Doing It Wrong

Apologies for the lack of updates. Real life has been busy, but I made a commiment to keep this blog updated, and my ass has been slack. Sorry. I'll get back on track.

So... I was playing WoW the other day, with a friend of mine, and we were both playing our low level rogues- mine was 25, his was 21. He decided that we should do the Shadowfang Keep instance- designed for people 18-22, in a group of 5. That sounded fine to me, but these days, finding groups for a low level instance is a nightmare. So I said... "Hang on. We're both rogues, the kings of utility and soloing. Why don't we try to two man it?" And so we did.

And you know, we didn't finish, we died a fair few times, and we ran for our lives more often than that... but it was a blast. Seriously, at LEAST top 10 best runs I've ever had, and that's competing with things like the time I won 3 pieces of Tier Gear in one go. It was incredibly, incredibly fun. With the rogue's vast arsenal of tools, we literally could handle any situation... as long as we played near perfectly. And after the first 5 or so pulls... we were. Throw a distract, double sap, ambush, eviserate, feint... it was an amazing flow, we were in the zone. It wasn't like a regular instance, it wasn't "what button combinations will kill them the fastest". It was part action game, part tactics... you had to minimize the number of enemies you were handling at once, and reduce their abilities, then try to kill them while taking blows bigger than your class is meant to take.

This is all to illustrate a point, of course- that's not how the game is supposed to be played. The game is very definitely designed for a five man party, and certainly we made horribly slow progress. But there is a certain joy to doing things in a way the game developers never expected you to... in doing something they didn't plan for, and didn't balance your class to succeed at. You feel the elation of being good at what you're doing, about playing smart and skillfully... you have to think fast, because all your previous experience is invalidated. You cannot assume they will react the same way... because you are not doing what they want you to do.

And this does not just mean MMOs, far from it. Many's the time where a game told me to run like hell, and I instead gunned down my assailants, and then took my time getting to the exit, and it felt great. I remember in Enter the Matrix (crap game, but some fun moments), your first encounter with an Agent, they tell you that you cannot win, and that you must run. Being who I am, I took that as a personal challenge. I unleashed a flurry of martial arts, all of which he perfectly evaded... and then at the end of the assault, I hit the throw button. As the agent is still bent over backwards dodging, my character leans forward, grabs him by the shoulder and leg, and tosses him off the rooftop. It was a WONDERFUL feeling.

Some games, like GTA, are designed to create these moments, and of course they are pretty awesome in that manner. But really, it's just so much more awesome to actually best the game, to have it tell you exactly what you need to do to win... and win by doing something else entirely. Really, if you haven't... try it. It is a singular feeling.

Awwwwkward

So, I post a big, bitchy rant about how Blizzard doesn't know how to make their own game, on the day before a big patch release. And the day of that patch release, there is no post. Hmmm. Coincedence? No, folks- just a big foot-in-mouth. I am sorry I missed my update yesterday. Quite frankly, it's because WoW patch 3.2 kicked me in the teeth, and said, "What now, Blogger McBloggerson?!" Well, like that, only not totally lame. Anyway.

So yeah. I stand by my comments that Blizzard is messing up class balance somewhat, and should listen to the community more. But the hinting that they didn't know how to design the rest of the game either? Consider mine an embarassed silence on that subject. 3.2 is awesome. Really, truly, genuinely amazing. Okay. Statements like that must be both explained and supported, and fortunately I am prepared to do both. For starters... what is so great about it? I think the main points are the emblem changes, and the battlegrounds changes. Beyond that, there are also a bunch of small changes that are significant when taken as a whole. The emblem changes make level 80 that much better, and the BG changes make all the lower level stuff much better.

First, the emblem changes. With this patch, everything that drops an emblem, other than the newest raid, drops the second best emblem type. So heroics drop the same as Ulduar. A lot of people were unhappy about this idea- they think that it makes raids without value. Thankfully... they are quite wrong. Raids are still fun (I did a few), still have unique content, are still worth experiencing. They also still, you know, have a lot of great gear. Just because heroics have good emblems doesn't change that- heck, it takes 58 (weird number, I know) Emblems to get ONE piece of Tier 8 gear, but you can get that same piece of gear with one drop in Ulduar. Raids aren't pointless now, it's just less of a bitch to get geared up when you hit 80. I'm all for that- I didn't raid for most of Ulduar, and now the game of catchup I have to play is not going to be such a nightmare. I'm also about to get my Warrior to 80, and when I do... it would blow pretty hard to have to do 80 instances, then heroics, then Naxx, then Ulduar, all just to get geared up. Now, I don't have to.

And of course, there's a part to it beyond the gearing up part... it makes heroics something people do again! Before the patch, a lot of raiders didn't even bother with heroics... and the players that did bother with them? Horribly geared and horribly unskilled. I honestly thought heroics were harder to heal than raids for a long time, until I realized I was just dealing with god awful tanks. No more! People in full Ulduar gear are doing heroics again, and it's marvelous! Amazing! And most importantly... fun! There's something we could stand to have more of.

If the emblem changes made the day for your 80, then the battleground changes are gonna make your alt flip out. No. More. Twinks. MAN. Well, that's not entirely true. It's more accurate to say that Blizzard came up with a system to keep twinks seperate from everyone else, so that normal people, like me, who just wanna do a BG as they level, can do so without being chain ganked. Now, if you pop into a BG at level 26... you'll do fine! Because the BG will be filled with people like you, people just wanting a little variety and fun as they level. Not people dedicated to making everyone else in their level range miserable. You can even level from a BG! How awesome is that?

And, of course, there were other changes with this patch. Holy Paladins were made into something human, rather than single target gods that failed at AoE healing. Score! More dailies, an excellent (and well scripted) new instance, a new raid, Engineering buffs (Yessssss!), and lots of other tweaks to the game. Really, any WoW player should love this patch- and if you don't, you're either way too conservative, or a twink, and therefore a bad person.

Q&A Woes

So, the official Blizzard forums have been doing their WoW Class Q&As for a while now. Each class, getting its own little question and answer session. That's a really good idea. The reality has been less than what most of us were hoping, though. Disappointment is kind of inevitable- it's hard to imagine what would be enough to satisfy the hardcore... but you've also got to ask yourself, "What is the point of having the community ask any questions they want, and then only asking ones that (mostly) already have answers?" So, so many of the Q&As consist most of "Q: Many of our class are dissatisfied with X ability. Do you have any plans to change it? A: BWA HA HA! Cry some more!" I exaggerate, of course, but telling people that there's no problem, and that their complaint is a "class feature" rings a little hollow. Really, you guys? That my priest is the squishiest, easiest thing to kill around is by design? Boy, I feel much better now.

There HAVE been some genuinely interesting bits of information that have come out of these, but all too often, it feels like Blizzard is just telling us that we're whiners who don't know how to play our classes. I can respect that, as the creators of the game, they do likely know a lot more about it. What I know is that my priest dies more than other healers, my warrior doesn't get invited to groups because they don't want someone who can't buff, and my paladin is overpowered, no matter how you try to excuse it. Frankly, this is a pretty classic dev problem- they work too much in the realm of the theoretical and abstract. It's taken them this long to even respond to complaints like "this isn't fun to play" because I honestly think they just didn't understand what we meant. Yes, most of the staff at Blizz plays WoW in their free time. But you know what? I write fiction, and I guarantee you when I read my own fiction, I do not get at all the same experience as someone else reading my fiction.

There is an old expression, not being able to find the forest for the trees. You're too close, Blizzard. You're so close to your own game that you can't see the bigger picture. I'm not trying to insult you, or call you close-minded. It's not because you're bad. It's something EVERY dev struggles with. That's why you have betas, for instance- so people on the outside, people who've never even been to the metaphorical forest can tell you what they think. Can tell you how it looks from further away. And frankly, you're not listening to us like you should. You've decided that because you're so close, you know it better than anyone else, and thus we should just shut up and accept your decisions. Here's a thought, though- even if you were right, and you do have the right ideas about game balance? We're still the ones paying your salary. Even if you're right, if you don't work with us, we will stop playing. And yes, WoW is a cash cow. It makes a lot of goddamn money. But when it crashes down from its high hill, and someday it will... when WoW dies, it will be a quiet, terrible sight to behold, and Blizzard will never be the same.

We've seen MMOs die before, seen what a long, painful, drawn-out process it is. MMOs can have been dead for years before they ever actually close. It's a miserable thing to watch. Blizzard is working on a new MMO, and they've said that they hope that it will be the one to topple WoW. I think it's entirely possible... but if they don't wisen up, and listen to us now, WoW will die before their new MMO makes it to the table. This is Blizzard we're talking about- the "when it's done" guys. Their new MMO will not be out for a long time. And plenty of aspiring new MMOs have made it very clear that they intend to listen to their player bases. Follow their lead, Blizz. Stop telling us that we don't know how to play our classes, and actually address our concerns.

Last Argument of Kings

Factions. In World of Warcraft, there are tons of factions- more than ten are added with each expansion, and we started off with an (un)healthy 33 of them in just the basic game. Faction grinds are infamously dull and unrewarding, and while it's certainly better to have them than not, they really aren't that well done. Really, saving a race of people from guaranteed extinction should grant you more than the right to buy shit from them. Come on.

What is my solution? Well, I think that politics need to be more a part of it. The idea that a faction only offers you things to buy, even when they nearly worship you (Exalted status) is silly. A faction that really thinks you're the shit should offer you services. Repairs are a necessary gold sink, sure. But how about some other interesting options? Maybe you could (on a cooldown) summon some NPCs from that faction to help you fight. You wouldn't be able to summon them in an instance, so it wouldn't affect game balance, but you would be able to have, say, a few Stormwind knights come to your aid for a hard quest. Maybe you can only summon one faction's aid per cooldown, and can only choose factions that you are exalted with. I think it would be cool if different factions actually had different NPCs- like the Kirin Tor had mages, and the Wyrmrest Accord had dragonkin, and so forth- but just giving them different skins and names would be fine. Only major factions would have this, of course- I can't imagine what Zandalar Tribe would have in the way of NPC aid, for instance. Maybe keep it to the major cities, and major neutral factions.

Other things would be necessary, of course, and that leads us to a special idea of mine. Currently, if one gets Exalted with all of their home cities, they get the Ambassador title. What if it wasn't just a title, though? What if it allowed you to use, on a cooldown, of course, a day's worth of diplomatic immunity? Imagine it- once a week (or month, or something), you could use a cooldown to make it so that you could enter opposite faction cities without getting flagged, and even hang out there. Once the buff it gave you wore off, so you'd have to be careful not to overstay your welcome... but it would be a really cool little way for the non-PvP types to explore the other faction's city. You'd be able to use the other faction's auction house and vendors, perhaps, and maybe even take some minor quests- that's a big maybe, though. Diplomats talk to the enemy, they don't necessarily aid them.

Honestly, as much as this is the World of Warcraft, it's a little silly how it's impossible to use diplomacy or politics at all. It bother me that though you're supposed to be a hero of your faction, besides selling you things and telling you to do jobs for them, the people of your own faction don't seem to give two shits about you. They don't mind watching you run off and get lynched by a pack of gnolls. And though the diplomatic immunity would probably lessen faction tension... adding the summonable NPCs (which could be used for world PvP, of course) would significantly add to it. You thought it was bad when you got jumped by a Tauren five levels stronger than you... well, now he has a patrol of orc warriors with him. Are their potential problems?

Do these ideas need balancing? Well, sure. But politics and loyalties were massively important in the medieval world, and I see no reason why they shouldn't be here.

I Promise to Shut Up in a Sec

My last post was a dramatization of how the Curse of the Worgen might have taken over the isolated nation of Gilneas, as has been often suggested by lore buffs. However, the story was not finished- when we left off, the Curse had nearly consumed the country, but one with a wealth of knowledge about the Worgen, Velinde Starsong, had suddenly shown up, offering her aid. It is there that we pick up, and finish our story. And then, I promise, I will stop talking about this. I just think it's really cool, is all, and I love a chance to pop out a little fiction.

Brought before the meager remains of Gilneas's government, Velinde Starsong introduced herself, and explained that she had come because she sensed the Worgen's presence. After all her study into the Worgen, their nature, how to summon them, and personal experience with them, she had become attuned to their unique, magical signature- since they were not from this world, they stood out. But, she explained, it was really luck that she had found them... she had come to this part of the world in search of the Archmage Arugal in Silverpine Glade, and had she not been so close, she would have never noticed them.

The Worgen of Gilneas, she explained, were different. She didn't know why, but they were like a different species of Worgen... their unearthy signature far less pronounced, their forms more human-looking. A sign of some sort- whether of the Curse's adaptation to its new environment, of Gilnean resistance to the Curse, or of something else entirely, she wasn't sure. But for whatever reason, this breed of Worgen that had consumed their land was no longer alien, it was truly Azerothian.

She offers her aid, and convinces the remaining mages, paladins, and priests to work with her to find some kind of cure for the people. Tensions are high, time is short, and the wizards and the Light Bearers are at each other's throats constantly. Finally, the mages, with Velinde's help, theorize a way that would revert the minds of the Cursed to their old selves, but have no effect on the body.

The paladins and priests are livid. It is not good enough, they argue. They have to make everyone as they were- being forced to live as monsters is no cure at all. The mages try to convince them that such a cure is impossible- indeed, the Curse's mutation within the Gilneans is the only reason they can even do this much. But the believers are unshakable, unwilling to go through with a "half-cure". They press the mages for more time, for more research, but the mages have had enough. Over eighty percent of the nation are now Worgen. The curse's march has slowed in the face of protective measures, but it is still advancing.

And to the masters of the arcane, after the stress of repeated failures, watching their friends and family fall to the curse, living in a situation where at every moment, they could be swarmed by the Worgen, but they must continue their work anyway... finally having found a cure, and then not being allowed to use it is just the last straw. They accuse the Light Bearers of treason, of obstructing their noble efforts to heal their country, and demand that they be arrested. They appeal to the populous, and a mob seizes the worshippers of the Light, and locks them in a magically sealed prison. The priests and paladins are just stunned... too overcome with despair and shock to resist.

Velinde is deeply disturbed by this turn of events, but knows that they must proceed- they must cast the spell to heal the land at any cost. The mages prepare their runes, and the ceremony begins. They pour their magic into Velinde, and using the lingering magic of the Scythe of Elune, the traces of it that still cling to her, the Night Elf shapes the massive amount of magic, and casts. A wave of magic rushes over the land, and for the first time since the Worgen entered their lands... peace falls over the Gilneans.

The magic worked, the Cursed's minds are their own again... but the magic was not without its side effects. The wave of magic did not act exactly as intended... true, it helped the cursed, but it also turned those not cursed into Worgen. Now, it is truly an entire nation of wolfmen... save for the Light worshippers, protected from the spell by their magically warded prison, and Velinde Starsong, mysteriously untouched by the spell despite being at ground zero. And even beyond their physical forms, the Gilneans' minds have been changed. Their personalities and memories are once again those of their old selves... but their bodies are still those of Worgen, and as such, their bodies produce the same chemicals, causing them to be more aggressive and instinctual. Living in fear for so long, too, took its toll on their minds... they are more distrustful, independent, and suspicious. Certainly, they are still intelligent beings, but even mentally, it's hard to say that they are truly still human.

The paladins and priests, freed from their cell, are horrified. All their fears about the spell have been terribly confirmed. These are not their people, not anymore. Some of them sink into despair, but one young, bold paladin rallies the worshippers of the Light. Yes, he says, this nation has changed. Yes, this is its darkest hour yet, as one cannot say that they are even human anymore. But isn't it all the more the duty of they few, those unaffected by the Curse, those still human, those still bearing the Holy Light, to aid this country in a time of such need? Paladins, priests, the Holy Light, all are to bring hope and peace to places of chaos and strife. This is exactly where they need to be. And their country needs them now more than ever.

The Worgen are distrustful of the paladins and priests at first, but the humans manage to convince the wolfmen to send them as envoys to Stormwind. Through their passionate debate, especially that of the young paladin that rallied them, they convince the Alliance to accept their former brothers into the Alliance. The grateful Gilneans- for they were prepared to have to stand against a world that did not, would not trust them- appoint the young paladin as their new king, and the Church of the Holy Light works within them, helping them rebuild their ravaged land, and slowly opening some of the Worgen to the Light. And in the midst of all this, Velinde Starsong disappears, her heart lightened a bit to see the direction Gilneas is headed in.

Suggested classes: Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, Warrior, Rogue. No DKs, because canonly, the Lich King would be beaten by this point.

There, that was a fun game of what-if, wasn't it? Now I'll shut up about Worgen and Goblins and all that, as promised.

The Part Where I Make Things Up

Okay, so yesterday, we talked about the controversy sweeping the WoW nation, the whole "OMG Goblins and Worgen" business. We pretty much talked facts and facts alone, and trust me when I say it took a lot of willpower for me to do lot, and not start talking excitedly about what this could mean and what could happen. Well, since I was so good yesterday, today is my reward- where I get to make up a scenario that would be lore-relevant and likely as to why Gilneas might have become a Worgen nation. If you don't buy into all this theorizing, or you don't play WoW? Just think of it as a neat story. I am primarily a fiction writer, after all.

Okay, so we start off with Gilneas... it's near the beginning of the Third War, and they've shut themselves off from the rest of the world. They're a very self-sufficient nation, and unbeleaguered by the Horde or Scourge, they're doing just fine on their own. They no longer have access to the finer goods as might be crafted by the other nations, but in their minds, it's a small price to pay to not have to deal with petty politics and war- and make no mistakes, the politics of Azeroth are often very petty indeed.

But one day, just coincedentally... wandering Worgen happen upon the untouched lands of Gilneas. The nation is surronded by the tall Greymane wall, and left very lightly guarded, for what would they need to guard it from...? Worgen, lest it be forgotten, are vicious, but quite intelligent- they wear primitive clothes, travel in packs, display surprising cunning, and some even wear primitive weapons, and speak Common/Orcish (depending on your faction- both sides can understand them when they speak). And to them, this wall is initially merely an intriguing oddity, but after a little investigation, they find a way in. Here, I can't even guess how, I just don't have enough information to work with- hole in the wall, gap in the wall, climb over the wall, maybe swim AROUND the wall... something. It's sort of the classic horror situation- you create this nearly impenetrable fortress, but when chance has it that something slips through the one flaw in the design, it suddenly becomes your cage- just as it kept the bad out, it keeps you in, and you can't escape.

The Worgen move into the woods of Gilneas, upsetting the wildlife, but not having any significant encounters for a while, until they run into a hunter travelling through the woods. And again, now we come across one of the mysteries of this situation- we know that Worgen can turn people into other Worgen, but we have no idea how that works. Magical curse, disease, do they actually cast some magic, how does it work? I'm going to just call it the Curse for now, but this is one field that we would really need to learn more about. They give the hunter the Curse (which, of course, would take time to kick in), and he runs home scared and a little injured. He's got a fever, he's ranting about these huge wolf-men, and so the doctors decide he was attacked by a wolf, and his injury got infected. Not at all a rare condition, though certainly a dangerous one. And for a little while, life goes on.

Finally, the hunter's fever passes, and he feels okay again. He gets up, and prepares to go out for a day's work. But something is different. He feels... different. Enough cheesy exposition- he's turned into a Worgen, and pretty quickly falls into the Worgen line of behavior, attacking people. Only this time, it's not some guy in the woods getting attacked, it's lots of people, right in the middle of town. And just like an outbreak of the plague, the Curse spreads, quickly and efficiently. These people know nothing of the Worgen, have no experience with fighting them or their Curse, and thus are defenseless against it. And one by one, people turn into Worgen. And after that... ten by ten, and more.

The Gilneans are panicked. This Curse is consuming their country, this epidemic threatening their very humanity. At the beginning, they refuse to contact the outside because, as ever, they think they can handle it themselves. But later, they refuse to contact the outside because they're afraid of what would happen. How does one stop a plague? Quarantine, and wait for everyone infected to die. And they don't want that to be them. They want to stop its spread... they want to cure the infected. And they cannot stand to just kill the Cursed. It's not like these creatures are just bloodthirsty monsters- they were once their neighbors, their friends, their family. They can't just kill them. They need to cure them. And so the quest for a cure begins.

Medicine proves its failures early on, having absolutely no effect on the rampaging Curse. A very small percentage of people are shown to be immune to the Curse, and so they are studied, and determined to all have some inherent magic resistance. As it a magic problem, the mages are called in, and after numerous spectacular failures, they sadly admit that they are beaten. And so the nation is faced with no cure, no way out, and no hope. And in this most desparate hour, the priests and paladins of the Holy Light join together, and lift their hands to the skies, praying for an answer, praying for help. Praying for some way to cure it all.

And miraculously, their prayers are answered, in a way. As the Curse spread, early on, Gilneas realized how dangerous the Curse could be were it to spread to any outsiders... and also, how some outsiders might take advantage of their country's weakened state. So in response, they placed hidden sentries on the Greymane Wall- skilled rogues who could watch and guard without being seen, for Gilneas did not want to even indicate that anything had changed. They had used no guards in the past, and a sudden heavy presence on the wall would be a red flag to the rest of the world. And one day, a Night Elf woman began beating on the gate, demanding entry, and claiming that she knew about their wolf-man problem, and that she could help. The sentries were alarmed, and captured the woman, and let her inside, escorting her to the new head of state (ironically, the stubborn monarch Genn Greymane was naturally resistant to the Curse, so the Worgen simply killed him).

She introduced herself as Velinde Starsong....

(To be continued in another post. Damn, I am really getting carried away. The next post will be the last time I rave about this, I promise.)

Fun for the Whole Family

Alright, readers, big news- you know how I said I'd be the only poster at the start of all this? Well, I lied. Actually, the situation just changed, really. You know the buddy I mentioned as helping with the spec improvement stuff? Timmy? Yeah, he's gonna start posting here now and then under the name Cheddarcheeseme2. He's a smart, entertaining, and most importantly, noticably crazy. Otherwise, he wouldn't fit in. He's a WoW player, he's a TF2 player, and he's... well, he can tell you about himself some more when he posts. He's a solid guy.

This does open up the possibility of other posters as well if I encounter willing people who are verifiably awesome, but we can cross that bridge when we come to it.

Gilneas, the Worgen, and the Scythe of Elune

Okay. So when I post about WoW, I try to make it so that non-WoW players can have some idea of what I'm talking about in the post. With this post... I'm not really gonna make that effort. I'm too excited, there's too much to discuss. Explaining everything would just make this post two times (at least) as long. Because we're gonna talk about the big discovery- possible evidence of two new playable races that will be added in the new expansion pack.

At this point, it's more or less a given that a new expansion will be announced at BlizzCon. If it isn't, everyone will be massively disappointed. And heck, we're due one, anyway, by the schedule that Blizzard themselves announced a while back. A lot of people are taking it for granted that the new expansion will be a Maelstrom expansion, with additions to old world Azeroth- I think it quite likely, but let's not cement that idea in our heads. Certainly Blizzard has hinted this strongly, but we have to remember, this is Blizzard. This is the guys that kept Starcraft 2 a complete secret for nine freaking years. They are pretty good at keeping stuff under wraps. And that's the only reason I'm still on the edge about these supposed new races, as well. In case you don't know what I'm talking about, a dataminer found some new face textures for the Hallow's End masks, modeled after Goblins, and what is likely a species of Worgen (since they don't look like regular Worgen).

I'm pretty sure that they are, indeed, Worgen, despite how unusual they look. They do rather look like cat people, but given Blizzard's repeated declarations that if they added new races, they would be drawn from existing lore and set up to succeed, thus avoid what many people consider the "lol lore"situation of the Draenei, WoW's biggest retcon, I am pretty confident that they are Worgen. Consider A) that those are flat textures, and once applied to 3d models, the added depth will change the look, and B) that they could well be concept art, not finalized skins, especially considering how similar they look to certain pieces of noted Blizzard artist Samwise Didier. Add to that the fact that every Hallow's End mask thus far has been of a playable race, with every race represented- Blood Elf and Draenei masks were added for Burning Crusade, just as Blood Elves and Draenei were made playable- and you have yourself a pretty compelling argument for Goblins and Worgen becoming playable.

Smart money is on the Worgen being Alliance, and the Goblins being Horde. Why, you ask? Well, for Goblins, even though they currently exist as a neutral faction, a lot of them were members of the Horde back in Warcraft 2, so it's not so hard to imagine them rejoining, especially if this does turn out to be a Maelstrom expansion... as their home, Kezan, is an island nation, they are dangerously close to the Naga threat in the middle of the ocean, and would probably need some help. Needing help in WoW means picking a side, and you better believe they have more reason to go Horde than Alliance. And of course, there would be no need to alter the existing Goblin factions to be meaner to the Alliance or nicer to the Horde- races are rarely a united front, least of all the mercenary, opportunist Goblins. They're easy to lore justify.

The fun- and I really do mean fun, I love this stuff- comes in justifying the Worgen for Alliance. A lot of assumptions have to be made, at this point in time, to link them to the Alliance, and that sounds like a blast to me. But first, we have to get a basis in facts. So let's do that.

So, the Worgen are primarily present in three areas in the game- Silverpine Forest, Darkshore, and Grizzly Hills. In Grizzly Hills, the Worgen demonstrate an ability to infect/curse humans, and thereby turn them into Worgen. No other races have been shown as being turned into Worgen. In Darkshore, an Alliance questing area populated by humans, we learn the story of Velinde Starsong, a Night Elf Sentinel who brought the Worgen into this world via the Scythe of Elune. And in Silverpine Forest, we have the Undead and Kirin Tor mages both fighting the Worgen as they roam the forest... and, of course, the instance Shadowfang Keep, in which the (human) Archmage Arugal resides with his army of Worgen. So though the Horde has certainly fought the Worgen a few times, they just don't have the deep lore connection with the Worgen that the Alliance does. The Worgen were summoned by the Alliance, controlled by an ex-member of the Alliance, and turned members of the Alliance into more of their kind.

And that's not even mentioning Gilneas. Gilneas is a human nation that has shut itself off from the rest of the world for quite a long time. Near the start of the third war, the leader of Gilneas basically declared that they weren't going to help the Alliance, and they didn't need the Alliance's (or anyone's) help, that they were strong enough to shut themselves off from the world and be perfectly self-sufficient. And then they promptly closed their gates, and no one has left, entered, or heard from them since. That was years ago, and as cited above, Blizzard has hinted that some very interesting things have happened behind those closed doors, and that we will soon learn about them.

Okay, that's pretty good grounds for a little conspiracy theory, but what does it have to do with the Worgen? Well, Shadowfang Keep is approximately a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Gilneas border (that's a technical system of measure). A whole army of Worgen, who have proven their ability to turn humans into more of themselves, right around the corner to this nation that has gone dark for years. What would happen if a few Worgen managed to get inside? Unlike the rest of the world, they would have no idea what they were dealing with- everyone else has fought the Worgen, knows how dangerous they are and how they can spread, but the Gilneans would likely just treat them like any other monster. And when they did so, someone would inevitably get infected... and just like a plague, the infection would spread like wildfire. Extremely contagious condition + ignorant public + isolation. Do the math. Gilneas would be Worgen-ized inside of a few years.

You think that's fun? Tommorow, I'll post a little made-up (but logical) lore background to how it could even happen, how it would go. Look forward to it! Especially since it has me so excited that I'm posting on a Saturday.

Improving Specs: Mages

I wanted to start off quickly by touching on a point I brought up in a previous post- Tier 9 armor in WoW. I still think the basic concept is a bad idea for a Tier set of armor. Now that I've seen the full set, however, I will no longer argue that the individual art is lacking. Tier 9 is some of the best texture work Blizzard has ever done, and I really understand what they meant when they said this tier took more work despite being smaller. I'm a little grumpy about the armor class business, but it's gorgeous armor. Well done, Blizz. Also? The Renaissance masquerade-looking Alliance Rogue headpiece is fantastic.

But my actual topic for today is going to be something non-nerdragey. It's the start of a new series I will do for my WoW posts periodically, when there's nothing topical that I should discuss. Note, I said "should"- I would love to rant and rave like a madman about the Warrior Q&A posted on the official forums, and how useless I found it, but I don't see how that helps anybody. Instead, I will kick off this series. The premise for this series is pretty simple- I feel that every spec in WoW should have some visual trademark that makes them immediately identifiable for what they are. The perfect example of this is the Druid forms, or the Fury Warrior talent Titan's Grip- very, very distinctive, and frankly badass. I need to pause for a moment, and thank my Steam buddy, Timmy, for his help with this- all of these were done with his help, and plenty of them were his idea to begin with. Thanks Timmy! So I'll start off by talking about my ideas for class that's very near and dear to my heart- one of the classes I could never stand to level, the Mage!

So, basically, the idea is that each of the three specs will have something visually unique to identify them. Admittedly, I picked Mage to start with because it's pretty easy- Frost's is a gimme. Frost should have, via talents, the thing that everyone has been suggesting for a while now- the ability to make their Water Elemental a permenant pet, not just summonable for short periods of time. Frankly, Frost PvE isn't doing so hot to begin with, so they could use the boost. And hey, it's not my job to balance it, anyway. I'm just the guy with kooky ideas.

Fire is also fairly simple, in that it would not require an actual new talent or spell. Basically, one would just apply the dancing flame effect used by Grand Warlock Alythess (http://www.wowhead.com/?npc=25166), one of the infamous Eredar Twins, to the mage spell Molten Armor. It's a spell Fire Mages keep on them all the time anyway, and now it would have a really awesome visual associated with it too. Alright! Fire Mages done!

Here's the fun one- Arcane. This one would require a unique talent, and honestly, I'm not certain how it would work. But here's the idea- you know Kael'thas Sunstrider (http://www.wowhead.com/?npc=24664)? The elven hero (and eventually villain) that's been with us since Warcraft 3? Well, he always has three of these awesome looking orbs orbitting him- three glowing, magical orbs. In what little research I did on them, I couldn't find any additional information, but basically, they enhance his magical power, and are one of the most badass effects in the game. So why not give them to the masters of magic, Arcane Mages? They could be a buff or equivalent for mages, adding to their crit or spellpower, but it would be neat if they were more than just that. I'm not sure what. If you have any ideas, reader, just leave a comment! I'd be more than willing to edit this post with the new idea, and give you proper credit.

So that's it for today's spec improvement post! I'll probably post later about the used game business I left unmentioned yesterday, but don't hold your breath- a post every weekday is all I promise. I'll try to squeeze in more as things come up, but I'm a busy man! No I'm not, that's a lie. But I'd like to be.

Massively Multiplayer... Meaning What, Exactly?

As is pretty readily apparent reading this blog, I play World of Warcraft... the world's biggest massively multiplayer game, as far as player population goes. I have considered switching to another MMO, and to that end, have tried quite a few other MMOs- I'll try almost anything that has a free trial. Obviously, none of the others have convinced me that they are better... though I admit, Warhammer Online came close. Thanks to my experience, I have a pretty good idea of what it means to be an MMO. And all of that was called into question when I watched a Developer Diary for the upcoming PS3 title Massive Action Game, aka MAG.

In the video, they repeatedly referred to the game as a massively multiplayer game... and I really didn't like that. Yes, it has 256 player battles. It's hard to argue that 256 people blazing away at each other is not massive. It most certainly is. And obviously, it's a multiplayer game. But to me, there are connotations, assumptions, heck, I would even go so far as to say the phrase "massively multiplayer" does not simply mean multiplayer with a lot of people. I don't think it should be taken literally. And from what I've seen of MAG, I don't think it should be called an MMO.

This comes at an interesting time for MMOs, where the genre is changing rapidly with the advent of free-to-play MMOs, which are bringing the genre's definition into question all the more. Originally, MMOs were pretty simple to define- large-scale multiplayer games that required a subscription to play. An overgeneralization? Sure. But if you were just trying to explain the concept to someone who'd never played one before, that explanation worked pretty well. Now... it means something totally different. Calling something a MMO indicates more than just scale and subscription- it means that the world is persistant, that it keeps on going after you've logged off, and that your progress remains. But there are persistant multiplayer games that definitely aren't MMOs- Call of Duty 4 allows your efforts in multiplayer to earn experience, and help you gradually gain in rank, thus unlocking the privilege for new weapons and abilities. Many other games have copied this style, but that doesn't make them MMOs.

Another significant trait of MMOs is that they offer progressive growth of character not just in equipment and abilities, but in statistics like strength or stamina, that they grow very measurably stronger as you play them in multiplayer. A level 80 player simply cannot lose to a level 1 player in World of Warcraft unless they try to- the same cannot be said between a private and a general in Call of Duty, not in the least. But again, there are exceptions to this rule. The Diablo series has been around for quite a while, and its multiplayer mode has the player starting a fresh character, gaining levels and gear in much the same way as an MMO. In fact, Diablo is perhaps the best example of how blurred the line can be- it has pretty much EVERY element of an MMO. Large, persistant world? Check. A character that grows in gear and strength as you play? Check. An abundance of other players? Check.

So what, then, makes a game an MMO? What makes it not an MMO? I think if Diablo 3 were to call its multiplayer mode an MMO, people would object... but they wouldn't really know how to prove it wasn't. There is sort of an insubstantial something to MMOs- a feeling that you are playing in a world, not just a virtual playground- that few other games have. Your actions have lasting effect, you grow and mature, you can make money and spend money, and you're not the most important thing in the world- you're just like everyone else, just one of the crowd. MMO veterans know exactly what I mean, and can appreciate the difference... but what about someone who doesn't play MMOs regularly? How would they tell the difference? And this is the industry's problem- it's agreed among the hardcore that free-to-play MMOs can't match the quality of paid ones, but in ways that the casual have trouble understanding and appreciating. That's why WoW's population has stopped growing, that's why games like Tabula Rasa find themselves closing down, why Age of Conan finds itself closing servers en masse. They drew in a decent crowd initially... and then just fell off the radar, because the casual just don't see what they're getting for their money that they couldn't get from a free-to-play game.

It's not that the games aren't worth the money... they just need to learn how to communicate the difference between them and their cheaper cousins.