Archive for June, 2010
June 27th, 2010
In an interview on Gameplanet, Ghostcrawler talks about reforging:
The way [reforging] works is, instead of being tied to trade skills, now there are NPCs in the major cities. You go to this NPC and tell them you want to reforge an item. The interface opens and you place the item in it. It then asks you to pick a stat to reduce, and then pick a stat to add. You can’t use primary stats like agility, strength and intellect, but you can use all of the secondary stats like hit, crit, haste, parry, dodge, things like that. Then you reduce one of the stats by – at the moment it’s 40% but to make the example easier, say it’s 50%. If you have 100 crit, you reduce that by 50, that then gives you 50 points to put on, say, hit. And the cost of that transaction is the vendor cost of the item, so if you later decide to sell that item, you’re not really out of pocket.
I have to say that I thought reforging was going to be something you did rarely, to get rid of excess hit or a really bad stat. But from this description, it seems like reforging will be something that you do to every piece of gear.
To see what I mean, let’s use our old technique of assigning a dollar value to stats. The standard 4-stat item has 2 primary stats and 2 secondary stats. We’ll just ignore the primary stats because they don’t change during reforging.
Let’s assume, that for our class:
1 Crit rating = $1.00
1 Haste rating = $1.10
[Item with Crit and Haste]
100 Crit rating = $100
100 Haste rating = $110
————-
Total = $210
Then we reforge some of that crit into haste.
[Reforged item]
50 Crit rating = $50
150 Haste rating = $165
————-
Total = $215
Reforging the lower value stat into the higher value stat always makes the item better. So whenever you get an item, the first thing you do is reforge the lower value secondary stats into whatever secondary stat has the highest value for your class.
Pretty much the only time you wouldn’t do this is if you are hovering around an inflection point in the value of a stat, such as the hit cap. At that point you get to bust out the spreadsheet to see if reforging is a gain or a loss.
Now, if you can’t increase a stat that already exists on an item, then items with the two best secondary stats won’t be reforged, but all other ones will.
I guess I understand the impetus behind reforging. My paladin has an i264 2H weapon, which I would like to use for Retribution, but I can’t use it because it puts me 3% over the hit cap. However, I can’t help but wonder if the implementation as described will just lead to an extra layer of complexity. You get a new piece of gear, and you have to reforge, gem, and enchant it before you can actually use it. Sometimes, I miss getting a new item and being able to equip it immediately.
Not to mention that there’s a possibility for unintentional power inflation, as every item will contribute more than the design on paper, and maybe a lot more if a specific secondary stat turns out to be much more valuable than the others for a specific class. With both reforging and gemming, a character could focus a huge amount of her equipment budget on one specific stat.
June 26th, 2010
Today is the day <It came from the Blog> flames an entire continent in honor of the Midsummer Fire Festival.
- Day: Saturday, June 26
- Time: The Pre-Event Mixer will be at 5 p.m. EDT (2 p.m. PDT, 3 p.m. realm time) and the flaming starts at 5:30 p.m. EDT
- Meet at: The fountain in front of the Court of the Sun in Silvermoon City on Zangarmarsh (US-PVE-H)
We’ll have our usual get together before we embark on the Flamefest. The first half of the event will be for all levels and the second half will be for epic mounted characters that have all the flightpaths.
For first timers: We will not have a raid, because there will be too many people. I use all caps to make myself heard, so there is no shouting but me.
I haven’t decided whether I am bringing Robinator or Robinella to the party, so look for either. The italics below have details as to how to join the guild. Hope to see you there!
Please join us on Zangarmarsh (US-PVE-H) in <It came from the Blog>. Ask Robiness, Robinemia or any member online for an invite. Guild ranks of Lurker or above have the ability to invite. You are all welcome as long as you play by our simple rules, that can be summed up with “Don’t be a Funsucker!” Also, please see the guild FAQ for the most common questions.Filed under: Events, It Came from the Blog
Reminder: It came from the Blog’s Midsummer Flamefest today originally appeared on WoW.com on Sat, 26 Jun 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 26th, 2010
Every week, just at the start of the weekend, we catch up with the WoW.com staff and ask them, “What are you playing this week?” (Otherwise known as WRUP.) Join us to see what we’re up to in and out of game — and catch us in the comments to let us know what you’re playing, too!
This week is all about stalking our co-workers Real ID. We knew what Real ID was before the patch hit, of course, but who among us could have been prepared for the flood of email it would bring to our virtual doorsteps? I do hope Blizzard is still working to improve their Real ID feature, but in the meanwhile, remember that you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to. Though anyone opting out isn’t going to see me around after Diablo 3 is released …
But on to the subject at hand: keep reading for a round-up of what the WoW.com staff is up to this weekend, in game and otherwise. A smattering of them even answered this week’s bonus question and tell us about their favorite patch feature.
Continue reading WRUP: Post 3.3.5 edition
Filed under: WoW.com Business
WRUP: Post 3.3.5 edition originally appeared on WoW.com on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 25th, 2010
Choose the adventures of the WoW.com staff as we level our characters in <It came from the Blog> on Zangarmarsh (US-PvE-H).
First, the schedule:
- Fox Van Allen as Foxlight, the blood elf paladin: Friday, 8 p.m. EDT
- Michael Sacco as Sahko, the orc warlock; Christian Belt, as Selfloathius, the blood elf warlock; Elizabeth Harper as Faience, the troll shaman; Matthew Rossi as Andrenorton, the troll mage; Michael Gray as Grayfields, the tauren hunter; and Adam Holisky as Adammentat, the tauren druid, will be making appearances as they can
So anyway, I learned my lesson. Don’t put anything that I want to do on a poll, because you’ll vote against it. And don’t put anything I don’t want to do on a poll, because you’ll vote for it. We have a few polls this week. Because <It came from the Blog> is a huge, friendly, helpful guild, we often have guardians to help us through tough situations. Fast, easy leveling is kind of built in. So please vote for what you’d like to read about — not what would make us level faster.
Continue reading Choose My Adventure: I learned my lesson
Filed under: It Came from the Blog, Choose My Adventure
Choose My Adventure: I learned my lesson originally appeared on WoW.com on Fri, 25 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 25th, 2010
Here at WoW.com, we’re on a Daily Quest (which we try to do every day, honest) to bring you interesting, informative and entertaining WoW-related links from around the blogosphere. Is there a story out there we ought to link or a blog we should be following? Just leave us a comment and you may see it here tomorrow! Take a look at the links below, and be sure to check out our WoW Resources Guide for more WoW-related sites.
It seems to happen to everyone at some point or another: the game’s no longer as exciting as it used to be, and your logins become sporadic and finally vanish entirely. At WoW.com we love World of Warcraft as much as anyone — but once in a while, everyone needs a break. Even from their favorite game. Today, a few posts on the subject of burnout.
- Achtung Panzercow discusses the dreaded b-word. Since this blog post has been gathering dust in my “links to use in The Daily Quest” list for a while and Panzercow is still blogging about WoW, it can only be assumed that burnout has come and gone. Or perhaps come and gone and come and gone. Or perhaps… well, you get the idea.
- Mana Obscura talks about battling burnout.
- Moar HPS! talks about trying to stay interested.
Any tips on escaping WoW burnout to share with us? Leave ‘em in the comments!
Filed under: The Daily Quest
The Daily Quest: Burning out originally appeared on WoW.com on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 21:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 24th, 2010
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com’s daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Adam Holisky will be your host today.
I’m submitting a new disease to the books. It’s called “Patching Syndrome.” It’s where people think something has changed because of the patch even though it hasn’t.
That hair style you just discovered last night? It’s always been there. Patch 3.3.5 had nothing to do with it.
Pwnzoar asked …
“Originally, back before Burning Crusade, I remember them announcing that there were going to be racial flying mounts, similar to how we have racial ground mounts. Coupled with that, I remember pictures of an undead dragon that was going to be the Undead flying mount, and it looked epic. Why did they decide to switch that out and go with flying mounts for faction?”
Continue reading The Queue: Patching syndrome
Filed under: The Queue
The Queue: Patching syndrome originally appeared on WoW.com on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 24th, 2010
The latest Cataclysm screenshot from Blizzard is shown above, featuring a look at … the identical twin of Black Temple’s High Warlord Naj’entus. “Intruders of the aquatic realm, seekers of the secrets of the deep, he comes for you,” so sayeth the official Warcraft Twitter account.
Over the weekend and through the Patch 3.3.5 hustle and bustle, we hadn’t been giving these screenshots individual posts. If you’ve miss the last few screenshots, check them out in the gallery below. You can also find a high-res version of today’s screenshot in there.
Gallery: Cataclysm Daily Screenshots
Filed under: Cataclysm
Cataclysm screenshot of the day originally appeared on WoW.com on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 23:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 23rd, 2010
Welcome back to The Queue, WoW.com’s daily Q&A column where the WoW.com team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today.
It has officially happened, ladies and gentlemen. World of Warcraft is dead and Transformice has killed it. Who needs gold or epics when I can buy a tophat with cheese? I’ll catch ya guys later, I’m rerolling mouse shaman. Anvil God is totally OP.
Wix asked:
“When we make worgen, will we be able to design both the human and the worgen appearances? Or will it be like druids and hair color?”
Continue reading The Queue: Long live the shaman
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, The Queue
The Queue: Long live the shaman originally appeared on WoW.com on Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 23rd, 2010
Whether pandering to our pyromaniac tendencies or not, who doesn’t enjoy a good world event? And if you really don’t enjoy world events, well, my apologies — though I dare say a lot of players find them a fun diversion from the daily grind. Regardless, if you’re interested in checking out this year’s Fire Festival, we’ve got you covered.
- WoW.com has a guide to the achievements and a video guide to killing Ahune.
- Wowhead has a comprehensive guide to the festival.
- WoWWiki gives you a rundown on the event’s history as well as the quests and rewards.
- The Lazy Sniper walks you through achievements, quests, and flames.
- Don’t want to go it alone? <It came from the Blog> is doing doing a fire festival run this Saturday, the 26th.
- Has the Ice Stone melted? Almost Evil directs us to this helpful answer.
Filed under: The Daily Quest
The Daily Quest: The Midsummer Fire Festival originally appeared on WoW.com on Tue, 22 Jun 2010 23:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
June 23rd, 2010
Heroic loot distribution in Icecrown Citadel is slightly different than in the three previous tiers.
In Naxx, Ulduar, and Trial of the Crusader, heroic loot dropped in addition to regular loot.
In Icecrown Citade, heroic loot drops instead of regular loot.
This small change has some subtle ramifications for guilds doing heroic content. It’s now a lot slower to gear up new players to the heroic standard.
The new players can get to the i245 level fairly easily. But since you’re doing hard modes, i264 loot is actually somewhat scarce. In the past, new people would be geared up very quickly with all the regular loot that the established raiders had already acquired.
But when you’re working on hard modes, that regular loot doesn’t drop anymore. You get mostly i277 gear, which the established raiders want, and the new people have to compete against them.
The only item that this doesn’t apply to is class tokens. i277 tokens drop in addition to i264 tokens. As a result, it’s really easy for a new raider to get all their tokens in short time period. However, then she’s blocked on Emblems.
I guess the solution is to try and recruit more people who are already in i264 gear.
