Jen’s Train of Thought
September 6, 2010, 11:44 pm EST
I hate this.
I hate how some people cannot keep promises. I hate how former close friends have hurt us. I hate how a single person’s words can cause so much conflict. I hate how I cannot do anything when others attack my friends. And I especially hate how everything that came of it could have been avoided and undone, if others had just had the courage to step up and do the right thing, instead of trying to sweep it under a rug and act like it wasn’t there.
I hate how only a week ago everything was close to perfect. I hate how everyone is at each other’s throats. I hate how some refuse to compromise and see reason. I hate how people make personal issues over nothing. And more then anything, I hate doing nothing but watching.
Fare well to all the kindred spirits we are leaving behind. And damn the malicious ones that made this happen.
August 17, 2010, 3:05 am EST
Earlier this week I heard of this wiki someone had made for everyone to post roleplaying information on about their toons, guilds, and all that mess. Intrigued, I poked around it and had a look and well…my first impression was less then favorable.
It concerns roleplaying only on the Moon Guard realm. And like the usual wiki, the pages can be edited. So if someone doesn’t like your toon’s backstory, they can make it the way they think it should be. It even states in the policy on the front page that player’s pages that do not fit a certain criteria can and will be modified. It back tracks a little by saying that it can only be modified to the point that the original idea isn’t altered. My response to that is: Read up the definition of original.
On the very front page are little news items, the first three of which are bashing the users of the wiki. But my personal favorite is this little number. Copy and pasted from the article, though edited for language because I like having a blog.
“I’m about a hair’s width from going seven kinds of bat**** and deleting every page that is overly “Catholic” in its nature. The Light is not the Christian/Catholic God, the Church of the Holy Light is not the Catholic Church. Lore advisories are about to rain down like manna from the heavens and page deletions are about to rise up like a lake of fire from the very bowels of Hell itself.”
First of all, dude, yes the Light is a metaphor for the Catholic Church. I do believe it was the Catholic Crusaders that came up with the term “paladin” in the first place. Though the Light is not God, it is worshiped like one. My lore on the Light is a little fuzzy, but I do recall seeing something somewhere about Elune granting it to the mortal races because it seemed like a good idea at the time. Kind of like when God got Moses up onto a mountain just to give him a couple rocks with words written on them. Funny thing is, I’m not even Christian and I’m okay with this. All I see from the above article is an atheist without the balls to admit he’s kinda biased.
Second, the moderator (yes, the guy who posted this is the moderator) is talking about lore advisories like their federal law or something. I can see deleting a page because it goes against everything in the game, but not because someone doesn’t take your advise. Advising implies that I have the choice to decide you’re full of it and ignore you, and the freedom to do so. If I come up with what I think is a good story arc, I run it by the people in charge not because I want permission, but because I want to see if its something people on the forums would like to get involved in. For instance, I recently came up with a story about another dragon-forged sword, similar to Quel’delar and Quel’serrar. It’s interesting, fun, and goes completely against the established lore. I got the okay to roll with it. But if I had run it by this guy, he would have shot down what could possibly be a deep and riveting story simply because it doesn’t fit into what’s already there. I cannot count all the stories we have on Triptych that go against lore, but I bet it’s the same number of awesome roleplayers we have.
In the right hands, this wiki could be something unique and a something to learn from. But just from what I saw on the home page, the only thing I could learn from this is what NOT to do.
http://moonguard.wikia.com/wiki/Moon_Guard_Wiki
August 6, 2010, 11:55 am EST
Ladies and gentleman. There is a way to PvP. And there is a way not to PvP.
Player-versus-player is something I enjoy immensely. I can kick a boss’ butt all day and everyday, because there are little tricks of the trade that work against the boss every time. But the guy I beat up in PvP one day can come back the next and beat me under the same conditions of the previous fight. PvP requires more skill and thought than raiding, which is why when raiders try and tell me they are one of the top players in the game I laugh at them.
PvP, in its simplest form, is quick, decisive, and even somewhat honorable. I engage you, I defeat you. We both realize who the more skill player is, so there is no need for us to battle anymore. I go about my way, and you go about yours. Maybe we forget we even saw each other.
But as many a naive person will realize, people are dicks. And when you put them on the Internet, and give them some anonymity to hide behind, people will realize and release their inner douchebaggery for the sole purpose of entertaining themselves. Camping is the most common for of PvP wrongness. Fortunately, it can be no more than a minor inconvenience. The campee can simply log out and play on a different character for a while. But even in this case, camping is most often no more than a player simply trying to farm honor, like waiting around for that node of silver to respawn. They are profoundly stupid in thinking they can get material in this way, but at least they aren’t being sadistic about it.
But where there is a will, there is a way. Today I was on the receiving end of a camping so brutal and wrong that it forced me to do something I can count on one hand the number times I have done: desert a battleground. In Warsong Gulch today, where my goal wasn’t even to win but just to farm some honor for a new necklace, our team face a pre-made from Forgotten Coast. At first I applauded them. Even though we were being beaten, I can appreciate skill and forethought when I see it. The fact it was a Horde pre-made made me proud, because the last time I saw a pre-made of this skill, was honestly one I had orchestrated. Forgive the ego, please.
But as the Horde was preparing to get that final cap, what should have been a quick and friendly win turned into a shameful case of griefing. The priest who had our flag simply stood at our graveyard with his entire team. The Horde then proceeded to farm honor from us, killing everyone who rezzed and spamming laughing, cackling, and spitting emotes while doing so. The bodies of the fallen were killed in such close proximity to the spirit guide that our players were forced into group rezzing on the spot, only to be killed too quickly to muster a counter attack of any kind. On a battleground this is beyond wrong, since you cannot physically leave while retaining the honor you gained or with a mark of battle without someone gaining a victory. In this case, you weren’t given time to leave anyway. The only way I was able to leave was to bubble the moment I rezzed. I paused only long enough to bubble another player before dishonorably running with my tail between my legs.
I feel the need to apologize for this pre-made’s actions. I consider myself a Horde player, even though I play Alliance. I have never in my years of playing seen this from the Horde or Alliance. There is nothing to be proud of here, killing Alliance players two at a time with nine of your friends. This is just a case of non-skilled players seeking to boost self esteem from doing easy and pointless tasks, like an adult man beating up a five year old.
Shameful.
July 24, 2010, 11:16 pm EST
I am a week overdue. Watch me as I don’t care.
In light of my little Heigan review, I have decided to post little tidbits of appreciation for, what I feel, are under-appreciated NPCs. First and foremost is…this guy.
Don’t look familiar? That’s because this is the picture from the World of Warcraft trading card game. This is Nathanos Marris, better known as Nathanos Blightcaller.
When he was alive, he was the first and last human ranger lord, trained by the high elves in the ways of…rangering. He served directly under Sylvanus Windrunner, the former ranger-general of Silvermoon. His accomplishments were unprecedented. A brilliant tactician and a powerful fighter, he spent over a decade leading the Alliance in victory against its enemies around Azeroth.
When the Scourge began their march towards Quel’thalas Nathanos was the high elves’ first line of defense. He stationed his detachment outside his house, the Marris Stead, and fought the Scourge army head on. But eventually he was defeated, slain in battle against Ramstein the Gorger, an abomination that eventually found itself defending Stratholme for the Scourge. Nathanos was raised into undeath, but eventually Sylvanus tracked him down and used her banshee powers to free him from the Lich King’s hold. He was named Champion of the Banshee Queen and sent to patrol the Plaguelands and rid them of Scourge and Scarlet Crusaders, and changed his name from Marris to Blightcaller. He is still found in the Plaguelands, along with two pet blighthounds that he plays fetch with whenever he gets bored.
Around level fifty-five Horde characters can get a quest from Sylvanus herself to go and train under Nathanos. This “training” mainly consists of hunting down some of the more vicious creatures inhabiting the area. Eventually he will send you to attack a high-elf post to retrieve a book about him, warning you not to read it under pain of death (but you can read it anyway). He will also send you to kill a Scarlet Crusade messenger and to avenge his death by destroying the abomination who killed him. Doing so will make him salute you and inform you your training is complete.
On Alliance side, it was originally Bolvar Fordragon who sent you to learn of the fate of Nathanos Marris. Now it is King Wrynn, but the end result is the same. Five SI:7 agents were sent to look for Nathanos. Only one returned, who later died in his sleep, screaming through his nightmares. An investigation of the Eastern Plaguelands reveals that is was Nathanos himself that killed the agents, so the adventurer is ordered to put Nathanos out of his misery. Nathanos is a level sixty elite that will use his blighthounds and summoned skeletons to reak havoc on any Alliance dumb enough to mess with him. In vanilla WoW, he was capable of wiping standard twenty-five-man raids. Now, a level eighty with decent gear can solo him effectively.
With the reshaping of the Plaguelands and the fall of the Scourge, Nathanos’ fate is unknown. Personally, I’m hoping he takes Varimathras’ place and starts up another Forsaken special operations unit (which was my inspiration for the Impisi). But sadly, I predict Blizzard will forget about him and he will just vanish. Nathanos wasn’t all that popular to begin with, on Horde or Alliance. But, since he is lore-wise Sylvanus’ go-to guy, I think he should at least get moved to the Undercity and given a new set of quests to hand out. Maybe something to do with this supposed Battle of Andorhal…
July 11, 2010, 6:29 pm EST
The following is a tribute to what has been my favorite boss in World of Warcraft since he first completely and very messily wiped my raid.
Aaaaaaaw, here we go.
Yes, Triptych, this week I have decided to praise the Blizzard employee who came up with the boss known as Heigan the Unclean. He is not the most powerful boss in-game, nor is he the end boss of anything, even his own quarter in Naxxramus. He drops gear that became obsolete almost immediately. But back in the day this gentleman was the bane of every player of WoW who considered themselves a player of WoW. From the newest newbie to the most experienced player, no gamer could speak of the Unclean without using a tone of respect. Or absolute hatred. Today, many will refuse to face him. They will give some excuse about it being pointless, give many reasons why it is pointless, but the real reason is…they are afraid.
For he is Heigan. The Unclean. He feeds on fear. And possibly small children.
Boomkin go straight to his thighs.
The players fear Heigan. The true player bows to him, and revels in the chance to engage him, for to fight the Unclean is to test yourself. Fighting Heigan is not like fighting any boss in the game. It takes skill and wits to best this boss of bosses. You can not just go through a standard tank and spank, nor do you have to mess with some outside influence to damage him. He does not dish out crazy amounts of damage. He does not disappear and call in other minions. He does not shift into different forms with different powers.
No. He simply raises his staff up in the air and turns your world into what can only be seen as hell on Azeroth.
This picture is small so as to appear less terrifying.
From the floor in his room erupts green liquid that can only be an extremely potent form of flesh-eating acid, completely under Heigan’s control. It splashes up into the air and lands on all below it, burning them to the bone as they spend the last moments of their lives screaming their pain for all to hear. You cannot block it. You can only flee. Flee like a coward, while Heigan watches and laughs, humming “Poor Unfortunate Souls” under his breath. Eventually, however, the acid will stop coming. You will stand there, rooted in place as you thank whatever being you worship for sparing you the fate of your comrades, the smell of your soiled undergarments floating around you like a sweet perfume. You will enjoy the smell, and gulp it in, for the stench of your feces tells you that you are alive, and well, and you will live on to fight another day.
Or until Heigan walks up and bashes your face in.
Finish him!
Kudos to you, Heigan. With your deadly floor trap and manly whuppin’ stick, you have spent over four years dishing out full helpings of death to the new and experienced alike. Your avoidance of basic personal hygienes says you are too awesome to follow standard social etiquette, all while boasting the finest example of facial hair this side of the Twisting Nether.
Heigan the Unclean: Pwning noobs since 2006
June 30, 2010, 4:11 pm EST
A comment was dropped to me by a friend of mine in Triptych. They had read up on Malles’ character history, and some of my other character histories, and asked why my toons often came into direct conflict with major lore characters. Or, in Malles’ case, developed friendships with them. I answer with this: Because it makes some damn fine storytelling.
The reply came back with at least three of my toons claiming the lives of major lore villains. To be specific, Malles claims credit for the deaths of Illidan and Varimathras, Isolder for Kae’lthas, and Raaru for Lady Vashj. Again, because it makes some fine storytelling. But, in the case of Raaru and especially Malles, those stories are based on actual in-game events. In Raaru’s case, me and some friends of mine decided to get an all-druid raid together and the majority of the raid wished to do Serpentshine Cavern. I just happened to be the raid leader. But in Malles’ case it was me being somewhat of a arrogant butthole.
The raid I was in was amongst the first on our server to tackle the Black Temple. As one can expect, since we were all doing it for the first time, we wiped A LOT. But we were prepared. Again, me and a buddy spent at least an hour getting together what we thought was the perfect raid. Of the 25 people, we had 5 tanks, 5 healers, and 15 DPS. I was DPS, and my buddy was a healer. Our perfect raid stayed strong and eventually made it to Illidan. And he wiped the floor with us.
Well, almost. It came down to me, my healer buddy, and the two NPC’s. Fortunately, Maeiv had Illidan’s attention so my buddy was able to keep me healed while I just went crazy, fully convinced I was going to die. Depite Illidan’s bare sliver of health everyone else was convinced I was going to die as well and resurrected themselves. But, between my friend’s heals and a potion I had I managed to take down Illidan on my own. And there was much rejoicing.
Everyone said not to loot him, you know, since essentially there were only two people there. But they didn’t say that until I had already looted them. And there, on my first raid, was one of the Twin Blades of Azzinoth. [Warglaive of Azzinoth] Main Hand. I felt I deserved something for my victory. So I needed it before anyone resurrected and logged right there.
Later, when I got back on, my friend ripped me a new one and made me feel bad. So I promised never to ninja something again. My reward for that was honorably looting the second blade of the set in a different raid, as well as giving me material for a kick-ass story. As for Malles killing Varimathras, that a result of me soloing the Battle of the Undercity with him.
Now you know! And knowing’s half the battle!
– Jen
June 23, 2010, 1:19 am EST
So, a while back Gwydion was asking for some writers to post blogs on Triptych Talk!. I humbly volunteered to take up this interesting unpaid job, and submitted my skills to Gwydion. He thought it over, and decided I should get to do this. I will be using this “blog”, I believe it is called, to purvey my thoughts on World of Warcraft at least once a week with somewhat regular updates for the viewing pleasure of those that give a damn. Beginning next week.
I will question, comment, whine, rant, and sometimes even discuss events in the WoW universe, as well as other things. In the sarcastic and (somewhat) humorous form of communication I call speech. And….that’s all I got.
Deuces.
