Quirk at Work

Salutations!

Wow, it’s been forever and a year since I last posted! Tyrna and her new Springpaw are doing quite well and have just hit 19 after wrapping up a few quests in Loch Modan.

Actually, I’ve been going through a minor leveling blitz with my toons, most notably on my lone Horde toon on the US-Terokkar server, Laetitia.  Laetitia’s a Sub Rogue (yes, I really can hear you Combat Rogues groaning and slapping your foreheads) but I have to admit, questing with her has been pretty fun.  I haven’t had much trouble taking out mobs my own level (though I’m still not good enough to solo Luzran (/bonk).  Plus, I really enjoy one- or two-shotting the occasional Scourge in the Tainted Scar. =D

Back on the Alliance side of the server, I also rolled what was supposed to be a new bank alt and was really happy to be able to name him, Quirk.  Before I knew it, I’d leveled him up to 19 quicker than Tyrna and even brought up his Secondary Skillset to Expert levels (though not yet maxed).

Speaking of Quirk, I’d been thinking about the possiblity of starting my own guild… tentatively named ‘Quirks in Progress’.  Being a truly terrible altoholic, most of my experience in WoW has been in leveling numerous alts to 30.  Now, I’m by no means an expert on any class, but I’m sure that I’ve got something to offer to those who are brand new to the game, starting new alts, or just working on getting their first mount.  Interestingly enough, there’s a pertinent article over at WoWInsider [link].

We’ll see what happens…

Heads Up

/woot

As amazingly alluring, appealing, and addictive as Azeroth is (yes, I’m a sucker for alliteration), the urge to muck around in Photoshop was too much for me to resist today.  And so, for a change, I actually managed to come up with a brand-spankin’ new header for this blog.

Credit goes to Ray Larabie for his spectacular collection of free (and pay) fonts, available here.  For anyone interested, the font used was Stereofidelic.

Ah, and it also came to my attention that there is another WP blog with the same name as mine… perhaps I should change?  Or should I think up a snazzy sub-title to append instead?  Hmmm…  Decisions, decisions, decisions…

Time to roll some dice.

Safe travels, all!

Set Adrift on Travelling Ships

Botched reference to PM Dawn aside, I thought I’d try a little something different on my newest hunter (Tyrna, US-Terokkar).

Basically, I’m trying to “push the limits” of a corpse run, while trying to tame a Springpaw Stalker in Eversong Woods.  This isn’t the first time I’ve tamed one of these lynxes, but the first time I tried using portals and ships while corpse-running.

I’ve seen and read many testimonials confirming this, but it’s nice to be able to confirm it for myself.  So yeah: in a word (or three), it all works.  The particular method I used tonight involves the usual death-release-run tactic, but incorporates: 1) running towards your ultimate goal, specifically, the Spirit Healer closest to your intended destination while in Ghost Form, 2) logging out at that Spirit Healer, 3) logging back in and resurrecting there (and crossing your fingers that you haven’t accidentally rez’d near any enemy guards; see below).

What frustrates me about using this technique is that I’m not necessarily familiar with exactly where all these various Spirit Healers are located.  I’m pretty sure that MetaMap, Cartographer, or any other map mod would have this info available natively or as a plug-in/database.  I’m using Cartographer right now, but haven’t taken time to learn its ins-and-outs yet.  Anyway, I think it might be handy for me to put up a list that I can refer to online, so I’m temporarily typing up a few of the ones I encounter in Eversong right now.

• Silvermoon City ( 48.0, 49.6 )
  Slightly East (to the Right) of road leading South from Falconwing Square, right along the wall outside the Ruins of Silvermoon; this is usually the GY I use, as it seems relatively safe (haven’t yet noticed any guards patrolling the immediate vicinity (at least, till you wander onto the main roads).
• Farstrider Retreat ( 60.0, 64.0 )
  Just used this one and it’s suicide (found that out the hard way!).  It’s in the SW (Bottom-left) corner of the Village icon on the Eversong Woods map; above the “F” in “Farstrider Retreat”; rear of main building.
• Fairbreeze Village ( 44.3, 71.2 )
  Visited this one in Ghost Form, before I rez’d at the spot above and it looked equally suicidal; approx. NNE (topcenter-right) corner of Town icon; between the 2 buildings.

Since I tend to be a bit wordy (alright… very wordy) with my descriptions, I’ve plotted the above coordinates here. Maybe someday, I’ll get around to plotting some more of these GY’s; no promises though! =)

By the way, full credit for the Ghost Travel tip goes to Tiiaa (and Mania) via Mania’s Arcania. Linkage here.

Surviving the Character Creation Screen

Greetings, traveler!

Common sense tells us to begin our tales at their beginnings… which is precisely why I will begin mine nearly a year and a half since I first engaged my arch-nemesis, the Character Creation Screen, in deadly combat.

If you were to ask who I am (as opposed to just clicking on the link to the About page), I would tell you that I am naught but a simple (hu)man of Azeroth, rising from the vineyards of Northshire Valley to the lofty heights of Outland, wielding sword and board in the name of Justice and the Light, as I strive to earn fame and (increased!) reputation with my fellow Alliance races.

Well, now that’s not entirely true… for I have, on many an occasion, styled myself as a proud Draenei!

Yes: noble and strong, my faith in the Light has helped me pass many a test; for Draenei am I, and I am Naaru-blessed! (/woot Racial Heal!) I have many sweet memories of my (mis)adventures: from the broken remains of the Exodar to the solemn beauty of glimmering Shattrath.  Indeed, I fondly remember riding my elekk mount onto the Aldor Rise elevator, turning about, and gasping at the wondrous sight of the Terrace of Light and the Lower City below… or was I gasping because my elekk suddenly had the urge to ride out to meet this wondrous sight by walking out into thin air? Alas, my death came swiftly that day… but I am comforted that my chin-drils wafted nobly in the breeze as I fell.

Yes: chin-drils can waft. And they can do so nobly. Because it’s funny and I said so.

Ah, but for all the times that I have walked among the Draenei and called them my own, I have also numbered myself among the brave and boisterous Dwarves. Battling my way out of the trogg-and-troll infested crags of Dun Morogh, I would laugh with loud (and often drunken) abandon, hewing stone-and-bone-alike with my trusty ax (Ax?! What fault did spell-check find with “axe”?!), as my bullets blazed a path of exploration across the land. Ah, and to trudge into the comforting warmth and glow of Ironforge after long treks in the wilderness… nothing could spoil such a welcome respite… except for that incessant Myra Turngaarde and her damnable (but admittedly delicious) “fresh bread”…

Thinking on it now, I have also (on a whim) sported the sprite-ly shoes of an eccentric Gnome! Displaced from my beloved Gnomeregan, I braved the harsh cold (and burning daylight! Ouch!) of Dun Morogh to strengthen my resolve (and my small, lanky frame) and battle on towards a brighter future. In doing so, I crossed my fingers (all 8, plus a few mechanical ones I had lying around!) that I would have time to invent! Ah, gnomes: WE were the mothers (and fathers) of invention (/cackle), relying on equal parts of brilliance and madness from our ‘expansive minds’ to engineer ever more marvelous and tech-gnome-logically advanced… um…. erm… doodads! Dynamic doodads! No, no, no… not dynamic doodads. (C’mon ‘expansive mind’ o’ mine! You can string out more alliteration than that!) Ah, I mean… divinely-dynamic-and-daring-doodads designed for devilish, dastardly, and death-defyingly-demonic-destruction! (/woot)

Ah, and then there were the times when I shunned the forces of the arcane and cloaked myself in the mysterious and mystical shrouds of the reclusive Night Elves. Reluctantly, I heeded the call of the wilds beyond the safety of Teldrassil and went out into the wider world to restore balance to a world so changed by the magicks I had grown to detest.  Far and farther-still did my travels take me, with my cunning, agility, and innate ability to ‘meld into the shadows’ all serving me well. I became expert at stalking shadows in the forest and hearing whispers on the winds; I mean, with ears like that… you know… you hear things…

So, yes… where were we? That’s right, you’d asked, “Who are you, Quirk?” That, my new friends, is a question I can’t answer…

Because I’m still staring at the Character Creation Screen, trying to decide on a new race for yet another alt…

‘Til next time, then! Safe travels!