speed reduction completely and so only will keep the reduction in damage.
o Pet Leveling: Hunter pets now need only 5% of the experience a player needs to level, down from 10%. //This will help in me getting my stable worked out.
o Venom Web Spray: Range increased from 20 yards to 30 yards. //Great… mostly a PvP change. And will be annoying in low levels.
o Web: Range increased from 20 yards to 30 yards. //Yes. Yes. Got it.
o Wolverine Bite: This talent is now enabled when the pet lands a critical strike rather than from the target dodging the pet's attacks. In addition, this talent no longer has a prerequisite.

Mages

//Making them want to roll locks.

Paladins

//Lay on Hands changed. It changed so much I am not going to worry about it. Just let the pallies figure it out.

Priests

//They are a pain in the a$$ in arenas. Or that is what my pally partner tells me.

Rogues

* Deadly Poison: In addition to its existing effects, when a rogue applies Deadly Poison to a target which has already reached the maximum number of applications, this will also trigger the poison which the rogue is using on his or her other weapon.
* Dual Wield: Rogues now know this ability upon logging into the game at level 1.
* Stealth: This ability no longer has multiple ranks. While active, the single rank of this ability (available at level 1) allows rogues to move at 70% movement speed. //Remember the new players.
* Talents
o Assassination
+ Improved Poisons: Bonus chance to trigger Deadly Poison from this talent increased.
+ Murder: This talent now provides a flat damage increase of 2/4% against all targets, instead of only targets which do not appear in Icecrown.
o Subtlety
+ Preparation: The cooldown on this ability has been reduced to 8 minutes, down from 10 minutes.
+ Filthy Tricks: The cooldown reduction this talent provides for Preparation has been reduced to 1.5/3 minutes, down from 2.5/5 minutes.

Shamans

//Stuff changed with totems. … someone who cares will tell you and me both.

Warlocks

* Create Soulstone: The cooldown on this spell and duration of its buff have been lowered from 30 minutes down to 15 minutes. Cannot be used in Arenas. //More shard usage.
* Talents
o Affliction
+ Improved Drain Soul: This talent now reduces threat by 10%/20%, up from 5%/10%. //I hope this is not telling that tanks lost treat somewhere. Have not had an issue with threat except on Malygos.
+ Improved Felhunter: This talent now also reduces the cooldown on the felhunter's Shadow Bite ability by 2/4 seconds. //Felpupy buff.
+ Shadow Mastery: This talent now also increases the damage done by the felhunter's Shadow Bite ability by 3/6/9/12/15%. //More felpuppy buff.
o Demonology
+ Decimation: Redesigned. When Shadowbolt, Incinerate or Soul Fire hit a target that is at or below 35% health, the cast time of Soul Fire is reduced by 20/40% for 8 seconds. Soul Fires cast under the effect of Decimation cost no shards. //Hmm. Is this now actually useful?
+ Demonic Pact: This talent now also increases the warlock's spell damage by 1/2/3/4/5%. //More spell power is always good.
+ Molten Core: Redesigned. This talent now increases the duration of Immolate by 3/6/9 seconds and provides a 4/8/12% chance to gain the Molten Core effect when Corruption deals damage. The Molten Core effect empowers the next 3 Incinerate or Soul Fire spells cast within 15 seconds (Incinerate: increases damage done by 6/12/18% and reduces cast time by 10/20/30%; Soul Fire: increases damage done by 6/12/18% and increases critical strike chance by 5/10/15%). Molten Core now has a new spell effect. //That is a lot of stuff crammed into one talent. You can now trigger it with corruption.
o Destruction
+ Conflagrate: Redesigned. This talent now consumes an Immolate or Shadowflame effect on the enemy target to instantly deal damage equal to 9 seconds of Immolate or 8 seconds of Shadowflame, and causes additional damage over 3 seconds equal to 3 seconds of Immolate or 2 seconds of Shadowflame. In addition, the periodic damage of Conflagrate is capable of critically striking the afflicted target.
+ Destructive Reach: This talent now reduces threat by 10%/20%, up from 5%/10%.
+ Ruin: This talent now also increases the critical strike damage bonus of the imp's Firebolt spell by 100%. //Pet crit is good for your Empowering Imp talent.
* Pets //More minions stuffs!
o Avoidance (passive): Now reduces the damage your pets take from area-of-effect damage by 90%, but no longer applies to area-of-effect damage caused by other players.
o Doomguard/Infernal: These pets now innately have Avoidance like all other warlock pets.
o Inferno: The cooldown on this summoning spell has been reduced from 20 minutes to 10 minutes. Cannot be used in Arenas.
o Shadow Bite: This pet ability now does 15% increased damage for each of the warlock's damage-over-time effects on the target.
o Summon Imp: This ability is now available from the trainer for level 1 warlocks and no longer requires a quest to learn.

Warriors

//Are beautiful prefect people…apparently, minimum change.

User Interface //Remember a lot of changes are for new players. On the up side it also incorporates some addons that you may now get rid of. Plus here is hopping the new LFM is everything it is cracked up to be.

* Many of the default Interface Options settings have been changed for greater ease of use by new players. Existing players who create new characters may want to review the Interface Options in the event that the default settings feel different.
* Quest Tracking Feature
o Players can now track quest objectives on the map ('M' key).
o Quest Log
+ A Show Map button has been added to the Quest Log. Selecting a quest and pressing this button will open the map for the zone in which the quest objective is located displaying the associated area of interest. Any other active quests in a player's Quest Log for that zone will also be displayed.
o Map
+ The map interface has been separated into four separate panes: a map pane (left), a pane listing active quest names for the zone being viewed (right), a pane listing the full quest text for any highlighted quest (bottom left), and a pane listing the quest rewards for any highlighted quest (bottom right).
+ All active quests listed in the right pane for the zone being viewed on the map will be assigned a number. These numbers will be displayed on the map according to the areas of interest for each quest.
+ Highlighting a quest name in the right pane will highlight the corresponding area of interest on the map in the left pane, show its quest text in the lower left pane, and list the quest rewards in the lower right pane.
+ Given that some quest objectives can be achieved in multiple locations within a given zone, highlighting such a quest will highlight an area of interest closest in proximity to the character's current location.
+ This feature can be disabled by un-checking the Show Quest Objectives box in the bottom right corner of the new map interface, restoring the map to its standard full-screen display.
+ Clicking on the arrow in the top right corner of the new map interface will hide all but the map pane, bringing the map out of full-screen mode and allowing players to leave it open while navigating a zone or engaging in combat.
o Objectives Tracking
+ This frame has been improved to offer new functionality and can be used with the new shrunken map option.
+ The Objectives frame is now docked below the mini-map next to the right 2 action bars and will track up to 10 quests for a zone.
+ Numbers have been added next to each quest name and objective corresponding with those areas of interest displayed on the map.
+ If a quest objective has been completed, the number will be replaced with a yellow question mark symbol.
+ The arrow button in the top right corner of the Objectives frame can be used to toggle between minimizing and maximizing the quest objective display.
o Quest Difficulty Tracking
+ This feature is off by default and can be enabled in the Objectives window from the Interface Options menu. Turning this feature on will color-code all quest names displayed in the map interface according to difficulty (grey, green, yellow, orange, and red).
* Dungeon Finder
o This feature has replaced the Looking For Group tool and provides all-new dungeon party creation functionality.
+ Players can join as individuals, as a full group, or a partial group to look for additional party members.
+ Groups using this tool will be able to teleport directly to the selected instance. Upon leaving the instance, players will be returned to their original location. If any party member needs to temporarily leave the instance for reagents or repairs, they will have the option to teleport back to the instance.
+ Players can choose the Random Dungeon option.
# The Heroic Wrath of the Lich King Daily Random Dungeon option will award two Emblems of Frost no more than once a day.
# The normal Wrath of the Lich King Daily Random Dungeon option will award two Emblems of Triumph no more than once a day.
# Continuing to complete Wrath of the Lich King Heroic instances using the Daily Random Dungeon option will award players two additional Emblems of Triumph each time.
# Daily Heroic and normal dungeon quests have been removed. These quests have been replaced with weekly raid quests (see the "Quests" section for details).
# Level-appropriate rewards will be offered to players who choose the Random Dungeon option for pre-Wrath of the Lich King dungeons.
# Players can be placed in a group for a random dungeon no more than once every 15 minutes.
# Random Dungeon rewards will be placed in each player's inventory automatically upon completion of the dungeon (final boss killed). A pop-up notification will display any rewards earned through the Dungeon Finder.
+ Instead of choosing a random dungeon, players can also choose specific dungeons appropriate for their level range. Multiple instances can be selected at one time. The feature no longer limits the choice to look for only 3 dungeon groups at one time.
+ Pick-Up Groups
# Cross-realm instances are now available and use an improved matchmaking system to assist players in looking for additional party members. As with Battlegrounds, the realms in each Battlegroup are connected.
# As part of the matchmaking system, some of the more difficult dungeons will have a minimum gear requirement. Players also need to meet the requirements for dungeons that require attunement, such as keys or quests. If a player does not meet the requirements for a particular dungeon, a lock icon will be displayed next to that dungeon. Hovering over this icon will display the requirements which have not been met.
# Only conjured items and loot dropped in a dungeon for which other party members are eligible can be traded between players from different realms.
# A Vote Kick feature will be available in the event a member of a party is not performing to the expectations of the other members.
# Players who leave the group prematurely are subject to a Deserter debuff preventing them from using the Dungeon Finder for 15 minutes.
# If an existing group loses a member, the leader will be asked if he or she wants to continue the dungeon. Choosing to continue will automatically place the group back into the Dungeon Finder queue.
# A Player will not be placed in a group with people on his or her Ignore list.
# Players who take part in groups who have one or more members who have been matched with them randomly from within the Dungeon Finder will receive extra rewards, up to and including the coveted Perky Pug non-combat pet. The more random players with whom one groups, the faster the pet can be obtained.
# The Need Before Greed loot system will be the unalterable default looting system for pick-up groups in the Dungeon Finder and has been updated.
* Need Before Greed will now recognize gear appropriate for a class in three ways: the class must be able to equip the item, pure melee will be unable to roll on spell power items, and classes are limited to their dominant armor type (ex. paladins for plate). All items will still be available via Greed rolls as well as the new Disenchant option should no member be able to use the item.
* Players will be able to roll on items with a required minimum level higher than a player's current level.
* Looking For Raid
o There is a new Looking For Raid option available to players that can be accessed via the Raid Information screen in the interface or by typing "/LFR."
+ Players will be able to browse the system manually for any other players looking for a raid dungeon group.
+ While browsing LFR players may sort the list ascending or descending by left-clicking the following headers: Name, Level, Class, Tank Role, Healer Role, and Damage Role. The crown is the Leader Role (representing a raid group with 2 or more people). Players can left-click on this header to sort the list with groups at the top or at the bottom.
+ Hovering over players listed in LFR will display their name, class, level, roles and comments. Hovering over a raid/group will display the leader's name, the raid information (number of people in the raid), comments, if there are any bosses dead (and which ones), and if there are any friends from your Friends list or ignored players from your Ignore list in the raid group.
* The Looking For Group chat channel has returned and can be accessed in all major cities (similar to the Trade chat channel) without the use of the Dungeon Finder interface.
* Players may only be queued or listed in one of the following systems at a time: Dungeons, LFR, Battlegrounds, or Arenas.
* Ignore List: The amount of characters a person can ignore has been increased to 50. In addition, players on other realms can be placed on the Ignore list.
* Buffs and Debuffs: This is a new section added to Interface Options.
o New option - Castable Debuffs: Enabling this will cause only debuffs you have cast on an enemy target to appear.
o New option - Consolidate Buffs: Enabling this adds a buff consolidation box near the mini-map. Very short term buffs (e.g. Replenishment) and very long term buffs (e.g. Prayer of Fortitude) are filtered into the buff box. The icons are stacked here, but they can still be seen by moving the mouse cursor over the buff box. Long term buffs will move out of the box when they are about to expire. Buffs such as important procs (e.g. Art of War, Maelstrom Weapon), cooldowns (e.g. Bloodlust / Heroism, Combustion) or limited in range (e.g. totems and paladin auras) are always displayed.
* Tutorial System: The tutorial pop-ups are now larger, contain images, and better try to direct players to the relevant locations or user interface elements on the screen. In addition, several new tips have been added, while some existing tips will now appear at more appropriate times for new players.
* Dungeon & Raid Difficult Display: A group's dungeon or raid difficulty setting will now be displayed via an icon off of the mini-map.
* Group Disenchanting Option: In addition to rolling Need or Greed on items, players now have the option to elect for an item to be disenchanted if an enchanter of the appropriate skill level is in the group. Disenchant works exactly like Greed except if a player wins the Greed roll, they will receive the disenchanted materials instead. Players who choose Need will always win the item and will always beat those that choose Greed or Disenchant.
* Lag Reports: Players can now report high latency or lag by accessing the Help Request menu. //Great…I am not sure if this is bad or good.
* Unit Nameplates
o The range at which players can see unit nameplates has been increased by 40 yards.
o Unit nameplates are now subject to line-of-sightlimitations in certain situations (this does not pertain to objects like Arena pillars or bridges).
o Players can now adjust select unit nameplate display settings listed below under Interface Options via the Names tab.
+ Friendly/enemy pet nameplates can be toggled.
+ Enemy totem nameplates can be toggled (friendly totem nameplates are never displayed).
+ Players can choose whether or not unit nameplates overlap.
o Unit nameplates for critters are never displayed.
* Non spell-based tracking now persists through logout.
* Any party member may mark targets (this does not apply to raid groups). //Most likely for the new LFG reasons.
* Players will be warned when their talents are reset due to a new patch.
* "/Settitle" command has been added.
* Players below level 10 may not join raids. //I understand why. People inviting new people to raid and they cannot quest. Still runs on Hogger at level 1.
* Ignore list expanded to 50 to match the friends list.
* Unit frames added for special encounters.
* Interface element added next to the mini-map to show what dungeon you are in (ex: 10- and 25-player Heroic dungeons marked with a skull).
* Experience earned for a quest will display in the Quest Rewards section.
* Confirmation box added when buying stable slots.
* For additional notes on Lua and XML changes please visit the UI & Macros forum.

Graphics

* A new feature has been added to the D3D graphics engine to improve texture management (particularly for Windows XP users). If you are experiencing random crashes related to file read errors or out of memory, this new backend may help. To enable the new backend, add the following line to your Config.WTF file: SET gxApi "d3d9ex". For more information please visit our Test Realm forum. //I have been having memory errors. I sure hope this is what was causing it.


Professions

* Enchanting
o Enchant Weapon - Black Magic: This enchantment now sometimes increases haste rating for the caster rather than inflicting the caster's target with a damage-over-time effect. It is also now triggered by landing any harmful spell rather than inflicting damage with a spell.
o Enchant Weapon - Unholy: This enchantment now inflicts Shadow damage in addition to its original effect.
* Fishing
o The all-new Kalu'ak Fishing Derby, a test of fishing skill with a healthy dash of luck, has come to Northrend! Every Wednesday beginning at 8 PM players can try to catch the elusive Blacktip Shark. Elder Clearwater sits in Dalaran for one hour awaiting the return of the quickest, most experienced fisher to bring him this shark. This champion fisher will be rewarded in-kind for returning with the first catch. Those who aren't able to return with the first catch will still receive just reward for getting the Blacktip Shark to Elder Clearwater before he takes his leave. It is said that these sharks' favorite meal are the bite-sized Pygmy Suckerfish. Perhaps a hook in their waters will do the trick.

Quests

* Weekly raid quests are now available from Archmage Lan'dalock in Dalaran. Every Tuesday at 3 AM the Council of Six will choose a different strategic target that must die from either: The Obsidian Sanctum, Naxxramas, The Eye of Eternity, Ulduar, Trial of the Crusader, or Icecrown Citadel.


Achievements

* The Achievements to get exalted with the Warsong Gulch, Arathi Basin, and Alterac Valley factions have been removed from their respective "Master of" Meta-Achievements. Special titles will be offered to those who reach exalted with these factions.
* "The Party's Over" has been removed from Achievements and is no longer a part of the "Glory of the Hero" Meta-Achievement.
* "Master Angler of Stranglethorn" has been changed to "Master Angler of Azeroth" and can be achieved by winning either the Kalu'ak Fishing Derby or the Stranglethorn Fishing Extravaganza.

Reputation

* Commendation Badges which award reputation with various Wrath of the Lich King factions can be purchased with Emblems of Triumph in Dalaran. Each badge costs 1 Emblem of Triumph. //Nice for a new toon on a new server for Hodir rep.
* Gaining reputation with the Ashen Verdict in Icecrown Citadel will grant players access to upgradeable rings from Ormus the Penitent. Players can switch between the type of ring (melee/caster/tank/healer) at any point in the upgrade path for 200g. //New rings are good.
* The following reputations have been sped up by roughly 30%:
o Argent Crusade
o Alliance Vanguard
o Horde Expedition
o Kirin Tor
o Knights of the Ebon Blade
o Sons of Hodir
o Wyrmrest Accord
* Sons of Hodir quests now give more reputation overall.
* Top-level helm and shoulder faction-related enchants are now available as Bind-on-Account items that do not require any faction to use once purchased (they still require the appropriate faction level to purchase).

Items

* Glyphs
o Warlocks
+ Glyph of Life Tap: The effect of this glyph now has a chance of activating when Dark Pact is used.
+ Glyph of Quick Decay: This glyph allows for the warlock's haste to reduce the time between periodic damage effects of Corruption.
* Haris Pilton now sells a new 24-slot bag! She has stubbornly decided to remain in Shattrath City, so those interested should seek her out there.
* Hatchlings: Leaping, Darting, Razormaw, and Ravasaur Hatchlings no longer drop from their associated rare creatures. Instead, there are now rare nests that spawn which contain these hatchlings. For example, the Leaping Hatchling can now be found in Takk's Nest rather than as a drop from Takk the Leaper. //Hmmm… well I hope this is targetable.
* Sceptor of Celebras: Since this item is no longer needed as a key, Celebras will no longer give one out to a player who loses it. The item can now be sold or disenchanted as normal.

Bug Fixes

* Items
//Bunch of stuffs.
* Racial Abilities
o Arcane Torrent: Updated tooltip to include the functionality that this ability also interrupts spellcasting on NPCs. In addition, this ability will now be properly noted and displayed as an interrupt in the cast bar UI. //Does thei work on Less rabi achievement? I should check.
* Classes
o Druids
+ Glyph of Hurricane: Now modifies the spell tooltip on Hurricane to indicate the spell also applies a movement slowing effect.
+ Hurricane: When cast from Bear Form, Cat Form, or Dire Bear Form, this spell will now channel properly instead of stopping the channel as soon as the shapeshift is cancelled.
+ Infected Wounds: This ability is no longer considered to be in the magical defense category; therefore spell hit no longer applies to its activation. Tooltip error corrected.
+ Nature's Grace: The tooltip now correctly indicates that it will not be activated from periodic spell critical strikes.
+ Swipe (Bear): Tooltip corrected to display 8 yard range.
+ Rejuvenation: Druids will no longer get a more powerful spell error message when attempting to overwrite a Rejuvenation they cast.
o Hunters
+ Concussive Barrage: This ability is no longer subject to spell reflects. //haha
+ Explosive Trap: The damage from this trap will now scale properly with the hunter's attack power.
+ Glyph of Immolation Trap: Now properly increases damage by 100%. In addition, this glyph will now modify the tooltip of Immolation Trap correctly.
+ Glyph of Mending: This glyph will now modify the amount healed in the tooltip on Mend Pet.
+ Point of No Escape: It is no longer possible to gain benefit from this talent multiple times by having a target affected by multiple of the same hunter's traps. In addition, Freezing Arrow will no longer incorrectly provide a critical strike bonus to players beyond the hunter with this talent.
+ Roar of Sacrifice: Corrected tooltip error.
+ Silencing Shot: Updated tooltip to include the functionality that this ability also interrupts spellcasting on NPCs.
+ Volley: The tooltip for this ability will now update properly from haste.
o Warlocks
+ Conflagrate: This spell will no longer benefit inconsistently from the talents Emberstorm and Improved Immolate, as well as the Glyph of Immolate and Tier 9 set bonus. Just as for Immolate, all stacking percentage increases will be applied additively instead of multiplicatively (+10% and +20% make +30% instead of +32%). In addition, Conflagrate used with Shadowflame will now scale properly from spell power.
+ Curse of the Elements: Rank 4 has been increased to 11%, up from 10%.
+ Drain Soul: This spell now deals 4 times the normal damage for all ranks. Previously it was only ranks 6 and above.
+ Glyph of Conflagrate: Now updates the tooltip of Conflagrate to remove reference to Conflagrate removing an Immolate or Shadowflame effect on the target.
+ Glyph of Siphon Life: This glyph will now modify the tooltip on Siphon Life correctly.
+ Glyph of Unending Breath: Now updates the tooltip on Unending Breath to indicate it increases swim speed.
+ Hellfire: Dealing damage to another player with this ability will now put the Warlock in combat. //haha
+ Improved Shadow Bolt: This talent no longer causes a bug that removes all resilience from pets.
+ Soul Link: Damage transferred via this ability can now be prevented by damage absorption effects.
+ Suffering (Voidwalker): Ranks 5-8 had the incorrect taunt radius of 5 yards and have all been adjusted to a 10-yard radius.
* Game Systems
o Target Effects: When this UI feature is activated, Fear, Silence, Frostbolt, and Hamstring will all now display text over the target's head indicating what type of effect has been applied.

Addon: Power Aura with Death Knight Goodness

“I wish I knew when Horn of Winter dropped off so I knew when to reapply.” ~ My DK tank sighed at me. Fear not! *dramatically points into the air* At this point I proceeded to praise the value of Power Aura.

This addon is more useful then you think it is. The trick is just start messing with it and then you will find all types of ways to use it. I find looking at how other classes use addon gives me ideas on how to use them myself.

Addon Downloads:
Power Auras Classic
Dual Specs enabled version (based on v2.6.0) (which may break in patch since it is a fan update.)

Nibuca over at Mystic Chicanery had a great explanation on how to use Power Auras. There is even a video of it in action.

Garwulf over at the Huntsmans Lodge has an extensive list of how he uses Power Auras for hunters. For my hunter I have incorporated some but not to the extent he lists.

The configuration window for Power Auras can be opened by typing /powa.

From there start becoming one with your aura.

My Death Knight tank then proceeded to make a bunch. I bugged him to share (… and then sat on the email for two weeks.)Other then a yelling at a Shammie for some totem that messed with buffs not stacking everything is working as intended.

Freezing Fog buff:
gcd:bofalse; soundfile:st; owntex:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; duration:nu0; g:nu0.3843137254902; thresholdinvert:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; opt2:nu0; speed:nu1; multiids:st; icon:stInterface\Icons\Spell_Frost_ArcticWinds; size:nu1.7999999523163; torsion:nu1; stance:nu10; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; combat:nu0; customname:st; timer:bofalse; mine:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; optunitn:bofalse; anim2:nu0; textaura:bofalse; party:bofalse; isdebuff:bofalse; wowtex:bofalse; groupany:bofalse; customsound:st; timerduration:nu0; target:bofalse; exact:botrue; unitn:stOnly for raid/group.; bufftype:nu1; threshold:nu50; aurastextfont:nu1; stacks:nu1; isenchant:bofalse; focus:bofalse; customtex:bofalse; raid:bofalse; isdebufftype:bofalse; texture:nu5; buffname:stFreezing Fog; inverse:bofalse; opt1:nu0; r:nu0.25882352941176; randomcolor:bofalse; y:nu-30; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; x:nu0; texmode:nu1; symetrie:nu0; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; sound:nu0; isinraid:bofalse; finish:nu1

Killing Machine buff:
gcd:bofalse; soundfile:st; owntex:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; duration:nu0; g:nu0.13333333333333; thresholdinvert:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; opt2:nu0; speed:nu1; multiids:st; icon:stInterface\Icons\INV_Sword_122; size:nu1.2599999904633; torsion:nu1; stance:nu10; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; combat:nu0; customname:st; timer:bofalse; mine:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; optunitn:bofalse; anim2:nu0; textaura:bofalse; party:bofalse; isdebuff:bofalse; wowtex:bofalse; groupany:bofalse; customsound:st; timerduration:nu0; target:bofalse; exact:bofalse; unitn:stOnly for raid/group.; bufftype:nu1; threshold:nu50; aurastextfont:nu1; stacks:nu0; isenchant:bofalse; focus:bofalse; customtex:bofalse; raid:bofalse; isdebufftype:bofalse; texture:nu23; buffname:stKill; inverse:bofalse; opt1:nu0; r:nu0.058823529411765; randomcolor:bofalse; y:nu-30; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; x:nu0; texmode:nu1; symetrie:nu0; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; sound:nu0; isinraid:bofalse; finish:nu1

Horn of Winter buff (only warns when in combat):
gcd:bofalse; soundfile:st; owntex:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; duration:nu0; g:nu0.13333333333333; thresholdinvert:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; opt2:nu0; speed:nu1; multiids:st; icon:stInterface\Icons\INV_Sword_122; size:nu1.2599999904633; torsion:nu1; stance:nu10; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; combat:nu0; customname:st; timer:bofalse; mine:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; optunitn:bofalse; anim2:nu0; textaura:bofalse; party:bofalse; isdebuff:bofalse; wowtex:bofalse; groupany:bofalse; customsound:st; timerduration:nu0; target:bofalse; exact:bofalse; unitn:stOnly for raid/group.; bufftype:nu1; threshold:nu50; aurastextfont:nu1; stacks:nu0; isenchant:bofalse; focus:bofalse; customtex:bofalse; raid:bofalse; isdebufftype:bofalse; texture:nu23; buffname:stKill; inverse:bofalse; opt1:nu0; r:nu0.058823529411765; randomcolor:bofalse; y:nu-30; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; x:nu0; texmode:nu1; symetrie:nu0; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; sound:nu0; isinraid:bofalse; finish:nu1

Runic Power above 60% (only warns when in combat):
gcd:bofalse; soundfile:st; owntex:bofalse; b:nu0.29411764705882; anim1:nu1; duration:nu0; g:nu0.10980392156863; thresholdinvert:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; opt2:nu0; speed:nu1; multiids:st; icon:stInterface\icons\Spell_fire_meteorstorm; size:nu0.75999999046326; torsion:nu1; stance:nu10; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; combat:nu1; customname:st; timer:bofalse; mine:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; optunitn:bofalse; anim2:nu0; textaura:bofalse; party:bofalse; isdebuff:bofalse; wowtex:bofalse; groupany:bofalse; customsound:st; timerduration:nu0; target:bofalse; exact:bofalse; unitn:stOnly for raid/group.; bufftype:nu10; threshold:nu70; aurastextfont:nu1; stacks:nu0; isenchant:bofalse; focus:bofalse; customtex:bofalse; raid:bofalse; isdebufftype:bofalse; texture:nu20; buffname:st???; inverse:bofalse; opt1:nu0; r:nu0.20392156862745; randomcolor:bofalse; y:nu-87; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; x:nu0; texmode:nu1; symetrie:nu0; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; sound:nu0; isinraid:bofalse; finish:nu1

Runic Power above 90% (only warns when in combat):
gcd:bofalse; soundfile:st; owntex:bofalse; b:nu1; anim1:nu1; duration:nu0; g:nu0.094117647058824; thresholdinvert:bofalse; ignoremaj:botrue; opt2:nu0; speed:nu1; multiids:st; icon:stInterface\icons\Spell_fire_meteorstorm; size:nu0.75; torsion:nu1; stance:nu10; stacksOperator:st=; realaura:nu1; combat:nu1; customname:st; timer:bofalse; mine:bofalse; begin:nu0; off:bofalse; optunitn:bofalse; anim2:nu0; textaura:bofalse; party:bofalse; isdebuff:bofalse; wowtex:bofalse; groupany:bofalse; customsound:st; timerduration:nu0; target:bofalse; exact:bofalse; unitn:stOnly for raid/group.; bufftype:nu10; threshold:nu90; aurastextfont:nu1; stacks:nu0; isenchant:bofalse; focus:bofalse; customtex:bofalse; raid:bofalse; isdebufftype:bofalse; texture:nu20; buffname:st???; inverse:bofalse; opt1:nu0; r:nu0.76078431372549; randomcolor:bofalse; y:nu-87; alpha:nu0.75; aurastext:st; x:nu0; texmode:nu1; symetrie:nu0; ismounted:bofalse; targetfriend:bofalse; sound:nu0; isinraid:bofalse; finish:nu1

Fighting for a Spot

Hydra’s new guild is progressing in TOGC 25. But … I am not.

Frankly my DPS sucks in comparison to the other guild raiders. Yes. Yes. I know they have been farming TOC 25 since it has come out. And they are all geared out. And I just got my achievement for my first clear.

… still doesn’t make be feel better being at the bottom of the meters. Struggling. Not knowing if it is something I am not doing or gear.

For Affliction warlocks there is a great guile to looking at your up time for dots calculations.

For Destruction locks… it is more about always casting, setting priorities to cooldowns on highest damage spells.

So I cheated.

I had another lock, F-lock, in my second run of TOC25 Beasts of Northrend. Comparing, I would at least have someone to ask “What were you doing here?” he did over 20% more damage then I did in the fight. There is a balance of adds, movement, and game mechanics. The data was good enough to get a general idea and some improvement.

To eliminate the gap of spell power on our gear I primarily looked at how many spells landed.

Name	F-lock	Hydra	Difference	Percent
Incinerate(R4)	83	60	23	27.7%
Conflagrate(R1)	31	28	3	9.7%
Immolate(R11)	138	130	8	5.8%
Chaos Bolt	22	21	1	4.5%
Minion:Firebolt	170	173	-3	-1.8%
Corruption(R10)	108
Curse of Agony(R9)	89	190
Curse of Doom(R3)	3
Death Coil(R6)	2

A look at talent procs.

Buff	F-lock	Hydra	Difference	Percent
Empowered Imp	40	24	16	40.0%
Backdraft	29	27	2	6.9%

A look at our base stats.

Stat	F-lock	Hydra	Percent
Hit	12.77%	13.34%
Haste Increase	16.01%	11.56%	27.8%
Geared SP	2524	2311	8.4%
Crit	26.64%	23.77%	2.87%

For me to get a grasp of the effect of haste on our gear, I calculated the typical cast times.

Cast time	F-lock	Hydra
2.5 (Incinerate)	2.09975	2.211
1.5 (Immolate/GCD)	1.25985	1.3266

Some of the observations I made looking at this data and the rest of the log.

1. F-lock was on Dreadscale and not Acidmaw.
2. F-lock was on Gormok and instants on Snowbolds
3. I am really slow on the Incinerates. Check haste?
4. Imps are almost identical Firebolts.
5. I am not using COD. Nub.
6. F-lock putting Corruption and COA on Snobolds. Full rotation on Gormok.
7. I was putting Immolate on Snobold adds.
8. Hit check. Not over. Calculate the Dying Curse vs. Eye of the Broodmother.
9. Glyph check. Replace Immolate with Incinerate. Was supposed to have happened already.
10. Spec check. That is at least correct.
11. Incinerate glyph increases damage but does not address overall number landed.
12. Haste check. F-lock has 27.8% effective haste then I do.
13. F-lock cast 27.7% more Incinerates then I do.
14. Gear haste is affecting the number of Incinerates in a fight cast.
15. Empowered Imp was significantly different.
16. Imps damage spells almost identical. No idea why this is so different. Research.
17. Check to see if F-lock was doing anything significantly different that would address this. Spec change, gear, crit food maybe?

There was then emails back and forth.
F-lock said…

I've become a lazy caster in regular ToC, which will make a big difference in the numbers. If the adds come close, I will switch, but normally in regular mode I do not. This is me cheating on DPS, and not the proper way to do it.

If the group is not over geared (DPS not high enough) I will switch and do the proper burn rotation on adds. And in ToGC I will ALWAYS switch.

NRB, also has some random elements that can hamper casters. During the fight I received zero snobolds, and I do not think I had to move very much at all due to fire, bile, etc.

You will ALSO notice that I start out on Dreadscale as I position myself over on that side, and do NOT move until after they submerge. If the icy big boss at the end is running towards someone else, I will start heading that way on the smash as well to get there early.

I also have limited myself to around 30% crit, and then started stacking haste. 525 haste I believe now, which falls in the 500 -> 600 range which would appear acceptable.

I prioritize my casts in the following manner (I use RAWR BTW, and the Leulier spreadsheet)...
CONFLAGRATE
CHAOS BOLT
IMMOLATE
CURSE OF DOOM
CORRUPTION
INCINERATE

Remember, I also have the 4 piece Tier 9.5 bonus that increases my pets criticals by 10%, which would cause the IMP to crit a lot more......

What I have changed.

1. Reglyphed.
2. Added corruption back into my rotation. Only cast when I move. Also only cast when curse doesn’t need to be reapplied since it has the priority.
3. Use Curse of Doom. Everything doesn’t die in under a minute anymore. (Got out of the habit.)
4. Not beat myself up for lower DPS because of gear. … yea right … It is a work in progress.

All Aboard the Hunter Express

I was chatting with some Hunters in Blog Azeroth Chat. I have 15-gazzion things I want to talk to you about but sometimes posts with numbers take so long they never get posted.

Last week I raided more on my Hunter then on Hydra. This works right now since TOC 10/25 is such short raids. We will see how it goes when Icecrown is released.

[09:09] hydra: For hunters is there really a big difference between stats for the different specs? or stacking agility good for a nub hunter.
[09:14] EuripidesOutDPS: @Hydra agility is always good
[09:15] EuripidesOutDPS: the rare situations where it's less perfect are really specific (like high end gear)
[09:15] hydra: Rip. TOC25 "high end"?
[09:15] EuripidesOutDPS: for a new raider? You bet your butt.
[09:16] myze: Especially if you're SV, Hydra
[09:16] EuripidesOutDPS: also, toc 25 alone won't push ArP past agility- you need at least a few togc 25 pieces for that
[09:16] hydra: =) then I need to figure something out. I have 1 piece 9.5 and a few 245.
[09:16] EuripidesOutDPS: yeah, arp is only better for MM at 630+ imba generally, and then arguably so
[09:16] hydra: only for MM?
[09:17] EuripidesOutDPS: MM hunters that stack agi do more DPS in a lot of situations, but there korolon DPS is a little lower
[09:17] EuripidesOutDPS: only for MM
[09:17] EuripidesOutDPS: SV gets very little from it, and BM even less
[09:17] hydra: I am survival at the moment.
[09:17] EuripidesOutDPS: their attacks already ignore armor
[09:17] EuripidesOutDPS: yeah, agi 100%
[09:17] hydra: Ok.
[09:18] EuripidesOutDPS: and unless you want to carry around 1000g of epic gems to min max the 3 encounters where arp is better than agi for some MM hunters, you're safe with agi
[09:18] hydra: I have hit 5K or more dps. and have been 80 for a little over 3 weeks.
[09:18] EuripidesOutDPS: also, crit if it's a yellow socket and the bonus is good
[09:18] TheStoppableForce: Hy's filthy rich, she might just carry the gems around
[09:18] EuripidesOutDPS: that's good
[09:18] EuripidesOutDPS: I'm filthy rich too, but I didn't get that way by wasting 1000g on every boss change
[09:19] EuripidesOutDPS: Hey Hy, have you run your toon through femaledwarf.com?
[09:19] hydra: Hey now. I am down to only 6K on this toon. she is broke compared to Hydra. Granted this is after leveling both Inscription and Enchanting.
[09:19] EuripidesOutDPS: really? I made money getting those maxed out
[09:19] hydra: I was looking at femaledwarf.com
[09:20] EuripidesOutDPS: check out agi and crit DPS per itemization
[09:20] hydra: The professions were leveled in 4 days. So I would be ready for raid.
[09:20] EuripidesOutDPS: if it's about even, see if you can swap some 20 agi gems in yellow slots out for 10 agi 10 crit ones to get the socket bonus
[09:20] EuripidesOutDPS: ah, that I cant do
[09:20] hydra: Rib... I dont know where on the sheet to see that.
[09:20] EuripidesOutDPS: I took several weeks to make sure I never bought too much and drove prices up
[09:21] EuripidesOutDPS: it's near the bottom- you have a grid with "dps per itemization"
[09:21] hydra: ok. will look.
[09:21] EuripidesOutDPS: here: http://outdps.com/2009/08/11/how-to-use-the-online-dps-calculator/
http://outdps.com/2009/11/06/armor-penetration-vs-agility-redux/
http://outdps.com/2009/09/14/epic-gem-and-enchant-list/
[09:21] hydra: \o/
[09:22] hydra: thanks.
[09:22] EuripidesOutDPS: between those three you have the complete picture :)
[09:22] EuripidesOutDPS: welcome
[09:23] hydra: Rip. sorry for all the hunter question. I am raiding on 2 toons at the moment. and I am neck deep in warlock stuff. You are easier to ask for the hunter stuffs. =)
[09:24] hydra: ... that and I have been rolling around in www.raider101.com
[09:24] hydra: hopping something sticks.

[09:25] hydra: is the wolf really the only raiding pet?
[09:26] hydra: I keep wanting to try like... wind serpent!
[09:26] myze: Just say no
[09:26] hydra: =)
[09:27] myze: And if you're not BM, then yes. And if you are BM, GTFO
[09:28] myze: Though my BM raider in Savant always tops the meters... and ranked on WoL like 5 times last night
[09:29] hydra: I picked up the wolf from felwood with pieces missing. I have kid my tanks that they are eating pieces off of him while I am not looking.
[09:30] hydra: that is why they stand him in fire so they can have charred wolf kabobs.
[09:30] Ratter: lol
[09:30] myze: I'm pretty sure she did about as much DPS on this Beasts attempt that I did the one time I tried BM on 25....
[09:31] myze: And her gear is all from 10mans...

{Insert LOTR conversation on if Legolas Min/Maxed and talent points}

[09:48] hydra: Hunter I did just what raider101.com said. Cause well. I didn’t have time. So figured I would start there.
[09:48] myze: I assume you're 15/56?
[09:49] hydra: ... you would assume I knew that ... you would be wrong. =) *goes and looks*
[09:50] hydra: 18/53 at the moment.
[09:50] hydra: http://www.wowarmory.com/character-sheet.xml?r=Mal%27Ganis&n=Molybdenum
[09:51] hydra: Hit is high. over 8%. . but get gear faster then I can pay attention to it.
[09:51] Nibuca: sounds like a tough problem to have :P
[09:52] hydra: but I think I have stabilized for a bit.
[09:52] hydra: lol.. not a complaint.
[09:52] hydra: just can spec out of hit talents. ... and haven’t.
[09:52] hydra: ;)
[09:52] myze: Some interesting choices there.
[09:53] hydra: rofl
[09:54] myze: If you want to get rid of those Focused Aim points, you can move them right up to Improved stings, it really plays nicely with the current set bonuses out there.
[09:54] hydra: K.
[09:54] myze: Also, you'll have a lot more mana on fights like Faction Champs and Twins where you can Viper Sting an off target
[09:55] hydra: ...viper sting... yea... I guess I should use that in that fight.
[09:55] myze: Yeah, just focus a mage or something, you should never have to go AotV on that fight
[09:56] EuripidesOutDPS: I like that fight
[09:56] myze: You don't need 3/3 EW, 2/3 will be just about as good
[09:56] myze: If you're needed for replenishment, I'd put that point in Hunting Party, if not, I'd put those two points in Resourcefulness
[09:56] Ratter: I'm thinking my point is being made
[09:57] myze: Perhaps.
[09:57] hydra: lol. Ratter.
[09:57] myze: But I'm sure Hydra already does BAMF damage in raids.
[09:57] myze: His spec is fine as is.
[09:57] myze: The improvements I offer are small, but at the top, you scrape for every bit
[09:58] hydra: I think of min/maxing like someone building a mini train set. It can be as detailed or as not as you want. As long as the train still goes and you can still laugh.
[09:59] Nibuca: I never really found trains that interesting...
[10:00] hydra: I love trains! and would make lego towns for them.

Guild Change

The last two years I have been running with the same guild. As of about two weeks ago that is no more.

This was one of the most agonizing decisions in-game the two of us have had to make. I told you when friends transferred. This was a trigger. We started thinking about our game and guild.

I talked to different officers. I talked with those outside guild. I consulted other bloggers. All of the discussion came down to one thing, I needed to break up.

The decision to leave guild was painful. There are really good people there and coming to the conclusion took me weeks. But when I did make the decision I referred to Matticus’ input as an officer and GM about how to leave guild.

The current goal is to NOT transfer off server so we can still be with friends on Farstriders. I talked to friends I know in the four 25 man raiding guilds on server. Keeping up those friendships became a huge asset in this change. The basic things I was interested in.

1. What are the raid times?
2. Can they use a Rogue and Warlock?
3. Will we realistically be able to raid 25s with guild?
4. How is loot distributed?

Timing is everything. The server is Central time but we are Pacific Coast. That would usually put us home just as raid starts or even 30 min after. This one question eliminated two of the four guilds.

Everyone can use good players. I added in the third question because… well… when I started to talk to people I got excitement that we were even THINKing about applying. A good raiding reputation is good.

Since we are a melee and range dps package that added a barrier. We are not even a couple that MUST RAID TOGETHER ALWAYS. As long as most raids are together we are good to be separate. But all we bring is dps and that will not suddenly change. Evasion tanking I don’t think counts. /casts lock heal?

Loot seems where most guilds have their drama. I was mostly looking for if they had a loot system. If bosses dropped bag, mounts, pets, and emblems I would be happy. I know others are not.

I watched the answers I received to see if friends were being nice or if they could truly use us. We were already sitting out in all raids, moving guilds to just do more of that would be counter productive to all parties.

Come to find out that the individual I was talking to at Night Shift was not only a member but was an officer. He told me straight out what they were looking for a rogue and that one of their locks was getting deployed. Plus I had been running with a few members in my PuG 10 man TOC.This is only the third guild that we have been a part of in over three years.

Downloader for 3.3.0 Active

Be aware that it will start when you exit the game. It is a 448MB patch.

Hunter Pre-raid Gear a Lock’s Tip

Euripides over at Outdps.com posted Eidotrope’s Guide to Pre-Raid Hunter Gear.

This was written the day after Moly hit 80. I know Rip posted this in anticipation of all my Hunter questions in BA chat. The first starting off with “Does normal 5 man TOC drop a trinket for hunters? Armor Pen?” then the “Where else can I get trinkets?” … because we have 2 slots you know. Which Rip answered my first few questions and then directed me to the post.

So my lock tip is this…
Pre-raid gearing check out Eidotrope’s Guide to Pre-Raid Hunter Gear.
For button pushing head over to www.raider101.com.

As warlocks we are experts at watching DOT timers, cooldowns, and talent procs. Utilize that knowledge to keeping stings up and watching when things are off cooldown.

Running groups with both my lock and hunter has taught me 2 things.

1. I want Disengage on my lock.
2. I want Life Tap on my hunter.

How I am addressing these new found issues.

1. I am going to adjust my key binding to put Demonic Circle and Disengage on the same key binding.
2. Play my lock more. *grin*

One Reason I Love Him

[Hydra] I keep looking at these scorpions in Blasted Lands they are so pretty. I want to tame one. But they are not good raiding pets.
[Guildie] Don't you want to bring a bad ass pet and not a pretty one.
[Husband] Doesn't Hydra always bring the bad ass?
[Hydra] Awwwwwwww. <3 *hug*

Think Pink

Saturday I participated in Raid for the Cure. Big Bear Butt initiated this event. By the look of things, he had a great help on Horde and Alliance side to create this unified effort. BBB has a nice video and more screenshots up.

I was going to try and make it to level 20 for my mount and reduced aggo level. That didn’t happen. Hey, level 9 is not so bad! The whole time I couldn't help but think about the song Think Pink from one of my favorite movies Funny Face.

Pre-event entertainment is always fun.I didn’t go all the way to Darnassus so I /dance-d while waiting.Then they showed up…We ran and ran. I saw a lot of familiar names, Grimmtooth, Fulguralis and Fuubaar, Kestrel and so many others.I even found Bre, formerly of Gun Loving Dwarf Chicks. *more hugs*We group up with the Horde at Crossroads of all places.Together we took off to the boats in Ratchet to Booty Bay.We all made it.It sure was a lot of fun seeing everyone there! The Warcraft community is the best!