Ulduar Caster Wishlist

Best in Slot gear is very hard to work out, especially considering that different specs benefit slightly differently from certain gear compositions; raid makeup can make a difference; and then of course there are Tier bonuses to take into account.

When it comes to hit, there are three considerations to make: talents that increase chance to hit; the Draenei racial bonus; the buffs that Shadow Priests and Balance Druids provide. This means that one should have maximum hit gear and then scale it with other pieces according to current raid makeup.

I used to find it pretty easy to do back in TBC raiding. If there was a Draenei in my party, I would switch out a ring that had +12 hit on it. I also swapped out a few pieces for trash, which of course required a lot less hit.

With Ulduar here, and me being unable to raid due to not having found a casual 10-man raiding guild as of yet, I can still look at available gear and see what works in terms of BiS / Tier 8.0 pieces. One can only dream.

This is what I came up with:
Precision (3/3); Required Hit: 367
Cowl of Icy Breaths
Pendant of the Shallow Grave
Valorous Kirin Tor Shoulderpads
Drape of the Spellweaver
Raiments of the Corrupted
Runetouch Handwraps
Valorous Kirin Tor Gauntlets
Binding of the Dragon Matriarch
Leggings of Unstable Discharge
Treads of the Dragon Council
Emerald Signet Ring
Lady Maye's Sapphire Ring
Elemental Focus Stone
Eye of the Broodmother
Firesoul
Igniter Rod
Nurturing Touch
Totals: 367 Hit; 527 Crit; 220 Haste

I also worked out some other pieces to get for swapping in and out, depending on the presence of a Draenei and/or the 3% hit buff from a Shadow Priest or Balance Druid. Circumstances depending, the following are some pieces that are worth getting. It may even pay to mix some of the above pieces around in order to have 4/5 Tier 8.0 for the 4-piece bonus.

Lifespark Visage and Valorous Kirin Tor Hood
Pendant of the Piercing Glare
Valorous Kirin Tor Tunic
Combustion Bracers
Handwraps of Resonance
Conductive Cord
Valorous Kirin Tor Leggings
Stormtip and Plasma Foil
Pillar of Fortitude and Unraveling Reach

Then, of course there are gems and enchants to take into account. So being at the hit cap is dependent on quite a few factors. You can't plan completely unless you know how circumstances will be constantly. And even then it takes a bit of juggling and takes time to build up the gear.

Happy raiding.

Edit: See the wishlist on Warcrafter.net.

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Hardcore Guild is Hardcore

Ensidia has downed Yogg-Saron, the final boss of Ulduar.

Mind you, they are possibly the most hardcore guild in the world at present. And they, along with every other insane guild, have yet to complete Ulduar on "hardmode". Let's just hope that it really will be a serious gear check, and that no one will even get to Algalon the Observer for a few weeks yet.

In other news, I started on the Argent Tournament today. I will try and log in each day to do the dailies and work towards not only becoming a Champion representative, but also to earn enough tokens to get both the ground and flying mounts that are available.

A Mage with a lance. Funfun. >.<

My Warlock is level 30, finally. And I will try and find time also to play my Priest a bit. I will be speccing Discipline next time I log her. I just miss healing. ^_^

Of course, I will fill the build out as I level, until it is 57/14/0. I look forward to healing heroics!

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

3.1 Commences

And patch 3.1 fell hurtling from the sky like a screaming comet, inadvertently bent on the destruction of free time and real life priorities and commitments.

It's upon us at last: the biggest content patch for quite some time, and the first major patch of the current instalment of the game. Highly anticipated by every ilk, whether raider or casual altaholic, PvPer or socialite, patch 3.1 brings a lot of welcome changes and additions to the game.

[Official Ulduar Trailer]

Check it:
Ulduar, with its 14 bosses -- including the old god, Yogg-Saron --, varying tiers of difficulty, and over 800 new pieces of equipment -- including the much anticipated and coveted Tier 8 armor.
The Argent Tournament in Icecrown -- sure to keep most of us occupied for weeks, if not months to come -- with its daily quests, achievements, mounts and other items.
Dual-spec.
Class talent tree changes -- and we get all of our talent points refunded (meaning free respecs for everyone!).
Many profession changes -- including additional recipes, changes to buff durations, tweaking of oldschool items, etc.
And a whole lot more additions, tweaks, fixes and changes. [3.1 Patch Notes]

I really miss raiding. I wish that I was given the opportunity to raid Ulduar, but with my inability (and unwillingness) to commit to a specific raiding day or time, it makes raiding all but impossible. I will, however, be cheering on various high-end guilds in their race to complete Ulduar and defeat Yogg-Saron, garnering them the server first achievement and some form of strange geek respect for having no lives and achieving something so monumental in a mere virtual world.

It is time to dust off my Mage's robes and fire up those afterburners. I want to try and enjoy what content I do get to experience with these additions and changes to the game.

Let the Secrets of Ulduar begin.

Long live the Alliance!

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

3.1 Cometh

So this is what happens when you go on holiday: your blog doesn't get updated. Still, I don't really have much to say regarding anything.

3.1 is still in the works, but it should be coming pretty soon (possibly this week). A few expected changes have been postponed, such as the built-in outfitter. But dual spec is going ahead and Ulduar, with its 800+ items and 16 or so bosses, is looking really good.

I played my Warlock a little bit. She is still a lowbie (level 17) but it's fun to go back to the old world and level another toon. I guess that is one aspect of the game that keeps me playing. I don't have the time to get ten toons to 80, but I can have fun playing any class I choose at whatever level they are at.

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Build 9972

Testing in Ulduar continues, as do changes across the classes. 3.1 must be getting pretty close now. I'm not really that excited about it. Maybe because I play reasonably casually now and am mostly focusing on levelling my alts.

Paladin: Level 67. Enjoying the last vestiges of Nagrand.
Warrior: Level 66. Enjoying Nagrand quests, despite Dvaenya still being there.
Priest: Level 74. Love melting faces.
Death Knight: A handful of heroics down, so around 20 Emblems collected so far.
Mage: Uh, guess I gotta log in for a weapon enchant for Dvaenya's axe and my cloth cooldown... Not much else to do. :o

As for 3.1 builds, I am currently looking at going with the following specs - at least as one of my two possible specs, were I to purchase the dual-spec ability for any of my active toons:

Fire Mage (20/51/0)
Moving away from Frost and going neither Frostfire nor Arcane. With the changes to the Glyph of Molten Armor, it might just be worth it.

Fury Warrior (18/53/0)
Titan's Grip gives large bursts of rage, so I see both Anger Management and Improved Berserker Rage as unnecessary. Otherwise, I would not have enough points to take Bloodsurge.

Shadow Priest (14/0/57)
I decided to take Improved Vampiric Embrace and Psychic Horror. They will both be nice talents in heroics.

Retribution Paladin (12/5/54)
Not much I can say about this. The changes to Exorcism should make taking the glyph worthwhile. And the changes to the Glyph of Seal of Blood should make it worth taking, too.

Blood Death Knight (54/17/0)
Time for a change. I will no doubt have Unholy as my second spec (when I can afford dual-spec for him), but I am keen to try out Blood at level 80. Mark of Blood and Hysteria should both prove to be nice.

Mutilate Rogue (52/17/2)
Back to daggers?! Yup. Don't worry, I will still get some swords for my Combat spec. I am just keen to give Mutilate a shot again. At least, at 80 (when she gets there!).

So, where are the usual Hunter, Druid and Shaman builds? To tell the truth, I can't be bothered either playing with specs or playing them. I know I went to all the trouble of getting my Shammy his epic flyer at 70, but for now I have no intention of levelling him. ^^

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Almost Two Eighties

Just one more level for my beloved Death Knight. I am making good headway into Icecrown, and look forward to doing heroics; possibly starting next week!

I would like to get both my Warrior and Paladin up to at least 70, but Ilyaena is going to be the next alt I level to 80.

Having high level mining will be a bonus, although I heard that Alchemists can make a boatload of money at the moment. Might be time to level the Rogue...?

Apparently they are not making the changes to rage depletion on a stance change. This is disappointing for a levelling warrior. Still, Blizzard don't believe that stance dancing warrants this change. I guess it gives PvP warriors too much of an advantage or something, if they can switch to defensive to spell reflect and then back to 'zerker with little to no rage loss.

Also, apparently, Titan's Grip is getting the nerf bat again. This is just speculation as far as I am concerned, so I will keep my eyes open for a blue post regarding this possible upcoming change.

As for the raiding front, it is such a relief to not have to be on at any particular time to meet a commitment like raiding. I still want to experience Ulduar, but it just doesn't hold importance for me anymore. I play every day, but I am definitely a casual player now.

I look forward to doing more out of game activities and spending my time a bit more wisely. Productivity over entertainment; or something like that. :)

On another note, I was browsing my character armories and had to chuckle at my rogue's pvp statistics. The sheet is absolutely blank and yet she is wearing season 2 / season 3 arena gear. GG no statistic records pre 3.0. >.<

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

More Ulduar Testing

It looks like Ulduar boss testing is coming along nicely. On the US PTR realms we will be getting access to three more bosses this week. I haven't bothered logging into the test realms. I don't have any intention of dedicating myself to raiding, so don't really see the point.

My Death Knight is 78 and is wearing all his crafted and enchanted level 78 blue gear. My Warrior is still 65 but I am now dual wielding Honed Voidaxe and Warsong Howling Axe. Too bad my armour is so terrible. :(

The change to the hearthstone cooldown in 3.1 (from 60 mins to 30 mins) will be helpful. And the change to Lightweave Embroidery is good, too -- it is being changed to a chance on spellcast to increase spellpower by 250 for 15 sec.

With talent tree changes will come revision of my character builds. I will update the Character Overview post to reflect these changes after 3.1 goes live.

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Will I See Ulduar?

As I continue to play my alts I am reminded that I enjoy levelling. There is no commitment to being somewhere at a particular time. I really do like playing casually more than being part of the raiding scene, week in and week out.

The game is my hobby. But I want it to be a hobby that doesn't consume me or dictate how my evening will play out. Everything should come before playing. That's the reality.

Who knows whether I will get to experience Ulduar when 3.1 goes live. But I'm not fussed. I didn't get T5, so I don't expect to get T8. Raiding is fun but it also prevents one from having ultimate flexibility. I can't live like that anymore.

As for my alts: well, my Death Knight is still 77 but I now have all of his 78 blue gear enchanted and ready to go, as well as Titansteel Destroyer ready for when he hits 80. Running heroics will suffice for gear, although I'm sure there will be opportunity to run Naxxramas casually with friends' alts, too.

My Priest is still level 72 but she has finished Borean Tundra, which means I will be hitting up Dragonblight next time I log her shadowy presence.

I've really been enjoying playing my Warrior. I am only halfway through Zangarmarsh but she is already level 65 -- caught up to my Paladin. I managed to get Warsong Howling Axe in just one run of Blood Furnace, and will get Honed Voidaxe as soon as the opportunity to do Ring of Blood presents itself.

I enchanted the axe with Greater Savagery and have another scroll sitting in my bags for the other one. The rest of my gear is terrible, but that should change as I venture into Northrend in three levels.

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Ulduar Unveiled

I've held off on forming a new guild for now. I really want to raid Ulduar when it comes out and to continue raiding other content. It would be nice to build up to 25-man raiding but I don't see it happening for a while.

My Death Knight is level 77. I had to borrow 2,100g to get the epic riding skill plus his Winged Steed of the Ebon Blade. I'll get him to 80 eventually. No real hurry. Just have to pay this gold back eventually. :o

My Priest is level 72. I would like to play her some more to get her mining skill up and to get her closer to 80.

I've transferred over to the test realm and it should be all patched up to date. I will probably log in tomorrow night to see if I can get into an Ulduar run. Looks like there are some nice changes upcoming. See this post for lots of cool stuff, including patch notes and upcoming class changes.

I've gone more casual now. It will be nice to get back into raiding once I get my feet back on the ground. I'd like to keep it somewhat casual though, and pursue more real life priorities.

That's it!

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Raid Stacking

If you haven't heard about it already, here is the blue post that explains the intended changes to raid buffing. Basically, they will allow buffs to extend to the entire raid, whether it be 25- or 10-man. This gives more flexibility and allows you to choose from any and every class-type for raid make-up. It also means that you don't have to juggle groups around depending on the fight, but can leave them intact throughout the instance.

There have been a lot of gear updates over the weekend for WotLK instances. As more people hit level 80, more loot in the end-game instances will be uncovered.

Wowhead hasn't been updated with a lot of these items, but check back over the course of this week to see what has been added:

The Nexus
The Nexus
The Oculus
The Eye of Eternity

Ulduar
Halls of Lightning

Utgarde Keep
Utgarde Pinnacle

Caverns of Time
Stratholme Past

Unfortunately, Naxxramas has yet to be updated. However, check out this placeholder weapon. :o

I get ever closer to getting back into the game.

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore