Big Kids at Play

Available Arena Gear Season 8

2010-02-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

The 8th season of WoW arena has arrived! For the last two seasons I have posted a spreadsheet containing the arena gear available for the season. Well this season I will be taking on a more daunting task by making a spreadsheet for each class and their different specs (suggested by a friend Thanks Sean)! Each sheet will contain a gear list for the current season and the two previous seasons. I will also be making a separate sheet for Wintergrasp, but it will not be broken up into specs. I will start with, of course the Paladin, and will add links to the different classes and specs as I finish them. If you have a specific one you would like to see, send an email to bigkidsatplay@gmail.com or leave a comment below. Those who leave comments, or email, asking for their class and spec will get them first!

There have been some changes to the normal way that Blizzard puts the arena gear up for sale in season 8. Some of the current season 8 gear is available for just honor and no rating required. The set pieces still require a rating, but bracers, neck, ring, and cloak do not. The previous seasons gear usually still requires some rating to buy, but this season all you need is the honor and arena points. This is a big change allowing players to gear up so that they are are on a more even level as they move into the higher ranks. This should be an interesting season to say the least.

Now to start the list:

Holy Paladin:
PDF
Death Knights (Included One-Hand Weapons For Dual Wield)
PDF
Hunters (Should have just made a sheet will everything but plate. LOL)
PDF

I hope to have a few more by the end of the week, so remember to get your requests in by comment or email soon. Thanks for reading and as always HAVE FUN!

PVP Experiment: Fear the Cat!

2010-01-31T05:10:00.000-08:00

It has been a little while since my last PVP Experiment update and there has been quite a bit of progress and my druid is level 28! Instead of including a summary as usual, I have added a feed to the right side of the site. The feed will include the last 5 entries from the new WoW armory feed. If you would like to see more please click on Allyoucaneat's armory link also on the right of the page.

After starting my new paladin a little while ago and reeking some havoc in battlegrounds, I thought it might be fun to change things up. I went to the friendly druid trainer and for another small fee, *POOF* I am feral. It is time to unleash on the PVP world, my cat form dps!

The first game of Warsong Gulch begins, I buff my fellow pvpers and then shift into the form that is now going to be the bane of all who dare cross my path. I rush out of the gate as it falls to release me. Exiting the base I run past the graveyard and with the grace and agility of a cat, I leap to the battlefield below. Heading towards the lower entrance of our base I spot a group of Alliance heading my way. I immediately begin to prowl, waiting for the group to pass and targeting the one who is last in line. Just as the last one passes, turning his back to me, I strike. Claws clash against armor, their tips piercing flesh, as the paladin turns, More annoyed then injured, he swings is mighty two-handed blade and engages me in combat. I rip and tear as he swings with all his might and in the end, lets just say I was not victorious. I continued to queue up as a cat for quite a few more games, but I had forgotten something in my quest for glory. I am horrible at melee dps.

I don't know what it is. It seems I was meant to be a caster. Sure I can level a toon melee in PVE, but don't ask me to rank high on the DPS charts in instances and raids. In BGs even I can get lucky and take down a flag carrier occasionally, but I am never a consistent threat. It is just not what I am good at.

So as far as this experiment goes I will stick with what I know, and thats healing. I will get my fill of DPS from the occasional Moonfire and Wrath spam. It seems to work for me. Thank you for reading and as always HAVE FUN!

New Year's Resolutions

2010-01-28T09:59:00.000-08:00

As the new year comes about, there are millions upon millions of people around the world making New Year's resolutions. There are many things one might want to change about their lives. Some want to quit smoking, others lose weight, or give more to charity. I am no different. I want to get more organized, get back on track with my eating choices and save more money, but I have also made another decision that effects my new year in WoW.

I think everyone has their favorite class or classes in WoW. My favorites are the hybrid classes, paladin, druid, shaman to be exact. I have an 80 paladin, an 80 shaman and I am leveling a druid for my PVP Experiment. The advantages to playing these classes is that I can fit into most any group with just a change in talent spec and gear. The disadvantages are that even with dual spec, it can can get expensive if you have to re spec outside of your two main specs and the amount of gear you have to have is always filling up your bank and bags. It is for these reasons that I have made one of my resolutions, to level another Paladin to level cap.

My paladin is my main and if you see me online it is usually on him. He is dual specced holy/retribution right now, but I find myself re speccing to protection when the need for a tank arises. I also like to try out new specs for arena and during the arena season I normally have two healing specs, one for 2s and one for 3s. At 50g a re spec it gets expensive fast. Yes there are dailies and plenty of gold to be had, but it is just annoying to think i am doing dailies just so I can pay my re spec bills. There are plenty of other things I would rather spend it on. I have many alts already so making one more can't hurt and besides maybe I can get some use out of this one. I haven't decided what specs i will choose for the new pally, but I am sure I will cover all of them. Thanks for reading and as always HAVE FUN!

Dungeon Finder For Low Levels

2009-12-23T16:11:00.000-08:00

So 3.3 has been out for a few weeks and the good reviews are popping up everywhere. One of the things I have read most about is the Dungeon Finder. I haven't used the Dungeon Finder on any of my 80s, but a couple days ago I decided to check it out on my level 24 priest. Wow!!!! This is one of the best tools that Blizzard has released for leveling alts in a long time.

As a healer, the longest wait I have had is about 5 minutes and I gained 3 levels in about 4 instance runs! I always choose the random option and get the added bonus of a Satchel of Helpful Goods, which contains a nice level appropriate blue item. The blues aren't always class appropriate, but since I can DE it is a free shard each run.

I plan on using the Dungeon Finder on my paladin to get through some heroics and get truimph badges for Furious Gladiator gear. If my low level experience and the good things I hear are any indication, I am sure I will enjoy it as well. Thank you for reading, feel free to comment and as always have fun!

Guild = Drama?

2009-12-22T10:32:00.000-08:00

Since I started playing WoW over 2 years ago, I have only been in three guilds.

The first guild was high drama and did the "More Dots" yelling during a raid. With me being new to WoW I was nervous about raiding, add a raid leader that yelled and I was sick to my stomach and never wanted to raid again! So my DH and I decided to take time away from the guild and start working on some Alliance toons on a different server. It wasn't too long after that we heard that the main two guild leaders had cleared out the guild bank and disbanded the guild without telling anyone.

The second guild my DH and I created along with 2 other family members and a friend from the first guild. Everything was great, we had 5 people so we could do raids and we each had a different crafting skill so we didn't have to beg in trade chat for enchants or misc things. We did eventually bring in two or three new people but that was it. Eventually the other family members left and we decided to go back to the Horde. The time in this guild was enjoyable, the drama was minimal, but being such a small guild made it feel like we were required to play every day.

Guild number three is our current guild and I am loving it! The guild leader has become a good friend, and the guildies are fun to play with. The drama is under control, everyone shares and helps out whether it be needing to run raids to get gear or doing some farming for mats. The "no stress" atmosphere has given me the opportunity to take occasional breaks away from WoW to have what I call "ME" time. I don't feel guilty that I am not there, and I know that when I return I will not be kicked but welcomed back with open arms.

Now THAT is a guild!

Lights, Camera, Action!!

2009-12-18T10:54:00.000-08:00

What is today? Only one of the greatest anticipated movie release days in I don't know how long, well ok not so long if you count the New Moon release a few weeks ago, all hail Edward!

Anyway, I am talking about Avatar! And it is out today! I am so looking forward to seeing all the special effects that they have given us a small glimpse of in the previews. I wonder how much of Avatar is real and how much is computer generated. You know what, who cares, as long as it is Sci-Fi and blows my mind I am awesomely entertained!

See you at the movies!
Darkndreamy

Not Enough Time

2009-12-14T11:49:00.000-08:00

You know there is really not enough time in the day to do everything I want to do. That includes everything I want to do in WoW.

Think about it, you get up in the morning and go to work. Then you come home and have this mile long list of everything you want to do in WoW! Below is a sample of what I try to do:

Lvl 80 Deathknight
1. Do the Ravasaur mount quest daily for 20 days, I’m on #13!
2. Daily cooking quest (for cooking hat)
3. Daily fishing quest (for fishing hat)
4. Make sure you have an oracle egg and get a new one every 7 days when it hatches into an aged yoke instead of a flying mount *sigh.
5. Be available to disenchant or enchant guildies items. (which I love doing btw!)
6. Do daily heroic instance to earn badges.
7. Do as many other heroic instances to earn older badge for gear to hold you up meanwhile.
8. Do daily PVP
9. Do Arenas

Lvl 80 Priest
10. Log onto second lvl 80 toon and do the above quests all over again. Well not the Ravasaur one, I can only deal with one at a time thank you!
11. Work on alchemy flasks, that is if I have any herbs!
12. Transmute gems
13. Work on daily quests to earn enough gold for epic Northrend flying.

Think this is enough to do every day in Wow? Now, add the fact that my DH (dear hubby) and I have just purchased a Wii and Rock Bank for our PS3 yeah! When exactly will I fit all that in between WoW? Don’t have a clue but it’s gotta work somehow! Why you ask? Because my DH and I are nuts, plain and simple! Woot!

PVP Experiment: Bottom of the Bracket

2009-11-23T06:53:00.000-08:00

After hitting 20 I was able to do Arathi Basin, but the daily still seemed to be only WSG. Well I've done that BG enough so no problem right? Wrong!! The thing I failed to take into account was that I am now at the bottom of the level bracket. So the things I used to do as a 18 or 19 with 1400 health in bear form, aren't nearly as easy now. There are 9 levels seperating me and the highest players in my bracket. They do enough damage that it makes my health bar seem small in comparison. This is why I chose a hybrid class for this experiment.

Now that my flag running abilities are not the best, I just pay a visit and some gold to my trainer and poof I'm a healer! I can now effect the outcome of a game in a completely different way. Instead of being the flag runner I now protect them. My travel form is now used to keep up as opposed to getting ahead. Having the ability to change my role in BGs also keeps leveling from being as boring and will give me a better understanding of all my class can do at higher levels.

All in all I am enjoying this experience. I look forward to each new level, every new BG, but most of all being able to share everything with others. Thank you for reading and as always, HAVE FUN!

PVP Experiment: Ding Level 20!!!!

2009-11-18T20:36:00.001-08:00

The PVP Experiment is back in full swing and my druid has been hard at work! As the title of this post says, he is now level 20! At least now I have a choice of 2 BGs. I was tearing up the 10-19 WSG bracket but now that I am back to the bottom the bracket, it is a whole new world.

Since I haven't posted in a little while about the experiment I would like to give a summary of some of the achievements and other things that I accomplished since the last PVP experiment post that I made.

ACHIEVEMENTS

• IRONMAN
• NOT SO FAST

PVP GEAR

• Advisor's Gnarled Staff
• Scout's Blade
• Rune of Perfection

MISC.

• DING 16, 17 18, 19 and 20!!
• 4700 HKs Almost to the 5000 Honorable Kills Achievement
• I HAVE A MOUNT!!!!! (actually 3)

I have also picked up a few pieces of the lvl 28 gear from the WSG vendor and should have all of them soon. Then it is on to the AB pieces. Hopefully the leveling will pick up now that I can do AB. There are more objectives to gain experience and that makes for quicker levels when everyone is on the ball.

I wanted to elaborate a little on professions in the experiment. I have found that since I waited as long as I did to pick them up that now there aren't any creatures in Mulgore that will grant me XP for killing them. So I am able to go out to mine and skin without worrying about the XP gain from outside BGs. Everything I gather, I sell on the AH and now this toon is able to support itself. I find time to really mine and skin heavy when there is long waits between BGs and everything I collect sells really well.

I will be making more frequent updates as my experiment continues and also dropping some tips for anyone crazy enough to give it a try themselves. Until next time, thanks for reading and as always HAVE FUN!!!

PVP Experiment Continued

2009-11-14T00:12:00.001-08:00

As anyone who reads the blog will know, I started a PVP experiment a little while back. In this experiment, I leveled a toon to 10 and started leveling him in only battlegrounds. Well there were some interruptions to that experiment and I haven't played that toon in about a month. I decided after I leveled my 71 warrior to 80, that I would devote some time to this toon now. He his currently level 17 and has all the gear from the Warsong vendors that he can use when he turns 18, so my short term goal is to get him there. Obviously the long term goal would be to take him to 80, but we will see if I can withstand the long journey.

I also decided that I was going to be less technical about the project and spend a little more time just sharing my experiences with our readers. So over the next few days, keep checking back to read about my adventures in Warsong Gulch and soon Arathi Basin. Thank you for reading and as always HAVE FUN!

My First Warhammer 40k Miniature!

2009-11-11T20:17:00.000-08:00

About 6 months ago I got the all too familiar urge to try something new. Usually this urge is gaming related , and this time was no different. I had always been impressed with Games Workshop and their Warhammer universe so I decided to look into it more. I did my normal stuff my brain with info from the web and found out there was a Games Workshop store not far from where I live. Dark and I decided to check it out. Road Trip!

That next weekend we made the 30 minute drive, ate breakfast, then headed to the mall. Trying to pretend I wasn't anxious, we made a loop around the mall looking here and there, until finally we arrived at the store I had been waiting to see. As I looked upon the magnificent sight. I am sure there was a bit of drool forming. It was enough to make a grown geek shed a tear. The tables were setup as battlefields awaiting miniature armies and the wars they will wage. On every wall were miniature armies just waiting for a commander to prepare them for the battles ahead. There were also a number of painting stations so you could assemble and paint your armies. We looked around the store looking at all the different sets of miniatures and watching one of the battles already underway. Just inside the door of the store there were a few smaller battlefields setup and as we were looking at those, one of the store employees came up and offered us a demo. We chose Warhammer 40k for our demo and then we were off. After a short battle, we decided that it would be fun, and we picked up a starter set for 40k and a hobby kit with paints, glue, clippers, and such.

The next day we setup a card table, covered it with newspaper, and began constructing our armies. a few hours of clipping, glueing, trimming, and some OCD perfecting we had a few of each of the armies ready for a base coat of paint. I took them outside and used some spray primer to expertly undercoat them. Tired from all the intense concentration and attention to detail we decided to place them in a small box and come back to it later.

Six months, or so later, my best friend of 17 years came into town and was going to be in the area of the store where we purchased or Warhammer figures and after visiting the store I decided I needed to paint the things. Late that night I was sitting and playing WoW with Dark and she decided to go to bed. I logged into my PVP only toon and was going to do some BGs, but logged out of game when I remembered there were Ultramarines in the closet and they needed some attention. I pulled all of the stuff from the closet got to work. Two hours later, I had finished the painstaking process of painting my first Warhammer miniature. I have some pictures below. I still have to finish the base, but for the most part it is finished. It was a lot of fun, even though there were tense moments, but I learned a lot about technique and style. Thank you for reading and as always Have Fun!!

Extra Life 2009: The Last 12 hours!

2009-10-17T18:33:00.000-07:00

9:00pm - Hanging out with the Kalu'ak, after I figured out I wasn't going to be completing a group 3 quest by myself lol. So for now, the walrus people it is.

10:00pm - I had to train because I forgot to when I hit 74. Still just trucking along about halfway to 75. I am hoping to at least hit 78 before it is all over.

11:00pm - Time is just flying by! I am going through a few quests I missed. Hopefully moving on from BT soon.

12:00am - 8 hours left! I am at 142/150 quests in Borean Tundra and about 3 and a half bars from being level 75! It is going to start getting very interesting lol. Lets see what happens the real fatigue starts to set in.

1:00am - Hallows End has started in WoW. I just got my first handful of candy :D DING 75! Finished Borean Tundra and have already started Dragonblight.

2:00am Well Dark had to call it for the night but she will make up her time later. She lasted longer the either of us thought she would. I had a quick shower and now I am back and ready to blast through Dragonblight as fast as I can!

3:00am Well I broke out the Rockstar energy drinks! Very Very Tired! I am pushing forward through Dragonblight as best I can. I will finish this! LOL

4:00am Taking a moment to look at my gear and the gear that I can make for myself at this level. Just a few more ours to go! Even though I won't make it to 80 I am very happy to see my warrior leveling up. This toon has sat for a long time.

5:00am The rockstar helped and I am crafting some gear. I have been sending a lot of stuff to my bank toon so I had to go and send some back to make the gear. I still hope to hit 76 before this is over so wish me luck lol.

6:00am - 2 more hours!! OMG I am ready for it. These last couple of hours are going to be brutal. I am already starting to get heavy heavy eyelids and making mistakes in game like running into mobs that I know are there, passing up mobs and places I need to go etc..

7:00am - Last Hour!!! I am going to spend this last hour cleaning up bags and bank. I have lots of loot to go through, so I am done questing. I am sitting at level 75 1/2. Not a bad run. 3 levels and lots of gold and loot!

8:00am - I just want to say thank you to everyone who donated for this event. I had personal reasons for participating in this event and I hope what money I was able to raise, will help Texas Children's Hospital in some way. They saved the lives of more then one child in my family and this is my way of giving back. Also I would like to mention that the fundraising page will be up until October 31st. If you didn't get to donate before tonight you can still do so before that date. Thank you again.

Extra Life 2009: The First 12 hours!

2009-10-17T06:31:00.000-07:00

8:00 am - We are in game and starting out leveling our 72 horde toons in Howling Fjord. Breakfast has been eaten and the coffee is a brewing.

9:00 am - OK, so off to a slow start. Dark is catching up on the quest chain that I am on. We are doing quests at Scalawag Point trying to finish off the quest achievement in Howling Fjord. We are both level 72 and shooting for 80.

10:00am - Things are moving along now we completed the last of the 105 quests needed for I've toured the Fjord we are moving into boron tundra for a little while, but not sure yet if we are going to finish it before moving on to Dragonblight.

11:00 am - We are tearing up the starting Warsong Hold quests in Borean Tundra. Just accidentally fell off a ramp and picked up the Going Down achievement. Gathering a lot of cobalt along the way and have even picked a piece of armor or two as well from the quests.

12:00pm - Now about 35 quests into Borean Tundra, 5 of which I still need to turn in. Less then one bar till 73, then I will make myself two Honed Cobalt Cleavers to dual wield =) and I may have some other gear in the bank to wear. Dark is not much for leveling these areas so she is on one of her lower level toons. Later we will do some more leveling in Dragonblight together.

1:00pm - Now have my new weapons and am moving on to other parts of Borean Tundra currently Amber Ledge. Dark and I are about to head to Dragon Blight so we will see how the leveling goes through the quests there and then if she needs a break and to go back to her level toon, I will come back to Borean Tundra.

2:00pm - Dark decided to play her low level more, so i am still trekking through the Borean Tundra. Currently at 51/150 quests out here after 150 I will be moving to Dragonblight.

3:00pm - LEVEL LEVEL LEVEL still not 74, but i am half way. Just cruising along through BT questing. Took a short break for food and other necessities and now back at it. Having lots of fun. If your reading please leave an comments, or questions in the comments section of this post or at bigkidsatplay@gmail.com

4:00pm - Well 8 hours down and still kicking, not a lot going on just questing still lol. I have over 300g so far not sure of an exact number but it is nice

5:00 pm - Woot!! Pizza is on its way and i will be take a short break for food, but more then likely I will be in front of the computer while eating. Up to 80/150 quests in BT can't wait for Dragonblight! Dark is still on her mage she is leveling and is almost 25. It is going to be wild time and it is just getting started :D

6:00pm - Well this is my first time through Northrend on the Horde side and I have to say that they have some interesting quests. I am almost 74 now and still trucking along. The realization that it is almost 7pm and there are still over 13 hours left in this event is finally setting in lol. I am going to be zombie by the time this thing is through.

7:00pm - DING! 74 and I am up to 95 of 150 in BT and I just got through killing some robots. Killing robots is very annoying especially when they continually say things like "Intruder ALert! Intruder ALert!"

8:00pm - 12 more hours to go and I as I get closer to moving out of this area I feel almost a second wind pushing me forward, but also unless I get moving I am not sure I will hit my goal of being level 80 before the event is over. That doesn't mean I have given up it just means I see how long the last 2 levels have taken me and if it continues that way I will likely hit 77 instead of 80. I am going to start a second post for the next 12 hours. See you there!

Extra Life 2009: It's here!

2009-10-17T06:16:00.000-07:00

Ok I am in WoW and I have coffee, Mountain Dew, food, etc... Dark and I are starting the 24 hour journey that is Extra Life 2009. For those who do not know, Extra Life is a charity event where gamers play there favorite games for 24 hours and get people to make donations for each hour they play. If you would like more info you can click here

As the 24 hours goes on I will be making hourly updates on the blog. Stay tuned as we make our way through Azeroth and help raise money for pediatric cancer reasearch. To donation click the Extra Life link at the top right of the page.

Thanks for reading and as always, Have Fun!

Free Realms: Soccer Star!

2009-10-07T19:24:00.000-07:00

The sun is shining brightly as I take a deep breath and smile at the glorious smell of fresh cut grass. Stepping onto the field, I see a crowd gathering. They came to see the game, they came to see the action, and they came to see me. I am a soccer star!

Well at least I am in Free Realms. On October 2nd, SOE introduced the new soccer mini game and the new soccer star job in an update to their casual MMO. This job makes number 16 and adds a whole new type of gameplay to a game that already offers so much to its players.

I logged in on Friday night to level my brawler and after a few quests I noticed the load screen was announcing the soccer release. Curiosity got the best of me; I opened up the map and teleported to the Snowhill soccer field to give it a try. I looked around the field until I spotted the familiar quest marker over the head of a man in a suit named Manager Landon. He handed me a few jerseys and asked me to take them to some players on a hill not far from the field. I passed out the jerseys to the guys and they made me a part of the team. I headed back to the field and played my first game of soccer and immediately I was hooked.

I found myself playing through countless games and completing quests before realizing it was late and that I was already level 14! I had really only hit one speed bump and that was the quest where you have to make 15 steals in one game and win the game. I understand that I am not the only one who has had trouble with this quest, but I finally finished it after many tries then headed to bed.

Saturday evening I laced up the cleats and headed back to the field and spent a few more hours doing quests and playing more games of soccer then I can count. The one thing I didn’t get to do was play a game as a group and I am really looking forward to that as well. I am now level 18 and hope to hit 20 when I get a little extra time to play.

Overall I think soccer will be a very popular job in Free Realms and even those who are not that into sports will enjoy it. It will definitely keep players coming back for more of the world we love to play in.

Thank you for reading and as always Have Fun!

Changes they are a coming!

2009-10-04T12:26:00.000-07:00

There are going to be some changes to the site. From the look, to the content. I hope that our readers will enjoy the changes. Feel free to comment and make suggestions either on this post, or by email at bigkidsatplay@gmail.com Thank you for reading!

Free Realms: Our other MMO

2009-09-29T17:30:00.000-07:00

Even though I write a lot about WoW, it isn’t the only MMO that I play. There are times when I just want to play something different and relax. One of the games that I really enjoy at those times is Free Realms. I can already here the comments. Free realms is a kids game! What is wrong with you? Free Realms…Really!? While it is true that SOE markets Free Realms heavily to kids, I find the simplicity of the game, very relaxing. However, the main reason I like Free Realms is it’s flexibility. There are 15 jobs in Free Realms that you can switch on the fly. Unlike most MMOs, your aren’t locked into the choice of a class and when you want to change you don’t have to re-roll a brand new toon. You just click a couple of buttons and your outfit changes with your job. Over the next few weeks I will be posting a series of articles about each of the jobs, adding more Free Realms content to the site, and maybe including some in game video, recorded with the video capture option included in the game. To check it out go to freerealms.com and sign up for an account. The game client downloads quickly and you'll be playing in no time!

Thanks for reading and as always Have Fun!

Extra Life Fundraiser

2009-09-15T19:57:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to take a moment to talk about a great event that is being organized by the people at SarcasticGamer.com and Texas Children's Hospital

The event is called Extra Life. Extra Life is a 24-hour gaming marathon to fund pediatric cancer research and treatment. Big Kids at Play is joining the effort to raise money and would like our readers to help in anyway they can.

Extra Life 2009 will take place on Saturday, October 17th, 2009 as gamers from all corners of the globe come together for a 24-hour video game marathon raising money to strike a blow against pediatric cancer. Last year, Extra Life raised more than $120,000 and was put together in just a couple of months. This year, they are starting early and throwing open the doors of Extra Life to anyone who wants to have fun while making a difference.

There are two ways that you can help.

1. Click the link at the top of this post, or on the top right of our site, to go to our fundraising page and sponsor Chks(David) as he takes on the challenge of gaming for 24 hours straight.

2. Click the link on the top of this post, or on the top right of our site, then click on the Big Kids at Play Team link. Once you are on the team page, click the link to create your own fundraising page and join the team. The only thing left to do is to get as many of your friends, family or others to sponsor your efforts as you take on the challenge of gaming 24 hours straight.

Extra Life begins at exactly 8:00 AM in your local timezone on Saturday, October 17th and ends at 8:00 AM in your local timezone on Sunday, October 18th. This gives people that have to work on Friday a chance to rest up and be fresh when it begins.

For more information you just click on the link at the top of this post, or on the top right of our site, and click the link to the Extra Life website in the left navigation menu or got to http://extralife.sarcasticgamer.com

MLG Dallas Part 1

2009-09-09T20:39:00.000-07:00

This post is long in itself and will be one of two, maybe three posts about the event. I rant about things(That's just what I do), but in the end we had a great time and would suggest if you get the chance, you should attend an MLG event too.

On August 29, Dark and I had the opportunity to attend the second day of the Major League Gaming Dallas event. MLG Dallas was the third of five events on the MLG's 2009 Pro Circuit. The event consists of multiple tournaments for video games including, Halo 3, Gears of War 2, and of course WoW 3v3 Arena. Does anyone want to guess what we were there to see?

Our morning started early. After fighting with a Saturday morning alarm clock, making sure we had everything we wanted to take (which still wasn't everything), and starting our drive, we finally arrived at the Hotel Anatole just outside of downtown Dallas. The only parking we found was paid, which was a bit ridiculous for a hotel in my opinion, but we parked the car and forgot all about it. As we headed for the door the geeky excitement started to kick in and only grew as we made our way towards the hall the event was being held in. We bought our passes and then made our way through the door and into the hall. Passing through the door was more like passing through a portal that lead to geek nirvana.

No matter which way you turned there was some sort of video game being played. Xbox 360s and flat panel monitors as far as the eye could see. Huge screens with all the action projected onto them and the impressive main stage which I found out, much to my disappointment, would only be filled with Halo 3 fans. As we made our way to the back of the hall we found what we were here to see, the WoW tournament setup.

It wasn't at all what I expected. Instead of the main stage I mentioned earlier, there were four long tables in sets of two. On each set of tables, were six monitors, three on one side and three on the other facing opposite each other. Under the tables, each monitor was connected to an HP Blackbird tower. This is where the gladiators would do battle. As for the spectators area, there wasn't one. Not a single screen showing the action, no chairs to sit and watch, it was as if they didn't expect anyone. After fighting with a security guard we were allowed to enter the tournament area and stand watching the first teams prepare for their games. In the beginning this was actually pretty cool. We were able to watch the different ways that each player used their keyboard and mouse to control their characters. It was all up close and personal but soon standing and trying to see the action became the challenge as more people showed up to watch.

After a few matches Dark was tired of standing and starting to get thirsty so I grabbed her one of the very few chairs that was not being used by players, or staff giving her a chance to sit as I went to get us both something to drink. When I returned I was informed that the staff and the security team had confined the spectators to a small area in front of the tournament area to watch from a distance. I was not happy and in what was probably not my finest moment I made it known. Dark looked at me during this time like she didn't even know who I was as the, WoW fan boy in me took over and I gave anyone who would listen, or who was within earshot a piece of my mind. The details of that piece of my mind will not be repeated here in its entirety, because there may be ladies and children present. To sum it up I told them it was outrageous that we, along with the other spectators had paid our money and should be treated no different those people who were watching the other tournaments in the main hall. I also mentioned that we didn't pay to stand at a distance and watch players pound the buttons on their keyboards. We came to see the matches and the fact that there wasn't at least one screen showing the action was appalling. The worst part about it was that there was a monitor not in use just on the other side of the room. My rant caught the attention of someone who happened to organize this portion of the event ( I am sorry that his name has slipped my mind because he was, for lack of a better term Awesome. So grey MLG hoodie guy, thanks for everything) and he said it would be ok if we watched the action from behind the players as long as we weren't leaning over their shoulders. I thanked him, apologized for my outburst and he was understanding. A few minutes later he came back to Dark and I and informed us that they were setting up the unused monitor we had seen earlier so that it would play the live stream that was being shown on the internet. I once again thanked him and then things were looking up. For the moment anyway.

As we STOOD watching the monitor, which didn't have any sound, I heard a voice to my right and looked over to see and overhear a staff member saying some things I didn't find flattering about WoW arena PVP. Already in one of those moods my mouth opened and my opinion came out and he and I were engaged in what turned out to be a good conversation. We talked about the tournament, the setup and what I believed was wrong about the experience we had so far. Once again the full details I don't have room for here but I found out the man's name was Lee and that he did seem to care about what was going on, but was under some constraints that I could understand. Lee did get the ball rolling and shortly after our talk, the sound was added to our screen and the chairs for the WoW spectators began to show up and so did more spectators. From this point on we had a great time cheering for our favorites in each match, meeting new people, and just enjoying the atmosphere. We stayed for every single match and at the end of the night, my ranting was rewarded with thanks from another one of the staff, Devon, who was appreciative that now they had a spectator area they didn't have before. For this Dark and I were treated to some time on the tournament realms using the same computers that the players had used that day. It was a great ending to a overall great day. Thanks again guys for all your hard work.

Old School Project: On Hold!

2009-09-08T20:38:00.001-07:00

Due to some real life happenings we have lost some of the people that were joining us in our Old School Project. I will be making a couple of posts that are way overdue, but I do not know when, or even if they will continue anytime soon. I will keep everyone posted as I know more. For those who have read and enjoyed the stories, thank you for reading and I hope to bring more stories like them soon.

PVP Gear Season 7

2009-09-08T20:13:00.000-07:00

Arena Season 7 started as of September 1st and boy am I ready to get started. As I did in Season 6, I have updated my spreadsheet showing the costs for the different PVP gear that is available. Relentless Gladiator has taken the top spot and made some of the other gear more accessible to those who are not high in the arena rankings.

I won't go on and on with the details, but if you want a better understanding of how PVP gear rotates each season, check out my previous post on the subject.

Here is the Google Docs link to the new spreadsheet.
PVP Gear Available in Season 7

Thank you for reading and as always HAVE FUN!

WEEK 3: Over and Over Again!

2009-08-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

Welcome back! The third week of the experiment is a little more eventful then last week. As usual I will start with a summary of the week and here it is.

• Ding! Finally 14!

• Reached 100 Warsong Gulch Marks of Honor.

• Bought some gear for level 18 so that I could make room for more marks. The items I picked up were:

o Advisor's Ring
o Battle Healer's Cloak
o Scout's Medallion
o Legionnaire's Band

• I also picked up my Insignia of the Horde! I got the achievement Freedom of the Horde when it was equipped

• I also got the achievement Capture the Flag for running a flag straight up the middle of the field while everyone was fighting it out.

• Ding! 15 happened on Sunday this week since I sat watching Blizzcon on the internet stream Friday and Saturday. I love having a computer hooked up to the T.V. in the living room!

That's about it for the happenings this week, but as usual there are a few things that I wanted to write about.

Leveling in PVP at such a low level doesn't offer much of a variety of battlegrounds to choose from. Warsong Gulch is all there is until level 20. Though it does get repetitive, there are a couple of things that can be very rewarding and fun about competing in the same BG many times. You are able obtain a better understanding of the BG itself. You learn what works and what doesn't. If you can find a way to get people to work together, then winning becomes a lot easier. One thing I have learned from all the time I have spent in WSG and other BGs on different toons is, calling people names, typing in ALL CAPS, cursing people out and being all around jerk, won't get you anywhere. I know this because when someone acts that way the last thing I want to do is listen to what they think is the right way to win. I came up with a couple of things that I like to do during each battleground that seems to help get most people to work together.

The first thing that I do in each battleground is to introduce myself in a way that is fun. I made a macro to help with this and it simply sends a message in to BG chat that says: Thank you for joining the Horde Battlegrounds! I am Allyoucaneat and I will be your healer today! Please remember to keep your FCs alive and just as important, kill all Ally FCs as they try to get away. Work as a team and we will win! Have Fun All! :D. It seems to lighten the mood a little and it is generally well received. I also make a suggestion on strategy. I do so in a way that allows people to agree or not agree with it and I don't push the issue. As the BG progresses I sometimes make suggestions and I always compliment others on a job well done. The one thing that all of this does is make for an enjoyable game no matter if we win or lose.

The other thing about playing the same BG repeatedly is that you start seeing the same people playing with you. You get to know their play styles and what they are good at. This helps to know what you can do to make for a more productive and fun game. Stewie, Bekko, and Thorval are just a some of the players I have had great fun playing alongside of. Just remember you may not always win, but you can still enjoy the game.

Thanks for reading and as always Have Fun!

WEEK 2: Slow Week.

2009-08-17T19:04:00.000-07:00

Due to time constraints and a few other personal happenings, this wasn't a very eventful PVP Experiment week. Here is a brief summary.

· Leveled 3/4 of the way to 14.
· About 500 more honor to go and I can get my Insignia of the Horde.

I did play a few BGs this week. I even spent most of the night on Tuesday trying to get to 14, but as I said last week, the XP you gain in BGs relies heavily on the performance of your team. When your team immediately heads for mid field and starts an all out war, you lose a major chunk of your XP even if you win.

Now that XP gains are available in BGs and the Twinks are actually pushing 20 and turning off their XP, the number of low level toons in WSG has grown substantially. After spending a lot of time with them, it has become apparent that either people don't know the rules and objectives of WSG, or they don't know about the changes that have come recently.

Since I didn't have much play time this week I decided to take a little time to put together a guide to help people in learning what the rules and objectives of WSG are and to offer some strategies that some might find useful. Look for it soon! Thank you for reading and until next time Have Fun!

WoW Patch 3.2 items

2009-08-11T03:25:00.000-07:00

Now that the 3.2 patch has become live, man oh man the changes! I know everyone has their favorites, but mine has got to be the mounts at level 20. I mean come on, who wouldn't want that change, woot! With it, the new prices for mounts make it a bit easier on the pocket book and even that much faster to your albino drake.

Another one I like is... hitting the "shift" button while mousing over a piece of gear in your bags. This will show you stats of what your wearing vs. what your mousing over side by side. Very nice, no more opening your character sheet and going back and forth.

And then there is getting XP in battlegrounds, or choosing to turn off your XP all together. Now I feel like I am not totally wasting my time in BG's. Even though the XP does not equal to the amount you receive from doing quests, it sure is better than nothing! No XP also means, twinks will be only going against twinks in battlegrounds. And I know some of you are heartbroken over this... NOT!

Other new items are the new Northrend BG, the newly revised Argent Tourney area, the new Northrend Instance all things I plan on checking out on my lvl 80 DK later. For now, I am taking it one relaxing step at a time!

Enjoy!

Darkndreamy
Alliance lvl 80 DK
Malygos

PVP Experiment: The First Week!

2009-08-10T19:58:00.000-07:00

THE FIRST WEEK!

Ok so here is the wrap up for the week. I will try to post this every Monday and make some twitter updates throughout the week for achievements and leveling etc...

· Tuesday 8/4 - Experiment begins - Leveled from 5 to 8

· Wednesdays 8/5 - Made it almost to 10 and bought some gear from the AH in preparation for tomorrow.

· Thursday 8/6 - DING! Level 10! Equipped the gear I bought and picked up a couple more pieces and headed into Warsong Gulch. Picked up the Grim Reaper Achievement. Ended the day halfway to 11.

· Friday 8/7 - DING! Level 11! Also picked up the Warsong Gulch Victory, Warsong Gulch Perfection, Not In My House, and Know Thy Enemy. Ended the day over halfway to 12

· Saturday 8/8 - Ding! Level 12! Hit 500 Honorable Kills and a quick /hug got me Make Love Not Warcraft.

· Sunday 8/9 - Ding! Level 13! Wrapped up the week with Supreme Defender and 1000 Honorable Kills!

As a healer I follow the pack and try to keep them alive. As I level up I have been known to toss around some Moonfire spam and often times when the action dies down a sec I am feeding my drink addiction. On the bright side the vendor I buy my drinks from just got a brand new kodo from my business alone. I can honestly say I have had a blast so far! Experience in battlegrounds adds a whole new way to enjoy the game.

It is nowhere near as fast as leveling through quests, and the speed at which you level is entirely based on the performance of your team. The XP you earn is from the objectives in the battlegrounds, not the honorable kills and with the addition of the 20 minute timer, the old HK farming style of WSG won't get you very far if you're trying to level. If your team is willing to run flags and play the BG like it was made to be played then you will certainly see your XP bar climb. Here is a chart I have been working on as I level. It shows the XP gained from WSG at different levels.

10- 19 WSG XP Gains Per Objective

The goal of this experiment is ultimately to level without PVE questing and to see if it is viable to do so. I think it is a great way to level, but I would suggest picking up some gathering profession for something to do when the queue is long or you just need a break. If you chose the right ones the abilities and bonuses you receive will help you when you're in the BGs. The money isn't bad either. Another option would be to prepare for higher levels with a crafting profession that will allow you to make yourself some gear.

I will be trying out some professions myself in this new week and I will keep you all posted. I will receive some XP from the necessary killing while out and about, but it still won't be from PVE quests. I hope that you enjoy following me in this experiment and until next time, HAVE FUN!!