"Smaller more frequent patches" - Totally...

Breaking news (broken news?), in line with their policy of... no... wait... flying completely in the face of - the whole "smaller patches more often" thing, Blizz' treated us to lovely, lovely 4.3 details! Curiously via an interview for the German gaming site www.gamona.de (hit up that Google translate button) and later via WoWInsider

So What are we getting?

Void Storage!
Transmogrify'ers!
New Instances!
Deathwing!

What does this all mean? click on through...

Give The People What They Want!

Rumours (potentially quite correct ones...) of the new expansion title, has sparked a whole range of really great analysis and speculation about what the 'leaked' title and what that might mean for the progression of the world of Azeroth, but leaving aside what we might see in the new expansion, I'm having a think about why "The Mists of Pandaria"

Could this expansion be "Give The People What They Want"...

The following is total speculation on my part and should definitely not be taken seriously at all, In the slightest...

WoW Yourself

Literally translate yourself into WoW

I don't mean jump into RP, I mean take a good long look at yourself and translate yourself into a WoW archetype, see if you are playing a role or role-playing your self in another world.

What do I mean? Well lets do me:

I'm new in WoW, what am I?

Well I'm human, but we're all that, so that's ignored... so what am I? Well I'm 5'9 mid-to-short for my race, I'm square built with muscle and wide shoulders... I like a drink and have a British appreciation for the art of brewing drinks, I'm half Scotish, that's a large hint!

I'm religious, a liberal christian, the Holy Light would be a friend to me then, but... I don't think I'd ever want to be all up in a fight, no sir, I like to be well away from trouble, making a difference knowing I'm well away from harm (yes, I'm a coward, because it's sensible to be one!)... now add to that I'm pretty good with a rifle (even if I think gun ownership is /insane/!) and I'm a huge dog person. Oh, and I can only play good guys.... can't get my head around even marginally bad good guys.

Okay so that's my map, and you know what? My first character was an Alliance Paladin... I didn't like it because I don't like melee DPS, I'm not a natural gamer and having lots to worry about panics me and I make mistakes.

What am I next most like, an animal loving Dwarf with a gun! Bam! That's me. In this respect my main and I are unsurprisingly the choice I go for most in RPGs.

I translate into game pretty damn well.

On the other hand, other classes I enjoy playing? Holy Priest... I love the way priest mechanics work, I feel like I might actually be a more natural healer than anything else, but I haven't had much time with this...

and Rogue although I haven't played one past level 20, and dislike melee DPS, Rogues are the exception to the rule, because they are never the centre of attention and can stealth through everything, I really like them as a potential

So there we are then, WoW yoursef out: I'm mainly a short stocky animal loving, heavy drinking Dwarf Hunter, I probably follow the Holy Light, and have a simple pet that I have a big bond with, rather than a flashy one. I'm an engineer, and despite my faith put my stock in a bloody big gun in my hand.

Yeah, that sounds like me. What about you? Who and what do you HONESTLY think you match up with?

Are you playing a spec you love but would never really be? Or are you a master of a character type you can only ever fantasise about – or even would hate in real life?

We want your answers guys!

Answers first, and then ....Swear Allegiance  

All Azeroth's a Stage

WoW is an old game, 6 years old to be exact. It has, in this time of unequaled video gaming success, to my (mildly odd) mind, become like some great Shakespearian comedy, acquiring 7 ages of player:

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players,
They have their exits and entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.
Then, the whining schoolboy with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden, and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon's mouth. And then the justice
In fair round belly, with good capon lin'd,
With eyes severe, and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws, and modern instances,
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slipper'd pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose, and pouch on side,
His youthful hose well sav'd, a world too wide,
For his shrunk shank, and his big manly voice,
Turning again towards childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

+50 Culture Points

The epic passage, and summary of the life of one man can be quite analogous to the growth and development of the WoW player, if you have as odd a mind as I dear sir...

The difference being, that for as long as they can, a hero of Azeroth attempts to stop the boat at a point that fits her play style.

Massively Multiplayer online Community - digital dreams, realised.

Wrath of the Lich King... Yeah, what we need y'all to do is kill The Lich King, because he's taking over the world with an army of undead!

Deathwing! Yes, we're glad you brought him up! What we would really like you to do is mess his shit up quite a lot, because he's all kinds of bad.... do you think you could do that for us?

The Titans, Blizzard, (f you've got your tinfoil hat on, The Old Gods,) ask a great deal from the WoW community.

Emerald Daydreaming

Join me if you will, on an Emerald (day)dream, toss and turn with me, if you will, on a few things that make the waking mind realise it's asleep.

Ponder, if you're up for it, why I've managed to post two blog posts in as many days?! … it must be world of witchcraft!

But lets press on:

Tiers before bedtime

I'm not doing very well this expansion, 4.0 drops and I'm levelling from 60-80. 4.1 drops and I'm not in a guild doing troll heroics. 4.2 drops and while I am now in a raiding guild, I'm out of the country for more than a week after it drops, and I chose to level in Vash'jir and have all of Hyjal to do first. Way to be a cutting edge member of the community, with your up to date news and views there Crag.

So I'm back and it's time to log in, what, I wonder... as I pick up my 2 piece Tier 11 items with JP's, is the word from the Blues and what are people talking about? Well... it seems there is some QQ'ing to be done, which is so unlike the WoW community.... yeah...

Bashiok sets the casual cat* amongst the elitist pigeons with this new(ish) line from blizzard: