Wowbrief

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Stormwind Harbor Update

I realised that I never put up the updated shots of Stormwind Harbor. So, here they are!

The entrance to the harbour

As seen from the top

A view of the harbour

From the docks looking back towards the city

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Monday, September 29, 2008

Heroic Mage Lootz

Looking through the caster loot list from level 80 heroics, there is some seriously nice iLevel 200 gear. I have filtered out as many items as I can to narrow down the following mage wishlist. Where possible, I disregarded items with Spirit on them, as this stat is still next to useless for a mage.

Head
Elder Headpiece
Forgotten Shadow Hood

Neck
Amulet of the Spell Flinger
Necklace of Taldaram

Shoulders
Dark Runic Mantle
Mantle of the Tribunal

Back
Ancient Dragon Spirit Cape

Chest
Arcane Flame Altar-Garb / Drakewing Raiments
Egg Sac Robes / Ornate Woolen Stola

Wrists
Azure Cloth Bindings
Savage Wound Wrap

Hands
Silken Bridge Handwraps

Waist
Belt of Unified Souls
Sash of the Servant

Legs
Sorrowgrave's Breeches

Feet
Cleric's Linen Shoes
Stone-Worn Footwraps

Fingers
Annhylde's Ring
Band of Guile
Globule Signet
Ring of the Frenzied Wolvar
Ring of the Traitor King
The Prospector's Prize

Trinkets
Forge Ember
Mark of the War Prisoner
Pendulum of Telluric Currents

Weapons
Netherbreath Spellblade
Cursed Lich Blade
Staff of Draconic Combat

Off-hands
Telestra's Journal
Temple Crystal Fragment

Wands
Rod of the Fallen Monarch
Wand of the San'layn

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Sunday, September 28, 2008

8982 Builds

Death Knight
54/17/0 Blood DPS

Druid
0/55/16 Feral Combat DPS

Hunter
0/59/12 Marksmanship

Mage
20/51/0 Deep Fire

Paladin
0/58/13 Protection

Priest
14/57/0 Holy

Rogue
53/0/18 PvP Mutilate

Shaman
56/5/10 Elemental DPS

Warrior
0/63/8 Fury DPS

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Glyphs Continued

Saturday, September 27, 2008

I did a quick search around the place and couldn't find much information about Glyphs, which are crafted through the new profession, Inscription, and alter spells and skills in some way. So here is my self-gathered information from beta.

Your character has three major and three minor glyph slots. There is a tab in your Spellbook which switches to your glyphs. To equip a glyph, you must be near a Lexicon of Power. Just ask a guard in any city where you can find one. The one in Ironforge is in Thistlefuzz Arcanery, floating above the table on the first floor.

When you click your glyph to apply it, the Spellbook opens automatically to the glyph tab and the appropriate glyph slots begin pulsing -- ie. if you click a major glyph, the three major glyph slots will pulse.

To apply the glyph, just click on the appropriate glyph slot. You will cast for about three seconds to apply it, then the grid will light up and the new glyph will appear. You can Shift Right Click to remove any glyph. Once removed, you will have to buy a new glyph to replace it because the glyphs themselves are consumed upon application.

My recommendation is to choose wisely what glyphs you wish to use, unless you are an inscriber and can craft your own. I have no idea what any given glyph will sell for when the expansion goes live, but because they are consumable, they shouldn't be too expensive -- at least after the initial boom in the market dies down and prices normalise.

It's also great that you can essentially have six glyphs equipped at any given time (seven, if you are an inscriber). This allows for great flexibility in the dynamics of any class!

I think that glyphs will affect how people spec -- at least, to a degree. I know that the Glyph of Fireball is going to be a priority choice for me, considering the advantage of proccing Hot Streak. Losing Fireball's bonus DoT is no big deal in the face of gaining more chance to proc Hot Streak and throw out a Pyroblast, which with World in Flames has a greater chance of critting in itself and throwing up a bigger DoT than Fireball ever could. That, plus you have more chance of getting an Ignite, which in itself makes this glyph very worthwhile. XD

Two final things of note: you cannot equip the same glyph in two sockets -- you will get an error message telling you that it is already equipped; also, tooltips are updated to reflect the changes to skills and spells, so there is no confusion as to the effect that each glyph has.

I look forward to this addition to the game. Polar Bear Cubs are so cute!

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Updated Builds

I do not have the time to test all of these proposed builds, but this is just a compilation of what interests me, and a preview of how I may spec my toons according to the current talent trees.

Death Knight
54/17/0 Dual Wield Blood DPS

Key Blood Talents
Subversion
Bladed Armor
Dark Conviction
Bloody Strikes
Veteran of the Third War
Bloody Vengeance
Abomination's Might
Heart Strike
Might of Mograine
Blood Gorged

Key Frost Talents
Black Ice
Nerves of Cold Steel
Annihilation

Druid
0/52/19 Feral Combat Cat DPS

Key Feral Combat Talents
Savage Fury
Sharpened Claws
Shredding Attacks
Predatory Strikes
Primal Fury
Heart of the Wild
Leader of the Pack
Predatory Instincts
Mangle
Rend and Tear

Key Restoration Talents
Naturalist
Omen of Clarity
Master Shapeshifter

Hunter
0/63/8 Marksmanship

Key Marksmanship Talents
Lethal Shot
Careful Aim
Improved Hunter's Mark
Mortal Shots
Aimed Shot
Ranged Weapon Specialization
Piercing Shots
Trueshot Aura
Wild Quiver
Improved Steady Shot
Marked for Death
Chimera Shot

Key Survival Talents
Improved Tracking

Mage
0/53/18 or 20/51/0 Deep Fire

Key Fire Talents
Improved Fireball
Ignite
Pyroblast
Burning Soul
Improved Scorch
Playing with Fire
Critical Mass
Fire Power
Pyromaniac
Molten Fury
Empowered Fireball
Hot Streak
Burnout

20/0/51 Deep Frost

Key Frost Talents
Improved Frostbolt
Ice Shards
Elemental Precision
Piercing Ice
Icy Veins
Frost Channeling
Cold Snap
Winter's Chill
Arctic Winds
Empowered Frostbolt
Fingers of Frost
Summon Water Elemental
Chilled to the Bone
Deep Freeze

Key Arcane Talents
Arcane Concentration
Focus Magic
Arcane Meditation

Paladin
0/56/15 Protection

Key Protection Talents
Anticipation
Toughness
Reckoning
One-handed Weapon Specialization
Holy Shield
Ardent Defender
Redoubt
Combat Expertise
Avenger's Shield
Hammer of the Righteous

Key Retribution Talents
Deflection
Conviction

Priest
14/0/57 PvE Shadow

Key Discipline Talents
Twin Disciplines
Inner Focus
Meditation

Key Shadow Talents
Improved Spirit Tap
Shadow Affinity
Improved Shadow Word: Pain
Shadow Focus
Mind Flay
Shadow Weaving
Vampiric Embrace
Focused Mind
Mind Melt
Darkness
Shadowform
Shadow Power
Misery
Vampiric Touch
Pain and Suffering
Twisted Faith
Dispersion

Rogue
52/19/0 or 53/0/18 PvP Mutilate

Key Assassination Talents
Malice
Puncturing Wounds
Lethality
Vile Poisons
Cold Blood
Seal Fate
Deadly Brew
Find Weakness
Master Poisoner
Mutilate
Hunger for Blood

20/0/51 PvP Shadow Dance

Key Subtlety Talents
Master of Deception
Camouflage
Serrated Blades
Initiative
Preparation
Dirty Deeds
Hemorrhage
Deadliness
Premeditation
Cheat Death
Sinister Calling
Shadowstep
Shadow Dance

Shaman
0/8/63 PvE Restoration

Key Restoration Talents
Improved Healing Wave
Tidal Force
Healing Grace
Tidal Mastery
Healing Way
Purification
Mana Tide Totem
Blessing of the Eternals
Improved Chain Heal
Nature's Blessing
Earth Shield
Tidal Waves
Riptide

Warrior
15/56/0 Fury DPS

Key Fury Talents
Armored to the Teeth
Cruelty
Commanding Presence
Dual Wield Specialization
Enrage
Precision
Death Wish
Flurry
Bloodthirst
Improved Berserker Stance
Rampage
Titan's Grip

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore

Testing, Testing

I've been testing a level 80 mage recently. My initial impression of fire was a bit off for some reason. Maybe because I didn't stack up Scorch on the target dummy...

Anyway, you can read about my tests and conclusions over at the MMO-Champion forums. I am still weighing up Frost vs. Fire. I will do a little more testing of the two tonight, under real circumstances if possible (ie. a heroic instance).

Also, I came across a funny blog, which I am adding to the side bar. It's called Angry Raid Leader and it is something that I can totally relate to, to a certain extent, having been a raid leader myself in the past. He needs to extend his bandwidth limit though, having advertised to various sites and pulled in a reasonable following!

Finally, check out the cool WotLK mounts. ;)

Gaiwyn of Proudmoore