So you want to be a Trooper! (pew pew pew)

Here's a quick overview of the class I am currently playing in SWTOR. I have been leveling Medic Commando, so this is mostly from that viewpoint.
Troopers are a hybrid class. Their storyline involves being part of the Havoc Squad, an elite trooper squad within the Republic. That's all I'm going to say for now. The storyline is the best part.

Power: Troopers use Ammo as their main resource. Ammo is an interesting power source. The more Ammo you have, the higher your regeneration. At full Ammo, your regeneration is about 0.6 per a second. Here's a full look at regen rates.
Betwen 8 and 12 ammo: 0.60 ammo per second
Betwen 3 and 7 ammo: 0.36 ammo per second
Betwen 0 and 2 ammo: 0.24 ammo per second

When you hit 10, you get to choose between two Advance Classes. While both AC's offer DPS specs, your choice affects whether you'll be able to heal or tank.
Vanguard: The Tank AC. I don't know much about this AC. I believe the dps spec in this tree focuses more on closer combat. The Tank spec relies on activating shields to fend off damage.
Commando: The Healing AC. This is also a full on range DPS class spec too. This is Leda's AC. Medic Commando's excel in single target healing, as well as longevity thanks to our unique system of Ammo and regen. We are limited as healers by two things-we do not have an in-combat rez (think Rebirth), and we do not have a powerful AOE. Our largest AOE is a 3 person one. Still. Commando's excel where they are strong. With proper Ammo management, Commando's are competent healers.

Weapons and Armor
A trooper uses Heavy Armor, with primary stats of Aim and Endurance. This does not change when you pick Commando or Vanguard, but the stat priority might change (tanks probably want Endurance more)
Troopers use big guns. Woot! GUNS!!!!
Okay. Vanguards use Blaster Rifles.
Commandos get to use Assault Cannons.

Hammer Shot
This is the ability you need to know. It is free of cost, and allows you to regen your ammo, but continually do damage or heal. It's important to work this into your rotation so you can be giving a constant dps or heal.
As a Commando, at level 14 you will get Combat Support Cell, that changes your Hammer Shot to heal if targeting a player. It's the green beam. :) You use Hammer Shot, and eventually Medical Probe, to charge your weapons. When you hit 30, you use Supercharge Cells, which increase heals and Ammo regen, as well as enhance your healing spells. It's like Tree Form, except a little less powerful but all the same awesome.

Strengths

•  Heavy Armor: allows you to take more hits then normal. Aim is our primary dps/healing stat increasing ranged damage. Endurance is Stamina and Health Regen.
• Strong AOE: I have found that I can easily, at level 25, take out a group of mobs with just two AOE moves. Simple, effective, easy and fast. I can't do that on my Consular. 
• Ammo: I love Ammo. I think it is a really neat power source. The regen mechanic works well, and if your manage it properly, you can never run out of Ammo.
• Companions: We share gear with the first two companions we get, allowing us to easily hand down our gear instead of having to worry about making sure to find or purchase different gear for them. I find this a positive.

Weakness

• Companions: Unless you're a tank, the companion choices in the beginning are kind of meh. As a Commando medic, I would've preferred a Tank right away, but instead got a range dps and a healer. It's not much of a problem, but I wish it was different. If you let your companion run in first to hold onto threat, you risk him being gunned down quickly, while if you end up getting aggro from all the mobs, especially Strong mobs, it feels like
• Lack of AOE Heals: We only have one AOE heal, Kolto Bomb, and it's not nearly that strong, nor does it cover a lot of players. It's also an area spell, so hope everyone is next to each other, or use it on Melee. If Commandos are more tank healers, then I think this won't be a big deal, since Kolto Bomb can be talented to help stave off damage, making it effective for Tank/Melee combos in Operations. But for Flashpoints, it can be a hit or miss. 
• Early Levels: In the beginning it feels like you gain abilities slowly, and you're basically just Explosive Round-ing your way through combat for a while. Hammer Shots, while effective in management,is a weak attack. Of course, once you get AOE dps and the like, you'll start bum rushing your way through mobs. 

Leveling Experience (1-25)
Leveling feels a tad slow because you don't have many attacks in the beginning. While Explosive Round is pretty neat- it knocks down weak mobs in a small radius around the target, it's kind of boring. The only other move you have is Hammer Shot, which is fairly weak.
Once you get your AOE moves-Pulse Cannon, Mortar Volley, and Hail of Bolts (Commando)-leveling becomes a bit easier. While longer fights require you maintain a steady amount of Ammo, you can blow through your Ammo in short fights because you have Recharge and Reload (basically free water and food) to recover quickly afterwards.
For Elite mobs, it's pretty easy to solo them with the right tactics. I mainly send Aric (DPS Companion) in and load the heals onto him. It might take a bit of time, but it's easily doable.

I hope this helps for anyone starting out as a Trooper. I'll probably post some thing about Medic Commandos as I learn how to heal. It's been fun learning something different then the usual. I purposely avoided the HoT healing class (Sawbones Scoundrel Smuggler) so that I could do something different. My next class to post will be the Sith Inquisitor, which is basically a Jedi Consular. But with lightning. Thus cooler. Mwahahahahha.....

Holiday Update: SWTOR Edition

Happy Holidays everyone! I hope you are all having a good one.
I've been really busy, clocking in 40 hours of work this week, and spending that extra free time running around doing holiday things, as well as traveling to a galaxy far far away. That's right people,
SWTOR is FINALLY HERE!
I absolutely love this game. It's everything I want from a MMO: Great lore, quality single player experience and opportunities to do MMO stuff too. Call me a product of the WoW casual age. But it's a game worth checking out.
I can't believe the details in this game. Storylines, little tidbits that allude to KotR. Space Missions are epic and fun!
Class Selection
So I had played a couple beta weekends, and from reading, I had the sense I wanted to be a Sith Inquisitor. I still do. Zap! Anyways, but we're playing Republic, so I ended rolling the equivalent, Jedi Consular. It was fun, and I liked throwing rocks and pieces of buildings at people. For the length of the beta weekends, I focused on these two classes.
Then I was given Early Access on the first day, in the second batch of email waves. I was originally going to play a Jedi Consular, and that is who I stuck with until level 10. Then I saw some Trooper shooting green lazer beams at me, and discovered they could heal to, so off I went to roll a Trooper. There were a few reasons for my class switch. First, was the storyline. I wasn't really into the Consular storyline. It's an interesting story, but I found the Trooper storyline far more interesting. Second was the companion choices. I kind of wanted to romance someone, and I found Aric to be more interesting then the Consular choices. I kind of liked that he acted like a jerk in the beginning. Yeah go figure. I'm THAT girl at heart. Finally, I liked the prospect of shooting big guns far more appealing then throwing bits of rock at people. And thus, Leda was born. I will eventually return to my Consular. Despite my misgivings, nothing beats wielding a lighsaber. Flat out amazing.
Character Creation
So despite the vast amount of character customizations available for all classes, ALL my characters look the same. Yep. I don't really want to be an alien, so I opt for human. I like being thin. lol. And I love this one hairstyle. There are no long hair hairstyles, which is a disappointment. I love long hair. So I opt for this pretty up-do with curls on the side. I use the same head, because the other heads are kind funky looking. I tend to choose between two different eyebrow choices. The only real difference is the eye and hair color.
It's kind of depressing. I wish I was more inclined to add some spice to my life. But considering the role looking at your character plays-I mean they are present in every cutscene, I can't completely blame myself. I also, for the first time, prefer to roll female toons instead of males. I find flirting with girls weird as a male. Maybe when they offer same-sex relationships, I'll feel less odd about it.
Leveling 1-25
I've only been able to reach level 25 on my toon. Leveling has been an overall enjoyable experience, with some frustrations here or there. The number one problem for me has been queue times. Bioware put us on a server that is usually Full, so I spend at least 25 mins during high traffic times, the times I can usually play, in a queue. Lately, the queues have been better, but I'm not entirely sure what Bioware has done to alleviate the problem. Did they add more instances, or are people just changing servers.
Sometimes, I find myself overwhelmed by Strong mobs, and my companion isn't much help. The AI is kind of meh. If I hope to keep them alive the entire fight, I have to make sure they aren't standing in fire and have to keep a good heal on them. That being said, they do allow me to solo Elite mobs, and as a healer, I can just pour heals onto them while they tank. They do a decent amount of damage and tank pretty well. I haven't used a healer yet, so I'm not sure how well the heals are. I've read somewhere that companions are about half a real player. The half that is missing is the half that gets out of fire.
The leveling speed itself is sloooowwwwww. It's not a bad thing. There are so many areas and planets to discover, I am okay with this pace. However, it probably feels slower thanks to WoW's super leveling on crack.
Crew Skills
Crew skills are amazing. It seems kind of slow in the beginning, with a 1+ minutes to create items. But once you have more then one slave companion, you can send them out to do your crew skills while you continue doing your thing. It's an amazing system. No more standing in Org crafting for 20 mins. They do it for you.  Absolutely genius. Where has this been all my gaming life?
Flashpoints
Flashpoints are fun. The boss fights have just the right amount of challenge to them. I like that some of the flashpoints are heavy story-wise. Although groups once again rely on the trinity (tank/heal/dps) I still find the entire experience epic, not normalized. Again, lightsabers change everything.   
Bugs
There have been some weird bugs. My lazer on my ship is bugged out so I can't complete the first space mission. I think they fixed it, but I have not tried it since I failed like 5 times.
My companions do some really weird crap ie-lie on the floor, a lot. Guild chat will randomly stop working. But still, overall a very clean, smooth launch. Except for the long queue times. Those suck. :(
Blog-ee Stuff
So obviously, WoW has been put on hold. I was willing to raid, as long as I was informed of times and people showed up, but raiding never happened. Our SWTOR guild has slowly been growing. I think a majority of people will be getting the game sometime after Christmas, so I am looking forward to being reunited with everyone again. I've still been messing around with Transmog, so I'll probably keep adding outfits when i have time. But to be honest, every single free moment has been spent leveling in SWTOR.
Love this game. You should all go play it.

Quick Updates

Finals
It's finals time, which means I'm not around. My free time is usually spent not studying, and raiding. 
Anyways...
Transmog
Since 4.3 hit I have been OBSESSED with transmogrification. I'm still desperately trying to figure out an outfit I really like for my Cursed Vision of Sargeras, which has ended up with me and headaches for many nights. I really should just pick some dumb rogue look-alike set and go for it. I did do an Ulduar 25 run the other night and was lucky enough to win The Lifebinder. Speaking of getting phat loots...
Dragon Soul
I got a bunch of gear raiding last night. My t13 hands dropped from the new BH boss and I won the roll for the One-handed mace, Vagaries of Time from the first boss of DS. The one who looks like Stonecore's boss...Ozruk...yeah...
It's a neat looking mace, with gears turning. Yeah. I've noticed a theme with the weapons, in particular. They either, look like we ripped a piece off of Deathwing and decided we'd use it as a weapon. Or, they have a Bronze Dragonflight flare to it. So I'm hoping to make with a Bronze Dragonflight theme to go along with it.
Early Access
I am SUPER EXCITED because early access for SWTOR starts next week. And guess who pre-ordered hers the first day and put in the code ASAP. ME! :D So hopefully I get a super early. 12/20/11 12/13/11!

Oh yeah! the whole reason for this post.
I updated my transmog page to include resources and separate pages for my outfits. I will be adding more soon! I hope you enjoy it!

Make it work!

So sadly, as I logged in to do my transmog (which was one of the very few things I was looking forward to), I discovered that in my excitement for finally gaining my tier 12 shoulders, I de'd my Passive Resistor ones. That means no more shiny blue falling feathers for me. I probably won't be raiding anytime soon, especially the lower instances, so I just had to improvise. My set was a mixture of the tier 5 set i wanted to use, and the extra pieces from tier 9 that I liked. The overall outcome was actually pleasant, and I like the way I look.

 The coolest part about transmog is that your enchants on your current weapon show on your transmog weapon. So that beautiful staff is glowing with Power Torrent. :)
Feral by Night
My feral outfit is horrendous. Like depressing. It's such a bad mixture of rogue tier, druid tier, and heroic dungeon sets that it makes no coherent sense. Well that's okay because I have transmog to fix it :D
In case your curious, this is what I look like currently. The helm looked so stupid that I just transmog'd my Ruthless Gladiator helm over it just to have a better look. I still don't match at all though.

I decided to stick with the main idea of using the tier 9 chestpiece which I love. I think it looks...well hot, which my boyfriend points out is because my boobs are showing. <.<
In general, I think of robes, skirts, kilts, dresses as a caster thing, so I choose the T9 legs to match the bluer chest, the crafted Knightbane Carapace. I added some tougher looking boots, and a shady looking helm, that is simply a high collar. Finally, to add that druid touch, I added the green version of the Thunderheart shoulders. I think they add just the right amount of druidism to the outfit without making it overwhelming.
The perfect staff ended up being an old PvP staff, the Brutal Gladiator's Staff, which is a recolour of similar staff in Mt. Hyjal. I like that the blues create unity between the staff and the outfit.

I'm a rogue druid!...and here's a better look at the staff.

Who do you wanna be?
My current WoW Transmog project will be putting together prominent druid NPC outfits together. I tried Broll Bearmantle at first, but there are some odd discolorations between the chest that is perfect and the legs. However, I was able to successfully create a Hamuul Runetotem,-post Leyara attack/Molten Front. This is an exclusive Alliance only outfit because some pieces are are the t9. It's kind of weird considering Hamuul Runetotem is wearing them. But hey! He's cool like that.

I forgot to take a pick of the side with the staff. I will put all the details of each outfit in my transmog page. I hope you liked them. I'll get Broll fixed up and do a few others; maybe Malfurion pre-man/bird/chicken form, and some other NPCs, like the Molten Front guards.

super uber update rant extravaganza

oh Tyrael's mount, you elude me.
I have been really dragging (read digging) my heels about the annual pass. I really really want the mount. But lately, I just don't feel like devoting 15 dollars of my monthly pay check to the Blizzard's cash cow. Yes, I will be obtaining a free Diablo 3 copy, but I was thinking about buying the collector's edition anyways. And then there's the looming giant of Star Wars: The Old Republic, which, after a weekend of beta testing, I near wholeheartedly agree "... that people seem to find it hard to go back to other MMOs once they play The Old Republic." 
800,000 +....er...-
It does not surprise me that WoW has lost a significant amount of subscriptions in this last quarter. Considering it's the holiday season, games are raining down on us, and some of them are highly anticipated. I know multiple people who are leaving WoW for a few months while they bask in COD, Skyrim, and other games. Then with SWTOR looming overhead, I bet Blizzard might be squirming. I think the annual pass was an attempt to try and slow down the inevitable subscription downhill that Blizzard will eventually meet, as do all games. I mean, WoW is almost 7 years old. That's amazing in itself.
I have notoriously taken a lot of "breaks" from WoW. I always feel defeated when I return, tail between my legs, mainly because I miss my class, the friends I play with, or get just damn bored. Something that has been changing is the time I take in between return and break. It's getting smaller. I've only been "back" for a couple months and I'm already considering leaving again. Even with the promise of new content coming soon, I'm just not buying the same song and dance anymore. I was incredibly excited about Mists of Pandaria, but now all I do is watch SWTOR movies and wait for the next beta weekend eagerly.
What's your game?
Information overload has really affected how I feel about druids, and being one. The more I learn about the plans of evil Blizzard, the more I find myself walking away from druids. And I'm so dedicated to being a druid that becoming a "switcher" isn't appealing anymore. And I'm an altoholic. I hate MoP and 4.3 so badly.
The Trinity does not allow for Hybrids. 
Even as a druid, I'm really not buying this hybrid path. I am completely miffed that while other classes got cool new moves and exciting, OP talents in the MoP previews, we were given "hybrid" talents that really don't help us in our desired role. I can't understand how this is going to help a class in a game that's entire battle system is based around the "trinity"-Tank, Heals, DPS. It's entirely situational, and unless Blizz gives us opportunities (all the time), druids are looking at an interesting future. And it is a future I am not okay with.
There are other problems too, with druids being a "hybrid class" We're a hybrid class that needs to be in a narrowing, restrictive form, to play another role. Unless Blizzard has a plan to remedy this problem, I can't really see this working out at all. Of course, that being said, there's plenty of time until 5.0, so lots of time to figure out this stumping block.
4.3 can suck it
The other annoyance is the 4.3 changes looming over me. The nice thing is that by the time 4.3 comes out, I can jump ship into the warm arms of The Old Republic...
My GM, whose this lovable dude (and I am not saying this because he reads this ...hi Ish!), keeps telling me that everything is going to be okay.
I DO NOT THINK IT WILL BE OKAY!
Numbers don't lie. Blizzard's refusal to release or show any sign of helping druids continues to dishearten me. I don't know how long I can keep telling myself "It can all still change," before I sound like an ignorant idiot.
And it's not just the WG nerf. It's the glyph thing too. I hate that they keep trying to make us "choose" glyphs, but they give us no real viable options. How does that give us a choice?
Facing the truth
If I can't even be excited about my class, than how can I be excited about this game. It's tiring being so devoted to a game, and I don't mean just game time. I mean watching Blizzard's moves, and feeling like they affect me personally is getting to be too much.
I'm also just over the lore. That was the major draw for me, but at this point, I'm just irritated with it. Thrall annoys the hell out of me, Aggra can go die in Deathwing's flames, and the new Jaina story is something I really could careless about to speculate. Garrosh has lost my interest simply because I am sick of watching Blizzard drag his character through the scapegoat mud. I will always be a loyal Horde fan because of him, but I can do without watching him spiral downward.
So maybe it's time to move on. I am at another point where I want to step away from WoW again. There is very little I can say about how long it will be. Even without SWTOR or other games to keep me interested, I still don't log on. some good side affects from not logging on include going to bed earlier and not procrastinating on homework. And by the time I'm officially on Winter Break, I will have SWTOR in my hands.
Black Friday Plans
I've been working retail for over 5 years now. This will be my 6th Black Friday (x_x). I'm never really after the big deals: TVs or Computers. I can't. First, don't need them, but even if I wanted them, I'm working, usually in the morning. I do however, stock up on TV on DVD and movies. This year, I'll add music to the list.
The best thing about Black Friday for me is grabbing the TV on DVD that I want. These DVDs usually go for 40 dollars and upward, and every year I can expect to grab what I want for 7-15 dollars a piece. I'm excited to finally get Vampire Diaries 2 and Mad Men 4 for only 20 dollars total together. I'm probably going to travel to Walmart and Best Buy to see what's in their bargain bins as far as DVDs and CDs. I know Target has Lungs by Flo+ the Machine for 6 bucks or something which I am excited about.  The best thing to do on Black Friday is to look.
Games wise, I would love to ad the Diablo II battle chest to my collection, but I have not seen it on sale anywhere. I'm looking for the best Skyrim deal since I'm thinking this will be the game I'll go for if I finally leave WoW in the dust.
Also, once I get off of work, I'm racing home to log onto SWTOR. Can't wait for Beta Test this weekend. I think they also lifted the NDA too. Can't wait to read all the information pouring in. I am so excited for this game, and am 100% behind it.
So...new blog title? Force-casting? :)
Happy holidays everyone!

Corpsegrinding Blizzard.

There has been so much hype and freak out about pandas, that I did not even notice this problem until I read some blog posts, first from Manalicious and then from Piercing Shots. Considering I was actually there (at Blizzcon) I was incredibly shocked because I hadn't even thought about what had happened. This may make me seem intolerant or dense to the situation around, but I think you can't just jump to conclusions about something. 

The Problem
During the Level 90 Tauren Chieftain (whatever they're called) performance, they invite George Fisher, aka. Corpsegrinder on stage. They were about to play their huge Horde song, and they were pumping the crowd up for a big Horde sing along. I guess Corpsegrinder is a huge Horde fan, and they showed a video of him bashing the Alliance and praising the Horde. It should be noted that, from a Blizzcon stand point, it looked like he was just cussing a lot, cuz pretty much everything he said was bleeped out. All I heard was "bleep Alliance, bleep never play Alliance....bleep for the Horde..."
So of course, all the Horde was laughing and cheering.
Why it's more of a problem.
So I guess the words bleeped out weren't just fuck. It was also fag. And homo. Or something. Which, I find pretty deplorable. And I don't agree with. But at the same time, I can honestly say I had no idea.
Manalicious says her friend said:

"So, when I see people like Blizzard putting an asshole like George Fisher up there on stage and an audience cheering at his filthy, homophobic language, it makes me very sad—but it doesn’t surprise me, and I don’t think they’re necessarily evil: They’re just playing out the cultural template that we’re given."

First off, I was cheering. I am a huge Horde fan. But I don't think its fair to say I was particularly cheering for his homophobic language. Again, didn't even hear the homophobic language. I am naive enough to think the only words he had bleeped out were "fuck". Even at the end, I guess he said "cocksucker," but I didn't hear that because a lot of people were cheering. I don't think its fair to just accuse everyone at Blizzcon for being sad and "playing out the cultural template that we're given." It's a much different story when you're caught in a group of people, with loud cheers and this video where all you really here is "bleep bleep bleep".
Now that I know what has been said, I feel pretty awful. My best friends from high school were gay, and I have several others who I all love. I want them so badly to be treated fairly and kindly (ie. marriage for all). And I can't imagine how the LGBT community within WoW may have felt after this all went down.
Blizzard's move from here.
I do believe Blizzard needs to issue a serious apology. Once I saw what he really had said, I was pretty shocked Blizzard would allow this on stage. I mean they obviously knew what he was going to say pre-bleeping. And even then, it's so easy to find the unedited version out there. This tarnishes their image. From a PR standpoint, I'm surprised they didn't issue an apology sooner, considering the LGBT community they have.
Sure they may have thought it was funny and didn't mean anything by it- I can understand that. People freaking out because "how could they put someone up there like that," need to realize that Blizzard probably didn't have the intention of representing themselves with this hateful man, and sincerely believed people would see this as a joke.
That being said, in this aftermath, a heartfelt apology would've been nice. The longer they wait, the worse they look.
Alliance vs. Horde
A lot of bloggers (and commenters) seem upset because when this happened, people rushed to the forums...to complain about Blizz's partiality to the Horde.
Piercing shots' wrote:

"Let's all be clear about this: there is nothing inherently Horde or Alliance about any of us. We're all human beings that may or may not have a preference to play one faction or another for any of a zillion reasons. If you're insulted by Mr. Fisher's diatribe because you play Alliance, you are honestly being kind of silly." 

I find this a bit harsh. There is nothing inherently Lakers or Angels in us either, yet there are still very huge fans, who I am sure would have very hateful words about other teams. It's unfortunate, but not every single person out there is sensitive to hate speech. Most of us wish we were, but we are not.
So where is this apology...
No seriously, I cannot believe Blizzard hasn't issued something sooner. The ETC did, but it wasn't very satisfying. I cannot fathom what Blizzard is doing, just kinda ignoring this. They need better PR people.

Ironically

I've been smacked down from my nerd high from Blizzcon pretty fast. Needless to say, I am extremely unhappy in game right now. I don't want to go into too much detail but I feel pretty f'd up.
I might need a break, specifically from raiding, to see where I want to go WoW wise. Losing my guild, and also not playing Horde has started to really affect me.
There are a lot of factors to figure out, especially since I want to continue playing the game through Mists of Pandaria. But honestly, I have no idea where I'll go. Trying to play with people you want to, but pushing yourself to be in a place you don't want to be, or act a way you aren't used to, really isn't fair or fun. Sometimes, the hardest part is deciding whether it is worth it.
I've always been about responsibly within the game. My biggest belief is that I am taking up someone else's time (when I raid) so I am respectful. I show up on time, I run back to my corpse, I do not dilly dally and go gem/chant new drops. But it's hard when that respect is not reciprocated, in more ways than one.
I am very close to my breaking point tonight. We shall see.

/eyeroll at Jaina Speculation

Now wait. I like Jaina. Back in my Warchief Thrall days, I wanted her to get together with my beloved Warchief. To me, probably one of the most well-developed relationships in the vast world of WoW lore.
But unfortunately, that "like" is also plagued by constant disappointments. Disappointed on how Blizzard portrays her. 
Of course, the usual: this is all speculation. But to be honest, more than not, I find Blizz to be kind of predictable.
The rumor is that Theramore is gonna go BOOM thanks to the Horde. Supposedly this will be the big catalyst that draws passive Jaina into the Horde/Alliance War.
I would think that Blizz would have better plans for her. She has always been a huge advocate of peace and has been working on this for years. To watch her drop all of that because of Theramore's destruction may seem logical, but it also brings about a little inconsistency. The reason I'm kind of up in arms with the idea of seeing Jaina join the war just because Theramore goes boom goes back to a blog I read about female representation in WoW.
From r4healingtouch.wordpress.com:

• Strength of Female Leaders – You can’t expect them to have an equal number of male or female lead story-board characters because ultimately the writers have been working with the same plot line for a while now. What you can comment on is the attitude of the major female roles. Jaina is powerful but she seems to succumb much more to emotions than other major characters. I still can’t shake the sound of her crying in the RP after Deathbringer Saurfang is killed, saying “she’s so proud of her king, <sniffle>”. Sylvanas is strong willed but she is also conniving and deceitful. Even Maiev Shadowsong’s only purpose in the story is to chase after Illidan.

If Jaina's reaction to Theramore being leveled is taking up arms to war, that is on par with an emotional outburst. Which to me, is kind of sexist. To be honest, I always imagined Jaina to be much stronger than that. I also feel that other assholes like Varian and Garrosh have more reason to jump at being fighters than Jaina does. She's always been about peace, and watching her become so emotional that she drops all she believes in just makes her full of estrogen.
Is watching her become so emotional she makes out of character decisions supposed to make her badass?
My favorite speculation is this comment.

• fudge writes: Garrosh, pleased with himself after a hard day of relentlessly murdering, pillaging and god-knows-what in Theramore, comes back to his quarters in Orgrimmar. He's at ease, maybe he's whistling, a Goblin servant pours him a nice horn of wine, then leaves him alone.
  Garrosh relaxes his sour muscles and is about to put down his giant, phallic axe, when he hears a faint, whizzing sound, almost like one of these mage portal spells.
  He turns around, slowly, something cold creeping up his gut.
  A female human with golden hair stands before him, radiating power, as she raises her hand, from which silvery threads of magic erupt, enveloping Garrosh, lifting him off his feet, mercilessly crushing his windpipe.
  "I am Jaina Proudmoore. You destroyed my city. And now you die," the human says, as everything around Garrosh fades to black.

On one hand, we have a cool idea of Jaina killing the one orc everyone hates. On the other, Jaina is basically acting as an assassin to the leader of the Horde, which would, no doubt cause a war. (Perhaps this is what Blizzard wants?) I mean, even though the player base in general hates Garrosh, the orcs do love him, and they would no doubt call for war. Can I just say that also, this person has a complete lack of understanding of what kind of orc Garrosh is (must be an Ally who wrote this).
Reading the description of Jaina on wowpedia.org leads us to think she should be independent and have a "strength of spirit". But unless you've read the comics, all you really do is see Jaina cry.

I'm interested to see what Mists of Pandaria will do with Horde vs. Alliance. Since The Shattering, Baine and Andiun have become the new Thrall and Jaina. Jaina was also key in helping Baine regain Thunder Bluff. I just have a hard time seeing someone whose done all that turn against it because of one event. Something really spectacular must happen. I still think the Jaina we are supposed to see wouldn't jump to Varian's side so quickly. Yes, she would be heartbroken, but I would like to think she has more sense then just being a woman.

And by the way, that Sylvanas lady. She is absolutely bonkers. But it's okay cuz she's hot.

BlizzCon Day Uno: Pandas!

So, I don't know if you guys heard, but China stereotypes the Pandarens are coming to WoW!
It was a pretty exciting first day here at the convention. A lot of new announcements and plans for the fourth expansion. I'm not going to go over every single one, cuz all you need to do is go to wow.joystiq.com and you can get all the information there. I'm also lazy cuz I've only had 7 hours of sleep the last few days.
Mists of Pandaria. It's a risky chance they're taking, but I think at this point, Blizzard has to take that chance to continue holding the attention of its gamers.
Pandas and China Pandaria
The biggest news was obviously the new expansion. Pandarens (those Kung Fu Panda looking pandas) will be the new race and the Monk class will be the new class. Monk class is NOT a hero class, and will start at level 1. Yep, when you are leveling your Panda, I can bet you'll be in dungeon qs full of Pandas. Or maybe not...
The response has been largely mixed, which is no surprise, since when they trademarked the title, the speculation of pandas was also received with mixed feelings. You either love the idea, are freaking SO EXCITED to be a panda, or you freaking hate the idea, think its stupid and wtf pandas!
I understand the skepticism. I think they look outrageously cartoony, especially compared to other races. The idea of Pandarens besides Taurens and Orcs, or Night Elves and Humans, is really odd (hey don't they belong in a zoo?). And it's really hard not to look at them and think, Jack Black (Kung Fu Panda). So I get it.
But at the same time, I think you should give it a chance. The content and videos you see are actually really pretty. I loved the geography and concepts so far, and they really make the world feel like almost ancient China. Rice Paddies, mist surrounded rock pillars. It's a beautiful world. It's also massive, and we will get to explore every inch of it.
The Pandas are a risky race to choose, but it would be difficult to pick up another race. The idea of how the Horde and Alliance come across Pandaria isn't so far fetched that it's bad plot device. Blizzard is extremely lucky to have The Sundering and Deathwing to hide and shake things up.  Nice, convenient lore devices there. I think the oriental feel of Pandaria is great for the artists. The buildings and new creatures have a distinct look to them, and while it sometimes screams stereotypes, I think it breathes a lot of beauty into WoW that has been missing. Seriously, you should see this Giant Turtle island you start on as a Pandaren. Awesome!
The Monk
If you really hate the idea of pandas, well fear not because you don't have to play them at all to play monk. Monk will be available to all races except Goblins and Worgens. There could be many reasons for it. I created a lore theory behind it. The starting areas (which you would be at because Monks start at level 1) are phased areas that deal with the Shattering, and it's aftermath. Having Pandarens magically appear to teach the two races how to be Monks would make no logical lore sense whatsoever.
Anyways, the Monks feel on the little demo I played is hard to describe. You have three power resources, a Chi bar, which is your main power source, then two orb bars that are like runes or something. You get dark and light orbs and a certain amount allows you to use certain moves. Considering I only got to level...er...4? I didn't get to do much with them. The neatest thing about Monks, feel wise, is that they do not auto attack (OH NOES). This allows for more martial arts like play style, which I think is really neat. Also, Monks get Roll...we roll. A lot. Just running around, and then you ROLL. ROLL!
War
 Back to the story. Instead of pulling out Dragonball Z a new super villain on us, like the last expansions, the main villain will be, "war". Basically, red vs. blue. Horde vs. Alliance. It all makes sense now, Garrosh being Warchief. It was the right move to make him Warchief, because let's be honest. If Thrall was in charge, we'd be making cake for Varian. By having two hot blooded, war hungry leaders to take us to war, there isn't a "good" or "bad" side.
Although, in essence, we are all bad. We are basically disturbing a beautiful, rarely touched world that has lived in peace for years. We even bring about evil spirit creatures, that are created by the negativity of our actions. This concept of "war", the villain, makes us all seem like villains.
Talents!
The talent system as a whole is completely different. There are core abilities, which are abilities that all specs should have. Then there are specialization abilities, which are the abilities that pertain specifically to your specialization. Then the talent system, which consists of tiers. At every 15 levels, you choose between three talents, which all have a similar function (Crowd control, Healing, Damage Mitigation, Movement), but do it in a different way. For example: Crowd Control: One move may stun, the other may be an AOE fear that has a CD, and no specific control, and the last will be a single fear that you have more control over.
This is Blizzard's attempt to kick the min/max cookie cutter spec out, and allow for more customization.
They are implementing this system pretty well so far. They went through every. single. talent. tree (how does GC not lose his voice)for. every. single. class. and we got a good look at what they are hoping. I like it a lot! I think it's a good system and is in the right direction.
Do I think it'll actually work? I'm not sure it's enough. I feel like it will be very difficult to balance each talent so that it is an actual personal decision instead of a cookie-cutter one. But it is definitely still way too early, so we have plenty of time to watch it unfold.
Also, talents can be changed like glyphs can, which is great for me! I can simply swap some things so I can have a PvP build and a PvE build without a 3rd spec. I accept :D
Druid Changes
Hey! Cha-cha-changes!
We are now a 4 spec class. Feral has been split up into two specs. Feral (Cat) and Guardian (Tank). It makes sense, and I think its a fair change. Druids are specifically a hybrid class, and our greatest feature is our flexibility. That being said, will being a hybrid player be viable in a raid or dungeon environment, where we each specifically play a role? The last (uber) talent tier involves being a hybrid.
Note: (This is what they have so far, and can of course, be subject to change)
From Sunfyre's Nest: 

• Heart of the Wild (6 min cooldown):  Dramatically improves the Druid’s ability to serve combat roles outside of normal specialization for 45 sec.  Balance:  Healing spells generate Lunar or Solar Energy and benefit from Lunar and Solar Eclipse.  In addition, 50% of Intellect as Agility, 100% of hit rating as expertise rating, and increases armor by 95% while in Bear Form.
• Master Shapeshifter:  Improves the Druid’s effectiveness at briefly switching between forms.  Your melee abilities increase your spell damage by 10% and your non-instant spellcasts increase your attack power by 10%.  Both effects stack up to 3 times and last 15 sec.  Each ability used which benefits from one of these effects consumes one application of that effect.
• Disentanglement: Shapeshifting now removes roots.  In addition, shifting into a form heals the Druid for 20% of maximum health.  This heal cannot be received more often than once every 30 sec.

Will this be okay for raids? Will we be wanted? I'm not sure.
Also, Shamans can spec into a totem talent that basically does what Tranquility does. :( Rawr!
 Anyways, on a positive note.
We did get a new cooldown.

• Cenarion Ward (30 sec cooldown): Protects a friendly target, causing any damage taken to heal the target for 2660 every 2 sec for 6 sec. Gaining the healing effect consumes the Cenarion Ward.  Useable in all shapeshift forms.  Lasts 30 sec.

And Nature's Swiftness finally buffed.

• Nature’s Swiftness (3 min cooldown): When activated, your next Cyclone, Entangling Roots, Healing Touch, Hibernate, Nourish, Rebirth or Regrowth becomes instant, free and castable in all forms.  The healing and duration of this spell is increased by 50%.

Finally! That was a change we really needed.
Oh, and I can choose to summon healing Treants....I can be a treant with more treants. :O
As a restoration druid, I feel weird. With the 4.3 changes and now these, I feel constantly jipped as a druid healer. We never get new spells, we get our form taken away, and we get buffed, then nerfed in an endless cycle under the disguise of "balance". I see the new changes for other classes and I'm excited for them. But I don't feel that excitement as a restoration druid.
And I can't imagine rerolling. But sometimes I feel like I should. Druid is what I am in this game though. I just don't know.
Other Changes
No more ranged slot. No more Relics! Mages, Warlocks, and Priests can be Harry Po'er. No more minimum range for hunters. Eee gads!
PvE Battlegrounds? Yes please! Scenarios? Even more! Challenge Dungeons? YEAHHHHH!!! Transmog items! So pumped!
GOTTA CATCH EM ALL!
No I did not spend BlizzCon playing my Nintendo handheld. Blizzard is implementing Companion Battles, which are essentially Pokemon battles with your cute collectible pets. It's kind of ridiculous. There are some you find in the wild, others you obtain normally. They have a Pokedex Journal that keeps track of them, and where you can find them. You can eventually trade them off as well. You'll get to name them. It's super effective everything, but without the balls.
I personally think this is neat. I love Pokemon. Why not tap into a franchise that is beloved and has transcended generations time and time again.  
Blizzard's Future
We've got SWTOR on the horizon, Rift purchasing bus advertisements outside of the Anaheim Convention Center this weekend, and FTP games everywhere we look. Blizzard's got it tough, and Mists of Pandaria is risky. A comical looking race, a NEUTRAL comical looking race. Pokemon. A newly revamped talent system. Again. It's a lot. But at this point, Blizzard has got to take the chances. If they played it safe, they wouldn't make it. It's what makes them a great company. It's how they pave the way in their industry. I thnk Mists of Pandaria has a lot of new stuff to look forward to, and we're just getting started! I am looking forward to seeing their future.

PS. I'm not sure if I loved or hated the Contests. I'll get back to you.

WTB more dailies

Hallow's End
I am really happy to see Blizzard try and add more incentive to participate in World Events, post hot pink Violet Proto Drake. It's a nice move to keep gamers doing some of these "traditions". Saving a town from fire, trick or treating around Azeroth. It's all tedious and time consuming. Towns are harder to save because no one helps out anymore, even during high activity times. I mean, why would someone do a bunch of mindless tasks that are time consuming, if there is no reward except some candy or Rickety Broom mount. 
Easy..add pets. Pets that can be purchased by a currency only earned by trick or treating, saving towns, doing mindless, time consuming tasks.
Because heavens know that I will be running around, doing Hallow's End crap to get the two pets they added. Yes please! I want my Celestial Dragon!
Traditions get old
I'm sure some people might find nostalgia from doing the same tasks (desecrating flames, saving towns from fires). There are little traditions I enjoy too. Flying on a broom, opening presents on Christmas morning. But some things, specifically bosses, get old. Although Direbrew boss is tolerable, fights like Ahune and the Headless Horseman are just damn well annoying. But alas, I must do them if I want a mount. I don't really expect them to change the fights completely, and considering there's nothing else to do in that mini dungeon-fight, I can't complain too much for doing a 3 minute fight. At least they've been updating the loot over the years.
Dailies
For the first time in...forever, I have been maxing out on dailies, and still have tons more to do. This is the result of a couple of things.
1. Molten Front dailies are like.....15-17 dailies depending on how many vendors you have opened. I have just one vendor to open before I am free from the obligation of doing them daily.
2. I am working on BC rep. I have been doing a couple dailies for Netherwing, although I am mostly focusing on just searching for Netherwing eggs, simply out of laziness. However, during my normal route, I pick up a few dailies to get the added rep.
3. Hallow's End now takes up about 5 dailies as well. And considering they added incentive, by adding currency and more fun items (pets, a wickerman, Flying Broom), I must complete them!
4. The other dailies. Cooking (trying to get the achievement), and Jewelcrafting are a must each day (gotta save for epic patterns)
5. Argent Tournament. As a result of the faction change, my druid lost ALL of her titles and standings with the Argent Tournament. While I was initially upset, this will force me to earn some more crusader tokens so I can buy mounts, which I need.
This is well over 25 dailies and I am usually doing dailies and then realizing I cannot turn them in. I don't like feeling like I need to pick and choose. Once I finish Molten Front next week, I won't feel so constrained. I might just do the few that get me to objectives I need for achievements. Also on the home stretch for Netherwing, and then I can focus on Sha'tari Skyguard or Argent Tournament.
Mount Goals
I am officially attempting to reach the 100 mount goal. I am currently at 76 mounts, with a bunch of mounts heading my way thanks to Netherwing. Once I finish that, I will focus on Argent Tournament so I can buy the racial mounts.
Tonight
Tonight, it's back to Firelands. I am going to a pseudo LAN party at our GM's house. It's one of the perks of playing with people you know, and our in the area. :)
Tomorrow
BLIZZCON! Omg! I am so excited! I have no idea what to expect, but I think it's going to be a blast! :D

the past is depressing, but at least the future looks bright.

Is it Friday yet?
It's been a rough week and a half. A week ago from last Saturday, my grandma fell and broke her hip. It really isn't that bad at first glance, but being that she is 88 years old, and already full of old people problems, it was a horrific domino effect in her health. To be honest, I'm surprised that my grandma has lasted this long. She has always been very frail, specifically mentally. My uncle passed away a little over 2 years ago, and it has been rough on everyone, but I think mostly for her. Ever since then, her health has rapidly deteriorated, and her mental state has been the biggest fall.
Being in the hospital caused a lot of problems for her. Her anxiety has been erratic, and, while she's lashing out at people, her heart rate spikes. But that wasn't the first problem.
Before she could have surgery, they had to get the blood thinner medication she is on, out of her system. Then, they had to get her heart under control, since the extra stress was making it even weaker. Finally, her kidneys decided to start failing, so they had to put her on dialysis. Eventually, her kidneys began to function properly, but her constant anxiety, for being stuck in the hospital for so long, bedridden, kept keeping her heart rate spiked, keeping her from surgery.
It was an endless circle of problems. With some help from anxiety meds, we were able to get her into an incredibly calm state, and on Thursday, 5 days after she was admitted, she finally was able to have surgery.
The surgery went smoothly, but it was a 20 min surgery that ended up taking an hour and a half long.
It's Tuesday now. My grandma will hopefully be moved to a physical therapy facility by tomorrow, however, her anxiety is a constant problem. Health wise, she is considered a miracle case. Her kidneys are working without dialysis, and her heart rate is under control. She is no longer taking pain medication, and she is starting to take medication by pill form which is crucial to her getting out.
My grandma aside, the toughest thing is seeing my mom come home every night and start crying. She is the sole guardian of my grandparents, and although they are living in a great assisted living home, she still has to take them to every doctor's appointment and make all the tough decisions. My brother is currently in Florida, so I've been trying to be as supportive as possible. Unfortunately, this all  happened last week, during midterms. I completely failed one, and did so-so on another. I am extremely tired, and have been in and out of work.
The good news is that my failed test will not result in a failed grade because I've done well on other big projects. I am hoping to at least grab a C in this class. No high expectations here.  
On the bright side...
I am going to my first Blizzcon this weekend ! :D yay!
I'm really excited, even though I have no idea what to expect. I haven't gone to a convention in over a year (usually I pull off a Comic Con every year) so I am ready for this one. I was pretty sad I missed out on Comic Con this year. A lot of my favorite TV shows and actors were there, but I was not. :(
I'm interested to see what a convention based solely around one company will be like. i have gone to Anime Expo and Comic Con a lot, but there was always soooooo much to do. My boyfriend was wondering if I'd go to any lore or class panels, but I'm afraid it might involve me just being angry and fed up.
I am surprised that Blizzard has not commented on the Wild Growth nerf freak out by the community druids, and as patch notes get updated and changed, Resto druids have seen nothing. It's a very sad and painful thing to watch. I really don't feel like rerolling again.
I am really excited to see the Foo Fighters in concert! Yay! Blizzcon!
:D
In Game Shenanigans 
I've been leveling a rogue on the Horde side...for some reason. I'm not sure. The goblin starting area has Thrall in it, in all his new model glory. Unfortunately, his new model was bugged during the fight against Trade Prince. Epic, tiny (he had that shrinking debuff the whole time) fail. Glad I could do all the work. Aggra was also yelling at me to help Thrall, and I just wanted to punch her, like I normally do. :)
I never, in my life thought I would hate Thrall so much.
Although, I am still a huge Horde fan. I really want a Horde lanyard from Blizzcon. Before, I wouldn't even think of showing any WoW out of game pride. But now all I can think about is, man I want that lanyard. The more I play Alliance, the more I want to play Horde. For the Horde!!!!!
We haven't raided much this week because of real life problems. I'm okay with that. Although school is my main focus, the back of my mind is constantly the thought of what will happen when SWTOR comes out. Will I jump ship? Can I afford to have two subs going on? Will I even want to? Will SWTOR hold my attention longer than Rift? God I hope so. Since I am buying the Limited Edition. ><
Is it December yet?
 
 

WTB Transmog

 

Yeah, pretty unfortunate looking. Luckily my tabard covers most of it. But wtf is with that ugly dagger. I need a new weapon.

I've been going through raids the past few months not getting a single drop, and then tonight, I felt like Firelands shit loot on me. I also won the trinket (I usually don't win stuff...ever.)

So it was kind of exciting. Between my Rep belt, buying my tier 12 chestpiece, and two drops, I was a happy camper. 

It's nice actually getting pieces that are itemized for with Haste now. None of this tier chest piece with crit and mastery but no spirit on it. WTF is with that anyways . IDK...

I got my T6 chest piece tonight. I just need the helm to have a complete set. IDK if I will use it. I have a feeling a lot of people will use the tier 6. It's a popular set, and if I was a tauren, I would wear it. But I'm a night elf. So I'm going for pretty. :)

 

Rift between Us part 6 (?...5?)

Wait...whatt?!?!11!
Did I just title my blog WoW's mortal enemy? Well, if I ever wanted my Rift fix (IDK why I would though), I can just enjoy some free play time to see what I'm missing.
This happened to me before, when there was a free day. And do you know what happened when I came back to Rift?
I logged into a ghost town. Because apparently, my old Shard (Realm) was turned into a trial Shard and no one really plays there. Did I feel like transferring (for free but still) my level 50 to another shard. Nah....so here my toons sit, in an empty Shard, waiting for free play, but nothing to do. Noone to play with. :(
Good thing I have WoW.

Final Custom Outfit

I found an awesome belt, so here's the final product.

It's mogging time!

Not quite. But hey, a girl can dream. I am SOOOOOOOOOOO excited for Transmogrification in 4.3 It's probably the only thing I'm really looking forward to. Well, that and by extension, Void Storage, since I can't fit anything else in my bank/bags. It's getting kind of stuffy in there.

Tier Choice
My top tier choice is the tier 5, Nordrassil set. My favorite part about this tier is the color scheme. The dark browns and greens, encircling purple gems. This is my choice "druid" outfit. The Pillar of Ferocity also perfectly matches.

Custom Set 
My all time favorite piece is the Passive Resistor Shoulders. Nothing beats those gorgeous blue feathers, gently falling down, the electric pulse they randomly give off. Unfortunately, this is part of one ugly colored set, with bright blues and ...orange? Peach-ish orange? Not sure. So here is my custom outfit, which I will probably use when 4.3 comes out. I've decided on the T9 chestpeice, since it not only has subtle blue feathers outlining the back and arms, but some nice greens as well. I've paired it up with the T8 headpiece, which matches the crescent shapes on the robe, as well as matches my usual title, Starcaller. Finally I have chosen the Staff of the Redeemed, a blue quest staff that is very similar to Velen's staff. I might use the Pillar, since it matches the belt, which I borrowed from the Tier 5 set. I am looking for a belt with some subtle blues in it, but so far no luck :(.

This is what I've got for now. I don't think I've ever spent so much time on Atlas loot. I hoped you enjoyed my attempts. I will definitely be checking out more leather outfits but for now, these are my choice pieces. I'm hoping that through our Black Temple runs, I can pick up the leather blindfold off Illidan. Then will definitely be creating a set around that.
I love transmog!

TV Shows: What I'm watching?

It's been a few years since I've been excited for fall season. Grey's Anatomy took a tumble, and a variety of my favorite shows were either canceled or ended. None of the new shows usually grabbed my attention. This was not the case this year. A ton of new shows, which moved away from the Reality Show trend, were being shoved in my face. And there are definitely some gems in them.
Ringer
No I am not a closet Buffy fan. But this show, the highly anticipated return of Sarah Michelle Gellar, was definitely worth checking out. It's one of those shows where I can't wait to see what will happen next. The odd thing is that, at times, it's also predictable, but in an odd way. You knew it was coming, just not so soon. There's enough intrigue for a season, but I question the longevity of this show. I mean how long can she keep pretending if a huge reveal has already happened. I mean it's only episode three. Grade: B+

Revenge
I love Emily VanCamp. Her return to the series has us following her quest for revenge against the snooty rich people of the Hamptons. The plotting and social ruining of pretty people is entertaining, but it's hard to feel sorry for VanCamp's character, also named Emily. However, the story telling device used, showing the murder of Emily's fiance, who happens to be the son of the woman she's out to ruin, before hopping back into the past to show how it all went down, has left enough mystery to keep me coming back. Madeleine Stowe as the "Queen of the Hamptons," Victoria Grayson, is icy, conniving, and vulnerable. Grade: B+
 

The Secret Circle
la LALALA la. la LALALA la. laLa. La. laLa. That little soundbite is stuck in my head all the time. I loved Britt Robertson in Life Unexpected, and I love her as Cassie Blake in The Secret Circle. This TV show, from the creators of the Vampire Diaries, is about a secret circle of teenage witches. When Cassie Blake returns to town after her mother's "accidental" death, she sets off explosive magic with 5 other students who pretty much just don't hang out. Out of all of the cast, the most intriguing, besides Cassie, has to be Faye, whose character is the perfect Blair (Waldorf)-Witch (pun intended?). Meanwhile, the parents have an agenda of their own and the dark history is intriguing enough to keep watching. Definitely a fun watch after The Vampire Diaries. Grade: A-


Returning Favorites
Gossip Girl
Oh Blair Waldorf. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
This season is all about Blair. I pretty much forgot about the rest of the cast. I've even grown tired of Chuck. Sure Louis's accent is horrible, and most of the time, I just want Blair and Dan to get together. Elizabeth Hurley's guest arch doesn't really cut it for me, especially since she's paired up with boring, pretty Nate. Serena is suddenly a hard working intern getting stomped all over and has mended fences fast with the creepy/silly Charlie/Ivy. But nothing beats the quips between Blair and Darota, watching Blair scramble to hide her big secret, and fight but still please Louis's family. Totally worth an hour of my life. Grade: B-

Grey's Anatomy
Grey's is back to it's old self. There are still ridiculous soap opera melodrama cases; April is still far too annoying for me to care about her, and the less of Lexi and Mark I see the better. But the drama between Derek and Meredith has captured me right back into the show. The choice to focus on the originals, specifically Mer, Cristina, and Alex, was a smart move too, making the show funny (Cristina stabbing Alex...priceless), but still touching. Their friendship has gone through so many things (thanks to Shonda Rhimes) it's hard not to enjoy their chemistry and be reminded why we love them. Now if only Zola was given back and Derek stopped being a douchebag. Grade: B+

The Vampire Diaries
 Despite loving Damon as a character on this show, I am a huge Stefan/Elena fan. So watching them deal with the Originals, has been heartbreaking at best. But it's a good heartbreat. The writer's have done a great job making the story of Stefan and the Originals interesting. Claus is pretty messed up, but he's oddly relate-able, and the intrigue of him running away from something begs to wonder who could possibly be stronger then a vampire-werewolf hybrid. I can't wait to find out. Grade: A-

Brewfest can suck it!

Another year gone, three in total counting, with no Brewfest mount for my main druid. But it's okay. I got 5 Tremendous Tankards of Terror to make up for it. Yeah...I'm serious. 5 freaken Tankards. And a Shanker. :(
Sadness...

Let Down...Again.

Since I've finally done a good amount of raiding on my druid, having a lot of fun, I can now be truly upset with the patch 4.3 changes.  And while, as my boyfriend has pointed out, it is still very early in the PTR and a lot could change, I can't help but feel extremely pessimistic about the whole ordeal.
I R NOT AMUSED
It might be because I finally got a chance to heal with my fellow members. One night, I remember making a remark about how one of our healers complained a lot about damage. While I can understand that sometimes the raid is not doing what they can to minimize damage done, his complaints were excessive, and in my opinion, an excuse to his poor healing. Yeah, if you can't tell, I am not impressed with this guy. Especially after last night.  
We also took a still fairly poorly geared shaman healer, and he did almost, if not more than the pally, whose in decent gear. Better than mine I think. And while, the number show that yes, druids have much better throughput then other healing classes (because face it-it's all we have), I can't imagine the gap being that high.
Perhaps I was wrong because in the second night of raiding, I healed with our priest and the pally. My heals would start lower, but I would eventually overtake everyone by 150%. I lost to her only once, and it was because I was having a hard time gaining the buffs from Baleroc. Still, the gap was immensely large, to the point that even I have to think...okay I'm probably OP...
I R NOT A FAN
Speaking of throughput, I can now honestly be concerned about the 4.3 changes. The most frustrating of all is Ghostcrawler's flippant response to why they're doing what they're doing. I can't imagine someone like Ghostcrawler having such a limited memory, or knowledge of what is available to druids. That is why I am completely surprised when he believes we are too powerful and need to be balanced. Weren't we given that extra power to counteract not having any utility or unique damage mitigation?
Okay okay, he said he just felt that we were too powerful with a one button heal aoe. I understand that. Wild Growth is too easy  to use, heals for far too much. But. It. Is. All. We. Have. Tranquility is awesome, but it's only so much. We have no real way to combat AOE damage without Rejuvenating the hell out of everyone. Efflorescence only heals three people, and although stronger, perhaps not strong enough. We're HoT healers, yet we're expected to use a casted heal to make use of our really great mastery. Lifebloom is hard to use sometimes, especially if you want to switch tanks. We are, in general, really clunky as healers. Wild Growth is not the only problem, but it's the only one they're looking at.
I can take the Wild Growth nerf. I can even swallow the glyph's nerf. But only if these are not the only changes. Druids need another healing tool to counteract raid damage. We need more glyphs to replace the Wild Growth glyph because face it, we have nothing better. We need an overhaul.
It's just frustrating because, it feels like we're going in a stupid circle.
One Step Forward, Two Steps Way the F Back. 
At the beginning of Cataclysm, druids suffered from poor utility and the inabilty to deal with raid damage. We were given a weak excuse of a fix in the Wild Growth buff. Now we're getting thrown back into the same position of where we once were. In fact, even a few steps back. We now are probably gonna drop the glyph in 10 mans, to take...what....uh....um...Barkskin?....Fuck...
I'm an elitist jerk.
Progression raiding. It involves wiping a lot. It involves a lot of time. It involves less complaining, talking about food and mroe on strategy, fixing our mistakes. It's actually a sometimes serious atmosphere and it's not always fun. But the reward is worth it; and finally getting there with a group of people you are friends with is rewarding.
This may not be the case for my current guild. It might be my fault entirely. I am a complete elitist jerk-who comes from a string of progression guilds that were much more disciplined and focused. They did not start conversations about food and as a result wipe 5 times from the same mob because they were not paying attention. We did not, after two wipes, proclaim the boss too hard and start whining about going to the easier boss over there. I did not have to handhold a healer, tell them what to do with one of their abilities that they SHOULD know how to use already. I was not mocked for making an incredibly small mistake, that resulted in NO wipes, NO damage to anyone else, and only affected Efflorescence.
It makes me really wonder what I'm doing here. I don't feel welcomed by most of the guild. I hate feeling like I'm carrying the guy whose getting all the gear (which won't help him at all because his gear is not the problem). I hate that no one shows up on time.
AND I really hate the Valor Point cap. After a night of annoying raiding, I don't get a single drop, nor a drop of VP either. It makes me want to smash my face in. Is there no reward? Since there apparently isn't, I will write this blog with an elitist perspective and complain my ass off. OMG RAGE!
Transmogrification 
I decided to go with the T5. The shoulders have flowers sprout from them, and they match my choice staff, Staff of Ferocity from Mt Hyjal. This is all Burning Crusade stuff which, in my opinion is the pinnacle of Blizz weapon and armor design. 
Something Positive
I am STILL working on my I <3 Garrosh Hellscream entry, but on this note, thanks to WoWinsider, I discovered this blog, a roleplaying of Garrosh Hellscream. It's hilarious, mostly because it plays on how people see Garrosh, Warriors, and Orcs in general. ME SMASH RAWR!
I admit, my biggest draw to Garrosh is his weaknesses, and the fact he's Blizzard's scapegoat. I have this odd love/hate relationship with Blizzard (and Ghostcrawler and Metzen) that involves me thinking they are idiots for the direction they take the game I oh-so-love. So to see a part of him that I love a lot, played out, is incredibly entertaining to me. Check it out yeah!
The Warchief's Command Board

Best Decision Ever?

Take my money Blizz!!!!
So I ponied up the money and transferred my old main, Covington the druid, over to Deathwing. I have to admit. Probably one of the best decisions I've made in Wow lately. I am so incredibly happy to have my druid back on my active side. I forgot how active I used to be on her (Troll man now a pretty Night Elf female). Max fishing and cooking (score!) and I can dig again, in places where pretty stuff has a chance to drop, instead of greys. My gear looks AMAZING on her. I am sorry, but I love the tier 11, even if only for the winged shoulders. I might just use this as my transmog outfit because I am so attached to it!
It's been weird adjusting to the new mastery. Harmony is a lot different in thought then Symbiosis, and I admit I was obsessed with making good use of Symbiosis back then, but now all I got to do is make sure I have a direct heal being used every 10 seconds. Not hard for my healing style.
Yesterday we did all of Baradin Hold. My heals were pretty meh until I was forced to pop Tranquility. Wow, did my numbers pop up. I think Tranquility is what they need to be nerfing. O.o
Tonight will be my first time in BoT since the nerf on my druid, and then we're off to Firelands. I hope I'm up to game and can flex my power. I'm really excited to get back into this healing thing!
I might update my guide since I'm back healing. Maybe post it on our guildsite forums. r
Blizzcon
My bf is super excited because they announced Foo Fighters for Blizzcon. It's nice that we're getting a concert for the price we paid for our tickets. I'm a convention goer, and Blizzcon is by far the most expensive ticket I've ever bought. Even Comic-con isn't this expensive. However, I've never been and I'm sure it's going to be really fun.

Shaman vs. Druid

You know, my blog used to be titled, the indecisive healer?. This is why.
I present to you a case. I have been asked to gear up a healer for our raid-we have very spotty healer attendance, and have lost 2 of 5 healers that were spotty as well. I find myself surprisingly conflicted with this, for many reasons.
First, which class?
The biggest choice is the class. We currently have a regularly available paladin, usually a priest (sometimes unable to show up). We no longer have a druid and our shaman healer has spotty attendance because his real life is very busy (understandably so).
The initial choice is the druid. I have plenty of healing experience as a druid, and it's the only healing class we no longer have. My use as far as tank healing or raid healing goes can be flexible (although I can almost guarantee that I will be a raid healer).  And, in general, I like druid healing, know what to expect, and that general comfort is good for me.
But that ends it. There are plenty of negatives too. If I am asked to dps, I will not enjoy it. I do not like Balance/Moonkin at all, and Feral is far too complex for me. I'm horrible at melee ranged stuff too. As far as raid utility goes, I bring almost none. We are running with a druid tank at the moment, so Mark is covered. I am no longer useful as a brezer because we have 2 DKs. Innervate is purely for me  now, since it's pretty much one spell for anyone whose not me. I have just realized I do bring Replenishment. So that's a nice thing, especially for the healers. So that might be a good enough reason. But,  as far as the future goes? There's a chance my raid healing capabilities are going to be nerfed. A big fat nerf. That involves me crying.
The PTR notes for 4.3 have announced not only a 20% reduction on the druid spell, Wild Growth, which some druids account to being 30-40% of their overall raid healing, but also a nerf to the glyph, creating a drawback of adding 2 more seconds cooldown. I could go into why this is just BS, but Jaslya says everything much better than I. With a lot more thought. I really hope Ghostcrawler reads her post.
Anyways. Those are some reasons I'm leaning more towards
SHAMAN!
My shaman is 30% away from 85. I have to gear her for BoT/BWD in one day too. This is not a lot of time and will probably involve me breaking things. However there are a lot of benefits to perhaps taking on this challenge.
Shaman is the only class we will probably be missing most of the time. Our only shaman is usually the one missing from our regular group. If he is there, I can be Elemental, which will give us the 5% crit buff we will be missing since I will no longer be on my hunter.
Shaman is a class I will love to play if I'm dpsing. I love both Elemental and Enhancement. They are some of my favorite dps classes to play, probably Enhancement only second to Arms Warrior. I also do enjoy Shaman healing. Its unique and even if you're not spamming it anymore, nothing beats those laser beams of healing.
However, I do not know, nor know what to expect from Shamans in a Cata raid setting. I've heard stories of Shamans struggling and being on the low end of the throughput. This could very well be untrue, and I would have to see how I feel about healing to make a judgement myself.
Although, it might be druid. 
I'm seriously thinking about transferring my original druid over. Despite the fact that I hate the realm, I am seriously missing my druid, and everything he brings with him. He'll have a new name and a new look, but he'll be the original, and I think, I want to go back to him. It's a hefty price, but it might be worth it. Plus he's geared. Well.
We'll have to see what happens.

Class Feedback: Hunters

From the Hunter perspective:

What type of content do you focus on? [PvE/PvP/Both]
Both, mostly PvE, but with my recent move to PvP realm, I am being forced to PvP more.

If PvE, what type of PvE? [Heroics/Raids/Other]
Dailies, Raids, Questing and Leveling.

If PvP, what type of PvP? [Arenas, BGs, Rated BGs]
Strictly regular BGs. I would like to join Rated BGs with some guildies, but my gearing process has been rough because of my short fuse in regular BGs.

What are your biggest quality-of-life issues? For instance, no longer requiring ammo could be considered a quality-of-life improvement for hunters.

•  My stable is too small. 
• Why does my pet get resummoned after dismounting with very little HP. This does create a bit of the problem, especially as a BM.

What makes playing your class more fun?

• Collecting rare pets. 
• Pew pew pew
• Being able to solo certain content that other classes can't.

What makes playing your class less fun?

•  Melee
• Being called a huntard. I do take offense to that. 
• BM isn't really wanted in Raids (at least in my guild).

How do you feel about your “rotation”? (Rotation is the accepted order in which abilities are used to maximum efficiency.)
I mostly play Marksman, especially in raids. The rotation is pretty basic, has enough situational change to make it interesting enough and not a one button mashing fest. I don't find Aspect switching all that easy, but it might just be me.
The BM rotation starts out kind of funny, especially since your pet isn't chilling right up near your target all the time.

What’s on your wish list for your class?

• More stable slots
• More pets to tame
• Pets!
• A third spec. I wish I could have 
• This is random, but I find that Racials are very oddly unbalanced; they shouldn't be that way.

What spells do you use the least?
The one's I can't of. Never use Beast Lore.

edit: I HATE TRAP LAUNCHER, TRAPS, and all TRAP ReLATED THIngs. ESPECIALLY MOVING TRAP TARGETS!

I got the blues

Trapmaster 
I've been feeling pretty down on myself lately. The other night in Firelands, I really struggled with trapping moving mobs that are walking in a square formation. Mainly it's the one in the back corner. When I wasn't failing at that, I accidentally used the wrong trap. Then my trap launcher expired just as I pressed the trap, so it didn't launch. Basically full of fail. I wish I could say that my guild was patient and understanding, but that would be a lie. I'm sure with some practice I can do this better, but people, including myself, have taken for granted targeting. It's a different story when you're trying to line up moving mobs, the arc of the trap, and where and when it will land. Then some smartass had to put on my note The Trapmaster, which I'm not sure was meant in fun or just being a plain jackhole. It's sad that I can't even tell. (I nicely changed my note to F*ck off :)) The whole ordeal has made me really heartsick for my old guild, for many reasons outside this incident. I just miss them all; their personalities, our inside jokes. I hope they are all doing well.
I miss you druid Covington!
Besides feeling sorry for myself, I'm kind of getting sick of this DPS thing. I would really like to try and heal raids again, but we have a pretty full roster, and it's well balanced as far as classes go. I don't know who I'd heal on or who I'd force to dps. I'm thinking of talking to my GM to see if there is anyway or anyone who wanted to start dpsing or something. I'm already kind of the "backup" healer in case someone falls into a ditch, but I'd like to be more than that. I would really like to get back into healing.
Shaman Blankets
I'm kinda freaked out. I've been leveling my Shaman and running instances on her, healing. Man, do I never go oom. This must be some kind of imbalance between my level, my mana pool, and the costs of spells. I did not go to 50% once. I probably didn't even hit 75%. But from what I have seen and what I can tell, I have a feeling this won't be the case at level 85, so I'm trying to be really cautious about this security blanket that's forming around me. Man the mastery is kind of cool though. With the points I have, my heals will do up to 47% more depending on how low my target's health. Talk about one cast healing. My Greater Healing Wave crit for 50k and brought our tank full up. Man my jaw dropped. To the floor. All the way down.  I'm really liking Shaman heals.
Oh oh! I tamed something!
I FINALLY tamed Solix. It took me two attempts and some dying. And some of him dying. But I finally got him! I'm really excited. But now I need more slots. I let go of Aotona because I think he will be easiest to get back. I do have some normal pets, such as a Seagull and the ghost saber from Darkshore, but they have some sentimental value. My boyfriend is attached to the Seagull which he named Mine (Finding Nemo reference). And my ghost saber was a product of me, my old friends Naee and Abarai, journeying to Darkshore at low levels and getting in a duel fight with some Alliance paladin. It was good times.
Anyways, Solix involves kiting him until his energy bar is around 30 ish or so. If it reaches zero, he will die. The best thing to do, is drop a Frost Trap, Concussive Shot him every cd, and just run. When he is tameable, just drop another Frost Trap, Concussive Shot and tame.

He's really pretty, and besides the red lava spider, he is my favorite look for the lava spider. I think Orange is a very good color for one. The Green one, Kirix, who I also have, is a weird color for one, if you ask me. Because you know. lava is orange. I'm thinking I would like Dethalic, blue lava spider, but he is the hardest to come by. I have yet to see him (and I've now seen them all). We'll see. I really can't do much with no slots left :(
Brewfest!
First one of the night, after the whole raid trap debauchery, and I received, in my keg, a nice shiny Brewfest Kodo. Karma? I hope so. Maybe it's Blizzard trying to make me not quit.
I hope I feel better
To be honest, most of these bad feelings may stem from being REALLY tired. I am still working 30 hours a week and on my off time, heading to class. I've had tests, assignments, photo shoots and the like to do.
Garrosh Hellscream
I have been working on blog about Garrosh Hellscream. He's quite the interesting character, and from my perspective, extremely misunderstood. A lot of it has to do with Blizzard and what they want you to see,  and what they end up showing you. Most people dislike him, but I think people dislike him for the wrong reasons. There are a lot of misconceptions about his role in the current Horde, which can be easily dispelled by a simple lore lesson. Anyways, I hope this explains my current obsession with him. In my best scenario, I would hope that Blizzard would give him a book, the way they did Varian, and build his character, humble him a little and make him the leader he has the potential to be. Of course, he won't be. He'll probably die some death that Blizzard will hope we will see as heroic, but most people will be excited he's dead. Blizz is too busy building Thrall up.
Anyways, I hope I can get the entry up soon. It will take a while because I really want it to be well written.

Updates and Ranting

Hello
Yeah, it's been a while. I have actually had a lot of updates, both within game and outside, but there have been so many things going on I haven't had the time to blog. In fact, all free time goes to sleeping.

Are you embarrassed to be a WoW player?

I am a college student at CSU Fullerton. My major is Communications, with an emphasis on Entertainment Studies. Many of my major classes talk  about how Entertainment and Media affect us as a society. So it's no surprise that video games, MMORPGs and WoW come up in our discussions and lectures.
Last night, WoW came up in my Entertainment and Society class. My professor seemed baffled that no one knew what it was. That was obviously a lie. I did know what WoW was. But I was not about to let people know that I played the game. The reason?

There was one person who did know WoW. I know she knew this because when my professor brought up WoW, she blurted out, "That game destroys lives!"
My professor tried to put a less emotional spin on it by saying that yes, people do become extremely addicted to the game. The girl fought back though. "Trust me, it's a life ruiner!" she declared. Someone else then shouted out how it ruined marriages, relationships, etc.

I thought either one of two things about WoW Hater Chick. Either she once played the game and had dealt with serious addiction because of it. Or she had a boyfriend who basically ignored her and dumped her. I like thinking it was the second one because it emphasizes how bitter she seemed.

This is not the first time WoW has come up during my educational career. Two years ago, I wrote a paper about Video Game addiction, giving both sides and adding my own personal spin. I did admit to playing the game. My thesis ended up somewhere on the line of, Video Game addiction is real, but is about personal (or parental) responsibility, and not the companies. I used myself as an example. I am a good student, who maintains a GPA above 3.5, as well as dedicate over 10 hours a week to the game (usually 4 hours two nights a week raiding). I also was working 25 hours a week.

The second time WoW came up was for an Ethnography I did. I treated WoW as a culture and society, which I'm sure most people would agree. In the game, there is a sense of community beyond that of simply a game. People form relationships and long lasting friendships through the game from people across state and even country boundaries. I myself have gained friends from around the country who I think pretty highly of.

Yet still, I am always hesitant to admit that I actually do play the game. Most people at work think I have quit, which isn't entirely true. I did leave for a couple months to get my school and living situation grounded. But I returned during the summer and will probably keep playing through out the school year. When people ask what I do with my free time, I don't fess up to playing right away. I might feel around to see how a person may judge me before I fess up to having a few guilty pleasures.

I asked my friend, who I met through WoW, what he thought about my hesitation to fessing up about being a player. He basically said that playing WoW was no different then going out every night to party and drink, Partying and drinking is usually well accepted, especially at our age. Most of my friends do it to some extent at some point in time. However, like WoW, drinking can result in an addiction and can negatively effect your life if you do not show restraint and moderation. Oh but WoW doesn't give you a hangover.

In the end, my hesitation and fear is the result of some low self esteem and the effect of other people's opinions on me. I need to honestly get over it. The only person who can truly make me feel inferior is me.

Otacon Report: New Realm, New Look, New Pets, New Mounts, ZOMG NEW PATCH

Screenshots will be coming soon. I am on my little netbook so I don't have my screenies here :(

To say I have been busy in the last few days is an understatement. Not only do I stand here (sit) with an entirenew look and name to replace Otacon, but I also have new pets and a new mount. I am also FREAKING EXCITED about Transmogrification! I cannot wait!

But first, the stable
I finally deleted one of my Devilsaurs because I rarely take them out as it is. I have been rocking my Spirit Owl (Ban'thalos) now properly named Barasou, everywhere I go. Absolutely gorgeous! I use him for doing dailies and also whip him out every now and then in PvP. It's funny when I heal myself using my awesome owl, much to the chagrin of that warrior over there. In your face! 
Asides from him, I added ANOTHER Spirit Beast to my collection. Anhka, the green spectral saber that wonders around The Regrowth has recently allowed me to tame it. I was kind of excited to grab him, despite the fact that it now pushes my total Spirit Beast collection to 8. Do I need this many Spirit Beasts? No...no I don't. But I can't bare to let any of them go, even as I find myself running out of stable slots. I almost let go one of my Birds of Prey (Aotona, a Seagull, and Olm the Wise), but opted not to.
I had one slot left, and eventually decided to fill it. I was determined to be intelligent about this, so I did some research and decided on a Worm to help round out my PvP squad. I went down (up) to Northrend and found Rattlebore, a giant jormunger type worm whose black. Easy tame, no real special needs. He's a hearty worm and I still need a name for him.
BTW I am no longer Otacon
I recently transferred and race changed my hunter to join some friends on Deathwing. Since that one week, we downed Cho'gall and all of BoT in one night, about 2 hours. I am not joking. It was so speedy I felt like I had blinked and it was gone. Otacon is now Covington (yes, like my druid. I had a hard time with names) and is a pretty Night Elf. She's really pretty! At first I kind of regretted not making her a worgen, simply for min/max purposes, but to be honest, I like her feel. I am happy with my decision. It's hard to believe she has down Cho'gall before my druid (who probably will never raid again), but it's part of life and a lot of fun. I have also been PvPing a lot, considering Deathwing is a PvP realm. I really enjoy PvP on a hunter, and find that I have the tools for survivability, as well as the strength to easily knock off a few enemies.
It still amazes me, Battlegrounds do. Some people get so upset when things are not going well, and instead of trying to fix a problem, they just turtle, or do something stupid trying to rack up honor, and complain the whole time. They don't offer anything constructive nor do they try and create a strategy to help us win. I admit I am still fairly new in PvP. I don't know the best strategies for winning each of the different games. But if you tell me what to do, hey I'll listen. In fact, I'm really good at listening. I also follow orders pretty good if they don't include, "Go jump off said cliff." Bgs cannot be won by one person; they are won by a group. Sitting around complaining and freaking out at people will not help anyone in the long run.  
KWEEEEHHHHHH?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Did you know that the best part of FFIX was the Chocobo Hot and Cold mini game. Well now you do!
I don't like the mounts I have on my hunter. There's nothing special about them and none of them look really nice. So I sucked it up and ran out to Magister's Terrace and Setthek Halls, hoping for a BC mount to drop. After about a week of Mag T, the white hawkstrider graced me with his presence. I love that these mounts are all based on Horde models, and now that I am Alliance, it makes me feel even more special riding one. :)
Transmofigration. 
I am one of the few people who are SO EXCITED for this part of the Patch. I loved Wardrobe options in Rift, and I will love them EVEN more in WoW. While I may not change my armor too much, the ability to change my weapons is pretty freaking exciting. I am excited to wield a beautiful bow and a kick ass staff or polearm. Can't wait!
I am bummed it got rid of my T7.5 on my druid. That was by far my favorite outfit and I would've loved to see it on my druid again. But alas. I did save my Mag'hari Chieftain's Staff though :)
That's all for now. Hopefully pictures will be up by Sunday night!

Otacon Report: Shiny Birdie of Awesome

Guess whose back with a vengeance. 
Unfortunately for me, work has been overtaking my life. That coupled with my adventures on a new realm with some friends has put my blogging back on hold. I've pretty much leveled a druid on a PvP server (he's sitting at 70% to 85), but I've recently decided, also to help with our raid composition, to transfer my hunter. I'd like to shift my focus to being a hunter, to trying to be the best dps. I'll always have my druid, but for now looks like I'm on my way to being a meter whore.
Neways, that isn't what I wanted to say.
One month later
It took me a few weeks to level but as I rounded the bend on 85, I made the decision to transfer Otacon. I logged on, and LOW and BEHOLD! new NPC Scan freaked out! Ban'thalos!
I had given up on pets for a while because of the headache it was giving me, but I thought I'd give it a shot. I was already sitting on a tree, so I dropped a trap and waited for the bird to round the bend. As I flew up another hunter grabbed him, but he did not trap him so he died from Harsh Moonlight. As I headed up to shoot him, another hunter flew next to me, causing me to twitch and move my hunter from his tree spot. I sighed and went over to the other tree, the one that he wasn't sitting on.
I waited for the bird to make his round, but noticed two druids buzzing around him. I prayed to God that they weren't trying to pull and kill him. I dropped my trap, headed up and Arcane Shot him down. He hit my trap perfectly and my tame began. I could feel my hands shaking as I stared at my screen. One of the druids was fluttering near me and I began to feel sick, like he was gonna interrupt my tame. But he did not. I must really think poorly of people. When my tame ended, I saw Ban'thalos shrink down, then disappear. I panicked. Where'd he go! Ha! being on a tree caused him to move down down below me. The little fluttering druid cheered for me. We both moved down to the ground and danced away with my new spirit beast!

I used the techniques described on this blog . Thanks to Nesrin for the strategy. Worked like a charm.
Transferring decisions
Unfortunately, transferring means I need to choose a new name and race. I can't seem to figure out what to do. Am I going to Min/Max my dps and be a Worgen, or go with how I feel and be a Nelf. To be honest, I want to be a male Nelf because it's most similar in terms of animations to my troll (the way they shoot). But we will see. I am still having a problem.