Monday, October 6, 2014

For The Alliance

For the record, this is the Achievement Vier was working on the night she invited me along.  In this particular case, ignorance was bliss!  If I had known what was up, I'd have been even more scared than I already was!

For The Alliance!
Slay the leaders of the Horde.

No biggie really.  Just Kill All The Masters of the Horde!

The only one I'm missing is: Downing the Dark Lady
Kill Lady Sylvanas Windrunner.

Why? you ask?

The Prize: Reins of the Black War Bear  Which lets you ride this Bad Boy!

I'm not much into mounts, my black and orange flying lion-eagle gets me wherever I need to go.

I'm not much into bears.  Bears Are Bad.

BUT

Now that I'm 3/4 of the way there --- I want this puppy!

just sayin'

Dungeons -- Brewfest -- Ret. Pally -- Flyin' High

In August, I took a week off from WoW to have company, Red Bear came to visit irl!  Then I took a couple of weeks off to recover from Red Bear's visit!  And then I got back to Wow realizing ... OMG only two months til WoD drops!

ACK!

OK, we're up to mid-September in the screenshots and level 74.

Vier was getting bored with my questing so for a few days she ran me through some dungeons.  Which was "Holy Crap" Scary at first.  Though, I was getting some sweet gear - like my glowy, shiny, big axe!  And rackin' up the gold ... gotta get to 5,000 gold so I can get Northrend flying and mount!

Here we are in one of my first dungeon runs.
In the Titan Place - very cool.  Very Mines-of-Moria.
At the same time, I was studying to take my Dual Spec live, something I was very nervous about.  Several times I had the thought "just sign in, and Do It!"  But, I'd chicken out.

When I started my Bank Alt, Soozuu, I even made her a Ret. Pally to see what that was like from the ground up.

[for the non-WoW readers: Retribution Paladin.  The damage-dealing specialization of the Paladins.

In Wow, whenever you get into a group, you can play one of three roles:

  • a Tank [which I have no earthly idea what they do or how they do it], 
  • a Healer [which I told Vier I wanted to be 'cause I had the naive notion I wouldn't be killing things, or killing a lesser number of things -- rolls eyes--], or, 
  • a Damage Dealer.  

What I didn't know, and I don't think I would have listened if Vier told me, was that every group has at least One Tank, One Healer and Many Damage-Dealers [DPS].  When you're starting out, it's easier to hide your ineptness if you're one of many v.s. the One Healer - who, if she screws up - wipes or wrecks the whole group.]

So yes, I was makin' a bank alt and I figured I'd get some "sneak" WoW time.  Time when Vier wouldn't be looking over my shoulder and chiding me for not concentrating on questing and wasting my time fishing.  I even joined a different guild on a whim!
I didn't recognize Vier in this spiffy get-up!
Busted!

Might as well get back into my "real" guild!  And of course, do some fishin'!
Soozuu in Fists with her White Kitten Gift.
Holy Crap!  I caught Old Ironjaw!
Old Ironjaw is mine!  
"The legendary uncatchable fish of Ironforge"   According to El's Angling, catching him is a less than one percent chance! Wow!

Now apparently I have to sneak into Orgrimmar to fish up Ol' Crafty!  Not looking forward to that, go to the link and read the first comment by Dsc666.

I got my Holy Paladin up to the low-70s, healing all the way but during my reading on Ret. Pallies, I've been learning that questing as a healer is not as easy as questing as a DPS [damage dealer].  The tipping point came when I had done so much Ret. Pally studying, that it was interfering with my actions as a Holy Pally.  That was when I knew it was definitely time to switch.

So, there was a day lost trying to figure out how to switch back and forth between the two specs and setting up my action bars for the Ret. Pally spec.

I took a day to re-visit some low level areas and get used to being a Ret. Pally.
Nether Faerie Dragon
woo hoo!  I caught me a Sprite Darter thingy in Feralas!  Drat.  Nope.  I caught a Nether Faerie Dragon  in Feralas, which is cool enough.  But it's the Sprite Darter Hatchling I really want.  Next time.

Got some Explorer Achievements.
Cape of Stranglethorn fully explored!

Got my Brewfest Wolpertinger.
It's a Rabbit with Antlers!
Defeated the Dark Iron Dwarves.
No, my new computer isn't crapping out.  The screenshots are blurry 'cauze I bin drinkin' ... hic!
Drank a Lot!
that's a lotta brewskies
 
Ate my way through the Brewfest Diet!
and a lotta sausages!
Can't help but think of my Papa and the rest of my family out at the lake, eatin' sausages and drinkin' beer!

And saw some cool mounts and pets with other 'toons at Brewfest.
sobering up!
I was feeling pretty confident with my Ret. Pally skills after Brewfest, but just to be sure, I went over to Borean Tundra to do the Airport Quests that I missed the first time I was there.
Now I'm REALLY flying!
Fizzcrank Fullthrottle at the Fizzcrank Airstrip
Fizzcrank Fullthrottle started three sets of four or five quests that had me flyin' to Dalaran in a Gnome Aircraft!
Though why they're equipped with floats for a frozen northern zone is beyond me!
That was a LOT of fun!
Great STOL characteristics on this plane!
Vier dropped by on her fancy flyin' disc and ran me through the spider dungeons.

That was NOT fun.
 O.M.G.  
ugh  HUGE spiders and webs everywhere!
shudder
but ...  Ding 76!  YaY!

Now, I've been a Ret. Pally for a few weeks and I ain't lookin' back!

Early Northrend - Dungeon Runs - Profession Quandary - Killing Horde Leaders!

So, questing in Northrend starts off great!
Waiting for the Turtle Boat beside Agloolik [sounds like Igloolik!]

Riding the Turtle Boat!  
Riding the boat for a quest, for real, not just for fun while we're up here touring and looking for Elders!

woo hoo!

Back to Stormwind to work on Cooking and Mining. I am trying to get my mining up to a level so I don't have to ignore ore veins as I'm questing because my mining level isn't high enough.  So that means back to Outland for Fel Iron.
Take a boat to Stormwind
Cooking over 400 - getting there!
Though part of me says ignore my professions while I'm questing.  'cept, what do I do with the tonnes of ore in my bank now?  I hate to vendor them and have to re-aquire them.  But they're taking up so much bag and bank space.  But my levels are too low to make stuff with them without running around all over Azeroth gathering pearls and citrine.
Looking for Fel Iron - Smelting Fel Iron
 What's a Space Goat to do?

Start a bank alt?  Who doesn't have any bags, and distracts you ...
A quiet little park, nestled in a corner of Stormwind
Soozuu at a little park she found in Stormwind.
Nyx catchin' some squirrels!

Noritam at level 72 with her Guild Tabard on.
Although, even Vier can cause a distraction from questing to 90, from time to time!
Showing off new gear and title!

Stupid.  Stoopid Weatherguard Keep Quest. Of course on a day when Vier's around to help me quest by killing stuff, I get a quest that she can't help me with!
stoopid quest
Take a bird,... learn to fly it,... pick up stranded villagers ... and deliver them to safety.  While Vier gets bored.  argh!

Takes forever and forever to pick up a villager then all of the sudden ... I got one!  

Crap! Now what do I do?

[see chat log]

Nor: "Shit!  Where do I take him?"

Vier [slightly startled]: "um ... to the keep I think?"

Helpless Villager: "Thanks!  You saved my life.  You're my guardian angel ..."

Nor:  "ya, ya, ... whatevs ... where do I take you and how many more of you guys do I have to save?"

I hate this quest!

Questing in Dragonblight with the Night Elves.
Level 73!
Back on the Turtle Boat.

Distraction:  Vier is doing a group quest in the middle of the night to get a Battle Bear Mount, do I want to go along?

We're gonna kill 4 leaders of the Horde.

Payback for Christmas Eve!  ... ... Damn right I wanna go along!
Can they see us?  um ... well, ya!  Why aren't they doing anything?  They can't 'til we start something!
Oh so many things to learn!
As Penny would say ... "Holy Crap onna Cracker!"
Needless to say, I didn't have a clue what was going on, and I'm not sure I helped as much as I hindered but ... only one more Horde Leader to kill and I get my War Bear too!

Vier gets More Gear, another TiTle and a companion pet to match Alphonse!!

Bane of the Fallen King
That's a pretty fierce face ya got on there Vier!
Even though I'm taking forever to get to 90, we must take breaks now and again to admire the growing collection of our resident mount-a-holic!
Armored Black Kitty
ooooo - a very fierce lookin' serpent!  gotta get me one of those!
A Kite from Panda Land
To tell the truth, I was just about to mock this next mount, when appeared a hitching post right in front of me.
A Fiery Warhorse with Sharesies!
"What's this?"  [it's kinda like in my way, blocking my path daughter dear --- I'm thinking]
 
"Click on it"

"Oh!"  "a War Horse for Me too?!"

"aw"
I like this one!
Oh wait!  I got a something new of my own to show off!  He was on sale!
Yes, I finally gave in and ordered a couple of pets from the Blizzard Store - even though I said I'd never pay for a pet!  I am Weak!

Alterac Brew Pup - yes, two links.  One to a very cute You Tube on the Brew Pup and one to a great screenshot on wowhead that highlights his drool!

If you click on him, you get the "You create: Mulled Alterac Brandy" thingy and then you get some brandy to drink.  Then you get tipsy ...
Drinking and Flying ...
Flying Under the Influence --- NOT a good idea!
Ciao for now!
Nor.

Beginning of Northrend and Sealybrooke in Dun Morogh

Good Grief!  It's the beginning of October and I'm still doing catch-up posts from the end of July and beginning of August!

I am a terrible blogger!

The plan for today was to do a quick blog post, mostly a little narrative of a few selected screenshots.  Just to make a blog post.  It took a bit of time to sort through my screenshots, and I discovered a blog post I had started but not posted, so, posted that and here we go: a select bit of screenshots to catch us up ... a bit.

Northrend:  For the most part, I'm loving sections of Northrend.  They remind me of my time spent up north.  Well, except for the big trees in the tundra-like landscapes and the penguins-with-polar-bears!  But, meh!  it's a game!

I just LOVE the Tuskarrs!

Side Bar: Labbattblue caught sight of me in Dalaran one day. Did a bit of a double-take and then a "Look at you go girl!"  It was so sweet.  A former guildy who was there at the beginning when Noritam was still RP walking 'cause "running" was too fast to navigate to! LOL!  Now, when I'm back "home" on Azuremyst Isle I'm bemoaning my inability to fly there, and having to "walk so slow" or be restricted to a ground mount.  We've come a long way boys and girls!

One night, I ran into Anataniya in Dalaran and she gifted me with some more pets.

Being gifted with more pets and receiving unearned achievements!

THEN she side-tracked me:  Anataniya-as-Tishiania had me questing with Sealybrooke in Dun Morogh and the Wetlands!

Tish has the coolest mounts!
A motorcycle with side-car for Sealy to catch a ride!

On her Mammoth going through a mountain pass outside Ironforge

Ding 23!

Ding 24!
Phew!  That's a lot of progress for Sealy.  Of course, we have to relax and do a little fishin' after a hard day of questing.  Though finding the fishing trainer and the Forlorn Cavern was a bit tricky the first five times I had to find it!  I think I have it down pat now.
YaY!  Sealy gets the "Find Fish" ability! w00t!

Meanwhile, Nor was questing the low 70's and running some dungeons in Northrend with Vier.  One night, after Vier had had enough of me for awhile, I headed back to Stormwind for some reason.  Got Totally Creeped Out with all of these Blue Dragons flying over the city!
Little Blue Dragons over Stormwind July 31, 2014

They weren't hostile, but the one was HUGE and I was a unnerved with all of these strange creatures that I didn't know flying over my city!
Big Blue Dragon

 Yikes!
I mean ... Really.  Frickin' BIG!

Okay, enough catch up for this post.  If you can clue us in on the Blue Dragons, I look forward to hearing from you in the comments.

Later 'gators, Nor.

Just a reminder:  If you want to view the screenshots bigger, right click on them and select "Open link in a new tab" or "Open link in a new window".