- Instances are supposed to be shorter. They may look bigger (Blizzard want us to really feel how epic the dungeons are), but the days of 4-hour Karazhan runs may be over. This means shorter distance to dungeon bosses, and, as it seems in raids, bosses which are easier to get to but harder to kill, emphasizing interesting play style over marathon raiding (Naxxramas will be an exception to this, weighing in with 15 total bosses.).
- Most raids will have player-defined "difficulty settings" which will allow for adjusting the dungeon on the fly depending on experience and preference. For instance, Chamber of the Aspects has a main boss along with three sub-bosses. Players can choose to attack the main boss with all three sub-bosses (hardest difficulty) or to kill one, two, or all three of the sub-bosses beforehand, thus making the encounter easier. Raid rewards will scale depending on how these bosses are killed.
- Raid sets can be completed by both 10- and 25-man items. While items will be divided by one tier, they will be related, much like arena gear is. So a player can combine any ratio of 10-man and 25-man raid items and still achieve a complete set.
- There is no "lockout period" between 10- and 25-man raids. Players can run a 10-man raid, and then turn right around and run the 25-man version without having to wait.
- Instances do not require attunement. The one exception is the Eye of Eternity raid. All other raids and heroic instances can be entered by anyone upon achieving the appropriate level.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Fortune Favors the Casual: Changes to Instances
Because I am perhaps best defined as a "jack-of-all-trades" WoW player as opposed to a hard-core PvE-er/raider, I was probably more excited than some at the news that all endgame content will be available to 10-man groups. I was even more excited at BlizzCon's Dungeons and Raids panel to discover some more exciting news about running instances, which are a considerable boon to the casual player:
Pick the Losing Side: Changes to PvP
If you're like me and got into WoW "incidentally" after the free 10-day trial, you happily rolled a character on whatever realm was recommended without giving it much thought. I had played for more than 8 months before I realized there are ways to research each realm based on guild progression or percentage of Horde versus Alliance on the server.
I also didn't realize how much the number of Horde versus that of Alliance can change gameplay on a server where the ratio isn't equal. A server where one faction outnumbers the other 2:1 can have a marked effect on battlegrounds and world PvP.
As a denizen of two servers where I am on the outnumbered faction, I was a little concerned about the ramifications of opening up PvP to an entire zone in Northrend. While I love PvP, I wasn't looking forward to visiting Wintergrasp and getting continually pwned by legions of the opposing faction.
My concerns were put to rest at BlizzCon. In fact, it looks like Wintergrasp will be my new zone of choice for many reasons:
I also didn't realize how much the number of Horde versus that of Alliance can change gameplay on a server where the ratio isn't equal. A server where one faction outnumbers the other 2:1 can have a marked effect on battlegrounds and world PvP.
As a denizen of two servers where I am on the outnumbered faction, I was a little concerned about the ramifications of opening up PvP to an entire zone in Northrend. While I love PvP, I wasn't looking forward to visiting Wintergrasp and getting continually pwned by legions of the opposing faction.
My concerns were put to rest at BlizzCon. In fact, it looks like Wintergrasp will be my new zone of choice for many reasons:
- Immediate action with instant results. There is no "team play" in this zone. You don't queue to get into the battle at Wintergrasp, you walk (well, really fly) in and start fighting. And your kills are your own, so there is no one to go AFK and get a "free ride" from your hard work.
- The zone rank system resets every fight. Every fight, you have a new chance to pilot new siege engines, set new traps, and, best of all, blow up new stuff.
- The winning side gets access to very cool stuff. For 2.5 hours after winning, the victors can access special items, daily quests, even a whole dungeon with a special raid boss, available only to them.
- The outnumbered faction receives a buff to damage done and defense against damage received. Even better, this buff scales in proportion to how badly the faction is outnumbered.
Mages Come to Diablo III!
Okay, so they're technically not called mages, but I was nevertheless overjoyed, despite the name difference, to hear this weekend that the newest class to join the forces of Diablo III is going to be the Wizard. And, having experienced a bit of what this arcane magic user can do at BlizzCon, I can happily state that all is well and good with magecraft in this newest installment of one of the most iconic action-RPG games.
Like her predecessor the Sorceress, the Wizard wields potent raw magical spells which can blast her enemies to smithereens, both at close range and afar. Unlike the Sorceress, whose abilities were based on elemental magics, the Wizard's power comes from "High Magic," and consist of spells which alter or transform the world around her, including what may well be my favorite: Slow Time.
Some of the old favorites from the Sorceress' arsenal will be back, however, like Blizzard and Teleport. But even these old standbys have been revamped to offer a high level of customization because of the Rune system, which allows players to add Runes which give special modifiers such as Multistrike or Lethality, to each spell they possess.
Not only does each Rune dramatically change the properties of each spell (I for one was thrilled to see that Teleport can be modified to do damage to surrounding enemies), they also change the spell's animation. And in the case of the Wizard, spell animations are wild, beautiful, and extreme.
As far as questing goes - playing the Wizard as opposed to the Barbarian or Witch Doctor will give you a whole new line of quests to work with. It was announced at BlizzCon that each character class will interact with game NPCs differently. Also, each character will have the ability to go on class-only quests which have been tailored to their unique abilities. So when you roll up your Wizard, you are guaranteed a gameplay experience unlike any other class.
All in all, the Wizard is the class to play for anyone who wants a lot of explosions, crackling lightning, and wild arcane lights; a wonderful addition to Diablo III, and fitting evidence that all is well and good for magic users in this upcoming title.
Like her predecessor the Sorceress, the Wizard wields potent raw magical spells which can blast her enemies to smithereens, both at close range and afar. Unlike the Sorceress, whose abilities were based on elemental magics, the Wizard's power comes from "High Magic," and consist of spells which alter or transform the world around her, including what may well be my favorite: Slow Time.
Some of the old favorites from the Sorceress' arsenal will be back, however, like Blizzard and Teleport. But even these old standbys have been revamped to offer a high level of customization because of the Rune system, which allows players to add Runes which give special modifiers such as Multistrike or Lethality, to each spell they possess.
Not only does each Rune dramatically change the properties of each spell (I for one was thrilled to see that Teleport can be modified to do damage to surrounding enemies), they also change the spell's animation. And in the case of the Wizard, spell animations are wild, beautiful, and extreme.
As far as questing goes - playing the Wizard as opposed to the Barbarian or Witch Doctor will give you a whole new line of quests to work with. It was announced at BlizzCon that each character class will interact with game NPCs differently. Also, each character will have the ability to go on class-only quests which have been tailored to their unique abilities. So when you roll up your Wizard, you are guaranteed a gameplay experience unlike any other class.
All in all, the Wizard is the class to play for anyone who wants a lot of explosions, crackling lightning, and wild arcane lights; a wonderful addition to Diablo III, and fitting evidence that all is well and good for magic users in this upcoming title.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Arcane Advice
Okay, I lied. One more post before I leave for the wilds of BlizzCon (or perhaps just open a portal there). This section poses mage-centric advice for non-mages for their consideration, consternation and, hopefully, benefit.
First, I'd like to cover something which I have experienced recently a great deal in BGs. I think I can summarize it best by calling it "Shield Color-Blindness," because it usually happens in WSG when I am sporting my lovely little Mana Shield and traipsing toward the enemy flag to pick it up, or blinking right behind a flag-carrying druid in travel form, who is taking damage from enemies and looking for some more backup.
Some team-mate will see me and give me a tell like this: "shield pls".
The first time this happened, I assumed it was a mis-tell. Then it happened again. And again. It's even happened while engaging in the randomness which is world PvP.
I recently read a back-issue of Arcane Brilliance which mentioned that it's not uncommon for non-clothie WoW players to view all cloth-wearers as pretty much the same animal. This article, coupled with my own experience in PvP, led me to this conclusion: non-mages are color-blind. They have no idea that Mana Shield is a self-only cast. It cannot be cast on anyone else, at any time, regardless of whether said target has a mana pool of their own or not.
Mana Shield can clearly be identified, unless your graphics card is on the fritz, by its happy blue aura. Power Word: Shield, on the other hand, has a nice, lovely golden aura. Having played both a priest and a mage, to me, they look nothing alike, even if they do have the same casting sound effect.
I'd love to say that this mage/priest confusion only happens to me while playing my undead mage, since Forsaken can roll both priests and mages, and may look similar in the levels before we're all decked out in our snazzy PvP gear. But usually, this request occurs when I am playing my happy, bouncy gnome mage, which I find truly weird.
The second point I'd like to mention is far less of an issue, though it is nevertheless amusing, and sometimes depressing, to me. This is the assumption that any mage, regardless of level, can open a portal, and, furthermore, that said mage can therefore open a portal to Shattrath.
When leveling my mages, I frequently received tells asking for portals. This happened as early as level nine.
Stop the train, people. Only mages who have reached the venerable age of level 40 can open portals anywhere, and even then, we can only take you to Stormwind, Ironforge, and the Exodar, or Orgrimmar, Undercity, and Silvermoon, respectively. We can't even get you to Thunder Bluff or Darnassus - we have to reach level 50 before we can visit either. Okay, okay, we can port to Theramore or Stonard when we reach 35, but I don't think I've ever gotten a request for me to open a port to either of those places.
Porting to Shattrath is a whole different story. We have to reach level 65 before we can get anyone to that lovely city. By then, most players have already found the means to get there themselves, though that doesn't mean a well-placed Shattrath Portal isn't welcome at the end of a long dungeon.
Don't get me wrong. I love opening portals. Portals and all of their magical goodness were one of the top reasons why I rolled a mage in the first place. They are one of the greatest time-savers (and, when you reach Outland, money-savers) in the game and I adore them. But it makes me feel bad when I have to turn people away, especially willing people with a ready tip for my time, just because they've asked my low-level mage for a portal I cannot open. Hey, if my level 9 mage were capable of porting anywhere, I'd happily lend my services to anyone. And on a busy day, I could have made 20 gold in about 5 minutes opening portals for people trying to get to Shattrath. Just the thought of all that unobtainable gold is enough to make a well-intentioned but low-level mage cry.
When I need a port and am on one of my non-mage toons, my best recourse isn't whispering random mages, but asking the whole General or Trade chat channels for a willing soul to take the time to port me. And I always state my tip first. And if I'm trying to get to Shattrath, that tip is in gold. This strategy has gotten good reception from willing mages of the right level who are more than happy to take me anywhere I choose. It also gives mages who are busy the option to ignore me without the "obligation" of responding to a whisper.
Anyway, this is just food for thought, and information which will hopefully allow mages and non-mages alike better communication about some commonly-misunderstood aspects of magecraft. Good luck, and remember: never eat beef with a Tauren.
First, I'd like to cover something which I have experienced recently a great deal in BGs. I think I can summarize it best by calling it "Shield Color-Blindness," because it usually happens in WSG when I am sporting my lovely little Mana Shield and traipsing toward the enemy flag to pick it up, or blinking right behind a flag-carrying druid in travel form, who is taking damage from enemies and looking for some more backup.
Some team-mate will see me and give me a tell like this: "shield pls".
The first time this happened, I assumed it was a mis-tell. Then it happened again. And again. It's even happened while engaging in the randomness which is world PvP.
I recently read a back-issue of Arcane Brilliance which mentioned that it's not uncommon for non-clothie WoW players to view all cloth-wearers as pretty much the same animal. This article, coupled with my own experience in PvP, led me to this conclusion: non-mages are color-blind. They have no idea that Mana Shield is a self-only cast. It cannot be cast on anyone else, at any time, regardless of whether said target has a mana pool of their own or not.
Mana Shield can clearly be identified, unless your graphics card is on the fritz, by its happy blue aura. Power Word: Shield, on the other hand, has a nice, lovely golden aura. Having played both a priest and a mage, to me, they look nothing alike, even if they do have the same casting sound effect.
I'd love to say that this mage/priest confusion only happens to me while playing my undead mage, since Forsaken can roll both priests and mages, and may look similar in the levels before we're all decked out in our snazzy PvP gear. But usually, this request occurs when I am playing my happy, bouncy gnome mage, which I find truly weird.
The second point I'd like to mention is far less of an issue, though it is nevertheless amusing, and sometimes depressing, to me. This is the assumption that any mage, regardless of level, can open a portal, and, furthermore, that said mage can therefore open a portal to Shattrath.
When leveling my mages, I frequently received tells asking for portals. This happened as early as level nine.
Stop the train, people. Only mages who have reached the venerable age of level 40 can open portals anywhere, and even then, we can only take you to Stormwind, Ironforge, and the Exodar, or Orgrimmar, Undercity, and Silvermoon, respectively. We can't even get you to Thunder Bluff or Darnassus - we have to reach level 50 before we can visit either. Okay, okay, we can port to Theramore or Stonard when we reach 35, but I don't think I've ever gotten a request for me to open a port to either of those places.
Porting to Shattrath is a whole different story. We have to reach level 65 before we can get anyone to that lovely city. By then, most players have already found the means to get there themselves, though that doesn't mean a well-placed Shattrath Portal isn't welcome at the end of a long dungeon.
Don't get me wrong. I love opening portals. Portals and all of their magical goodness were one of the top reasons why I rolled a mage in the first place. They are one of the greatest time-savers (and, when you reach Outland, money-savers) in the game and I adore them. But it makes me feel bad when I have to turn people away, especially willing people with a ready tip for my time, just because they've asked my low-level mage for a portal I cannot open. Hey, if my level 9 mage were capable of porting anywhere, I'd happily lend my services to anyone. And on a busy day, I could have made 20 gold in about 5 minutes opening portals for people trying to get to Shattrath. Just the thought of all that unobtainable gold is enough to make a well-intentioned but low-level mage cry.
When I need a port and am on one of my non-mage toons, my best recourse isn't whispering random mages, but asking the whole General or Trade chat channels for a willing soul to take the time to port me. And I always state my tip first. And if I'm trying to get to Shattrath, that tip is in gold. This strategy has gotten good reception from willing mages of the right level who are more than happy to take me anywhere I choose. It also gives mages who are busy the option to ignore me without the "obligation" of responding to a whisper.
Anyway, this is just food for thought, and information which will hopefully allow mages and non-mages alike better communication about some commonly-misunderstood aspects of magecraft. Good luck, and remember: never eat beef with a Tauren.
On the Road to BlizzCon!
We're headed to BlizzCon! While the blog won't be updated until we get back, we'll be sure to have all sorts of yummy details upon our return!
Remember - if you aren't headed to the Con and didn't want to shell out all sorts of cash for Direct TV, you can tune in to WoW Radio for their free coverage!
Have a great Blizzard weekend!
Remember - if you aren't headed to the Con and didn't want to shell out all sorts of cash for Direct TV, you can tune in to WoW Radio for their free coverage!
Have a great Blizzard weekend!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Mage Macros, Part One
After three generations of Outland-level toons, I have concluded that mages probably have more need for macros than your average bear. By level 60, you have so many spells for conjured items, teleportation, portals, and straight out damage spells that your hotbars are probably overflowing. So, recently, I discovered a couple nice handy macros to reduce that load a little bit, and make standard casts of portals and conjured items a little easier.
Combined Teleport/Portal Macro
Left-clicking on this macro button will teleport you to Orgrimmar. Right clicking will open a portal so you and your party can go to Orgrimmar together. (Obviously you can substitute any other major city for this macro.)
/cast [button:1] Teleport: Orgrimmar
/cast [button:2] Portal: Orgrimmar
Combined Mage Water/Food Macro
Left-clicking will conjure stacks of the highest drink you can make. Right-clicking will conjure food.
/cast [button:1] Conjure Water()
/cast [button:2] Conjure Food()
Edit as of 11/6: Mana Gem Macro
As of patch 3.0.x, mages can only have one mana gem in their possession at any time, and the conjuring spell for mana gems has been renamed. Left-clicking or using number key will conjure the highest-level mana gem available. Right-clicking will use the gem. The /use function will have to be updated as the mage learns higher-level gems.
/cast [button:1] Conjure Mana Gem ()
/use [button:2] Mana Emerald
Combined Teleport/Portal Macro
Left-clicking on this macro button will teleport you to Orgrimmar. Right clicking will open a portal so you and your party can go to Orgrimmar together. (Obviously you can substitute any other major city for this macro.)
/cast [button:1] Teleport: Orgrimmar
/cast [button:2] Portal: Orgrimmar
Combined Mage Water/Food Macro
Left-clicking will conjure stacks of the highest drink you can make. Right-clicking will conjure food.
/cast [button:1] Conjure Water()
/cast [button:2] Conjure Food()
Edit as of 11/6: Mana Gem Macro
As of patch 3.0.x, mages can only have one mana gem in their possession at any time, and the conjuring spell for mana gems has been renamed. Left-clicking or using number key will conjure the highest-level mana gem available. Right-clicking will use the gem. The /use function will have to be updated as the mage learns higher-level gems.
/cast [button:1] Conjure Mana Gem ()
/use [button:2] Mana Emerald
It's New and Improved! Mage of Warcraft!
Welcome to the new, revised, and hopefully improved version of this blog, which shall hereafter and forevermore be known as Mage of Warcraft!
This blog is a guide to many things, among them:
Looking for news on the Healers of Durotar Guild? We still have all guild policies, and some fun pictures posted on the guild blog.
This blog is a guide to many things, among them:
- mage-crafty news including macros, quests, profession guides and other arcane, frost, or fire quirkiness;
- prices on the Mok'Nathal and Ravenholdt servers of items I have gathered or created on my mage toons;
- fun quest guides for Horde and Alliance.
Looking for news on the Healers of Durotar Guild? We still have all guild policies, and some fun pictures posted on the guild blog.
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