blessing of kings

Kor’kron 501st blogging in review for 2016

Posted by Peter (Devee) on January 3, 2017

Posted in: Blog. Tagged: blessing of kings, wordpress. Leave a comment

Posts on Kor’kron 501st have continued to become less frequent. I feel like I just haven’t had as much to say, and I’m also playing less frequently. In past years, WordPress has provided a report on the year’s activity, but they didn’t do it this year. I suppose I’ll have to look at my stats myself.

I only published 10 posts in 2016 – less than any other year, including 2011, which was the year I started the blog in September. Here are the views by year:

2011: 238
2012: 5,969
2013: 10,181
2014: 6,376
2015: 4,797
2016: 2,559

The majority of readers are from the US, but France, Germany, and Brazil accounted for the second, third, and fourth most readers. Most of my views continue to be from search engines, but Blessing of Kings comes right after the search engines. Thanks for the referrals!

A Counter-Intuitive Idea For Tanks in LFR, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 10/16/13.

Rohan notes that there’s room for bad healers or DPS in LFR but not tanks. He speculates that increasing the number of tanks (while keeping encounters tuned for two) would make tanking more forgiving and possibly yield more people queuing as tanks. It’s a great idea.

An Alternate Explanation for Gender Bias in Healing and Tanking, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 10/8/13.

Here’s another fantastic piece by Rohan. He provides an alternate explanation on gender bias in which he speculates that women prefer to stay at range while men prefer melee. It’s interesting.

Crowd Control & Diminishing Returns, Lore, World of Warcraft Forums, 10/11/13.

If you’ve wondered what CC shared diminishing returns, this great thread has you covered.

Know Your Lore: A brief summary of the Pandaria campaign, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 10/9/13.

This is a fantastic summary of what’s happened in Pandaria.

Reputation in review: Pandaria, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/14/13.

A consideration of the different reputation experiments in Mists of Pandaria.

Know Your Lore: The fate of Garrosh Hellscream, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/13/13.

Nothing new, but interesting look at why things happened the way they did.

Spec and Talent design likely to remain unchanged in 6.0, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/15/13.

If you read the article title, you don’t really need to read the article.

WoW Archivist: Spells we’ve lost, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 10/11/13.

An examination of spells that have been removed. I’m ready to lose more.

Behind the Blogging Scenes Interview: Rohan, Matticus, World of Matticus, 10/5/13.

Matticus interviewed Rohan, one of my favorite bloggers.

I Think I’m in Love With 5.4, Balkoth, Balkoth’s Word, 10/3/13.

Wondering what’s so special about 5.4? Balkoth can explain.

Inventory fixes being worked on, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/5/13.

Yes yes yes.

Warcraft as a whole: story balance between RTS and MMO, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 10/7/13.

A consideration of the different ways the MMO and RTS games have interacted with story.

WTB generic glyphs, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 10/9/13.

Some interesting ideas for generic glyphs.

The Mists of Pandaria that never was, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/4/13.

Things could have been a bit different.

New Refer-A-Friend system revealed, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/7/13.

The new system sounds good, but are there really people who are coming to play WoW for the first time still?

Breakfast Topic: Today, the Sky Golems invade Azeroth, Adam Koebel, WoW Insider, 10/9/13.

This is a pretty sweet mount.

Suggested Reading: Of lore speculation, Garrosh Hellscream, faction identity, and much more

Posted by Peter (Devee) on August 23, 2013

Posted in: Diablo III, Game Mechanics, Lore, Mists of Pandaria, Reaper of Souls, Role-Playing, Story, World of Warcraft. Tagged: adam holisky, anna, anne stickney, blessing of kings, blizzpro, d3, dailies, death knight, diablo, diablo 3, diablo iii, elizabeth harper, flexible raid, flirt, frostsaber, garrosh hellscream, gelbin mekkatorque, know your lore, matthew rossi, monks, neinball, paladins, patch 5.4, prinnie powah, reaper of souls, rohan, scott andrews, shaman, siege of orgrimmar, speculation, that was an accident!, the dark below, the timeless isle, thunderfury blessed blade of the windseeker, tinfoil hat, tom chilton, too many annas, warcraft, what if, world of warcraft, wow, wow archivist, wow insider. Leave a comment

What If Paladins Had Stayed Alliance-Only?, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/19/13.

I love this. The Alliance story was the story of their paladins. What if paladins had stayed Alliance-only and shaman had stayed Horde-only? What if Death Knights had been given to the Horde, and monks to the Alliance? It’s an interesting article.

Thoughts on Garrosh Hellscream, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/14/13.

Why do the orcs want to kill Garrosh? Why do players hate Garrosh but like Sylvanas? Rohan thinks that in lore, the orcs in general aren’t turning on Garrosh. As players, we like Sylvanas because she’s “all cool and calculating” while Garrosh “is a thug.” Players are more likely to identify with Sylvanas.

Window Shopper, Prinnie Powah, That Was an Accident!, 8/14/13.

Be careful with whom you /flirt.

Patch 5.4, flexible raids, dailies and more with Tom Chilton, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 8/16/13.

Chilton’s discussion of the Timeless Isle and Blizzard’s pull away from dailies are particularly interesting.

Patch 5.4 confirmed for release on September 10th, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 8/21/13.

I’m glad we have a little more time to Ahead of the Curve: Lei Shen for raid team members who missed our kill.

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: The Dark Below, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 8/18/13.

Speculation on what The Dark Below could bring.

Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls Lore Speculation, Neinball, BlizzPro, 8/14/13.
Reaper of Souls Lore Speculation Part 2: The Usual Suspects, Neinball, BlizzPro, 8/16/13.
Reaper of Soul [sic] Lore Speculation Part Three: Eternities of Conflict, Neinball, BlizzPro, 8/19/13.
Reaper of Souls Lore Speculation Part Four: Oh, The Places We’ll Go, Neinball, BlizzPro, 8/20/13.

Reaper of Souls might have been unveiled, but I still think these speculation articles are great.

Diablo III Expansion Speculation, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/15/13.

Rohan’s wish list includes paladins, necromancers (or maybe druids), a no-trade, no-AH mode, and the ability for hardcore characters to become normal characters upon death. I think the no-trade, no-AH mode would be nice, although Blizzard would never do it, and the hardcore change would be great.

What If: Cult of the Mechanical, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/15/13.

Rossi explains how awesome it would be if we had an expansion focused on Gelbin Mekkatorque embracing technology and shunning the divine.

Old Enemies: OOC Epilogue, Anna, Too Many Annas, 8/15/13.

Even if you haven’t been reading this story, this is an interesting article about “assumed RP.” I didn’t really know anything about this, but it was a fascinating read.

Will we see an ability purge?, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/14/13.

If we’re going to continue to get new abilities every expansion, an ability purge seems important to me.

This epic crafted Frostsaber has ridden off with our hearts, Elizabeth Harper, WoW Insider, 8/15/13.

This is so cute!

Diablo 3 to get new features, fore free, in pre-expansion patch, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 8/22/13.

No surprise here. Changes to the core mechanics will happen even if you don’t purchase Reaper of Souls.

WoW Archivist: WoW’s first legendary quest line, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 8/16/13.

A retrospective on the first legendary quest line, the series to obtain Thunderfury, Blessed Blade of the Windseeker.

Know Your Lore: A Precarious Position Part 1 – Horde, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/14/13.

What will happen to the Horde after the Siege of Orgimmar?

Is N’Zoth Being Built as the Main Antagonist in World of Warcraft?, Anthony Armenio, Adventures in Poor Taste!, 8/8/13.

Armenio makes a very compelling argument for why N’Zoth would make a great main antagonist in WoW.

Evidence and speculation for why “The Dark Below” will be the next WoW expansion pack, lazerfoxxx, reddit.com/r/wow/, 8/13/13.

This is a great comment on Blizzard Trademarks “The Dark Below.” I don’t agree that the Old Gods are different body parts of one creature, but there’s an interesting conversation here regardless.

Patch 5.4 release date confirmed for August 27th?, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 8/13/13.

Just under two weeks.

What we know about Ozumat, the Fiend of the Dark Below, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/14/13.

If the next expansion is The Dark Below, then the fact that Ozumat’s title of Fiend of the Dark Below is pretty interesting.

The Timeless Isle-Take Your Time, Bashiok, World of Warcraft Blog, 8/14/13.

An introduction to the Timeless Isle for people who might not yet be familiar with it.

Stable PvE Strategies, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/7/13.

An examination of PvE strategies and their relationship to the class role trinity.

Diablo III: Reaper of Souls?, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 8/14/13.

Could a new section of the D3 site teasing “Reaper of Souls” be a reference to a D3 expansion?

Know Your Lore: Garrosh Hellscream and the nature of villany [sic], Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 8/11/13.

Why didn’t Garrosh work as an effective villain? We knew he was.

What If: Shadows of the Assassin, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 8/12/13.

Stickney considers Garona Halforcen as the main antagonist for an expansion.

The Velen Problem: Why the draenei need dissent, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/7/13.

With no changes to their lore, Rossi feels the draenei need some dissent.

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: Where do the Tauren come from?, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/7/13.

What comes first, the Tauren of the egg?

Revisiting the Trinity, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/6/13.

How can you break the role trinity while keeping fantasy tropes?

Your Warchief wants YOU, The Warchief’s Command Board, 8/5/13.

I love this poster. Check it out!

Patch 5.4 PTR: Hellscream’s weapon drops are 90-100 heirlooms, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 8/7/13.

That’s pretty cool!

WoW Archivist: When Blizzard “hated” the Horde, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 8/2/13.

Many people hold the belief that Blizzard loves the Horde and hates the Alliance, but there was a time when the opposite was considered true.

Pandaren levels 1 to 60 as a neutral, not picking sides in the Alliance and Horde conflict, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 8/5/13.

Screw the factions!

Know Your Lore: The future of the Alliance, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 8/4/13.

Where is the Alliance going?

Blizzard’s new vision for Titan: ‘unlikely’ a subscription-based MMO, Michael McWhertor, Polygon, 8/1/13.

Titan won’t be subscription-based? Titan won’t be an MMO?

Patch 5.4 pulls WoW Insider team members into Azeroth, Alex Ziebart, WoW Insider, 8/2/13.

WoW Insider’s Matthew Rossi, Anne Stickney, and Olivia Grace will have items named after them in patch 5.4.

WoW 6.0: A case for dual class dual spec, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 8/6/13.

What if you could adopt a spec from another class as your secondary spec? Personally, I hate this idea.

I Just Want to Play With My Friends! (On WoW Leveling), Balkoth, Balkoth’s Word, 7/26/13.

Leveling is fine for some people. For other people, it becomes a huge barrier to playing with their friends. Balkoth examines some scenarios and discusses the leveling process.

Small Decisions, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/29/13 and Small Decisions, Part II, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/30/13.

These two articles discuss the small decisions (reagents, arrows, talents every level) that were removed from WoW and what that’s done to the game.

Know Your Lore: The tauren peoples of Azeroth, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/31/13.

An examination of the three tauren peoples in World of Warcraft.

Know Your Lore: The color of magic, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 7/28/13.

There are a lot of flavors of magic in Azeroth.

New World of Warcraft class coming? Ghostcrawler drops a hint, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 7/25/13.

Could we be gaining a support class?

Ghostcrawler, potentially, details the future of WoW at Chinajoy, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 7/25/13.

GC sort of talks about some things that, honestly, we should probably just ignore for now.

The State of Healing, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/21/13.

Rohan considers healing in Mists of Pandaria.

Nice Guy Award: Player gives away two 50,000g mounts, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 7/11/13.

Sadly, they weren’t given to me.

Patch 5.4 PTR: New mounts from the Siege of Orgrimmar, Elizabeth Harper, WoW Insider, 7/24/13.

These look very cool.

What if: Rage of the Kaldorei, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/19/13.

An examination of a hypothetical expansion involving a Night Elf internal conflict with Shandris Feathermoon as the antagonist.

What If: Purge of the Aspects, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 7/18/13.

What if Alexstrasza declared war on mortals?

What If: Velen the villain, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/16/13.

Here’s another. What if Velen manipulates the Horde and Alliance, causing deaths on both sides, for what he considers the greater good?

Know Your Lore: A hostile universe, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/16/13.

What else is in the universe?

World of Warcraft to sell experience buff and more in confirmed in-game store, Samit Sarkar, Polygon, 7/9/13.

Huge news in my opinion.

Thinking about the in-game store, TyphoonAndrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 7/10/13.

TyphoonAndrew doesn’t seem too pleased with the buffs being sold.

#245 A word of warning to Blizzard about Microtransactions, Spencer Nozell, Be MOP, 7/10/13.

Spencer cautions Blizzard about microtransactions, using Valve’s TF2 as an example.

Enough With the WoW P2W* Hysteria!, Balkoth, Balkoth’s Word, 7/10/13.

Balkoth thinks people need to calm down and that the news about microtransactions aren’t a big deal. I disagree.

Choosing Statistics to Evade the Argument, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/9/13.

Just because someone uses statistics to back their argument doesn’t mean the argument they’re rebutting is wrong.

WoW Archivist: WoW’s 20 greatest non-legendary weapons, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 7/5/13.

Andrew examines the coolest non-legendary weapons.

WoW Archivist: WoW’s 20 greatest non-legendary weapons, part 2, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 7/9/13.

Andrew finishes his look at some cool weapons.

Patch 5.4 PTR: Legendary spell effects for all (druids included), Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 7/8/13.

If you want to see what our new legendary will look like, take a look!

The living game and the end of nostalgia, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/8/13.

It’s okay to miss the past, but don’t be blinded by it.

Do warlocks bring too much utility to a raid?, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 7/8/13.

I kind of think they do, but I hope it’s not removed. That utility is important, and I like the flavor that it comes with warlocks.

A Disconnect on F2P, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 6/17/13.

An observation on the disconnect between how players view revenue earnings in a F2P game and how the developer views revenue earnings.

Do I Really Need to Run 3 Raids a Week, Matticus, World of Matticus, 6/12/13.

How will Flex Raids change things?

Chicken Fried Ji-Kun, arvash, The Crimson Hammer, 6/20/13.

It’s always the last pull of the night.

Patch 5.4 PTR: How to get Golden Lotus reputation in 5.4, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 6/17/13.

Warning: Spoilers.

Lore Updates: Characters Page, Warcraft Timeline, Blizzard Entertainment, us.battle.net, 6/14/13 via Lore updates for the official World of Warcraft site, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 6/17/13.

The official site has been updating, including lore on the current and last patch. I love that they divide the story into chapters with short summaries, and it’s great to see Blizzard keeping it up to date.

Fearsome paladin collective crusades for the Light, Lisa Poisso, WoW Insider, 6/13/13.

The Caelestis Templares is an RP guild of fanatical paladins, sort of like the Scarlet Crusade. It sounds like a fun idea.

Flexible Raids, another requirement

Posted by Peter (Devee) on June 7, 2013

Posted in: Game Mechanics, Mists of Pandaria, Raiding, World of Warcraft. Tagged: blessing of kings, flexible raid, LFR, rohan, warcraft, world of warcraft, wow. 1 Comment

When Rohan at Blessing of Kings posted about variable group sizes in WoW, I thought it was a great idea that would likely never be implemented. I was wrong.

Blizzard just announced Flexible Raids. Flexible Raids is a new raid difficulty for 10-25 players. Loot works like LFR, and you can participate cross-realm, but there is no matchmaking service. The difficulty scales with the number of people in the group, and item level of gear will be between LFR and normal mode. In addition, Flexible Raids are on their own lockout.

What does this mean?

You’re no longer obligated to run either 10-man or 25-man raids. Guilds now have the flexibility to run with however many people they want.

Except that’s not quite true.

Let’s say a 25-man guild doesn’t have enough people to raid on a particular raid night. Yes, they could run a Flexible Raid. However, would it be better to run the flex as a whole group or send 10 people into normal mode where they’ll get better gear? Maybe it has to do with how many people are available. If there’s between 20 and 25, maybe they should try to run two normal modes. I don’t know; I’m not in a 25-man guild.

What about 10-man guilds? There are two scenarios to consider. First, what if there aren’t enough people to raid? Well, if we’re under 10 people, the Flexible Raid isn’t going to help. If we have more than 10 people, why would we want to get worse gear? Wouldn’t we rather the 10 more regular raiders have a chance at better gear in normal mode?

I think this is going to become another obligation. Blizzard says I’m not obligated to run LFR, but I still need a lot of gear from it even though I’m in a 10-man guild. While I don’t always do LFR, I try to run it every week. If the flex raid is going to drop better gear, shouldn’t I be doing it too? I suppose this could bond a different set of people. If 10 core guild raiders were online and wanted to raid, we could raid normal. If I wanted to do LFR, I could just queue. The flex raid would give me a reason to make friends with a wider community. Right now, I don’t interact with WoW players outside of my guild very often. There have been guilds in the past that PUG’d me regularly, but currently I’m not in touch with anyone. With flex raids feeling required but lacking a matchmaking service, I could see reaching out to other bloggers, for example, to add Battletag friends. But I have to be honest. Most weeks I don’t valor cap or complete LFR. What makes me think I have time to schedule a flex raid?

This seems really odd to me. I’d be ecstatic if they had followed Rohan’s idea of 7 to 13 people. Blizzard’s implementation won’t really help my guild and will likely feel like a burden I can’t fulfill. It’s an interesting first iteration of the scaling feature regardless. Even if I don’t have time to schedule anything, maybe a guildie will occasionally ask me to join a flex raid, but I don’t see it happening lately. It’s hard to judge a feature without experiencing it, but it seems to me that Blizzard took an interesting idea and executed it poorly.

A Raid for All Seasons: Flexible Raid Preview – World of Warcraft.

Alliance vs Horde Storyline Favoritism, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 6/3/13.

Is there favoritism in the story or is it a natural consequence of the story being told?

Class Distribution Data for Patch 5.3, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 6/1/13.

No big change with priests. Who cares about other classes? Okay, lots of people.

Darkspear Rebellion, and making events more accessible, Jods, Jods’ Blog, 6/3/13.

Jod wants to make these types of events more accessible by scaling everyone’s level.

Rumour – Final stage Legendary, might not be a weapon…, TyphoonAndrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 6/5/13.

TyphoonAndrew gives some ideas for a final legendary that isn’t a weapon.

#228 A Change in the Warcraft’s Log-in Screen, Spencer Nozell, Be MOP, 6/3/13.

Spencer thinks that despite normally receiving one log-in screen per expansion, it’s time for a change.

Know Your Lore: The Alliance and Horde, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 6/2/13.

This is a nice consideration of the relationship between the Horde and the Alliance over their history.

Stormwind Keep valued at $10,293,472, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 6/5/13.

That’s pretty cheap actually.

Worlds Yet to Conquer: Ideas for new content in old places, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 6/3/13.

There are plenty of places to still explore.

Vanessa VanCleef should come back from the dead, Michael Gray, WoW Insider, 6/1/13.

No, Michael isn’t suggesting that she become Forsaken. But that’s not an interesting idea!

Diminishing returns on valor instead of a cap?, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 5/30/13.

Great idea.

Levelling [sic] and Talent Trees, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 5/20/13.

Rohan thinks we should bring back talent trees with talents every level for leveling purposes. However, he proposes that at max level, you have every talent, but the talents give the abilities that a class gets while leveling currently. This would make it simply a way of choosing what you get first while leveling. It’s a great idea!

Variable Group Size, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 5/19/13.

Another interesting idea, but one that’s likely more difficult to implement.

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: The Curse of Flesh, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 5/121/3.

What if the Curse of Flesh was a way for the natural Azeroth to assimilate the Titan’s external creations?

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: Celestials, Ancients and Aspects, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 5/19/13.

Anne posits that the Ancients and Celestials are Azeroth’s natural response and balance to chaos and the Old Gods. This is a great article, so please read it!

5.3 Escalation Patch Notes, Rygarius, World of Warcraft Blog, 5/20/13.

The official patch notes.

Patch 5.3 PvP changes, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 5/21/13.

I’m just getting annoyed at all the changes now.

All-orc clan leader offers fierce perspectives on RP, world PvP, and Garrosh, Lisa Poisso, WoW Insider, 5/9/13.

These are true orcs!

Know Your Lore: Gul’dan, Doomhammer, and the nature of the Horde, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 5/21/13.

Garrosh and Doomhammer are more alike than you might think.

The false memory of WoW’s difficult past, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 5/10/13.

Was Vanilla WoW more difficult or just more annoying?

WoW Archivist: Launch classes’ 9 biggest aggravations, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 5/10/13.

If you weren’t sure just how much better the game is now, give this article a read.

Why aren’t more healers queueing [sic] for the Raid Finder?, Allison Robert, WoW Insider, 4/3/13.

Allison wonders why healers aren’t queuing for raid finder. She thinks it might have to do with healing being harder in LFR than normal raids because people will assume the healers can compensate. This seems like a crazy idea. I can be half asleep spamming random button and still top the carts in LFR, and it’s not like I’m heroic raid geared or anything.

Patch 5.3: PTR patch notes and datamined changes, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 4/2/13.

Great information about 5.3!

Patch 5.3 PTR: The Kor’kron are taking over, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 3/28/13.

A look at how we’ll be fighting the Kor’kron.

Diablo III’s auction house ‘really hurt the game’, Elisabeth Cardy, Massively, 3/28/13.

The quote in the title comes from former D3 game director Jay Wilson.

Scarlet Blade Impressions, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 4/1/13.

If you care to know more about this sort-of-NSFW MMO, give this article a read.

Patch 5.3 PTR: Fiery new mounts, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 4/3/13.

Sweet new mounts datamined in the 5.3 files!

Know Your Lore: Titan facilities of Azeroth, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 4/3/13.

No amazing tidbits here, but it’s a nice recap of Titan facilities.

F2P and Crafting, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/21/13.

Rohan explains why crafting conflicts with monetization in F2P games.

Hearthstone Gameplay, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/24/13.

Another look at Hearthstone.

The beauty of classic WoW’s Molten Core, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 3/19/13.

If you joined late and have ever wondered what the big deal with Molten Core was, Sarah will tell you.

Oondasta in China is full of… tombstones, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 3/20/13.

This is my wallpaper at work now.

The quest of a lifetime, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 3/21/13.

A very cute marriage proposal.

Star Wars: The Old Republic’s first expansion is BioWare’s hope to win back lapsed players, Griffin McElroy, Polygon, 3/25/13.

I’d give it a look, but we have too much content in WoW now!

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: Azeroth, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 3/24/13.

What’s so special about Azeroth?

The OverAchiever: The game’s 13 vanished titles, Allison Robert, WoW Insider, 3/21/13.

Scarab Lord, Champiuon of the Naaru, Hand of A’dal, Argent Defender, Celestial Defender, Champion of Ulduar, Conqueror of Ulduar, Conqueror of Naxxramas, Death’s Demise, Grand Crusader, The Immortal, The Undying, The Magic Seeker, and Obsidian Slayer. And none of me.

Mantid Archaeology, Cymre, Bubbles of Mischief, 3/22/13.

Check out the sweet gun!

World of Warcraft Patch 5.3 PTR Patch Notes, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 3/22/13.

Heroic scenarios, loot specialization, bonus rolls with progressively better bonuses, removal of most resilience, gear scaling in PVP, and new BGs and scenarios.

How 5 minutes AFK cost one WoW player 476,000 gold, Elizabeth Harper, WoW Insider, 3/19/13

After leaving his computer for five minutes, a man returns to find that his son spent 476,000 gold on pets on the AH.

Dungeons versus Scenarios, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/17/13.

In this articles, Rohan compares dungeons and scenarios. He considers loot rewards and design time among other aspects. He makes some great commentary.

Dungeons versus Scenarios, Part II, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/18/13

The follow-up to his previous post.

Draztal ends the “WoW is too easy now” argument in a long and beautiful post, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 3/18/13.

Draztal basically explains that the game is completely different now. His post is worth reading. However, I do want to point out that Holisky repeatedly says the read the whole article even though it’s long. It’s not long, but this tells you something about our attention spans.

A guide to looting the Troves of the Thunder King, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 3/16/13.

If you’re struggling in the scenario, give this guide a read.

WoW Archivist: 11 moments from WoW’s history that should become scenarios, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 3/15/13.

Scott has some interesting ideas, but I can’t say I agree with all of them. I should write my own post on the subject.

Feathermoon Horde players organize massive cross-realm RP event, Lisa Poisso, WoW Insider, 3/15/13.

This sounds like a really cool RP event. It’s happening today, so if you can make it, go check it out!

What if all raids were end game raids?, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 3/15/13.

Rossi considers what the game would be like if all raids were for the current max level. It’s an interesting idea, but I doubt it’ll happen.

War is All Hell: The use of moral ambiguity in Warcraft, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 3/14/13.

War is full of moral ambiguity. Do you allow many to die to save a larger number? WoW seems to lack this in its leaders.

Advanced Video Settings: From Grayscale WoW to Vulcan Blood, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 3/18/13.

If you’d like to play around with your graphics, this could be interesting information.

Why head to the Isle of Giants?, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 3/8/13.

This is a great overview of what’s offered on the Isle of Giants.

Blind player Ben Shaw on raiding and WoW for the sightless, Lisa Poisso, WoW Insider, 3/7/13.

If you’ve wondered what Ben Shaw, blind raider, has been doing, read this! (And if you’ve never heard of him, you really need to read it.)

Reconciling PvP and PvE, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/11/13.

Rohan if it would have been possible to keep PVP and PVE on the same path, using the same gear. It’d be interesting!

Analysis of the Post-Hotfix 5.2 Battleground Scaling Changes, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 3/13/13.

More information on the funky new battleground level scaling.

Ra’sha <Tender of Sacrifices>, Cymre, Bubbles of Mischief, 3/12/13.

Did you know you can obtain a dagger that allows you to kill yourself? It’s called Ra’sha’s Sacrificial Dagger, and Cymre can tell you more about it.

Oondasta, Cymre, Bubbles of Mischief, 3/11/13.

If you haven’t had the chance to fight Oondasta, reading about it might be good!

#194 First impressions of Stage One and Two of the Isle of Thunder, Spencer Nozell, Be MOP, 3/13/13.

Another look at the Isle of Thunder.

Know Your Lore: Vereesa Windrunner, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 3/13/13.

Why’s that Vereesa Windrunner girl so mad, anyways?

Track your Isle of Thunder to-do list with this handy addon, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 3/13/13.

I just installed this, so I can’t yet say how useful it is. Apparently it tracks weekly things on the Isle of Thunder per character so you can know on what to focus.

PvP in Patch 5.2: Gear changes, resilience changes, class changes, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 3/11/13.

Lots of PVP changes.

Around Azeroth: Thunder was his engine and white lightning was his load, Elizabeth Wachowski, WoW Insider, 3/9/13.

I don’t usually share Around Azeroths, but this screenshot was pretty cool.

Spiritual Guidance: Priest gear in patch 5.2 and Throne of Thunder, Dawn Moore, WoW Insider, 3/7/13.

A list of all the gear you’ll be considering if you’re a priest.

Only one week left to get your Winter Squid, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 3/13/13.

If you need it, go get it.

The Queue: Hump day, Alex Ziebart, WoW Insider, 3/13/13.

@Dobablo asked, “If white smoke =pope and black smoke = no pope. Then green fire = what?” Ziebart answered, “Felpope.”

Five reasons patch 5.2 will pull you back into WoW, Elizabeth Harper, WoW Insider, 3/6/13.

Harper provides a nice summary of 5.2 content.

Patch 5.2 official patch notes, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 3/5/13.

If Harper’s article isn’t enough information for you, this might be for you.

On the Broken Battleground Scaling of 5.2, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 3/7/13.

Cynwise looks at how battleground scaling has only made balance worse in the lower-level brackets.

Diablo 3, the Auction House, and Efficiency, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/2/13.

Rohan discusses the dangers of increasing efficiency too much. He also claims that there shouldn’t be shortcuts a game’s “central fun.” It’s a great idea. It also reminds me of some tweets I saw by Bennett (@bfod) who said “well, until they charged me money to skip over it, I wasn’t thinking of playing the game as being ‘grind’” and “since they’re charging money to skip it, I know it is grind. Even the developers think of it as grind. Playing it is a penalty.” He goes on to say “here’s how it works-if you pay to play more, you’re seeing play as being valuable. If you pay to play less, you’re thinking of it as a grind” (2/27/13).

Know Your Lore: Jaina Proudmoore and the Kirin Tor, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 3/3/13.

Wondering what’s up with Jaina lately? Then pay attention to the game you pay to play! Or read this.

Know Your Lore: Aethas Sunreaver and the founding of the Sunreaver Onslaught, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 3/6/13.

This guy got totally sweet this expansion. Yup.

The Decline of Rogues, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 3/3/13.

Rohan has some ideas on why rogues are on the decline.

Secret Areas of Warcraft: Where developers go to play, Sarah Pine, WoW Insider, 2/28/13.

Secrets always fascinate me.

What does legendary really mean?, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 2/28/13.

What legendary means has been changing.

Eberron and beyond: Seven years of Dungeon and Dragons Online, Justin Olivetti, Massively, 2/28/13.

Olivetti looks back at DDO.

Frontiers and Force Projection, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 2/13/13.

Rohan gives a fantastic perspective on frontiers in MMOs in relation to travel time. It’s a great read!

Know Your Lore, Tinfoil Hat Edition: Wrathion’s Gambit, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 2/17/13.

This seems particularly interesting to me. Could Wrathion be trying to rebuild the Black Dragonflight?

Burning Legion begins Russian invasion, Alex Ziebart, WoW Insider, 2/15/13.

Interesting, but the event itself was horrible of course.

Patch 5.2 mounts and where to get them, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 2/18/13.

I want that Direhorn!

New generation comes of age in record-holding long-time guild, Lisa Poisso, WoW Insider, 2/12/13.

The Syndicate have been playing together for 18 years!

Know Your Lore: The strategy and tactics of Garrosh Hellscream, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 2/13/13.

The Horde war machine is led solely by Garrosh Hellscream. How good a military leader is he?

Know Your Lore: The divided Alliance command structure, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 2/20/13.

An examination of the Alliance’s military leaders.

Patch 5.2’s jewelcrafting changes and how to profit, Basil Berntsen, WoW Insider, 2/18/13.

Mooglegem, you better make us some gold!

Server outcast in South Korea rekindles WoW community, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 2/13/13.

A WoW community that’s nice to people? It can’t be.

Thunderforged Items and Loot Incentives, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 1/23/13.

Will thunderforged items boost 25-man raiding? Rohan doesn’t think it’ll be enough.

On Why I’m Not Level 90, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 1/22/13.

Cynwise has plenty to do in WoW despite not hitting 90.

The 300 Stat Food Question, Matticus, World of Matticus, 1/21/13.

How much can a GM expect from raid members?

The Metaphorical Tale of Two Cities, Spencer Nozell, Be MOP, 1/21/13.

Do the capitals of Orgrimmar and Stormwind and their changes reflect their respective factions?

Roleplaying the mundane side of the Horde, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 1/19/13.

Mundane? Not at all! Anne explores the political landscape of the Horde.

Mists of Pandaria is our Emerald Dream expansion, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 1/17/13.

Mists of Pandaria explores the same themes the Emerald Dream expansion would have, but the Emerald Dream expansion wouldn’t have worked.

Patch 5.2 PTR: Reputation gain changes, Matt Low, WoW Insider, 1/17/13.

In 5.2 we can champion a faction through the reputation interface and gain reputation with that faction from your first dungeon and scenario of the day! Woo!

WoW Archivist: Many memes, handle it, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 1/18/13.

Explanations of some of the many memes from WoW. Now where’s my moose?

Elder charms only apply to 5.0 raids in Patch 5.2, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 1/23/13.

New items, Mogu Charms of Fate, will take their role for the 5.2 raid.

Lost!, Chris Pearson, Confessions of a Grown-Up Gamer, 11/14/12.

WoW let Chris know that he was in the wrong zone. Unfortunately, it didn’t elaborate.

Mists of Pandaria and the new age of World of Warcraft, Mike Schramm, WoW Insider, 11/9/12

How Mists of Pandaria represents a new era of WoW content.

Know Your Lore: Dailies and story development, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 11/11/12.

A look at how story progression and dailies have changed.

Know Your Lore: The mysteries of the pandaren, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 11/14/12.

What do we know about the pandaren? More importantly, what don’t we know?

A thought about the Brawlers Guild, TyphoonAndrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 11/10/12.

Why do you fight in the Brawler’s Guild? To fight.

Brawlers Guild Invitations, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 11/9/12.

Rohan explains the Brawler’s Guild and gives some alternate ideas for inviting players to join.

Blizzard Talks about Brawler’s Guild, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 11/8/12.

Blizzard responds to questions and feedback about the Brawler’s Guild.

Know Your Lore: Pandaria’s great oppressed, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 10/31/12.

Virmen. Yup.

Know Your Lore: Why do we fight?, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/28/12.

Why do the Horde and Alliance fight? This article not only discusses each factions’ reasons but also discusses their perspective on their opposition.

PSA: Ninja or Not, Arioch, clearcasting, 10/26/12.

Arioch comments on gearing, especially in lower levels, and argues that people shouldn’t be so quick to through around the term “ninja.”

SWTOR F2P Model Thoughts, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 10/25/12.

Even though I haven’t played TOR much recently, I still like to read about it.

The effect of persistence, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 10/30/12.

A discussion of persistence and change in World of Warcraft.

Patch 5.1: Vol’jin gets a new model, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 10/31/12.

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

How to keep world bosses away from the pesky Horde (or Alliance), Matt Low, WoW Insider, 10/25/12.

A few tips for dealing with the opposing faction when fighting (or wanting to fight) a world boss.

Around Azeroth: Out of the sea, wish I could be part of that world, Elizabeth Wachowski, WoW Insider, 10/27/12.

This was cute.

A break from dailies, Arioch, clearcasting, 10/24/12.

Arioch recounts The Boon of A’dal, the quest in Icecrown about a dying crusader and the help of A’dal. It’s a great quest, and I liked reading Arioch’s response.

A Disconnect on Valor Gear, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 10/21/12.

Rohan wonders if Blizzard views Valor gear as completely optional because the best route for PvE is from dungeons and raids while players don’t trust RNG and feel faction Valor gear is required. Interesting idea.

EVE Online player loses tiny ship worth over $6,000, Brendan Drain, Massively, 10/22/12.

This is why you don’t transport a huge amount of valuable goods in a small, ill-armed ship.

MoP: Mists of “Preoccupation”, Chris Pearson, Confessions of a Grown-Up Gamer, 10/19/12.

Pet Battles! Farming! So much to do! Read about how Chris gets distracted with the many great activities in WoW currently.

12 new pets added to vanilla raids in 5.1, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/23/12.

More reasons to do old raids!

Getting started with reputation at level 90, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/16/12.

As someone who isn’t 90 yet, I found this very reassuring and informative.

Guild Wars 2 writer laments racial lopsidedness, Justin Olivette, Massively, 10/16/12.

Humans are the most common GW2 race followed by norn (big humans). This makes me really sad, because some of the races are pretty interesting. I can’t believe more people don’t want to be charr or sylvari!

Questgiver PSA, Typhoon Andrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 10/12/12.

Please, everybody give this quick post a read!

Endgame PvE in The Old Republic, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 10/14/12.

An interesting evaluation of TOR’s endgame with comparison to WoW’s.

Heroic Dungeon Bosses in 5 seconds, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/16/12.

These guides are always fantastic.

#129 The depressing Tone of Mists’ Dungeons, Spencer Nozell, Be MOP, 10/12/12.

Do the player characters in Mists’ dungeons lose? It’s an interesting idea.

Make your pet battles look like Pokemon with WoWkemon, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/15/12.

Who doesn’t want pet battles to look like Pokemon?!

This is a very, VERY fast mount, Dawn Moore, WoW Insider, 10/15/12.

Super fast, limited-use, and nearly uncontrollable? Sign me up!

Darkmoon Faire updates in store for patch 5.1, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/13/12.

5.1 brings the DMF a new attraction that gives an XP and rep buff, a master pet trainer who has a chance of awarding a pet when defeated, and a new pet for 90 tickets. And I was so close to not needing tickets!

World of Warcraft Patch 5.1 PTR Patch Notes, Adam Holisky, WoW Insider, 10/11/12.

Speaking of the 5.1 patch, here are the notes on the patch. The naval fleets are coming, and with them come outdoor PVP in Krasarang Wilds. In addition, there will be solo PVE underground fighting rings in Stormwind and Orgimmar and the ability to upgrade the quality of battle pets.

Lost and lonely dog seeks warm and loving home (on your farm), Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 10/10/12.

I want a dog!

PvP sound announcements in patch 5.1, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 10/17/12.

“The gate of the yellow moon was destroyed.” Useful or annoying? I’m not sure yet.

Diablo III Monster Power System Detailed, Andrew Goldfarb, IGN, 10/11/12.

The Monster Power System allows players to increase the power of monsters in order to increase some stats and drops.

“Guide Dog” player and sightless guild-mate honored with in-game items, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 9/26/12.

Back in January, WoW Insider reported on British soldier Ben Shaw (Hexu) who was blinded by shrapnel in Iraq. He continued raiding in WoW thanks to his friend Owen (Davidian) who guides him in the game. Blizzard has now honored them with in-game items. Hexu’s Amplifying Helm with flavor text, “A man with a friend is never without vision,” and Davidian’s All-Seeing Eyes with flavor text, “Sharp enough to see for two men.” Such an amazing story!

Blizzard releases The Story of Warcraft, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 9/21/12.

Anne reports on Blizzard’s new The Story of Warcraft, an online account of the past history of the Warcraft series. It looks terrific, but I haven’t had a chance to read it yet.

Catch Up Mechanics, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 9/20/12.

Matticus thinks that in-combat resurrection spells should be removed from the game, but Rohan disagrees. He feels that they allow people to catch up after making mistakes and is important. Without them, raid groups would be forced to call wipes after one error.

Getting started with your legendary in Mists, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 9/25/12.

If you’re interested in legendaries, you might want to give this a read.

Know Your Lore: Pandaria and the Sundering, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 9/26/12.

A look at the history of Pandaria and speculation about it.

Know Your Lore: The lost introduction to Theramore’s Fall, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 9/23/12.

Care to find out more about how Theramore’s Fall fits into the world (of Warcraft)?

Blizzard clarifies Cross-Realm Zones, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 9/24/12.

I think it’s interesting to note that Blizzard has been increasing spawn rates of rare spawns to accommodate cross-realm zones.

Mists of Pandaria Contest: Convince the Pandaren to join your faction, Michael Gray, WoW Insider, 9/25/12.

If you like making videos, maybe you’d like to enter a contest by convincing the Pandaren to join your faction?

Remember to watch for Lorewalker items while leveling!, Anne Stickney, WoW Insider, 9/25/12.

Just a friendly reminder.

Around Azeroth: An inauspicious beginning, Elizabeth Wachowski, WoW Insider, 9/26/12.

Quest mechanics combine with over-crowding lead to turmoil.

Cosmetic Glyphs are a great idea, more please, Andrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 9/6/12.

Andrew has some great ideas for fun cosmetic glyphs.

A Thousand Posts, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 9/4/12.

Rohan celebrates his 1000th post and discusses trends in MMOs.

Demystifying Spirit Shell, Derevka, Tales of a Priest, 9/3/12.

If you’re playing a disc priest, you should really read this.

A Crafting Mistake, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 9/3/12.

Rohan describes why crafting professions are never profitable. (He chooses them anyway.)

The Blue Child returns to Azeroth, Allison Robert, WoW Insider, 9/2/12.

This shouldn’t be a big deal, but I’m excited anyways. Azeroth is getting its second moon back!

Battleground Call to Arms not just for weekends anymore, Robin Torres, WoW Insider, 9/5/12.

Huzzah! The article title says it all!

Know Your Lore: Shandris Feathermoon for Warchief, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 9/5/12.

Rossi believes Shandris Feathermoon should beWarchief of the Alliance.

Player memorial scheduled for Guild Wars 2’s Sanctum of Rall server on September 5th, Jef Reahard, Massively, 8/27/12.

Community member Roger “Oldroar” Rall passed away recently. A Guild Wars 2 server has been named in his honor, and an in-game memorial is taking place. If you’re interested, take a look at Massively’s source too.

Warlocks, Trash Your Keybinds, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 8/28/12.

This is actually good advice for every class in my opinion. A new expansion is a time to rethink how you play.

F2P, Subscriptions, Raiding, and Community, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/27/12.

Rohan makes some good observations about the current subscription policy for TOR. By making the game F2P but requiring raiders to subscribe, raid leaders can be assured that their raiders are actually committed to the game.

5.0.x and Mists of Pandaria: Holy and Discipline Priest Info, Matticus, World of Matticus, 8/27/12.

Matticus gives a great guide for healing priests in MoP.

What do I know about other classes and specs?, TyphoonAndrew, TyphoonAndrew’s – Eye of the Storm, 8/28/12.

TyphoonAndrew uses humor to show exactly what he knows about other classes. I feel the same way often.

Battle of Theramore scenario to launch Sept. 18, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 8/28/12.

Plenty of time for me to finish Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War.

WoW Archivist: A raid exploit compendium, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 8/24/12.

There’s something really exciting and mysterious about exploits in MMOs. They’re like legends that make me wonder what secrets are hidden within the game.

Around Azeroth: So your guild leader hates you, Elizabeth Wachowski, WoW Insider, 8/23/12.

I absolutely love this outfit and guild banner. So cute.

Patch 5.0.4 release patch notes, Alex Ziebart, WoW Insider, 8/28/12.

Could be important. Who knows?

More Impressions of Guild Wars 2, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 8/26/12.

I thought this was a rather nice description of some elements of Guild Wars 2.

I’ve been a bit late getting this out, so there’s more than usual.

Theramore Tourist Information Guide, Bravetank, 7/26/12.

This hilarious tourist information guide for Theramore will explain why it’s a great place to vacation and totally safe.

The Hidden Sting of a Personal Spaceship, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/18/12.

Rohan explains how personal spaceships sound cool and work well while leveling; At endgame when players are traveling often, they just slow players with a abundance of loading screens.

Operations in The Old Republic, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/29/12.

A nice stroll through “operations,” which are to TOR what raids are to WoW.

‘Guild Wars 2’ and the death rattle of the subscription game, Emily Gera, Polygon, 8/1/12.

Polygon interviews ArenaNet’s Chris Lye about subscriptionless MMOs and Guild Wars 2.

The Old Republic Goes Free-To-Play, Rohan, Blessing of Kings, 7/31/12.

When TOR goes free-to-play, leveling and questing will be unrestricted. Flashpoints and warzones will be limited per week, and operations will only be for subscribers. Rohan’s going to continue playing through class stories but will turn to Mists of Pandaria for a raiding fix.

FarnVille in World of Warcraft? WoW Insider’s first look at The Tillers, Dawn Moore, WoW Insider, 7/30/12.

Dawn examines The Tillers, the new faction responsible for your personal farm. I’m excited.

The OverAchiever: FAQ on pet battles and early achievements, Allison Robert, WoW Insider, 8/2/12.

You might want to check this out before jumping into pet battles.

Tactical Graveyard Control at Arathi Basin Nodes, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 7/19/12.

If you want to perform well in Arathi Basin, you have to control graveyards. Cyn’s articles are always wonderfully informative.

Resurrection Vectors in Strand of the Ancients and the Problem of South Graveyard, Cynwise, Cynwise’s Warcraft Manual, 7/25/12.

This is a lot like the previous entry I mentioned except that it’s about one the worst battlegrounds rather than one of the best (my opinions).

New Mists of Pandaria Battlegrounds: Silvershard Mine, Olivia Grace, WoW Insider, 7/31/12.

If you’re as excited about this new battleground as I am, check out this guide.

WoW Archivist: Strat 45 — the original challenge mode, Scott Andrews, WoW Insider, 7/27/12.

A nice look at Strat 45 (especially for those who didn’t run it when it was current).

Lonesome George immortalized in Mists of Pandaria, Robin Torres, WoW Insider, 7/26/12.

When the turtle Lonesome George died, so did his sub-species. In his memory, he’s been added to WoW as Lon’li Guju.

Mists of Pandaria raids will have staggered release, none available at launch, Dawn Moore, WoW Insider, 8/1/12.

The first raid of the tier will release one week after Mists launches, and the final two of the tier will release four weeks later. I think this is a good change that puts people on more equal footing. (Of course, I’m too slow to be helped by this.)

Mists of Pandaria Beta: Druids get new default travel form, Matthew Rossi, WoW Insider, 7/20/12.

This news is a couple weeks old now, but I love the new stag travel form!

Kor'kron 501st

MMOs and MMO-adjacents!

All posts tagged blessing of kings

Kor’kron 501st blogging in review for 2016

Suggested Reading: Of help for LFR, gender bias, crowd control, the Pandaria campaign, and more

Suggested Reading: Of bloggers, 5.4’s greatness, inventories, story, and more

Suggested Reading: Of lore speculation, Garrosh Hellscream, faction identity, and much more

Suggested Reading: Of N’Zoth, Ozumat, The Dark Below, The Timeless Isle, and more

Suggested Reading: Of prolonged leveling, small decisions, tauren, magic, and the future of WoW

Suggested Reading: Healing, nice guys, mounts, and lore

Suggested Reading: Of the in-game store, pay-to-win, statistics, weapons, legendaries, nostalgia, and warlock utility

Suggested Reading: Of free-to-play, flex raids, Ji-Kun, Golden Lotus, patch 5.4, fanatical paladins, and more

Flexible Raids, another requirement

Suggested Reading: Of the Alliance and Horde, class distribution, the Darkspear Rebellion, legendaries, and more

Suggested Reading: Of talent trees, variable group sizes, the Curse of Flesh, order and balance, patch 5.3, and more

Suggested Reading: Of healers, patch 5.3, D3, and more

Suggested Reading: Of F2P crafting, Hearthstone, Molten Core, proposals, patches, and more

Suggested Reading: Of going AFK, dungeons and scenarios, WoW being easy, and more

Suggested Reading: Isle of Giants, PVP and PVE, the Isle of Thunder, blind raiding, and more

Suggested Reading: On avoiding endgame, expectations, cities, the Emerald Dream, 5.2, and more.

Suggested Reading: Of the Brawler’s Guild, lore, and Mists of Pandaria

Suggested Reading: Of Horde-Alliance wars, loot ninjas, F2P TOR, Vol’jin, and more

Suggested Reading: Of dailies, distractions, pets, and huge EVE kills

Suggested Reading: Of leveling, bosses, 5.1, the Darkmoon Faire, TOR endgame, GW2 races, and D3

Suggested Reading: Of a blind raider, compassion, and more.

Suggested Reading: Of glyphs, trends, crafting, and more

Suggested Reading: Of pre-expansion patches, funny outfits, memorials, and GW2

Suggested Reading: Of Theramore, The Old Republic, Guild Wars 2, free-to-play MMOs, and Mists

Suggested Reading: Of women, Varian, flirting, and dating

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